Chapter 70 Chapter Four

New Year's Eve. Amidst the rumbling explosions outside the window, He Qingying tossed and turned unable to fall asleep, and heard another burst of crying, like a vibrato coming from the ground.She got up and put on her clothes, walked to her son's wooden bed, and found that he was crying under the quilt. She lifted Si Wang's quilt, her body was still as slender as a water snake, slipped into the quilt slipperily, warmed like a hot water bottle, hugged his cold back and said, "Wang'er, no one can find Teacher Ouyang now." If you want to blame, you can blame your mother. When I was your age, I used to cry in bed in the middle of the night, crying more sadly than you do now."

The eighteen-year-old son turned around and the whole pillow was wet: "Mom, do you still think about Dad?" "Occasionally." Si Wang didn't continue to ask. Eleven years ago, around this time, Sim Mingyuan evaporated from this family. Over the years, many men have shown affection to her, and there are also those who have houses and cars, are good-looking, divorced or widowed, but she rejects them all, including police officer Huang Hai. Since Huang Hai died in the line of duty, the operation of Huangcun Bookstore has become more and more difficult. Nowadays, children don't like to read books. If Taobao Store can sell some teaching aids, it will be worrying to barely maintain it.Si Wang couldn't bear to see his mother working hard, so he helped her look after the store when he had time, and even proposed to work outside to help the family share the financial pressure.But my mother firmly opposed it, saying that there was still some savings, enough for him to graduate from high school.

Almost every weekend, early morning or midnight, there will be a mysterious phone call at home.He Qingying picked it up before her son, but the voice on the other side was interrupted.Si Wang asked police officer Ye Xiao to check the source of the phone number. It was an unregistered real-name mobile phone number, and it belonged to another province.He said don't worry too much, it's just an ordinary harassing phone call, which is also a common method used by the demolition team, urging the signing of the demolition compensation agreement as soon as possible. For nearly a year, many surrounding houses have been demolished, and every day when I go home, I feel like I have passed through bombed ruins.Some residents were evicted, and some were simply demolished. I don’t know how many times there were disturbances.Some neighbors also approached her, hoping to fight to the end to defend their rights together.However, He Qingying gave up resistance, negotiated with the developer only twice, and agreed to the demolition and relocation compensation plan—a mere hundreds of thousands, and ruined the old house.

"Mom, why did you agree to those bastards?" Si Wang missed Police Officer Huang Hai so much. If he was still alive, how could the demolition team come to him? "Wang'er, there are many people in other people's families, but we are orphans and widows. We don't want to make trouble anymore." "Orphans and widows?" He frowned and looked out the window, "Is Dad really dead?" I couldn't find my father's photo at home, and Simingyuan's memory became more and more blurred. "I'm sorry." She touched her son's cheek, a beautiful woman in her forties, with crow's feet all over her eyes, "You don't know, what terrible methods they will use! I don't want you to suffer any harm."

"What are you afraid of?" Si Wang took a few steps back, punched two straight punches and uppercuts, and then kicked with Muay Thai, "If those bastards dare to come to the door again, I will kick their dog legs off!" "Shut up!" The mother held his hand tightly, feeling the tense muscles of the son, "Wang'er, you Stop practicing!I don't want you to become a little hooligan who fights and fights. That's not the way you go. Mom only wants you to live a peaceful life. " "People don't offend me, I don't offend others!" "You are more mature than all the children, why don't you understand mother's heart? I have long been fed up with this old house - it leaks air in winter, it is extremely hot in summer, and the air conditioner trips after a short period of time, and you never Bring your classmates to play at home. Since the day you were born, your mother has not allowed you to have a good life, and has never taken you to travel abroad."

Last summer, when Nanming High School organized an island tour for teachers and students, she forced out a thousand dollars as part of her son's own expenses, and also to let him socialize with his classmates more and stop boxing every day and become eccentric. "It's okay, I've been to many places!" "It's my mother who is sorry for you! And with my current income, I can't afford a house for the rest of my life. I will rent an apartment near a small bookstore and let you live in a beautiful, clean and comfortable home. This is what my mother has wanted for many years. Wish. And the compensation for the demolition will be used to pay for your college education in the future.”

