Six years later
We see a clear blue sky with white, fluffy clouds and birds flying across the little alleys in the village. There, in the distance, we see a sea of flowers. In the midst of it, a slender female figure is working busily. She has walked from one end of the sea to another. She's like a fatherly figure, picking out her children's shortcomings to ensure their proper growth. She's also like a mother, giving the flowers the tender loving care they need. She works from dawn till the evening and her greatest pleasure comes from seeing the flowers blossom with pride.
Suddenly, she felt an itch on her hands. She took the gloves off and scratched her hands a little. Then she stared at her hands. This pair of hands has moved even further away from her dreams of playing the piano. It seems like she has lost her childhood ambition but now, she has another treasure that she can keep and love…
She smiled and muttered to herself, "Therefore, I'm very happy now. What about you then?"
The breeze blew onto the flowers and they allowed for her to lift her face up and enjoy this peaceful and fragrant moment. Is this a respond from nature to tell her that he is very happy now too?
***
"He has changed."
A man walks into an office and he throws a magazine onto the desk in front of a woman. The woman picks up the magazine and reads the headlines on the cover and looks at the picture of an expressionless young man on the cover. This young man, in a suit, has a sharp expression on his face with his thin lips giving off the feeling of brutality and cruelty.
"He's actually defending a rapist. Is this really what you want?" The man asked.
"The accused isn't just any rapist. He's a minister."
"Derong…"
"That's enough. I know what you want to say." Fang Derong said. "I've already told you umpteen of times; this is how Guangxi should really be living. His choice is right. If he wins this case, he will be more popular in future. By then, all the politicians, businessmen and aristocrats would seek his service when they need legal advice and help."
"You're right about him being popular and famous. But is this really a choice that he really wants?"
"I don't understand what you mean."
Xiaolin signed and said, "You do. You were the one who constructed this life for him. You were the one who convinced him that he was like this in the very beginning. All you wanted was for him to follow whatever you wanted."
Derong became upset on hearing this remark. "I'm his mother. This is all for his own good! Moreover, I don't see why Guangxi would be against this. He is on such good terms with me now."
"That's because he obeys every command from you now." Xiaolin frowned. He wanted to continue but Derong's upset expression made him stopped immediately.
"If you have time for all these, why don't you try to help me persuade Guangxi and Yiqian to get married soon? The two of them keep emphasizing that they are still young and they want to pursue their careers first. When am I going to see them get married then?"
Xiaolin smiled upon listening to her. He guessed she was more anxious than the prospective bride and groom. He wanted to reply when his phone rang. He picked it up and his expression changed immediately.
"What's the matter?" Derong asked out of curiousity.
Xiaolin hung up and hesitated before telling her. "My friend who's a judge just called. He said Guangxi has just beaten up his client in court."
"What!?" Derong exclaimed angrily.
***
"It's nothing at all. The judge just sentenced me to 300 hours of C.W.O." Guangxi replied impatiently.
He felt really upset that he couldn't enjoy his meal properly. Everyone at the dinner table, including his mother, Yiqian, Uncle He and Xiaolin couldn't stop asking him why he had done that to his client.
Yiqian even made a remark that she really hated people who resort to violence.
Fang Derong said, "Do you know who you've just beaten up? He's a minister."
Guangxi replied as though it was none of his business. "So what? We won the case. He should be thanking me instead."
"Guangxi, you…"
Director He thought that it was enough and decided to try to clear up the tense atmosphere. "It's alright. Anyway, it's a good thing that Guangxi is going to Huatian Village to do his C.W.O. He can do a favour for me then."
"What is it?" Guangxi raised a brow.
"It's a case about the ownership of the land. The villagers have already agreed to sell the land to Huanyu Constructions but some of them have decided to back out now. Can you please persuade and negotiate with them on my behalf?" Director He decided that he should let his prospective son-in-law help him with this.
Guangxi decided to do Director He the favour. "No problem. It'd be a piece of cake. It's just some ignorant villagers. I'm sure I can settle everything very quickly, Uncle He."
"I know I could rely on you." Director He smiled. He looked at his daughter and said, "Yiqian, don't be angry anymore. Pour some wine for Guangxi then."
