The Stranger’s Homeward Journey

Chapter 16

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On the way back from the cemetery, Luo Shaoheng stopped by a flower shop, planning to order some flowers for the girls who are on duty in the resort these days, because many people around the New Year will come to the resort to celebrate the New Year, so the general holidays are When they are the busiest, besides giving red envelopes to everyone, he will also send other things, girls send flowers and chocolates, and boys send cigarettes and wine.

As soon as he stepped into the flower shop, before he had time to choose flowers, he heard a familiar voice. Looking at the source of the voice, he saw his sister Luo Qiongshu talking with the clerk. He was slightly taken aback, just in time to see the other person turn around Come, reflexively turned around and walked out of the store, unexpectedly it was still a step late, and just a few steps away, I heard Luo Qiongshu's voice calling him: "Shaoheng!"

Luo Shaoheng paused for two seconds, speeded up and continued to walk forward, pretending not to hear the cry from behind, and then came the sound of hurried footsteps, which sounded like the sound of high-heeled shoes running on the ground, accompanied by Luo Qiongshu's voice: "Luo Shaoheng... stop here! Don't you even recognize your sister when you leave the Luo family?!"

Her words made Luo Shaoheng slow down little by little, and finally stopped at the corner, smiled wryly, but did not look back at her.

Luo Qiongshu had already arrived in front of him. Because of running for a short distance, she was panting for breath. After a few seconds, she reached out and grabbed Luo Shaoheng's arm: "Where are you going to hide? Didn't you hear me? Or Say you don't want to see me that much?!"

Luo Shaoheng's fingers stiffened when he heard the words, and he whispered: "... I'm sorry."

Luo Qiongshu was stunned when he heard his apology, and frowned: "Now you don't even want to say sister? Or are you no longer going to recognize me as a sister?"

"It's not like that, I haven't thought about it that way." Luo Shaoheng shook his head, he had never thought about it that way, but he felt guilty and didn't know how to deal with it.

"Then why are you running?" Luo Qiongshu asked.

Luo Shaoheng didn't speak, but his biological brother, Luo Qiongshu couldn't possibly not know what he was thinking. Looking at his slightly pale and haggard face, he sighed distressedly and helplessly, and said softly: " Find a place to sit down, my sister hasn't seen you for a long time, and I really want to talk to you."

Her lonely tone made Luo Shaoheng a little sad. Ever since he came out of the nursing home, he has been traveling around, wanting to go to all the places he had agreed with Shen Mucheng to complete the agreement between the two of them.

On the one hand, he wanted to unilaterally fulfill the promise of the two, on the other hand, he was afraid to face his parents, fearing that his parents would be even more disappointed when they saw him. This kind of self-exile life lasted until after he opened a resort last year. It's over.

"Shaoheng?" Luo Qiongshu called him.

"Okay." He whispered.

The two found a cafe nearby, and after sitting down, Luo Shaoheng took off the down jacket and scarf, and there was a light gray sweater inside. After recovering from a serious illness, he looked extremely thin even in the sweater, but he couldn't see it in the down jacket just now .

Luo Qiongshu looked at him and frowned: "Why are you so thin?"

"No, it's almost the same as before." Luo Shaoheng smiled and ordered coffee for the two of them.

"Do you still remember what I like to drink?" Luo Qiongshu said.

"Of course I remember." Luo Shaoheng nodded, he remembered every preference of his family.

"How are you doing recently? I heard from Xiaoguai that you have opened a resort, are you busy?" Luo Qiongshu asked.

"Get busy."

Probably because they haven't been together for so long, the two of them are clearly siblings, but their exchange of greetings seems polite and quite embarrassing.

After being silent for a while, Luo Qiongshu said: "I should have visited you earlier, but I was delayed because I had been dealing with your brother-in-law. I went to a resort a few days ago and heard that you went to Switzerland."

"You and brother-in-law..." Luo Shaoheng hesitated to speak.

"Divorced, now Xiaoguai is with me." Luo Qiongshu's face did not change when he said this, and he seemed to have let go.

"That's fine." Luo Shaoheng didn't know what to say. Both he and Luo Qiongshu stubbornly chose the person they liked, but they didn't get good results in the end.

There was melodious piano music playing in the quiet coffee shop. The soothing music and comfortable environment were very suitable for conversation. Slowly, the two of them relaxed and chatted about many things about the past and the present.

