Chapter 33
Aunt Zhu steadied her emotions at the door and took several deep breaths before entering.
As soon as Aunt Zhu stepped inside, she saw Xie Yunli and Wen Ran sitting together on the sofa. Wen Ran’s head was lowered, her hands clasped together, fingers continuously twisting and turning.
From the looks of it, they were clearly getting along well. Xie Yunli had managed to calm her emotions.
“Ranran, Mr. Xie, I’m back.”
The moment Wen Ran saw her return, she stood up and rushed over. Aunt Zhu caught her in a full embrace.
It had only been forty-some minutes since they’d last seen each other, yet Wen Ran had already lost most of her sense of security, looking as if she was about to cry.
Aunt Zhu’s heart ached terribly. How could she not feel for such a good child?
Wen Ran breathed a sigh of relief and asked, “Aunt Zhu, your son… has he come back? Are you happy… happy?”
“Happy, Auntie is happy.”
Aunt Zhu raised her hand and gently smoothed Wen Ran’s hair. She could tell that Wen Ran must have waited for her in the courtyard for a long time; even the tip of her nose was ice-cold.
But how could she tell Wen Ran that she actually wasn’t happy at all, that she was troubled and angry?
With such a disappointing son, Aunt Zhu sighed inwardly, but on the surface she could only force herself to hold it in.
Because if Wen Ran heard that she was upset, she would only feel even more upset herself. And this silly girl had no way to resolve such feelings. She could empathize with the emotions of those close to her, but unlike them, she couldn’t digest these negative emotions through various methods.
Wen Ran didn’t notice, but Xie Yunli saw through it. Aunt Zhu was hiding something.
After Aunt Zhu sent Wen Ran upstairs to rest for a while, Xie Yunli asked, “Did something happen to him at school?”
Aunt Zhu smiled bitterly and shook her head. “I don’t know. When I ask, he won’t tell me. He just says he wants to come back to China to rest and take a vacation, and he brought along some girlfriend whose background I don’t know, though she seems to be his classmate. I don’t even know if her parents are aware. Ai, this son of mine really doesn’t understand anything. I have no idea what to do with him. I originally thought that choosing a relatively strict school for him would help, but it turns out he still won’t study properly.”
Xie Yunli said, “I heard from the security guards that he’s already come many times, which is why they mistook him for a thief?”
Aunt Zhu nodded awkwardly. “Yes, he came looking for me, but maybe he was also afraid I’d scold him…”
Xie Yunli nodded. Actually, from just that one glance, he understood. Qiao Ziheng’s appearance made it obvious that he’d run out of money and had come to ask his mother for more.
He’d seen plenty of these types of young people during his time studying abroad. Some international students studied diligently every day, while others treated foreign countries purely as playgrounds, completely disregarding how difficult it was for their parents to support their studies abroad.
Given Aunt Zhu’s situation, she must have spent nearly all her savings plus money subsidized by the Wen family to send him abroad. And Qiao Ziheng clearly wasn’t the type to be easily grateful.
Young people who haven’t experienced society’s hardships or personally felt how difficult it is to earn money would never understand how hard it is for their parents.
Xie Yunli had never liked dealing with such people back then either, which is why today he hadn’t even given Qiao Ziheng a single glance. Otherwise, he wouldn’t have shown such disrespect to Aunt Zhu.
Xie Yunli nodded and asked, “How did you arrange things for them?”
“I had them stay at a hotel first. That girl doesn’t want to go home, and my son doesn’t get along with his father, so he’s making a fuss about not going home either. If he goes back, he’ll just get beaten. Ai…”
Aunt Zhu sighed again. She was too embarrassed to mention that Qiao Ziheng had shamelessly wanted to freeload and stay here. It was simply too humiliating. Not to mention that Wen Ran’s condition made it impossible for her to accept such a thing, even if Wen Ran were willing, she would never allow her son to bring his girlfriend here and disturb Wen Ran.
Even if he was her own son, it still wouldn’t be acceptable.
Xie Yunli said, “They’ll probably come looking for you again.”
A troubled expression appeared on Aunt Zhu’s face.
After all, he was her own son. She certainly couldn’t just ignore him, but if she were to manage the situation, she’d definitely have to go home to do it. Yet Wen Ran couldn’t be left without someone here.
“I’ll try my best to get him to hurry back to school. Mr. Xie, I’m truly sorry for troubling you today.”
