When Qian Sing and Peng Hui were glaring at each other, Zhao ii burst into the dormitory.
The school was already on break, and the only heat in the dormitory ca from a thin electric heater. Qian Sing and Peng Hui had moved their chairs close to the heater, wrapped in thick down coats, sitting face to face and whispering to one another.
Hearing the commotion, both turned their heads simultaneously. One wore an expression of surprise, like seeing a savior, and the other had a heavy, stagnant expression, eyes full of confusion and emptiness.
Zhao ii, barefaced, hair a bit disheveled from sleep, paced back and forth in the room. She had a lot to say, but when she saw the conflicted yet unapologetic look on Peng Hui’s face, the words got stuck in her throat and she couldn’t utter a single word.
Qian Sing couldn’t help but ask, "What’s going on? Why do I feel like sothing’s off with you guys?"
Qian Sing’s words instantly ignited the fuse in Zhao ii’s heart. She stood in front of Peng Hui, feeling like she was about to explode if she had the guts. She glared at Peng Hui, "You’ve gone mad! Is that sothing you should do? She’s your sister!"
Zhao ii couldn’t describe the complex feelings from staying up all night. In her worldview developed over the years, other people’s family affairs were not for outsiders to ddle in. After all, matters of the heart are always like drinking water, only they know the temperature.
Peng Hui’s brother-in-law had an affair, wronging her sister. In Zhao ii’s mind, Peng Hui could tell her sister and let her handle it herself or keep it a secret, waiting for her sister to find out. But Zhao ii couldn’t accept Peng Hui’s approach of directly retaliating without giving the people involved any respite, no matter if it was her sister. To Zhao ii, Peng Hui’s actions were too extre and likely to worsen the situation.
Zhao ii tried to reason with Peng Hui: "Peng Hui, what you did was really too much, you know? Even if you can’t stand it, even if you feel for your sister, you should have discussed it with her first. This is her family matter. If you want to intervene, you should ask if she’s willing. You’re just her sister, you’re her family, but you can never replace her husband, her lover, you understand?"
Zhao ii treated Peng Hui like her own sister, speaking bluntly. She said what was in her heart, often ignoring the perspective of the parties involved. This behavior was inherently unfair; she didn’t know the complete truth, trying to impose her opinion based on just a snippet. Such persuasion was essentially aningless.
Zhao ii earnestly tried to persuade, "Do you know how much trouble your impulsive actions could bring to your sister? Though the post’s online heat has been temporarily suppressed, I checked back and there are many reposts of the original post that still get a lot of attention. People nowadays tend to dox. What if they find out about your sister because of your brother-in-law? What if they expose her personal information online? Have you thought about that?"
Peng Hui’s lips twitched as she looked up at Zhao ii and retorted, "Then what? Do you have a better way to get my sister away from that scumbag? Unless Sun Yingyu abandons her, my sister will never leave him!"
"What else can I do? If I tell my sister about Sun Yingyu’s affair, she’d beg not to tell the family. If I urge her to divorce Sun Yingyu, she’d cry and say she doesn’t dare to."
"You have no idea what kind of person my sister really is! I’m the one stuck with a vain sister! Can you understand how I feel? If you had a sister who resented the poverty at ho, trying to climb the social ladder, and finally married into a wealthy family only to find out her husband is a jerk, unwilling to divorce, and just wants to make do for life, what would you do?"
"Could you watch your own sister leap into the fire pit without doing anything?"
Zhao ii was taken aback by the outburst, sensibly detecting that Peng Hui’s anger wasn’t directed at her but was frustration with her sister, Peng Rui.
Zhao ii asked, "Did you confront your sister?"
Peng Hui’s face was pale, eyes twitching with grievance and regret. "No, it’s the first ti my sister left baffled. She said she was terrified of poverty, so she wanted the stability she has now. She said my brother-in-law wasn’t faithful once; she always knew, turning a blind eye because she didn’t want a divorce, as long as my brother-in-law handed over money monthly, she could endure anything."
Peng Hui’s eyes gradually reddened. "I’ve never thought our family was that destitute. We never lacked food or clothing. How are we poor? We’re not the best, but we’re better off than many, so why do I have such a vain sister?"
Zhao ii softened, feeling guilty for her earlier firm judgnt. She stepped forward, hugging Peng Hui, comforting her as Shi Yang often comforted her, gently patting Peng Hui’s head. "Peng Hui, don’t be like this. I’m sorry, I didn’t know. Don’t be sad. It hurts to see you like this."
Peng Hui buried her face in Zhao ii’s embrace, eyes stubborn. "Even though my sister is so disappointing, I can’t just watch her ruin her life."
"I must make her divorce Sun Yingyu."
"If she’s afraid of poverty and doesn’t want a hard life, then I’ll support her later."
After pouring out her heart, which brought infinite sadness to Zhao ii and Qian Sing, Peng Hui huddled in Zhao ii’s embrace, listening to the comforting whispers of her close friends.
Zhao ii stayed with Peng Hui in the dormitory until nightfall. In the afternoon, Zhao ii asked Peng Hui, "Aren’t you going to accompany your sister?"
Peng Hui bit the edge of her quilt, resolutely saying, "I don’t want to see her."
Across the bed, Zhao ii looked at Peng Hui. With fair and clear skin, a classic oval face, even with eyes swollen and dark circles from exhaustion, she still appeared very pretty.
After Peng Hui spoke, she slightly lowered her eyes. Under the sunlight, her eyelashes fluttered a bit, making her appear both fragile and strong.
The winter sun set early, and as the sky outside turned completely dark, Peng Hui got up from the bed, urged Zhao ii to dress up and leave together. Though outwardly stubborn, she couldn’t help but worry about her sister being alone in the empty house.
Reviews
All reviews (0)