“Miaomiao, what’s wrong? Please don’t scare Mom like this,” Geng Youqin said, clutching her startled heart. She looked at her daughter’s unfamiliar and sharp gaze and was almost considering consulting a fortune teller to burn some protective amulets.
Dr. Wang, beside them, paid no attention to their commotion and efficiently examined the injured person.
“Young lady, what number is this?” he asked.
“…Three.”
“You can correctly identify numbers, it seems like your memory is intact. If there are no other discomforts, you may not need to stay in the hospital for observation.”
Qu Miaomiao still appeared to be in a dreamy state, dazed and confused. She would glance at Wang Derong for a moment, then at Geng Youqin, and finally, her gaze settled on Cong Qi’s face, as if trying to figure out the situation.
This situation made Geng Youqin and Cong Qi even more worried.
Apart from their concern, Cong Qi also found her friend’s gaze strangely unsettling, giving her an eerie feeling, as if they had some unresolved conflict. But that couldn’t be true, could it? They had known each other for over a decade, and they could count the number of times they had argued on one hand.
Cong Qi was cheerful and lively, belonging to the optimistic type who could brighten up with a little sunlight. On the other hand, Qu Miaomiao was introverted and quiet, the kind of child parents often referred to as “someone else’s kid.” Their deep friendship had its roots in living in the same building and rapidly grew through collaborative homework assignments.
While one had gone on to university while the other had ended up working in a factory, their social circles had naturally diverged over time. Despite not being as inseparable as they once were, their friendship remained unshaken.
So why was Miaomiao looking at her with such an odd gaze? Besides being possessed, Cong Qi couldn’t think of any other reason.
If she couldn’t figure it out, she decided not to dwell on it.
“Miaomiao, are you okay?”
Cong Qi reached for her slender wrist and asked with concern. In that brief moment when their palms touched, a sudden pang of pain shot through Qu Miaomiao’s muddled thoughts. She hastily pulled her hand back, met with Cong Qi’s bewildered and questioning gaze, and her expression froze for a moment.
She lowered her eyelids, making a conscious effort to suppress emotions that shouldn’t have surfaced.
“I’m fine, Cong Qi. You can go back first; I want to rest.”
With that, she pulled the blanket over her head.
The question marks on Cong Qi’s forehead multiplied.
It was just a scratch, and the doctor had even said there was no need for further observation, but Miaomiao wanted to stay in the hospital? Before she could voice her confusion, Geng Youqin spoke up.
“Are you out of your mind? Your arms and legs are fine, your forehead is bandaged, and you want to rest in the hospital? Do you feel better wasting money like this? You’re a grown-up, but you can’t handle a simple situation. I told you not to go out today, but you followed Cong Qi everywhere, causing trouble for yourself.”
Cong Qi opened her mouth, wanting to say something but hesitated.
Wasn’t she explained Miaomiao’s date with Yu Lekang? Why was Geng Youqin still saying that they had been running around aimlessly?
She felt unjustified, more so than Dou E.
“Auntie Geng, um…”
Geng Youqin, while pulling the blanket, didn’t even turn her head. “Cong Qi, you should go back home. Thank you for today, Auntie appreciates it.”
Cong Qi: …
Her mood was subtly complicated.
It felt like she was being unjustly scolded.
But it didn’t seem like the right time to argue for herself now.
Cong Qi might not be the most intellectually inclined person, but she wasn’t an imbecile who couldn’t read the atmosphere. She could tell that Geng Youqin was currently displeased with her.
Cong Qi took a deep breath and reminded herself not to dwell on the mother’s overprotective nature.
She feigned indifference and said, “Alright, Auntie and Miaomiao, I’ll head back now.”
“Sure, take care on your way.”
Geng Youqin gave a faint reminder.
Qu Miaomiao remained silent, not saying a word.
Cong Qi glanced at Miaomiao’s hand clutching the blanket, fingers gripping so tightly that her knuckles protruded, as if she were suppressing something. It left her inexplicably irritated, and this restlessness lingered even after she returned home. It only grew worse as she tried to make sense of it.
“ChongChong is back!”
