Rebirth Must Be Happy

Chapter 224 [223] Abandoning Home and Leaving Home (Fourth Update, Please Subscribe)
Seeing that he didn't stop her, Xie Wanqing opened the paper bag and saw two stacks of large bills inside. She then looked at Xu Jinhuan.

Xu Jinhuan smiled and said, "Exactly three thousand."

"My parents..."

Xie Wanqing was only halfway through her sentence when she quickly realized, "Xiao Qiang gave it to you?"

"Correct."

Xu Jinhuan nodded with a smile, "Xiao Qiang is silly. He was afraid I would have ulterior motives towards you, so he insisted that I accept it. But I've been accepting it all along. My salary comes from the advertising revenue of 'Flappy Bird,' so it's what I deserve."

He considered it for a moment, then smiled and said, "Sometimes I have rather dark thoughts, so please don't dislike me, sister."

"fine."

Xie Wanqing roughly understood what he meant. Xie Zhiqiang's money naturally came from his parents, and since his parents suddenly gave him so much money, he definitely wanted to find out the reason.

Regardless of Xie Zhiqiang's answer, his parents should know perfectly well where the money went...

These things were easy to think of, but she was somewhat dismissive of Xu Jinhuan's previous words.

Although her parents didn't respect her thoughts on dating, they felt that Ding Wenjie's family was wealthy and could make her happy, while also helping them with their work.

This is a conflict of ideas, and it doesn't mean that the care and love your parents have shown you over the years was fake.

They certainly wouldn't resort to threatening themselves with 1500 yuan a month...

She didn't say anything to Xu Jinhuan. She took the paper bag and left his room, only to find that the living room was empty. Song Xiaohui, Chen Xingzhu, and Xiao Guai were all on the balcony.

"It's raining!"

Song Zhiyu turned around and saw Xie Wanqing coming out. She smiled and reminded her, "Sister Wanqing, are you leaving now? Remember to take an umbrella."

Xie Wanqing said, "Okay, I'll go up and get it."

Song Xiaohui said, "No need to bother, there's one right at the door, just take it, you'll be returning it later anyway."

"Okay, thank you, auntie."

Xie Wanqing didn't refuse. She grabbed an umbrella at the door and was about to leave when Song Xiaohui said again, "Take some of the things we bought in Huangshan..."

"Auntie, I've taken it."

Xie Wanqing was a little touched and explained with a smile, "We bought a lot of them back then, didn't you forget?"

"That's good."

Xie Wanqing took an umbrella from Xu Jinhuan's house, then went back upstairs to get some local specialties she had bought in Huangshan. Because of the rain and the drop in temperature, she also changed her clothes. When she went downstairs, she saw raindrops falling continuously, pattering on the car roof.

She got into her car with an umbrella and drove back home, only to find the place empty and deserted. So she sent a message to Xie Zhiqiang first.

Xie Zhiqiang was playing games at an internet cafe, his parents were at work, and his aunt had gone to buy groceries but returned soon after, chatting with Xie Wanqing. Soon after, Xie Zhiqiang also returned.

"Sis, you went to Huangshan?"

When Xie Zhiqiang saw the local specialties his sister had brought, such as Huangshan sesame seed cakes and Huangshan Maofeng tea, he looked at her in astonishment and asked, "You actually went mountain climbing? Can you even make it to the top?"

"sure."

Xie Wanqing felt a little guilty about her mountain climbing ability, but Xu Jinhuan was her younger brother's classmate, so she tried to say naturally, "I took a lot of photos, I'll send them to you later."

When Xie Zhiqiang asked about the trip, Xie Wanqing didn't dare to say that she went with Xu Jinhuan. However, she was also thinking that she had almost chosen the caption and photos for her WeChat Moments post, and Xu Jinhuan was in the group photo. Her younger brother would still see it, so she was a little embarrassed.

She considered choosing a photo without Xu Jinhuan, but if Xu Jinhuan posted a photo with her in it, then there was no point in her not posting one, since her younger brother would still see it.

Of course she could talk to Xu Jinhuan about it, but she was too embarrassed, afraid that Xu Jinhuan would misunderstand...

After the siblings chatted for a while, Xie's parents finally returned. Upon seeing Xie Wanqing return, Tao Menghua immediately put on a stern face, while Xie Zhanpeng smiled and said, "Qingqing is back? It's good that you're back. Hurry up and move back. Your mother was still talking about you on the way."

Tao Menghua said, "What's the use of me nagging? No matter how much I nag, he's still gone for so long and still won't come home."

"Dad, Mom, I know I was wrong."

When Xie Wanqing saw her parents, she felt a sudden pang of sadness and almost burst into tears. She stood up and apologized softly, "Please don't be angry."

"We were worried about you too."

Seeing this, Tao Menghua's expression softened. After sitting down, she said, "You, how come you're becoming more and more immature as you get older? What's wrong with Ding Wenjie? His family is rich, he's good-looking, and he likes you so much..."

Xie Wanqing had just finished being moved when she heard Ding Wenjie mentioned, and she immediately felt disgusted again.

Xie Zhiqiang couldn't help but interrupt, "Mom, my sister just got home. Can you please not mention that Ding Wenjie?"

What happened to Ding Wenjie?

Seeing that even her usually timid son had interrupted her, Tao Menghua raised her eyebrows and said angrily, "A good man that others could find with a lantern, why does he turn into a scorpion to be avoided when it comes to your sister..."

"OK OK."

Seeing his daughter's bad expression, Xie Zhanpeng quickly interrupted, "Let's not talk about this, let's not talk about this."

Xie Wanqing took a deep breath, trying to suppress her emotions. She got up, picked up the local specialties that were placed beside her, and said softly with a smile, "Dad, I went to Huangshan for a trip. This is Maofeng and Houkui tea that I bought for you. They're not very good, but you and Mom can try them when you have time."

