Life Plan

Chapter 42, Apology

Liu Chunhong sobbed softly, her back arched like a ripe shrimp, curled up in the corner of the sofa, wiping away her tears again and again. Her hair, heavily styled with hairspray, remained straight, like an incongruous wig.

This was the first time Liu Chichi had seen her cry so bitterly; she hadn't cried like this even when she got divorced.

Hearing the door open, Liu Chunhong glanced at her, wiped her eyes, and pursed her lips, as if trying to swallow the tears that were about to fall.

Before entering the room, Liu Chichi's fighting spirit evaporated in the face of those tears, and she felt a sense of dejection. She hurriedly walked towards her mother and took her hand. Those hands were wet with tears, cold and rough, with sharp cuticles around the nails and cracked knuckles. The texture of those hands was clearly felt against Liu Chichi's palm.

Liu Chunhong held her hand tightly in return: "Chichi, why did you leave so suddenly, leaving me all alone there—"

A wave of intense guilt washed over Liu Chichi, and she felt a wave of shame wash over her, her face instantly turning bright red: "I'm sorry, Mom."

"Everything was fine before, what happened to you...?"

"I don't like their family." Liu hesitated for a moment, but ultimately didn't bring up the matter between her and He Qing. Actually, she could tolerate He Qing; it was just a matter of living life together. She had long since convinced herself that life didn't matter who she lived with.

But—"Mom, they can't say that about you."

"I'm fine." Liu Chunhong said anxiously, "Chichi, as long as you're happy, it's okay for me to suffer a little."

"Mom, I won't be happy like this."

"You will. This is the best man your mother could find for you."

"But I don't like him."

Liu Chichi couldn't remember how many times she had said this, but it seemed to have no meaning for Liu Chunhong, who began to sob again.

"Your father abandoned us early to become someone else's father. I've raised you with so much hardship, enduring countless grievances. Years ago, I rejected so many introductions for you, all because I was afraid you'd be bullied. I always put you first; how could I possibly harm you? You have no idea how wronged I feel today. Can't I hear the disdain in her words?"

"It's not that I didn't have opportunities to be a white-collar worker before, but I was worried about you because it was too far from home. If it weren't for you, would I be being talked about like this?"

"But Chichi, you know, you're the most important person in my heart. As long as you're doing well, I don't care what hardships I suffer. I won't be able to die in peace if you're not happy."

Liu Chichi couldn't stand hearing her say that about her and couldn't help but interrupt, "Mom!"

"That's true, how could your mother leave you alone? When you were in school, I worried about your studies. I even spoke humbly when your teacher called. I could endure any hardship for you."

"Chichi, please have pity on your mother. I've said all the nice things to that person today, and they promised not to hold it against you. Apologize to them, okay?"

The rationality that had been drowned out by tears suddenly returned, and Liu Chichi keenly caught a key piece of information: "You apologized to them?"

"What else can I do? I apologized because of you, so what's wrong with you saying a few kind words?"

Liu Chichi softened his attitude amidst her tearful complaints, "I'll think about it."

"How about we arrange a time to buy some gifts and deliver them to your door? Tomorrow would be fine. Do you know how to buy high-speed rail tickets? I've never done it before."

Liu Chunhong seemed to suddenly perk up; she sat up from the sofa and started looking for their ID cards.

Liu Chichi sat on the ground. The weather was so cold that her mind became sluggish, and she forgot what she wanted to say before she came in.

The phone lit up, and Shen Shuyi reminded her to take a shower and change her clothes.

She scrolled down and saw He Qing's messages. The earliest message was from right after Liu Chichi left; he said, "[So insensible?]"

After a long delay, he surprisingly offered an explanation: "That's not what my mother meant."

Just five minutes later, he sent another message: "Never mind, let your mom talk to you."

Liu Chichi suddenly felt very strange, as if no matter whose mother it was, they were all on He Qing's side.

They couldn't buy train tickets for the next day because Liu Chichi caught a cold, suffering from headache, cough, and runny nose all at once. Liu Chunhong said she looked terrible and that her apology wasn't sincere.

Liu Chichi, holding a hot water bottle, looked through the steam at the messages He Qing was sending. She couldn't tell what He Qing was saying, but Liu Chunhong smiled and pointed towards Liu Chichi's bedside: "Xiao Li is concerned about you. She even asked why you weren't replying to her messages."

Liu Chichi's eyes were also red, and her eyelids were so heavy that she could barely open them. It was as if a thick cloud of moisture was gushing out of her face, from her nose, mouth, and eyes, and every now and then a few tears would fall.

Her eyes hurt, but under Liu Chunhong's gaze, she still picked up her phone. Her chat history with He Qing was still stuck on yesterday's line: "Never mind, let your mother talk to you."

She didn't reply.

There was no "concern" as Liu Chunhong claimed.

Liu Chichi felt suffocated with discomfort and didn't even bother with pretense: "What did you and Mom talk about?"

There was no reply from the other end, so she held up her phone to show Liu Chunhong. The latter leaned forward, glanced at it, and started typing again. Then, with a knowing look, she looked at her with the eyes of someone who didn't understand: "Xiao Li said you haven't replied to your message from yesterday."

"What's the point of replying to these messages?"

Liu Chichi was puzzled. What was the point of having all that nonsense in the chat box?

She stared at the nonsense, replying with quotes one by one—

[There's nothing wrong with that.]

What does your mother mean by that?

【understood. 】

Finally, send one more question: 【Are you satisfied now?】

This time the reply came quickly: "Mm."

Why do I absolutely have to reply to your messages?

It's nothing, I just don't like people not replying.

Liu Chichi, who had been leaning against the headboard, sat up slightly and tossed her phone to Liu Chunhong: "See for yourself, I have nothing to say to him."

Liu Chunhong picked it up naturally. Liu Chichi saw the change in the light on her face and knew that she had scrolled back a lot of the chat history, or perhaps looked at other things, but Liu Chichi didn't care.

She knew she had no right to privacy, just like an unlocked door.

Liu Chunhong handed her the phone after a while, her expression a little unpleasant, but she frowned and held back, finally saying only, "You really didn't reply to their messages yesterday."

Liu Chichi felt her head was hurting even more, so she simply curled up under the covers and went back to sleep.

Liu Chichi was woken up at noon. A bowl of congee and side dishes were placed on her bedside table. Liu Chunhong touched her forehead and gently instructed her, "I have to go to work now. You can go back to sleep after you finish eating. Call me if you need anything."

"Mmm." Liu Chichi responded groggily. When she was fully awake, she only saw vegetable porridge on the bedside table, which was placed on her bedside table along with a clay pot. Finely chopped green vegetables were inside.

When she was a child, she choked on a leaf while eating vegetable porridge. Later, whenever her family cooked porridge, Liu Chunhong would always chop the ingredients into very fine pieces, a habit she maintained even as she grew up.

These trivial matters trapped her completely in this unlocked room.

The apology was postponed indefinitely because He Qing's parents were always busy. Liu Chunhong urged them twice but dared not urge them again, for fear that they would find her annoying.

Liu Chichi was happy to have some free time. After the New Year's Day holiday, she took two more days off. When she learned that Shen Shuyi had returned to work, she was even happier than her supervisor.