Chapter 60: The Nearest and Farthest East and West
There was still some traffic congestion when the car drove onto the Third Ring Road. The driver seemed to be in a hurry and kept rolling down the window to check the road conditions ahead. Gusts of cold wind blew in, making Ruan Tang sneeze several times.
She suddenly stopped being anxious and leisurely turned on the real-time surveillance in the store to see what Feng Xue was doing.
There was a sign saying "temporarily closed" hanging at the door of the store. Feng Xue was pacing back and forth in the store alone, with his head down, seemingly in deep thought. His facial expression could not be seen clearly.
Ruan Tang remembered that Feng Xue suggested installing a camera at home a few days ago so that they could see what Tiantian was doing when they were not at home during the day. At that time, Ruan Tang thought it was unnecessary, as kittens just eat, sleep and run around. Now she suddenly understood the fun of it.
Feng Xue stopped in front of the counter, pulled out a chair, sat down, picked up his phone and started typing frantically.
Who is he chatting with?
Ruan Tang exited the camera app and opened the WeChat dialog box with Feng Xue, but there were no new messages and the other party was not typing.
Could it be her? Ruan Tang leaned over to look at the driver's map. There was still a section of road with red lights on it, and she suddenly felt a little anxious.
When she walked to the door of the store and looked inside through the glass window, Feng Xue was still concentrating on typing frantically on her mobile phone. Her heart sank.
"I'm back." Ruan Tang pretended to know nothing, smiled, pushed the door open, looked at him and asked: What are you doing?
"Nothing," Feng Xue quickly switched the phone interface back to the desktop, turned around and smiled at her, stood up and poured her a cup of hot water, and asked: Is it very cold?
"Well," Ruan Tang pulled out the chair next to him and sat down, "How are you, kid?"
"When I was his age, I ran around in the alleys with Yingjun and the others all day long. I didn't expect that my child could not even walk steadily. I wanted to hold his hand, but he suddenly got angry..." Feng Xue shook his head and sighed, looked at Ruan Tang, and said softly: But thank you anyway.
Ruan Tang shook Feng Xue's hand and said: You should thank Yi Huan. If she doesn't agree to see you, there's nothing I can do.
"By the way, what do you want to tell me?" Feng Xue wrapped Ruan Tang's hand in his palm, smiling a little reluctantly.
"Oh, yes. I just went to see Tracy. Firstly, she asked me to tell her about the business situation over the past six months, and secondly, I don't plan to accept her investment for the time being."
"Ah?" Feng Xue looked particularly surprised. He raised his hand and accidentally knocked over the water cup on the table. The water dripped along the edge of the table onto Ruan Tang's coat.
She screamed, jumped up, and rushed to the bathroom to deal with it. "This is the Maxmara I just bought last year!"
Feng Xue apologized repeatedly towards the bathroom, his hands busy trying to save the two phones on the table. Ruan Tang's phone was closer to the water cup, so he wiped it carefully with a tissue and peeled off the phone case, and the photo fell out.
When Ruan Tang came out of the bathroom, Feng Xue had already sat back down at the table, his brows gleaming with a hint of joy. She couldn't fathom what she could be happy about right now, so she assumed she'd misread it. She checked her phone, lit up the screen, and finally breathed a sigh of relief, confirming it was working properly.
"Why were you so excited just now? Are you really planning to be my good wife after the store opens?" Ruan Tang joked with a smile, but unexpectedly Feng Xue nodded very sincerely and said: I have asked the agent to sell the store, and I estimate that someone will come to take over the house after the new year. It seems that our careers as bosses are over.
Ruan Tang jumped up from the chair again, her eyes wide open, with an expression of disbelief: Why didn’t you discuss it with me?
"I thought opening a coffee shop like that was what you wanted. This wasn't meant to be a surprise for you."
Ruan Tang sank into her chair, pinched her brows, took two deep breaths, and asked, "Have you ever thought about going back to your previous job?" That way, it would be much more comfortable than now, and I could also earn more money to pay for the child's support.
After she finished speaking, Feng Xue was silent for a moment, his expression became a little gloomy. He changed the subject and asked her: So you originally planned to keep the store open?
In fact, this was not the first time that Ruan Tang had mentioned this during their relationship. Every time, he was selectively deaf like today. He was confident that he could make money no matter what profession he was in. Now, she finally had a powerful whip called children. She really wanted to ask, the father in "Rain Man" gave his younger son a normal environment for growth and left a large sum of money to his older son with autism, so what could he do?
