Xu Shiqi was almost self-contained and did not agree to her mother's request. The next day, she got into Wen Jialuo's car again and drove to their own little home.
Wen Jialuo learned about Wang Yuan's proposal in a routine text message with Xu Shiqi. She immediately thought of her mother's attitude and suddenly impulsively wanted to take Xu Shiqi away. Even so, the adults instinctively wanted to separate the two of them. If something unexpected happened in the future, what kind of turmoil would it become
When she came to pick up Xu Shiqiu, Wen Jialuo instinctively felt a little hostile towards Wang Yuan. She said goodbye politely, got into the car, fastened Xu Shiqiu's seat belt, and left calmly.
Wang Yuan watched the car go away, her mood becoming more complicated. Seeing Wen Jialuo fasten her daughter's seat belt very carefully, checking it again and again, revealing an unconcealed intimacy, even the look he gave his daughter was as firm as if they were glued together. She couldn't help but recall the familiar hat and gloves she wore when she sent Wen Jialuo off that day, and she couldn't help but feel a chill creeping up from the soles of her feet, so clear that she could hear the terrifying sound of her heart being frozen.
Wang Yuan couldn't sleep at all that night. She tossed and turned in bed, which made Xu Zhongda feel uneasy too.
"What's wrong with you? Why don't you sleep well?"
"In your opinion," Wang Yuan stared blankly, "has your daughter ever liked anyone?"
Xu Zhongda thought about it and shook his head: "It seems not. Our daughter is still very self-disciplined."
"If you have someone you like, why don't you keep yourself clean?" Wang Yuan rolled her eyes at him. Thinking of the strange and cold suspicion in her heart, she felt that she couldn't explain it to a grown man like him at the moment, so she could only nudge him and say, "Turn off the lights and go to bed!"
The next day, Wang Yuan still felt something was wrong, so she decided to go see her daughter.
Of course, I won't go there immediately. Maybe I've been thinking too much lately and have lost my mind. My daughters just left now, and if I go there right away, it will arouse their suspicion.
Two days later, Wang Yuan finally couldn't hold back any longer and grabbed her bag and rushed to catch the bus.
She had the address in her hand. Wen Jialuo had left the address to reassure them and said they were welcome to visit. But Wang Yuan didn't expect that when she found this remote community, she would be stopped outside the iron gate.
I gave the address to the young security guard, but he just shook his head and started making a phone call.
Wen Jialuo went to work and Xu Shiqi was the only one at home. On the video call, she saw her mother's head suddenly pop up and she was so scared that her heart almost jumped out.
After nodding and hanging up the phone, Xu Shiqi hurriedly walked around the rooms. Fortunately, the sun was very strong today, so she took out the quilt on their bed to dry it in the sun, just in time to change it to a thinner one. The guest room she originally planned to stay in looked more like a study, but there shouldn't be any problem. Whether it was towels or toothbrushes, she insisted on not using couple sets at her strong request, so there was no need to hide or change them - from this point of view, it seemed that this place was ready for inspection at any time.
I just didn't expect it to come so soon.
After bringing his mother upstairs, Xu Shiqi served her tea and water and was busy writing notes.
Mom, what made you want to come
Wang Yuan calmly looked around the house and said, "No more. I saw you didn't bring any clothes, and the weather is getting hot, so I brought a few clothes for you."
Xu Shiqi followed behind her, trembling with fear, but not daring to show it. However, not speaking also has its advantages, as there is no need to control the tone of voice, and one can find a reason for silence.
But it didn't take long to finish the tour of the house. Wang Yuan didn't see anything that frightened her, but she couldn't shake off the extremely strange feeling in her heart, so she walked around the two bedrooms where the beds were.
"Her place is quite small." Wang Yuan finally said, "If she has any friends coming over, wouldn't it be inconvenient?"
She didn't actually say it in a subtle way, but Xu Shiqi could only play dumb.
Some friends can't sit down, so they usually meet outside. Oh, she opened a bar with a few people, and the business is good.
Wang Yuan frowned. "With a family background like hers, why would she want to be a public official? I can't understand why she has such a hard life and wants to be a civil servant." She paused. "Like Baohua, she can just get married and have children."
Xu Shiqi did not write, but just smiled. It was obvious that this was someone else's business, so it was not good to ask about it.
