TSED; chapter 16

Zhang Qiming had visited Zhang Hang quite often recently. Most times it was when Xiao Ren was not at the house. He would insist on taking Zhang Hang home, saying that he would raise the teenager even if he wasn’t married, but Zhang Hang disagreed. He wasn’t a prideful person who ignored the kindness of others, but he didn’t want to move back. While he agreed to receive child support from Zhang Qiming, he didn’t want to cause the man any future trouble.

The two were at a deadlock. Xiao Ren also heard about the matter, and wondered why Zhang Hang didn’t want to return home with his father, especially since he was having such a difficult time. He felt bad for Zhang Hang every day he set his eyes on him. Now that someone was willing to take care of him, why wouldn’t he go back?

Zhang Hang just smiled bitterly and apologized, saying that he’d find a new house as soon as possible so as not to trouble Xiao Ren anymore.

“No no no, I didn’t mean it like that,” Xiao Ren quickly said, waving his hands back and forth. “I really like you living here. You help me pay rent, and Big Black is very well-behaved. But you need someone to take care of you.”

Zhang Hang didn’t bother explaining. There were some things he would rather not say, as people would just feel sorry for him. He would only bring Zhang Qiming shame, and didn’t want to make things difficult for his father.

Zhang Hang had thought a lot about this matter, but his grandmother obviously hadn’t. When she came over to find Zhang Hang, Xiao Ren happened to be at home. Seeing an old lady who didn’t know how to knock at the door, he thought she was a local aunt. Because Xiao Ren was a warm-hearted policeman, many of the local aunts would come to him for help if they were in trouble.

“What can I do for you, aunt?” Xiao Ren opened the door and invited Zhang Mother¹ in.

Faced with this junior policeman, Zhang Mother was not polite. She simply said in a slightly bad tone, “I’m Zhang Qiming’s mother. I’m looking for Zhang Hang.”

Xiao Ren hesitated for a moment. Although he was quite careless, because of his occupation, he could also be quite meticulous. He would act lazily when managing his own affairs, but had an animal instinct for noticing important details in a piece of information. When hearing this sentence, he realized that Zhang Mother had used the words “Zhang Qiming’s mother” instead of “Zhang Hang’s grandmother”. Each time Zhang Qiming had come to find Zhang Hang, he called the boy “Hang Hang”, but Zhang Mother used his full name.

To be on the safe side, instead of going to Zhang Hang, who was resting in his bedroom, Xiao Ren asked, “Then please, how can I help?”

From casually chatting with Zhang Hang, Xiao Ren had realized that Zhang Hang was very respectful towards Zhang Qiming and firmly believed his father had good intentions. Even though he didn’t say anything about it, Xiao Ren felt that Zhang Hang was avoidant towards Zhang Qiming’s parents. Because of this, Xiao Ren wanted to know what Zhang Mother wanted. If her intentions were truly bad, he wouldn’t bring Zhang Hang out to see her. The child was pitiful enough as it was.

However, Zhang Hang’s hearing was quite keen. He had been taking a nap when he heard voices outside his door. Lu Chengye identified one of the voices as Zhang Mother. Zhang Hang would take him along to his grandparents’ house every weekend when he was a puppy. At the time, the Zhang grandparents’ voices were amicable and loving. Now, the voice of the old lady was as cold as when she flung accusations at Zhang Hang.

Seeing Zhang Hang moving to go through the door, Lu Chengye sat in front of it and didn’t let him out.

Whenever he tried to open the door, Big Black would lick his fingers. Zhang Hang didn’t know whether to laugh or cry. He crouched down and rubbed Big Black’s neck, whispering, “She’s my grandmother, but hasn’t said a word to me for years. No matter what her purpose today is, as a grandson, getting scolded by my grandma is nothing, right?”

Lu Chengye nuzzled the boy’s neck. Could such a sensible child stop hurting him like this?

They both knew that Zhang Mother and Zhang Qiming were very different. Her feelings could be directly seen: when loved her grandchildren she’d kiss them, and when she hated them she didn’t. She didn’t have contradicting emotions like Zhang Qiming, only deep malice.

Zhang Hang wasn’t unaware of this, but still wanted to leave the room. It wasn’t just wishful thinking, he knew that he had to face his grandmother. Regardless of blood ties, if he couldn’t do this, if he shut the door in his grandmother’s face and refused to leave the house, his future would probably be limited.

Two living people can’t avoid each other forever. Hiding from the past today didn’t mean they wouldn’t have to face things in the future. Zhang Hang knew this truth. He was only 16 years old, but was more knowledgeable and thought more thoroughly than many adults.

Lu Chengye slowly moved away from the door to stand firmly at Zhang Hang’s side. He would protect him.

