Chapter 43 (1/2)
Chapter 43
Yun Jin returned to her home in the county. Her mother’s arrangements had been more or less attended to. They didn’t have many relatives but now that her mother had departed from the world, what did it matter if the funeral was grand or not?
Uncle observed that Yun Jin was not holding up too well and he advised her to rest while he sees to the funeral arrangements. He was absolutely right – Yun Jin was truly weary.
The eve of the funeral, she suddenly thought of some important matters she had to discuss with uncle. He was in the kitchen making a phone call. Yun Jin was wearing home slippers and even when she entered the kitchen, he did not notice her presence.
Uncle was a simple and straightforward man who usually answered his calls in the living room. Most of the time, Yun Jin could make out eighty percent of the conversation. However, here he was speaking in a low voice in a corner. Yun Jin found it highly unusual.
“… Yes, the arrangements are almost complete … No no I still have to thank you … Back in the hospital, if it weren’t for you … She’s holding up well … She doesn’t know … That child is just so stubborn …”
Yun Jin quietly retreated to her bedroom. She knew who was on the other end instinctively. After all these years, she still needed his timely a.s.sistance. He had come to her aid, but didn’t want her to find out.
She poured herself a cup of tea and took a sip – there was a touch of sweetness in the otherwise bitter taste. She would not tell Cheng Zheng that she had seen him in the hospital. It was a coincidence on her part really – one day, she had seen him hurrying out of the oncology ward. That very afternoon, the consultant brought news of the vacant room. Since Cheng Zheng didn’t mention it, neither would she.
So this is what it felt like to depend on someone. She had once thought that she didn’t need to rely on anyone but now she finally understood – the more she tried to resolve her issues on her own strength, the more tired she felt under the weight of her burdens. Why should she forsake his genuine concern for her because of her pride? He wasn’t giving her charity; it was simply his way of loving her. In the presence of certain people, she needn’t put on a strong façade.
She finally had a breakthrough.
That night, her uncle summoned her to the living room. When her mother was still alive, their stepfather-stepdaughter relations.h.i.+p was a respectful one although there was a certain formality to it.
Uncle pushed a small box towards her and said “Yun Jin, I know deep down you’ve never truly regarded me as a father. I’ve always wished that you were my own flesh and blood. Now that your mom is no longer around … this is something she left behind. She would want you to have it. Do you remember the old house you lived in when your father was alive? Your mother could never bear to sell it. A few years earlier, she had changed the t.i.tle deed to your name. It’s yours now. Take it as a token of your parents’ love for you and something for you to remember them by.”
Yun Jin opened the box silently. There was an a.s.sortment of things inside – a few pages of doc.u.ment concerning the t.i.tle deed, her mother’s earrings that she wore on a daily basis, two bank books which amounted to only a few thousands, and many old photographs. There was a family portrait that had been taken when her father was still alive and many photos that depicted her growing up. Most of the photographs had yellowed with age and even had creases at the edges. This was all her mother had.
Yun Jin didn’t cry. She caressed the old photographs gently; she could almost imagine her mother’s lingering warmth on them.
“Do you know, I used to hate you? Despite knowing that my mom made the right decision in choosing to be with you, I simply couldn’t forget about my dad. I hated that you took a portion of her love that was only meant for daddy and me. I even started to give my mom the cold-shoulder … I’m not a good daughter. Maybe I will never be able to call you daddy but there’s still something I have to get off my chest … thank you. For all you’ve done. Whether mom is here or not, you’ll always be family.
When Yun Jin had finished speaking, the man who was more than half a century old started to cry.
After all her mom’s funeral arrangements had been seen to, Yun Jin made her way to her old home. This was where her parents had met and fallen in love. Yun Jin walked over every square foot of the place; she could almost relive the memories they had as a family. Her parents had finally reunited in heaven.
