BL - One Night In Pingjing

Hua Zhendan stared at her. She wore a simple worn out purple T-s.h.i.+rt on a baggy trouser. Her thinning hair was a dull black color that flapped around her shoulders messily. She had crinkles on the corner of her eyes and little wrinkles on her face. Hus Zhendan had seen these kinds of common looking women on the strength many times but had never stopped to consider the fact that his birth mother might be one of them. He had always pictured the word "mother" to represent a sophisticated, never-aging, well-dressed woman.

"h.e.l.lo?" The girl"s mother called again in an attempt to draw Hua Zhendan"s attention to her.

Hua Zhendan cleared his throat and returned his attention to the present. Pointing to his car, he said, "I locked my car keys inside the car. And she happened to pa.s.sed by."

The girl"s mother gave the girl a knowing look. "Tell me, Little Juan were you bothering this man?"

"Of course not." She shook her head. "You see, he didn"t just lock his car keys inside his car. He also locked his wallet and phone, so he can"t call anyone for help. I was just lending a helping hand like you said I always should."

The girl"s mother brushed the girl"s head affectionately. "That"s very good." Facing Hua Zhendan, she said, "My husband will know what to do when he returns. Please come inside with us."

Hua Zhendan looked from mother to daughter. Since there were two people present, the offer was now a lot less inappropriate and very kind. He had never met anyone who offered help to strangers just for the sake of it. He smiled politely and followed them into the house.

Inside the house was exactly how Hua Zhendan had imagined it would be. The chairs were worn from years of continued usage. The wooden coffee table had stains of different colors, shapes, and sizes with one small flower vase sitting on it. The curtains were plain and boring, the wall"s paint, worn and dirty. It reminded him of a rundown hostel he found in Pingjing when he was looking for a place to stay.

"My husband"s name is Hua Bochang, I"m Hua Lin and our daughter is Hua Juan. What"s your name?" The woman asked after he had taken his seat.

"I"m... w.a.n.g Li." Hua Zhendan said. If this mother and daughter pair were kind to him without knowing his ident.i.ty, then perhaps, they didn"t need to know yet. Perhaps, he could see the kind of people they were and be able to judge them from that. Instead of judging them as the people who abandoned him.

"Then, w.a.n.g Li. Please make yourself comfortable. My husband will help you find a solution for your car when he returns."

"Okay, Aunty. Thank you." He replied with a small, polite smile.

Making himself comfortable like he had been asked to do, Hua Zhendan had watched a show on the small, box TV in the living room. He woke up and immediately found himself wondering when he fell asleep. The lovely aroma of fresh food wafted into his nostrils, causing his tummy to rumble. He immediately felt embarra.s.sed because he could not afford to buy dinner. Not with his wallet locked away in the car. As he stretched his legs, a man"s deep, but lively voice greeted him.

"You must"ve had a long day. You didn"t look comfortable on that couch, but you slept so soundly."

"Good evening, Uncle." Hua Zhendan greeted the man who he quickly recognized as Hua Bochang.

"Good evening," the man replied politely.

Hua Zhendan stared at him meaningfully. He didn"t want to impose by asking for a solution to his car, but he wondered if the man had done anything about it.

"About your car," Hua Bochang said. "I"m sorry, but I couldn"t find do anything about it today. The mechanic I found doesn"t work today and wouldn"t change his mind about it. He, however, promised to come by first thing tomorrow morning."

"Oh!" Feeling distraught, Hua Zhendan lowered his head. He was hungry and didn"t have a place to stay. Is this how poor people feel?

Like he had been reading his mind, Hua Bochang said, "You can spend the night here. You should also have dinner with us when it"s ready. You don"t need to worry about anything."

Hua Zhendan suddenly felt overwhelmed with grat.i.tude. People weren"t this kind in the real world, were they? He was a complete stranger to these people for G.o.d"s sake. He couldn"t even pretend to be modest and refuse any of Hua Bochang"s offers, he was too broke for that. "I... Really appreciate this, Uncle. Don"t worry, I"ll sleep right here on this couch."

"Nonsense. You"ll sleep in Hua Juan"s room. She"ll sleep on the couch."

Hua Zhendan widened his eyes. "No, I couldn"t do that to her?"

"Hua Juan?" Hua Bochang shouted her name at the top of her voice.

Hua Juan hurried into the living room from the kitchen. "Yes, father?"

"Do you mind if this stranded, young man sleeps in your room while you take the couch?"

The girl shook her head hurriedly. "He can"t sleep on the couch. He"s a guest after all."

Hua Zhendan smiled at the innocent girl.

The girl picked up the flower vase from the middle of the table. "Mother says it"s dinner time." Staring at Hua Zhendan, she said, "She also insists that you eat with us."

Hua Zhendan smiled and nodded. The girl returned to the kitchen.

"Sorry, but we all sit cross-legged around this table to eat. I hope you can manage." Hua Bochang said.

Hua Zhendan nodded. "Of course. Thanks for your hospitality."

"You should taste mother"s shrimps. They"re the best you"ll ever have." Hua Juan said as she placed a covered bowl on top of the table.

Hua Zhendan shook his head. "I"m sorry. I"m allergic to shrimps."