"Are both father and mother healthy?" Luo Shaoheng asked. He was busy with the resort after returning from Switzerland this time, so he didn't have time to visit it.

"Everything is fine, except that people have some minor problems when they are old." Luo Qiongshu said, "They miss you very much."

Luo Shaoheng looked at her sharply: "I..."

"Mom has been looking at your previous photos. Sometimes she sits in your room for a whole day. Although she doesn't say anything, we can all see how much she misses you. Put it on the rocking chair she usually sits in, and she secretly put away the brochure by herself."

"..." Luo Shaoheng was dumbfounded, he always thought that he was a disgrace to the Luo family.

"Father and mother are old, and all they want is a family reunion. No matter who was right or wrong about you and Shen Mucheng, let it go. Love is deeply responsible, and this matter In other words, they are no better off than you, if they can choose to start over, they will try to tolerate and accept you." Luo Qiong said seriously.

Listening to his words, Luo Shaoheng slowly tightened his hands on the table, and the bitterness in his heart expanded.

Luo Shaoheng will never forget the afternoon when his family found out about his relationship with Shen Mucheng. At that time, he received a call from his mother asking him to go home. He thought it was because he was with Shen Mucheng and his mother missed him less when he went back. That's why I let him go back, and I specially brought some homemade desserts back for her to taste, but what was waiting for him was a bolt from the blue.

No one knew who sent the photos of him and Shen Mucheng home. When his mother threw the stack of photos in front of him, he was almost dumbfounded, and he was at a loss for his mother's anger.

His mother's furious face and harsh questioning are still in his ears, and he never forgot it for a moment, nor will he forget the slap on his face when he refused to sever ties with Shen Mucheng.

When he was in primary school, he was kidnapped by the company's business rivals, who pushed him down the hillside in order to escape. In addition to multiple bruises on his body, the knee of his left leg hit a stone, resulting in broken bones. This is the most serious injury he has ever suffered. However, the sum of these injuries is far less than the pain of this slap. It does not come from the body but from the heart. Those overwhelming guilt towards his parents are all turned into sharp blades. He was killed with a knife.

The Luo family doesn't need a son like him who discredits the family. His mother once said that she would never forgive him for the rest of her life, and would never allow him to step into the Luo family again, as if she had never given birth to such an unfilial son.

For so many years, although he would visit his parents secretly every time he came back from other places, he never dared to let them know, because he was immature back then, and the harm he caused to his parents by going his own way would never be changed, and he was deeply afraid that he would mess with them again sad.

He also thought that he would never be forgiven by his parents in this life. After all, he made mistakes first, but now Luo Qiongshu told him that everything was forgiven, and his parents could even accept his relationship with Shen Mucheng.

But even so, the people he loves don't remember him anymore.

"My sister has always owed you an apology. After the accident, I didn't protect you immediately, but chose to take Xiaoguai away from you. This is the thing I have always blamed myself the most."

"Shaoheng, let's go back to celebrate the New Year this year, father and mother, there are not many years to wait."

Luo Shaoheng was sitting in the car, his expression still a little dazed, Luo Qiongshu's words echoed in his ears, he never thought that his parents had been waiting for him to go back during these years of self-imposed exile.

After sitting for a while, he felt that his fingers were a little frozen, and he realized that he forgot to turn on the heater. Reaching out to turn on the heater, the temperature in the car rose little by little, and the stiff fingers recovered slightly.

He took out his mobile phone from his pocket and skillfully pressed the number he had memorized by heart. He stopped suddenly a second before dialing out. He wanted to call Shen Mucheng, but habitually pressed the previous number.

Delete the number one by one, find a new number from the contacts and dial.

While waiting, he actually felt nervous in his heart, just like the little Maotou in his first love calling the person he likes, with anticipation and nervousness.

The phone rang for a long time before it was picked up, and a deep voice came: "Hello."

Luo Shaoheng opened his mouth and found that his throat was a bit dry, so he couldn't help coughing lightly, and then he heard Shen Mucheng say: "Is he still sick?"

"No..." Luo Shaoheng rubbed his throat, the words choked in his throat.

"What's wrong?"

"I just..." Luo Shaoheng paused, "I want to hear your voice."

"..."