HomeBlossom - Hua HaoHua Hao - Chapter 6

Hua Hao – Chapter 6

She didn’t know when it had started, but Wu Naijuan had already become dependent on his care, his greetings, his companionship.

She turned off the lights to rest, waking several times in the middle of the night, her plastered arm making it difficult to turn over.

In the early morning, hearing the doorbell, she hurried to open the door, feeling as if it might be Li Zhizhong bringing her white porridge and oil sticks.

Opening the door, it turned out someone had gotten the wrong apartment number.

Wu Naijuan felt melancholy.

She stood listlessly on the balcony, gazing at the misty harbor scenery.

Wang Bihao’s phone rang again.

“Someone refuses to leave, insisting on seeing you.”

Wu Naijuan was puzzled, “Such sincerity, doesn’t he need to work?”

“Miss Wu, today is Sunday.”

“Oh.”

“Come, there’s a guest who hasn’t left yet, come meet him.”

“Playing all night like that, he can’t be a good person.”

“Once you meet him, you’ll know.”

“Is it a man or a woman?”

“Miss Wu, what do you think? With your professional knowledge, would a woman wait so devotedly for another woman?”

Could it be Li Zhizhong?

“Give me half an hour.”

“Fifteen minutes.”

“Mrs. Ma, just washing my face with one hand takes fifteen minutes.”

Arriving at the Ma household, the air in the living room was fresh, the Ma couple came forward with radiant spirits, still carrying the scent of soap – all that talk about staying up all night was just a false excuse.

“Come, let me introduce someone to you.”

Wu Naijuan saw a man sitting with his back to them on the balcony, white shirt and khaki pants. She felt a flutter of relief – Li Zhizhong, the omnipresent Li Zhizhong.

That man stood up and walked over, his build much taller and larger than Li Zhizhong’s. Wu Naijuan was disappointed.

She heard Wang Bihao say: “Naijuan, this is Dr. Li Jialiang.”

Who? Had she heard wrong?

Li Jialiang?

She was stunned.

How had Li Jialiang ended up at the Ma house?

The tall, handsome man walked over with a smile: “I should have introduced myself to you long ago. Naijuan, meeting you is an honor.”

Wu Naijuan had been hoping for Li Jialiang to come talk to her for a very long time.

Now that it had happened, she didn’t feel as elated as expected.

She only heard a small voice saying: “Hey, Naijuan, your dream has come true, aren’t you overjoyed?”

But she wasn’t.

She just nodded and smiled submissively.

Thinking to herself that anyone walking alongside this handsome young man would feel ashamed of their appearance.

Not from shyness, but truly having nothing to say, Wu Naijuan didn’t speak.

The servant brought out a sumptuous breakfast, and the atmosphere finally relaxed.

Wu Naijuan observed Li Jialiang: a beautiful person who looked good doing anything. He took care of the one-handed Wu Naijuan for their hosts, signing his name on her plaster cast with natural grace.

There were already over twenty signatures on the plaster. Only missing Li Zhizhong’s three characters.

After eating her fill, Wu Naijuan relaxed slightly. Wang Bihao yawned and said: “You and Jialiang go out and find some entertainment. We’re tired and want to take a nap.”

Li Jialiang said, “They’re kicking us out. Naijuan, let’s be tactful and leave.”

He naturally took her hand and said goodbye.

Wu Naijuan had held his hand many times in dreams; the feeling was familiar, no longer exciting.

He said, “Actually, we’ve met before.”

“Yes,” Wu Naijuan was honest, “by the community center pool.”

“I noticed you early on. Somehow, with so many people and so much noise, your eyes remained peaceful and clear, unaffected by the environment.”

Wu Naijuan thought to herself that Li Zhizhong never said such sweet things.

“Do you also volunteer for the center?”

Wu Naijuan smiled.

“A friend told me you help elderly ladies in the pool changing room.”

That was also arranged by Li Zhizhong, wasn’t it?

“When people get old, their waists become stiff, their fingers aren’t nimble, they can’t even put on shoes and socks.”

He asked: “Have you ever thought about what it will be like when you’re old?”

He wasn’t a soulless person.

“Exercise more, travel everywhere, participate in everything hands-on, never become an empress dowager. Read books, travel, use your brain.”

“Anyone can tell that’s a good plan.”

Every time she said something, he praised it. Wu Naijuan smiled.

