This gentle response made Fu Shitian's heart numb.
Passersby all looked at her, and Fu Shitian felt extremely embarrassed, but was reluctant to break away from Shi Yi.
"Everyone is looking at us." She lowered her eyelashes and reminded quietly.
Shi Yi teased her, "Are you embarrassed now?"
Fu Shitian's face turned even redder. She raised her eyes to look at Shi Yi, with an unconscious look of pouting.
Shi Yi's throat moved, and he suddenly wanted to kiss her eyes. But it was not the right time.
She lowered her eyes and just as she suppressed her thoughts, she heard a faint announcement in the waiting hall that Fu Shitian's train was about to start checking tickets.
Obviously Fu Shitian heard it too.
"Oh, I have to go in."
Shi Yi let go of her, "Can you come back in after you come out?"
Fu Shitian had no confidence: "It should be possible."
Shi Yi was surprised, and then laughed from his nose. This little rabbit, although it looks so shy, is so bold that it makes people's heart flutter.
"It's okay. If it doesn't work, just change the ticket. I'll wait with you."
Fortunately, I was actually able to get in after another security check.
Stepping into the waiting hall again, Fu Shitian's mood was completely different. With Shi Yi's words "I can do it too", she felt like she was floating on the clouds.
The train to Ningcheng ran as usual and soon entered the tunnel, entering the darkness that she feared the most. Fu Shitian stared into the darkness, but in her mind she still saw Shi Yi standing outside the hall.
Her girl stood in the sunshine and light, watching her leave and waiting for her to come back.
Like a bright beacon in the darkness, guiding her way home.
Fu Shitian touched the invisible red line on his wrist and slowly smiled.
After an hour and a half's ride, she got off at Ningcheng Station.
The temperature in Ningcheng seemed lower than that in Shencheng. It was cold and drizzling. Fu Shitian walked across the covered bridge, put on his hat, and was about to walk into the rain when his cell phone vibrated.
I took it out and it turned out to be a text message from Shi Yi.
"Are we there yet? Is it raining?"
Fu Shitian was slightly surprised, and directed his frozen fingers to type: "How did you know? It was drizzling a little."
Shi Yi replied quickly, without saying how he knew, but just reminded: "Umbrellas are usually sold on the overpass. If you don't have one, buy one, so you don't catch a cold."
Fu Shitian curled his lips and replied: "Okay."
She agreed nicely, put away her phone, looked back at the umbrella and power bank stalls on the overpass, but still couldn't bear to leave. She pulled her hat on, dragged her luggage and ran quickly into the drizzle.
The raindrops mercilessly hit his face and hands, but Fu Shitian felt warm in his heart as he thought about Shi Yi's text message.
While still on the bus, the rain suddenly got heavier. Fu Shitian waited for a long time after getting off the bus, but he couldn't wait and ran back in the rain. No matter how thick the coat is, it will still get wet after being wet for a long time. The damp and cold feeling seeped in and invaded Fu Shitian layer by layer. He felt more and more uncomfortable as he walked, and finally made it to the door of Fu Jiantao's house.
I inserted the key into the lock, turned the door, and just as I put the suitcase into the security door, Wang Meifen's voice came from the kitchen: "Is Tiantian back?"
Fu Shitian closed the door, her voice trembling with coldness: "Yes, Auntie, I'm back."
Wang Meifen asked: "Is it raining outside?"
"Yes, a little."
"Don't bring the suitcase in yet. It's wet. I just mopped the floor yesterday."
Fu Shitian put on the wet clothes, and in an instant, his heart, which had been warm all the way, suddenly turned cold.
Without a word of concern, the aunt only cared about not getting her floor dirty.
In fact, it has always been like this, it's nothing. Fu Shitian quickly adjusted her mindset and warned herself that she shouldn't be spoiled by Shi Yi. She couldn't ask others to do this. Wang Meifen had no obligation to care about her.
She replied "OK" and obediently put the suitcase by the door, took the clothes she wanted to change, put on the summer slippers worn by guests, and rolled up her wet trouser legs before stepping into the living room.
Fu Siyu did not go to college in the end, and paid a high price to attend a repeat class in a key high school. Now he has not had his holiday yet and does not go home for lunch.
At around twelve o'clock, Fu Jiantao came back from lunch break and the three of them had a meal together. Fu Shitian said hello to Fu Jiantao and Wang Meifen and said that she would go back to her hometown to accompany her grandmother in the afternoon.
