To Covet (GL) - Chapter 76

I was worried that Shi Yunya had sensed something.

Although I ran into her right as I woke up this morning, she only gave me a glance and didn’t say a word. But that was just her way with me—she had always treated me like I was invisible. For all I knew, she was waiting for me to leave before taking her anger out on her daughter. Or maybe she would secretly search her room.

I hadn’t left any suspicious traces in that house—and even if I had, it wouldn’t matter. The most Shi Yunya could do was kick me out, and I’m not an orphan with nowhere to go. At worst, I’d just go back to my grandmother’s.

If she discovered something through her own daughter, then Yu Zhouwan only had herself to blame for not being able to hide a secret or protect her own privacy. In short, none of it had anything to do with me.

Then what am I instinctively afraid of? a voice inside asked me.

Am I afraid that Yu Zhouwan will be scolded or beaten by her?

I had been clutching the slip of paper with my registered scores. During the phone call, I had kneaded it repeatedly until it became a tiny paper ball, like the fallen eye of a dead fish.

This feeling of instinctively caring about someone else’s emotions… was a bit strange. It was like when I first picked up that camera—the first thing I thought of wasn’t the fear or threat of our incestuous relationship being exposed, but rather projecting an image of a young Yu Zhouwan looking up at “Mom,” only to be barked at by the voice from the camera, telling her not to be distracted.

I understood why that specific frame flashed in my mind. Yu Zhouwan never mentioned the history between her and her mother. Those past memories didn’t belong to me, and I had never stepped foot in them, yet the fictionalized scenes were lingering.

Before I left, Yu Zhouwan had buttoned my sleeves for me. I looked into her eyes and began to wonder if she was naturally gifted at hiding herself—eyes that only showed a flicker of a ripple under extreme emotional pressure. Whether it was joy, anger, sorrow, or happiness—or even desire and rejection—she did her best not to express any of it.

I clearly remembered the first time we met as children. She saw me wailing because I didn’t get an ice cream; she stood nearby, her face full of worry mixed with a guilty conscience. Later, she proactively bought me a new one and handed it over in an attempt to please me.

Only when she was venting her desire and hunger in bed did she revert to her true self, driven by instinct. Like a fish with dried scales suddenly touching water, she would dart around for a brief moment.

I spent the rest of my classes distractedly counting my fingers. I told the lead teacher I wanted to return to Linzhou to catch up on schoolwork for finals. The teacher didn’t stop me, so my training camp ended early.

Yu Zhouwan hadn’t contacted me at all over the last few days. I proactively sent her a few generic messages to test the waters, but there was no response. A few nights ago, Qian Xinming said her stomach hurt and she felt like vomiting. I couldn’t reach the teacher, so I took her to the ER. Between the chaos and the crushing sleepiness, I only realized after paying the bills that I had used the “Family Link” shared payment.

I thought Yu Zhouwan would ask me about where this significant sum of money went, but ever since that phone call, she seemed to have vanished into thin air. I even started speculating in dark directions.

It poured rain in Linzhou all day. I held a transparent umbrella I bought on the street. By the time I walked from the complex entrance to the building, I was soaked from my sleeves to my pant legs. Before opening the door, I was playing out the upcoming scene in my mind—perhaps a cold war between family members or a full-blown explosive argument.

But nothing had happened.

“Is it still raining outside?” Shi Yunya sat on the sofa. She looked up at me and paused the variety show she was watching. “Go take a shower and change your clothes.”

“Where’s my dad?”

Actually, I wanted to ask directly where Yu Zhouwan was, because the door to her room—the one usually kept locked—was open and pitch black inside. But to be indirect, I decided to ask after every member of the household.

“In the study.”

Shi Yunya got up to brew a cup of something. I didn’t know what she added, but a faint herbal scent drifted through the living room, with a trace of sweetness if you smelled closely.

“Where’s Sister?”

She brought the cup to her lips, then suddenly stopped.

“Out,” she said. “She’s been out since this morning.”

“Where did she go?”

Shi Yunya shot me a sidelong glance, said nothing, and went back to her noisy variety show. But I could already hear her thinking: You’re asking me? How should I know?

