The next night after returning home from school, Tang You kept thinking about returning the umbrella to Zhou Qinyao. After all, it was his umbrella, and it couldn't become his property just by lending it to him.
After dinner, while Aunt Rong was cleaning up in the kitchen, Tang You asked tentatively:
"Aunt Rong, I just ate a little full, I want to go out for a walk."
Aunt Rong immediately put down the dishes she was cleaning:
"Then let me accompany you, miss. You went out alone last night and scared me to death. Before you left, my wife said that you couldn't go out alone. It's very dangerous outside."
Aunt Rong is honest and loyal. She always does what Fang Lai tells her to do and never dares to disobey.
Tang You had anticipated this outcome, so he deliberately held Aunt Rong's arm affectionately:
"Aunt Rong, I'm already exhausted from school, and I just want some private time to catch my breath. I'll just be walking around the neighborhood, I promise. I'll be back in a minute. Besides, I have a private lesson at 7:30."
After a pause, he said, "Please."
Aunt Rong is in her early fifties, has children, and is always kind and amiable. When Tang You acted like a spoiled child, her heart softened.
What the girl said made sense. She had a heavy workload in her senior year of high school, and she also had to learn the cello. Her employer's wife was a strong-willed person, and she controlled the girl so much that she felt suffocated. It was really pitiful.
In fact, Aunt Rong saw a lot of things, but as a servant, she was powerless and could not say much.
After thinking for a while, he reluctantly agreed: "Then you must come back within half an hour."
Tang You was secretly delighted and smiled sweetly: "Well, I promise!"
Carrying an umbrella, Tang You crossed the road and secretly went to Huaishu Hutong opposite.
She didn't know where Zhou Qinyao lived, so she had to go to Cheng Xuan's house first.
Cheng Xuan and Aunt Xian were having dinner, and when they saw her coming, they hurried home to greet her.
"Have you eaten?" Cheng Xuan pulled a chair for her.
Time was limited, so Tang You didn't bother to sit down. She went straight to the point and told her about Zhou Qinyao lending her an umbrella last night, and then asked Cheng Xuan where Zhou Qinyao lived.
She wants to return the umbrella.
Cheng Xuan blinked his eyes after hearing this, with a strange smile in his eyes: "Tsk, Brother Yao gave you an umbrella?"
"What's wrong?" Tang You didn't realize the hidden meaning in her words.
"No." Cheng Xuan pursed his lips and shook his head, turning around and pointing outside: "Go straight from our house, turn right, the first courtyard is Song Xiaoyang's grandmother's house, Brother Yao lives there."
"Okay." Tang You thanked him and left.
The courtyard was not far from Cheng Xuan's home, and Tang You arrived there after walking about two hundred meters.
The door to the yard was closed, but through the tiny gap you could still see the warm orange light inside, which made people feel inexplicably secure and warm.
Tang You knocked on the door twice, and after a while, a little boy opened the door.
Tang You recognized him as Song Xiaoyang who was playing with the remote control plane, and asked politely:
"Hello, little brother, may I ask... is your brother Yao here?"
Song Xiaoyang also recognized Tang You. He liked this gentle lady with a nice voice. He turned around and ran into the house excitedly, shouting as he ran:
"Grandma, my sister is here!"
Tang You stood at the door, looked inside, then quickly lowered his eyes.
For some reason, her heart began to beat nervously when she thought about meeting Zhou Qinyao.
Song Xiaoyang then led Wu Zhiyu out and looked up:
"Grandma, look, sister."
Tang You saw the old man and hurriedly bowed: "Sorry to bother you, I'm here to see Zhou Qinyao."
Wu Zhiyu looked at her seriously for a while, with a look of joy on her face:
"Come in quickly, come in quickly."
"… good."
Tang You followed Wu Zhiyu into the gate of the courtyard, looking around as they walked.
The courtyard was spacious and simple, with an osmanthus tree planted in the corner, its rich fragrance wafting into the air. In the middle of the courtyard, a few pigeons were walking leisurely on the ground, making contented cooing sounds.
Everything here is pleasing to the eye, except for a sandbag hanging under the osmanthus tree, which creates a sense of incongruous violence in this warm atmosphere.
