According to Zhang's wife, when her mother was in confinement after childbirth, she suddenly disappeared from the nursery. Her parents were frantic with worry. However, half a month later, her grandfather brought back a baby girl with a birthmark that matched her perfectly and told her mother that Si'er had been found.
Si'er was exceptionally talented. She could dance ballet, play the piano fluently, and was beautiful. What was even more remarkable was her extremely well-behaved and adorable personality. The entire Wen family, including the late Wen family grandmother, cherished her like a precious jewel. Even her grandfather, who was stern by nature, couldn't stop smiling when he mentioned her to outsiders, not to mention Wen's mother, who had held her daughter dearly in her heart since childhood.
“It’s such a pity, such a good child…” Aunt Zhang always looked regretful and sad when she talked about it.
In the Wen family, the only person Ah Heng could talk to was probably Aunt Zhang. This old woman had been widowed for many years and had been working for the Wen family as a maid since before the old lady of the Wen family passed away. She was highly respected by everyone in the Wen family.
In fact, Ah Heng's harmonious relationship with Aunt Zhang was thanks to the kitchen.
Yunmu was a well-known skillful woman in town, an excellent cook and soup maker. Ah Heng had been influenced by her since childhood and had learned a great deal from her.
One day, while Aunt Zhang was busy cooking, she accidentally burned the rice. In her haste, Ah Heng saw half an orange on the table and squeezed the juice into the rice. Then she stuck some green onion leaves into the rice and steamed it over a low flame.
For some inexplicable reason, after a while, Aunt Zhang smelled the pure aroma of rice. Only then did she change her opinion of the young girl in front of her. When she had free time, she would pull Ah Heng aside to exchange cooking skills and carefully teach Ah Heng how to cook Northern dishes.
"Try to flip three times, be careful," Aunt Zhang commanded Ah Heng with considerable authority.
Ah Heng easily flipped it over twice with a wooden shovel.
"Wrong, it's three times." The old man insisted, holding the girl's hand, and flipped it over again.
"Two strokes, is that alright?" Ah Heng laughed.
"Of course not, northerners always flip the food three times when they take it off the heat." The old man said with a matter-of-fact expression.
"Three trips to the north, two trips to the south?" Ah Heng muttered to himself.
"Little girl!" Aunt Zhang turned her head and scolded with a smile, then wiped the sweat from Ah Heng's forehead.
"Grandma." Ah Heng's eyes were gentle and clear, and her voice was soft and sweet, with a pure southern accent.
Aunt Zhang was taken aback, as if she didn't understand, and turned around to stir-fry the shredded chicken.
"Grandma... Grandma." Ah Heng said earnestly, her words warm and slightly awkward in Mandarin.
The old man continued stir-frying the shredded chicken, paused for a moment, and sighed softly.
"You child, it would be so much better if you were a little naughty."
Ah Heng remained silent, a faint smile, like a traditional Chinese ink painting, playing on her lips.
Every day at dinner time, the restaurant was very quiet, and you could not even hear the sound of chewing. Ah Heng ate her food in small bites. Although it was strange, she had always liked cleanliness since she was a child, so she did not find it awkward.
"Dad..." Mother Wen gently put down the soup spoon, hesitating to speak.
"Yunyi, what's wrong?" The old man frowned as he looked at his daughter-in-law.
The Wen family had very strict rules and tabooed talking at the dinner table. However, Siwan and Si'er loved to talk and laugh during meals. Although the old man had scolded them a few times, it had no effect. Si'er would just act cute and let them be.
Now that Aheng has arrived, he's quiet and doesn't talk much, which makes the old man feel a little uncomfortable.
"Could we...could we take Er'er home?" Mother Wen was elegant and poised, but at this moment she was somewhat cautious.
"I've found someone to take care of Si'er in the house she's staying in now, so you don't need to worry." The old man was a little displeased, but his gaze swept over Aheng.
Siwan continued to chew her rice politely and properly, but her brows were furrowed.
"Dad, didn't you used to love Er'er the most?" Wen's mother hesitated, turning her gaze to her father-in-law.
"Enough!" The old man slammed the soup spoon heavily on the table.
