148: Chapter 148 anwhile, on that ship 148: Chapter 148 anwhile, on that ship Most idealists, who harbor unrealistic, rosy expectations of the ocean, lose their love for the sea completely after three days of travel on a ship.
Then follows the long suffering and torture.
Humans are creatures that live on land.
The ocean is only suitable for appreciation from the shore.
Once you dive deep into the sea, it takes only a few days to realize that the endlessly flat expanse of the ocean, without any waves or directions, seems eternally existing since ancient tis, isolating ordinary people’s perceptions of ti and space, and all that is left is a deep fear of one’s own insignificance.
Life on board is really too boring.
This had made Li Mumu utterly certain that running away with Wendy just before leaving was the best decision.
Even though she had paid a hefty price for it, being beaten senseless with a feather duster by her own mother, Li Ya.
Even so, she had no regrets; otherwise, she didn’t know how she would survive the long excruciating journey ahead.
From Saifu City to Tiann City, the voyage takes almost twenty days.
Travelers with sailing experience would prepare so tools to pass the ti, such as bringing a few books to read on the way.
Even if you don’t like reading, there’s plenty to enjoy on such a large cruise ship.
The first-class cabins on the upper decks have luxurious banquet halls that provide food and beverage service, and there are live band performances at night where you can sing and dance.
There are special entertainnt rooms to play cards, bars to drink alcohol, smoking rooms to smoke cigars, cafés to drink coffee…
If none of these appeal to you, then there are lounge chairs on the deck for sunbathing.
But Li Mumu liked none of these.
Reading books every day until her head ached, knowledge poured into her mind like #42 cent, making her feel as if her brain’s nerves were about to beco fibrous.
“The Sutra of Guiding the Deceased to the Afterlife” made her want to vomit, and “String Theory” made her want to die.
If it hadn’t been for Wendy by her side to accompany her and relieve the boredom, she would have wanted to jump into the sea and feed the fish.
It’s another clear morning, or perhaps afternoon, as Li Mumu, who has just crawled out of bed, leans on the ship’s railing to catch the wind.
Mu Yuming cos over and leans beside her, saying, “You’re a grown woman now, you should pay more attention to your appearance.”
Li Mumu looks down at her bear pajamas, not feeling there is any issue.
Old fossil, when you and my mother are next door making babies at night, why don’t you think about whether you’re disturbing the neighbors or not?
Now that you’ve pulled up your trousers and lit a cigarette, you feel peaceful and enter a “Sage” mode, starting to lecture , huh?
Li Mumu, who has been disturbed night after night, now finds her own father very irritating.
“Actually, I’ve always wanted to find the ti to have a good talk with you.”
Mu Yuming smiles and says, “It’s just that previously in Saifu, I was busy with work every day, and you didn’t like to stay at ho much…
Co to think of it, we rarely had such undisturbed, free ti like now in the past.”
[You search through your childhood mories carefully.]
[Unfortunately, it’s a lie!]
“It’s not that we didn’t have ti, it’s that you spent far more ti with my mother than with .”
Li Mumu unemotionally exposed Mu Yuming’s lie, “The reason I went out to play alone wasn’t that you didn’t have ti, but that you and mom were having too much fun and completely ignored .”
“Is that so?
Ahahaha…
sorry, okay, it’s my fault.”
Mu Yuming gave a dry laugh, then straightened his face and said, “Now that we’re at this point, I won’t hide it from you anymore, Mumu.
Actually, within our Chinese community, there are many outdated, unwritten rules and customs.
For example, a man shouldn’t be too family-oriented, especially he shouldn’t seem to care too much about his wife and daughter in public, or else he would be seen as weak and incompetent.”
“Really?”
Li Mumu expressed her doubts.
“My usual image is already humble and weak enough.
If I let people have that kind of misunderstanding, I would be bullied and taken advantage of.”
Mu Yuming sighed, “I know that you’ve been exposed to Western education since you were young and are not very familiar with the culture from back ho.
Neither I nor your mother can help you much in that respect.
So I worry about you.
If you follow us back to the motherland, you might not be able to cope with the cultural clash between East and West.”
That’s not too bad…
Actually, I might adapt even better than you two.
But Li Mumu kept that thought to herself.
Her dad, who had finally crawled away from her mom and, sporting two black eyes, rembered he had such a daughter, suddenly wanted to make up for it with a heart-to-heart father-daughter talk.
Out of politeness, she couldn’t flatly refuse on the spot.
“I think I’ll be fine!”
“Yeah, I think you’ll be fine too.
But Mumu, what do you think of our old ho?”
Is there a need to be so serious and solemn?
Li Mumu raised an eyebrow, “No thoughts, I haven’t been there.
How bad can it be?”
“There are actually many good things about it.”
Mu Yuming smiled, “Like history, culture, various cuisines.
I know you like to go to the Cantonese restaurant for dim sum, but Cantonese dim sum is just a small part of Cantonese cuisine, and Cantonese cuisine is only a small part of the entire Huaxia cuisine.
My father, your grandfather, was still reminiscing before he passed away, saying he regretted not being able to eat a bowl of Hot Oil Splashed Noodles from back ho.
He asked , if I ever got the chance, to go back and try it for him.”
The noodles are actually just so-so…
Li Mumu thought to herself, unimpressed.
She liked the Bamboo Noodles with Wontons.
She enjoyed spicy foods, whether it was butter hot pot or fish head with chopped peppers, she would welco them all.
But noodles absolutely could not have chili, nor vinegar, nor garlic!
Those were the heresies of the North, utterly intolerable!
“There’s actually no strict and clear standard in this world, good and evil, right and wrong are all relative.
Children who live in affluent families and are well-dressed and fed can hardly understand the real feelings of poor families.
They would joke, wondering why they don’t eat at porridge if they’re hungry.”
“When you were studying in Saifu, did you ever experience any discrimination from white children against Chinese children?”
[You seriously thought about when was the last ti you went to school.]
[Your classmates were all well-behaved, and they spoke nicely.
You seed to rember that no one discriminated against you, even those classmates whom you had beaten up didn’t discriminate against you.
Everyone said you were a good person.]
“No!”
Li Mumu thought carefully and then shook her head resolutely.
“That’s normal, because the status of Chinese people is different nowadays.
But it wasn’t like that in the past.”
Mu Yuming glanced at his “weak, pitiful, and helpless” obedient daughter, and his tone gradually beca more serious, “Let tell you a story.
It was when your grandfather first ca here, around the Tianle Era…
that was almost thirty years ago.”
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