Wu Zhiyu saw Tang You staring at the sandbag and smiled and told her:
"This is what Qin Yao usually plays with. Come," Wu Zhiyu enthusiastically brought a stool over, "Sit down."
Tang You sat down in response, looked around, and asked in a low voice: "Is Zhou Qinyao not here?"
Wu Zhiyu looked back at the big pendulum clock in the room: "He may not be back for another half an hour, it's hard to say for sure. What do you want to do? If you're not in a hurry, just play here."
"… "
Tang You only asked Aunt Rong for half an hour's leave, and her private tutor would come to class at 7:30, so she couldn't stay long.
A hint of regret flashed through my mind, but my nervous heart also felt inexplicably relieved.
Tang You herself didn't know what this conflicting emotion was. She handed the umbrella to Wu Zhiyu and said, "It was raining yesterday and he borrowed an umbrella from me. Could you please return it to him for me? Thank you."
Wu Zhiyu was obviously stunned: "He gave you an umbrella?"
Tang You didn't know why she and Cheng Xuan both asked this question, and replied blankly: "Yes... What's wrong?"
Wu Zhiyu relaxed, her wrinkled face suddenly relaxed, and she smiled kindly, "Rare, rare, hahahaha."
Tang You's face flushed, as if he understood something, but he wasn't so sure: "... What are you laughing at?"
Wu Zhiyu grabbed a handful of crushed corn and hunched over to feed the pigeons. As she drove them back to their nests, she recalled with emotion:
"Two years ago, Qin Yao came to Huaishu Hutong to rent a house. We didn't know where he came from or what he did. At that time, he was full of anger and everyone was afraid of him..."
Wu Zhiyu said with a smile: "I am the only old woman willing to take him in."
Tang You listened quietly, somewhat absent-minded.
Wu Zhiyu suddenly changed the subject and looked at her: "Now, it's different after all."
"?"
Tang You didn't know what Wu Zhiyu meant, but she didn't have time to ask. Her cell phone showed that it was already seven twenty, so she had to leave.
Stand up and say goodbye:
"I have something else to do and need to go home first. Please help me thank him."
Wu Zhiyu responded: "It's not a bother, come and play when you have time."
When they were leaving, Song Xiaoyang also pulled Tang You's sleeve and said, "Sister, come and play. I'll teach you how to play with airplanes."
The young boy probably didn't have many friends, so he was very happy to see Tang You coming. Tang You softened his heart and nodded to agree with him: "Okay, I'll come and play with you when I'm free."
Not long after returning from the alley, the private tutor arrived.
The private lessons three times a week are a task that Fang Lai specially assigned to Tang You. Although her playing has already reached professional standards, Fang Lai always hopes that she can do better than she is now.
An hour later, the class was over. After the teacher left, Aunt Rong came to Tang You with an embarrassed look on her face: "Miss..."
Tang You: "What's wrong?"
Aunt Rong rubbed her hands, her eyes were very anxious: "Just now my son's school called and said that he was injured playing basketball and was sent to the hospital. I want to ask you for leave to go see him! But..."
Tang You understood why Aunt Rong was hesitant to speak.
Now there are only two of them at home. Fang Lai gave Aunt Rong a very high salary so that she can take care of Tang You 24 hours a day. Fang Lai will never allow her to leave rashly.
Tang You planned to make the decision on her own. She asked Aunt Rong, "How long will you be gone?"
Aunt Rong replied anxiously, "It's at the People's Hospital. I'll be back soon. I'll definitely be back to make breakfast for you before school tomorrow at the latest."
Since it was just a one-night thing, Tang You felt that it was nothing that he couldn't overcome, so he comforted Aunt Rong:
"Then go quickly."
Aunt Rong still hesitated: "Miss, is it okay for you to be alone at home?"
Tang You smiled helplessly: "I'm eighteen years old, not eight. Don't worry, it's okay. I'll go to sleep after reading for a while. Won't you be here when I wake up?"
She was right. Usually, after resting, the master and servant would meet at dawn.
Aunt Rong was relieved for the time being. She was worried about her son in the hospital, so she didn't stay or refuse. She quickly changed her clothes and left the villa.
At nine o'clock in the evening, Tang You was the only one left in the quiet villa.