Just then, the sound of gla.s.s shattering echoed from the kitchen.

Hua Zhendan looked towards the kitchen in concern while Hua Juan hurried to meet her mother.

Hua Bochang cleared his throat nervously. With a false smile. "Don"t worry about it. It"s fine. She just happens to know someone who"s allergic to shrimps."

***

After dinner, Hua Zhendan sat down on the veranda of the apartment his parents lived in. Taking in fresh air and wondering how anybody could be so kind to a stranger. It all felt too good to be true.

Soon, Hua Lin appeared and sat beside him.

"Thanks for dinner. And all your kindness really."

"That"s okay." Hua Lin said with a smile. "Actually, eight out if ten people in this neighborhood would treat you in the same way. It"s just how we live here."

Hua Zhendan stared into the distance with a smile on his face. Be careful what you wish for? He had wished to be surrounded by kindness and somehow, that just happened to come true. If he wished that he and Xuan Tianyi were in the past when they were happy just being with each other, would that happen as well? He sighed at the thought of it.

"My daughter told me about your conversation from this afternoon." Hua Lin broke the silence. "A woman being forward with a man. That"s a very modern way to look at things."

"I apologize if you think I told her the wrong thing. But times are changing and the young women of tomorrow needn"t suffer the same as the women of yesterday."

"You"re a very smart young man, aren"t you?" Hua Lin asked, looking at Hua Zhendan with a look in her eyes that could easily be interpreted as fondness.

Hua Zhendan only smiled in reply.

"I have a son too, you know?" Hua Lin asked.

Hua Zhendan froze. He hasn"t thought she would bring that up.

Hua Lin continued, "I like to think my little treasure grew up to be a smart young man as well. I imagine you two are around the same age now."

Hua Zhendan cleared his throat. Knowing the answer to his question, he still asked. "What happened to him?"

"He was born with a heart problem, you see?" Hua Lin said. "My husband and I took him to the hospital for treatment, but couldn"t afford the fee. After asking our families, friends and doing everything we could, the money we raised still hadn"t gone halfway. While I was asleep, my husband did the stupidest thing. He took the money and gambled it in an effort to double it. We lost everything."

"..."

"I decided that we leave our son at the hospital and not go in to meet him. Hua Bochang didn"t have a say in it because he had already messed up."

"..."

"I just thought that if the hospital saw us, they might throw us out and refuse to attend to our boy. But perhaps, they"d take care of him if we do not show up. This kind nurse used to give me updates about my son"s condition and would take my food to him pretending it was hers.

"One day, she told me that a rich lady had taken an interest in my son and was going to pay for his treatments.

"..."

"I located the woman, approached her and explained my predicament to her so she wouldn"t think I intentionally abandoned my son.

"She told me that she wanted to adopt him. She also said that even if I refused that she adopted him, she would understand and would still pay for his treatments because in the short time she had known him, she had grown to love him. She said a lot of things and convinced me that it was his good if she adopted him as she could give him everything he would ever need.

"I agreed under the condition that she let me keep in touch with him."

Hua Zhendan had never heard any of this before. "Did she agree to that?" He asked.

Hua Lin nodded. "She did. But a little while after the adoption and treatment, she told me she had sent him outside the country to school so I couldn"t meet him. She sent me his pictures every holiday for about two years until she finally stopped."

"Why did she stop?"

"I went to look for her to ask her. She said she didn"t want to confuse him as to whom his mother actually was. The one who had given birth to him and abandoned him or the one who had stood by him and taken care of him. She took out a restraining order on me and my husband and even arrested me once."

Hua Lin cleaned wiped tears from her eyes as she spoke.

Hua Zhendan got very restless watching her cry.

She continued, "With time, I discovered that my son was in the country and was attending a private school. I went there to see him for myself. Hiding behind a tree, I saw her drop him off. She hugged him like he was going away for years even though it would only be for a couple of hours. I realized that she may not be his birth mother, but she loved him a lot. I loved him too, but I couldn"t give him the kind of life he could give her"

Hua Lin seemed to had gathered herself and was no longer crying. "Knowing my son was loved and being taken care of, I was finally able to let go and move on. It doesn"t matter how you look at it. I still abandoned my child, didn"t I?"

"What if he comes back to you someday?"

"I don"t think he"ll remember he was adopted. He was so little and was always sick. He must have no memories of us. I also don"t think she"ll ever tell him he was adopted. If she does, she won"t tell him the full story. My son will never forgive me and he"ll never come looking for me. If I ever go looking for him, he might think it"s because I want his money and he won"t be wrong to think that. I"m just comforted knowing he"s happy wherever he is. I pray for him every single day, you know?"

Hua Zhendan sighed. This story was something he hadn"t heard before. Not even from Su Yang. He needed a little proof."If I"m not being intrusive, can I see the letters and pictures Shen Rui sent you?"

Hua Lin looked at him with petrified eyes. "How... How did you know her name?"

"You mentioned it."

She shook her head wildly. "No, I didn"t. I never say her name to protect my son"s ident.i.ty."

Hua Zhendan sighed. He was cornered. "I know her name because I... I am Shen Rui"s son, Hua Zhendan."