Siwan raised her eyes, looking at the old woman with a hurt expression. Mother Wen remained silent, her gentle brows furrowing into a knot, her heart heavy with sorrow.
All around was quiet. Ah Heng had a mouthful of soup in her mouth, but she was embarrassed and couldn't swallow it.
"Yunyi, instead of wasting your time, you should buy some clothes for Aheng." The old man sighed and picked up the soup spoon again.
Ah Heng looked at her somewhat dirty school uniform and immediately felt embarrassed and uneasy.
It's not that I don't have clothes in my wardrobe, but those clothes ultimately belong to others, and most of them look very expensive, so I always feel awkward wearing them. The clothes I brought from home are all gradually going out of season and are no longer appropriate. So, I have to alternate between two sets of school uniforms. Unfortunately, I got my clothes dirty during PE class today, and Mr. Wen noticed.
"I understand." Wen's mother looked at Aheng, her expression unreadable.
Ah Heng lowered her head and slowly swallowed the soup, but it felt as if a fish bone was stuck in her throat.
Actually, the school uniform is fine. Ah Heng wanted to speak, but then felt it was inappropriate. She glanced at Si Wan and, seeing that he didn't have any particular expression, her heart eased a little.
Siwan's kindness to Si'er was evident to her in the parking lot that day.
"Aheng, are you keeping up with your schoolwork?" Old Master Wen asked in a softer tone, looking at his seemingly ordinary granddaughter with a hint of regret.
In the end, he still delayed the child's future.
"Hmm." Ah Heng was a little surprised, then nodded obediently.
"If there's anything you don't understand, let...your brother teach you." The old man emphasized the word "brother."
Instantly, Wen's mother and Siwan's faces turned somewhat pale.
elder brother.
Ah Heng felt a tickle in his throat. He opened his mouth but couldn't make a sound; he could only nod slightly.
Siwan's hand holding the chopsticks trembled almost imperceptibly. After a moment, she stood up and politely moved her chair away.
"I'm stuffed."
Siwan turned around, her heart aching as if someone were choking her, and she naturally had no time to care about the feelings of others.
"Ah Xi." Si Wan walked back to her room, put the microphone to her ear, and spoke after a moment of silence.
"Hmm?" The other person's voice was slightly nasal and languid.
"I think Er'er." Siwan's fingers slowly tightened around the microphone.
"Oh." The other party didn't bother with anything more and replied with a single word.
"Axi, I said I miss Er'er!" Siwan's voice grew louder, unable to contain her pent-up emotions, and her eyes slowly reddened.
"Why are you shouting so loudly? You little brat, are you crazy?" The boy's voice was clear and his words were sharp.
“Ah Xi…” Siwan said, feeling wronged.
"Trying to call back your soul!" the boy sneered, extremely impatient.
"Do you always have to be so fierce when you talk to me?" Siwan's voice softened, carrying a hint of childishness and helplessness.
"I've never been gentle to anyone in my entire life!" The boy's voice was clear, and the rude words on his lips had a unique charm.
"Then... what about Lu Liu?" Si Wan paused, cautiously.
"Bang!" The other party slammed the phone down.
When Siwan heard the busy signal, she knew she had stepped on a cat's tail and couldn't help but smile wryly.
Ah-Xi, have you... not let go yet?
For some reason, when she was thinking of Er'er, Yan Xi in Siwan's mind became increasingly proud and indifferent, and even his exquisite beauty became a mask.
Naturally, years later, looking at how things turned out, all I could do was smile bitterly. Four words, like an arrow, struck me right between the lines: "Fate plays tricks on people."
Ah Heng never saw Si Er again after that fleeting glimpse in the parking lot that day.
In the class, everyone gradually noticed something from Aheng's overly plain clothes. In addition, Aheng's Mandarin was indeed unpleasant, and her sentences sounded ridiculously fragmented. Some snobbish students in the class began to dislike the girl. When they heard Aheng speak, the smiles on their lips were always tinged with pity and mockery. They pretended not to know and made eye contact with the students next to them, exchanging glances with a sense of superiority.
Because of their lack of decent clothing and their inability to speak fluent Mandarin, they are pitiable; because of their poverty and their rustic accent, they are shameful.
At first, Ah Heng was willing to communicate with everyone, but later she became completely silent, only watching others talk and laugh with a gentle smile.