Fu Jiantao wanted to keep her at home to rest for two days, but Fu Shitian was worried that meeting Fu Siyu in the evening would make her unhappy, so she declined, saying that she was worried about her grandmother and wanted to go back to see her first. Fu Jiantao did not keep her.
In the afternoon, she dragged the suitcase by the door, took her umbrella, and took the bus again, heading to another home that did not belong to her.
The bus drove out of the bustling area of the city. The tall buildings on both sides gradually became fewer. Behind the rows of low storefronts were scattered rural self-built houses and farmland.
The fields are planted with lush green lettuce, stretching out in large stretches. It is a rare lively sight in winter, and it makes people feel much brighter.
Fu Shitian took out his cell phone and took two pictures outside the car window, subconsciously wanting to share them with Shi Yi.
But after opening the dialog box and selecting the picture, she paused to press send. The chat background picture was the snow scene picture that Shi Yi had shared with her when she was traveling in Japan last year. Clearly, this green scene was already very special. But when it was taken into the photo and put into the chat background, everything suddenly lost its luster. It was ordinary and not worth mentioning.
Fu Shitian hesitated again and again, but finally pressed "Send".
This was all the life she could share with Shi Yi.
Fortunately, Shi Yi also found it novel and asked her what kind of vegetable it was and whether it could grow without a shed in winter. Because she was worried that Fu Shitian would get carsick, Shi Yi didn't let her look at her phone too much. The two of them didn't talk much, but Fu Shitian was happy all the way.
In the evening, she arrived at the house where the old man lived alone.
She pushed open the gate after getting ready. Unexpectedly, the old lady was not in the yard or in the hall. She felt a little uneasy and called "Grandma" all the way in. Finally, she heard the old lady's familiar voice at the door of her bedroom: "Calling for the soul."
Fu Shitian felt relieved, shut up, and stepped over the threshold with his head lowered.
The old man was half leaning on the bed, his hair, which was always combed meticulously, was now frizzy, and his whole face looked visibly older than it was six months ago.
Fu Shitian felt an emotion in her heart. It was not heartache, but she felt a little uncomfortable. She said hesitantly, "Grandma, I'm back."
The old man looked at her and asked, "Have you eaten? I've left some rice in the pot for you."
Fu Shitian shook his head and said with concern: "Uncle said that you haven't been feeling well recently. Is it... are you feeling uncomfortable again?" It is not the old man's habit to go to bed so early.
"I'm not going to die. I just have a stomachache. It's an old problem. Go eat first."
Fu Shitian was used to being obedient to her, so he didn't dare to ask any more questions. He just nodded and left.
After dinner, she returned to the old woman's bedroom to accompany her, poured her some water, peeled some fruit, and cut it into slices and blanched it in hot water first, fearing that the fruit was too cold. The old woman lay on the bed, occasionally asking her a few questions about her schooling in Shanghai.
The glass blocked the whistling cold wind outside the window, and the white light tube above the head emitted light and heat. I don't know if it's because of the illness, the old man's tone seems to be calmer than usual. There were a few moments when Fu Shitian almost thought there was a little warmth between them.
But soon, her fantasy was shattered.
"Is the prison far from your school?" the old man suddenly asked.
When Fu Shitian heard the word "prison", his head started to buzz and he said, "I... don't know."
As soon as she finished speaking, an enamel cup hit her feet with a loud bang.
The moment the severe pain came, the old man's furious voice rang out: "It's better to raise a dog than to raise you! Have you read so much that it has gone into the dog's stomach?"
"You've never thought of going over to see your dad when you're so close!"
Fu Shitian's back was stiff, his throat was dry, and he could not respond with his lips stammering.
She was not someone who would quibble. She admitted that she had not. She knew that Fu Jianze was her father, and after he had redeemed himself, she should still be filial and support him. But she could not find her feelings for him. The kindness he had given her when she was young was already very vague, but the way he smashed and scolded when his drug addiction attacked, and punched and kicked his mother for money, was her long-lasting nightmare.
For a long time, she couldn't fall asleep in a completely dark space. Looking at the tight darkness, she always felt that she was put into that safe, dark cabinet by her mother again, and then her mother's heartbreaking and terrifying screams would sound again.
But these are completely insignificant to grandma. She doesn't care about these things. To her, it may just be a dog she raises to protect her son for the rest of his life.
This is probably what every mother feels.
Fu Shitian suddenly felt sad.
The cell phone rang suddenly. Fu Shitian didn't dare to see who was calling and hung up in a hurry.
