Stars warm firefly

Chapter 14 Who Is Quietly Changing (1)
Cars that have been wiped so that they can reflect people's shadows shuttle in the narrow and cramped alleys that are piled up with various sundries, looking out of place.The various quilts lined the walls, hilariously mixed with other advertising graffiti, and filled with a different kind of hustle and bustle.

A few men were hiding in the shadows under the eaves, leaning against the gate, casting inquiring glances at the exquisite red car passing by.Their expressions, like those crumpled quilts, exude a dull smell.From time to time, stray cats and dogs ran past on both sides, causing Du Meiling to honk the horn loudly.

Chi Xiu knew that Du Meiling didn't want to come here at all.In fact, he didn't want to meet Du Meiling right now, this was not an appropriate time.

"The inside is too narrow for the car to pass through, so you can get off here!" Du Meiling was a little impatient, and after parking the car aside, she still did not forget to ask Chi Xiu, "It's enough to pack the things, you better not let the people over there School has waited too long."

It seems that their mother and son think the same thing and want to separate as soon as possible.

Chi Xiu silently stood aside, the corners of his mouth moved, but he didn't say anything in the end.

Years flow through people's hearts.I wonder if you still remember the little me back then.

He understood that Du Meiling was neither willing to endure the unbearable environment, nor to think of the unbearable situation of her ex-husband who lived here.

Seeing Du Meiling's car turned around and quickly disappeared at the corner of the alley, Chi Xiu walked slowly towards the depths of the alley.

He stepped up two broken stone steps, pushed open the gray courtyard door, stepped over the threshold and walked in.The sunlight was sparsely left behind as he passed through a narrow passage.He passed the doors of several other houses, bent over rows of clothes hanging to dry in the courtyard, and finally stopped in front of the innermost room.

When he took out the key to open the door, the sunlight was already far away from him.When he opened the door and entered the dimly lit room full of damp smell, he looked back, and the sunlight outside the courtyard door at the other end of the corridor seemed to belong to another world.

"Are you looking at the house? The landlord asked you to come?" A middle-aged bald man in his 50s at the opposite door poked his head out and asked after hearing the movement. The sound of TV programs was still playing in his room.

"Yes, I made an agreement with the landlord to pack my dad's things." Chi Xiu said.

"Oh, you are Lao Chi's son! It's hard to see that he has such a son!"

The man looked Chi Xiu up and down, then nodded and said, "This hair really looks like it, just like before he got sick, it's all curly."

After the man said hello, he went back to the house and went to watch TV.

Chi Xiu entered the room and turned on the light.This is an eight-square-meter hut with simple furnishings, a bed, a chair, a dining table, and a wardrobe. This is where Dad lived before his death.Du Meiling was right, this man really had nothing left to clean up.Although she hasn't contacted her ex-husband for more than ten years, she still knows him very well.

Chixiu's father is indeed not a competent husband and father.When he, as a man, should care about his wife and children, he just dedicated himself to that gambling table.There was only one circumstance that made him think of home, and that was the absence of money.

"It's just this time, this is the last time, I'm sure I can make it back." These were the words that Chi Xiu's father said the most in his childhood memories.However, this man didn't realize the meaning of "the last time" until the day his mother left.

Chi Xiu still remembered that it was a cloudy day, but he was very happy, because at the age of four, he won a good boy's award in the kindergarten painting competition.An old lady who often picked up Chi Xiu when picking up her grandson touched Chi Xiu's head and praised him as a smart boy.Chi Xiu was very happy, like a little dove running happily towards home.

However, when he bid farewell to the grandmother and ran upstairs alone, he found that the door of his house was ajar, and then he heard the hoarse voice of his mother Du Meiling from inside.

"I can't give it to you. This is the money my parents gave me."

She held a flower pot to her chest, and pressed her arms tightly against the flowers. The bright flowers were bent over but did not wither.Chi Xiu knew before that it was mother's favorite flower, but the flower was a fake flower, and there was something different in the soil under the flower. There was a small cloth bag hidden in it, which contained a bundle of thick banknotes and a Passbook.

"If you don't give it to me, who will you give it to? I'm your husband, and your money is my money." Dad, like a big eagle, stretched out his hands and rushed towards his mother, who was suddenly shrouded in a shadow.