He opened the car door for her and took her to a private club.

“This is the city’s most well-stocked private children’s library.”

Wu Naijuan was most enthusiastic about browsing libraries. Had Li Zhizhong told him that, too?

He accompanied her all morning until the hospital called him back.

Wu Naijuan said, “Let’s meet again another day.”

“Naijuan, would you be interested in observing my work?”

Wu Naijuan laughed in alarm: “You’re a doctor, your work is performing surgery.”

“Are you afraid of blood?”

“No, I’m quite brave, but still, skull-moving surgery is rather frightening.”

Just then, several beautiful young women came over to greet him.

With their sweet, chirping voices, they pretended not to see Wu Naijuan.

Li Jialiang didn’t introduce Wu Naijuan to them, but his hand kept holding hers.

The young women found it uninteresting and gradually dispersed.

Next, a mother and daughter walked over.

This time, Li Jialiang’s attitude was much more serious.

He carefully examined the girl’s face in the sunlight.

Wu Naijuan knew that was one of his patients.

The girl was about twelve or thirteen, with an abnormally developed lower jaw, the right side completely collapsed. She probably couldn’t chew food, and daily had to endure strange stares.

Li Jialiang comforted her with a few words, then said to Wu Naijuan: “Little Yuan Hua will have surgery next Wednesday.”

The mother and daughter walked away.

He said, “So, I’ll come pick you up for work tomorrow.”

Wu Naijuan was dazed: “What?”

“Naijuan, I don’t want to waste any more time.”

“No need to be so aggressive, let’s each keep some space.”

“I didn’t say I wanted to go to work with you or attend your meetings.”

Wu Naijuan laughed.

Dreams coming true – worth celebrating.

Returning home, Wang Bihao’s call followed.

“How was Li Jialiang?”

“A perfect person in every way. I don’t know what I could offer to match him. A great man is no match for an ordinary person – ordinary people are best matched with ordinary people.”

“You’re the only person in the world today who doesn’t want to climb higher socially. Next time I’ll introduce you to the Hunchback of Notre Dame.”

“How did you know I adore this Hugo masterpiece – truly the beloved of all novel readers: beauty, deformity, villains, mysterious sorrowful backgrounds, class struggle…”

“Hey!”

“Bihao, I’ll conduct myself well.”

Wang Bihao hung up.

Everyone cared for this orphaned girl.

Wu Naijuan went out to visit the intelligent Professor Chen, wanting to get advice from her opinions.

Something unexpected happened.

Professor Chen was home, but her face was wrapped in gauze.

Wu Naijuan was shocked: “Professor, you’re also injured?”

The teacher and student were like returnees from a battlefield.

Professor Chen said softly, “Sit down and talk slowly.”

The professor’s eye corners were bruised purple-black. Wu Naijuan suddenly understood – the professor had just had cosmetic surgery.

Why? Wu Naijuan had always thought the professor was the only woman willing to age gracefully. With her intelligence and abilities, why use artificial means to tighten her facial skin?

The professor looked at her student: “I know what you’re thinking.”

The student remained silent.

The teacher was also human, also loved beauty, also missed her former appearance – what was wrong with that?

Wu Naijuan smiled, feeling relieved.

“Now your injured arm has become famous.”

The teacher was also mortal.

Her intelligence was merely the rich life experience of an ordinary person.

Wu Naijuan sat for a while, then took her leave.

She didn’t mention her concerns again – the teacher had no time to look after her.

Coming out, she saw someone driving a black sedan stop. A middle-aged man holding a large bouquet of bright red roses got out and walked to Professor Chen’s door to ring the bell.

Wu Naijuan stepped aside and watched quietly.

Ah, no wonder – it was the charm of the opposite sex.

Such a vulgar, showy bouquet – many women would normally sneer at it: weren’t there better courting tactics? But when someone stood at the door with roses, ringing the bell, the person involved would still feel stirred.

The door opened, the man went in, and the door closed again.

Wu Naijuan felt she had left at the right time – a minute later would have been too late.

Who would have thought the professor’s single life would have such a dramatic turning point?

The color of that bouquet of red roses imprinted itself directly in Wu Naijuan’s mind.

If someone of the opposite sex ever sent her flowers, she would prefer a small bunch of white jasmine or purple forget-me-nots.