But when the words came to her lips, she suddenly couldn't bear to poke his scars. Everyone always makes some decisions at certain moments in life that seem incomprehensible to others, right? For example, she rejected Tracy's investment.
She smiled and said: Nothing is difficult in life as long as you are willing to give up, and I have something I want to do right now.
Feng Xue was not surprised to hear that she wanted to go out for a walk and read a book, but just asked why she suddenly wanted to read?
Ruan Tang said, "When I was little, I was skeptical of teachers' statements like 'knowledge changes destiny.' I couldn't understand why teachers, so knowledgeable, would wear the same pair of sandals for three summers and only use the ugly "Excellent Teacher" award for their thermoses." As I reached my twenties, I became even more convinced of my previous beliefs. My friends circled around middle school friends who had gotten into top universities, complaining about the 996 work schedule and complaining about their children being "money-eaters," while I was decked out in designer clothes, driving luxury cars, and frequenting high-end restaurants and shopping malls. But recently, when I chatted with people around me and filled out copywriting for videos and photos, I realized that I'd been living a superficial life.
Feng Xue just looked at her quietly, looking into his eyes. Ruan Tang felt that they had never been so close, not even those late nights when he lay on her chest and breathed softly.
On the way back, Ruan Tang prepared a hundred ways of opening remarks, just to pave the way for the sentence "One of the reasons why I liked you at the beginning was because I thought you were very responsible. Raising a child is a complicated matter, so do you want to break up?" But looking into his eyes, she changed her mind and decided to give the choice to him, asking: What about you, what do you want to tell me?
Feng Xue glanced at his phone, shook his head, and said, "Nothing, just closing the store. What do you want to eat tonight? Didn't you say you wanted to eat pickled cabbage and pork belly in Sanya?"
Ruan Tang didn't expect that the person who reacted most strongly to her wanting to study abroad was her mother.
When Xu Wei learned of her decision, she applauded and said it was cool. The next day, she called Ruan Tang and said that she had met some study abroad agencies because of Lin Shen and wanted to take her to meet them.
When Ruan Tang's mother found the store, Feng Xue was processing a takeaway order. Because he was not experienced, he was inevitably a little flustered. When he saw her, he was stunned for a moment, then quickly put down the coffee beans in his hand and went up to greet her.
"Auntie, why didn't you tell me in advance so that I could pick you up at the station." Feng Xue hurried to take the suitcase from Ruan Tang's mother.
Ruan Tang's mother looked less than 1.6 meters tall, probably because of her age, her stature looked even shorter. She was dragging a suitcase and carrying a large bag on her shoulder. When Feng Xue took the suitcase and was about to take the large bag, Ruan Tang's mother suddenly swung the large bag and hit Feng Xue.
"Is it you?! Are you bullying my Tangtang?" Feng Xue subconsciously reached out to block it. The heavy bag tumbled to the ground with a thud. She ignored it and grabbed Feng Xue's sleeve and hit him on the back. "Why is she running away abroad out of the blue?"
An elderly woman wearing a red armband happened to be passing by the store. When she saw the scene inside, she immediately rushed in and shouted in a Beijing accent: This is a civilized street, old lady. If you have something to say, please say it nicely. Why are you using violence?
While Feng Xue was being fought, he waved to the aunt and said: Auntie, it's okay, this is my mother.
"Who's your mother? I don't have a child like you! You have no conscience!"
When the street lady saw that it was a family dispute, she sighed helplessly and advised: This young man is not bad. Although he made principled mistakes and was imprisoned before, no one is perfect. You can't hold on to him.
"What? You've been in there before?" Ruan Tang's mother's eyes narrowed, her legs went weak and she almost fell.
Feng Xue supported Ruan Tang's mother and thanked the street auntie, repeatedly saying that he had nothing to do here and she could go about her business. Only then did the auntie turn around and leave, hesitant to speak.
Ruan Tang's mother leaned back on the sofa, clutching her chest and taking a deep breath. Feng Xue poured a cup of hot water and placed it in front of her. Without even looking up, she asked coldly, "Who came up with the idea to deceive me? Are you still that girl?"
"Well...you are asking what I lied to you about?" Feng Xue looked a little embarrassed.
Ruan Tang's mother's eyes widened instantly and she asked: How many things have you guys cheated me of together?
Feng Xue glanced at the phone under the table. Ruan Tang hadn't replied to his WeChat message yet. He took a deep breath and said, "I did have a criminal record two years ago because I was framed. What Ruan Tang told you was my job a few years ago. Now I... opened this small shop. I usually take orders and deliver goods, and also..."