Xiao Ren was making casual conversation with Zhang Mother, trying to suss out her intentions when Zhang Hang exited his room. Seeing the teenager, he shot a warning glance towards him, before looking down in frustration. He always forgot that Zhang Hang was blind! The young man’s eyes were so deep and beautiful, that he always forgot about the fact he couldn’t see.

“Grandma.” Zhang Hang, with Big Black’s help, walked into the living room and called out in the direction of her voice.

As he spoke, Zhang Mother stiffened. She turned her eyes to Zhang Hang and looked him up and down. When you haven’t seen a child for half a year, they grow taller. Their eyes are no longer as innocent and lively as they were before. People would always feel a little sad faced with this, but maybe it was more due to his blindness.

Zhang Mother took a deep breath, pressing down her anger before saying, “Don’t call me grandma. I don’t want to hear this word.”

Zhang Hang had expected this sort of attitude and wasn’t too hurt by it. “Well… How about Grandma Wang? I should have called you that instead.”

Zhang Mother, Wang Guiying, was an old woman after all. Zhang Hang should call her grandma no matter what, even if they were just strangers. It was only polite.

“You just want to take advantage of my family!” Wang Guiying spat, not being able to hold back her anger.

Zhang Hang’s face remained unchanged, and he did not refute Wang Guiying’s words. His words would be meaningless. No matter if it was an argument or quarrel, one could not simply change others’ opinions.

However, Xiao Ren didn’t like hearing this. The old lady had a bad look on her face as soon as she entered the house and had no manners at all. He had made hot tea, but she hadn’t drank a single mouthful. It was if she felt that they owed her.

“Grandma,” Xiao Ren said, “Hang Hang does not rely on you, he lives in my house. It’s Uncle Zhang who always comes to visit Hang Hang. Since he’s started visiting, the boy hasn’t slept well. See, he has black circles below his eyes.”

He touched the area below Zhang Hang’s eyes. Big Black jumped forward and grabbed Xiao Ren’s fingers, but didn’t use any force. He simply held them gently in his mouth, not letting the man move his hands.

Hmm, his Hang Hang smelled good. It made one want to touch him all over.

This sort of thing often happened in the household, and Xiao Ren was used to it by now. He sadly took his fingers out of the dog’s mouth and wiped his hands with a paper towel.

Zhang Mother was not in the mood to watch Xiao Ren’s interacting with Big Black. She said to Zhang Hang, “Zhao Xiaolian was willing to take you, and Qiming was even kind enough to give her money. But now, he wants to raise you, a blind child. So tell me, why are you depending on our family? Why don’t you follow after Zhao Xiaolian? She’s your mother!”

Wang Guiying was naturally reluctant to say that Zhang Qiming had been wearing a green hat for more than ten years in front of Xiao Ren, but the man was smart enough to read between the lines. What Zhang Hang had concealed for such a long time was revealed by Zhang Mother.

When Zhang Hang was led to the police station by Big Black that day, he had said that his father might not care about him. At the time, those words the youth had said had made Xiao Ren extremely distressed, but he now understood.

He’d truly had nowhere to go.

Seeing Zhang Mother’s current attitude, Xiao Ren was obviously angry. Zhang Hang was so unwilling to talk about Zhang Qiming’s parents that Xiao Ren was afraid that something terrible had happened to the child. Why didn’t Zhang Hang want to go home? Because instead of a home, it was a place full of hidden conflict that would one day come to a head.

Even if he didn’t return, they would eventually reach the breaking point.

Zhang Hang “looked” at Wang Guiying, not knowing how to answer his grandmother’s questions. The reality of him being abandoned was too hard to mention. That day, he had walked out of his house alone, only carrying a box. Zhang Hang shook his head and said, “I didn’t promise Dad to go home with him. If you ask him, he’ll tell you.”

“But you call him Dad!” Hearing the word, Wang Guiying got a headache. She felt that she had been laughing at herself for more than ten years. Standing up, she said to Zhang Hang, “Did you know that because of you, your father is unwilling to get married? Ming Ming is a nice girl who wants to marry him. She’s unmarried, well-educated, and willing to give him children, but he refuses to get married because you still call him father!”

Zhang Hang took a deep breath with a trembling heart. He’d thought he was strong enough to face his grandmother’s accusations, but found that he was still too weak. He looked at Wang Guiying somewhat sadly and said, “So, I don’t even have the right to call him father? But then he will be sad. He raised me for more than a decade, how can I just ignore that?”

“Plop,” the old lady knelt on the ground facing Zhang Hang. “You can let him go. Don’t call him father again, let him be a heartless dog, and allow him to get married! You can do this, can’t you? This old lady begs you!”

Zhang Hang looked up slightly, not pretending to be sad, but because he didn’t want to cry.

Even though he was desperate to.

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^{1. just means the matriarch of the Zhang family, aka Zhang Qiming’s mother↩}