Chapter 7 Chapter Six

Negotiations went nowhere.Zhang Ailing was so angry that she skipped dinner.The empty chair by the dining table seemed to be silently appealing for the owner. The diners seemed to have their own ideas, and the atmosphere seemed very dull.Zhang Zhiyi pretended to be okay, finished picking his teeth with his nails, and continued to eat.Sun Yongfan's face was ugly, she flicked the rice in the bowl in a sullen voice, thinking that Zhang Ailing's refusal to eat was aimed at her, and the empty seat for the demonstration made her feel extremely uncomfortable.Especially thinking of the two children Huang Yifan and Zhang Zhiyi once gave birth to, and now they are torturing her like this, I feel even more angry and wronged in my heart.Zhang Zhiyi was so depressed that he didn't even say a word of comfort to her.

Sun Yongfan suddenly put the bowl away, and said angrily, "Who is she trying to show? Who is supporting her behind?" Her tears could not be held back anymore, and burst out of her eyes.Zhang Zhiyi remained expressionless and remained silent. Sun Yongfan wept and complained, "If I had known that this woman was so powerful and pestered me so endlessly, I wouldn't have entered your Zhang family's door if you pointed a gun at me!" After that, she got up and walked out of the dining room. . Zhang Zhiyi paused for a moment, without even raising his head, and continued eating.He would never look at any woman's face again, he told himself that when he married this wife, so he didn't condone Sun Yongfan's emotions.

Now only Zhang Zijing was left on the table, and he was even more apprehensive, lowering his head to eat in a muffled voice.Zhang Zhiyi actually provided Zhang Zijing with food, as if he was paying him to accompany him to this dinner, which was a bit like a male alliance. It was completely dark, Zhang Ailing did not turn on the lights in her room, she sat at the desk facing the window without moving, in the dark night, she seemed to be facing her own dark future. He Gan walked in and turned on the light with a "snap". The light was also dim, occasionally flickering on and off, indicating that the power was insufficient. He Gan looked up and put the noodles in the tray on the table.

She walked to the washstand, poured water, rubbed the face towel, and came over to wipe Zhang Ailing's face, as if she was serving her like she was when she was a child.Zhang Ailing didn't make a sound or move, so she asked her to wipe it off. He Gan persuaded: "Okay! Eat noodles!" She seemed to feel that this touch could smooth out all the anger in Zhang Ailing's stomach. Zhang Ailing wiped her face, felt a little refreshed, regained some consciousness, and also felt hungry. Looking at the noodle soup in front of her, she picked up the chopsticks and ate honestly one bite at a time.

He Gan felt relieved, sat on the edge of the bed, helped Zhang Ailing tidy up the laundry on the bed, looked at her and persuaded her: "Your father has a heart, you have to understand, he just doesn't want to see you and your mother. There is a grievance, he feels that your mother is free and easy, and he has taken you all these years, no matter how you say it, your hearts should be towards him." Zhang Ailing had accumulated a lot of grievances, and she was about to spill them when she shook them. She heard her cold voice say: "I hate this family! I understand him, but I still hate him! If he doesn't smoke opium, doesn't marry his concubine mother Won’t leave, now it seems that these things never happened, it’s all mother’s unilateral fault! Wicked people still have a stomach full of grievances, let alone other people? He can make me and my brother bullied like this! In turn, he will Overweight, I want to show that woman! What kind of house is this? How can I face him?" The more she spoke, the more excited she became, choking with anger, "This house is a graveyard! He is hiding in the drowsy smoke. I don’t know what it’s like to be alive! I was buried alive along with him! The mud and sand stuffed my mouth and nose, choking my breath! My chest was so stuffy that it was going to explode! But I still ate his food because I couldn’t go hungry!”

