The Silent World And Him - Chapter 12

Today was the happiest day for Pu Chen in nearly four or five years. She returned home full of joy, carrying two large bags of stuffed toys she had caught.

Pu Wanli hurriedly opened the sliding glass door for his daughter, and the cold wind kept rushing into the house. He touched his daughter’s head, feeling sorry that she hadn’t put on her down jacket’s hood.

[Did you buy so many dolls?]

Pu Chen: [I caught them at the arcade. There are many claw machines there, and these are the ones they caught and gave to me.]

She didn’t mention that Qin Yu had also given her some.

Not sure what was going on, she felt a bit guilty.

It had been many years since Pu Wanli had seen his daughter with such a genuine smile on her face, a happiness that radiated from within.

[If you like these dolls, you can often go play with your classmates during holidays.]

Pu Chen didn’t plan to go again; catching dolls was addictive and she couldn’t afford to spend money like that.

[Going often will make it less exciting.]

She changed the subject: [Dad, have you had dinner?]

Pu Wanli: [Yes, tonight I’m not busy. I made preserved egg and lean meat congee for you, I saved you a bowl for a late-night snack.]

Pu Chen placed the two bags of dolls on a chair, and suddenly a gust of cold wind blew into her neck from behind. She turned around to see her father opening the door to let the daughter of the neighbor from the dry cleaner’s in.

The little girl was four years old, and she had been peering into the house through the glass door. Pu Wanli was afraid she would be cold, so he let her in.

“Sister.” The little girl had seen Pu Chen carrying so many toys at their shop door just now, so she followed her here despite her feet not listening to her.

She touched the two large bags of toys, her eyes full of joy, and asked with her little head raised, “Sister, do you have so many dolls? Sister, where did you buy so many?”

Pu Chen didn’t know how to express herself. The little girl had limited knowledge of characters and couldn’t understand gestures.

A person of her age would want to own so many dolls upon seeing them, let alone a four-year-old child. Tonight, when Qin Yu and she came out of the arcade carrying these dolls, she didn’t know how many girls envied them along the way, constantly looking back at Qin Yu.

Pu Chen reluctantly gave the little girl two of the dolls she had caught, and the two bears Qin Yu gave her were also among them. She was willing to give away duplicates, but only those she had caught herself; she wouldn’t give away anything Qin Yu had given her.

The little girl hesitated, wanting them but afraid her mother would scold her.

Pu Chen poked her cheeks with two small bears and put them in her arms.

Unable to resist the temptation of the toys, the little girl happily said, “Thank you, Sister.”

At this time, the little girl’s mother came over, her expression serious. “Baby, those are Sister’s things, you can’t take them.”

Pu Chen pointed to her two large bags: [It’s okay, there are still so many, I’m giving them to her.]

Being old neighbors for many years and getting along well, and it wasn’t some valuable gift, so the little girl’s mother didn’t refuse anymore. After thanking Pu Chen several times, she took her daughter back to their shop.

Pu Wanli closed the door and said to his daughter, [When I have time next time, Dad will go and catch two more bears for you.]

Pu Chen shook her head and explained quickly, [I still have some bears I gave to my sister just now.] She pointed to the bags.

Pu Wanli didn’t say anything, just smiled.

All the work for today was done; he turned off the air conditioner and accompanied his daughter home.

It was cold, and the streets were emptier than usual.

Pu Wanli put the hood of his daughter’s clothes on for her and said to her, [Your classmates gave you so many dolls, remember to give them gifts in return.]

Pu Chen: [No need to rush, I’ll do it when the time is right.]

Back home, Pu Chen poured out all the dolls and began to find places to put them. On the bedside table, on the bookshelf, as long as there was an empty space, she filled it. She also hung a few on the glass.

The small bedroom instantly became warm.

—

The day before returning to school, Lu Baisheng finished his work and went straight to the auto repair shop in the evening, where he ran into Qin Yu at the entrance of the alley.

He looked at Qin Yu, “What are you doing here?”

Qin Yu had one hand in his pocket and was playing with his phone with the other, and asked back, “What else could I do here besides eating?”

Lu Baisheng was speechless.

The two walked in together.

Qin Yu looked at him, “It’s you who goes to the auto repair shop for home visits every few days. Do you know how much pressure it puts on Pu Chen?”

Lu Baisheng paused for a few seconds before saying, “I don’t go for home visits every time.”

Qin Yu choked him, “It’s not home visits. Do you go to repair cars? Uncle Pu doesn’t seem to know how to fix cars.”

Lu Baisheng didn’t respond.

Talking about going to the repair shop, he didn’t know when it became part of his work. He came at least twice a week, and if he missed one visit, he felt like he had lost his soul.

Just sitting there, even if they didn’t talk, he felt at peace.

These were things he couldn’t tell Qin Yu.

Pu Wanli was busy at the moment. When he saw Lu Baisheng coming, he put down what he was doing and went into the house to boil water and make tea.

Qin Yu didn’t go to eat, but followed Lu Baisheng to the repair shop.

Lu Baisheng turned around, puzzled, “Why aren’t you going to eat? Why are you following me?”

