Video Editor

Chapter 2568 Fear

He Wenhui left her home and went straight to Li Jianbin's house.

Li Jianbin is her boyfriend. The two have been dating for quite some time. Li Jianbin's family is well-off. His parents are respectable people and they live in an apartment building, which is nothing compared to He Wenhui's two dilapidated houses.

He Wenhui thought that Li Jianbin was a man, and with him there, she would feel more at ease going to the mining area to pick up Wenyuan.

After hearing what had happened, Li Jianbin's expression changed several times. He grabbed He Wenhui's hand and said, "Wenhui, don't worry, I'll go with you. I'll go tell my mom right now, get some money, and we'll leave tonight."

He Wenhui's eyes reddened, and she nodded vigorously, feeling that she hadn't made a mistake in choosing this man.

But Li Jianbin's mother didn't think so.

What kind of place is a mining area? Burying one or two living people there is as easy as playing around.

How could you be willing to put your son in danger?

So, Li's mother immediately pulled Li Jianbin into the inner room, closed the door, and said, "Jianbin, are you stupid! What kind of place is the mining area? With your skinny arms and legs, how can you beat them? And you're getting involved? Her brother is being given away to enjoy his good fortune, what does it have to do with you? If you go, what will Section Chief Xie think of you? If you really offend someone, how will your father and I stay in the factory?"

Li Jianbin argued for a few moments inside, his voice growing softer and softer until finally there was no sound.

He Wenhui stood at the door and waited for a long time.

Looking at that closed door, I went from hope to despair, and from despair to a chill in my heart.

In the end, he didn't wait for Li Jianbin to come out, and then wisely turned around and left.

……

The night breeze was very cool, but He Wenhui felt particularly cold inside.

At this point, He Wenhui didn't know who to turn to.

A classmate? A classmate who is not related to her at all, who would accompany her to a place like a mining area in the middle of the night?

Neighbors? The neighbors always look down on my family for being poor and avoid me like the plague, let alone offer any help.

He Wenhui suddenly thought of her sycophant Liu Hongchang.

The moment this thought popped into her head, He Wenhui was startled.

After all, she and Liu Hongchang were not related, so why would he help her?

Last time, Liu Hongchang gave her lamb bones and even made lamb bone soup. He also bought her a train ticket. She already owed him a lot, so how could she ask for more?

Moreover, how could He Wenhui not know Liu Hongchang's ulterior motives? After all, the way he looked at her was completely undisguised.

If not Liu Hongchang, who else can I turn to?

He Wenhui gritted her teeth and went to the second canteen anyway.

At this moment, Liu Hongchang was preparing to finish work. His apron was covered in oil stains, and he was holding a basin of dishwater, which he was about to pour out.

Seeing He Wenhui walk in, he paused for a moment, then smiled, "Wenhui? What brings you here?"

He Wenhui stood at the door, head down, and only spoke after a long while.

Then, He Wenhui told her about Wenda and Li Jianbin, and tears started streaming down her face as she spoke.

After hearing this, Liu Hongchang splashed the dishwater on the ground, threw the basin aside with a clatter, and said, "Come on, I'll go with you."

He Wenhui looked up, her face streaked with tears and her eyes red. "Master Liu, that place is dangerous. Aren't you afraid?"

Liu Hongchang didn't answer. He went into the kitchen, took a cleaver, tucked it behind his waist, and put on a coat to cover the cleaver.

Reaching the door, he glanced back at He Wenhui and said, "What are you afraid of? It's not like we're going to war. Let's go! We'll miss the bus if we're late."

"Thank you, Mr. Liu! You are such a good person."

……

Liu Hongchang and He Wenhui rushed to Meishan overnight.

Section Chief Xie's home was on the edge of the mining area, a drab bungalow with piles of coal slag and scrap iron in the yard, and a big black dog chained at the door that barked fiercely at anyone it saw.

He Wenhui stood outside the courtyard, her legs feeling weak and her palms sweaty.

I don't know how I got in, I only know that Liu Hongchang walked in front of me with big strides and his back was straight, like a wall.

Section Chief Xie wasn't home; his wife opened the door.

The woman was plump with a face full of fat, blocking the doorway and refusing to let anyone in. "Who are you? What are you doing here in the middle of the night?"

"Big sister, I'm here to pick up my younger brother, He Wenda."

"There is no such person!" The woman's face darkened, and she was about to close the door.

"..." Liu Hongchang braced himself against the door with one hand.

"You son of a bitch..." The woman tried her best to push him but couldn't budge him. Her face turned bright red, and she started cursing.

After a few curses, the sound of a child crying came from inside the house, "Waaah, I want my sister! I want my sister..."

Upon hearing that voice, He Wenhui burst into tears and cried out into the house, "Wenda...it's me, your sister! I've come to pick you up."