A few days later was the "Marco Polo Bridge Incident".Whose food to eat has become a trivial matter, what matters is whether there is a life to eat.Bombs fell on Huangpu Beach and Nanjing Road, and there were bursts of artillery.Zhang Ailing was studying in the room with her head closed. The noisy world outside seemed to have nothing to do with her. Instead, it was the study abroad event that she cared most about, and no one cared about it anymore. Uncle Huang Dingzhu's family moved to a hotel in the concession to take refuge, and Zhang Ailing took the opportunity to meet her mother.Huang Yifan was worried about his British boyfriend Wei Ge who was traveling abroad, so he blamed Zhang Ailing face to face: "The exam for studying abroad is still going on as usual. I have already signed up for you. It will take two days for the joint exam. You have to find a way! You can't let me do everything. Help you arrange, the future is your own, if you want to fight or give up, you have to think clearly."

Zhang Ailing felt aggrieved and said: "It's not that I didn't work hard, but he just didn't agree." "Then you just listen to him! Let him decide your future! The situation is getting worse and worse! I didn't even think about whether it was worth it to stay for you!" Huang Yifan said so that Zhang Ailing felt sad and frightened. It is likely that she was abandoned because of the situation. Zhang Ailing took advantage of her stepmother to go out, and deliberately complained to Zhang Zhiyi casually: "This cannon has been fired all night, and I don't know when it will last? I can't sleep for a few days! My aunt called early in the morning to ask the situation and asked me to go to her Live there for two days! She is far away from the Suzhou River, so it must be much better!"

Zhang Zhiyi said with blurred eyes: "Oh! Just go!" Zhang Ailing looked at her father, and she saw some low-key feelings in his eyes. He seemed to have fallen into the mist, and she knew that it was still an unresolved relationship with her mother. old love. Zhang Ailing passed the exam and went home with the suitcase.As soon as she entered the door, she bumped into Sun Yongfan. She froze for a while, and had no choice but to go over and call her mother. Sun Yongfan looked as if a knife would fly out of his eyes, and asked, "Where have you been?" Zhang Ailing lowered her voice very low: "I can't sleep because of the cannon noise, so I will stay at my aunt's house for two days!"

Sun Yongfan sneered: "It's really Miss Qianjin, you still think it's noisy when there's a war outside! You're really getting more and more arrogant now! Come and go as soon as you want! You don't even need to come to me to say when you leave?" Zhang Ailing spoke to Sun Yongfan with a contradictory expression for the first time: "I told my father!" Sun Yongfan stepped forward and slapped Zhang Ailing on the mouth. The slap was neither serious nor severe, and it was even more annoying. 'Did you say it? Do you still have me in your eyes?" Zhang Ailing covered her face and dropped her luggage bitterly. She stood up and raised her hand, instinctively wanting to fight back. Sun Yongfan was taken aback, and took a step back. The servant next to her immediately stopped her.Sun Yongfan yelled and ran upstairs: "Oh! She hit someone! How dare she hit me! She hit me!"

Zhang Ailing's roar was like an explosion of anger: "You are so shameless! You just know how to bully me and my brother! What do you want us to do?" She finally burst out the anger that had been pent up in her chest for many years, and felt very relaxed. Everything Everything became clear, the house was no longer drowsy, and she was no longer drowsy. It turned out that it was this layer of stagnation that blocked her and made her breathless. She finally understood. But this sobriety is also the tranquility before the storm. There was a sound from upstairs, and then she heard her father rushing down the stairs with slippers on, grabbing her skirt with one hand, and cursing: "You still beat people!" You are so bold, if you hit someone, I will hit you, I will kill you! I must kill you today!" He slapped back and forth, Zhang Ailing was like a cloth bag, falling to the left for a while Fall to the right.Zhang Zhiyi almost beat Zhang Ailing as Huang Yifan, and he exploded all the hatred he had towards his wife on his daughter.Zhang Ailing had already been beaten to the knees. When she sat down, he grabbed her by the hair and continued to kick her hard.He Gan cried, stepped forward to hug Zhang Ailing, and shouted: "No, no! It's going to kill me! Just hit me! My old life is worthless!"

