The online world was filled with chaos, and some who didn’t know about Yu Qiu also joined the anti-plagiarism crowd due to various influences. As Yu Qiu edited the audio, he felt tired and decided to browse the comments.
“Oh my god, this is disgusting! I thought he had turned over a new leaf, but it turns out he was just holding back, preparing for a big news release.”
“Yu Qiu is such a despicable person.”
“Did the main clown come out to perform? Your dad isn’t free to watch.”
“Sisters, read this sentence he wrote. Damn, it’s so disgusting [image].”
Yu Qiu clicked on the image, which was a screenshot of a passage from his novel.
“He hugged him, feeling the warmth and suddenly finding the same sense of security he had in his mother’s womb, not fearing anything, simply ignoring whether today was rainy or thundering. Amidst the rumbling, he curled up and sighed.”
“Damn, this is so disgusting! Who compares a lover’s embrace to a womb?”
“Does he have anything else in his brain besides wombs?”
“Maybe his brain was left in the womb when he was born. Bleh!”
“Oh, and there’s this one too, check it out, sisters [image].”
Yu Qiu didn’t click on it again, he just read the comments.
“Damn, this time it’s complete, all the female organs hahaha!!”
“I think Yu Qiu must be studying medicine, amazing @Yu Qiu.”
“Why write novels? Go do women’s stuff.”
“The pervert is laughing to death hahaha, @Yu Qiu, bring your dog head here to get beaten.”
Yu Qiu’s grip on his phone tightened.
When Xuan Yun entered the study, he saw this scene—Yu Qiu seemed to be hurting himself, not blinking as he read the comments, his eyes reddening, but his fingers kept scrolling.
Xuan Yun’s heart ached, and he snatched Yu Qiu’s phone, hugging him tightly and blocking his view.
“What’s wrong?” Yu Qiu’s voice was hoarse.
“Stop looking,” Xuan Yun said, “They’ve never seen you and don’t know what kind of person you are. Don’t…listen to them.”
“I know,” Yu Qiu said.
Although people now say they oppose online violence and keyboard warriors, they can’t identify who these keyboard warriors are. The trend is always right, and most people’s decisions are always right. It’s like when we were kids doing homework, even if our answer had been verified, when we saw that most of our classmates had a different answer, we would still choose to change it.
“Xuan Yun…” Yu Qiu whispered, “I’m a little tired.”
Xuan Yun said, “Then take a nap.”
“I won’t sleep,” Yu Qiu gently pushed him away, “Help me make a cup of coffee. After I finish editing this afternoon, I’ll post it.”
Before he could finish, a call suddenly came in on his computer.
Although his phone was turned off, the computer and phone used the same account, so the computer could receive calls from another device.
When Yu Qiu saw the string of numbers, his whole body trembled.
“Who is it?” Xuan Yun frowned.
Yu Qiu used the mouse and clicked to answer the call.
The other end of the phone was chaotic for a moment before a woman’s voice came through.
“My child.”
Yu Qiu thought he was strong enough, but at the moment he heard these two words, he was overwhelmed. Tears flowed uncontrollably, dripping down his chin and soaking his shirt.
He hadn’t seen his parents in four years, but he had missed them deeply.
He was never a filial son; besides money, he couldn’t give them anything. In the end, he was causing them trouble because of various news, making their lives difficult.
Intense emotions surged in his heart, emotions that were too poignant for him to put into words.
“Hey, child’s dad, did you dial the right number?” the woman called out, “Why isn’t there any response?”
Xuan Yun handed him tissues and wiped away his tears.
Xuan Yun whispered, “I’ll leave first.”
Yu Qiu hoarsely said, “Mom, it’s me.”
He spoke in the local dialect, which he hadn’t used in a long time. When it came out, he realized that some things were etched into his bones and should not be forgotten, no matter how hard he tried.
“My child, how are you now?” Yu Qiu’s mother asked, “Where are you?”
The voice on the other end wasn’t very clear, but in the quiet space, the electrical noise seemed to transport him back to the past years. His eyes turned red, and tears fell again.
Have I done the right thing in these past few years? Yu Qiu thought blankly, What am I doing? Why haven’t I gone back home?