Xin Dayi, though aware of the snobbishness of the crowd, felt a strange aversion to Wen Heng because of Er'er's situation. Weighing the two, she simply ignored it and treated Wen Heng as a complete stranger. Strangely, she hoped that Wen Heng would cry or curse because of the crowd's ostracism, so that she would have the right to feel at ease and a reason to hate her on Er'er's behalf.
Unfortunately, from beginning to end, Wen Heng never once hesitated to show his gentle smile; his distant mountain-shaped eyebrows seemed to encompass everything with a tender yet resilient expression.
Chapter 5
Chapter 5
As autumn arrived and the weather gradually turned cooler, although Wen's mother had bought clothes for Aheng several times, Wen's father couldn't help but feel a little bothered that the girl had never worn any of them.
"Aheng, why are you still wearing your school uniform?" The old man frowned as he scrutinized his granddaughter.
"It's a new one from the school, it's very good." Ah Heng stammered, his voice a little soft.
"You're in the Wen family now, not the Yun family." The old man's brows furrowed more and more, and anger slowly rose within him.
Is this child rebelling against them in this way? The Wen family's daughter, who shares the Wen surname, has never been mistreated. Why would she stoop so low?!
Ah Heng clutched the hem of her clothes and gently lowered her head.
"knew."
Hearing the girl's still distinct Jiangnan accent, the old man realized he had said harsh words and felt guilty as he recalled the past.
"Since you like the school uniform, fine," he sighed softly. "But, does it even fit?"
"It's very warm." Ah Heng quickly said in his southern dialect, then repeated it again in his not-so-standard Mandarin, feeling embarrassed. He gently turned the inside of his coat over; it was thick and looked very sturdy.
"It's good that it's warm." The old man's brows relaxed, and a hint of warmth appeared in his eyes, which were as sharp as a hawk's. "I can understand Wushui dialect, so you don't need to change your way of speaking."
Ah Heng was surprised, then smiled, her eyes bright and gentle.
"When I was eighteen or nineteen, I led troops in Wushui Town for a few months." The old man's voice was no longer as stern as usual, but rather a little soft, and his serious eyebrows and eyes also carried a gentleness as if shrouded in mist and rain.
“Aheng, your eyes look just like your grandmother’s.”
Gradually, Ah Heng became familiar with the way to school and got used to walking or taking the bus to and from school alone. Ironically, despite being family, Ah Heng rarely saw Si Wan, only occasionally at dinner time. She wanted to talk to Si Wan, but knowing she wasn't good with words, she refrained. As for Wen's mother, she was always busy with piano recital arrangements and was rarely seen either.
In class, Wenheng was known for her kind and gentle nature. Even when mocked to her face, she never got angry, only smiling gently and tolerantly. Gradually, the other person got bored and stopped teasing her. As time went on, it became clear that Wenheng's temperament brought many benefits to everyone. If someone didn't want to do cleaning duty, they only needed to call Wenheng, and they would always get a "Okay" in return. Afterward, the entire classroom would be spotless and perfectly clean.
The most terrifying thing in this world is habit, and the most habitual thing is convenience.
Ah Heng's habit brought him amazing convenience. If it were anyone else, even a clay idol would probably be bursting with resentment, but Ah Heng was strangely different. She just smiled silently and cleaned the entire classroom by herself after school.
Many years later, during the Chinese New Year, a group of friends gathered to watch Stephen Chow's movie "Flirting Scholar". Yan Xi buried his beautiful black head in A Heng's neck and laughed so hard he almost choked.
Ah Heng looked at it for a long time, but ultimately couldn't laugh.
Qiu Xiang's three unintentional smiles stirred Tang Bohu's heart. In his eyes, she was breathtakingly beautiful, while to her, he was like Hua An, whose features he could not discern.
That day, after cleaning the classroom, it was already dark, and the last bus was still half an hour away, so Ah Heng chose to walk.
She was used to walking down that narrow alley, where the orange streetlights, though dim, strangely exuded tranquility and warmth.
The road was paved with pebbles, and there was a slightly rough feeling when you stepped on it. Ah Heng walked to the depths of the alley, but stopped in his tracks.