Yiqian replied, "I can pour him some wine. But he must promise me not to beat anyone up again. I don't wish to marry a violent guy."
Guangxi smiled and pinched his fiancee's face. "I got you, darling." Yiqian gave him another look before pouring him some wine. He raised his glass and smiled but his heart suddenly felt really heavy. His eyes landed on the leather wristband that he was wearing.
"Frankly speaking, the woman owes me in the very first place. I wonder why she's so agitated about me taking advantage of her. Thank goodness I have you to help me settle and clear up this mess."
It was this very sentence that caused Guangxi to be really upset and beat up that shameless minister.
He wondered why he was so upset but he couldn't seem to find the answer…
***
"So what is it now? Is it a must that we sell our land?"
The villagers of Huatian Village have all gathered at Aunt Hua's karaoke shop to discuss about the case of selling their land to Huanyu Constructions.
"It's all because of the grandson of the village heard, Bin!" A villager cursed. "He actually stole the deed and sold it off to others. Even though the land belongs to the village head, we all rely on it to earn our keep. He should seek our agreement before selling it off to others!"
"Indeed." Other villager said. "We must write in to the government to let them send someone over to clear this up for us… I thought someone mentioned that they'd be sending a public defender over? Why isn't he here yet?"
Then the village head said, "The people in charge just called me. They are sending him over tomorrow."
"That's wonderful. Huatian Village can be saved now!" The innocent villagers roared with joy once they heard the news that someone would be coming over to save Huatian Village.
"Aunt Hua, are you comforted now?" The village's matchmaker came up and grabbed Aunt Hua. "After the case is over, we can look for a bride for your son. Do you need me to arrange any blind dates for your son?"
"Blind dates, you say?" Another villager interrupted. "You don't have to do anything. Aunt Hua's son already has someone in mind."
"Who says so?" Aunt Hua rebutted. "My Tuoye is very innocent. How is it possible for him to have someone in mind?"
"Aunt Hua, are you serious that you don't know? Everyone knows that Tuoye sticks around that Liang Mucheng every day."
"They are just friends!" Aunt Hua replied angrily, banging her fist onto the table. "The Hua family's daughter-in-law must be someone who's chaste. How can that kind of unwed mother be our daughter-in-law then?"
Speaking of the devil; Hua Tuoye appeared with a bag of fertilizer. "Mum! What are you talking about? Please don't insult Mucheng."
"Mucheng… Mucheng… She's all you have to say every day!" Aunt Hua became really upset. "I wonder what that shameless woman fed you with that you are so taken in by her."
"Mum! She's not a shameless woman, she's my good friend." Hua Tuoye decided to speak up for Mucheng. "I'd not care about our ties anymore if you speak of Mucheng in this way again."
"You! You're such an unfilial son!"
Hua Tuoye decided that he didn't want to continue the conversation with his mother and provoke her further. He turned and walked away. "I'd be sending some fertilizer over to Mucheng."
***
It all seemed weird. The flowers weren't doing so well recently and her hands seemed to be really sensitive and itching for no particular reason too.
"Is it a problem with the water?" Mucheng stopped for a moment and looked at her slightly sore hands.
"Mucheng, I'm here!" A voice rang behind her.
She smiled and turned around. "Tuoye, why are you suddenly here?"
"I'm here to deliver some fertilizer to you" He said, pointing to his van that was parked on the side of the road.
"Okay, hold on for a moment. I'll calculate the amount I need to pay you for it."
"It's okay, we're friends. Why must we be so calculative then?"
"I don't think so. I'd better give you the money lest Aunt Hua gets upset about it again."
"It's really okay. It'd be a miracle if my mother wasn't angry for a day." Tuoye signed and frowned as he thought of what his mother had just said about Mucheng.
"Tuoye, don't quarrel with your mother because of me. It will make me feel bad." Mucheng said after looking at Tuoye's expression.
"She's too much. She's always bad-mouthing you with all the aunties in the village." Tuoye replied.
"I'm okay. It doesn't matter to me what they have to say." Mucheng felt very open about it. The villagers have been gossiping about her ever since she came to Huatian Village 6 years ago. "The people here are very innocent. It's hard for them to accept an unwed mother after all."