“It’s fine. After all, he’s your family. It’s normal to have family matters.”
Actually, Aunt Zhu was already an extremely responsible caretaker. In fact, what she did had completely exceeded the duties of a nanny. Although the Wen family had helped send her son abroad, Aunt Zhu also cared for Wen Ran as if she were her own daughter. After so many years, Wen Ran had long since become unable to live without her care.
“How about this: you go home for a while first. As for Wen Ran, I’ll try to make time to keep her company.”
Xie Yunli thought for a moment and said, “You haven’t been back to your own home in a long time, have you?”
Aunt Zhu and her husband were basically in a state of separation with mutual non-interference, but if Aunt Zhu wanted to go home, she still had to return there. So except for necessary matters, she even spent holidays with Wen Ran.
But her son’s situation really couldn’t be ignored. Otherwise, all the money and effort spent on sending him abroad would be wasted, as would his future prospects.
“Let me go back and see how things are first.”
Aunt Zhu nodded helplessly. “Alright, thank you for understanding, Mr. Xie. However, Wen Ran still can’t do without me. I’ll go back to assess the situation first, figure out a solution with the child’s father, and then try to come back as soon as possible.”
Xie Yunli paused. “Will Wen Ran… be able to accept me staying here alone to keep her company?”
This question surprised Aunt Zhu a bit. She had thought that after this period of time together, their interactions had become quite natural. She hadn’t expected Xie Yunli to still worry about this.
“Actually, Ranran has always been looking forward to your visits, though she doesn’t say it out loud. But…” Aunt Zhu paused and said, “Do you remember that castle puzzle?”
Xie Yunli was momentarily stunned, then nodded. “I remember. She finished that over a year ago, right?”
“That’s right, but haven’t you noticed that she took that castle puzzle down from the wall? Some time ago, I don’t know what got into her, but every day she would take that puzzle apart and reassemble it, finish it and take it apart, take it apart and put it together again. Such a massive project, and she repeatedly reassembled it several times. I still don’t understand what this behavior means. After all, there’s a reason behind every behavior, but I think this reason should be related to you. However, as for what it specifically means, you’ll have to figure that out yourself.”
…
When Xie Yunli returned to the company, several rounds of rumors had already spread through the office in just two short hours.
Some said Zhou Wei had made some kind of mistake that caused the boss to berate him loudly in the corridor. Others said the boss had fallen out with a client and took his anger out on Zhou Wei.
Another rumor claimed the boss had argued with his family and stormed off home in a rage.
In any case, the incident of Xie Yunli shouting at Zhou Wei in the corridor that morning and then leaving immediately spread throughout the entire company. As a result, when Zhou Wei went down for lunch, he received wave after wave of sympathetic looks.
Fortunately, Xie Yunli returned to the company with a calm expression. Only then did Zhou Wei breathe a sigh of relief, thinking to himself that judging by the boss’s complexion, Wen Ran must be fine.
“Mr. Xie, is everything alright with Miss Wen Ran?”
As soon as Xie Yunli sat down, Zhou Wei came over with a concerned inquiry.
“Everything’s fine.”
Xie Yunli paused, then suddenly asked, “Zhou Wei, you’ve given gifts to your wife before, haven’t you?”
“Of course. I gave her gifts for all kinds of occasions before marriage. After marriage, well, except for some special holidays, I mostly just give red envelopes now.”
Xie Yunli nodded and didn’t ask anything further.
No one was comparable or could serve as a reference point for Wen Ran.
Because Wen Ran was one of a kind. Her way of thinking was unlike anyone else’s.
“By the way, the Qixi Festival is coming up soon. Mr. Xie, are you thinking about what gift to give Miss Wen Ran?”
Xie Yunli was silent for a moment, then said, “In previous years on Valentine’s Day, have I given her gifts?”
“It seems… no, not really. Though you have on other holidays.”
Zhou Wei scratched his head awkwardly.
That was because Xie Yunli’s care and gift-giving to Wen Ran had always been out of a sense of responsibility. But Valentine’s Day was the kind of holiday that required a couple to have feelings for each other to celebrate together.
And such feelings were related to romantic love.
Even if Wen Ran could understand that Xie Yunli was her husband, could she understand what romantic love represented?
How would she interpret Valentine’s Day, which ordinary couples or lovers celebrated?
“Alright, you can go.”
Xie Yunli said.
