Chapter 44: The First Runaway from Home

Liu Jing stood up to Sister Li based on his sheer strength and confidence.
Xixi confronted her mother relying on her courage and stubborn temper.
Though their approaches differed, both proved equally effective.

Wiping away her tears, Sister Li softly sobbed, "What have I done wrong? How have I brought this upon myself? What sin did I commit in my past life to end up with these two obstacles? I work myself to the bone making money, leaving my hometown behind—isn't it all for her future? The hardships I went through back then..."

"When running a household, being too overbearing does no good! Showing too much sharpness is like a double-edged sword; it hurts him and it hurts you too," the grandmother sighed.

"I didn't..." Sister Li tried to defend herself, but the grandmother had no desire to listen.

"Oh, girl, how can you still have the heart to sit here and cry? It's the middle of the night, and the streets aren't safe. Xixi is just a little girl, and all you do is sit here crying. See if your tears can cry her back," the grandmother said as she stood up. Without even putting on her coat, she grabbed a flashlight and headed out the door.

"Your dream is not necessarily her dream. Your choice is not necessarily her choice. The future you want for her is not necessarily the future she desires. As parents, one must plan far ahead for their children's sake. That saying is true, but it depends on the circumstances," Liu Jing left behind these words before following her out.

"Am I really that much of a failure..." Sister Li muttered in self-deprecation, then wiped away her tears. "Hey! Look at them, taking turns lecturing me now."

Believing the girl was merely trying to scare her, she soon grew too unsettled by the sound of voices calling out from outside and could no longer remain seated. "Xixi..."

Clatter...

The lively birthday banquet, not yet tidied up, was now utterly desolate.
The incandescent bulb still glowed brightly, and the teapot continued to vent wisps of steam...

Sister Li soon realized that the grandmother and Liu Jing were only the beginning of a series of lectures directed at her.
That night, none of the friends and family could find any peace.

The younger aunt had given chase immediately, but how could she possibly match Xixi's familiarity with the residential compound?
Back then, the compound was not particularly spacious, with twists and turns everywhere. In no time at all, the girl vanished from the aunt's field of vision.

"Xixi... Xixi..." No matter how frantically she called out, the little girl did not reply.

Once Xixi made up her mind to run away from home, how could anyone expect to catch her so easily? Her temper was just that stubborn.

Neighbors, colleagues, relatives, friends, and the entire An family—everyone who could possibly be mobilized went out that night.
Even Zhang Min, who had not yet returned to the hotel, immediately turned back upon receiving the news.

Every friend or family member who crossed paths with Sister Li offered a few words; some offered comfort, some expressed confusion, and others delivered stern lectures.

Especially the An family, who were like ants on a hot pan, practically scolding Sister Li to tears.
The grandparents were still unaware that their son and daughter-in-law were talking about divorce; neither of the couple had mentioned it.

Finding the child came first; everything else took a backseat.
A girl of eight or nine running away from home was truly absurd, yet deeply worrying.

Xixi's classmates often heard Liu Jing call her a dummy, but in reality, she was far from stupid.
Her running away from home was not a genuine escape, but rather a calculated strategy.

School, classmates' homes, relatives' houses, piano lessons, calligraphy classes...
Everyone searched every single place Xixi frequented, and even the police assisted in the investigation.

Sister Li wept even harder, while Teacher An wore a dark expression as he searched every location one by one.
Liu Jing grew anxious as well. Together with Zhang Min, they even went to Yao Beina's home.

"Woodenhead, don't panic, stay calm. Think carefully—is there anywhere she particularly likes to go?" Zhang Min comforted him.

"We've already checked everywhere else. Could she..." A sudden thought struck Liu Jing. There was one place they hadn't checked.

"Sister Min, wait here for me. Don't wander off, lest you get lost too," he instructed before breaking into a sprint.

There was one spot no one had looked, and he had overlooked it as well.
In hindsight, the gesture Xixi made before leaving was not meant to sever ties with him at all; it was clearly a secret signal addressed to him.

The grandmother's house had a bicycle shed cluttered with miscellaneous items—things too precious to throw away, yet items whose use hadn't been contemplated for millennia.

Xixi was hiding right in there. The small hours of the morning brought a biting chill. She curled up into a ball, covered herself with a tarpaulin, and shivered uncontrollably.

"You really know how to hide, playing hide-and-seek like this. There are mice in there, you know," Liu Jing said, letting out a sigh of relief. As long as she was safe, anything else would do.

Xixi emerged from the corner, sniffing her nose and putting on a haughty air. "You always call me a dummy, but who knows who the real dummy is? It took you this long to think of this place."