"well."

Xie Zhanpeng smiled, took it, and smelled it.

Xie Wanqing then handed the sesame seed cakes and pastries to Tao Menghua. Tao Menghua sighed again, nodded reluctantly, and then asked, "You went to Huangshan? With whom?"

"With my roommate."

For some reason, Xie Wanqing felt particularly guilty about this topic, especially since her mother had just mentioned Ding Wenjie, and she subconsciously told a lie. The family chatted for a while, and despite the long separation, they were still quite happy. The aunt quickly prepared the meal, and Xie Wanqing and Xie Zhiqiang helped bring it up and ate together.

"Dad, I'll make you a cup of tea."

After dinner, Xie Wanqing took the initiative to make tea. In the past, Xie Zhiqiang would have gone back to his room to play games after dinner, but today he was afraid that his parents and sister would quarrel again, so he stayed and didn't leave.

Xie Wanqing brewed the tea, poured a cup for her parents and younger brother, and poured one for herself as well. She smiled and said, "Smell it, it smells pretty good, doesn't it?"

Xie Zhanpeng smiled and said, "It's alright."

"It's far inferior to the Longjing tea that Ding Wenjie gave to your father."

Tao Menghua took a sip of tea and couldn't help but say again, "Qingqing, it's not that your parents are forcing you, it's just that you're still young and don't understand..."

"mom!"

Xie Wanqing finally couldn't take it anymore, interrupting her mother and staring at her intently, saying, "I don't want to..."

As soon as she spoke, she realized her voice was trembling with tears, so she paused, took a deep breath, and tried to continue, "I don't want to mention him! I don't want to argue with you..."

Do you think I want to argue with you?

Even when they argued before, Xie Wanqing would either cry or threaten to leave; there were very few real arguments, and they rarely even made eye contact.

Although she doesn't say much now, the attitude she expresses and the spirit she displays are far stronger than before she ran away from home.

Tao Menghua looked at her daughter, who seemed to have undergone some kind of transformation for some unknown reason, and was first taken aback, then became even more furious, "Do you want me to be driven to my death by you?"

"Just because I don't want to marry someone I don't like?"

With teary eyes, Xie Wanqing looked at her mother, who had raised and loved her for twenty years, and asked incredulously, "Just because I don't want to marry someone I don't like, am I such a big sin?"

Tao Menghua asked shrilly, "I just don't understand, what's wrong with Ding Wenjie? What makes him unworthy of you? His family background, his character..."

"I do not like him!"

Xie Wanqing's tears streamed down her face, and for the first time in her life, she emphasized to her parents in a somewhat hysterical tone, "I don't like him! I don't like him! Is that reason enough?"

Tao Menghua asked, "So what kind of person do you like? You're so old now, and so many boys have pursued you over the years, who have you ever liked?"

?

Xie Wanqing's eyes widened in disbelief, as if she were seeing her mother for the first time. After a long while, she asked, "From childhood to adulthood, have you ever allowed me to date?"

Tao Menghua choked.

"You always tell me that girls can't date, that they have to respect themselves, and that they can't hang out with boys..."

Xie Wanqing cried and asked back, "When did you ever tell me that I could date?"

Tao Menghua remained silent.

"Qingqing, you can't talk to your mother like that."

Xie Zhanpeng chimed in from the side, "Your mother is only doing this for your own good..."

Xie Wanqing wiped away her tears, said nothing, and did not listen to their words any longer. She got up and walked towards the door.

"You're leaving?"

Tao Menghua was even more furious upon seeing this, "Now that you've left this door, don't ever come back..."

Before she could finish speaking, Xie Wanqing took out the keys from the pocket of the pants she had changed out of when she left the house, and placed the house keys and car keys on the cabinet next to her.

"you……"

Tao Menghua was taken aback, then angrily retorted, "You think you're all grown up now? That you've grown wings and can just fly away to find a better branch? Let me tell you, you're nothing without your parents! You think that saving some money and earning 1500 yuan a month from others is enough for you to live on?"

Xie Wanqing had already reached the door when she heard this, so she stopped, turned around, and looked at her parents with tears in her eyes.

She seemed to be waiting for something terrifying to happen, her body trembling slightly, but she didn't try to escape. Instead, she looked at Tao Menghua with teary eyes, quietly meeting her gaze and waiting for her to continue.

Tao Menghua thought her words had worked and sneered, "That 1500 yuan you get every month is from us giving it to your brother, and then your brother gets it from someone else... Do you think money is so easy to earn in this society?"

Xie Zhiqiang opened his mouth, wanting to explain and ease the atmosphere, but found that his sister didn't even look at him because of his mother's words.

She looked at Xie Zhanpeng calmly, as if she already knew all this.

Xie Zhanpeng sighed, "Qingqing, your parents are only doing this for your own good..."

"Ah!"

Xie Wanqing couldn't help but chuckle when she heard this familiar phrase, which she had heard countless times since childhood.

"why are you laughing?"

Tao Menghua stared at her daughter and asked, "Is it that funny?"

Xie Wanqing did not answer. She took out a paper bag from her other pocket, opened it, took out two stacks of banknotes, and placed them on the table next to her, along with her house keys and car keys.

Then, she turned to Xie Zhiqiang and explained, "This is the money you give Xu Jinhuan every month. He hasn't touched it; he's kept it all."

As she spoke, she didn't look at her parents. She opened the door, seemingly about to leave, but then paused, turned back to her younger brother, and calmly said, "There's a black umbrella in the trunk of that A4 downstairs. I borrowed it from Xu Jinhuan's house. Go get it and return it to him when you have time."

Then, she walked out of the house, just as she had done countless times before, and gently closed the door behind her.

(End of this chapter)