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墨書 Inktalez
Just like when Xiao Ran was a child, we lived in the same place and occasionally met. I provided her living expenses and hired a part-time nanny to do her laundry and cooking when she came home on weekends.
Li Hua had some complaints about this, but she understood her position and did not interfere much.
After two or three months, the market and connections here had basically opened up, and the business became increasingly proficient. With that came countless flashy butterflies, so Li Hua and I drifted further apart, yet we still maintained an average of one meeting every half month.
She possessed the virtues of a good wife and knew how to assess situations, advancing and retreating appropriately—qualities that no other woman could replace.
"Hey, have you seen Xiao Ran recently?"
Around six in the evening, Li Hua rushed to my apartment after work. Since the housing market had been booming lately, I was in a good mood and asked her if she could cook. Li Hua said she had been independent since childhood, so cooking was easy for her. She then went to the supermarket to buy groceries. After returning, she washed her hands, put on an apron, and heated the pot; the whole process looked quite impressive.
I sat comfortably in the living room, watching the latest political news while Li Hua busied herself in the kitchen. Suddenly, she poked her head out and asked.
"No, why? Did something happen at school?" I replied without turning my head.
"Her complexion has been really bad lately; she's lost a lot of weight and often seems distracted in class. Her grades have been fluctuating; I don't know what's going on."
I paused for a moment, lowered the TV volume, turned my body slightly to talk to Li Hua. "You know her heart condition isn't good. Has she had an episode recently? Have you asked her?"
Li Hua pouted. "She doesn't get close to me and deliberately avoids me; how can I ask anything? Hey, could it be that nanny's problem? I've heard that some nannies take advantage of the absence of family members to mistreat the elderly or children behind their backs—it's simply heartless. You should go back sometime and check on that nanny."
"I don't think so. I'm usually good at reading people. That nanny's surname is Li; she's in her thirties and has kids of her own. How could a mother bear to mistreat children?"
"Hmph," Li Hua scoffed dismissively. "Just because she's a mother doesn't mean she's great. Have you looked at your own situation?"
In moments of intimacy, I inevitably let my guard down and shared everything about Liu Ya with her.
I snapped back to reality, lying on the sofa. "Don't bring her up; it ruins my mood."
"Seriously, you should ask her about it later. At Xiao Ran's age, kids often hesitate to communicate with their families when facing issues. You need to be patient; don't always be so serious with her. Children's hearts are very tender and sensitive, but once they open up to you, you'll find them particularly lovable," Li Hua chattered on.
"You like kids so much; why don't you have one yourself?" I replied dismissively.
"With whom should I have one? With you!" Li Hua joked.
My heart skipped a beat, and I fell silent. This was Li Hua's test, and I could sense it. Women, no matter how rational, are bound to be swayed by emotions. If she couldn't restrain herself, our relationship would likely reach its end soon.
I took Li Hua's words to heart and decided to return to my old apartment for a weekend.
Standing outside, looking at the red security door, I felt a sudden wave of fear knowing that Xiao Ran was inside.
I chuckled at myself, took out my keys, and opened the door.
As I stepped into the living room, a piercing scream suddenly erupted from Xiao Ran's bedroom. Startled, I quickly ran toward her room.
The bedroom door was open, and from the hallway, I could see Aunt Li standing there with a crystal tray in hand, facing Xiao Ran's bed, looking completely at a loss.
The screams continued, sharp and grating, driving one to distraction.
"What happened?" I stepped into the bedroom. Aunt Li saw me and looked embarrassed. "Mr. Xu is back."
I nodded and turned to look at Xiao Ran.
Xiao Ran was wearing a bear pajama set, her hair disheveled, curled up in the corner of the bed. She had her hands over her head, and the continuous screams were erupting from her mouth without any reaction to my presence.
"What’s wrong with her?" I asked the nanny.
The nanny was equally puzzled. "I... I don't know either. Just now, I brought over some food; she hadn't gotten up yet. Seeing it was getting late, I lifted the blanket to wake her up, but as soon as I touched her... she suddenly... reacted like this... Mr. Xu, I really don’t know what’s going on."
Xiao Ran continued to scream like a smoke alarm that had been triggered, impossible to silence by any human means, making it hard for me to hear what the nanny was saying.
I was extremely irritated by her noise and shouted loudly, "Xu Xiaoran, shut up!"
It was as if a bursting pipe had suddenly been sealed; Xiao Ran abruptly stopped screaming. She hugged her knees with her hair wild like a madwoman. Her small face hung low, and her large eyes shot out a cold light from below. If you've ever seen a Korean horror movie featuring a little girl's ghost with a pale face, dark circles under her eyes, and bluish lips—especially those eyes staring directly at the camera against dim lighting and eerie music—it sends chills down your spine. Xiao Ran's expression mirrored that haunting image perfectly.
She had truly lost weight; she was never plump to begin with, but now her bones jutted out alarmingly.
A sudden chill ran through me as I straightened my face and pointed to the floor. "Get down."
Xiao Ran stared at me blankly without blinking.
"Did you not hear me speak? Come down!" I said, pressing against the headboard and stretching my arm to pull her down. Just as my fingertips were about to touch the hem of her clothes, she screamed again in a frenzy.
The sharpness of her voice made me instinctively cover my ears. When she saw that I no longer tried to touch her, she quieted down again.
I realized the crux of the issue, got off the bed, and ordered her, "I won't touch you; you come down by yourself."
She glanced at me with fear, quickly lowered her eyelids, hesitated for a moment, and then slowly crawled around the edge of the bed, finally placing her bare feet on the floor.
I bent down to pick up a pair of slippers and threw them in front of her. "Put these on."
She obediently complied.
Seeing her start to listen, the anger that had built up inside me dissipated. I looked at her figure; she had indeed lost a lot of weight. The last time I saw her was two weeks ago when she was wearing a coat, so I couldn't tell any difference. Now she was only in a thin nightgown, and the protruding bones on her shoulders were quite striking. "What are you making a fuss about? Why haven't you eaten?"
She twisted her fingers and replied softly, "Eat."
"Then hurry up!" I gestured to the nanny. "Eating in the bedroom? What's wrong with you? Go to the living room."
"Okay," the nanny said as she carried the tray to the living room. Xiao Ran timidly glanced at me again before passing by and following the nanny out.
While Xiao Ran was eating, I called the nanny into my former bedroom. After closing the door, I asked, "Has she been like this lately?"
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