Zhang Ailing's face was expressionless, her mouth and nose were covered with blood, she was calm and ready to be beaten to death.He Gan was also hit on the back a few times, and Zhang Zhiyi's rage finally came to an end.He panted, seeing Zhang Ailing's blood on the ground, and then calmed down a little.Everyone in the room stared at him, Zhang Zijing also stood outside the door, not even daring to enter.Even Sun Yongfan at the top of the stairs turned blue and stared at Zhang Ailing on the ground, who was lying there motionless. Zhang Zhiyi turned and went upstairs, Sun Yongfan looked at the room and didn't know how to clean it up, so he could only act confidently, turned his head and followed Zhang Zhiyi upstairs.He Gan quickly helped Zhang Ailing up.Zhang Ailing gently pushed her hand away, not letting her touch it.She was still in a trance, and stood up from the ground leaning on a stool. Her ribs and back were kicked, and she trembled with pain as soon as she was straightened. The servants rushed over to support her.She was still stubborn and didn't want anyone to help her. She straightened up, walked to the bathroom step by step, and closed the door of the bathroom.She propped herself up and looked at the mirror on the bathroom wall. She saw that her cheeks were swollen, and her handprints were clearly visible. Her hair was messed up by her father, and the sleeves of her thin summer shirt were torn.She couldn't help but think of the brutal force of her father grabbing her hair and kicking her to death just now, anger rushed into her chest immediately, she choked up, and she didn't want to cry by herself, so all the sorrow was squeezed in her throat. She can't bear to live in such a family anymore, she must punish her father.She turned and opened the bathroom door, and ran out the door, shouting: "I'm going to call the police! I'm going to the police station for an injury check! He has the ability to beat me to death. If he can't kill me, I'll let everyone know What a beast he is!" Zhang Ailing was dragged back to the living room by the servant.Zhang Zhiyi ran down the stairs again. When he saw her, he picked up an antique vase and threw it at Zhang Ailing without saying a word.Zhang Ailing glared at her father angrily, Zhang Zhiyi was also shaking with anger.The father and daughter looked at each other, deadlocked. Zhang Zhiyi suddenly picked up the bench again, this time even the servants bravely went to stop him. Zhang Ailing was locked in an empty room, and she found herself shaking all over.Only when she held her right hand with her left hand did she realize how badly she was shaking, and she didn't even have the strength to cry.When He Gan came in, Zhang Ailing hugged her and wailed furiously: "I am not wrong! I want to study! I want to be with my mother!" He Ganzhi sighed: "I've asked you not to get too close to your mother, but you just don't listen! You only know you're at a disadvantage now!" Zhang Ailing broke free, looked at her and shouted: "In this world, besides my mother, who else cares about my future? He is a big smoker, he only deserves to find a woman like him! Mother is different! I am different !" He Gan saw it clearly and said objectively: "You are devoted to your mother, no wonder your father loses his temper so much. He has been very accommodating. Every time you want to go out, he will turn a blind eye. , he also quarreled with that woman behind your back, you should know it in your heart!" Zhang Ailing stayed there for a while, then suddenly thought of her only savior, and said eagerly: "Go and call your aunt and ask her to pick me up! I can't be locked up here alone, I must let my aunt and my mother know that I will I went to take the exam, what if I have the opportunity to study in the UK?" He Gan tremblingly did not dare to agree, looking at her back, Zhang Ailing shouted: "Why Gan! You have to help me!" Her voice sounded so desperate. With the sound of shells, Zhang Ailing fell asleep on the mahogany kang. She turned over and thought she was still in her room.She woke up suddenly, and all the misery that happened came back to her world again, she sat up immediately, and felt the stabbing pain between her ribs. She stood up and walked to the window. The glass window faced the wall, and there was a small street outside the wall. There were anti-theft iron bars on the outside of the glass window, so it was impossible to jump out of the window.She tried to walk gently to the door