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墨書 Inktalez
It turned out that Xu Wenmo hadn't left. She emerged from behind her father, walking towards me while pulling a coat out of her backpack. Shortly after, her father struggled symbolically a couple of times before being dragged away by the police, weak and powerless. I put on Xu Wenmo's coat and stumbled my way to the Alley Entrance, watching as my father was escorted into the police car, with only one thought in my mind: Xu Wenmo's coat smelled really nice.
Mr. Xu, Xu Wenmo's father, stood outside the car window, exchanged a few words with the people inside, then turned back to glance at Xu Wenmo before his gaze landed on me. "Are you okay? Do you need to go to the hospital?"
I pulled up the coat slightly. "I'm fine."
"That's good," he nodded slightly. "Is your mother home?"
"She shouldn't be; otherwise, she would have come out by now."
"Well... then I'll come by to visit another day."
"Oh, okay."
Xu Wenmo stood a few meters away, silently watching us talk. Mr. Xu turned his head to look at her. "Go back; it's getting late." After saying that, he walked straight towards the car parked by the roadside.
Xu Wenmo came up to me and whispered, "Don't worry; he said this time is just to teach your dad a lesson so he won't dare to mess with you again. He has friends at the police station who will help your dad and he'll be released in a couple of days." There was no hint of apology in her words; she seemed unaware that she had reported my family without my consent.
Even though I had no objections about this matter.
"Who?"
"Oh, my dad."
Who calls their father "he" in front of others?
After a brief moment of awkwardness, Xu Wenmo said, "I'm leaving now; you should get some rest."
"Your coat..."
"No need."
Distractedly walking towards my home, I jumped over a stinky ditch and looked up to see my mother standing outside the iron gate, looking in my direction with an inscrutable expression.
I suddenly felt very cold.
"Mom, when did you come back? Dad was taken away by the police." I suppressed the chill inside me and approached her.
"Yeah, I saw," my mother replied flatly. "Let's go home; have you eaten yet?"
"Not yet."
"What do you want to eat?"
"Just some noodles will do."
"Just noodles? Nothing else?"
"Do we have any vegetables at home?"
"I bought some pork."
It was then that I noticed my mother was holding a heavy black plastic bag that faintly emitted a fishy smell.
"Stir-Fried Pork with Chili?" My mother turned around to close the door and asked again.
"Uh... sure."
I initially thought that Mr. Xu's mention of visiting again was just a polite remark, but the next morning, while I was still in bed, I was awakened by the sound of conversation from the living room.
I opened the door with messy hair and, upon seeing Mr. Xu, quickly retreated. My mother and Mr. Xu's conversation paused momentarily until I got dressed and went out again, where Mr. Xu gave me a light smile.
My mother turned her head and said, "Awake? Go to work, and buy something to eat on the way. Do you have any change?"
"I do."
"Hurry up, or you'll be late." My mother had always looked down on my job at the internet café, but this time she seemed eager for me to go.
However, if I left, it would mean leaving Mr. Xu alone with my mother? The thought made me slightly uncomfortable.
"What are you dawdling for?" my mother urged.
"Oh, I'm going now."
What could they possibly need to talk about? Did they know each other before? Were they old lovers? Could I be Mr. Xu's child?
As I walked and let my mind wander, I chuckled at the thought of old lovers— even if my mother were willing, Mr. Xu probably wouldn't be interested.
Under normal circumstances, when my father was arrested, the police should have notified the family; whether it was sentencing or paying fines, there should be some outcome. Yet in the following days, there was no news about my father, and my mother seemed indifferent to it as well. In front of me, she never brought up my father voluntarily nor did she piece together any plans to get him out.
Of course, this didn't affect me much; in fact, it was somewhat beneficial since I didn't have to worry every day about my father's unpredictable temper and fear he might take it out on me.
I had also asked my mother what she talked about with Mr. Xu that morning; her attitude was vague as she simply said they were discussing my dad's matters and told me not to worry about it.
After a few days of calmness, Xu Wenmo probably had too much schoolwork and hadn't come looking for me again. Xiao Shan might still be angry about that day's incident and hadn't shown up either; naturally, I wouldn't take the initiative to find him—if a girl isn't reserved, she becomes cheap.
Although I found myself unconsciously gazing at the door during work, hoping to catch a glimpse of someone again, looking back now, my youthful ignorance at that time seems quite laughable.
"Your dad has been sentenced," my mother suddenly said one morning while I was stuffing my mouth with Fried Dough Stick. I was taken aback, the Fried Dough Stick got stuck in my throat, and after coughing a few times, I gulped down some soy milk before rushing downstairs. "Three years; the police just called."
Should I pretend to be heartbroken? Just as I hesitated, my mother added, "You don't have to worry about him anymore; just focus on your job."
"Okay," I nodded gloomily, blinking but unable to squeeze out any tears.
My mother lifted her shirt and pulled out a stack of money from her pants pocket—small denominations of ten and fifty. She took out a few bills and handed them to me. "Have a good meal at noon today."
I took the money and counted—it was over two hundred. This was the most money my parents had ever given me in my life, and I couldn't help but look at my mother in surprise.
Her expression was complex; she sighed and sat down across from me at the square table, her demeanor turning tender again. "Being born into this dysfunctional family is your misfortune. Your dad is like that, and I'm just an incapable housewife. You haven't enjoyed any comforts since you were little. Now that your dad is in prison, whether you're sad or not doesn't really matter; for me, it's not painful at all. Let's consider it a celebration. For these three years, you should live well because once your dad gets out, life won't be easy."
What was I supposed to say? I had no experience talking about feelings with others; my mind was blank, filled only with panic and confusion.
"Alright, hurry up and eat so you can get to work," she urged.
"Okay."
I quickly finished breakfast and fled the house. My heart raced in my chest; my mother's earlier demeanor filled me with fear. I was terrified of her shedding her outer facade to reveal an inner ugliness that I couldn't accept. I knew exactly what kind of person she was; if she wasn't pretending to be great, it would only make me nauseous. I needed us to maintain our mother-daughter title while keeping just the right distance—never, ever getting any closer.
Because neither of our cores were particularly beautiful.
As I ran out of Shantytown, I felt a slight sense of safety wash over me. Slowing my pace, time still lingered on. I headed to an internet café; the owner wouldn't pay for any extra time anyway, so I strolled leisurely down the street. A massive crane passed by me, its arm swaying precariously; if it fell, it would surely crush a car's roof. Curiously, I watched the crane disappear into the distance until it turned into Shantytown. Only then did I remember there seemed to be construction nearby.
But that had nothing to do with me, so I didn't think much more about it.
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