Chapter 28. How to stop hiccups
I think sometimes, just like the body hiccups when it is stimulated, the pursuit of happiness and companionship is also a human instinct.
Ruan Tang left her mother and went upstairs, rushing to the corner of the fifth and a half floor. She saw a man with half-white hair standing at the door, taking things from Feng Xue and carrying them into the house.
He looked down at the noise and greeted Ruan Tang with a kind smile, "Is that you, Tang Tang? Come up and have a rest and drink some tea. I just made some."
Ruan Tang's mother caught up with her breath, took Ruan Tang's arm and introduced: This... is you... Uncle Li, call someone.
The atmosphere dropped to freezing point with Ruan Tang's cold face. Uncle Li patted Feng Xue's shoulder and invited him in. He waved to the mother and daughter and said: The way is clear, let's go inside first.
The house was tidy and bright, with no signs of a man's presence. Next to the TV cabinet were photos of Ruan Tang participating in a cultural performance when she was in elementary school. However, sitting on the small sofa, she felt uncomfortable, as if she was a guest in someone else's home.
Uncle Li poured two cups of tea and placed them in front of Feng Xue and Ruan Tang respectively. Ruan Tang suddenly remembered that her mother was a woman with excessive mysophobia. Nothing could be piled on the coffee table, and the garbage in the trash can could not be left for more than half a day. She used to complain: Every time you come back, home is like a garbage dump. In fact, she just put a few bags of snacks on the coffee table, but now, the coffee table is full of Uncle Li's tea set.
Ruan Tang's mother was sitting on a small stool nearby. Ruan Tang tried to pull her over to sit on the sofa, but she waved her hands, saying that there was a chicken stewing in the kitchen and it would be more convenient for her to sit here and watch the pot.
She pushed Ruan Tang back, glanced at Lao Li, pursed her lips and smiled embarrassedly: Tangtang, since you bring your boyfriend home today, Mom also wants you to meet Uncle Li formally. Later, Uncle Li's daughter Xiaoting and her husband will come over, and we will have a meal together. We will be a family in the future.
"So this is what you wanted to tell me," Ruan Tang retracted her gaze and turned her head to look at Uncle Li, smiling faintly: You have become a family with others, but I am not.
Feng Xue, who was sitting next to her, gently tugged at the corner of her clothes.
Uncle Li looked a little embarrassed, but he still tried to smooth things over with a smile: "It's a bit sudden, haha, I need to give Tangtang some time to digest it. Actually, your mother and I have known each other for a long time..."
"Just call me Ruan Tang." Ruan Tang took out a half-empty bottle of mineral water from her bag, gulped down a few mouthfuls, and interrupted him.
Feng Xue saw Ruan Tang's mother and Uncle Li looking at each other, pretending not to notice the awkward atmosphere, and asked enthusiastically: "Auntie, are you stewing chicken?" No wonder I smelled the fragrance at the door just now.
"Oh! Yes." Ruan Tang's mother stood up, "Xiaoting will be here soon, right? Let's eat first and talk while we eat." After that, she pulled Ruan Tang, who looked reluctant, to the dining table.
Uncle Li walked into the kitchen first and brought out the dishes. Feng Xue wanted to go over to help, but was pushed back by him.
The four of them had just sat down at the dining table when there was a noise outside and a young couple came in. The woman pinched her throat and pretended to be enthusiastic: It's so lively, it seems we are late, have you already eaten?
Ruan Tang's mother stood up with a smile, pulled out the chair next to her, and said: No way, we're all waiting for you two.
When Ruan Tang raised her eyes, the first thing she saw was a pair of feet wearing flesh-colored stockings and white synthetic leather sandals. She couldn't help but want to pinch their philtrum.
"This is my daughter Ruan Tang and her boyfriend Feng Xue. Tangtang, this is your uncle Li's daughter Xiaoting, and this is Leilei." Ruan Tang's mother put one hand on Xiaoting's shoulder and introduced them.
Xiaoting exclaimed: Oh, my brother-in-law is wearing Armani, he is indeed a successful man.
Ruan Tang frowned, looked at the bowl in front of her and said: Mom, I haven't eaten rice for several years.
The young couple looked at each other. Xiaoting picked up the bowl in front of Ruan Tang and put all the rice into her own bowl. She said, "It's okay. I'll eat it for my sister. We have spare ribs today."
Ruan Tang's mother smiled happily: I know you like to eat this, I have remembered it, I made some more today and divided it into several meals, you can take it back later.
Xiaoting took a bite of the spareribs and suddenly remembered: Oh, by the way, the dumplings at home are almost finished. Auntie, when you have time, please pack some and freeze them. I’ll come and get them.
Uncle Li frowned and scolded: You two have been married for several years, it’s time for you to learn to live your own lives!
"I'm your only daughter. If you don't love me, who else will you love? By the way, aunt, it's been too hot these two days. I saw that you seem to have a new summer quilt at home. I'll take it back later." Xiaoting said, and a grain of rice flew out of her mouth and landed on Ruan Tang's arm, like the last straw that broke the camel's back.
She put down her chopsticks heavily, and Ruan Tang's mother quickly kicked her calf under the table and said with a smile: Okay, everything we old people have will be yours in the future, just take whatever you want.
Before Ruan Tang could get angry, Xiao Ting laughed and said: What are you talking about? My dad's pension is more than 5,000 yuan a month. Aunt, you are really good at calculating. It seems that you are planning to let my dad give a dowry when Sister Tang gets married in the future.
Uncle Li also slammed his chopsticks on the table: It’s my business how I want to spend my money!