Zhou Wei hurriedly left.
As expected, their boss’s emotional fluctuations had been quite significant lately, and it was all related to Wen Ran. Whenever she was mentioned, Xie Yunli’s attitude would definitely change.
After being busy with several work matters in the afternoon, Xie Yunli picked up his phone to discover that Wen Ran had sent him two messages.
“Aunt Zhu’s son came, but she seems… not very happy. Why?”
“Xie Yunli, have you eaten? I just sneezed three times and scared Aunt Zhu. She says I’ve caught a cold. Will I… infect Aunt Zhu?”
Xie Yunli picked up his phone and walked toward his office while replying: “I’ve already eaten. You must have gotten cold while waiting outside. Did Aunt Zhu give you medicine? Also, how do you know Aunt Zhu isn’t happy?”
Zhou Wei knocked and entered with a document. “Mr. Xie, that…”
Without looking up, Xie Yunli waved his hand. “Ten minutes.”
Meaning: don’t disturb him for ten minutes.
“Understood, Mr. Xie.”
Zhou Wei tactfully withdrew.
For Xie Yunli, only extremely special matters took priority over work.
After all, businesspeople all lived by one saying: time is money. Ten minutes was indeed just ten minutes, but for a businessman, those ten minutes might also represent a string of figures in monetary value.
As soon as Xie Yunli sat down, Wen Ran’s message came through.
Her response speed was getting faster and faster, which also meant her typing was becoming more proficient.
She said: “I heard Aunt Zhu sigh three times. During dinner, she spaced out twice, each time for more than two minutes. She also accidentally kicked Kaka’s little food bowl. Is she missing her son?”
Looking at these words, Xie Yunli could almost imagine her thinking carefully while typing out each character with her fingers, one by one.
It seemed she was quite sensitive to the emotions of people around her.
As long as someone entered her world, they had a sense of presence in her eyes, and were even cared about by her.
But the prerequisite was that they had to be allowed into that world.
…
Although Wen Ran was sensitive to the emotions of those around her, she actually didn’t understand that Aunt Zhu’s feelings toward her son weren’t just longing, but more anger at his lack of ambition and maturity, along with helplessness about how to discipline him.
But Aunt Zhu couldn’t possibly tell her these things, because that would only cause her unnecessary worry.
After dinner that evening, Aunt Zhu went outside to call Qiao Ziheng. She called three times before he answered, and when he spoke, his tone was lazy. “Mom, what’s wrong?”
“You’re asking me what’s wrong? I’ve been worrying myself sick over you all day.”
Qiao Ziheng sneered. “Worrying about me? I think you spend all day worrying about that Wen family daughter. Didn’t you say she can’t live without you? Then just be her nanny for life, work for her and serve her. Later when she has a child who’s also autistic, you can go serve her child too…”
“Shut your mouth!”
Aunt Zhu said angrily, “What kind of garbage are you spouting! Qiao Ziheng, where has your upbringing gone? Even if your father and mother don’t have high educational degrees, haven’t we taught you proper values since you were young? Do you hear yourself and what you just said?”
Qiao Ziheng fell silent for a moment. “Fine, Mom. We haven’t seen each other in almost two years. I don’t want to make you angry, so stop scolding me too.”
Aunt Zhu took a deep breath. “I’m telling you, son. Mom does care deeply for Wen Ran, and I do care for her like a daughter, but that doesn’t mean I’ve neglected you at all! You’re my only biological son. I don’t expect you to accomplish great things. If you can just study properly, graduate properly, and find a stable job, your mother will be satisfied. This time you concealed things from us, suddenly left school and returned to China, and brought along some girlfriend we know nothing about. What am I supposed to do with you?”
“What can I do? You think it’s easy for me at that foreign school? Everyone around me is either a wealthy second-generation international student or a foreigner. I’m fucking going crazy learning foreign languages! I might as well have stayed in China and gone to a community college…”
Aunt Zhu was speechless for a moment. “You brat, weren’t you the one begging to go abroad since middle school? Saying how fun and easy foreign countries were, how you’d have like-minded classmates to be with? So after all this fuss, you’ve been feeling tortured this whole time? Then where did all that money you kept asking your mother for go? Didn’t it go to eating, drinking, playing around, and keeping your girlfriend company? Was that torture too?”
Aunt Zhu had at least read quite a few books and kept up with current events by browsing social media and short videos every day. Her son’s excuses might fool his father, but they couldn’t fool her.