"Anything else?" Ruan Tang's mother raised her voice while holding the water cup. Feng Xue felt that if he continued, the water cup would most likely appear on his head, so he swallowed what he was about to say and continued: Also, we have a good relationship. Ruan Tang wants to go out to study and enrich herself.
Ruan Tang's mother sneered unhappily and asked: If she is happy with you, how can she feel unfulfilled?
Feng Xue: ...
"Auntie, you are right. I did not do well. I should reflect on it."
Seeing that he had a good attitude, Ruan Tang's mother's anger subsided a little, and she continued to ask: Then your house and car are not fake too, right?
"No, the house... is mine, and the car... I didn't drive my own car last time."
"Is it?" Ruan Tang's mother crossed her arms in front of her chest and sighed, and asked: What about your car?
Feng Xue hesitated for a moment and pointed outside the window. When Ruan Tang's mother followed his gaze and turned to look at the motorcycle outside the window, her chest tightened and she almost fainted.
Ruan Tang came out of the study abroad agency and saw Feng Xue's WeChat message saying that her mother came to see her and was at the store. She immediately asked Xu Wei to play along, saying that she was now sharing the apartment with her.
Finally, she clasped her hands together and pleaded with Xu Wei, saying, "Please, please, I'll go and apologize to Mr. Jia later..."
Xu Wei rolled her eyes and interrupted her: "What does it have to do with him? You and your mother can stay here. My guest room is empty anyway."
It was not until she met Xu Wei that Ruan Tang's mother finally showed a good face. She took Xu Wei's hand and shook it tightly, praising her to the skies. Ruan Tang never knew that her mother's vocabulary was so rich. Before she had time to sigh, Ruan Tang's mother pulled Xu Wei to criticize her daughter, as if she had committed an unforgivable crime by finding a man like that.
Xu Wei kept smiling and responding, feeling emotional in her heart.
She thought: If Aunt Ruan knew that it was me who encouraged Ruan Tang and Feng Xue to develop a relationship, she would probably spit in her face to vent her anger.
At night, Ruan Tang and her daughter slept in the guest room which had been decorated and was "full of life". Ruan Tang's mother closed the door tightly and whispered: Tell me honestly, going abroad is just a talk. You actually want to find a place to distance yourself from that Feng guy and slowly break up with him, right?
Ruan Tang asked with a smile: Didn’t you tell me at the beginning that I shouldn’t look for a man who is too rich, and that it would be best to find someone who is down-to-earth and can live a good life?
Ruan Tang's mother reached out and poked her forehead hard, cursing in a low voice: I told you not to be too rich, but you can't run a small business like me. You can't guarantee yourself from drought or flood. How will you raise your children in the future?
"Didn't you raise me? I'm growing up so well. Look out the window, that tallest one, the China Zun. It's the tallest place in Beijing. How many people can live in a house that can see the tallest building in Beijing?" Ruan Tang lowered her head to paint her toenails.
Ruan Tang's mother sat cross-legged beside her, glanced outside, and said dissatisfiedly: It's just a temporary rental anyway, I can still live next to the Forbidden City.
"That's right. As long as you want, Zhongnanhai is not impossible."
"You're so unruly." Ruan Tang's mother kicked her again. Her hand shook, and nail polish smeared on the back of her foot. Ruan Tang's mother leaned against the headboard, looking out the window at the China Zun, muttering: "When I was with your father, their factory wasn't doing well. Later, I thought about it and realized what I was after. I just wanted him to make me happy. After I got married and had you, their steel plant was completely ruined, but I never feared it. My parents left me some money, so I went out to set up a stall and do some small business. I often rode my bike to buy slippers before dawn. Later, the stall didn't make much money, so I also opened a breakfast stall. I was often busy from morning till night. I thought life would get better and better, but what about your father? He taught me that he could make me happy, and he could make others happy. The most important thing was to see him happy. Tangtang, I may have said some things you didn't like before, but when it comes to marriage, you must never get angry with me. Do you think a man will appreciate you for going through hardships with him?
Ruan Tang simply wiped off all the nail polish with a wet wipe, crawled into bed, closed her eyes, and said: Mom, I know, I know what's going on, and don't mention the old almanac anymore.
"Tell me, are you already living with him?" Ruan Tang's mother pushed her and asked relentlessly.
Ruan Tang suddenly opened her eyes, pretended to yawn, rubbed her hair, and said: What are you talking about? I live here.
"Don't try to fool me. I just saw that none of the bras in this closet are your size."
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