After sending Lin Qianqian out of the house, Pu Sangzhi quickly locked the door again.
Of course, the windows of her home were also completely closed, with no access to the outside world.
Master Cheng merely mentioned to her and her mother that there was a suspicious person at the alley’s entrance.
It didn’t mean this person was targeting their home, it didn’t imply a debt collector, and it didn’t suggest any danger to them.
However, even this slight disturbance was enough to raise their vigilance.
Pu Sangzhi returned to the room where Chen Huifen worked, pulled up a chair and sat down, and began to help Chen Huifen pack up some valuables.
Seeing her nervousness, Chen Huifen knew what she feared and comforted her, "Xiaosang, it might not be debt collectors. Perhaps we’re just overthinking?"
Pu Sangzhi shook her head and responded, "Whether it is or not, we need to observe for a while. What if it is, and I’ve gone off to school, what will you do here alone?"
Pu Sangzhi worried about Chen Huifen being home alone.
Chen Huifen was also worried that should the debt collectors turn up, Pu Sangzhi would be at home.
Each worried about the other, hence, they needed to remain vigilant.
"Mom, last time I found out that Meituan Delivery could order groceries directly, let’s not go out for a week. Let’s order our groceries for the week on Meituan later, and after that, you must ensure you don’t step out the front gate or the second door. At least while I’m not around, make sure you do not step out or open the door for anyone," Pu Sangzhi instructed Chen Huifen.
Pu Sangzhi advised Chen Huifen, "In case, I mean just in case something happens at home, you must call my class teacher. He’ll inform me immediately."
Chen Huifen nodded, pondered for a moment and then said, "But you must also be careful going to school. Xiaofeng will come to pick you up for school, right? And after school, he will bring you back, right? It’s a ten-minute walk, and I’m not at ease with you walking alone."
Usually, Huo Feng would do so every week.
He would pick her up from school, bring her home...
Unfortunately, not this week.
Pu Sangzhi didn’t know whether it was fate playing tricks on her, or heaven punishing her, but just when she needed Huo Feng the most, Huo Feng had abandoned her.
He hadn’t picked her up from school yesterday afternoon, nor had he come to tutor her this afternoon.
If he didn’t contact her, Pu Sangzhi wouldn’t reach out to him either.
So, at this moment, Pu Sangzhi couldn’t be sure whether Huo Feng would come to pick her up on Sunday.
When Chen Huifen kept asking without getting a response, she asked again, "Did you have a fight with Xiaofeng? He didn’t come to see you this afternoon, and yesterday you also came back alone. What happened?"
Pu Sangzhi put down the valuables she was handling and replied, "How would I know what he’s thinking? Maybe he doesn’t want to study anymore. Probably tired of it..."
Chen Huifen couldn’t help feeling anxious, "So will he come to pick you up tomorrow?"
Pu Sangzhi replied, "I don’t know. It doesn’t matter whether he comes or not, I’ll be fine."
Upon hearing this, Chen Huifen said, "If he doesn’t come tomorrow, then mom will take you to school."
Pu Sangzhi responded, "No need. It’s too dangerous for you to come back alone."
Chen Huifen frowned deeply and said sternly, "What are you saying? If it’s dangerous for me to come back alone, isn’t it dangerous for you to go alone? I’m the elder, I have to look out for your safety."
Pu Sangzhi looked up, her gaze defiant as she fixed it on Chen Huifen, "The debt collectors all know you, but they might not recognize me. I can wear a hat, wear a mask, they won’t recognize me. Besides, it might not even be them." Thıs content belongs to 𝘯𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘭•𝔣𝔦𝔯𝔢•𝓷𝓮𝓽
Chen Huifen said, "No need to argue. If Xiaofeng doesn’t come to pick you up tomorrow, I will definitely go with you, that’s the decision, no arguments."
Chen Huifen stared back at her resolutely, her eyes conveying an irrefutable determination.
Mother and daughter were alike in temperament, both stubborn, and once they set their minds to something, it was hard to back down.
Thus, Pu Sangzhi and Chen Huifen argued about this topic for a long time...
Until bedtime, they still hadn’t resolved their argument.
At ten in the evening, Pu Sangzhi went to bed on time.
However, she was somewhat insomniac tonight, tossing and turning in bed for a long time, brooding over thoughts...
Eventually, she might have fallen asleep after one o’clock.
But not long after falling asleep, Pu Sangzhi had a nightmare.
In her dream, back in Shanghai, she was pursued by thugs for debts, driven to desperation, hiding in her home too scared to even venture outside the door or look at it.
During that time, attending school was a luxury for her.
Pu Sangzhi, with such good grades, was forced to give up school, compelled to skip classes continuously...
She dreamed of the two days of the middle school exams, where she sat uneasily in the exam hall, unable to concentrate.
While she was immersed in the examination, her home was being violently vandalized by the debt collectors, and Chen Huifen was brutally beaten up, falling to her knees begging for mercy.
These scenes were so vivid, they moved Pu Sangzhi to talk in her sleep, repeatedly saying, "Don’t, don’t hit..."
The nightmare shifted through several scenes, not just during middle school, but also high school...
Pu Sangzhi dreamed that while she was studying at Longxiang, the debt collectors found their home there, they pried open the door, stormed in and assaulted Chen Huifen.
Taking advantage of her absence, those people brutally bullied Chen Huifen, smashing her head against the wall, the scene was horrifying.
In the dream, Pu Sangzhi received a message and immediately rushed out of the classroom, running down the stairs, heading to Huo Feng’s class, she went to find Huo Feng...
In the dream, she trembled as she grasped Huo Feng’s hand, crying and pleading, "Huo Feng, help me... help my family..."
In the dream, Huo Feng shook off her hand, looking down on her with a sneer, "Asked the wrong person, huh? Didn’t you always ignore me?"
This dream, cruel yet realistic, made Pu Sangzhi weep unconsciously...