Chi Xiu closed his eyes and turned his head away from the door.He was still holding tightly to the drawing paper with the teacher's words of praise and encouragement in his hand.Afterwards, Chi Xiu, who was leaning behind the door, heard various sounds, the sound of fighting and cursing, the sound of flower pots falling and breaking on the floor, and the sound of his body falling and hitting the floor.

The little Chi Xiu leaned tightly against the wall, as if wanting to integrate his thin body with the wall.For some reason, Chi Xiu didn't dare to see what happened inside the door.He only knew that the two adults inside had fought once or twice, but this time he had a different feeling.

Sure enough, the door was slammed open, and Dad rushed out with a proud look.The opened door hit Chi Xiu hard on the face, but Dad didn't pay attention, but when he saw him, he patted his head and said with a smile: "When Dad gets rich, I'll buy you candy. "

Watching his father leave in a hurry, Chi Xiu stood there rubbing his sore nose.His nose was a little itchy, and he subconsciously wiped it with his hands. There were blood stains on his fingers, and the drawing paper was also stained with blood. His nose was bleeding.Chi Xiu didn't panic.He has lived under his father's stormy temper all year round, showing a calmness beyond his age.He took out a handkerchief from his schoolbag, twisted it into a small strip, and stuffed it up his nose.He didn't dare to enter the house until he was tidy up, he was afraid that his mother would blame him for his sloppiness.

However, the mother, who was crying on the ground, immediately fell silent when she saw him, and then stared at him fiercely.Chi Xiu involuntarily grasped the strap of the schoolbag on his shoulder.

"It's you, you must have told your father, right? I should have known that you are his son, and you are all in the same group."

Mother Du Meiling suddenly yelled and stood up. Her hands were bloody, and the wounds on her palms cut by fragments of flower pots were clearly visible.Chi Xiu subconsciously touched his bruised nose, thinking that his mother should be in more pain than himself now.

But mother seems to have forgotten the pain, she desperately shook Chi Xiu's shoulder: "Tell me, why did you tell your dad? Your dad took away our last money, and now we have nothing! Are you happy?"

His mother was very strong, and his thin body was shaken by his mother like a young tree about to be pulled out of the soil.He could only shake his mother's deformed face in front of his eyes, but he couldn't say anything.

"Since you're helping Dad so much, you can have a good time with him!" Mom seemed to have exhausted her strength, she stopped looking at Chi Xiu, and didn't care about the broken flower pot on the ground.She stared out the window for a moment.

The sky was gloomy, and it seemed that a heavy rain was brewing.But mother is going out.

The expression on her face was unprecedentedly relaxed.She put on a purple windbreaker that she always wears, and brought a blue umbrella, then walked up to Chi Xiu again as if nothing happened and said, "If you want to blame, blame your father, don't blame me."

Then, mom left.

It was several years later that Chi Xiu understood the emotional changes of his mother at that time.That flower pot must have made my mother make her final decision that day.Its shattering shattered Mom's last hope for Dad.

Chi Xiu felt wronged, he couldn't accept that his mother left him without listening to his explanation.Because the money in the flowerpot was not something he told at all.Although he has long seen that his mother would secretly take out the money and count it, he knew that he could not tell his father.Because he remembered his mother said that it was their last savings.

In order to get rid of his "suspicion", since his mother left, Chi Xiu has been studying harder. All he can do is to tell his mother that he is a good boy and that he is different from his father.But mom didn't give him the chance.Not long after his mother left, Chi Xiu accidentally saw a small green book hidden by his father in a drawer, which read: Divorce Certificate.

It turned out that his mother no longer needed the explanation he had been brooding over.However, Dad needs an explanation more than he does.

When he was in middle school, he was always among the best in late repair.He still remembers that when he was about to enter the third year of high school, his father happily took the passbook one day and said, "Son, will my father send you to study abroad? You have such good grades, you can go to the international preparatory class without any problem!"

"Where did you get the money?" Chi Xiu stared at his face vigilantly.Since Du Meiling left, Dad didn't gamble anymore. Instead, he found a job as a warehouse watcher, who was responsible for the night shift, but the salary was not high.

"It's not my money, it's your mother's money." Dad looked indifferent.