and turn the lock, but the door was still locked. Zhang Ailing sat on the ground leaning against the door, the night light coming in from outside the window revealed a mysterious blue, and the rumbling sound of cannons became her only companion during the night when she was imprisoned. Thinking of her aunt and mother, Zhang Ailing couldn't help but shed tears. They must not know that they have fallen into such a miserable situation, and they may never know. After receiving a secret call from He Gan, Zhang Maoyuan and Huang Dingzhu rushed to Zhang's house early in the morning.Zhang Ailing, who was lying on the kang, woke up and heard her aunt's sonorous voice, her face was pressed against the window and she looked eagerly.Seeing her aunt and uncle walking towards the room of Zhang Zhiyi and his wife, hope slowly rose in her heart. Zhang Zhiyi and Sun Yongfan were smoking their first cigarette in the morning on the cigarette couch when Zhang Maoyuan came in and asked, "Do you know you broke the law?" Sun Yongfan immediately sat up and sneered, "Hey! Are you here to catch opium?" Zhang Maoyuan said dismissively: "I don't care about this at all! That's all the Zhang family's ancestral property, just go ahead and smoke it! It's over after you smoke it!" Sun Yongfan's face turned blue and purple, Zhang Maoyuan ignored her, and only asked his brother: "What did Xiao Ling do wrong to be so violent?" Zhang Zhiyi said fiercely: "Just because she dared to beat her stepmother, I should beat her to death! You don't know what's good or bad!" Zhang Maoyuan stared at Sun Yongfan carefully and said: "I said that there has never been such a big disturbance in this family, and the child has not had such a violent temper since he was a child. There is a reason for it! Hmph! Think of a little paper-like person, who can be blown by the wind. What do you think?" She beats mosquitoes with her own hands, I still believe it! You say she beats people with her hands, that's really new!" Sun Yongfan couldn't hold back anymore, and stood up angrily and said, "What you mean is that I made up rumors, and I was born right and wrong! If you lead that woman surnamed Huang away a little bit, the family will be at peace!" Zhang Maoyuan wanted to hurt Sun Yongfan on purpose, but he forgot his elder brother Guji, and said with a sneer, "I knew you were making waves in the jealous jar, and you are too flattering to my brother! Let me tell you, you can put your mind at ease! Now We already have a good partner, an Englishman, we have all met him, and we all think he is very good, he has a bright future, and he has no intention of turning back! I will guarantee it with the head of the project!" Zhang Zhiyi's face became very ugly after hearing this.Huang Dingzhu explained from the side: "My sister actually has no other intentions. She just thinks that Xiaoying is very talented and willing to work hard. She should work harder on learning. She wants to arrange for her to study in England, but she just wants to find a place for her. A better learning environment." No one noticed the jealousy in Zhang Zhiyi's eyes, and he gritted his teeth angrily: "Who pays? Does the man next to her pay her?" Zhang Maoyuan said loudly: "You are responsible for the funds, and you can't just leave it alone." Sun Yongfan said coldly, "We don't have that money!" Zhang Maoyuan laughed back angrily: "No way! Two pipes will burn the entire Zhang family down?" Zhang Zhiyi's anger could no longer be suppressed, he raised the pipe and threw it at Zhang Maoyuan, revenge for what she said just now .Zhang Maoyuan's glasses were shattered by the cigarette pipe, and the lens cut his eyelids and blood flowed out.Huang Dingzhu hurriedly stepped forward to hold her back, Zhang Zhiyi yelled: "I've had enough of these two women! I, Zhang Zhiyi, have ruined half of my life in their hands, and I will never let them take Xiaoling away again! Zhang Maoyuan covered the wound in the corner of his eye with a handkerchief, and was dragged away by Huang Dingzhu. Zhang Ailing saw her father and them dragging out the gate through the window, and desperately beat the glass in the empty room and shouted: "Let me out!" She picked up the stool and swung it violently, causing the glass fragments on the window to scatter.When Zhang Zhiyi came back, he immediately asked the servants at home to seal the window where the glass broke with wooden boards, and the light was gradually blocked by the wooden boards.