Ruan Tang's mother quickly acted as a peacemaker: "No, no, I don't have to pay for my daughter's wedding. You see that car downstairs? It belongs to Feng Xue. They have their own futures, and we old people don't have to worry about it."
Ruan Tang smiled faintly, nodded and said: That's right, Mom, you can rest assured to stick to them and don't have to worry about me.
She looked at Uncle Li and said with a smile: In the past, people said that divorced women with children were a burden. Now that men and women are equal, old men can also take care of young women and eat and take things away from them. On the contrary, they think that others are after their meager pensions. Uncle, don’t you think that the times are progressing?
"Who are you calling a burden?" Xiaoting slammed the table and almost overturned it.
If time could go back, Ruan Tang's mother would never let the daughters from the two families sit together.
The two of them were arguing with each other, and it was unclear who attacked the other first. They immediately started with the most intense hair-pulling session. Lei Lei saw his wife taking action and also stepped forward to join the fight, grabbing Ruan Tang's arm and throwing her out. Feng Xue flashed forward and supported Ruan Tang, pushing Lei Lei away, and punched him.
Ruan Tang's mother's eyes were red, and she shouted "Stop hitting her" and went to help her daughter. Feng Xue pressed her against the wall and taught her a lesson: Who taught you to hit a woman?
Feng Xue has always had a habit of fitness. After he was released, he ran errands and delivered goods every day and built up a muscular body. He easily restrained the other party and he couldn't resist.
Ignoring Lao Li's attempts to stop her, Xiao Ting grabbed Ruan Tang's mother's finger and pointed at Feng Xue, throwing a tantrum: "Let me tell you, my husband relies on his reputation to make a living in the government. If he gets hurt today, you guys can expect to pay for it! You said you'd treat me and my dad well, but now that burdened man you brought home is beating my husband like this? You're an old widow who doesn't even act like a prostitute. If I could let you into my house, I'd take your last name!"
Ruan Tang pushed Feng Xue, who was blocking her way, aside and rushed to her mother, pulling Xiao Ting away. Before she could recover, she raised her hand and slapped her in the face: "How dare you two scoundrels call others a burden? Take your father who makes 5,000 yuan a month and go back to support him!"
As she spoke, she turned, picked up the basin of spare ribs on the table, and threw it at Xiaoting. The basin of spare ribs exploded at Xiaoting's feet, staining her stockings and sandals a maroon red. Xiaoting instantly let out a groundhog scream and rushed towards Ruan Tang like a madman, but was blocked by Feng Xue.
“Bang!”
The sound of a wine bottle breaking silenced all the noise. Everyone looked towards the source of the sound in surprise and saw the old man lying on the ground.
Seeing that everyone had quieted down, the old man slowly got up from the ground and said in a deep voice to his daughter and son-in-law: Go home!
"Old Li..." Ruan Tang's mother reached out to stop him, but was pulled back by Ruan Tang.
After Old Li's family left, Ruan Tang and her daughter hugged each other and cried bitterly in the messy room. Feng Xue stood there at a loss for a while, then turned around and silently picked up the broken wine bottle and pork ribs on the ground.
"I'm only thinking about bringing you to Beijing to enjoy a good life in the future. What about you? You don't know where you found an old man and then you start serving him. Haven't you suffered enough for most of your life?"
Ruan Tang's mother murmured tearfully, "Your Uncle Li is a good man. I just want you to... settle down quickly and not cause you any trouble. People say that young couples grow old together..."
Ruan Tang pushed her hand away and complained, "Why are you so confused? What partner? He's just old and wants a free babysitter!"
Feng Xue came over and helped Ruan Tang's mother up from the ground, and advised softly: Auntie, I shouldn't have interrupted, but there is an old saying that a gentleman does not stand under a dangerous wall. Even if Uncle Li is a good man worthy of trust, with this pair of daughter and son-in-law around, you will definitely not live a peaceful life. Wouldn't Ruan Tang be even more worried about you then?
He spoke very logically, and Ruan Tang's mother didn't say anything more. She told the two of them to rest for a while and went back to the bedroom.
Towards evening, Ruan Tang's mother finally calmed down and started preparing to cook for the two of them.
Seeing that Ruan Tang still looked worried, Feng Xue suggested that Ruan Tang take her out for a walk around the area and took her out.
The two of them chose a barbecue stall and ordered a dozen beers. Ruan Tang drank half of the bottle in one breath and began to cry while telling her mother's sad story.
"You don't know, my mother had a very hard life in the first half of her life. How come she forgot the lessons she learned in her youth when she got old, and became love-brained and started to believe in scheming old men? I really... hiccup...don't understand... hiccup..." She suddenly started to hiccup continuously.
She gulped down two gulps of beer, but still couldn't stop. Feng Xue saw her crying and hiccuping, and couldn't help but want to laugh, but when she saw her looking at him with tears in her eyes, she quickly became serious, took out her phone, turned on the timer, and said: Come on, do it with me, take a deep breath, okay, then hold your breath, let the breath sink, and hold for 15 seconds.
Ruan Tang's eyes were originally red, and now her whole face started to turn red, and her mouth was puffed up like an angry bird.
"Okay, come on, exhale." Feng Xue waved his hand slowly. Ruan Tang rolled his eyes and said in surprise: We really don't want to fight anymore!
Feng Xue took a bite of the skewer and said: I think sometimes, just like when the body is stimulated, it will hiccup. It is also human instinct to pursue happiness and companionship. You have to understand Auntie.
"Pursue happiness and companionship," Ruan Tang pondered for a moment, took a skewer of meat and asked while eating: Can holding your breath for fifteen seconds stop your instinct?
"Probably." Feng Xue answered after hesitating for a while, then waved to the boss and asked for two more bottles of beer.
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