Chi Xiu's heart sank.He hated his mother's money more than his father's.Although according to their divorce agreement, the mother has to pay late maintenance on time.Yes, it's not my mother's money, but the man my mother married!That's right, if he had no money, how could his mother abandon the father and son?
"Don't worry, she didn't send it willingly, I lied to her. I said I was terminally ill and needed treatment. If she didn't pay, I would go with her husband, and then she would give it." Dad seemed to guess him The idea is further explained.

"That's not that man's money!" Chi Xiu argued softly.

"Yes, so what? I didn't do this for you! Didn't Du Meiling look down on us father and son? Didn't she think that my son is as useless as I am? I want to make her regret it." With great determination, he said, "Son, I asked your teacher. Your grades can be used as double preparations for the college entrance examination and application for foreign schools. Just study hard and live out your own personality. At least you will be better than your old man, and you will appear in that school in the future." Let her regret going in front of a woman.

She'll be pissed off if she finds out that she's using her money to make you great.When I think of Du Meiling's regretful expression, I feel happy! "

Chi Xiu heard father's words very harshly.

The teacher did talk to him.As an international exchange student selected by the school during the summer vacation of the first year of high school, he performed very well in late courses.The teacher told him that if he wants to apply for a foreign university, he can prepare some international courses, and he can handle it with his learning ability.But the teacher also knew his family environment, so he showed concern for him, and even said that he would fight for him in terms of scholarships, revealing his love for him in his words.Now that he really had this opportunity, but it happened to be with Du Meiling's money, Chi Xiu couldn't tell whether he was happy or sad.

He understands that his father needs to save the face he was dumped in front of Du Meiling, and making his son successful is the best way for him to take revenge on his ex-wife!On the other hand, his future path will be more and more different from that of his father, but this happens to be what his mother wants to see most.

So Chi Xiu went abroad to study in university after graduating from high school.Unexpectedly, three years later, he received the news that his father was dying.Surprisingly, Dad was really terminally ill, and when he was discovered, the cancer cells had already metastasized.He only saw his father for the last time.In front of the hospital bed, Chi Xiu faded away from his youthful innocence, and replaced him with the calmness and unique vigor of youth honed by living alone in a foreign land.

"Very good, very good." These were the last words my father said as he took his hand.

It seems that father is very satisfied with his son's transformation, he is the most outstanding work in this man's life.So, what about Du Meiling?Chi Xiu hesitated for a long time. Can he see Du Meiling now?He found Du Meiling's contact information that his father had given him before he died, and called her after hesitating.

Years of estrangement made him open his mouth but didn't know what to say, and that "Mom" seemed hard to say.Fortunately, it was the nanny who answered the phone, which eased his tension in communicating directly with Du Meiling.He told the nanny that an old friend of Du Meiling had passed away.Immediately, he reported his father's name, explained that if Du Meiling wanted to know more details, he could contact him, and then reported his name and contact information.He specifically said that this was the hotel's phone number, he might not be there during the day, but he could leave a message, and asked her to tell Du Meiling that he was going abroad in a week.

On the fifth day, Du Meiling appeared in front of Chi Xiu.

She saw her son who had been away for many years, but she didn't show the slightest excitement, she just looked at Chi Xiu with surprise and alienation.Her unbelievable gaze at Chi Xiu's transformation deeply hurt him.Can't he get better?Can't Dad have an excellent son?Chi Xiu's heart instantly turned cold.He looked at Du Meiling quietly without speaking.

"How is your father's affairs going?" Du Meiling broke the silence first, but the word "your father" made Chi Xiu very uncomfortable.

"The ashes and the cemetery are all arranged." Chi Xiu replied indifferently, but looked elsewhere.

"Well, are you leaving soon, too?"

"Maybe, I will stay for a few more days, and Dad's belongings have to be dealt with." Chi Xiu thought for a while and said, "Don't you want to go and see where Dad lives?"

"If you want to go, I can see you off." Du Meiling said evasively.

Chi Xiu knew that Du Meiling still hated her father, her heart was like that broken flowerpot, and there was no possibility of recovery.

"Hey, little brother, have you packed it?" A hoarse voice sounded, interrupting Chi Xiu's memory.The appointed landlord rushed over to urge the delayed repair, and the next tenant to inspect the house was about to arrive.However, knowing that someone had just died of illness here, the previous few tenants who were interested in renting a house did not stay.