“Yeah, Grandma Chen, are you cooking fish tonight?”
“Exactly, it’s fish. Your Grandpa Wu caught them himself, and he had good luck today, caught almost half a bucket. Go get a basin from your room and help pick a few.”
“Thank you, Grandma Chen.”
“Thank you for what?”
“…”
Cong Qi’s family lived in the Teacher’s Housing Complex of No. 4 Middle School.
The neighborhood relations were always harmonious.
Within No. 4 Middle School, there were three residential buildings for teachers and their families. Two of them were four-story building, with each floor accommodating six households. The units varied in size, from tiny single-room units of less than 20 square meters to slightly larger ones, but none exceeded 50 square meters. The third building was a three-story building with a uniform layout, all around 70 square meters, assigned to the school’s leadership and experienced senior teachers.
Cong Qi’s parents were just ordinary teachers, but they were well-regarded for their teaching skills. The classes they taught consistently performed well in the city’s joint examinations. Plus, in recent years, there was a shortage of talent in various fields since the resumption of the college entrance examination, which allowed them to secure a spot in the first batch of housing allocations in 1985.
They were assigned a modest 50-square-meter two-bedroom unit in the Dexinyuan housing complex.
Xu Huiying had good luck and drew one of the only two story-floor units with a courtyard.
When the housing assignments were announced, many were envious. It was worth noting that, at that time, the one-child policy hadn’t been implemented yet, and many families had multiple children. However, Cong Zhiyuan and Xu Huiying had only one child, Cong Qi. They were also newly hired teachers who had been at the school for less than three years. Even though the first batch of graduates they had taught had achieved excellent results, enough to boost No. 4 Middle School’s reputation citywide, some still felt they weren’t deserving of unit no. 101.
However, the housing allocation policy had been set long before, and the Cong family’s luck had simply been good. Whether others accepted it or not, there was nothing they could do.
As a result, some people tried to play the sympathy card, hoping that Xu Huiying and Cong Zhiyuan might consider swapping unit with them.
Xu Huiying, of course, disagree.
Both she and her husband were the invisible ones in their respective families. For various reasons, they had been sent to the countryside, and neither their parents nor siblings could offer much help, let alone promises from colleagues and neighbors. They had long seen through the warmth and coldness of human relationships.
When they first got together, there was never any intention of relying on others for support. What made them work so well together was their practicality. During their time as educated youth, they worked diligently and seriously, supporting each other and covering each other’s weaknesses while preparing for the college entrance exams. They both managed to get into university.
They chose to attend the same university nearby, even though it meant taking their child to school with them. They never considered divorce or going their separate ways. They were truly a unique couple among educated youth, not only gaining fame within Meiping Commune but also in Kangnan County. Whenever there were cases of educated youth abandoning their spouses or children, Xu Huiying and Cong Zhiyuan were cited as positive examples.
When they were accepted into university, they only sent letters to their respective families. This incident revealed that Xu Huiying and her husband were not just bookworms. They were perceptive and adept at handling human relationships.
So when Cong Qi came home with a sulky face, her parents exchanged a knowing look, but neither of them asked. They knew their daughter’s personality very well.
She had a carefree attitude, was a bit of a daredevil, and it seemed like she had an in-built filter in her ears. She would let unappealing words go in one ear and out the other, forever youthful and seemingly immune to deception.
But being carefree had its advantages too; she had a low sensitivity to “malicious” intent, and not many people could hurt her. If something happened that she couldn’t quite understand or if she felt wronged, she wouldn’t need her parents to ask. She’d blurt it out herself. Not talking about it meant it was a minor issue, something she could handle on her own.
Xu Huiying: “You’re back? Dinner is warming on the stove, hurry up and eat. After eating, wash the dishes, take out the trash, and don’t forget to buy a bottle of soy sauce from Chen Lao’s house in the east gate. Don’t buy it from the small convenience store; their soy sauce isn’t rich or fragrant, it tastes bad.”
“Mom, hold on, Grandma Chen asked me to get some fish.”
Cong Qi ran to the kitchen, grabbed a basin, and went outside. A few minutes later, she returned with three palm-sized crucian carp.