Qin Yu: “To listen to Teacher Lu’s teachings.”

Lu Baisheng: “…”

“He will be driven to death by Qin Yu sooner or later.

Today is a coincidence; Pu Chen is also in the shop, engrossed in reading an old book.

Pu Chen was immersed in the book just now and didn’t notice her father boiling water for tea. The entrance was blocked by a figure, and she only looked up when she noticed it.

“Teacher Lu.”

Out of habit, she always silently called out when she saw Lu Baisheng.

“What book are you reading?” Lu Baisheng asked with concern.

Pu Chen marked her place in the book and handed it to Lu Baisheng. She got up, took two chairs, and placed them by the door. Lu Baisheng sat down without hesitation, and Qin Yu sat on the other side.

“This book is good. I have one too, but your version is more precious.”

Pu Chen wrote on the whiteboard: [It was lent to me by Director Sun.]

Lu Baisheng nodded; he had heard that Director Sun’s family had many books.

Pu Wanli made two cups of hot tea and brought them over, placing them on the nearby small table.

“Thank you, uncle,” Qin Yu said, realizing afterward that Pu Wanli couldn’t hear her voice.

Lu Baisheng communicated with Pu Wanli using sign language, saying he dropped by today, had nothing important to do, just wanted to chat casually with Pu Chen, and then remembered to introduce Qin Yu as a relative’s child.

Originally, he wanted to say that Qin Yu’s grandfather’s family had a long-standing relationship with his family, and he didn’t want to go through the trouble of complicated sign language, so he simply said they were relatives.

Pu Wanli was eager to repair a car for someone, and with his daughter chatting with them, he felt reassured to go about his work.

Qin Yu was curious, “How did you learn sign language?”

Lu Baisheng replied, “From Pu Chen’s father.”

Qin Yu nodded thoughtfully; he found that Lu Baisheng could always break his expectations. In such a restless society, Lu Baisheng could put aside everything in the world of fame and fortune to become a teacher, and now he had even learned sign language.

He never drank tea, but today, following Lu Baisheng’s lead, he picked up the teacup, blew on it, intending to savor it.

[Teacher Lu, have the final exam scores come out?] Pu Chen was eagerly awaiting her results.

Lu Baisheng took a sip of tea, “The total score and ranking just came out this afternoon. You ranked 25th in the class, advancing by ten places, and scored 128 in English, which is very good.”

Pu Chen couldn’t wait to share this good news with her father outside.

Pu Wanli, wearing gloves covered in black motor oil, tapped his daughter’s head with his wrist, feeling happy for her improvement. [You should thank Teacher Lu.]

It was windy outside, so he urged his daughter to go inside.

Inside, Lu Baisheng was reprimanding Qin Yu, “Look at your score, you’re becoming more capable.”

Pu Chen pushed the door open, and Lu Baisheng stopped in time.

[Teacher Lu, who got first place in the grade this time?] Pu Chen was afraid Lu Baisheng would scold Qin Yu again, so she found a topic to relieve him.

Lu Baisheng said, “Peng Jingyang from Class 1, full marks in physics and chemistry, deducted two points in mathematics.” That’s all he remembered.

[That’s impressive.] Pu Chen then asked Lu Baisheng, [How much did he get in English?]

Lu Baisheng thought about Peng Jingyang’s English score, “It seems to be 145, I can’t remember exactly.”

Qin Yu leaned against the wall, observing Pu Chen. Anything related to Peng Jingyang piqued her interest.

“Sister?” At this moment, a soft voice of a little girl came from outside the door.

Everyone looked over.

It was the daughter of the owner of the neighboring dry cleaner, holding two teddy bears, pressing her forehead against the glass door, looking inside to see if Pu Chen was there.

Pu Chen waved to her, and the little girl found her, instantly smiling with joy, “Sister!”

Lubai Sheng sat by the door, gesturing for the little girl to stand still, then gently pushed open the glass door. The little girl glanced at Lubai Sheng, then at Qin Yu, timidly walking over to Pu Chen’s side. “Sister,” she said, holding onto two small bears with one hand and taking out two pieces of chocolate from her pocket with the other. The chocolate was a birthday gift from her kindergarten classmates today, but she couldn’t bear to eat it and decided to give it to Pu Chen instead.

“Sister, here, have some. Thank you for the teddy bears you gave me.” Pu Chen smiled and made a heart gesture towards her. As soon as the little girl looked up, she saw the big brother sitting against the wall staring at the toy bears in her arms, so she hugged them tightly.

Qin Yu recognized those two toy bears; he had caught two of them earlier, each with a different color and outfit, making a pair, but they ended up in the hands of the children. The little girl thought Qin Yu wanted to take her toy bears and got scared, so she ran away. Lubai Sheng sat in the shop for a while longer, finished his tea, then bid farewell with Qin Yu. As they left the shop, he asked Qin Yu what he wanted to eat for dinner, offering to treat him.

Qin Yu replied, “Not hungry,” feeling no appetite. Lubai Sheng felt that Qin Yu didn’t appreciate the teddy bears he had worked so hard to catch, as she casually gave them away. If they were from Peng Jingyang, she would surely treasure them. Looking at him, Lubai Sheng asked, “Really not hungry?”