"Help! Someone's trying to snatch my child!" the woman cried out in panic.

A moment later, four or five miners ran in from outside. Some were carrying shovels, some were carrying wrenches, and some were empty-handed but had their fists clenched tightly. They surrounded Liu Hongchang and He Wenhui with fierce expressions.

Liu Hongchang pulled He Wenhui behind him, drew a kitchen knife from his waist, and slammed the blade against the doorframe with a loud clang that made the teacups on the table jump. "Gentlemen," he said, "my name is Liu Hongchang, and I'm a cook at the No. 2 canteen of Yangzi Petrochemical. I'm not here to cause trouble; I'm here to pick up my child. Children are people, not objects. You can't just raise them and keep them as you please! His own sister has come, and you won't let him go. Is there any justice in this world?"

The miners looked at each other, but no one spoke.

The woman stood with her hands on her hips, her voice so loud it could lift the roof off: "We bought the child with our own money, there's a contract with fingerprints, it's all in black and white! You want to take him away? No way! My husband is a section chief at the mine, you can cause trouble wherever you want!"

Just as they were at an impasse, a short, stocky man walked in. His face was covered in coal dust, obscuring his features, except for a set of white teeth.

This man is called Houdunzi. He is a junior leader at the mine and has a good relationship with Section Chief Xie. He doesn't talk much, but when he does, his words are very effective.

Hou Dunzi glanced at the kitchen knife on the table, then at Liu Hongchang, and asked, "What's your relationship to the child?"

Liu Hongchang said, “I am her sister’s friend. The family is so poor that they can’t even afford to eat, so giving the child away was the only option. But her sister is about to go to university in Beijing, and the family is counting on her to succeed and support her younger siblings. If you keep the child here, her sister won’t be able to finish her studies, and the family will fall apart.”

Hou Dunzi was silent for a while, then turned to the woman and said, "Sister-in-law, give the child to them."

The woman panicked: "Houdunzi! What nonsense are you talking about? If Lao Xie finds out, he'll skin me alive!"

Hou Dunzi ignored her, went straight into the inner room, and took the child out.

Wenda's little face was covered in tears. When he saw He Wenhui, he opened his arms and rushed over, hugging her neck and refusing to let go. He kept calling her "sister," which broke He Wenhui's heart.

Liu Hongchang put away the cleaver, nodded to Hou Dunzi, and said, "Thanks, brother. Next time you come to Yangzi Petrochemical, I'll treat you to a drink."

Hou Dunzi waved his hand, turned around and left.

Then, Liu Hongchang and He Wenhui carried Wenda back to Yangzi Chemical overnight.

……

However, the matter was not over.

The next day, Section Chief Xie led a dozen or so miners and stormed into the second canteen of Yangzi Chemical Plant.

Section Chief Xie was a man in his forties, big and burly, who looked like the kind of ruthless person who would eat raw meat.

He stood at the entrance of the cafeteria, pulled a bundle of detonators from his pocket, held it high—it was dark and intimidating—and shouted, "Give me back my child! If you don't, I'll blow up this lousy cafeteria!"

The workers were eating when they saw the detonator. Terrified, they grabbed their enamel basins and retreated to the base of the wall, standing so close to it that they didn't dare to breathe.

Liu Hongchang came out of the kitchen, still holding the iron ladle he used for frying. He glanced at the detonator in Section Chief Xie's hand and laughed, "Section Chief Xie, is that detonator real or fake? If you really dare to blow it up, go ahead and light it. Anyway, my life isn't worth much, so taking you down with me is worth it."

Section Chief Xie was stunned for a moment, not expecting that this kid was not afraid of death.

Section Chief Xie's hand holding the detonator began to tremble, and sweat beaded on his forehead.

The detonator is fake. He hasn't lived enough yet; he wouldn't do something so foolish as to kill himself over a child.

Su Ning stood at the kitchen doorway, watching this scene. He cursed Liu Hongchang in his heart for being a brute, but he still came out.

After all, Liu Hongchang was his colleague, and it would be too undignified for him to act cowardly at this time.

Su Ning walked up to Liu Hongchang, stood still, and didn't say a word.

Although he was new and had no relation to Liu Hongchang, he really couldn't back down at this moment.

If a colleague is in trouble and you stand idly by, how can you hold your head up in the factory afterward?

When the other colleagues in the canteen saw that Su Ning, the newcomer, had stepped forward, they all swarmed around her. Some were holding kitchen knives, some were holding rolling pins, and some were empty-handed but had their sleeves rolled up, directly surrounding Section Chief Xie and his dozen or so people in the middle.

Hearing the commotion, the workers who were eating outside rushed in with their enamel basins. Upon seeing the scene, they dropped their bowls, grabbed stools, and charged forward.

