160, Misplaced Life

"Cry, cry ... While he was staying at the entrance, the door of Zhang's house was opened again, and a tall and thin boy with a cold look in his eyes walked in with a basketball in his hand.

"You only know how to play ball. You are still a student now, and the most important thing is to study." Zhang Guoqing said sternly to the boy who came in.

"Dad, I know, it's just to relax during the summer vacation. I haven't fallen behind in the tutoring on weekdays. I will definitely be admitted to a university that you will be satisfied with."

Yan Chu, now called Zhang Chu, said to the man in front of him with a stern face and some love and awkwardness in his eyes.

In fact, Zhang Guoqing had already regretted the words he just blurted out. He used to love this child in his heart, but something happened later that made him unable to give this child without any grudges and unreservedly, but this did not mean that he had no feelings for this child.

He knew that his son didn't like him always talking about his studies, and he also knew that this child always hated his arrogance and thought that he was the tyrant of this family, always bullying his wife and his mother.

Zhang Guoqing was a clumsy person who didn't know how to explain. The misunderstanding between father and son became deeper and deeper. Now that his son was in adolescence, the father and son lived under the same roof and didn't communicate with each other for a day.

He couldn't remember the last time his son called him dad. It seemed that his son always called him "hey hey" recently, which made Zhang Guoqing a little disappointed.

But now his son, for some reason, became close to him again. Zhang Guoqing couldn't face him with a straight face anymore, and a smile appeared on his face.

"Is the living allowance enough? You will be in the third year of high school soon, and it will cost a lot to buy materials. If you are short of money, tell your dad."

His son gave in and took the initiative to give him a way out. Zhang Guoqing couldn't hold it in anymore. Although he still talked about studying every three sentences, he was at least not as serious as at the beginning.

"Xiao Chu, you're back."

Lin Fang in the kitchen heard the sound of the door opening and closing, and came out with plastic gloves on her hands.

Her husband and son did not eat lunch at home today. She made lunch for herself, but the dishes were still in the sink and not washed. She had to wash the dishes before making dinner.

Lin Fang has never liked this kind of work that involves washing and burning, but her husband is incompetent and earns a fixed salary. He pays off the mortgage and car loan, plus the cost of his son's schooling. The remaining money each month is enough for daily expenses and a small amount of savings. This part of the money is used to prevent unexpected needs. Lin Fang wants to hire a nanny or a part-time worker, but this is just a luxury.

She also has a bachelor's degree, and she studied design at a top art school in China. She had good grades when she was studying, but she has not worked since she graduated from school. At first, it was because of marriage and having children. Later, when the children were no longer in her hands, Lin Fang found that she was out of touch with society. The innovation of design software and the rapid changes in trends could no longer adapt to her own major and the intensity of design work.

As for jobs like front desk and teller, Lin Fang couldn't bring herself to do it, thinking that such work was unworthy of her academic qualifications.

In this way, she became a full-time housewife, responsible for the family's dinner, laundry and cleaning.

At this time, Lin Fang's eyes were still a little red. Seeing her son, she couldn't help but wipe her tears with her gloved hands.

It was another scene like this. Zhang Guoqing couldn't say whether he was disappointed or what. He thought that he might blame him for his mother in the next second. Sometimes Zhang Guoqing was also thinking about what was the point of living like this.

"Mom, is the water heater on? I just sweated after playing basketball. I'm going to take a shower first."

Yan Chu didn't coax this mother who was silently crying like his original body in the past, nor did he blame Zhang Guoqing, the father, indiscriminately.

He didn't take on too much, because he felt sorry for Lin Fang, the mother, and took over the housework that she hadn't finished. Yan Chu just lowered his head and changed his shoes, and didn't seem to see Lin Fang's appearance at this time.

"Ah, it's on, it's on."

Not only Zhang Guoqing was a little different, but Lin Fang was the same. She subconsciously answered her son's question.

Yan Chu returned to his room with the basketball, and soon went to the bathroom with some clean clothes.

For some reason, Zhang Guoqing wanted to laugh. He looked at his helpless wife sarcastically, picked up his briefcase, and went back to the room.

Lin Fang clenched the dishcloth in her hand, and her thin figure became more pitiful. It was a pity that there was no man in this house who would pity her.

Until she heard the buzzing sound of the water heater in the bathroom, Lin Fang returned to the kitchen and continued the housework she had just finished.

******

"Zhang Chu, why haven't I seen you come out to play basketball recently? Did your father scold you again?"

Yan Chu was riding a bicycle with several breakfasts hanging on the handlebars. Before he returned home, he was stopped by Cheng Sheng, a good friend of this body.

"No, why would my father scold me? He used to think that studying was important and was worried that I would fall behind in my studies because of playing basketball."

Yan Chu supported the bicycle with one foot and stepped on the pedal with one foot. The tall and thin boy was dressed neatly, wearing a white jersey, loose sweatpants, and a headband on his forehead. He was neat and handsome. "Oh, I didn't expect that one day you would say good things about your dad. When you talked to us before, didn't you always say that your dad was a tyrant who had no ability and only knew how to bully your mom and you?"

