Chapter 29 Returning Home
Cheng Che pushed his luggage off the high-speed train as the broadcast sounded, changed transportation twice, and finally arrived at his destination after more than an hour of bumpy ride.
This is a small border town in a third-tier city with an underdeveloped economy. The streets are wide but not very popular, and there are no tall buildings. The only two things that the town can show off are an Anti-Japanese War Museum and a not-so-high Jingshan Mountain.
Cheng Che's family was relocated here from the countryside several years ago. At that time, the country's newly built railway port happened to pass through Chengjia Village. The villagers gave out a large amount of relocation compensation. Those who had money moved to more distant cities to settle down, and those who had no money waited for the government's resettlement housing and moved in.
Cheng Che's family is not rich.
The Cheng family consists of two elderly people, three sons, and one daughter. The eldest son made a fortune in the door and window business and settled down in the city early. The second son is a scholar who runs a small supermarket in town. The third son is Cheng Che's father, an unemployed vagrant.
Cheng Che has no mother. His mother was killed in a car accident when he was in the third year of junior high school. He lived with his grandparents throughout his three years of high school, so he can cook, clean the house, and take care of people because the two elderly people need him.
After the college entrance examination, Cheng Che left home. He would call his grandmother and send them food, clothes and pocket money, but he never came back once.
Grandpa knew that his grandson was going home, so he went to the market to buy vegetables at seven in the morning. Grandma was busy all day, and after preparing the meal, she waited for Cheng Che at the door. The old people had been waiting for a long time and finally saw their grandson come home.
"Come on, come on, let grandma carry it for you. You must be frozen."
She stood in the wind and snow waiting for Cheng Che, the tip of her nose red, and there seemed to be a few more wrinkles at the corners of her eyes. Cheng Che took her hand and scolded her in a low voice: "Why did you come out? I can raise it myself."
Grandma hugged his arm and said with a smile: "Grandpa bought you some pork ribs, and they are stewed in the pot."
In the resettlement building without an elevator, grandma seemed to have difficulty climbing. She coughed quietly to avoid Cheng Che, then smiled and said, "Is school very hard? Why have you lost so much weight? Are you eating well? If you don't have enough money, ask grandpa for it. He hides a lot of private money every day..."
Cheng Che put down his luggage on the middle platform and squatted in front of her. "I'll carry you up. You have bronchitis, so you should avoid climbing stairs. It's so windy outside, why are you waiting for me?"
Grandma slapped him and said angrily, "I can walk! Why do I need a little kid like you to carry me on my back?"
She climbed the stairs even more vigorously, but after a few steps her face was red and she was coughing so hard that she couldn't speak.
Cheng Che's eyes flushed red as he looked at her pale hair and increasingly hunched body. He vaguely remembered that when he was a child, he often compared his height with his grandmother, saying that he had grown to the height of her belly, her chest, and her shoulders... Today, many years later, he was so much taller than his grandmother, and it seemed that he was about to lose her.
"I know you're good, but I wanted to see if I could carry you. Okay?"
Cheng Che coaxed her onto his back and found that she had become much lighter. Her skeleton was protruding, causing pain in his spine. "Will uncle and the others come back to see you?"
"Here, last time you came, you brought me some fruit from Hainan. It was very sweet."
"When did you come?"
"Mid-Autumn Festival."
That was several months ago. Cheng Che had always known that his aunt was dissatisfied with his mother-in-law, feeling that she was partial and always thought about her youngest son. As time went on, the family became estranged from the old woman, and it was rare for her to come once during the holidays.
Cheng Che asked again, "Where's Second Uncle?"
Grandma sighed and said, "The couple was worried about your second sister. Your second sister and her husband insisted on getting a divorce after only a few years of marriage. Susu was so young...ah."
"Don't worry about it, just take care of yourself."
"Why shouldn't I worry? Your second sister is uneducated. She chose the man herself and insisted on marrying him. Now she despises him for being incompetent and wants to divorce him. The poor kid is the one who can't live without a father."
She started to worry again, and at the age of seventy, she was always worried about whether her younger generations were living well.
When they got home, Cheng Che's aunt was cooking. She lived nearby and her son worked in town. When she had nothing to do, she often came to cook and clean the house for the two elderly people.
Cheng Che put his grandmother down and called his aunt and grandfather. The grandfather was watching TV and looking at his little grandson calmly. He was not good at talking and always hid his love.
My aunt was a loudmouth. The news that the Cheng family had produced a brilliant student spread throughout the village. At the dinner table, she kept asking about Cheng Che's college life and occasionally scolded his cousin, "He's just sitting there with a salary of three or four thousand, and he still wants me to buy him a car, saying he can't get married if I don't."