That night she didn’t sleep well. Professor Chen’s transformation gave her a great shock.

The next morning, Li Jialiang waited for her downstairs, presenting a bouquet of lilies of the valley: “Good morning.”

Wu Naijuan lowered her head to smell the flowers and breathed out deeply.

So dreams do come true.

During a meeting break, Wu Naijuan gently asked her colleague Hong Caiben: “Must women necessarily marry and have children?”

Hong answered without thinking: “However tall the tree grows, its leaves return to the roots.”

“But today’s women can already take care of themselves.”

“We long for family members to cherish and care for us. Human nature is constructed this way, unrelated to education, talent, or income.”

Wu Naijuan pondered deeply.

Hong smiled: “Treat your suitors kindly.”

Wu Naijuan was bashful.

“Among so many colleagues, only you remain unmarried. Naijuan, you need to work harder.”

However tall the tree grows, its leaves return to the roots.

Wu Naijuan returned to her office to find someone already waiting for her.

She smiled: “You must be Mrs. Sun.”

Mrs. Sun asked softly: “There’s a delicate fragrance in this room – what flowers are these?”

Wu Naijuan pointed to the small bouquet of lilies of the valley on her desk.

“Such small flowers, such a clear fragrance?”

Wu Naijuan nodded.

“Is this the lily of the valley mentioned in the Bible?”

Mr. Sun coughed, reminding his wife not to ask too many questions.

Only then did Mrs. Sun feel embarrassed: “I’m sorry.”

“It’s fine, relax.”

Mr. Sun spoke: “Between us, the biggest problem is the children.”

Wu Naijuan said: “Child-rearing problems have other specialists.”

“Miss Wu, we want you to help resolve our disagreements about child-rearing methods.”

“Ah, the children have no problems – you two have problems.”

“Exactly.” Mr. Sun was somewhat embarrassed.

Mrs. Sun was somewhat helpless: “His childhood was rather difficult. From a young age, life was impoverished, so he’s relatively indulgent with the children materially, but he demands top grades, constantly asking the children: ‘Why isn’t it a hundred points?’ The children can’t take it.”

Mr. Sun said: “My wife is good in every way, but kind mothers often spoil children. When the children are slightly displeased, her heart aches as if cut by knives, and she yields to everything.”

Mrs. Sun said: “Children aren’t enemies.”

“You need to be stricter. I work outside, the home depends on you.”

“Scolding and hitting every day – what’s the point?”

“Your position isn’t firm enough.”

Mrs. Sun looked toward Wu Naijuan: “Miss Wu, you must find this amusing.”

“No, no, communication is good. We have a special group discussion on this type of problem every Wednesday evening from eight to nine – you’re welcome to join.”

Mr. Sun said: “Our marital relationship has suffered greatly because of this.”

Wu Naijuan said: “Forgive me for saying: you’re both too tense.”

Mrs. Sun replied: “He’s tense, I’m not.”

“Mrs. Sun, how old are the children?”

“Two boys and one girl – thirteen, twelve, and eleven years old.”

“Your excessive emphasis on childhood freedom is also a kind of pressure.”

“What?” Mrs. Sun jumped up.

Mr. Sun showed a slight smile.

Mrs. Sun was stunned: “Yes, my childhood family was very strict. During my teenage years, everyone wore short skirts and shorts, but my mother wouldn’t allow me to follow fashion. I didn’t have my first date until age twenty-one, feeling I had lost so much.”

Mr. Sun laughed, Wu Naijuan also laughed.

Mrs. Sun said: “Yes, I truly hope the children can be free and easy.”

“Be careful not to go too far.”

Mrs. Sun sighed: “I never thought raising children would be so difficult.”

Wu Naijuan said: “It’s difficult when you’re tense, not difficult when you’re relaxed.”

Mrs. Sun asked: “What should we do?”

“Everyone just do your best. Never listen to experts making things up behind closed doors. They’re currently popular for treating children like gods who can’t be offended at all, while parents serve like slaves, devoted to everything. Think about it – is that possible?”

Mr. Sun fell silent.

After a while he said: “Miss Wu will definitely be a good mother.”

“I’m just talking theory, seeing others carry burdens looks easy, but you don’t know the difficulty until you experience it yourself.”

“Miss Wu, according to you, tests and exams don’t necessarily require a hundred points?”