Cheng Sheng showed a look as if he had seen a new world, and seemed very surprised to hear Yan Chu say good things about his father.

"I misunderstood before. In fact, my dad is not easy. You know, my mom doesn't have a job, and our family relies on my dad to make money. In fact, sometimes I think about it, my dad didn't do anything to let my mom down, but she always cries at home. My dad sometimes comes back from working for several nights, and it's hard not to get angry when he sees such a scene."

"It's hard for you to finally understand a little bit. I really don't know what to say about your mom." In the past, Cheng Sheng heard from his good friend that he defended his crybaby mother. To be honest, Cheng Sheng has grown up for the first time to see a man as close to his mother as Yan Chu.

Anyway, Cheng Sheng looked down on his friend's mother. She always had a sad face. Once he went to his friend's house, she cried to him without doing anything, complaining about her husband and the unfairness of life.

Cheng Sheng was helpless. As an elder, how could she say such things to him? Since then, Cheng Sheng rarely went to his friend's house. Every gathering was held outside or at his own home.

If it weren't for the fact that Yan Chu had no problems, Cheng Sheng would not want to make friends with him. He was afraid that Yan Chu had inherited a bit of his fucking IQ and EQ.

Now seeing that his good brother had come out of his mother's demon, Cheng Sheng felt quite happy.

"How about playing basketball together this afternoon? The group of sports students from No. 2 Middle School challenged us, and Zhao Xinhan has agreed to be a cheerleader."

Cheng Sheng knew that his friend was interested in the school beauty of No. 2 Middle School. Although he felt that his friend had always had problems with his vision of women, Cheng Sheng could only use his friend's goddess as bait because he had not been able to get an appointment with anyone during this period.

"Okay, I'll go to your house after dinner."

Today was an important plot point. Even if Cheng Sheng didn't meet him, Yan Chu would find him himself, so without hesitation, Yan Chu accepted the other party's invitation.

"You value beauty over friendship."

Cheng Sheng hit Yan Chu's chest heavily. Sure enough, only when he heard Zhao Xinhan's name did he leave his home.

Yan Chu didn't explain. The two agreed to meet at a time and then separated.

Today is Sunday. Zhang Guoqing rarely has to work overtime. He slept in and got up at 8:30. When he was thinking about whether he should go buy some breakfast, Yan Chu opened the door and came in with a few breakfasts in his hands.

"Dad, your favorite glutinous rice balls are wrapped with crispy dough sticks, pickled mustard and ham sausage, and brushed with seafood sauce. There is also your favorite Li Ji soy milk, which is still hot."

Yan Chu brought the breakfast bought for Zhang Guoqing to him, and then picked up his own breakfast and started eating.

"Didn't you prepare your mother's?"

Zhang Guoqing looked at his son holding two breakfasts in his hand, one for him and one for his son, which meant that he didn't prepare Lin Fang's breakfast.

"Mom sleeps very late on Sundays, and usually has to eat lunch when she gets up."

Zhang Guoqing is busy with work, and often doesn't come back for dinner. On weekdays when he goes to school, the original body's breakfast and lunch are also solved outside by himself. Lin Fang often only needs to prepare dinner.

On Sundays, she was even less needed. If Zhang Guoqing and Yan Chu were resting, they would go to the breakfast stall outside to eat. Lin Fang would sleep until noon and then prepare lunch and dinner for the day.

However, according to the original body's memory, after he was fifteen years old, he was often the one who washed and cooked at home. Because he felt sorry for his mother, the original body took on a lot of housework consciously, which the honest man in front of him didn't know.

Zhang Guoqing didn't say much after hearing his son's words, but he was still very happy that his son could remember his preferences. Even if Yan Chu proposed to play basketball with his classmates in the afternoon, he didn't say anything against it, and gave Yan Chu fifty yuan so that he could buy some cold drinks when he was tired of playing basketball.

For the first time, this father and son, who had not been close since Yan Chu was twelve years old, went to the vegetable market to buy some vegetables after having breakfast together.

When Lin Fang got up, lunch was ready. The father and son were cleaning the sink in the kitchen, chatting and laughing. The atmosphere was particularly harmonious, as if Lin Fang was excluded.

"You got up just in time. Come over to eat after washing your face and brushing your teeth."

Zhang Guoqing looked up at his wife, his smile slightly restrained, and said to Lin Fang in a somewhat distant manner.

Lin Fang felt a little aggrieved, her eyes were red again, she turned her head and looked at her son.

Yan Chu didn't say anything, just lowered his head and put his chopsticks.

I don't know since when, this son who always defended her seemed to be more and more unfamiliar and indifferent to her. Lin Fang didn't know if it was her illusion.

Holding back the sadness, Lin Fang went to the bathroom to wash up, and then the family of three sat down to eat in silence. Zhang Guoqing and Yan Chu occasionally talked about studying.

"Is the math tutoring okay recently?"

Zhang Guoqing asked. His son was good in other subjects, but he couldn't pass the math exam. Now he found a tutoring class for his son, which was opened by a very famous special teacher.