Cheng Che greeted, "Cousin, are you still dating?"
"What's there to talk about? I introduced him to several girls, but he still didn't like them. He thought they were too short and fat. He himself looks like that, so how can he expect to find someone prettier? Besides, are pretty girls meant to be used for living?"
The aunt couldn't stop talking. She talked for the entire meal and finally asked Cheng Che, "Xiao Che is so handsome. Did you have a boyfriend when you went to school? When will you bring him back for me to see?"
Cheng Che said: "No, I don't want to talk about it."
Grandma immediately interrupted, "Why aren't you dating? Our little Che is so handsome and outstanding, he should date someone if he meets the right one. Grandma is looking forward to attending your wedding."
Cheng Che was silent when Li Zimai's message came through: "Have you arrived home? Why haven't you sent any news after waiting for so long?"
He had completely forgotten about this and felt a little guilty. It turned out that someone was really waiting for him to report that he was safe.
[Cheche]: Just arrived. Having dinner now.
【Centimeter】：[Picture]
[Li]: I am eating too. I will go to France to visit my parents in a couple of days. I will celebrate the Chinese New Year there this year.
The photo he shared was of a corner of the dining table, not the square table in the apartment. It might be at his own home. The surrounding furnishings were low-key and luxurious, and there seemed to be an aunt busy in the corner.
【Li】: Or should I come and play with you? What fun things are there in your place?
[Cheche]: Don’t come, I don’t have time to take you.
[Li]: Okay, okay. I have a flight at noon the day after tomorrow. There is a time difference there, so I may not be able to see your message. If you have anything, just call me directly. I always have the sound on.
[Cheche]: Nothing much. Happy New Year.
【Li】: Happy New Year!
As a result, something happened on the first day I returned home.
A little after one in the morning, there was a knock on grandma's door. The elderly woman had an alarm installed in her home, and the sound could be heard throughout the building.
As Cheng Che walked out of the room, he saw his grandmother putting on her clothes and preparing to open the door. He immediately understood and asked in a cold voice, "Does he often come knocking on the door so late at night?"
He was Cheng Che's father, the father Cheng Che had never called him.
Grandma looked embarrassed and tried to explain: "Your father might have drunk some alcohol. He doesn't often act like this."
Cheng Che pushed her back to the room and scolded her, "Go to sleep. Why are you getting up in the middle of the night to open the door and not even close the curtains properly?"
The alarm at the door kept ringing and some neighbors were already cursing. Cheng Che forced the old man back into bed and closed the door before slowly walking to the door. He saw the drunken face of the man through the peephole.
Cheng Che looked around, found a clothesline, then raised his hand and opened the security door, his eyes cold and fierce.
Cheng Lijia squinted his eyes for a moment, as if to confirm that this was his son. "Oh, you're back. I thought you were dead outside."
He pushed Cheng Che aside, reeking of alcohol, and plopped down on the sofa, his legs draped over the coffee table. He ordered in a half-hearted tone, "Go make a bowl of noodles for your father."
Cheng Che's grip on the clothesline tightened, veins bulging on the back of his hand beneath his cufflinks, and his back teeth clenched tightly as he spoke word by word, "Do you know what time it is?"
Cheng Lijia didn't hear anything, and raised his voice several degrees, "I told you to cook for me!"
Grandma heard the noise and came out trembling. Grandpa also woke up. They were afraid that the father and son would fight again. Grandma said, "...Xiao Che, go back to the house. I'll go cook noodles for your father."
Cheng Lijia waved his hands at the old woman and said impatiently, "Mom, go in. I have to teach this kid a lesson today. He's simply outrageous."
Cheng Che glanced at his grandmother and said, "Go to bed first."
Grandma hesitated and closed the door, then sat down on the bedside with the awakened grandpa. Tears welled up in her eyes, but she was powerless to do anything. A fierce quarrel broke out outside the room, with sounds of smashing and smashing and ugly words.
Cheng Che's violent temper was accumulated time and time again. When he was a child, he was powerless and could only watch his mother being beaten. When he grew up, he dared to resist but still couldn't win. The one who suffered was still his mother who stood in front of him. Later, his mother passed away, but Cheng Che was not afraid anymore. He could fight the other party to the death with blood all over his head. The neighbors all knew that this was a match between enemies, not father and son.
Cheng Lijia is about 1.8 meters tall and very thin, but he has been moving bricks at the construction site for a long time and his hands are very strong. Cheng Che is often slapped in the face by him until he bleeds, but he never begs for mercy. He stares straight at his father with a cruel and cold look.