Miss Wu looked at Mr. Sun: “A hundred points isn’t everything. Homework should certainly be better than just passing, but easily achieving eighty or seventy points naturally is better than sweating, cramping, and painfully achieving ninety points. Don’t you think?”

Mr. Sun lowered his head: “I only studied through junior high.”

“Forget yourself – they are independent lives. Don’t impose your hopes on them.”

The two looked at each other.

Mrs. Sun said gloomily: “We’ve been fighting about the children for ten years.”

“That’s a very, very long time. Don’t you feel the loss is devastating?”

“He comes home from work exhausted every day but still insists on checking homework. If the children answer a bit slowly, he flies into a rage, the whole family gets scolded, saying things like ‘living in luxury without knowing it’ – the children are so resentful.”

Mr. Sun suddenly choked up: “I—”

Wu Naijuan smiled: “Don’t worry, they’ll definitely get into university.”

Mr. Sun asked: “How do you know?”

“You care so much about their studies – you reap what you sow.”

“A few more years of education means less hardship in life.”

Wu Naijuan’s voice became gentle: “Mr. Sun, you probably misunderstand university diplomas as keys to the world, opening doors to smooth sailing. This isn’t accurate. The purpose of studying is to advance learning and broaden horizons, but all of life’s troubles, no more, no less, always follow. It’s just that education and cultivation can help a person analyze and handle these difficulties more rationally and calmly.”

Mr. Sun looked at Wu Naijuan: “Miss Wu speaks so well.”

Mrs. Sun handed her daughter’s latest report card to Wu Naijuan.

“Wow,” Wu Naijuan exclaimed, “seven A’s, six A’s, all first-class honors.”

Mrs. Sun sighed: “All achieved through ruler beatings.”

Wu Naijuan laughed in shock: “That severe?”

“Today’s children won’t automatically open their schoolbags and do homework!”

“I’ve heard other parents complain similarly.”

“Miss Wu, how did you do homework as a child?”

“Me?” Wu Naijuan smiled at the memory: “New characters automatically written ten times, familiar characters five times, all daily notes read until memorized, all homework completed quickly, submitted on time.”

“Oh my, such a good student.”

“Mrs. Sun, you’re right – just a good student.” —

There was one thing Wu Naijuan was too embarrassed to say: this didn’t guarantee anyone would become a happy person.

Time was up.

Mr. and Mrs. Sun stood to say goodbye.

Wu Naijuan placed the small bouquet of lily of the valley in her hands.

Mrs. Sun thanked her with delighted surprise.

Wu Naijuan went to check her email.

Nothing from Li Zhizhong.

She lowered her head – was he still in the city, or had he already returned to Silicon Valley?

At noon, she went to the bookstore to look for someone, or intending to bump into the person she wanted to see.

She quietly sat on a small stool in the children’s book corner, listening intently to a writer reading their work aloud.

It was about a little girl training a golden retriever.

Wu Naijuan hoped so much that when she turned around, that person would be among the children.

But until the end, she never saw the familiar white shirt and khaki pants.

Wu Naijuan’s head hung so low.

Both of them were so stubborn.

Proud as she was, she had once wanted to actively seek him out.

She knew his address, could disregard everything and go knock on his door.

“I forgive you.”

But then, his face would be embarrassed when he opened the door.

Then, from inside the door would come a lazy, strangely sensual voice: “Zhizhong, who’s here?”

A glamorous woman in a blood-red satin robe…

Imagining this far, Wu Naijuan became discouraged.

No matter how desperate, one couldn’t run to someone else’s house and knock on the door without an appointment.

The children had already dispersed.

The author smiled at Wu Naijuan.

“I’m very pleased you liked my humble work.”

“Oh, yes, please sign it.” Wu Naijuan handed over a book.

She took the book out to pay.

“Naijuan!” someone called her.

She turned around joyfully – had she finally waited for him?

The person turned out to be Wang Bihao.

“What a small world.” Wang Bihao smiled brightly.

“You’re also at the bookstore – aren’t you afraid of losing at mahjong?”

“I’m here to buy Chicken Soup for the Soul series.”

Wu Naijuan laughed: “How cultured.”

“Hey,” Wang Bihao protested, “reading is beneficial.”

“You’re right. Come, I’ll help you choose.”

“Naijuan, a friend wants to buy some sex education books to teach their children.”

“Ah, come over here.”