After retiring, the other party opened a class to earn some extra money. The tuition fee for 20 days and two hours a day is 3,000 yuan. This is not a one-on-one tutoring. There are more than 30 students in the tutoring class. Zhang Guoqing doesn't know whether such tutoring is useful for his son.

"It's good. I can listen to what the teacher teaches. When the summer vacation starts, I think I should be able to do well in the test."

Yan Chu ate a bite of food and said to his father.

"That's good. You scored 93 points in the math final exam last time. The teacher said that as long as you can improve your math, you still have a good chance of getting into a key university."

In the past, when talking about studying, my son was always impatient. Now that my son is willing to listen, Zhang Guoqing couldn't help but talk more.

"Guoqing, don't always tell your child to study. The child's happiness is the most important. Don't use your rules and regulations to kill the child's nature. Didn't the news say that many students from Yanjing University and Shuimu University set up stalls after graduation? Grades and schools don't mean everything."

Lin Fang looked at her son gently and said softly.

"I was ignorant before, but now I think it's really important to study well. No matter what happens in the future, at least I have one more bargaining chip, and my starting point can be higher than others. Dad, don't worry, I will study hard and will definitely be admitted to a key university."

Yan Chu's answer made Zhang Guoqing, who had a stern face, very happy. He didn't understand why Lin Fang always made trouble when he was teaching his son, obviously that was her son.

He didn't know how to express his happiness now, but just kept smiling and gave Yan Chu several spoonfuls of tomato scrambled eggs he made, asking him to eat more.

It was obvious that his son hated mathematics the most. In the past, Lin Fang spoke for him and his son was very moved, but this time it didn't work.

Lin Fang pursed her lips, looked at the crystal clear rice in the bowl, and suddenly lost her appetite.

She put down the bowl heavily, went back to the room without looking back, and then closed the door.

"Dad, you and Mom should divorce."

After Lin Fang returned to the room, Yan Chu suddenly spoke and said to Zhang Guoqing.

"Why are you suddenly saying this, kid?" Zhang Guoqing tightened his hands holding the bowl, looked up at his son, and didn't understand why he was talking about divorce.

"You two are not happy together at all. When I was a child, mom always said that we couldn't get divorced for my sake. Now I'm an adult, and I'm going to take the college entrance examination next year, so if you can't live together, just get divorced."

Yan Chu didn't understand how the man in front of him endured the marriage for all these years. I'm afraid that in addition to his obsession and unwillingness to Lin Fang, his love for his original body was also part of the reason.

In the previous life, the original body was deserted by everyone, and in the end, only the man in front of him, who he always looked down on and hated, was still willing to take him in and take care of him.

Even in the end, he was willing to pay the price of his soul just for the original body to change.

Yan Chu didn't dare to guarantee that if he was this man, he would make such a saintly decision in his position.

But one thing is certain, although Zhang Guoqing has been bothered by Yan Chu's life experience for a long time, he is sincere to this son.

"You, as a child, shouldn't be in charge of this kind of thing. What you need to do now is to study hard and get into a good university."

Zhang Guoqing lowered his head, poking the rice in the bowl with his chopsticks, looking a little flustered.

"If, Dad means if, I divorce your mom, who will you follow?"

A few minutes later, in the originally quiet dining room, Zhang Guoqing suddenly spoke again.

"Of course I will follow Dad, but no matter who you follow, you are my parents." Yan Chu said to the somewhat nervous man. Hearing his son's answer, Zhang Guoqing's frown suddenly relaxed, and a smile appeared on the corner of his mouth.

He felt that with his son's answer, his life didn't seem to be such a failure.

But divorce, he still had to think about it carefully.

******

"Zhang Chu, you have been missing for a while. If Cheng Sheng hadn't tempted you with Zhao Xinhan, would you have planned to come out and play with us?"

Yan Chu and Cheng Sheng appeared on the court and were soon surrounded by several other teenagers, especially Yan Chu. Those people jumped up and hooked their arms around his neck and shoulders. The weight of several people made it difficult for Yan Chu to move his body.

Their voices were not lowered. Not far away, the girls in vests and short skirts heard those words clearly.

"Xinhan, the school hunk of No. 1 Middle School likes you so much, why don't you give any reaction?"

"Only our school belle is so charming, and the school hunk of No. 1 Middle School who has been living in a small house can be asked out after hearing your name."

A group of girls were laughing and talking, and many of them looked at the beautiful girl standing in the center like a moon surrounded by stars with envy. If they also had such a skin, they would probably be the ones that the school hunk fell in love with now. This world is really unfair.

Zhao Xinhan listened to her friends' words, but smiled and said nothing.

Although Zhang Chu looked good, his family background was average. Such a boy was not her type, but the vanity of a girl made her enjoy his pursuit. For this reason, she never gave Zhang Chu a definite answer during this period.

It's a pity that the other party's appearance was really one of the best. If the other party's family background could be better, she would be willing to try to date him.

Zhao Xinhan glanced at the still young boy, lowered her head, and her cheeks flushed slightly. To outsiders, this was the best symbol of love between the man and the woman.