It was unclear what had taken over Jing Tian. Tong Le rushed to punch Jing Tian. Jing Tian blocked him easily. He then uttered coldly, “Ask Nanxing what she has done before you decide whether you want to punch me or her!”
Huh? I put down the hands covering my face and looked at the two men in surprise. Tong Le looked at me. “Did you cheat on him?”
“No!”
“No!” Jing Tian and I said in unison.
Tong Le was confused. He turned to glare at Jing Tian. “Then why did you come here in the middle of the night?” Something dawned on Tong Le. “Because this is what you do when I’m not home? Is that it?” He pointed at Jing Tian and then at me. “Jing Tian, you bastard. You promised you wouldn’t do anything until after Nanxing is twenty-two and after you marry her!” Tong Le swung his fist at Jing Tian.
Jing Tian caught it. He growled angrily, “Nanxing told my mother that you and I are a couple! Now she thinks I’m gay!”
“What?” Tong Le was baffled. Then he turned to roar at me. “Nanxing!”
I grabbed the quilt and disappeared under it. He can’t see me because I’m not here! Please, God, send someone to save me.
Tong Le rolled up his sleeves and walked over. “You have gone far too long without a beating, is it?” He hit my back through the quilt.
I winced in pain.
Tong Le grabbed my quilt and pulled it away. He gnashed his teeth. “How did you come up with that idea? Why did you always have these ridiculous plans to harm your uncle?”
Just as he raised his hand, Jing Tian stopped him. He said impatiently. “You already hit her once. That’s enough.”
Tong Le looked at him in disbelief. “Once is enough? Jing Tian, are you serious? She, I, I, She…” Tong Le stammered from anger.
Jing Tian turned to glare at me. “Well. Aren’t you going to explain yourself?”
Under their gaze, I rolled to the other side of the bed. I put two meters between them, so I should be safe, right? I stood on the carpet and swallowed. “Erm, I really had no choice. Your grandfather and Gu Yan kept feeding these lies to Auntie Lan. Auntie Lan came to me and told me to move out to stay away from you so that I wouldn’t stop you from marrying Gu Yan.”
I was anxious and I felt wronged. In my desperation, two lines of tears fell down my face.
“I didn’t want her to be lied to but I didn’t want to make an enemy out of her either because she is your mother and I don’t want you to be stuck in the middle. So I said I have to stay to look after my little uncle. My mother is gone so I have to worry about his marriage. Plus when I’m around, you two wouldn’t be too intimate. After I found you a little aunt, everything will be fine.”
I stole a glance at the two of them. “I didn’t expect Auntie Lan to believe me. Instead of chasing me away, she told me to go have dinner with her every day. She’s quite lonely by herself. I did try to clarify. I told her that I was lying to her but she refused to believe me! She only wanted to see what she wants to see. But this time, you two came back and walked through the backdoor together. It only made it even harder for me to explain!”
Tong Le’s face was green. “No wonder Mrs. Jing claimed Jing Tian proprietorially once she saw me. It’s all because of you!”