A classmate nearby called out to Chen Mingliang, “Are you leaving? Let’s go home together.”
Chen Mingliang asked, “What about you? Let’s go home together.”
Jiang Yuxin shook her head. “You go ahead. I need to wait a bit. My grandmother is coming to pick me up soon.”
“Hey, isn’t that the class monitor? You’re so old and still need someone to pick you up? Just like a baby!”
A few mischievous boys laughed and teased her, causing Jiang Yuxin’s face to flush bright red.
Chen Mingliang stopped them disapprovingly. “Don’t talk nonsense. Jiang Yuxin’s home is across the street. It’s dangerous to cross without someone accompanying her. Come on, let’s go.”
Jiang Yuxin remained silent. She took out her homework and propped it against the wall to write. Math went quickly; once she finished that, she could move on to English. But she hadn’t started her Chinese homework yet—it required a lot of writing and would take a long time.
Writing with her notebook propped against the wall was tiring. She had to keep it from falling while also looking down at the book on her knees. After struggling for a long time, she finally finished her math homework. Jiang Yuxin shook her hand and looked toward home, growing anxious. Why hadn’t Grandmother arrived yet?
Hadn’t she gone to pick up Yucheng? Did she not find him, or had something happened to Yucheng? Or…
Jiang Yuxin remembered that whenever Grandmother criticized her, Mother would say, “Grandmother is old and confused. Don’t take it to heart.” Grandmother was indeed old and confused. Could she have gotten lost? What should she do? Should she borrow a phone to call Father or Mother?
No, if Grandmother hadn’t picked up Yucheng, the kindergarten teacher would have called her parents.
Lost in her thoughts, Jiang Cheng came running over with an umbrella, looking left and right. There were hardly any students left near the school, making Jiang Yuxin easy to spot under the eaves.
Jiang Cheng ran over, saw the homework in Jiang Yuxin’s hands, and felt a pang in his heart. He took her hand and said, “Are you okay, Yuxin? Come on, Father will take you home.”
Seeing Father only made Jiang Yuxin more anxious. She quickly asked, “Father, why are you here? Where’s Grandmother? And my brother? Are they okay?”
Jiang Cheng choked up slightly and patted Yuxin’s head. “My precious girl has grown up and knows how to worry about others.”
“Father…”
Jiang Cheng didn’t answer. Instead, he checked his phone. “We’re running out of time. Come on, Father will take you out to eat, then to your class.”
Jiang Yuxin understood. Grandmother and her brother were fine. Most likely, Grandmother had picked up her brother but forgotten about her. Father must have realized this when he returned home and rushed over to get her.
After a quick meal, Jiang Cheng dropped Jiang Yuxin off for her class.
Jiang Yuxin turned back and gave her father a hug. “Father, I’ve always loved you.”
The father and daughter shared an unspoken understanding. That evening, during their video call with Lu Jiaping, neither mentioned what had happened. They only said there was a lot of homework and that she was still working on it.
Lu Jiaping was furious. “Jiang Yuxin, have you been slacking off again? I can tell you’re being lazy when I’m not around. I’m warning you, if you keep this up, just wait until I get back and see how I deal with you!”
Jiang Cheng coughed, took the phone, and stepped outside. “No, it’s really just a lot of homework…”
“Jiang Cheng, are you helping her lie? Everyone in the group knows how much homework she has. She usually finishes it in an hour and a half. It’s already 9:30, and she’s still working on it? She must have been playing around earlier!”
Jiang Cheng impatiently said, “Alright, alright, you should rest early. I still have things to do.”
The video call ended.
Jiang Yuxin bit her pen cap, lost in thought for a while. Then she took out some letter paper from her schoolbag—letters written to her by her basketball teammates. Chen Mingliang had written the most. His handwriting was neat, and his essays were well-written. If she could be like him, she wouldn’t have to worry about those thirty-two essays.
Originally, Jiang Yuxin only wrote replies to her classmates during breaks, but now, for some reason, she pulled out a blue sheet of letter paper and began carefully writing a reply to Chen Mingliang.
Lu Jiaping hurriedly returned early Friday morning. When she got home, she glanced around and saw the mess—nothing had been tidied up. Toys were scattered all around the coffee table, and you’d have to kick them aside just to walk through.
Grandma Jiang heard her return and immediately sighed, “Oh, my back just won’t cooperate. I’ve been exhausted these past few days. At my age, I still have to take care of your kids. You young people really have it easy. Back in my day, I had to work right after giving birth.”
With a stern face, Lu Jiaping cleaned up the entire house and bought Grandma Jiang a ticket. “The high-speed train leaves at three-thirty. You’ll know how to get to Nantong once you arrive. I’ll take you to the station in a bit.”
Grandma Jiang rolled her eyes. “Hmph, you call me over when I’m useful, and kick me out when I’m not. Is that it?”
“We agreed long ago not to live together. Mom, you don’t want to put Jiang Cheng in a difficult position, do you?”
Grandma Jiang grew even angrier. “I’m not leaving. Look at you—all you care about is Yuxin, and you’ve let my grandson get so thin. Yucheng is the root of our Jiang family. And as for Chengcheng, since you married him, you should take care of him. But all you do is think about enjoying yourself. He works so hard to earn money, and look at you—buying fish, meat, and shrimp by the plateful. Yuxin’s closet is overflowing with clothes. Does a girl really need that many…”
Lu Jiaping retreated to her room, closed the door, and sent Jiang Cheng a message: 【Make your mother leave! I bought her a ticket for the three-thirty train. If she doesn’t go, figure it out yourself.】
Jiang Cheng: 【I told you not to bring her here. You insisted on inviting her over. She’s still my mother, after all. What do you expect me to do? I’m not getting involved. You handle the mess you made!】
Lu Jiaping was furious and quickly prepared to send a harsh reply: 【You said it yourself—she’s your mother! Jiang Cheng, you’re really something, making me the bad guy, huh? Fine, if you won’t deal with it, I…】
Before she could send it, another message from Jiang Cheng arrived: 【I have something to do tonight. I might not come back.】
Lu Jiaping stared at her phone for a long time. She had swallowed her pride and run around Nantong for two days, helping her aunt and cousin, finally managing to get a few contacts. But Jiang Cheng acted as if nothing had happened, leaving everything to her. How could she have been so determined to marry him back then?
Fuming with anger, Lu Jiaping’s eyes reddened, but she still had to muster her energy to deal with her mother-in-law. Her mother-in-law’s thinking was too old-fashioned. If she stayed, she would only spoil Yucheng and bully Yuxin. Lu Jiaping couldn’t let that continue.
After a mix of threats and persuasion, the two women had a huge argument. Grandma Jiang finally left, crying and cursing, complaining about her daughter-in-law’s lack of filial piety, reluctantly following Lu Jiaping out the door.
Fortunately, this was Shanghai. Everyone in the neighborhood was busy with their own lives. Even if someone overheard Grandma Jiang’s complaints, no one had the time or inclination to stop and meddle.
After seeing Grandma Jiang off, Lu Jiaping felt utterly exhausted. She didn’t even have time to linger, as Yuxin would be getting out of school soon, and she had to hurry back to pick her up.