Let's Do Some Questions - Chapter 90

Chu Fengqiu’s heart leaped into her throat. She stood by the river and shook her head at Grandma, who was about to call out to her.

“What’s wrong? Did something bad happen?”

Chu Fengqiu heard a hint of a sob hidden in Song Man’s voice. Her heart tightened, knowing that Song Man must be feeling very upset, otherwise she wouldn’t sound like this. Just this afternoon, she had been fine when she left. In their last phone call, she had excitedly told her she was going to watch the race. Since she wasn’t by her side, she had no idea what had happened to her.

“Yeah.”

Song Man held the phone to her ear, her voice low.

“Song Qinglan hit me.”

Song Man said, full of grievance, her tone accusatory. She didn’t realize how much she sounded like a child who had been bullied and was telling their parent. Song Man also hadn’t expected to say that sentence so smoothly. It was clearly something embarrassing, even very private. She wouldn’t confide in others, not even her parents, but she could say it naturally to Chu Fengqiu. It felt like when she was with Chu Fengqiu, she didn’t want to carry everything on her own anymore, didn’t want to pretend to be indifferent or strong anymore.

Chu Fengqiu’s expression visibly turned cold. She repeatedly clenched and unclenched her fists, controlling her anger, speaking only with heartache.

“Does it hurt?”

“It hurts like hell.”

Song Man complained, pouting, squatting by the roadside, looking pitiful. Actually, in the moment she was hit, the shock outweighed the pain. Song Qinglan hadn’t hit her very hard, but for Song Man, the psychological unacceptability far outweighed the physical pain.

“Where are you now?”

“Outside.”

Song Man answered honestly.

“Go home first. Use a hot compress or apply some medicine…”

Chu Fengqiu’s voice trailed off, and the other end fell silent. Song Man felt a bit strange, thinking her signal was bad, and pressed the phone hard against her ear.

A slightly muffled sound came from the phone, like a gust of wind passing by.

“Let me blow on it, and the pain will fly away.”

Song Man immediately realized what that sound was. Thinking of Chu Fengqiu pouting her lips and blowing into the phone, she couldn’t help but chuckle.

“Lao Chu, are you treating me like a three-year-old?”

“Did Song Three-Year-Old get comforted then?”

“No, you blew on my ear just now, that doesn’t count. You have to blow on my face.”

Song Man hummed, put the phone on speaker, looked at the call background with Chu Fengqiu, and watched the seconds ticking by.

A sound of blowing wind was transmitted through the current to Song Man’s phone. The wind wafted gently, seeming to truly brush against Song Man’s cheek, cooling the heat of the red mark on her face and warming her chest.

“It seems like it really works.”

Song Man murmured.

Hearing this, Chu Fengqiu had a helpless smile on her face. She wanted to pull Song Man into her arms, rub her head, and comfort her properly.

“Remember to go home first, okay? Call me when you get home.”

It was already late, and Chu Fengqiu was worried about Song Man wandering around outside alone; it was too dangerous.

“Okay, I’ll go home now.”

Song Man obediently agreed. After hanging up, she put on her helmet and drove towards her and Chu Fengqiu’s home.

As soon as Song Man parked the car, she couldn’t wait to take out her phone and call Chu Fengqiu. She talked to her while entering the elevator. The signal in the elevator was a bit poor, but not enough to disconnect. After getting home, Song Man flopped onto the bed in her room, holding her phone, feeling a bit listless.

Even though she was on the phone with Chu Fengqiu, even though she knew Chu Fengqiu was no longer in Qingcheng but in Sulan Town, when she opened the door, she still hoped Chu Fengqiu would be waiting for her at home. What was this? She was becoming so strange.

On the other end, Chu Fengqiu was urging Song Man to deal with the injury on her face. Song Man mumbled noncommittally, still not leaving the bed. Chu Fengqiu was a little anxious. She knew Song Man’s personality; she was probably too lazy to open the fridge, boil an egg for herself, and slowly treat the mark on her face. But she was worried that if Song Man’s face wasn’t treated, it would definitely swell up and be uncomfortable. If only she were by Song Man’s side.

“How about using a hot towel to compress it?”

Chu Fengqiu suggested a more feasible method, and Song Man thought that was okay. There was anti-swelling spray at home. Song Man didn’t know if it would work, but she sprayed some on herself anyway.

The air fell silent for a moment. Song Man rubbed her face, staring blankly at the screen.

“Want to listen to some music?”

Chu Fengqiu’s voice was gentle, wanting to make Song Man feel a little better.

“Okay.”

Song Man turned on Bluetooth, connected to the speaker, and played soft, soothing music.

“If you want to talk about it, can you tell me why she hit you?”

Chu Fengqiu frowned, feeling a bit anxious. Song Man had been bullied right after she left, and the person who did it was Song Man’s sister, a family matter. She wasn’t qualified to interfere in this matter yet.

“She’s really got issues.”

Song Man got angry just thinking about it. After being soothed by Chu Fengqiu, the feeling of grievance had mostly dissipated, leaving only a chest full of anger. Song Man wasn’t just cursing; she genuinely felt that Song Qinglan’s ideas were a bit insane. How could she think she should be the person closest to her? That unconcealed possessiveness, which Song Qinglan herself didn’t seem to find strange, made her extremely annoyed.

