Today is already the 5th, and the day for Qianning's good friend to visit her is drawing near.
In the Beigong Family Villa, inside Beigong Cang's room, he lay on the bed without a stitch on, just a thin blanket covering his lower body. And Qianning had already sat on the edge of the bed buttoning up her blouse.
Beigong Cang lit a cigarette and exhaled the smoke before saying, "Where's your phone? Give it to me."
Qianning handed over her outdated phone with a puzzled look.
Beigong Cang took the phone, swiftly pressed a few keys, and then his phone on the bedside rang. So he was leaving his number.
He returned the phone to Qianning and said, "This is my number. You don't have to come here anymore. The 14th is a Wednesday, do you have classes in the afternoon?"
"Uh... I have one class, ending at three," Qianning replied honestly, although she didn't understand why he was asking.
"I'll be waiting for you at your school gate at three, we're going to the hospital for a check-up. Remember, it's the 14th."
"Okay, I'll be going back now," she said, as she collected her phone and left the room.
It would be great; if she were pregnant, she wouldn't have to face him anymore. All she had to do was to stay by Lady Beigong's side and focus on nurturing the fetus as agreed. Such things would never happen again.
The bustling streets, because it was the weekend, saw an even larger surge of people. In such autumn weather, with pleasant temperatures and not too strong sunlight, it was the perfect time for a date. Moreover, tonight was the Mid-Autumn Festival.
On the street corner, a woman in a bulky sandwich mascot costume was holding a stack of flyers, repeatedly smiling at passersby and handing out the flyers. Although sweat had soaked the hair on her forehead, no one seemed to care about her efforts, and no one took any flyers from her hands.
Even so, she continued to smile and hand them out, while raising her voice and calling out, "Jin Ming Restaurant, sandwiches for fifty percent off, all food items at a twenty percent discount."
After another fifteen minutes, she could no longer bear it and took off the bulky sandwich hat, wiped the sweat from her brow, and rested against the wall.
A skinny man approached her and snatched a flyer from her hand, "Qianning! Why are you out here again? Didn't you say you were feeling dizzy just a moment ago?"
The woman smiled at him, "Brother, Dad has to go for chemotherapy tomorrow. And we have run out of money at home, we don't even have enough to pay for tomorrow's treatment," she said, her voice devoid of grievances but filled with a faint sadness.
"I'll find a way to get the money. Let's go home now. Look at yourself, you're in such discomfort," Fantian said as he tried to take off the sandwich costume she was wearing.
Just as he was about to do so, a middle-aged man came out of the shop behind her and shouted at Qiao Qianning, "Why has it gone quiet? Do you still want to work or not? If not, go home!"
"I'll work! I'll work!" Qianning, while pushing away Fantian's hand, put on the hat she had just taken off and shouted again, "Jin Ming Restaurant, sandwiches for fifty percent off, all food items at a twenty percent discount."
"Louder!" the man barked as he walked inside.
Qiao Fantian watched Qianning suffer like this, and his heart ached. If, if only he could make a lot of money, then Qianning would not have to suffer here, and if he really could make a lot of money, then Qianning wouldn't have to degrade herself for other men. He hated himself so much. Why, as the only son of his parents, was he so ineffectual?
He snatched the flyers from Qianning's hand and, standing beside her, shouted loudly, "Jin Ming Restaurant, sandwiches for half price, 20% off all food items."
Qianning was startled for a moment, before she also started shouting loudly.
They needed this meager wage.
Her gaze inadvertently swept past the entrance of the nearby business club. A black Ferrari pulled up at the entrance, and the person in the car got out. They were from a completely different world. The woman who stepped out of the car wore an expensive dress, carrying a small purse. It could be assumed that her purse, if converted into cash, would be enough to feed their family for six months, or even a year.
And the man embracing that woman seemed somewhat familiar. As he passed his keys to the valet and turned around, Qianning froze. That man was Beigong Cang!
He... He was using the same hands that had once caressed her body to embrace another woman. The pain in her heart was something Qianning could not hide from herself.
It was as if her world suddenly shrank to only include the figures of Beigong Cang and that woman. He smiled as he wrapped his arms around her waist, his lips landing on hers, and finally, they vanished into the doors of the business club.
Gone, they were out of sight. The world came alive with noise again. Behind her was the continuous shouting of Fantian, she took deep breaths, replenishing the oxygen she forgot in her moment of distraction.
After a deep breath, Qianning finally resumed with a smile, "Jin Ming Restaurant, sandwiches for half price, 20% off all food items."
It was eleven-thirty at night, and only after all the flyers had been distributed did Qiao Fantian and Qianning slowly walk on the road home. Although they were still a long way from the filthy alley where they lived, they were reluctant to spend two yuan on a bus fare, choosing instead to stroll step by step towards home.
The dim streetlights made the roadside greenbelts look so beautiful. Inside the greenbelts were cobblestone paths and stone tables and benches for people to leisurely stroll and sit. And now, several couples and spouses were slowly walking there.
"Qianning," Fantian beside her called out, "let's go sit over there. To enjoy the moonlight, today is Mid-Autumn Festival, after all."
For others, Mid-Autumn Festival was a time for the family to reunite, but for their family, it was an unaffordable luxury.
Still, it was nice to sit down and look at the bright moon in the sky. Qianning nodded gently and followed Fantian towards the stone benches in the path.
Sitting on the slightly cool stone bench, Qianning heaved a deep sigh of relief, finally able to rest.
The Fantian sitting next to her whispered, "Qianning, will you come with me? Let's forget everything about Mom and Dad's house. As long as you come with me, we can move to another city, work, and live our own lives. This is the second time I'm asking you, you just..." He looked at Qianning beside him; she had closed her eyes, her body swaying slightly, looking like she was about to fall asleep.
He tenderly let her head lean on his shoulder and sighed. It seemed she hadn't really heard what he had just said. If only they hadn't adopted Qianning, if only she had been left at the orphanage to be adopted by another family, her fate wouldn't be like it was today.