Xie Yucheng frowned and glanced at her, saying, “Go back. I can make do sleeping in the truck alone. With you here, it’s really troublesome—I have to get a hotel room and spend money.”
Wen Shiqing furrowed her brows slightly. “I brought money. I never intended for you to pay.”
She pulled out a stack of coupons and cash from her pocket and, under his gaze, went inside to settle last night’s bill.
After paying, she walked over to him and said gently, “Brother, I won’t cause trouble or interfere with your work. I just wanted to come out with you and see a bit of the world. Going home means being alone anyway.”
Xie Yucheng’s face was cold and sullen, radiating a stifling irritation. “Wen Shiqing, do you know how annoying you are? Your mother latched onto my dad, and now you want to latch onto me? Are you and your mother both this shameless?”
“Brother, what’s wrong?” She took a step forward, lightly tugging at the hem of his shirt, her moist eyes fixed on him. “Are you in a bad mood? Did I do something to upset you? Tell me, and I’ll change.”
Xie Yucheng averted his gaze, his attitude as firm as a rock. “In a little while, you’ll take Uncle Zhang’s car back. Don’t follow me anymore.”
“Brother…”
He turned away from her, letting out a long, heavy sigh. “Wen Shiqing, am I really your brother? My parents only had me. I don’t have a sister.”
Wen Shiqing’s heart ached with bitterness, and tears welled up in her eyes instantly.
Hearing her soft sobs, Xie Yucheng turned around. His eyes swept over her indifferently, noticing the glistening tears clinging to her lashes and the redness at the tip of her nose.
His heart twisted into a knot. Those tears seemed to burn all the way to the depths of his soul, unsettling him completely.
Uncle Zhang had gone into the inn to grab a quick breakfast. When he came out, he asked Wen Shiqing, “Are you leaving or not?”
Wen Shiqing shook her head, wiped her tears with the back of her hand, and stood next to Xie Yucheng, clutching the hem of his short-sleeved shirt. “Uncle Zhang, you can go back. I’m not taking the car.”
“Really? Then I’ll be off.”
Uncle Zhang glanced at Xie Yucheng, whose face was dark and stern. He keenly sensed that the siblings might be arguing.
Naturally, he didn’t want to get involved in other people’s family matters. After bidding farewell to Xie Yucheng, he drove away.
Wen Shiqing stood there awkwardly, feeling more and more wronged. The tears she had barely managed to hold back began to fall again, streaming down like shattered pearls, impossible to contain.
With every sob, Xie Yucheng’s heart twitched painfully.
He strode to the truck in a few steps, his brow furrowed with gloom. Through the window, he asked impatiently, “Are you coming or not?”
Wen Shiqing hurriedly wiped her tears and opened the door to get in.
The truck sped along the highway, everything outside the window flashing by in a blur.
The cabin was quiet. Neither of them spoke—one with a face as dark as the bottom of a pot, the other with a complicated expression.
Wen Shiqing repeatedly wondered what she had done wrong the previous night to make his attitude suddenly turn so cold.
No matter how much she thought about it, she couldn’t figure it out. She had no idea what she had done to upset him.
Xie Yucheng lit a cigarette, holding it between his left fingers and taking occasional drags. The harsh, bitter smoke filled his lungs, as if it could suppress the restlessness inside him.
The relationship between them had frozen over like a thick layer of ice on a winter river. Even though it was summer, it felt bitterly cold.
Wen Shiqing leaned against the door, her head tilted, her clear, bright eyes fixed on the scenery outside. After a long while, she finally spoke softly:
“Smoking too much can cause cancer.”
Xie Yucheng raised an eyebrow and let out a disdainful laugh, “Cursing me, are you?”
“I’m stating facts.”
“Fine, so be it. I’m not afraid.”
“Smoking first damages the lungs. Long-term smoking can lead to emphysema, lung cancer, oral cancer, throat cancer, esophageal cancer…”
Xie Yucheng irritably tossed the cigarette butt out the window, “Damn it, do you want me to dump you in the wilderness to feed the wolves?”
“Stop the car!” Wen Shiqing suddenly shouted loudly, “Stop the car, I’m telling you to stop!”
“What the hell are you going crazy about?”