Song Man explained the whole story from beginning to end, feeling that Song Qinglan was truly unreasonable.

“She doesn’t listen to anything I say. I know the risks myself. And she just told me to give her the keys and wouldn’t let me ride anymore. Why should she kill my interest?”

Song Man complained, even stopping the motion of compressing her face with the towel.

Song Man hadn’t mentioned much about Nanshan Road, but Chu Fengqiu’s heart had already leaped into her throat. She searched online, and pictures of that road track popped up, along with related accident reports, some of which were shocking.

“I can understand her feelings, but I don’t agree with her actions.”

Chu Fengqiu was silent for a moment before speaking. This didn’t mean she understood Song Qinglan’s actions, but she couldn’t imagine how she would feel in that situation. She would find that feeling unbearable.

“Do you also think I’m wrong… also think that kind of activity is too dangerous and shouldn’t participate?”

Song Man felt a bit upset. This discomfort wasn’t directed at anyone, but stemmed from the irreconcilable conflict between care and the things she loved. With Chu Fengqiu, she wouldn’t speak defensively, just felt a bit lonely. She wasn’t unaware that this was dangerous, but liking something is just liking it, it’s not like she was trying to risk her life, so why…?

“How could that be? This isn’t wrong, it’s just your hobby. How could it be wrong? And this is your life, something you like. I’ll try my best to like the things you like.”

Chu Fengqiu knew Song Man loved her motorcycle very much. Song Man always washed the bike herself, not letting anyone else do it. And when she first became friends with Song Man, Deng Wei and the others had said that Song Man cherished her bike so much she wouldn’t let anyone sit on the back seat, which showed how much Song Man valued her beloved bike. Moreover, she also thought the girl straddling the motorcycle was exceptionally cool, making one’s heart flutter.

“But I hope you can promise me one thing.”

“What?”

It wasn’t that she wouldn’t let her ride those technical curves, was it?

“Next time you go to that kind of track, remember to bring me along.”

“Huh?”

Song Man was stunned.

“Because I know you’ll be watching, so I’ll be extra careful?”

“No, when I say bring me along, I mean I want to sit on your back seat.”

Chu Fengqiu spoke slowly and deliberately, clearly stating her intention.

“You’re too cunning!”

Song Man immediately reacted, exclaiming softly, a smile she couldn’t hide on her face. Chu Fengqiu was truly too cunning! She actually thought of using this method as a guarantee! Supporting her to keep riding, but using this method to make her think twice before riding. Chu Fengqiu clearly knew that with her on the bike, how could she possibly ride in a dangerous way that could endanger their lives?

“How am I cunning? I just want to experience the things you like.”

Hearing Song Man laugh, Chu Fengqiu’s own mood brightened. She chuckled softly as she defended herself.

“Hmph, all you do is sweet-talk.”

“Is your face feeling better?”

“It doesn’t hurt much anymore. I’ll compress it a bit longer, then take a shower.”

Song Man also didn’t want her face to swell up. Tomorrow was Lunar New Year’s Eve, and she had to go home. She couldn’t show up to see all those relatives with a slightly swollen face, she still had her pride.

“Okay.”

“Oh right, how are Grandpa and Grandma? Are they doing well?”

“Yeah, they’re doing well.”

Song Man and Chu Fengqiu chatted for a while longer, until the water in the basin was completely cold. Only then did Song Man reluctantly hang up the phone and go to the bathroom to shower.

When Song Man came out wiping her hair after her shower, she received a call from Xu Qinglang.

“Dad, what’s up?”

“Why aren’t you home? Didn’t you say you’d be back tonight so we could go to your maternal grandfather’s place together tomorrow?”

Song Man’s maternal grandfather was Song Zici’s father. He usually lived in the old family home. Song Man’s maternal grandmother had passed away a few years ago. Song Man wasn’t actually very close to her maternal grandparents, and they weren’t particularly fond of Song Man either. It was a normal grandparent-grandchild relationship. Relatively speaking, they probably liked or rather, admired Song Qinglan more.

“I’ll be back tomorrow.”

Song Man couldn’t possibly go home now. Thinking about going back felt annoying, and thinking about seeing Song Qinglan tomorrow was even more annoying.

“Alright then. Call me before you come, or have the driver pick you up directly. Make sure you’re not late!”

Xu Qinglang repeatedly instructed, just worried Song Man would get caught up playing and delay things.

“Got it. I’m going to bed now. Goodnight.”

“Okay, goodnight.”

Song Man hung up the phone and picked up the hairdryer. Before, she didn’t like using a hairdryer, it didn’t feel very comfortable, and she preferred to let it air dry naturally. Chu Fengqiu didn’t think that way. She thought wet hair made it easy to get sick, especially since it was winter, so every time Song Man washed her hair, Chu Fengqiu would patiently take out the hairdryer and dry Song Man’s hair until it was mostly dry. Song Man taking out the hairdryer just now was also a habitual action, thinking Chu Fengqiu would nag her again later. Only when she picked it up to blow-dry did she remember that Chu Fengqiu wasn’t home.

She blew for a while, then didn’t want to anymore, and unplugged it. She looked towards the empty large bed. When Chu Fengqiu was here, she felt the room was full and comforting, but with Chu Fengqiu gone, it felt terrifyingly empty.