"Actually, your father seems to have known that he was leaving, and he disposed of everything early on. I still remember that when I came to collect the rent, he insisted on giving me a down jacket! I'm afraid he had already I know I don't have much time!" said the old landlord with emotion.

Since Chixiu went abroad to study, his father moved out of the original dormitory and moved here. After he got sick, he didn't add any more things, but kept giving away his own things.Chi Xiu packed up and walked alone in the alley with a small bundle in his arms. In fact, if he hadn't seen his mother, no one would have known that he had come back, just like they had never known that he had left.

The only thing he has in common with Dad is that they are both people who come and go and no one cares.

A gust of wind blew by, Chi Xiu raised his head, and a fluorescent kite was flying in the night sky.

Also in this night, a girl once asked him: "Do you think those glowing lights look like fireflies?"

He suddenly remembered the girl he met not long ago talking about red fireflies, and her figure gradually overlapped with the figure in his memory.

He knew her name was Xu Heyin, and he also knew that she was not the person he was looking for, but she lived in a house he was familiar with.Although she is an ordinary tenant, why would she do the same thing?

There was a knot in Chi Xiu's heart, he thought, maybe that girl named Xu Heyin could help him untie it.

When passing by a beautifully decorated coffee shop, Chi Xiu looked through the glass window and saw people sitting by the window talking and laughing while drinking coffee, suddenly he didn't know where he was.

The car behind him seemed to think he was blocking the road, and the sound of the horn was a bit harsh.When Chi Xiu came back to his senses, he saw the notice for recruiting waiters pasted on the door of the coffee shop.

He thought for a while, and then pushed the door open: "Is there any recruitment here?"

There were two consecutive light rains, and the air was filled with the damp smell of the soil after being soaked by the rain.

When Xu Heyin lowered his head to do the questions, his bangs were blown in front of his eyes by the small wind, dangling back and forth, which was very annoying.She took out the hairpin she carried with her from the pencil case and pinned it on her forehead.

Zhou Jingyou sneezed several times during class, and there was a box of handkerchiefs on the desk that was usually piled with exercise books.

"Zhou Jingyou, do you have any cold medicine in your dormitory?" After class, Xu Heyin asked with concern. She felt that Aunt Zhou should have prepared everything.

"Mom said the school has an infirmary." Zhou Jingyou shook his head, "It's just a cold, it shouldn't matter."

"Then go to the infirmary and have a look, maybe you can take a leave of absence for half a day." Xu Heyin persuaded.

"Issuing a false note? This is not acceptable. My mother will accuse me when she finds out." Zhou Jingyou thought for a while, "I'll go to the pharmacy to buy some medicine later."

Even though he had a cold, Zhou Jingyou took Xu Heyin to buy a notebook before lunch. Her notebook was always used very quickly.

On the way, Xu Heyin had an idea and said, "Why don't I go back to the rented house and get some medicine for you. I always have cold medicine in my house. Just turn the corner in the street ahead. You can also visit it by the way." .”

This time Zhou Jingyou didn't object, and nodded while rubbing his red nose.The two walked side by side through a small street, and when they turned their heads, Zhou Jingyou called out, "Hey, Fang Jiwan."

On the side of the road, a young man who had just passed the zebra crossing stopped, saw them and walked over with a smile.

"Is this your pre-dinner exercise again?" Fang Jiwan already knew Zhou Jingyou's habit of avoiding meal peaks.He joked that exercising has a warm-up, and they even warmed up for eating.

"Let's go buy a laptop, how about you?" Xu Heyin asked.

"I went to buy a book." Fang Jiwan took out the book and said embarrassedly, "It's a second-hand book. There is a second-hand bookstore over there, and you can get a [-]% discount!"

"Really? Let me take a look. Wow, "Garment Cutting Technology" must be very profound!"

Zhou Jingyou looked carefully, "Where is the used bookstore? Is it far from here?"

When it comes to bookstores, Zhou Jingyou is very interested.Before Fang Jiwan could answer, she saw that he was still clutching many old newspapers, so she asked curiously, "What is this?"

"These things are the materials I will do cutting practice later." Fang Jiwan explained, "I found a street garden, it is very quiet, and I can practice cutting while reading a book."

After finishing speaking, Fang Jiwan pointed with his finger.Xu Heyin looked in the direction, and it was the garden in the middle of the street not far from his rented apartment complex.

(End of this chapter)