The price is that the rest of his life must be spent in the life of a homeless tenant. Si Wang lowered his head, leaning against his mother quietly, listening to the voice in her veins.Not long after the beginning of spring, He Qingying received compensation for the demolition.The house is about to be demolished and turned into the same ruins as its surroundings, and will become a high-end real estate in two years.Si Wang couldn't bear to part with the old house, and the cherry tree flower path he painted on the wall, and the classical poems carved on the window sill. Will the big locust tree outside the window be cut down?In this narrow room, there is the father he remembered before he was seven years old.

On the day of moving, there were not many things, and He Qingying had already thrown away a lot of rubbish—many of which belonged to her husband.Si Wang helped the porters carry the furniture together, busily busy like a strong laborer, and the neighbors said that he was more and more like the Si Mingyuan back then. In the evening, He Qingying's mother and son finally moved into their new home. The two-bedroom apartment they rented near the Huangcun Bookstore was fully furnished and furnished, and the bathroom and kitchen were also good. It was their dream home.Si Wang had his own bedroom for the first time, and his mother bought him a new single bed.

A few days later, He Qingying walked into his son's room to help him tidy up seasonal clothes. Si Wang suddenly lifted the quilt and said, "Mom, shall I comb your hair?" "What do you do with your hair at night?" "Let me comb your hair, I've never combed a girl's hair before." Halo, when did my son become so talkative? He Qingying happily sat in front of the mirror, while Si Wang got up topless and picked up a horn comb.After he made a few clumsy moves, she cried out in pain, then turned her head and touched her son's chest and said, "Wang'er, aren't you cold?"

"It's not cold." It must be because he is used to boxing shirtless, not to mention that the weather has turned warm these days. "Is mother old?" "No, you are still young, and your hair is thick and black like a young girl's. Let me make two braids for you." "That's too difficult for you, let me think about it... I haven't braided my hair in thirty years." "Are you thirteen?" "Oh……" He Qingying hesitated to speak, but shook her head and remained silent. For her, that year was a restricted area. "Why don't you ever tell me about your past?"