Some of her relatives on her mother’s side still lived in the county. Yun Jin stayed in her mother’s cousin’s place. Although it was a distant relative, his family treated Yun Jin very well and didn’t mind that her mother had only just pa.s.sed away which was a social taboo for the superst.i.tious crowd. Yun Jin stayed for a few days and she pa.s.sed every one of it by taking long, lazy naps. When her uncle returned from tending to the fields, he would even play Go with her. She couldn’t remember a more carefree period in her entire existence.
On the last day of her leave, she dragged a reclining chair to the yard. The warm suns.h.i.+ne this winter day was just right. She was only halfway through a romance novel she had found in her cousin’s room when she was overcome with sleepiness. She placed the opened book on her abdomen and shut her eyes. In novels, the rich male lead always had a nasty mother. In this one, the mother had pushed a check towards the pregnant female lead and sneered “Isn’t this what you want? Here’s the money. Leave my son alone.”
That day, she had woken up next to Cheng Zheng and had set about tidying the bedroom and kitchen before making a move. She had not gotten very far when she met the returning Zhang Jin Yin. And just like in the fictional world, Zhang Jin Yin had invited her to her car to “have a chat”.
Her first sentence had been “Yun Jin, I once a.s.sumed you were going to be my daughter-in-law …”
The “conversation” would have been more appropriately described as a monologue because Yun Jin remained silent throughout. Zhang Jin Yin wasn’t overbearing; her upbringing had taught her to be cultured and thoughtful so she paid much heed to Yun Jin’s feelings and never went overboard with her words. But Yun Jin knew her past with Xu Zhi Heng and her inability to get pregnant had reached Zhang Jin Yin’s ears. This wasn’t in the least bit unexpected. There were no secrets that could be kept hidden forever. Moreover, Zhang Jin Yin was a powerful person with wide connections.
“I’m just an ordinary mother. I hope you understand.” Zhang Jin Yin sighed.
Yun Jin smiled “You don’t need my understanding because what you’ve recounted are all facts. I know what you mean.” She was grateful to Zhang Jin Yin for not offering her money because then she would’ve felt more ashamed.
“Actually, I’m not forcing you to leave Cheng Zheng. I know my own son. He’s a silly kid; when he’s set his mind on something, nothing can get him to change course. But Yun Jin, even if we were to discount what has happened in the last four years as well as overlook the issue on children, you’ve seen for yourself what it’s like to be together. Neither of you were happy. My only wish is for my son to live a blissful life so let me ask you this, can you guarantee my son’s happiness?”
Yun Jin mulled it over before lifting her head to look Zhang Jin Yin in the eyes “I cannot.”
Just as Yun Jin was about to drift off to sleep under the warm glow of the sun, someone picked up the novel from her abdomen. That same person read the t.i.tle of the novel aloud in an exaggerated manner “My Sweet Horrible Teenage Years … Tsk Su Yun Jin. What should I say about you? You’ve run all the way here to read such lame stories?”
Yun Jin wasn’t surprised by his abrupt appearance and she calmly reached out to grab her novel back before shutting her eyes again. Cheng Zheng reached out to slap her face repeatedly albeit gently “Stop pretending! Spill, why did you escape to this G.o.d-forsaken place?”
Yun Jin swatted his annoying hand away “Then why are you here?”
“I … I’ve come to retrieve what belongs to me. Return me my chain!” He demanded.
“But you gave it to me.” Yun Jin reminded him.
“I don’t care!” This was his typical response whenever he found himself at the losing end of an argument. “What is the meaning of you leaving while I slept? Even if it was an escort, one also has to pay you know!”
Yun Jin sat up lazily “Then how much are you asking for? Your service truly wasn’t worth much.”
Cheng Zheng gritted out through clenched teeth “Whatever. I want you to give me a good reason.”
Yun Jin studied him quietly before turning to walk back into the house. Then, she emerged with a Go set. She placed the board in the middle of the yard before saying “Cheng Zheng, let’s settle everything with this.”