The old man clenched his teeth tightly, as if he was suppressing his anger. After a long silence, the old man spoke again, "I am old. Your father's future depends on you."
"For so many years, I have provided you with food, education and education. You know why. When your father is released from prison in a few years, if you are unfilial," she paused, her eyes cold and bone-chilling, "I will not let you go even if I die or become a ghost."
The cold wind came in from the crack in the window, and Fu Shitian was so cold that his heart trembled. The light brought back from Shencheng could hardly withstand the gloom here.
She came out of the old man's room and slept in the room next to the old man, where Fu Jiantao and his wife usually slept, for easier care.
She leaned against the door panel, lost in thought for a long time, before she lowered her head to look at the place where her instep was hit.
There was a bruise on it.
She stretched it and found that she could move. She moved back to the bed and sat down. She took out her cell phone to check the incoming call.
It’s Shi Yi’s!
She couldn't tell whether she was more surprised, annoyed, or even inexplicably wronged. She called back, and soon, Shi Yi's reassuring voice rang out: "Are you done?"
For a moment, Fu Shitian's nose was sour. She restrained herself and replied: "Well, just now in grandma's room."
She was amused. How could she suddenly become so fragile? This had been the case all day long. Not only had she become fragile, she had also become naive, to the point where she had expectations that she shouldn't have for Wang Meifen and her grandmother.
Shi Yi asked with concern: "Are you okay?"
Fu Shitian replied: "It's OK, but I look much more haggard."
"Would you like to stay with me in bed tonight?"
"Need not."
"Then take care of her and pay attention to yourself."
Fu Shitian's gloomy eyes gradually brightened, and a smile crept up his cheeks again, "Well. I will weigh it every day and won't give you a chance."
Before leaving for the station, Shi Yi asked her to step on the electronic scale and wrote down her weight. She said in a very domineering manner that if she lost weight when she returned, she would punish her.
Shi Yi knew what she was talking about and laughed.
Fu Shitian asked: "Have you been to your aunt's house?"
"Um."
The two chatted aimlessly, and Shi Yi talked about her holiday plans. Next week she would fly to the west with her friends, and then rent a car locally for a week-long self-driving tour.
Fu Shitian asked about the precautions she should take during the trip. Shi Yi listened in a good mood and invited him to go out for a walk together next time if they had the chance.
The two were still chatting when air suddenly broke into the enclosed space and the glass made an echoing "bang".
The door was opened forcefully.
The old man stood at the door and asked sullenly, "What time is it? Who are you still talking to on the phone?"
Fu Shitian's smile froze on his face, his lips trembled, and it took him several seconds to find his voice: "Talk to my classmates about something."
The old man looked at her, frowned, and closed the door.
Shi Yi asked in a low voice: "Is it inconvenient?"
Fu Shitian's face felt hot and he squeezed out a "hmm" from his throat.
There were no footsteps outside the door. The old man might not have left yet and was still standing at her door.
Fu Shitian clenched her fists, her heart felt as heavy as if it was being pressed down by a huge rock. She spoke with difficulty: "I'm going to hang up first."
Shi Yi answered without being able to tell the tone of his voice: "Okay. Good night."
Fu Shitian hung up the phone, looked into the void, and remained silent.
After a long time, there was finally a very slight noise outside the door.
The old man walked away.
Fu Shitian choked up and collapsed on the back of the bed, feeling powerless and suffocated. She stared at the conversation interface on her phone, wanting to explain something to Shi Yi, but she didn't know where to start, and couldn't say it.
Finally, she just said, "My grandma just came in unexpectedly. I've been sleeping next to her recently, and the soundproofing is not very good, so it might be inconvenient to talk to her. [Awkward]."
Shi Yi replied immediately, "It's okay, then contact me via text or WeChat."
The two chatted for a long time via text. Shi Yi was called by his mother to have a midnight snack, and the two ended their chat.
After it was over, Fu Shitian was reluctant to close the window. He went back and read the chat history several times before taking a deep breath, calming down, and turning on his notebook to start translating.
She translated quickly and with high quality, and she got a high IELTS score this semester. The manuscripts assigned to her were more difficult, but the unit price was also much higher. She had almost prepared the money for Valentine's Day gifts, but she still wanted to save a little more money during this winter vacation.
She had no time to waste on being frustrated.
No matter what, she now has an extremely precious present and even a future with Shi Yi. She doesn't want to drag Shi Yi down, nor does she want to wrong Shi Yi.
She will keep working on it.