Seeing that she was neither anxious nor annoyed, Wang Yuan felt a little discouraged. She sat for a while before she felt amused as to why she was sitting there.
"Forget it, I'm going back." Wang Yuan shook her head and stood up.
Come play for a few days before leaving. I can sleep in the same room with you.
Wang Yuan shook her head: "The store still has business to do."
Seeing this, Xu Shiqi had no choice but to go downstairs with her and send her to the station to catch the bus.
"Think about what your mother said again." Wang Yuan held her hand before leaving, "Don't put too much pressure on others. It will make you feel uncomfortable if you do that. I originally wanted you to relax, so don't make things worse."
Xu Shiqi hugged her.
I'll be fine.
Wang Yuan stared at her lips, her eyes slightly moist, nodded, and regained her composure: "Mom knows."
When Wen Jialuo came back in the afternoon and found out, her mouth opened wide. Xu Shiqi smiled and stuffed a strawberry into her mouth.
After quickly swallowing the strawberry, Wen Jialuo pulled Xu Shiqi and asked, "Why is she here? Did she say anything?"
Xu Shiqi opened the closet, and Wen Jialuo looked at the clothes seriously: "Do you think she really just sent clothes?"
Xu Shiqi shrugged and pushed her out of the bedroom. The world was big, and the most important thing was to have dinner when the time came.
Halfway through the meal, Wen Jialuo finally said honestly, "I did pretend to be very affectionate with you in front of your mother."
Was it intentional? Xu Shiqi looked at her sideways, half smiling.
"Okay, it wasn't intentional, it was deliberate." Wen Jialuo also smiled. Seeing that Xu Shiqi didn't frown or throw away his chopsticks in unhappiness, he continued eating with peace of mind.
Because Xu Shiqi couldn't write with chopsticks, they seldom talked while eating. But today's meal was particularly peaceful. The future was already planned. Even if the prelude to the storm had already arrived, they had no choice but to face it.
However, the calm was indeed just the prelude to the storm. But before Wen Jialuo saw the book, he did not think that this was a cold wind and rain, and had nothing to do with others.
Living together is not like sleeping in the same bed or eating at the same table. Different personalities have different lifestyles, and even if they develop a good understanding, there will be differences.
Xu Shiqi has good habits for keeping fit. She drinks a glass of water when she gets up early, soup before meals, goes to bed before 11pm, and doesn't like lights at night. These are things that are easier to change. As long as they are good, Wen Jialuo can keep pace with her, but of course there are also things that are difficult to coordinate.
Xu Shiqi likes to read for a while before going to bed. For her, books are quiet things that can help her sleep. However, Wen Jialuo gets more and more excited the more she reads. Those words keep flashing in her mind like a group, and in the end, the effect is comparable to that of coffee and tea.
Therefore, Wen Jialuo never read the books on the bedside table where Xu Shiqi slept. But she would buy them. She knew that Xu Shiqi would buy several magazines regularly, and over time, this task fell on her.
That night, the two of them sat outside watching TV. Wen Jialuo suddenly remembered the book she bought on the way home, so she went back to her room to get it. She threw the new book on the bedside, and when Xu Shiqi found it, she smiled at her - just for this, Wen Jialuo felt a little sweet.
When she put the books away, she accidentally saw the calendar on the bedside. This calendar was brought by Xu Shiqi when he moved in. The calendar was turned to the September page, so Wen Jialuo turned back to June. When she put the calendar away, she found that there was a book underneath. It was not big or thick, and the cover was not gorgeous. She didn't know when it was put there.
Wen Jialuo lowered her eyes and her gaze fell on the book. Suddenly, she felt it was very dazzling and her whole body almost jumped up.
"What is this?" Wen Jialuo couldn't help shouting and picked up the book. There was a woman on the cover of the book, with a peaceful face and her hands making a gesture like a flower. She didn't understand the meaning of the gesture, nor did she want to understand the meaning of the title.
Xu Shiqi heard the voice and walked in. His usually gentle expression froze when he touched the book in her hand.
As if he didn't feel her standing beside him, Wen Jialuo leaned on the edge of the table and almost fell.
Sign language book? Xu Shiqi is actually learning sign language? This thought made Wen Jialuo shocked and angry. She immediately turned around and asked in a trembling voice: "What's the matter? You can speak, why do you want to learn sign language?"
