Madam Ma was simple-minded, so she did not notice anything. She just lamented. “What a great granddaughter she is. Not only does she keep her grandmother company, but she’s also helping her count the money.”
Madam Lu wiped a tear off her eyes and replied, “Yeah, right.”
She felt throbbing pain rippling through her leg. However, since one could not make an omelet without breaking an egg, she decided to let it go this time.
After Xu Wei sent her friends away, she then turned to Fu Zhi and said with a stern face, “You did a good job today.”
Then, she stretched her arm forward and added, “Give me the cheques. They never lie, so you don’t have to count them again.”
“I know,” Fu Zhi replied. She took a look at the stack of cheques in her hands and handed the extra 2,000 yuan to Madam Lu. “I just need the portion that I won. As for the rest, you can take it to buy what you want.”
????
‘What the hell? How dare she claim my money for herself?!’
Even though Madam Lu was scolding Fu Zhi inwardly, she did not allow her true emotions to surface on her face. She took a deep breath as she tried to calm down. Then, she said, “Zhizhi, this money is my lifeline reserve. I’m going to use it to buy myself a coffin. Can you give it back to me?”
Fu Zhi stuffed the stack of cheques away. She was a bit disappointed that Madam Lu had not exploded into a fit of rage on the spot.
There were 24 hours in a day, and she only needed to take her medicine 10 times.
“You’ll live as long as heaven exists,” Fu Zhi said. “Oh yeah, actually, you can tell me anything that’s on your mind.”
She paused for a moment before adding, “For example, if it really hurts that much, you can tell me to push you instead of kicking you.”
Madam Lu was stumped. Something inside of her snapped, and she could not keep her cool anymore.
“There’s nothing I want to tell you,” Madam Lu said after taking a deep breath. She did not want to see Fu Zhi anymore so she said, “Now get out of my house!”
Fu Zhi did not want to stay either. “Alright.”
However, before she left, she turned her head to Madam Lu and reminded her, “It was a great pleasure working with you. I hope we can cooperate again in the future.”
Madam Lu did not know what to say.
*
Fu Zhi followed Xu Wei back to their house.
There was a small automatic mahjong table in their house. They usually took it out and had some fun during the Chinese New Year.
After Lu Yumo gathered his family so they could play mahjong together, he pulled Xu Wei to the side to discuss how to make his sister look less bad during the game.
Before Fu Zhi headed to the second floor, she went to pick up the sky-blue chair from the living room.
This chair was different from the other chairs in the house. It was an ergonomic chair specially ordered by Lu Yushen for her after she had fallen down the stairs several days ago.
Fu Zhi liked the chair very much, as it was very comfortable, but that was not the only reason. Another reason she liked the chair very much was that her second brother had written both their names on the chair with rhinestones.
When Fu Zhi entered their gaming room, Xu Wei and Lu Yumo were not there yet. Fu Zhi looked around and saw Lu Yushen, who was sitting quietly in a corner of the room. She gave him a smile, causing his ears to turn red in embarrassment.
He found his sister really adorable and obedient, just like a harmless little lamb. He had no idea why but he had a hunch he should give up on his dream of collecting a mountain of rhinestones. He wanted to use the rhinestones to build a palace for his sister.
As he was immersed in his own thoughts, Xu Wei and Lu Yumo entered the room.
Lu Yumo ran Fu Zhi through the rules. Then, as he was shuffling the tiles, he reminded everyone, “We can transfer the money through WeChat. Mom and I will take care of you two, and no one should welch on his or her debt.”
He sounded as if his victory was certain.
Fu Zhi took a glance at him, and her eyes glinted when she saw that he was giggling.
The corner of her lips curled up a little as she said, “Remember what you said.”
Very soon, the four of them began to play.
Whenever it was Fu Zhi’s turn, she would discard a tile without a second thought.
Lu Yumo glanced at her and smiled. “Remember to ask me if you have any questions about the rules. Don’t be so shy, alright?”
However, deep inside, he thought, ‘Better not ask me any questions, or I might not be able to hold back the demon inside me!’
Fu Zhi nodded and replied calmly, “Alright, brother.”
“It’s bad for your health to stay inside your room and play games all day. We should really gather up and play mahjong more often in the future. You see? I’m so nice to you!”
That said, Lu Yumo was beyond happy deep inside. ‘Ha ha ha! Yes, yes! Two more rounds and I’ll have enough money to buy the things I want!’
Fu Zhi replied softly, “Alright then.”
She sounded as if she was comforting a child.
Lu Yumo was left speechless.
His cheeks turned red, and his heart skipped a beat. At the same time, he had no idea why, but a bad hunch started stirring at the bottom of his heart.
A few hours later, he felt that something was wrong. If Fu Zhi had won the first two rounds out of luck, then how the hell had she kept winning for the past 2 hours?
Lu Yumo made a rough calculation and realized he had lost about 8,000 yuan to Fu Zhi.
“Mom!” When he realized he was going to lose again, he pulled Xu Wei closer and whispered into her ear, “Give me a 2-bamboo tile.”
“Ah?”
“I said give me a 2-bamboo tile!”
“Are... Are you sure?”
Lu Yumo did not need to look to know what his mother’s expression looked like right now.
“If you don’t give it to me, I’ll jump off a building!” Lu Yumo said exasperatedly.
Xu Wei rolled her eyes and did as she was told.
Lu Yumo’s eyes shone. He pushed his tiles down and shouted, “I win!”
The window in the room was open, and the air was filled with the fragrance of gardenias.
Fu Zhi looked at Lu Yumo and Xu Wei with a curious gaze. Then, she said, “This round doesn’t count.”
Before her voice could die away, she heard Lu Yumo addressing her in a coquettish voice. “Zhizhi...”
He then said, “How can you say it doesn’t count? Can you not be so strict? You have already won so many rounds. Can you let me win this round?”
Fu Zhi did not know what to say.