“Aren’t you going to call her?” I tried to gauge their current relationship through this question—to see if things had soured as I imagined.

She opened her mouth, hesitating to reply, but Yu Hanyang interrupted her.

“Keyi is back? Didn’t you say you were staying until June?” Yu Hanyang walked out of the study. “Why didn’t you say something beforehand? It’s a long way from the high-speed rail station. Did you take a taxi or the subway? If you’d called earlier, I would have picked you up on my way.”

“I took leave from the teacher to come back. I’ve been a bit tired lately,” I answered his questions selectively. “I wanted to come back early to prepare for school exams.”

For some reason, he affectionately put his arm around my shoulder and pushed me into my bedroom. Before I could react, he made a “shush” gesture.

“Don’t provoke your Auntie Shi right now.” He glanced at the closed door and lowered his voice.

“Did she and her… have an argument?” I didn’t know whether to call her by her name or call her “Sister,” so I just used “her.”

“It’s not that… sigh, how do I explain this to you…”

He pressed me down to sit properly on the bed while he sat in the desk chair.

“Yu Keyi, Dad wants to ask you a question. You have to answer me seriously. Tell the truth, okay?”

I blinked.

“You’re so close to Wanwan… do you share some kind of secret with her?”

The brain that was functioning perfectly a second ago suddenly hummed and ground to a halt. Staring at Yu Hanyang’s face, I gave a confused “Huh?”

“No.” My mouth moved faster than my brain—a reflexive, flat denial.

In an instant, I regained my composure. No, if they were really about to pull back the final veil of modesty, it wouldn’t be Yu Hanyang questioning me. Especially not in this slow, probing tone.

“What’s wrong?” I propped my chin on my hand innocently. “She’s my sister. My biological sister. Isn’t it normal for us to be close?”

“Well, yes, but…” He gave a hollow laugh and scratched his face. “Aiyah, a young girl’s heart… how would a guy like me understand?”

I breathed a sigh of relief. A false alarm.

“Well… Wanwan is waiting for her admissions results,” he said, his eyes darting around as if trying to organize the right words. “And your Auntie Shi wants the girl to study Finance. She doesn’t want to; she secretly applied for something else—insisted on Art. Now the application window has passed, and it can’t be changed. They’ve been at a stalemate over this for half a month.”

“And then?”

“You know about me and your mother… Your Auntie Shi says she doesn’t mind, but she must feel a bit uncomfortable deep down. And you’re still living here. I’m your dad, I can’t just ignore you, but after all, she’s the one who put up most of the money for this house…”

“So, should I move out?” I still didn’t follow his point.

“That’s not what I meant. If you go back to your grandmother’s like this, she’ll definitely think I’m pushing you out and come here to make a scene.”

The bedroom was well-insulated, but right then, we both heard the front door slam shut. Yu Zhouwan was back.

“My point is, Keyi, since you and Wanwan are close, help your Auntie persuade her. Tell her not to be so stubborn. What kind of future is there in Art? Your Auntie Shi started from nothing; she’s seen all sorts of storms over the years. Choosing a major is a lifelong decision. You can’t just play around and study whatever you feel like.” He stopped talking in riddles and laid it all out.

“Besides, you can’t make a living with Art. If she ends up knowing nothing about business, she’ll be useless on both ends, and your Auntie won’t be able to hand the company over to her. Don’t you agree?”

I hesitated, but didn’t argue. I nodded in agreement.

“Little Keyi is the most sensible one,” he patted my head and stroked my hair affectionately. “If your mother knew you were like this, she’d be happy.”

I absolutely loathed people touching my head. As soon as Yu Hanyang turned to leave, I immediately ruffled my hair into a mess, using the slight sting to mask the sensation of being touched.

I couldn’t hear clearly, so I quietly pulled the door open a crack.

…

“Who. Do. You. Think. You. Are?” Shi Yunya’s words were clipped and deliberate. “Yu Zhouwan, is this how you talk to your own mother now?”

“Look at yourself in the mirror! Look at what you’ve become!”

