Let's Do Some Questions - Chapter 94

On the first afternoon of the new year, Song Man went to her grandparents’ house.

She went with her parents. Song Qinglan didn’t go, and couldn’t go.

Her grandparents were especially happy to see Song Man. When Song Man sweetly greeted them, they gave her red envelopes.

“Where’s Yan Yan?”

Song Man was looking for her younger cousin; she had brought her some tasty treats.

“She’s sulking in her room. Go coax her.”

Grandpa’s face held a hint of helplessness. Song Man gave an OK sign and went to find her cousin with the food.

She knocked a few times. Yan Yan opened the door from inside, her face showing a bit of surprise and delight when she saw Song Man.

“Sister, you’re here!”

“And I brought you your favorite chocolate.”

Song Man shook the chocolate in her hand, seeing the little girl’s face light up with joy.

“But eat less, okay? It’s bad for your teeth.”

“Okay!”

“Grandpa said you were unhappy. What’s wrong? Did they scold you again?”

“No.”

Yan Yan’s expression dimmed, and she shook her head.

“Then why are you unhappy?”

Song Man pinched the little girl’s cheeks. Yan Yan was only five this year, and her serious face looked like a little adult.

“Why do other people have mommies and daddies, but I don’t?”

Yan Yan looked incredibly wronged, gazing at Song Man, feeling down.

Yan Yan’s mother was Xu Qinglang’s sister, Song Man’s paternal aunt.

When she was sixteen and still a minor, she dropped out of school, left home, and eloped with her boyfriend, nearly driving Song Man’s grandparents to death with anger. Grandpa even got sick from it and stayed in the hospital for half a month.

Grandpa and Grandma told Song Man’s dad they wouldn’t acknowledge this daughter anymore. But two years later, Song Man’s aunt returned, holding a few-months-old Yan Yan, looking haggard.

How could they not acknowledge their own flesh and bl00d? At most, they’d just keep raising their daughter. Song Man’s aunt cried and said that because she gave birth to a daughter, was too young, and hadn’t registered the marriage, her in-laws kicked her out. The man who had promised to take care of her for life had found someone else.

Song Man’s whole family was furious. Song Zici used a few tactics to punish that family. Because her sister didn’t want to continue school, Xu Qinglang even found her a light job. At this point, Song Man’s aunt got involved with someone else again, once more ignoring her parents’ advice, insisting on seeing that person. She even complained that Yan Yan was a burden preventing her from finding someone else. Finally, she left for another city with that person. It had been years, and she hadn’t returned. Grandpa and Grandma completely gave up hope and focused on raising Yan Yan.

Song Man actually found it perplexing how someone could make the same mistake twice, completely lacking the idea of being cautious after being hurt. Later, she thought maybe her aunt felt it was the right thing to do, but no matter what, her act of abandoning Yan Yan made Song Man extremely disgusted. Such irresponsibility, both from her and Yan Yan’s biological father, made them unfit to be parents.

“Yan Yan, you know, not everyone can be called a mom or a dad.”

Song Man stroked Yan Yan’s hair, cupping her little face and rubbing it.

Giving birth without raising, where is the kindness?

“Your mom and dad, they weren’t qualified, so they can’t appear before you. Unqualified mommies and daddies aren’t good to you at all, they don’t buy you chocolate, and they don’t give you food.”

“Ah, that scary?”

Yan Yan’s eyes widened, and she hugged her chocolate tightly.

“Yes, it’s that scary. So it’s good that Yan Yan has Grandpa, Grandma, Sister, and Uncle.”

“Then when will they be qualified?”

Yan Yan asked expectantly.

“Sister doesn’t know that either. If they appear before Yan Yan in the future, that’ll be the final test.”

“What test?”

“Yan Yan, your test. When that time comes, Yan Yan, you must keep your eyes wide open.”

“Sister, I’ll remember! Can I eat chocolate now?”

“Of course you can.”

Song Man led the happy little girl to the living room, and the family ate lunch together.

After eating, Yan Yan lay next to her watching cartoons. Song Man watched too; she preferred watching cartoons to dramas. While engrossed, Chu Fengqiu messaged her, asking what she was doing.

【Song Man】: Watching cartoons

Song Man sent Chu Fengqiu a video, including Yan Yan, and told Chu Fengqiu she was her cousin.

Chu Fengqiu also sent her a video. Song Man admired Chu Fengqiu’s face for a while and chatted with her. They talked about Yan Yan, and naturally, the conversation turned to Yan Yan’s situation.

Song Man talked about how she cleverly coaxed Yan Yan, then sighed.

【Song Man】: Glad I coaxed Yan Yan. Hope she worries less about her parents as she grows up.

【Chu Fengqiu】: She’ll understand when she’s older. Not everyone is fit to be called a parent.

Song Man had never asked about Chu Fengqiu’s parents before, but now she was a little curious.

【Song Man】: I can come find you tomorrow! Is Uncle Chu there? If he is, my dad can go see him too.

【Chu Fengqiu】: I’m not spending the new year with him. He’s here at my place, but he didn’t pass my test.

Song Man had only met Chu Fengqiu’s father a few times and didn’t have a strong impression of this uncle, only remembering the “mountain of fatherly love” from the study materials.

【Song Man】: What happened to him? If you don’t want to talk about it, you don’t have to. Knowing you’re okay is enough for me.

Song Man was only slightly curious. For her, the person she would spend her life with was Chu Fengqiu, not her parents, so there was no need to know everything so clearly.

