Liang Shi nodded: "Yes."
"How did you know?" Xu Qingzhu asked in surprise.
“That’s my colleague’s child’s teacher,” Liang Shi said. “Her name is Qi Jiao.”
"Do I resemble her?" Xu Qingzhu asked, puzzled. "We're obviously different."
“It doesn’t look like it,” Liang Shi said.
Suddenly, Lingdang said, "Hey? Isn't that Grandma Qi?"
Liang Shi and Xu Qingzhu simultaneously squatted down. "You know them?"
Lingdang nodded, "She often comes to our house to play cards with Grandma, and Aunt Qi Jiao also comes often."
"Did she ever hit you?" Liang Shi asked immediately.
For some reason, after seeing Mrs. Qi, she felt a strange sense of oppression.
I have a feeling that the scene from that night will repeat itself.
In that dimly lit little room, she was disciplined and whipped.
The children with her didn't even dare to cry.
Just thinking about it makes me feel like I can't breathe.
They were afraid that the bell would suffer the same fate.
Lingdang shook her head. "Why did she hit me? My mom would never let her hit me."
Liang Shi: "..."
I was stabbed for no reason.
Liang Shi then asked, "Is there anything strange about her?"
“No,” Lingdang said, then suddenly paused. “Does her frequently hitting Aunt Qi Jiao count?”
Lingdang was afraid of being overheard, so she kept her voice very low, whispering between the two of them, "Last time I saw Aunt Qi Jiao, her body was covered in pinch marks, and Grandma Qi would slap Aunt Qi Jiao whenever she was unhappy. Another time, when I went in to play with Grandma, Aunt Qi Jiao was kneeling on a board of nails."
"A nailed board?!" Liang Shi and Xu Qingzhu gasped in shock.
“It’s not the pointed side,” Lingdang said. “It’s the flat side, with several rows of nails. Aunt Qi Jiao’s face turned pale, and tears even reached her eyes.”
She even acted it out as she spoke, "But Grandma Qi wouldn't let her cry, saying that if tears fell, she would turn the nail board over and make her kneel down."
Liang Shi & Xu Qingzhu: "..."
Oh, this.
Lingdang continued, "But Grandma Qi often has wounds on her body. Several times when she came to our house, she had bruises and swelling on her face."
Liang Shi: "..."
Lingdang glanced at Xu Qingzhu, then quietly climbed to Liang Shi's ear and whispered, "Auntie, you also need to be careful of Grandma Qi."
"Why?" Liang Shi asked.
“Last time when Aunt Qi Jiao knelt on the nail board, Grandma Qi said she would keep that in our house.” Lingdang swallowed nervously, but continued, “She said if you don’t behave, Grandma will make you kneel on that nail board.”
Liang Shi: "..."
Are these people crazy?
Bell sighed, "I've had nightmares for several nights because of that."
But she acted like a little adult, saying, "I told Grandma to throw that away, so don't be afraid, no one will bully you."
Liang Shi: "..."
My emotions suddenly reached a breaking point, and tears streamed down my face, as if those words had crossed twenty years, and the bell was comforting that little boy from back then.
She said, "Don't be afraid, no one will bully you."
Liang Shi was inexplicably touched.
Xu Qingzhu handed her a tissue.
A moment later, mimicking the bell, he reached out and patted her shoulder: "Don't worry, I'll protect you from now on, no one will bully you."
Chapter 41
There is an elevator to the top floor of the mall, but it's not in the same direction as Mrs. Qi's shopping.
Perhaps it was because their gazes were too intense that Mrs. Qi suddenly turned around and looked at him, but in that instant, Liang Shi immediately turned his back and lowered his head.
It's a fear and panic ingrained in your very bones.
Her eyes and smile would even keep appearing in my mind.
After a while, Xu Qingzhu said in a low voice, "Let's go."
Liang Shi took a deep breath, closed his eyes to calm himself down, then stood up and walked towards the elevator while holding Lingdang's hand tightly.
The bells were also exceptionally well-behaved.
Her palm gently brushed against Liang Shi's palm. "Auntie, your palms are so sweaty."
"It's nothing." Liang Shi's mood was slightly down, but he didn't want to show it in front of the children. He forced a smile and said, "It's just too hot."