He cursed angrily, slammed on the brakes, and turned his head to suddenly meet a pair of rabbit-like red eyes.
Those eyes were already swollen from crying, like little goldfish, with slightly puffy eyelids. It seemed she had been quietly crying the whole way.
Xie Yucheng’s throat felt blocked by something.
The girl pulled open the car door and jumped out, her movements urgent. She lost her balance, unexpectedly missed her step, and fell to the ground.
“Shit!” Xie Yucheng strode out of the car, quickly rounded to the passenger side to help her up, but his outstretched arm was pushed away by the stubborn girl.
“Xie Yucheng, I won’t cling to you anymore.”
Ignoring the sharp pain in her ankle, she stood up and limped back along the roadside.
Xie Yucheng ran his hand through his hair, his eyes pure black with a fierce intensity. He stepped forward to grab her arm, “Don’t you fucking dare throw your life away.”
“Whether I live or die is none of your business! You’re not my real brother! Do you think I care about you being my brother? Anyway, you don’t want to see me, you always bully me, and I won’t be in your way anymore. I’m going home!”
“Just now I told you to go back and you refused. What are you causing trouble for now? Waiting in the wilderness for some man to rape you or traffick you to the mountains?” His face was cold and sharp, his words still cutting.
“That’s still better than being with you!” Wen Shiqing’s tears flew uncontrollably. Somehow, she couldn’t hold back at all. Usually, she was quite capable of restraining herself and hiding her emotions.
But now, her pent-up anger burst forth, and she didn’t want to suppress it anymore.
“What did you say?”
“I said whether I get raped or sold to the mountains, it’s still better than being with you.”
Xie Yucheng’s face grew increasingly dark, flames igniting in his eyes. He gritted his molars and said viciously, “Fine, then fend for yourself out here!”
Then he strode away, stepped on the gas, and the car disappeared from Wen Shiqing’s sight in a cloud of dust.
Wen Shiqing felt a sudden void in her heart. The more she thought about it, the angrier she became. She picked up a stone from the roadside and hurled it with all her might in the direction Xie Yucheng had left.
“Bastard! I’ll never like you again! I’ll never forgive you!”
Her tears flowed even more violently, crying uncontrollably. Stubborn by nature, she staggered forward while sobbing.
Her shoulders trembled, tears pattering down. Sharp pain shot through her ankle with every step, as if stepping on blades.
Within two minutes, the familiar truck turned back.
The man braked directly in front of her, got out aggressively, and without giving her a chance to struggle, lifted her up and carried her to the truck in a few strides. He opened the door, tossed her inside, then slammed it shut with a “bang.”
With a cold, stern face, he got into the driver’s seat, tore off several tissues, and roughly wiped the tears from her cheeks.
Wen Shiqing dodged, not letting him wipe them, but he suddenly pressed the back of her neck, forcing her to look up at him. Xie Yucheng said through gritted teeth, “Have you had enough of this tantrum?”
He was practically grinding his teeth in fury—no one could provoke such intense emotions in him. “Who gave you the nerve to act out in front of me?”
Wen Shiqing sniffled, her slightly reddened eyes meeting his gaze. “What right do you have to bully me? You’re always hurling insults at me—even the stray dog at the alleyway is friendlier than you.”
“You’re saying I’m worse than a dog?”
“I never said that. You did.”
Xie Yucheng let out an exasperated laugh, his gaze fixed intently on her trembling lips. The pale rosebud mouth opened and closed—though she appeared delicate, her words cut deeper than his.
A glistening tear traced from the corner of her eye. Xie Yucheng wiped it away with his rough thumb, his voice low. “You’re the one insulting me. Why are you crying?”
She bit her lip, tears shimmering in her eyes. “Can’t I cry if my foot hurts?”
She had twisted her ankle earlier and had been limping ever since.
Xie Yucheng bent down, grasped her left foot, removed her sock, and rolled up her pant leg. A large, swollen red patch was visibly spreading across her pale ankle—the injury was severe.
His brow furrowed deeply, his heart feeling as if pierced by needles. Watching her tightly pressed lips, he found himself at a loss for words.
In silence, he started the car and sped toward the nearest town, pulling to a stop in front of a small clinic.