"Stop combing, mom is going back to bed." But just as she was about to stand up, Si Wang pushed her down, continued to comb her long hair, and leaned over to her ear: "Don't dare to say it?" "Wang'er, don't you know? Your grandparents died before you were born, and I have been working in the post office. This is my past." "Going forward? Which middle school did you go to? Where did you live when you were a child? What interesting things did you do? Are there any friends from back then?" "On the day you moved, you peeked at my things?" "Sorry." "Since you've seen it all, there shouldn't be any doubts about it?" Although He Qingying's mouth was not too fast or slow, her heart was about to jump out of her chest. The son took out the photo album from under the bed and put it in a dustproof tight bag.The red cover of the photo album smelled musty, and the first page was a faded color photo of a girl in a dress standing in front of the postal school sign. Of course He Qingying recognized it—this was her seventeen or eighteen-year-old self. Even though the clothes and hairstyle were so earthy, she was still recognizable as a peerless beauty, her slender arms pressed against the hem of the skirt to prevent it from being blown up by the wind.Her eyes looked sadly into the distance, not sure where to focus?It's really like Momoe Yamaguchi back then. The next few pages are mostly family photos. Judging from the layout of the house and the scene outside the window, it can be judged that it is an old house that has just moved out.There is often a middle-aged man and woman taking pictures with her, they are Si Wang's grandparents, but they don't look like He Qingying.However, there are not many photos of her, less than 20 in total, and no group photos of people other than relatives, such as classmates, were found.There is no photo of Si Mingyuan, it should be the photo album before marriage. Si Wang found another tin biscuit box from under the bed, and He Qingying couldn't help trembling: "You also discovered this?" "It's all thanks to this move!" The four sides of the tin biscuit box in front of me are also colorful meticulous paintings, but they are Lin Daiyu, Jia Yuanchun, Shi Xiangyun, Qin Keqing, and the "Jinling Twelve Beauties". Si Wang forcefully opened the lid of the box, a stale smell gushed out, but what came out was a tape. Teresa Teng's "Man on the Water", side A and side B each have six songs—— 01. People on the water02. A lover's smile03. If I can make a wish04. Unforgettable eyes 05. Maple leaves fluttering 06. Just like your tenderness 07. No matter who you are 08. As long as you have me in your heart 09. There's a girl waiting for you 10. Mom's song 11. A smile on your face and a fragrance of flowers 12. The courage of a woman Of course, He Qingying will never forget the old cassette from twenty years ago. It was secretly listening to it on the tape recorder every day when she was a girl. "Wang'er, this is all the garbage I want to throw away, why did you pick it up again?" "I also saw a photo of you at the age of thirteen. Officer Ye Xiao helped me find it, although he didn't know that the person in the photo was you." He Qingying's complexion changed: "Thirteen-year-old photo? Where is it?" "Nanhu Middle School, Junior One (2) Class, at the intersection of Nanhu Road and Anxi Road." "Are you mistaken?" "Lu Mingyue—do you remember this name?" She had goosebumps on the back of her neck and shook her head stiffly: "You're too good at thinking wildly." "Don't lie to yourself!" The horn comb in the son's hand continued to comb the mother's hair, "You know that I have discovered your secret. I also found out the date of birth, you and Lu Mingyue were born on the same day, and your The personal files start in 1983 and all before that are missing - I found this out from the archives myself." "Shut up!" "It is also coincidental that Lu Mingyue's personal file has been suspended since 1983, because a tragedy happened in her home that year. Her father was killed at home, and she was the only witness and the first whistleblower." "What exactly do you want to say?" He Qingying quickly broke free from her son, and was about to walk out the door, "Go to sleep, good night." But her arm was firmly held by Si Wang, like arresting a prisoner: "Mom, you almost never interact with your mother's family. I found my uncle's phone number today and called him pretending to be a policeman. And he told me——you were not born to your grandparents." "Wang'er, listen to me..." "Lu Mingyue!" The son called out the name loudly, "This is your real name!" A strand of white hair slipped from the comb teeth of the bull's horn, but she didn't have any intention of struggling anymore. "No, Lu Mingyue, it's my former name—and I almost forgot the name I was born with." "Because you weren't born by Lu Jingnan, were you?" For the first time, Si Wang mentioned the names of the victims of the Anxi Road murder case in 1983. "Wang'er, do you have to force your mother to death?" "I want to save you." As he lowered his head to kiss his mother's neck, He Qingying gave up resistance. "Have you been to the haunted house at No. 19 Anxi Road? I was born in that house—my father, who is also your real grandfather, was a famous translator. He hanged himself when I was four years old. , is the first thing I remember in my life. Soon, my mother is also your grandmother died. Our house was occupied by an official named Lu Jingnan, his wife was barren, but a kind woman , Seeing that I was lonely and unaccompanied, she adopted me as an adopted daughter. I was lucky in my childhood. I grew up in a big house on Anxi Road until I was twelve years old. The turning point was that year when my adoptive mother found out that her husband was having an affair and threw herself into the river in a fit of anger. Suicide. From then on, no one can protect me." "Mom, you mean that bastard Lu Jingnan—" "It's a bit kind of a bastard to describe him!" "You killed him?" "Wang'er, don't ask any more questions!" She was almost pleading with her son, but it was of no avail. Si Wang continued to whisper in his ear: "Tonight, I went to Anxi Road again. Based on some information kept by police officer Huang Hai, I found that Lu Jingnan was killed in 1983. It is very unlikely." It was an outsider who broke in and committed the crime. Although there were indeed signs of someone overturning the wall at that time, and the window glass was smashed with bricks, I found that most of the broken glass was outside the window, which means that it was broken from inside the house— — This is also an issue that has been debated by the police for a long time, making the case difficult to conclude. However, absolutely no one thought that the daughter of the deceased, the only witness at the scene, and the first person who reported the crime would be the murderer!" "This is just your inference. There is no evidence. Who would believe a high school student who fights all day long?" "Mom, I won't tell anyone! Thirty years have passed since the murder case—not to mention that the deceased was full of crimes, and you were a little girl back then." Finally, she said word by word: "I admit, I have killed people." Si Wang put down his comb, wiped away tears for his mother, and whispered in a low voice: "The victim is your adoptive father, Lu Jingnan." "Because he is a beast! Wang'er, you have grown up. You should understand what mother said." "Don't talk about the reason, just talk about the process." "No one knew what he did to me, and no one ever suspected me. That night, he was drunk and in the living room on the ground floor. I resisted desperately. During the violent scuffle, I smashed the window near the yard. Broken, I grabbed a piece of glass and cut his neck - blood splattered everywhere, my face too, I smashed the glass on the ground so the weapon was gone. I opened the door Sitting on the steps crying, someone came by and asked me what was wrong, and soon the police came..." "Is there no third person present?" He Qingying shook her head blankly: "If someone saw it, I would have been arrested-Wang'er, please, don't ask any more questions, you are cruel enough to mother."