After turning off all the lights on the first floor, she returned to the second floor. It was so quiet that the only sound was the whistling of the wind outside the window.
Since the beginning of autumn, the temperature has been getting lower day by day.
After playing the piece assigned by the teacher several times and reading a book, at ten o'clock, Tang You prepared to take a bath and go to bed.
The bathroom was filled with hot air, which quickly dispelled the slight chill. Tang You stood comfortably under the shower, closing her eyes and letting the hot water flow through every inch of her body.
Suddenly she remembered the scene last night when Zhou Qinyao took off his mask and handed her the umbrella.
I recalled the meaningful words that Cheng Xuan and Wu Zhiyu said today.
The little girl put her hands on her face and sighed.
What are you thinking about... They just gave you an umbrella out of kindness...
After finally finishing her shower, Tang You put on her white cotton pajamas and went downstairs, planning to get a glass of water.
As soon as I reached the first floor, I heard a strange "bang" coming from the kitchen, as if something broke, followed by the sound of water splashing.
She frowned, walked over and opened the door. After seeing the scene clearly, her mouth opened and she almost dropped the cup.
The water pipe burst in the kitchen.
This is an old villa and many of the equipment are outdated. Fang Lai had planned to re-inspect the water, electricity and gas systems earlier, but he never expected that problems would arise before the inspection.
And he chose the time when Tang You was home alone!
The water spurted out like a column, and the whole kitchen was flooded. Tang You subconsciously ran over and pressed the bursting point with his hand, but couldn't hold it down, so he looked everywhere for the main water valve switch.
Aunt Rong never let her in. She was unfamiliar with the structure of the kitchen and couldn't find the switch after searching around.
His hands could no longer control the rapid flow of water, and Tang You was completely soaked. He had no choice but to take a few towels from the table and press them down on the body, then ran upstairs to find his cell phone.
My first thought was to ask Aunt Rong for the property management’s phone number!
But the phone rang several times and no one answered.
Guessing that there might be some situation at the hospital and Aunt Rong was also very worried, Tang You did not call again.
So, it seems that the only thing I can do now is to find a repairman to help me out.
But where can I find it in the middle of the night
Tang You just moved here, and the only friend he knew and could talk to was Cheng Xuan. Perhaps he could only try to ask her.
She found Cheng Xuan's number and dialed it.
After a few rings, the call was connected. Cheng Xuan seemed to have fallen asleep and his voice was a little dazed.
Tang You also knew that he had disturbed her, so he cut to the chase: "Sister Hyun, my water pipe suddenly burst. Please ask Aunt Xian if there is a plumber nearby who can fix it. I can pay for the expedited service."
Cheng Xuan was dazed: "Oh... Yes, there is a plumber in our alley. I'll give you his phone number."
Tang You immediately saw hope and was extremely grateful: “Thank you!”
Less than three seconds after hanging up the phone, Tang You received a business card pushed by Cheng Xuan.
Crazy drag brother 138xxxxxxxx
Tang Youchu was stunned when she saw the name, wondering how could there be someone with this name, but the rushing water did not allow her to think any further, so she immediately dialed the number.
It rang three times and someone picked up.
A low voice: "Hello."
The voice was drowned in the sound of water, and Tang You couldn't hear it clearly. He just asked anxiously:
"Excuse me, are you—uh," he recalled, "Excuse me, are you the cool and awesome guy?"
other side:"… "
"My water pipe burst. I live at No. 7 Huaishu Street. Can you come and fix it for me? Please."
The other party remained silent.
At this moment, she felt a chill under her feet. Tang You glanced down and found that her ankles were already submerged in the water. She burst into tears and said, "You can ask for any amount of money..."
The other side finally spoke: "Got it, I'll be right over."
Tang You was filled with gratitude: "Thank you..."
After hanging up the phone, she leaned against the cupboard and before she could breathe a sigh of relief, she found that Cheng Xuan had sent her three more WeChat messages.
Lift your phone—
Shit, I was sleepy and sent the wrong number. That was Brother Yao’s number.
This is the plumbing repairman.
Water pipe brother 189xxxxxxx
A drop of water slid silently down his forehead.
Tang You: “…”