“Your aunt’s hands are cold, let her hold yours.” Lingdang used her own hand as a medium to pull Xu Qingzhu’s hand over, and then their palms touched, their skin touching.
The bell was right.
Xu Qingzhu's palms were cool, unlike the warm, damp palms of hers.
Lingdang ran to her other side and took her other hand, saying, "Auntie, your aunt and I will protect you."
Liang Shi was both amused and exasperated by her, but felt a warm glow in his heart.
She was too embarrassed to hold Xu Qingzhu's hand, and afraid that the bell would make noise, so she kept her hand suspended in the air, leaving only one finger to touch Xu Qingzhu's skin.
Unexpectedly, Xu Qingzhu suddenly gripped her hand tightly.
Liang Shi looked over, puzzled.
Xu Qingzhu smiled calmly, "Consider it as warming my hands."
//
Xu Qingzhu was considerate of Liang Shi's feelings and didn't ask a single question about Mrs. Qi and Qi Jiao in public.
Because Lingdang had an etiquette class on Saturday, they took her back to the old house after lunch and told her to keep her encounter with Grandma Qi and Aunt Qi Jiao at the mall a secret.
Lingdang raised her hand and zipped up her mouth. "Okay."
Because he felt the old house was too gloomy, Liang Shi only sent the bell inside before leaving under the pretext of having something to do.
When Qiu Zimin heard the news of her return, she rushed out, but only saw the back of the car.
Liang Shi saw her and Sun Meirou in the rearview mirror, talking about something.
It probably wasn't anything happy to hear, since Qiu Zimin had her brows furrowed the whole time.
After returning home, Liang Shi was ready to tell Xu Qingzhu about Mrs. Qi.
But to everyone's surprise, Xu Qingzhu didn't mention it at all, and just went to the study to read.
Liang Shi himself hadn't figured it out either, so he went back to his room to rest.
Ever since she met Mrs. Qi, it felt like there was a taut knot in her heart.
That string made her feel depressed and down.
She has never liked being in this state, so she tries to adjust by exercising or sleeping.
Autumn in Haizhou City is rainy; once it starts raining, it can be persistent and lingering.
The sky, which had been clear in the morning, soon became overcast, with dark clouds moving rapidly across the sky, and the sky darkened instantly. Before long, a light drizzle began to fall.
This perfectly reflects Liang Shi's feelings at this moment.
She sank into the soft bed, watching the rain streaks on the glass, and the green branches of the trees swaying in the wind.
This environment is like a huge yet gentle cocoon, with raindrops falling in a pleasing pattern, playing a symphony with the wind.
It's a rhythm that can easily hypnotize people.
Liang Shi slowly closed his eyes.
Then came a long, heavy dream from which I could not wake up.
The dream was filled with the usual gloomy tones; the small room couldn't let in a ray of sunlight, except for a night lamp hanging on the wall.
The lights were dim, and the little girl in the room was crouching in the corner.
Mrs. Qi walked in wearing a light blue cheongsam that shimmered faintly in the dim light. She smiled, but her smile sent chills down one's spine.
Behind her followed a little girl. Mrs. Qi called out to her, "Jiaojiao, aren't you the best at teaching children?"
Mrs. Qi lit a cigarette in the dark room. "Go and teach your sister how to behave at home from now on."
The little girl named Qi Jiao, dressed in a princess dress, had a large scrape on her forehead and bruises on her lips. She slowly walked over, squatted down, and looked the little girl in the corner at eye level. "You have to listen to your mother. Children who don't listen to their mothers will get hit."
Her voice sounds a lot like the children's voices in horror movies.
In addition, the enclosed space can even produce echoes.
There was no light in her eyes, only a blank stare and a barely perceptible fear.
Mrs. Qi exhaled a smoke ring, the bluish-gray smoke dissipating before her eyes.
She stood up, her high heels clicking on the concrete floor, each sound like a blow to the heart, as if recklessly trampling on one's soul.
Then, looking down at Qi Jiao, he said, "Jiao Jiao, let your sister speak."
Qi Jiao then said, "Say something, you said you would listen to your mother."
The little girl said, "I've always listened to my mother. I want to go home. I don't want to stay here."
Mrs. Qi chuckled and said, "But your mother wants you to stay here. She said you're disobedient."
As she spoke, she squatted down and asked, "Didn't you break your mother's lipstick last time?"