Xu Huiying had already served the food on the table. It turns out that any dilemma fades away in the face of a multitude of chores. Especially for someone with a large heart, eating can be a powerful distraction.
Cong Qi’s attention was instantly diverted.
“Mom~~~~”
“I’m resting today; can’t I skip doing chores?”
The tactic of acting cute didn’t work.
Xu Huiying had a warm smile, but her voice was as cold as a winter day in December. “Is taking a break something extraordinary? Your chores don’t last long at all. Your father and I have been working for nearly twenty years, don’t we also have to work?”
“But it’s different. You teach two or three classes a day, and when class is over, you can come home. I work eight hours a day at the factory, and my hands and back ache.”
Cong Qi blinked her big eyes, continuing to look pitiful.
“So, whose fault is it that you couldn’t get into university and didn’t want to retake the exams? With your low educational background, you can only do manual labor, right?”
Cong Qi: … Ouch!
“It’s too heartbreaking!”
She pouted her rosy lips and sighed.
It wasn’t as if she chose to be this way. It was as if the heavens had welded shut the window of education for her.
“… How can you blame me? I worked really hard, but… I just can’t seem to apply what I’ve learned.”
When it came to studying, Cong Qi suddenly felt short of breath, and her entire demeanor seemed deflated.
It was strange. When her parents explained the concepts during their extra lessons, she genuinely understood. But as soon as the exam questions slightly deviated from what she had learned, her mind would get stuck.
In the last two years of high school, Cong Qi had diligently followed a routine, waking up earlier than the rooster and sleeping later than the dog. As a person who loved looking pretty, she even cut her beautiful hair short to squeeze more study time into her day.
Yet, her efforts in studying were painful, and it was equally exhausting for Xu Huiying and her husband to teach her.
Teaching her was more mentally draining than lecturing an entire class. If Cong Qi had been slacking off, not putting her heart into her studies, they could have disciplined her and let her vent her frustrations, or if she were simply not talented academically, they would have accepted it. However, this girl excelled in every other aspect except academics.
She never argued back when scolded. Those big, pitiful eyes of hers occasionally glanced at you surreptitiously, evoking both amusement and exasperation.
Let’s talk about her abilities in morality, intelligence, physical fitness, and the arts; in the “intelligence” category, she was severely lacking. The family endured two years of agony. When the hammer of failure finally struck, her parents surprisingly felt a sense of relief.
They had to accept it.
If she couldn’t get into college, so be it. If she was a bit slow in academics, so be it. As long as they lowered their expectations and didn’t put too much pressure on her to become a phoenix, their overall quality of life improved significantly.
“Alright, alright, it’s not your fault. It’s our fault for making you not so smart. Now hurry up and eat.”
Xu Huiying waved her hand, interrupting her daughter’s progress bar of self-pity.
“Then… the soy sauce?”
“Hmm?”
Xu Huiying stood with her hands on her hips, shooting a sharp look.
Cong Qi was quick to respond, straightening his back and playfully saluting, “Chen’s family soy sauce, duly noted!”
Cong Zhiyuan closed his book, amused by the mother and daughter’s banter.
After their daughter happily ran to the kitchen to get a second serving, the couple exchanged a knowing smile: See, everything’s fine!
Cong Qi finished her meal like a hungry little bird, washed the dishes, and then leisurely left the house.
The garbage bin was located between Dexinyuan and Zhimeiyuan housing complex .
As she walked just a few steps while carrying the trash bag, she suddenly felt a strong push from behind.
Her body was propelled forward uncontrollably.
Fortunately, her reaction was swift. She twisted her waist and quickly braced her hand against the wall.
Her years of physical exercise really paid off; otherwise, she would have had a nasty fall.
Cong Qi hadn’t even gotten a chance to be angry before the other person spoke up.
“Cong Qi, don’t you have eyes?”
The young man shouted impatiently.
Cong Qi was left speechless:…
This should be my line!
“Wu Yang, do you have a problem? Who has eyes on the back of their head?”
Hello, for anyone who read this chapter I sincerely thank you for your time. If you like this chapter please leave review and vote for this story on Novel Updates😊😊😊
