She had looked forward to the day he would get out. Countless times, she had wondered whether her world would change once Dad came home.
Would he care about her? Would he pick her up after school? Would he remind her to study hard? Would he suddenly notice, with surprise, that she seemed to have grown a little taller? Would he protect her if someone bullied her?
And would she finally have a home of her own?
In the dead of night, she had also wondered whether Dad had simply gone astray by accident, and whether, after reforming, he might turn out to be a decent person.
She had even wondered whether her personality was lacking, or her grades not good enough. If he came out and saw what she was like, would he be disappointed?
But over the past two months, she seemed to have realized that her dream had fallen apart.
Nothing had changed. If anything, things had gotten worse.
Fang Qingyue was breathing rapidly. She felt as though she could barely breathe, and desperately wanted to pull away, to escape.
That was what she thought, and that was what she did.
Fang Qingyue pulled her hand from Fang Mother’s tight grip, stood up, and ran out of the Shop.
Fang Shuwen was the first to react. She hurried to her feet and ran after her. “Qingyue—”
Seeing this, Zhou Ling glared viciously at Fang Zhiwei, then got up to go after Fang Qingyue. But Zhou Shengcai grabbed her arm. “Don’t go make a mess of things.”
Zhou Ling tried to shake off Zhou Shengcai’s hand around her wrist, but couldn’t. She stomped her foot in exasperation. “How am I making a mess of things?”
Zhou Shengcai felt as if his head were a tangled mess. “All right, all right. You’re not going to make a mess of things. You want to comfort Qingyue.”
He added, “But Qingyue might want some time alone right now. Could you go see her later?”
Zhou Ling nodded helplessly. “Fine.”
Turning around, she saw Fang Mother still quietly wiping away her tears. Zhou Ling pulled out two tissues and handed them to her. “Grandma, don’t cry.”
As she spoke, she shot Fang Zhiwei a sidelong glance. He was the one who should be crying.
Fang Zhiwei still had his head lowered, lost in thought. After a long while, he slowly raised it and began clearing the dishes in a daze.
Zhou Shengcai held down the bowl in front of him and looked up at Fang Zhiwei. “I said what needed to be said this afternoon. Zhiwei, think it over carefully.”
Fang Zhiwei nodded. “I know.”
Then he looked at Fang Mother. “Mom, don’t cry. I—I think I’ve more or less come to my senses.”
Fang Mother wiped her tears without saying a word. She didn’t understand why people changed after growing up, or why Heaven never seemed to grant people what they wished for.
She wondered whether she should have avoided that illness all those years ago. Then Zhiwei might have been able to go to University, and everything that followed might have turned out differently.
Fang Mother shook her head and let out a long breath, still unsure what to say.
Sometimes, it felt as though no matter how much you said, it made no difference.
Fang Zhiwei continued clearing the dishes. Zhou Shengcai still didn’t lift his hand, keeping the bowl in front of him pinned down. When Fang Zhiwei looked over, Zhou Shengcai took a long while to force out a few words. “I’m not full yet.”
As soon as he said it, Zhou Shengcai immediately sounded indignant. “I really am not full.”
Honestly. He wasn’t diligent when he should be, and now he was being diligent when he shouldn’t.
Zhou Ling rubbed her stomach, then looked at the little bit of rice left in her bowl. She, too, darted back to her seat. “I don’t think I’m full either.”
Zhou Yue pushed her bowl away and wiped her greasy mouth. “I’m full~”
The father and daughter paid Zhou Yue no mind. They picked up their Chopsticks and went back to eating, alternating bites of food and rice, thoroughly enjoying themselves.
Before, Zhou Shengcai, as Fang Zhiwei’s brother-in-law, had worried so much about him that he couldn’t sleep. But now, chewing on the Twice-Cooked Pork in his mouth, he didn’t feel nearly as concerned.
As long as he wasn’t lazy and had a skill, he could at least make a living, even if he never became rich.
Seeing Fang Mother cleaning the counter, Fang Zhiwei hurried over. “Mom, let me wipe it. You take a break.”
Fang Mother stopped what she was doing and handed him the rag.
When she saw Fang Zhiwei standing there with the rag in his hand, she raised an eyebrow in confusion. Only then did he say, “My sister and Qingyue might not be full either.”
At that, Fang Mother’s lips unconsciously curled into a smile. It was good that he still knew how to care about people.
She glanced over and saw the father and daughter inside, heads down and eating with gusto. At this rate, there probably wouldn’t be much left when they finished.
Fang Mother guessed that Fang Zhiwei had been acting awkward earlier because he had no money. She didn’t bring up asking him to buy groceries. Instead, she wiped her hands and asked, “Then what else should I buy?”
Fang Zhiwei thought for a moment. “We used up the eggs when we cooked earlier. Mom, buy a few eggs, and I’ll make them a bowl of Egg Fried Rice.”
Fang Mother readily agreed. “All right.”
The counter was wiped every day, so it wasn’t dirty. There was just quite a bit of raw flour on it. Fang Zhiwei swept it off with a dry cloth, then wiped the counter with a damp one. He worked with remarkable efficiency.
Fang Mother bought not only eggs but also a few Scallions. She told Fang Zhiwei, “I’ll finish wiping the little bit that’s left. You go make the fried rice.”
“Okay.”
By the time Fang Zhiwei started making the fried rice, the father and daughter, their bellies round from eating, finally came to their senses. They exchanged a rather guilty glance, then silently looked away.
Zhou Ling couldn’t help burping. “It’s not my fault. It’s the school’s fault for serving such awful food at lunch. I wasn’t full. And tonight’s food was so good, with so many dishes that go well with rice.”
Zhou Shengcai nodded in complete agreement. “Me too.”
Then he got up to clear the dishes, but caught sight of the golden grains of rice. He felt the glutton in his stomach stirring again.
Fang Zhiwei saw that the fried rice was nearly done and sprinkled the chopped scallions from the bowl into the wok. A strong scallion aroma burst forth, mingling with the fragrance of rice and egg, spreading through the Shop.
As Zhou Shengcai washed dishes, his thoughts wandered. It would be great if his Noodle Stall did a little better. Even if his brother-in-law didn’t go out to work and cooked for the whole family every day, he’d be perfectly happy with that—and would support it with both hands and feet, without saying a single harsh word.
Fang Zhiwei packed the Egg Fried Rice into the two insulated Lunchboxes Fang Mother handed him, put on the lids, and passed them back to her. “Give these to my sister and Qingyue. I want to walk around the market once more.”
“Everything’s closed. What’s there to look around at?”
“Then I want to walk home.”
Fang Mother took the Lunchboxes from Fang Zhiwei. “All right, all right.”
She still couldn’t help muttering under her breath, “One is your sister, and the other is your own daughter. What’s there to be embarrassed about?”
Zhou Shengcai closed up the Shop, then rode his Electric Bike home with Fang Mother, Zhou Ling, and Zhou Yue. Fang Zhiwei walked slowly by himself, facing the evening breeze.