"Damn it, they're bullying us at our factory gate? Let's beat them up!"

"What kind of bullshit section chief are you? When I was fighting on the battlefield, you were still wearing open-crotch pants!"

Section Chief Xie and his dozen or so men were surrounded in the middle, and their faces turned pale instantly.

Although they were all miners, they couldn't withstand the sheer number of the other side. There was a dark mass of them, at least a hundred or so, and each of them could drown them with a single spit.

Even if they were beaten to death or maimed on the spot, it wouldn't be a big deal in this era. Section Chief Xie lowered his hand that was holding the detonator completely, his face was ashen, his lips trembled, and he didn't know what to say.

Liu Hongchang was a shrewd man; he could tell that Section Chief Xie and the others had backed down.

So he slung the iron spoon over his shoulder and said with a grin, "Section Chief Xie, want to sit down and have a drink? Let's talk this out; we'll become friends after this little misunderstanding."

Section Chief Xie looked at Liu Hongchang, remained silent for a while, and finally sighed, putting the detonator back in his pocket. "You've got some nerve. Okay, let's have a drink."

"Thank you all, fellow workers! It's alright now, everyone hurry up and eat!" Liu Hongchang immediately bowed to his colleagues in gratitude.

The workers from Yangzi Petrochemical then dispersed with regret...

……

Then, Liu Hongchang and Section Chief Xie sat down. Su Ning cooked a few dishes, and Liu Hongchang opened a bottle of wine. They drank one glass after another, and it was quite a lively time.

After a few rounds of drinks, Section Chief Xie became more talkative, patting Liu Hongchang on the shoulder and calling him "brother" over and over, even more affectionately than a blood brother. "Brother, you're something else, a real man. I, Xie, admire you. As for the child, forget it, I won't pursue it. That child stayed at our house for half a day, crying and looking for his sister the whole time. My wife was so annoyed, it's better to send him back."

Liu Hongchang poured him a glass of wine, and the two clinked glasses and drank it all in one gulp.

Section Chief Xie had drunk too much; his tongue started to get tied, and he became quite talkative.

He squinted and slurred, "Brother, let me tell you the truth. That child's mother is almost blind. Cataracts, she's had them for years, but she's been putting it off. Her family is poor, they can't afford treatment, they're afraid of the cost, afraid of delaying their child's recovery. Tell me, what's a mother doing this for? She's almost blind, and she's hiding it from her child, afraid he'll worry. I, Old Xie, may not be a good person, but this story breaks my heart."

Liu Hongchang paused in his wine glass, and the smile on his face slowly disappeared.

He glanced at He Wenhui, who was standing at the door, and noticed that her face was as white as paper, her lips were trembling, and tears were welling up in her eyes.

He Wenhui didn't cry; she held back her tears.

He Wenhui walked up to Section Chief Xie and asked, "Section Chief Xie, you said my mother's eyesight is failing? When did this happen?"

Section Chief Xie stammered and couldn't speak clearly, but he mumbled a few words, the gist of which was that when Yu Qiuhua went to him to sign the agreement, her eyesight was already poor, and she had to get very close to see things, and she could only align her hand with the edge of the paper when signing.

After listening, He Wenhui didn't ask any more questions, turned around and walked out.

Standing in the open space outside the cafeteria, looking at the gray sky, tears finally fell.

He Wenhui didn't say anything, just stood there, tears streaming down her cheeks.

Suddenly, she remembered her mother's unusual behavior lately, the increasingly larger characters she wrote in her letters, the way she sat on the edge of the bed in a daze, and the look in her eyes when she looked at her—a look that seemed to want to say something but dared not.

He Wenhui understood everything.

I've decided not to go to school in the capital.

……

Then, He Wenhui told her boyfriend Li Jianbin about her decision.

Upon hearing this, Li Jianbin's face darkened immediately. "What did you say? You're not going to Beijing? Are you crazy? You got into Peking University! Countless people across the country want to get in but can't, and you just say you're not going?"

He Wenhui lowered her head. "My mother is almost blind, Wentao and Wenyuan are still young, and Wenda is only four years old. There's no one to take care of them. What will happen to them if I leave?"

Li Jianbin grew anxious, pacing back and forth in the room. "Your mother's eyesight isn't good, but she can go to the doctor, and we can find someone to take care of her. Wen Yuan and Wen Tao aren't young anymore; they can help. You're leaving, not because you're never coming back. Once you finish university, find a good job, earn money, what illness can't you get treated? If you don't go now, your life will be ruined!"

He Wenhui looked up at Li Jianbin, "Jianbin, I know you mean well. But my mother kept it from me for so long, her eyesight is almost gone, and she still insisted on keeping it from me. I can't abandon her. I can go to university a year later, but my mother's eyes can't wait."