"So what if you are one? You're not causing harm to anyone, right?" Tuoye was still very upset.
Mucheng smiled and persuaded him. "It's okay. Stop being angry already."
Her warm smile made him felt much better immediately. He gazed at her. After a while, he took his gaze back and said, "It's almost time. Let's go and pick up Xiaole now."
"Oh yes." Mucheng said and got up immediately. "Let's go then."
***
"Xiaole, I've heard that you don't have a father."
The newly transferred student Tangtang asked Xiaole with her soft voice.
"Who says so? My father is very brilliant. He's an alien." He announced proudly to her.
"Alien? What is that?" Tangtang was caught.
"He comes from outer space. They don't live on Earth." Xiaole explained to her. "My mother said that my father has already accomplished his mission on Earth and thus he has to return to his own planet."
"Does that mean he'll never be back again?" The little girl asked.
Xiaole paused for a moment. "Of course not! He'll be back to visit me someday."
"Someday? Which day are you talking about?" Another boy named Hua Hong teased him. "Just tell us truthfully that your father doesn't want you anymore. Why must you make up a story that he's an alien?"
"Who says I made it up? He really exists!"
"Where is he then? Prove it to me!" Hua Hong rebutted.
Xiaole got really upset. Since he was young, he disliked it when people laughed at and called him a fatherless child. He has a father, it's just his father is in outer space now. Why can't they just believe him?
"How is it? Speechless, aren't you? Xiaole is a liar. He loves to lie."
"I'm not a liar. I didn't lie!" Xiaole got really upset. He pushed Hua Hong and the two of them started fighting with each other.
Mucheng saw then fighting when she reached the place. She immediately pulled the two of them apart. "Stop this at once! Stop fighting!"
"Mummy." Xiaole felt really unjust. "Hua Hong said that I'm a liar. But I'm not. My father is an alien, right? I didn't lie about it, right?" He immediately questioned his mother for assurance.
Mucheng was stunned for a moment. Her son was actually fighting with someone because of that. Her heart ached as she pinched his cheeks. She felt that she had really let him down for a moment. "Yes, Xiaole, that's right. You didn't lie. Xiaole is the most obedient child."
"See, I've told you. Even my mother says so too." Xiaole stared back at Hua Hong.
Hua Hong made a face back at him. "Both of you are liars. My mother says that your mother has either cheated on a man or has been cheated by a man…"
"You rascal! What are you talking about?" Tuoye's blood boiled on hearing Hua Hong and he wanted to hit him.
"Forget it, Tuoye." Mucheng stopped him immediately. "He's just a kid, why be so calculative about it?" She smiled and took Xiaole's hand. "Let's go home now."
***
That night, Xiaole sat on the bed after his bath while his mother blew his hair dry for him.
He closed his eyes and enjoyed his mother's warm touch. He was uncertain and decided to assure himself again. "Mummy, I'm really the child of an alien, right?"
"Of course you are." Mucheng replied without any hesitation. "If not why do you think I've to give you shots of crystals every night? That's because you're different from the other children on Earth. You are the most unique child." Mucheng then bend over to kiss Xiaole's face, causing him to burst into fits of laughter as it tickled him.
"Okay. Your hair's all dried now. It's time for your shots then. "
"Oh, YA!" Xiaole screamed in joy. Other children would have cried when they see a needle, but Xiaole anticipated every night's shot because that was when he knew very clearly that he's the child of an alien.
"It will hurt a little. You'd have to bear with it." Mucheng said the same thing as usual.
"I'm not afraid of it." Xiaole pouted as he stretched his arm out. "I'm the bravest person."
"Yes. You're the bravest person indeed." Mucheng smiled and pinched his nose. She took a swab of cotton dabbed with alcohol and wiped it against his arm. Then, skillfully, she gave him his injection.
Xiaole squinted, but he bit on tightly onto his lips instead of letting out a cry.
"He's such an obedient child." Mucheng thought as she stroked her son's head after giving him his injection. She felt really guilty about it. If it wasn't because of the fact that she contracted gestational diabetes without knowing it, Xiaole wouldn't have been born with Persistent Hyperinsulinemic Hypoglycemia of Infancy and had to remove half of his pancreas. Because of that, he now has to rely on getting daily insulin shots for the rest of his life.