Cheng Lijia became more and more afraid of his son and could only resort to harsher methods and more unpleasant words to beat and scold him. After Cheng Che's mother passed away, he gradually lost the ability to control his son.
The night ended with Cheng Lijia being admitted to the hospital with bleeding eyes.
Cheng Che's uncle rushed back from town late at night to take his brother to the hospital. Before leaving, Cheng Che transferred money to his uncle and said, "Let him go, even if he's blind."
Second Uncle sighed and advised, "Xiao Che, you've grown up now, so be more sensible. Your dad is old and won't live long. Let the past be forgotten."
Everyone was trying to persuade Cheng Che to be sensible, using the excuse of blood ties to make him forgive the evil man, and morally blackmailing him, not caring at all about his difficult and hellish childhood.
After everything calmed down, Cheng Che returned to the room with an indifferent expression. His fingernails were black and blue and bleeding from being hit by a stick. There were also several marks on his neck from being pinched.
Grandma knocked on the door and cried, "Xiao Che, Xiao Che... Grandma is looking at you... You know your dad has been drinking and has a bad temper, so don't mess with him..."
Cheng Che's nose felt sore, and his eyes were filled with warm liquid. He forced himself to take a deep breath and comforted her, "It's okay. You and Grandpa can go to sleep first. I'm going to rest too."
By the end of the words, they had become breathless, as if they were about to choke up in the next second.
Grandma kept sobbing quietly outside the room, "...Don't confront your father head-on. He is your father after all. No matter how wrong he is, he is still your father... Your mother is gone, and he only has you..."
Cheng Che sluggishly lay back in bed, struggling to suppress his inner discontent and resentment. Why did he have such a father when others all had healthy families? What had he done wrong in his past life to have such a father?
He watched helplessly as his fingers bled, but he clenched his fists in a self-deprecating manner, allowing the red, sticky liquid to slowly flow out from between his nails.
In the following days, when Cheng Che went out, he could always hear neighbors pointing and talking about him, saying that this was the college student who beat him up, and that he had learned so much that he knew it by heart. Some people also said how could Cheng Lijia, that piece of shit, teach a college student.
Cheng Che didn't care. He was used to the rumors that he was violent, unfilial, and cold-blooded, but he didn't care. The only thing he cared about was the health of his grandparents.
Duan Rui returned the day before Chinese New Year's Eve. His home was only two apartment buildings away from Cheng Che's grandmother's. Everyone in the resettlement area knew each other, so any family scandal would spread like wildfire. Duan Rui came back and put down his luggage, and the first thing he did was to look for Cheng Che, "Did you fight with your uncle again?"
Cheng Che was feeding his grandmother's chickens in the garden downstairs. Hearing this, he responded calmly without any emotion.
Duan Rui noticed that his fingernails were black and anxiously grabbed his hand, "What's wrong? Didn't you apply medicine?"
Cheng Che pulled his hand away, frowning slightly, "It will be fine in a few days. Don't be so squeamish."
Even his fingernail was half broken, but he said it was a small matter and he didn't care at all. Duan Rui felt bad and said angrily, "You know your father is a bad person. When he drinks, his brain becomes unstable. Why are you arguing with him?"
Cheng Che said coldly: "Why don't you bother with him? Do I deserve it?"
Duan Rui's face turned serious and he quickly apologized, "That's not what I meant."
"So what do you mean? Telling me not to mess with him? There's nothing good that can come of messing with him?"
He was rarely so aggressive. Duan Rui was speechless for a moment. It was not until Cheng Che finished feeding the chickens that he softened his tone and said, "I'm sorry, I shouldn't have lost my temper with you."
Duan Rui felt that Cheng Che had changed. He used to be very patient, hiding his emotions well and rarely losing his temper with outsiders. But now he was able to vent his dissatisfaction freely.
"It's okay. If you feel uncomfortable, it's better to say it out."
Duan Rui was about to say something when Cheng Che's phone suddenly rang. It was a video call. Duan Rui caught a glimpse of the word "Li" on the screen.
Cheng Che hung up the phone and said to Duan Rui, "I'll go up first."
Duan Rui asked, "Do you talk to that classmate Li often?"
This was a treatment that Duan Rui had never received in the six or seven years he had known Cheng Che. Cheng Che had only called him a few times on his own initiative, let alone a video call.
Cheng Che shook his head, "Not often."
Duan Rui stopped asking questions. Before leaving, he heard Cheng Che dial a voice message, "What's up?"
"I'm not in a position to reply."
"What's there to see? You're bored."
"I don't want to look at you."
......
He may not have noticed it himself, but when he dialed the number, there was a faint curve at the corner of his mouth.
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