Li Jianbin opened his mouth as if to say something, but then swallowed it back.

After a long silence, he finally asked, "Have you made up your mind?"

"Mm." He Wenhui nodded.

Li Jianbin didn't say anything more, picked up his coat, and went out.

The door slammed shut behind He Wenhui with a bang, like a muffled thunderclap, striking her heart.

……

Liu Hongchang was chopping vegetables in the kitchen when he learned about this.

He Wenhui came to him and told him about dropping out of school, speaking of it casually, as if it were someone else's business.

But Liu Hongchang saw that He Wenhui's hands were trembling and that her eyes were red.

Liu Hongchang put down the cleaver, wiped his hands on his apron, and said earnestly, "Wenhui, I actually understand you quite well."

He Wenhui looked up at him, and finally couldn't hold back her tears, which fell down in a steady stream.

She cried sadly for a long time.

Liu Hongchang didn't try to comfort He Wenhui, pat her on the shoulder, or offer her a handkerchief. He just stood there and waited for her to finish crying.

He knew He Wenhui wasn't heartbroken; she had been holding it in for too long and needed an outlet.

Suning stood at the kitchen doorway, watching this scene, feeling a mix of emotions.

I felt sorry for He Wenhui, but I also found her infuriating.

It's pitiful that He Wenhui was stuck with such a family and such a mother. She had to shoulder everything herself, and in the end, she ruined herself.

What's infuriating is that He Wenhui is too scheming and takes things for granted, believing that Liu Hongchang's contributions are all a given.

It's fine to love your family, but you can't trample on your partner's feelings.

As Su Ning was thinking, her peripheral vision caught sight of Liu Hongchang.

Liu Hongchang stood there, his expression suddenly changed, as if someone had poured a bucket of cold water over his head, his face turned pale, his eyes widened, and his lips trembled.

Because Liu Hongchang suddenly remembered that dream.

In her dream, He Wenhui also gave up going to university because of family matters.

In his dream, he accompanied He Wenhui to the mining area to pick up her younger brother, got into a fight with the miners, and later drank with Section Chief Xie.

In her dream, He Wenhui's mother went blind, and He Wenhui cried and said she wouldn't go to Peking University anymore.

These things were exactly the same as what he had experienced in the past two days.

Liu Hongchang's hands began to tremble.

Thinking back to what happened later in the dream, thinking about He Wenhui marrying him, thinking about He Wenhui not wanting to share a room with him, thinking about He Wentao going to prison, thinking about He Wenhui dying in the hospital, thinking about how he was all alone, guarding a dilapidated house for his whole life.

That wasn't a dream.

That was Liu Hongchang's future life.

Liu Hongchang leaned against the stove, his legs weak and he could barely stand.

He recalled the way Su Ning had looked at him recently—a hesitant, yet sympathetic look.

So, in other people's eyes, I'm just a simp, and the most ridiculous kind at that.

Liu Hongchang raised his head and glanced at Su Ning.

Suning was chopping vegetables, the chopping sound unhurried, his expression calm, a calmness that sent chills down one's spine.

Liu Hongchang opened his mouth, wanting to ask something, but swallowed the words back.

I don't know how to ask, and I don't know what to do after I ask.

Liu Hongchang only knew that he had reached a crossroads on his own path.

To the left is the road from my dream, stretching as far as the eye can see, a road filled with bitterness, hardship, and tears.

To the right was another road, its destination unknown, but at least it wouldn't leave him alone to guard the He family and wait for death.

Liu Hongchang closed his eyes, took a deep breath, and when he opened them again, the confusion in his eyes had lessened.

Looking at He Wenhui squatting on the ground crying, all the goodwill, heartache, and impulse to take care of her in my heart receded like the tide.

It wasn't because Liu Hongchang was cold-blooded, but because he was genuinely afraid.

I'm afraid that the things in my dreams will come true, afraid that I'll really go down that path, afraid that I'll really waste my whole life and end up with nothing.

After finishing chopping the vegetables, Su Ning slammed the knife on the cutting board, wiped his hands, walked over, glanced at Liu Hongchang, and said casually, "What's wrong?"

Liu Hongchang looked at Su Ning, remained silent for a while, and then gave a wry smile, "It's nothing! I probably didn't sleep well last night."

Suning didn't ask any more questions and turned to cook.

The oil in the pan was heated up, and the chopped green onions were sautéed until they sizzled and smoke rose up, making people cough.

As Su Ning stirred the food, he thought to himself, "It's really not easy to recover even two percent of my memories."

Being both a father and a mother, I wonder if she'll become a nanny next?

But will Liu Hongchang really change his ingrained sycophantic mentality?

...(End of this chapter)