She had to make up a story about an Alien Daddy and called his insulin shots as shots of crystals that will help aliens when they battle in order to get him to have his injections. Xiaole might be buying her story now as he's young but she wondered how long she can still keep him in the dark. She prayed that he'd not blame her for lying to him when he finally finds out about the truth someday.
After all, it was out of love for him that she lied…
"Mummy, can you please tell me the story of Alien Daddy again?" Xiaole begged with her. "Please tell me how you all met back then again."
Mucheng smiled and nodded back at him. She started the story again of how she met him. "The first time I saw your daddy was when I took the bus. He was really tall and strong but he had a really bad temper…"
***
Darn! What kind of a place is this?
Guangxi thought as he looked at his surroundings. He saw nothing else other than the flowers on the two sides of the road. There were no vehicles or people around. He knew at once that this place was definitely in the countryside for sure.
How can they send him to such a place to do C.W.O.? Guangxi wondered to himself and he thought he must really be down on his luck. To make matters worse, his newly bought car had to break down in the middle of the road. He couldn't seem to be able to find the problem himself. He wanted to call for help but his phone's battery was flat. It was clear that there was no one who could lend him a hand at all.
The sun beamed down on him and it caused him to have a headache. He sweated like a pig and the fragrance of the flowers caused him to have breathing difficulties.
Ever since his surgery 6 years ago, he lost all of his past memories. His respiratory system also became problematic; he suddenly became extremely sensitive and allergic to pollen. Because of his allergy, he'd suffer every spring when the flowers bloom. Things seemed even more terrible today, he was actually being sent to Huatian Village where flowers grew everywhere.
This must be a Heaven-sent punishment! He cursed while putting on his sunglasses. Then he started to look for a public phone so that he could call for help.
***
"Mummy, Mummy!" Xiaole screamed with excitement as he placed his hands on the edge of the bus window while putting his head out. "There seems to be a weird looking vehicle over there."
"Be careful." Mucheng pulled Xiaole in immediately. "Didn't Mummy tell you umpteen of times already? It's very dangerous to put your head out of the window like this."
"But Mummy, that car looks really weird. It does not have a top. Is it driven by an alien?"
Alien? Mucheng paused for a moment. Then she looked out of the window too. She saw a convertible in the middle of the road. It seemed like it had broken down. A tall and strong man started to run after a bus when he saw it but the bus had already driven off.
Mucheng couldn't get a clear look of the man's face and she hesitated whether she should stop the driver of the bus she was taking so that they could help him. But she immediately thought of the fact that the village would be welcoming the public defender today. She already promised to help to decorate the venue. Tongues would wag again if she was late.
She didn't want to be on bad terms with anyone in the village for Xiaole's sake. All she asked was for Xiaole to be able to grow up peacefully and happily in this village.
"Xiaole, sit tight. That's not an alien's car. It's just a normal sports car." She coaxed her son.
"Nope, I'm very sure it's an alien's." Xiaole insisted. "Did you see that man's clothes too? His clothes look really attractive and special, Mummy."
"It must be the fact that he knows better than the villagers on what to wear. He must be a city folk who was coming to their village for a holiday and lost his way somehow." Mucheng thought to herself.
Mucheng smiled and shook her head. In order to appease her son, she had to convince him. The mother and son debated with each other till they reached the venue for the welcoming party today.
The village head stepped up immediately when he saw her. "Mucheng, it's great that you're finally here. We've all discussed just now. You're the prettiest in our village. You shall be in charge of presenting the flowers to the defender later."
"Sure." Mucheng nodded. She'd do anything so as to get along well with the villagers. "Is the public defender here yet?"
"Nope." The village head looked at his watch. "You can come over here and help us first."
"Xiaole, Mummy shall go and do some work now. Be good and stay right over here." Mucheng said to her son.
"Okay." Xiaole nodded. He saw Tangtang and decided to join her. But he realized that it wasn't Tangtang he saw when he ran over. He started moving around in the venue when he accidently bumped into Aunt Hua.
"I'm sorry."