【Chu Fengqiu】: Actually, it’s nothing much, just like Yan Yan’s situation.

Chu Fengqiu explained the situation in a few words. From the lines of text, Song Man pieced together the whole story, feeling a pang of heartache, and finally understood why her dad said Chu Fengqiu had it tough.

Chu Fengqiu’s mother was a water town girl who grew up on a boat. At that time, Chu Fengqiu’s Grandpa and Grandma hadn’t settled in Sulan yet. Chu Fengqiu’s mother met a man who was also on a boat, but that man wasn’t Chu Fengqiu’s father; he was her mother’s first love.

But that first love was an ambitious person, unwilling to stay on the boat forever, determined to build a career. Chu Fengqiu’s mother supported him and they had a passionate farewell.

However, a week after her first love left, Chu Fengqiu’s mother couldn’t bear it and ran to the city to find him. She hadn’t found the person yet, but she ran out of money first. While hesitating on the street, she met Chu Zhicheng, drunk and celebrating his business’s start with colleagues.

Chu Zhicheng was sleeping on the street. Chu Fengqiu’s mother had no choice but to help him up and ask where he lived. The two went back to his place and had a night together in a daze.

Later, Chu’s mother got pregnant. She didn’t know if the child was her first love’s or Chu Zhicheng’s, didn’t want her parents to know about the unmarried pregnancy, and couldn’t find her first love, so she made Chu Zhicheng responsible.

Chu Zhicheng was quite fond of this good-looking woman. He went to the boat to propose, held a wedding banquet, and got their marriage certificate. It could be said he had a double harvest in both career and love.

But good times didn’t last. When Chu’s mother was six months pregnant, she met her first love again, and their old feelings immediately rekindled. Chu’s mother lied to her lover, saying the child was his and she was forced to marry Chu Zhicheng.

Paper can’t wrap fire, and lies have a day they are exposed. Chu Zhicheng discovered he was a “receiver” (taking on another man’s situation), his head turned green, and he almost had a mental breakdown. At that time, Chu’s mother was about to give birth.

After a DNA test, it was indeed Chu Zhicheng’s child. But at that time, Chu Zhicheng’s work encountered problems, he was overwhelmed, and unwilling to communicate with his cheating wife. He stayed out all night for work. Chu’s mother thought Chu Zhicheng disliked her and had someone else outside, so she simply took the child and left with her first love.

The first love was unwilling to raise Chu Fengqiu, who wasn’t his child. Chu’s mother handed the less-than-a-month-old Chu Fengqiu over to her parents, left a sum of money, and was never heard from again.

When Chu Fengqiu was eight, Chu Zhicheng was finally willing to face everything from the past and found Chu Fengqiu, but Chu Fengqiu didn’t want anything to do with him at all.

【Chu Fengqiu】: Later, Grandpa and Grandma felt the school in town wasn’t as good as the one in the city and didn’t want to hold me back, so they let me go with him.

【Chu Fengqiu】: I can also feel that he wants to try hard to compensate me, but some things, once missed, are missed.

【Song Man】: Yes, some things, once done, are done, and once missed, are missed.

Things that have been done cannot be changed, and things that have been missed cannot be recovered.

【Song Man】: I’m going to curse your mom twice in my heart first!

What an awful aunt! Simply fickle! Irresponsible! Sleeping with someone else while having a lover, bah!

Chu Fengqiu was amused by Song Man’s reaction and typed a line.

【Chu Fengqiu】: Okay, add my share.

It was impossible not to resent it. Chu Fengqiu used to wonder why her mom and dad didn’t want her. Later, she came to terms with it. She had her Grandpa and Grandma, and now she had met Song Man. She didn’t lack anything; it was already perfectly complete.

After cursing in her heart for a while, Song Man felt less angry, replaced by a heart full of tenderness.

Suddenly, she really wanted to be like Chu Fengqiu, run to her and give her a hug, dispel all her unhappiness.

Deciding to act immediately, Song Man stood up.

“Manman, where are you going?”

“I’m going to find Chu Fengqiu.”

“Let the driver take you. Are you coming back tonight?”

“Maybe not. I’m going now! Grandpa, Grandma, I’m leaving! Yan Yan, goodbye! Sister is leaving!”

“Sister, where are you going?”

Yan Yan asked curiously.

“Sister is going to find someone she likes.”

Song Man whispered in Yan Yan’s ear, then shushed her.

“This is our secret, okay?”

Yan Yan nodded, watching Song Man run out.

“Yan Yan, what did Sister tell you?”

Xu Qinglang asked with a smile.

“It’s our secret.”

Yan Yan said seriously, hugging her chocolate.

Song Zici watched Song Man’s retreating back, deep in thought.

Sulan wasn’t far from Song Man’s grandparents’ house, just about an hour and a half drive, or even an hour if it was fast. Song Man didn’t tell Chu Fengqiu she was coming. When she arrived, she had the driver stop at the town entrance and go back, while she walked through the old streets of blue bricks and tiled roofs, following her memory.

Every household had the character “Fu” pasted on their doors, and new couplets, looking festive and joyful.

“Grandpa, I’ll move these inside.”

Chu Fengqiu pointed to the things at the door, called out to Grandpa inside, and bent down to pick up a bamboo basket.

“Chu Fengqiu!”

A familiar shout came from behind. Chu Fengqiu instinctively turned around, dropped the things in her hands, and caught a warm, eager hug.

Chu Fengqiu thought that everything she had lacked must have been waiting for this moment, meeting Song Man, to be returned to her completely.

The warm winter sun stretched their shadows long.