Xu Shiqi lowered his eyes. It was an apparently gentle movement, yet it seemed very stubborn.
Wen Jialuo felt the healed ribs aching again. She tried to calm herself down and took deep breaths, but the more she did so, the more unbearable the pain became. Her vision almost went black. Although she told everyone that she wanted to atone for her sins was just an excuse to emphasize her actions, but facing Xu Shiqi, who was unwilling to speak to her and even gave up on himself and had to learn sign language, Wen Jialuo could hardly face herself.
"Speak up." Wen Jialuo clenched the book and said loudly, but the woman remained silent. "What do you want to do?" Wen Jialuo felt as if his heart was broken. "Am I... so untrustworthy, or are you blaming me?"
Xu Shiqi finally spoke, and Wen Jialuo felt like she had aged several decades in an instant. She had a ringing in her ears, so much so that she didn't even know if Xu Shiqi had made any sound at the time. The sad thing was that she could almost understand what the woman meant just by looking at her lips opening and closing.
No, don't think too much.
"Then speak up." Wen Jialuo took a step forward and stared at her closely. Her face flushed red with a slight irritability. "Prove it to me."
Why... Everyone wants to prove it. Xu Shiqi was distracted and raised his hand to smooth the gloom between Wen Jialuo's brows, but was grabbed by the other party.
Xu Shiqi opened his mouth helplessly.
Don't push me.
Wen Jialuo held her hand tightly and loosened it, tightened it and loosened it again, and after a long time he let her go as if he was exhausted.
"I'm not forcing you, I just can't figure it out." Wen Jialuo said blankly.
At this time, Xu Shiqi didn't want to find paper to write, because she couldn't explain it, and arguing might cause greater harm. She stepped forward and gently hugged the girl. Would the unfounded distrust destroy a person's love? Would the long silence make the future boring and unsustainable? No matter what kind of lie, there are flaws, just like the girl thought she had concealed her feelings well.
She also used a far-fetched lie, which came true a hundred times, to face it, and then helplessly discovered that they were both deeply trapped in it.
They were obviously very close, but there was a gap between them. Xu Shiqi was helpless, but she had no way out.
Wen Jialuo did not reject her hug, but she did not take the initiative. She stood there stiffly, letting Xu Shiqi stroke her back, but she felt more and more uncomfortable with the gentle movement.
After a long time, Xu Shiqi was pulled away, and Wen Jialuo's flushed face gradually faded, becoming almost expressionless, with a terrifying look of being too calm.
"You don't want to talk. I've been thinking about it, but all the reasons I've thought of don't seem credible, so I can only doubt," she narrowed her eyes slightly, "Did someone whisper something in your ear that made you make this decision? Do you have to keep silent and compromise for a year or two, or... for a lifetime?"
Xu Shiqi was stunned.
Another storm was brewing in Wen Jialuo's calm voice. If she nodded, the side of the girl that she had decided to hide for the sake of her family would be completely torn apart, and it would be bloody. She had no doubt about it.
You think too much. Xu Shiqi mouthed, not daring to move too much. The girl's eyes were staring at her closely, and her gaze was so cold that she seemed to see through her.
You clearly know that no one knows our relationship. As a last resort, Xu Shiqi took a pen and paper to write. If you do this, I will be even more sad.
Wen Jialuo lowered her eyes and looked at the paper, not knowing what she was thinking. After a long while, she slowly put the paper away: "If that is the reason, at least it is because you want to be with me too much, but if you really have hidden something from me..." Having said that, she did not continue.
Xu Shiqi was so nervous that she felt like a person who was sentenced in advance, but she didn't dare to reveal her uncontrolled breathing. Fortunately, she had experienced the most difficult things, so she was able to control herself from getting flustered in the girl's silence.
"Is it really not uncomfortable to not talk?" Wen Jialuo suddenly asked again. She put down the book and looked at Xu Shiqi quietly, "I also want to know what it feels like. Maybe, I will know what you are thinking." She smiled again, as if mocking herself for being too stupid, "It should have been like this a long time ago, sharing wealth and adversity. Shiqi, because I love you, more than you can imagine."
Xu Shiqi suddenly had a bad feeling in his heart, Jialuo, what are you going to do