"Oh, it's you, Xiaole. I haven't seen you in a while." Aunt Hua saw that it was Xiaole and she decided to wear a look of disgust on her face. However, that didn't stop her from smiling at him.
"Hello, Aunt Hua." Xiaole greeted her.
"My Tuoye does go and look for your mother frequently, right?"
"Yes, he came with my Mummy yesterday to pick me up from school."
"Is that so?" Aunt Hua frowned. She bent down, smiled and held onto Xiaole's shoulder. "Xiaole, do you remember what Aunt Hua once told you?"
"Yes, I do. Brother Tuoye is like my elder brother, he is not to be my father. " Xiaole recited.
"That's right." Aunt Hua praised him. "Xiaole, you're so obedient. This lollipop is for you. Aunt Hua will buy you some toys the next time round."
"Thank you, Aunt Hua." Xiaole happily took the lollipop from here. "Oh yes, where is Brother Tuoye?"
"He's off to look for the village's head unfilial grandson, Bin. That Bin is such an ingrate. He has been missing since he stole the title deed. Now, he has left us with a mess that we have to clear." Aunt Hua nagged.
"Oh, I see." Xiaole didn't know what Aunt Hua really meant, but since his best buddy wasn't around, all he could do now was to stick around and lick his lollipop. Suddenly, he saw the village head jumping onto an old tow truck while saying that he was going to go pick up the public defender whose car had broken down in the middle of the road. Out of curiousity, Xiaole got in too and hid himself up.
The tow truck finally reached its destination. Xiaole put his head out and he saw the alien that he saw just now.
He's an alien indeed!
He got off the truck and examined the Uncle Alien who was wearing a pair of sunglasses, donning on white suit and complaining to the village head – Wow, he was exactly like what Mummy had described his Daddy to be; tall, strong, and bad-tempered. Is it because all aliens were so?
He stretched his hand out and gave Uncle Alien's pants a tug.
"Who was it?" Guangxi wondered as he impatiently looked down.
"Uncle, Uncle, which planet are you from? Have you seen Xiaole's father before?"
***
Where did this little brat come from?
Guangxi got up the towing truck with the village head while Xiaole tried his best to squeeze himself between them. He started asking Guangxi many questions; questions which Guangxi found really weird. At first, he tried his best to be patient and answered them.
"Lad, I already told you that I'm not an alien. I live on the Earth, okay?"
"Are you sure? But you're wearing sunglasses and your clothes and…" Xiaole pointed to the convertible behind the truck. "Your car is totally different from those in Huatian Village."
Guangxi wanted to tell Xiaole that it was because his whole village was so old-fashioned; they wouldn't have stuff like this. But he didn't because the village head was just beside them. "Anyway, I'm not an alien and I haven't met your Daddy before."
"Really?" Xiaole frowned, expressing his disappointment. He rolled his eyes and suddenly saw the leather wristband on Guangxi's wrist. "That's so cool. This is the communicative device that you use to communicate with the other aliens, right?"
What on earth is he talking about? Guangxi rolled his eyes. "This is just a ordinary wristband."
"You're lying. My Mummy tells me that this is a communicative device. She even drew a picture for me and it looks exactly like yours." Xiaole insisted. "Mummy said that there's a memory card inside the wristband that will allow aliens to communicate with their loved ones.
"What nonsense is the boy sprouting? It's so true that a weird son will have a weird mother too." Guangxi thought to himself.
Guangxi took off the wristband and emphasized his point again. "Look carefully. This is just an ordinary wristband. There's no memory card, no secret code, it's totally as simple as that, okay?"
Xiaole took the wristband from him and started examining it. He didn't manage to find anything too. But he didn't want to give up so easily. So he tried to pull the wristband apart to see if there was any hidden compartment.
"Hey! What are you doing? Stop meddling with it!" Guangxi was taken aback and he snatched the wristband back from Xiaole.
"Look. You're so nervous about it. There must be something wrong." Xiaole stared back at him while saying it. "You're hiding a secret from me, right?"
"Nonsense!" Guangxi rebutted. He was really upset that he was actually debating over such a silly issue with a kid. "It's just this wristband means a lot to me."
"Why?"
