Chapter Fifty-Seven: Hard to Express

  Meng'er has returned to her normal class schedule, but she needs to catch up with Yan'er on the missed lessons and homework. Otherwise, if they fail the final exams, they will be in trouble. So now the two of them are busy studying in the library.

  When the Chinese lanterns were first lit up, they dragged their tired bodies back to the dormitory. The other two people, one was reading a book and the other was listening to music, looking very leisurely.

  "Alas, same dormitory but different fates!" Yan Er fell onto the stool, complaining.

  "Hey, I'm saying, aren't you being too hard on yourself? At our age, shouldn't we be enjoying life and making the most of our student days? Why are you dedicating everything to working part-time jobs?" Mei'er asked with a look of ignorance about the hardships of life.

  "Lucky girl, not everyone is like you, born into a wealthy family, with a reliable father and a loving mother!" Then, she kicked off her shoes, heavily climbed onto the bed, pulled over the quilt, and covered her head.

  Mei gave a "what's wrong" mouth shape to Meng, and Meng shook her head helplessly. She thought to herself, Big Sister, you've touched someone else's sore spot. Everyone has their own reverse scales that they don't let others touch, perhaps these are Yan's!

  "I think, as long as it's a life I like, how I live is just a formality, as long as I don't regret it!" Zi Qi said calmly, looking at the book.

  "It won't be the one who reads a lot, this, um, I didn't understand at all!" Mei'er poked her head out to Zi Qi, and Zi Qi slammed a book on her head, giving her a silent "shut up" response.

  "Wow, Chairman of Shanxin Group had a heart attack and was hospitalized!" With Meier's shout, a new day has begun!

  Crash! The glass in Xiang Er's hand fell to the ground, shattering into a thousand pieces!

  "Yan'er, are you okay?" Meng'er quickly pulled Yan'er away from the spot where she was stunned, to prevent her from being cut by the broken glass. Zi Qi went to get a broom and dustpan, and cleaned up the scene thoroughly.

  "What's so exciting, Yan'ge?" Mei'er asked, looking at Yan with sparkling eyes.

  "Whoops! Thanks, Ziqi!" Yan'er thanked Ziqi, who had just finished cleaning the floor. Ziqi gave her a somewhat impolite smile. "Meng'er, aren't you supposed to go to the library? Are you done yet?"

  "Alright, let's go!" Meng'er replied, picking up the book on the table.

  With Meng Er and Yan Er leaving, the dormitory returned to its usual quietness!

  When I was dizzy and confused, Meng ran to the bathroom. When she came back, she saw Yan arguing fiercely with a man about the same height as Canghai Jun.

  Only to see Yan Er's emotions were agitated, every sentence was laced with thorns. The man had a face full of pampering and endurance. Who was he? Meng Er knew that overhearing someone else's private conversation was impolite, even if it was unintentional. However, those words still clearly floated into her ears. It made her stand there, unable to move her feet!

  "Sorry, my mom only gave birth to me as a daughter, I don't have any brothers or sisters, where did the brother come from?"

  "Great, he's dead and now you can inherit his legacy. Isn't this what you've been plotting for all along? Congratulations to you!"

  "You know that neither I nor my mom meant it! Yan Er, you're already in college, you're half an adult, you should understand the difficulties of grown-ups!"

  "What I know is that before my mother's body was even cold, he brought you into our home; what I know is that I should have been living a princess-like life, but because of your mother's words, I started boarding school at the age of 10; what I know is that overnight, I lost both my mother and father, becoming an orphan with no home to return to and no parents to acknowledge!"

  "But fortunately, because of you, I understand what it means to be strong, what it means to work hard, and what it means to be independent... Now, I don't rely on you, and I'm living a great life!"

  Watching Yan's accusation, Meng's heart tightened, she had never known that the strong and optimistic Yan had such an experience.

  "Just sympathize with the loneliness of an old man who yearns for his children's company, okay?" The man pulled Xian'er's hand and walked towards the stairs.

  "Old man? Lonely? Children? He has sons but no daughters! So, please don't come to me with sympathy, I had already thrown it away when I decided not to step into that house again!"

  The words were like a thorn, and the man let go of her hand. Yan'er turned around and ran back, passing by Meng'er's side, she clearly saw tears falling from her face. But, just for one second, she didn't wait for Meng'er to speak, and ran away.

  The girl saw the man's face was defeated, turned and left back in the morning sun's irradiation is so straight, the shadow on the ground is so quiet.

  Meng'er's eyes searched the stairs and found Yan'er at another staircase entrance. That thin, small body was trembling with each convulsion, giving off a feeling of being lost on the road home, like a child who had wandered away from its parents in the midst of a bustling street, alone and helpless!

  She stretched out her hand and wrapped her arms around Yan Er in her narrow and thick waist, stroking her emotions with one hand.

  After a long time, Meng'er felt that her movements were becoming stiff when the person in her arms spoke up.

  "My mom left me when I was ten years old, did you know that? In the morning, she said she would make a cake for me to eat when I came back in the evening. But when I got home from school, she was lying pale-faced on the bed, with many pills scattered on the bedside table. It wasn't until much later that I found out they were sleeping pills!"

  People say that happy families are all alike, but unhappy families are each unhappy in their own way! How should the pain of a child be comforted?

  "Not long after, the man brought a woman and a boy seven years older than me into the house. The boy was the person you just saw. Then, that year, I started my boarding life!"

  The words seem to have caught their breath, recounting past life, as if telling someone else's story. This requires how long a sedimentation and how much courage?

  "Do you know? Every time I go back home, that familiar yet strange feeling surrounds me, making me feel like I'm suffocating. It's been since high school that I moved out. Moved to a house under my mom's name, starting a life of working alone, going to school, eating and sleeping by myself!"

  Meng'er's hands clenched involuntarily, and she felt heartache for the misfortune of this kind child.

  "Don't be like this, I'm actually doing very well! Especially after meeting all of you, I feel very happy and very fortunate!"

  Her swollen eyes, her rosy nose, and her red cheeks were all forced into a reassuring smile for Meng Er. Meng Er stretched out her hand, pinched her little rosy nose, and returned a big smile to her.

  Sunlight, passing through the glass surrounded by anti-theft nets, shines onto the ground in a mottled manner. This early winter is covered with a layer of warmth.

  Life can be cold at times, but there are always some people who will bring warmth to you at certain moments, as long as you believe!