Yu Zhouwan ignored her and went to the kitchen to pour a glass of water. Before she could take a sip, Shi Yunya snatched the glass from her hand and slammed it onto the dining table. The hot water splashed out, emitting a faint steam.

It was the first time I’d seen Shi Yunya so hysterical. Even though her upbringing didn’t allow her to scream like a madwoman or smash things, just sitting there with a dark face, legs crossed, slamming the table was enough to make one’s blood run cold.

The person being questioned acted as if it were none of her business: “I just went for a walk. Alone. It’s not as sordid as you think.”

“Who are you kidding, going for a walk in the rain? A walk that lasts until ten o’clock?”

Yu Zhouwan turned her face away and ignored her.

“You’re full of lies now—one after another, without even blinking. I don’t know who taught you this.” She took a deep breath and propped her head up with one hand, seemingly dizzy with anger. “Yu Zhouwan, I am your mother. You are a piece of meat that fell from my own womb. Now you… you even dare to lie to your own mother. Is there anything you won’t do in the future?”

“Acting one way to my face and another behind my back. You kept telling me to trust you, and this is how you treat me?”

“You’re playing games with me now? Do you think you can outplay anyone else once you’re out in society? You’re looking for trouble. Don’t wait until you’ve been swindled out of all your money or tricked into some man’s bed before you regret it.”

Yu Hanyang tried to push her back down, coaxing her gently, “Alright, you’ve been angry with the child for so long, it’s not good for your health. Wanwan, really, listen to your mother. Your mother won’t hurt you. You’re still young. When you grow up, you’ll know that the world out there…”

Yu Zhouwan gave her a flat look. She wanted to take off her wet coat and throw it in the washer, but Shi Yunya barked at her:

“Stay right there. I’m not finished.”

“Aiyah, the forms are already filled out. You’re scaring the kid with that face every day; she’s too afraid to even come home. The deadline has passed, the forms are submitted. If you force her now, how is she supposed to change it? In the future…”

“The worst that happens is she goes to a slightly worse school with those low-life slackers. Can we really let her have her way? This is absolute rebellion.” She gave a cold laugh. Shi Yunya impatiently shook him off. “Is this just about changing a major? The rules in this house are broken. There is a problem with the atmosphere.”

“And another thing, Yu Hanyang. Whether I’m disciplining my daughter, hitting her or scolding her—none of it is your business. I raised her. Everything in this house exists because of the money I spent. What does it have to do with you?”

Yu Hanyang tried to be the peacemaker, but no one was buying it. He was mocked for no reason and fell silent with a dark face.

“Think about it yourself. You eat my food and drink my water. What right do you have to speak?” She brushed her hair back, as if merely stating a settled fact. “And you, little girl. Yu Keyi…”

The moment Yu Zhouwan made eye contact with me through the crack in the door, a flash of surprise crossed her face, but it was quickly retracted, though she still glanced toward me from time to time. Luckily, Shi Yunya had her back to me and couldn’t see.

“That little girl is glued to Wanwan every day. Ever since she arrived, Wanwan has become a different person—giving me a cold face every day and even learning how to lie.”

“I haven’t even brought up whether she corrupted you. What kind of good seed could come from that woman? I’m just doing charity. Raising a cat or a dog is just providing a meal, isn’t it?”

“Yu Zhouwan, you certainly act close to her—calling her ‘Sister’ every day like it’s the real thing. Do you have any idea that your mother was nearly ruined back then because of what her mother did? People pointed at me behind my back. If it wasn’t for the fact that I made some money to support you, I would have been drowned in spit long ago.”

Yu Zhouwan squinted toward my direction. I scratched my face and gave her a little wrinkled-nose face.

“Mom, don’t project your own history onto me. I have nothing to be suspicious about, and I won’t sleep with anyone,” she raised an eyebrow. “Besides, you’re the one who got pregnant out of wedlock. Why blame anyone else?”

Shi Yunya sprang up. With a darkened face, she took a few steps forward. Before I could even react, she raised her hand and delivered a heavy slap to Yu Zhouwan’s face.

Slap. Then another one.