“Naijuan, nothing stumps you.”

“This book ‘My Body’ is essential reading for girls. The text is humorous, from hair washing and bathing to dealing with acne and menstruation – everything is illustrated and explained. Also this book ‘Babies Aren’t Delivered by Storks’ is also excellent.”

Wang Bihao smiled: “Do you remember when we were girls?”

“So dark.”

“My mother didn’t know how long she wanted to hide it from me.”

“A lifetime. I was twenty before I knew where the uterus was located.”

They sat down in the coffee area.

“Physical aspects didn’t trouble us much – our own bodies, we’d gradually become familiar eventually. The worst was having no psychological preparation, always thinking marriage was an ending, when in fact it’s just the opposite – it’s a beginning.”

Wu Naijuan self-deprecated: “My life hasn’t begun yet.”

Wang Bihao laughed: “Naijuan, I love you.” People who can mock themselves are adorable.

“Why did you specifically come to the bookstore to find me?”

“Naijuan, to be honest, Ma Liwen and I had an argument, so I came out to clear my head.”

“About money again?”

“About his children.”

“How old are they?”

“Ten and twelve years old.”

“Can’t you love the house and its crow?”

“Easier said than done – they’re not lovable children.”

“There are no obedient children in the world.”

“Now I want to abandon even this broken house.”

“Hmm. The situation is serious.”

“Yes, his ex-wife, the children he had with his ex-wife, and the troubles these three people bring – I find it all disgusting. They just want money, then demand care, gradually invading my life.”

“You knew early on he had been married and divorced.”

“Isn’t divorce supposed to be a clean break?”

“Some people become like good friends after breaking up.”

“Ma Liwen and his ex-wife are just like that – constant phone calls back and forth.”

“Would you like me to talk to him?”

“Please do.”

“What would you like me to say?”

“That I envy your single life, please tell him I want to go live in London alone for a year.”

“That’s equivalent to separation.”

Wang Bihao thought: “He can follow me. My family has a house in the Shelley district, but his children aren’t welcome.”

“You can’t ask him to cut off contact with his children.”

Wang Bihao smiled: “If I weren’t financially well-off, those children would take advantage of their stepmother. They were already distant from Ma Liwen, but he uses my manpower and resources to win over the children.”

“Bihao, can’t you be a bit more confused?”

Wang Bihao smiled bitterly: “Perhaps becoming increasingly clear-headed is because I no longer like him.”

The person involved understood very clearly.

Wang Bihao continued: “A marriage with three extra people behind it – he finds it lively, I find it lonely.”

Moreover, he already had children and didn’t want to add more, but Wang Bihao still wanted to be a mother.

“What do you think?”

Wu Naijuan asked back: “Do you think I’m a divorce expert?”

“Naijuan, please give me some advice.”

“After going through so much originally…”

“Naijuan, save me once more.”

Wu Naijuan said: “Happiness is a feeling of mutual compatibility between two parties, varying from person to person. Only when both parties’ intelligence, education, interests, and life goals are the same will they be happy. If there are differences, naturally there will be unhappiness.”

Wang Bihao carefully chewed over these words.

After a while she said: “Naijuan, compatibility is indeed an inner feeling, not whether appearances match well. Never covet someone’s external conditions, but what about this?”

Wu Naijuan was shaken.

She stared blankly, pondering these words.

“Naijuan, what are you thinking? You’ve been preoccupied lately, absent-minded. Why?”

Wu Naijuan forced a smile: “I’m being eagle-eyed, listening to your detailed account. How can you blame me again?”

Wang Bihao sighed: “You all think I have everything, that I’m moaning without illness, and show no sympathy.”

Wu Naijuan smiled: “You got half of it right.”

They left the bookstore.

Wang Bihao linked her arm through Wu Naijuan’s, and the two went to look at shop windows in the banking district.

“Look, though not as good as before, it’s still a prosperous, splendid place – truly dazzling with colors. Department stores line up everywhere – you can name it, it’s there; what you can’t name is also piled up everywhere.”

“People in this material environment are especially prone to moral decay.”

Wu Naijuan said: “That depends on a person’s willpower.”

“Naijuan, in this regard, everyone admires you.”

Wu Naijuan stopped in front of a fashion store, looking at the colorfully garish, barely-covering designs: “Not suitable for me – happily saves trouble.”

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