Qu Ling, the crab! It's truly hard to imagine that someone as handsome and gentle on the surface could have a crab-like personality inside. If that soft smile on Qu Ling's lips disappeared, what kind of expression would his face have?
Why are you in such a hurry to tell me all this? His childhood experiences and his true personality, especially during this sensitive period after being forced into marriage by Grandpa Qu. Doesn't he know this will give me the wrong impression? The mistaken impression that he has already accepted the marriage in his heart?
Her fingers traced the slight heat on her ear, recalling the finger he had twisted on it earlier that day. Looking back, her interactions with Qu Ling today were unlike any other. Perhaps it was a change in her own mindset, or perhaps his every move was truly perplexing; in any case, recalling everything from the day left her with a hazy, ambiguous feeling. A little confused, yet also subtly sweet.
Ah~~ I'm going crazy! What's wrong with me? Every time I close my eyes, all I can see in my mind is Qu Ling's smiling face.
Su Yuanyuan, you're doomed, you've really gotten into character.
Is it a play or reality? I can't tell anymore.
I opened my eyes and saw some starlight filtering in through the window, which reminded me of that night in Honghu.
Qu Ling said that he has no stars in his heart.
I don't believe it.
There must be one, he just hid it in some corner.
****
Zhuang Yuan, that guy, is twenty years old now, but he's still as mischievous as he was when he was a kid. He doesn't sleep in the morning; he insists on practicing Tai Chi with my grandpa in the yard. If you're going to practice Tai Chi, just do it properly. Instead, he imagines himself as Bruce Lee and yells and screams, giving me a splitting headache.
"Su Yuanyuan! Su Yuanyuan, you lazybones!" This guy stood downstairs and started yelling my name.
"There was a lazy big girl named Yuanyuan. She had big, round eyes, and when she glared at people, she scared them to death!" Zhuang Yuan actually altered Huang Pinyuan's "Xiao Wei" into a song that slandered me.
Just because I'm not showing my power doesn't mean I'm Hello Kitty!
"Zhuang Dayuan!" I shouted from the window, leaning on my cane. Zhuang Yuan looked up and a rotten orange hit him squarely on the forehead.
They dare to mess with me; they're asking for trouble.
"Wow! Grandpa! Su Yuanyuan threw poop at me!"
"Pah! Look closely, these are oranges I gave you!"
Is this how you show appreciation?
"If you dare sing that nonsense again, I'll really find some shit to throw at you!"
"You dare!"
"You'll see if I dare!"
"Grandpa! Su Yuanyuan is bullying me!" Zhuang Dayuan tugged at my grandpa's sleeve and acted spoiled.
Grandpa chuckled and patted his head, then said to me, "Yuanyuan, Zhuang Yuan is a guest. You can't be so rude! Come down and have breakfast. Your uncle will bring Xiao Yuan back today."
"Yes, Grandpa, I'll be right down." I dared not disobey my grandfather.
Xiao Yuan was a golden retriever that Fang Jingyan and I bought at the flower and bird market years ago. Because its eyes were black and round and looked very similar to Zhuang Yuan's, it was named Xiao Yuan.
Several years have passed in the blink of an eye. Xiao Yuan, who was only the size of a teddy bear back then, has grown into a beautiful and dashing golden retriever. Taking him for a walk on the street will turn heads.
A while ago, my uncle got an idea from watching some TV program and said that my grandma was very tired from grocery shopping every day. He suggested that if we trained Xiao Yuan to be a dog that could help carry the groceries, my grandma could have an easier time. None of us knew how to train dogs, so my uncle took Xiao Yuan home to train him.
It is said that Xiao Yuan can now safely travel three kilometers while carrying Xiao Rouyuan on his back.
Poor little Yuan, reduced to being Xiao Rouyuan's mount. I know best how heavy that little guy is.
When I finally saw Xiao Yuan transformed into a dog-like donkey, I almost laughed until tears streamed down my face. My aunt not only made it a colorful satchel to hang on its body, but also tied a bow around its neck.
When Xiao Yuan saw me, its dark eyes filled with tears of excitement, and it rubbed against me, whimpering. Unfortunately, I have difficulty moving around and can't hold it in my arms like before.
Zhuang Yuan pointed at Xiao Yuan, his lips twitching, and said, "What you're doing... this is animal cruelty!!"
"That's called contributing to the family! I'm telling you, Zhuang Dayuan, you're quite comfortable eating and drinking for free at my house, aren't you? You should learn from Xiaoyuan and make some contributions!"
"So what do you want me to do?"
"First, clean up the dog poop in the yard!"
"Su Yuanyuan!!"
"Are you going to pick it up or not?"
"Hmph!" Zhuang Yuan angrily grabbed a small shovel and shoveled Xiao Yuan's poop into the garden.
"Xiao Yuan, you should learn from your brother Zhuang Yuan. Look how well-behaved he is! He even knows to go to the toilet when he needs to poop! How come you pooped and peed anywhere after just one visit to your uncle's house?"
"Su Yuanyuan!!" Zhuang Yuan was furious, holding a small shovel covered in dog poop.
****
After dinner, the family sat in the living room eating fruit. That kid Zhuang Yuan wouldn't eat his own share; he insisted on taking some from me. Grandpa stared at us for a while, then suddenly slapped his thigh and exclaimed, "I've got it!"
The whole family stopped to look at him.
"Dad, who got it?" my dad asked, biting into a pomelo.
"Yuanyuan is pregnant!" Grandpa's eyes lit up as he stared at Zhuang Yuan.
Pfft—Grandma and Mom both spat the grapefruits in their mouths far away.
"Old Su, what nonsense are you talking about! Our Yuanyuan is a virgin!" Grandma pinched Grandpa hard.
"Oh dear! That's not what I meant!" Grandpa hurriedly pushed up his reading glasses. "I meant, there's a way to cancel the marriage that Qu Ba arranged for Yuanyuan!"