Sure enough, upon hearing this, Qiao Ziheng choked up.
“Tell me the truth. Who exactly is that girl with you? Is she really your classmate? I don’t think she looks like an international student.”
“How many international students have you even met? Do you think your son looks like one? How ridiculous.”
Qiao Ziheng said impatiently, “Fine, I’m not talking to you anymore. I knew you’d just scold me. I shouldn’t have come back to find you. So annoying. This crappy hotel isn’t good either. I might as well go home…”
Aunt Zhu sighed. “Fine, if you don’t want to stay at the hotel, then go home and have a good talk with your father.”
“He’ll definitely beat me if you’re not home!”
Qiao Ziheng shouted, “Am I a motherless child now? Can’t you manage your own son? I’m your biological child! You’ve been taking care of her for so many years already. Can’t you spare a little time for your son? I’m the one you gave birth to!”
Another call that ended unpleasantly.
After he angrily hung up, Aunt Zhu sighed at her phone.
She looked up at the night sky, wondering in her heart: Was sending the child abroad a mistake?
Since middle school, Qiao Ziheng had envied students who attended international private schools because he knew that students graduating from such schools had a high likelihood of going abroad. But their family’s circumstances were limited after all. Forget studying abroad, even sending him to a private school was a stretch.
Later in high school, it was Wen Ran’s mother who paid for Qiao Ziheng, whose grades were a complete mess, to transfer to a private high school. Later, it was also Wen Ran’s father who helped pull strings to allow Qiao Ziheng, whose grades remained a complete mess, to fulfill his wish of studying abroad.
Aunt Zhu had once refused this arrangement, but Wen Ran’s parents insisted on supporting Qiao Ziheng.
Actually, Aunt Zhu knew in her heart that they were thanking her for all these years of devoted care for Wen Ran, which to some extent meant neglecting time with her own son.
But Qiao Ziheng himself wasn’t a child who loved depending on his parents. Since childhood, he loved running around outside. Even when both parents were home, he was either in his own room playing computer games or out calling friends together.
Wen Ran, on the other hand, was a child at the other extreme. Even without her innate autism, she would probably still be a quiet and well-behaved good child.
And this natural deficiency made Wen Ran even more lonely and sensitive, truly heartbreaking and impossible not to worry about.
For autistic children like her, some could indeed live independently as adults, while others with more severe cases might need parental care for life. Those families were truly unbearable to think about. Comparatively speaking, Wen Ran was already quite sensible and intelligent.
Aunt Zhu sighed again. Just as she was about to turn around and go back inside, she suddenly felt something was off, as if someone was watching her.
She turned to look around. The roads in the villa district were always lit at night, and each household’s courtyard was separated by a certain distance. Aside from the occasional homeowner’s vehicle returning, no one would be out at this hour.
She looked around but didn’t see anyone, then suspiciously pushed the door and went back inside.
But unexpectedly, Wen Ran, who should have already been resting, had come downstairs.
“Aunt Zhu… are you unhappy?”
Aunt Zhu’s heart softened. “Auntie isn’t unhappy.”
Wen Ran looked at her and said, “Then you… do you miss your family? If you miss them… you can go find them. I’ll be fine alone. I’ll take good care of myself.”
Aunt Zhu touched her hair. “Even if Auntie goes back to see them, I’ll still come back to be with you.”
Wen Ran opened her mouth, seeming not to know how to express her thoughts. After hesitating a moment, she gently rested her head on Aunt Zhu’s shoulder.
Just like Kaka often did to her.
This intimate gesture seemed able to express some kind of emotion in one’s heart. Every time Kaka pressed its soft, warm little body against her, she felt very happy.
She also hoped Aunt Zhu could find happiness.
Aunt Zhu had taken care of her for so long. Even she knew that the presence of family was extremely important. In order to care for her, Aunt Zhu rarely even went home.
“Aunt Zhu… I want to give you a vacation.”
Wen Ran said very seriously, word by word, “Tomorrow, go home, okay?”
This was the first time Wen Ran had proactively told Aunt Zhu to go back to her own home.
Tears were already glistening in Aunt Zhu’s eyes. Looking at Wen Ran’s calm face without much expression but still beautiful, she couldn’t help but remember the first time she met her.
Back then, in order to care for Wen Ran, Aunt Zhu had consulted many books about autism beforehand. But when she truly met Wen Ran, she was still shocked.
