Qi Taiguo rushed home from the military, ascending the stairs to their apartment door. It was only then that he deliberately slowed his pace, straightened his face and thought, "I can’t let Cheng Su continue to be so capricious, I can’t let her think I’m without a temper and will always yield to her."
Standing at the kitchen entrance, he purposefully glanced around, no one was there.
Then, stepping inside the house, he announced loudly, "I’m back!"
Mother Qi was playing with Xiao Bao on the sofa, while Qi Fenglian was about to rinse rice to cook with the electric rice cooker, but Cheng Su was nowhere to be seen.
Qi Taiguo checked the guest room, then peered into their bedroom. Cheng Su was not there; not even a shadow, which made him frown.
"Stop looking, she hasn’t returned yet!" Qi Fenglian said, "Go check the restaurant, see if she’s there, at least bring her back, it’s almost dinnertime!"
Qi Taiguo stubbornly retorted, "She’s not a child, does she need to be picked up? She’ll naturally come back when it’s mealtime!"
Qi Fenglian shook her head, ignoring him, thinking one must taste the bitterness of loss to appreciate what they have.
While Qi Taiguo firmly believed Cheng Su would return by mealtime, it was seven o’clock in the evening, and she still hadn’t come back, his expression growing heavier.
"Stop waiting, let’s eat. She’s probably having dinner at the restaurant," said Qi Taiguo.
"I’ve been saying not to wait; it was you who wanted to. How could someone her age go hungry or thirsty?" Mother Qi said with a sneer.
Qi Fenglian quickly put a chicken leg in her bowl, trying to change the subject, "Mom, taste this chicken, is the flavor enough for you?"
Qi Taiguo’s expression was ugly.
Time ticked by. At nine in the evening Cheng Su had still not returned home, and Qi Taiguo began to feel restless. Qi Fenglian urged him again, "It’s getting late. Even if she could come back on her own, it’s not safe. Go and fetch her!"
Mother Qi was about to open her mouth, but seeing her son’s face, she remained silent, just muttering softly to herself.
"This woman is just too willful. Mom, big sister, you go to bed first. I’m going out to check on her," Qi Taiguo said disparagingly on purpose.
Qi Fenglian didn’t call him out, merely covering her mouth to hide a chuckle.
Just when Qi Taiguo was about to head out, Cheng Su came in with her hands full of big and small bags.
On seeing her, Qi Taiguo furrowed his brow and asked, "Why are you so late?"
"Yes, Taiguo’s wife, have you eaten yet? Taiguo was about to go pick you up!" Qi Fenglian approached and said, "I’ve saved some food for you, shall I heat it up?"
"Big sister, I’ve eaten already. I ate at the restaurant, no need to fuss," Cheng Su replied, then carried her things into the guest room.
She hadn’t looked at Qi Taiguo or responded to him the entire time.
Only after she entered the room did Mother Qi react, "See, didn’t she just bring a whole bunch of stuff back? Does she think money grows on trees?"
"Mom, can you help me put Xiao Bao to sleep? We’re leaving early tomorrow, let’s get some rest," pushed Qi Fenglian, ushering the elder into the room, then she signaled Qi Taiguo, "Aren’t you going to go and coax your wife?"
Qi Taiguo was bewildered, standing in the living room, unsure whether to sit or stand, scratching his head. He wanted to go to Cheng Su’s room but felt it wasn’t right.
Before he could make up his mind, Cheng Su walked past him with her clothes and headed straight into the bathroom.
She never glanced at him, never said a word, as if he were invisible.
There it was again, her cold blade!
Qi Taiguo felt an uncomfortable blockage in his heart, finding Cheng Su’s cold treatment worse than being shouted or cursed at. This frigid silence cut the deepest and was the most painful to bear.