Liu Jing took off his coat and draped it over the little girl's shoulders. "Weren't you running away from home? If I'd found you so quickly, where would the sense of accomplishment be?"

"I don't want them to get a divorce, and I don't want to go to America. You're going to fix this," Xixi demanded directly.

"Fine! But you have to promise me three conditions, and I won't make you do anything against chivalry and morality... Holy crap, An Feng, that's a collector's item! What are you doing?!" Before Liu Jing could finish his sentence, he saw Xixi pull a photo album out from the pile of debris, making a motion to tear it.

"Oh, what did you just say? My brain is slow; I didn't quite catch that," Xixi blinked innocently.

"Two conditions, not a single one less... One, just one! Fine, you win, unconditional." Liu Jing surrendered unconditionally. Anyone bold enough to run away from home would certainly not hesitate to tear up his photo album.

"Shameless, can't even wear your clothes properly," Xixi tossed the album back to Liu Jing. The page she had flipped open featured swimsuit photos of Zhang Min and Joey Wong.

Sister Li had indeed confiscated that batch of photos last time, but he could always print new ones. He had simply replenished the collection.
However, a few photos could never be replaced because Sister Li had permanently deleted them from the camera.

A pang of heartache crossed Liu Jing's face. Out of all the pages, she just had to tear that one. Such a perfect photograph was now flawed forever.
Asking those two to pose for another picture like that probably wouldn't happen again.

The two youngsters conspired in the bicycle shed for a moment longer before returning to the fold.

Once the child was found, everyone breathed a sigh of relief and gradually dispersed.
The final round of lecturing Sister Li did not come from the grandparents, but rather from the local police officers.

Student An Feng's first-ever runaway adventure thus came to an end, giving everyone a thorough taste of her fiery temper.

Everyone else went home to rest, but the family of four could not. Because Xixi felt unwell, they checked her into the hospital. What had initially been a pretense turned out to be a genuine illness—she had caught a cold from the chill and developed a fever.

Thus, another busy night ensued.

When everything finally quieted down, Xixi lay in her hospital bed, Liu Jing peeled an apple, and Teacher An and Sister Li sat in silence, exchanging no words.

Breaking the quiet, Liu Jing shot Xixi a meaningful look and asked, "When are you two filing for divorce?"

"Oh, Dad, Mom, my head hurts so much," Xixi cried out in feigned agony, and Teacher An hurriedly rushed to her side to tend to her.

Liu Jing curled his lips in disdain. One could tell at a glance that she lacked any acting talent; it looked utterly fake.
Sister Li, having studied acting and received special training from film crews, easily saw through the charade.

She was torn between anger and amusement, which finally dissolved into a soft sigh. "I'll go to my work unit tomorrow to submit my resignation, and I'll let Wenqiong know. From now on, I won't accept any acting roles, and commercial gigs will have nothing to do with me either. Whether it's as a dancer or a film actress, I'm retiring from the industry to take proper care of Xixi and Woodenhead."

Through this ordeal, she had come to realize many problems. Setting aside marital issues, she had spent all these years rushing about and completely neglected her child's upbringing.

"You guys should still get a divorce!" Liu Jing advised once more.

Sister Li felt a surge of annoyance. *I've already lowered my pride to speak softly, isn't my attitude obvious enough? And you're still pushing for a divorce—this brat really needs a beating.*

"Ahem, Liu Jing, why don't you head home first?" Teacher An found the situation increasingly difficult to handle, especially now that his wife had finally spoken in such a conciliatory tone.

"Sister Li, I'm doing this for your own good; Uncle An won't be able to control you in the future. Uncle An, I'm doing this for your good too; Sister Li's career won't affect you anymore," Liu Jing said, handing the peeled apple to Xixi.

"We are not getting a divorce," Sister Li declared coldly.

"Her business doesn't affect me much anyway," Teacher An scratched his head, failing to mask his joy.

"I've read the relevant government documents; you'll never make it to department leadership level in this lifetime anyway, so it really doesn't affect you much," Liu Jing nodded sagely.

Teacher An's face turned dark. Was this something a human being would say? Calling his career prospects mediocre—was he treating him like a nobody?

"I finally see it clearly. Sooner or later, I'll either be choked to death by you or driven to an early grave by your Sister Li," Teacher An grumbled in exasperation.

Xixi crunched on her apple, her eyes curving into crescent slits as she smiled. "What about me? What about me?"

"Sooner or later, you'll scare us to death."

"Hahaha..."