“Hmm,” Qin Yu had no intention of eating; he wanted to go home and play games. Seeing Qin Yu wasn’t joking, Lubai Sheng took it seriously. Before they reached the alley, Qin Yu received a message from Pu Chen, explaining:

[The two toy bears given to the little girl next door were caught by me. Your doll is at home.]

Qin Yu’s attention that day was focused on whether she was in a good mood, so he didn’t notice the two toy bears she was holding were also teddy bears, leading to a misunderstanding.

He replied: [It’s okay. That little girl is so young. Even if it’s a toy I gave you, you can give it to her.]

He looked up at Lubai Sheng and said, “Teacher Lu, I’m hungry again. Let me treat you.”

Lubai Sheng stopped and frowned at him, “What’s wrong with you, kid? One moment you’re not hungry, the next moment you are.”

Qin Yu replied, “Just consider me having a quirk.”

* * *

The next day, it was back to school. No morning reading session; they could arrive at school by eight o’clock. Pu Chen knew her scores in advance, so she sat calmly in her seat reading the book Principal Sun had lent her. She had already finished two books and was onto the third one. Qin Yu was still the last one to arrive in the class. Lubai Sheng entered the classroom through the front door, while Qin Yu came in through the back door as the bell rang. The classroom quieted down, and Lubai Sheng briefly analyzed the results of the final exam.

Their class had improved in every subject, especially in English. Except for two intensive classes, they ranked third overall. There were more high scorers in their class compared to others. “I won’t announce the scores; you can see for yourselves.” Lubai Sheng held the grade sheets, each containing the scores of each student in the class, along with their total score and rankings within the class and grade.

He made four copies, passing them down the rows. After receiving her grade sheet, Pu Chen took a photo with her phone and then passed it to Qin Yu. She checked her own scores first, then looked to see how many points Qin Yu got. She remembered the bet they had, that if he scored eighty or above in math, science, and English, she would do his homework during the winter break.

Finding Qin Yu’s name wasn’t difficult; he was last in the class and ranked over a thousand in the grade. With him there, Zhao Shu no longer had to worry about being at the bottom of the class. Seeing Qin Yu’s scores in all subjects, Pu Chen didn’t look too good. How did he manage to score exactly eighty in math, science, and English, not a point more or less, with all four subjects totaling eighty?

She discreetly turned her head to look at him. Qin Yu asked, “What’s wrong?” Before Pu Chen could reply, Lubai Sheng called Qin Yu outside. Lubai Sheng got straight to the point: “I saw your exam papers. For those four subjects, you didn’t make a single mistake in the eighty-point section, but you got all the questions wrong in the final section.”

He seemed worried about the score. In the English essay, ten words were wrong out of ten, and there wasn’t a single correct grammar usage; it was a mess. Lubai Sheng was angry: “Since you took it seriously and got the correct answers, why didn’t you choose the right options? Instead, you deliberately chose the wrong ones?

Qin Yu leaned on the railing in silence.

Lu Baisheng remained calm for a moment, realizing he had been too hasty. In this final exam, Qin Yu did not fill in the correct answers on the test paper, but diligently worked through the questions on the draft paper. This was a good sign. However, he was still struggling with himself, feeling that nothing was meaningful.

“I’ve inquired, Chen Zhilun’s daughter is already seeing a psychologist. Chen Zhilun might have awakened suddenly, spending half his time at the company and the other half at home with his daughter.”

“Qin Yu, this is an emotional entanglement between adults, not your fault, nor the girl’s fault. Don’t be foolish anymore, don’t punish yourselves with your lives or your futures.”

After a while, Qin Yu said, “I didn’t punish myself.”

Lu Baisheng apologized, “I used the wrong words. You two children just found the wrong outlet for release. But it’s still a good thing to let out emotions that have been pent up for so many years.”

Qin Yu suddenly sighed, “I realize now, only when I lay in the emergency room with my life hanging by a thread, could my dad and mom completely set aside work and focus on me in the hospital.”

At that time, they couldn’t fake their worry. But when he woke up after surgery, without the danger of death, they only stayed with him for half a day in the hospital, and then went back to whatever they were doing. They went to the hospital three times in a month. That’s his parents.

Lu Baisheng asked, “Have you figured it out?”

Qin Yu nodded, only fully understanding these past few days. Even if his mother still wanted to marry Chen Zhilun, it had nothing to do with him. As for his father, if he wanted to marry a fourth time, it was his freedom. Just like his father said, he didn’t break the law, nor cross any moral boundaries, being single didn’t mean he couldn’t date or get married.

Lu Baisheng remained silent, unsure of what to say.

“Teacher Lu,” Qin Yu turned to look at Lu Baisheng, “I’ve decided to turn over a new leaf starting next semester, study diligently, and strive to become a top student.”

Lu Baisheng chuckled, “I’m honored that you think highly of me.” He casually added, “You used to not care about being a top student.”

Qin Yu didn’t say much. Indeed, he used to not care. But now, he wanted to become a top student for Pu Chen, so she could ask him questions anytime.