Because Wen Ran looked completely like an adorable, pretty girl who would attract affection. But it was precisely because of her innate deficiency that she couldn’t study and live carefree like other children.
On that lovely face, she couldn’t even display many emotional expressions. Any joy, anger, sorrow, or happiness was difficult for her to express. Even many simple things, she could only learn through repetition. She didn’t even know how to express her own thoughts.
“Ranran, this is Aunt Zhu. Starting today, she’ll take care of you and live with you. You need to slowly accept her and get familiar with her, understand?”
Young Wen Ran had no reaction to her mother’s words. She just held a pen and kept drawing on white paper. Aunt Zhu went over for a look, but she couldn’t understand what those complicated lines represented.
“Ranran, hello. I’m Aunt Zhu.”
Aunt Zhu squatted halfway in front of her to greet her, but as expected, Wen Ran had no reaction at all, not even moving her eyes.
As if this small girl could only immerse herself in her own world, unable to pay attention to anyone outside of it.
Later, from Wen Ran’s first time looking up at her, her first time calling her Aunt Zhu, her first time responding to her words, her first time eating food she made, her first time holding her hand, her first time actively depending on her…
Until today, Aunt Zhu had become one of the people Wen Ran cared about most.
Though she never sought any reward, at this moment, Aunt Zhu still sincerely felt a deep sense of happiness.
She gently asked Wen Ran, “Then if Auntie isn’t home, will you be afraid?”
Wen Ran shook her head. “I’m an adult now. I have Kaka too. I won’t… be afraid.”
Aunt Zhu asked her, “Then if I don’t come back in time to cook for you, will you eat properly?”
Wen Ran hesitated, then nodded. “I’ll… figure something out myself. I’m an adult. I’ll figure something out.”
She repeated the words “I’m an adult now” as if giving herself courage.
Aunt Zhu took a deep breath and cautiously probed, “Then if, if Mr. Xie came to take care of you, would you be willing to let him care for you and eat alone with him?”
Wen Ran seemed somewhat surprised. She reacted for a full two or three minutes before slowly saying, “His work is very busy. He doesn’t have time to be at home.”
Aunt Zhu suddenly realized something.
Actually, all this time, Wen Ran seemed unaware that Xie Yunli lived in another apartment?
She seemed to still think he stayed at the company because of work?
If they were an ordinary couple, they would have long since had all kinds of conflicts over living separately. The wife would also question why the husband didn’t come home.
But Wen Ran wouldn’t. She would only think that Xie Yunli had his own reasons for being unable to return to this home.
Just like her father. She had always thought that her father had his own reasons for leaving her…
So she had never complained, never blamed them.
Her thinking was just that simple and pure. Whatever was said was what it was. Whatever others told her, she would never doubt, because in her world, there were no lies.
Aunt Zhu said, “Mr. Xie’s work is busy, but he can’t possibly be busy all 365 days of the year. It just so happens that he’s not particularly busy these few days, so he can take care of you.”
Wen Ran’s expression looked conflicted and troubled. She grabbed a handful of her hair and wound it around her fingers. Aunt Zhu didn’t rush her to speak, but just patted the back of her hand and said, “Don’t worry. You should trust Mr. Xie. He can definitely arrange everything.”
Wen Ran was silent for a while, then shook her head. “Aunt Zhu, I’m a burden to you both, to you and to Xie Yunli. I don’t want to always be like this.”
“I’ll be fine alone at home. Kaka is here too. Kaka will… keep me company. It will always keep me company.”
As if reminding herself, Wen Ran repeated word by word, “Kaka will keep me company, will always keep me company…”
Over and over, again and again. Slowly, she began unconsciously using one hand to pull at the fingers of the other hand. Even when they turned red, she didn’t stop, until Aunt Zhu grasped her hand and interrupted her with a choked voice, “Yes, Ranran. Auntie will always keep you company too.”
Wen Ran stopped that repetitive murmuring. She slowly raised her eyes. Those clear and tranquil pupils seemed to have something flickering faintly within them.
“Auntie will always keep you company. Kaka will always keep you company too. We won’t leave, even when one day we all grow old.”
Wen Ran bit her lip, her eyes a bit red. “Yesterday… I dreamed of Mom. She said, she said I should listen well to you and Xie Yunli. She said she won’t be able to come see me often anymore.”