"Because…" Guangxi was stumped. Indeed, what was the reason? The truth was he had no recollection or whatsoever not of the origin of this wristband. All he knew was Yiqian was the one who put it on for him after the surgery. Yet, even Yiqian had no idea where the wristband came from.
But every time when he looked at the wristband, his heart would ache. It was as if it was trying to remind him that he had forgotten something and someone who was very important.
"Whatever it is, you can't touch it!" He immediately kept the wristband in his pocket and away from Xiaole.
"But…" Xiaole wanted to continue but the village head immediately tapped his head.
"That's enough then, Xiaole. Stop disturbing Uncle Lawyer. Your Mummy will be angry if she learns of this."
"Alright then." Xiaole said, pouting. He decided to be quiet but he continued to stare at Guangxi, making the latter feel really tensed.
Children are really troublesome and he can't seem to handle them well, he thought. Even though his fiancee's a pediatrician, he never seemed to be able to understand how she could be so loving towards them.
Guangxi hopped off the truck immediately once they reached the destination so that he could be away from Xiaole.
***
"Xiaole, where have you been?" Mucheng was very worried after she couldn't find her son at the venue. She was finally relieved to see Xiaole running towards her at the entrance. She hugged him and said, "Did you know that Mummy was worried for you?"
"Mummy, I saw Uncle Alien. He was wearing the bracelet that you talked about." Xiaole told Mucheng his discovery.
What? Mucheng was lost. The village head walked up and passed a bouquet to her just when she wanted to clarify things with Xiaole.
"Hurry up, Mucheng. The public defender is here. You'll represent us and present him with these flowers later on."
"Yes Sir. Please don't worry about it." She stood up and took the bouquet of flowers from him.
The village head got onto the stage and grabbed the microphone. "Test, test." He cleared his throat and said, "Hello ladies and gentlemen, grandfathers and grandmothers, uncles, brothers, aunties, sisters… I'm the village head. I'm here to introduce to you all the impressive public defender who has come all the way from Taipei…"
The village head rattled on but no one really cared about what he had to say. All the villagers did was to stretch their necks so that they could get a glimpse of the lawyer. But they couldn't spot him in the midst of the entire crowd.
"That's enough. Village head, stop nagging. Please invite the public defender on stage now!" A villager protested.
"Alright then. Let's invite Mr. Lawyer up on stage now to say a few words." The village head signaled to Mucheng as he said.
Mucheng understood what he meant at once and squeezed through the crowd and up the stage to present the bouquet to the man who was standing next to the village head.
"Damn it! What is this?" The man cursed and sneezed at the same time. "Are you all trying to murder me with all these flowers?"
The rough voice sounded very familiar.
Mucheng paused for a moment and looked at the source of the voice. It was a face she'd never forget. It was so familiar and yet it broke her heart every time she thought of it.
"Guang…xi?"
"No way. I can't take this anymore…" Guangxi sneezed. His chest tightened and he became breathless. Before he knew it, he fainted and fell into Mucheng's arms.
She immediately grabbed hold of him. She was shocked by his reaction.
"Guangxi!"
***
How could it be him? It was really him!
Mucheng felt really disturbed as she looked at the Guangxi who was lying on the sofa now.
He fainted a while ago and it caused quite a commotion. The villagers decided at once to let him rest in the village head's office till he regained consciousness. They also sent her over to take care of him.
It was a perfect opportunity for her to take a good look at this man whom she hadn't seen for years.
It seemed like he had changed and looked more mature than he did in the past.
He didn't frown in the past when he was asleep but now, he did, which gave her a feeling that he felt really depressed.
Why was he depressed then? Hasn't he been living happily all these years? He has a successful career and a beautiful fiancee. By right, he should be very happy.
"You're happy, right?" She asked softly, just like every time when she did and hoped that his answer would give her the assurance she needed.
She really hoped for him to be happy…
He moved slightly and opened his eyes slowly.
She held her breath and her heart raced while she waited nervously for him to regain his consciousness. What would be the first sentence he'd say to her? He wouldn't still be hating her…would he?
Please, she begged. Please don't hate me.
He finally opened his eyes. He stared at her and she felt like he had just stuck two sharp knives into her heart.
"Who are you?"