Chen Ergou felt guilty towards three types of people in his lifetime. In Zhangjiashan, it was the fellow villagers who had helped his family; at school, it was his classmates to whom he owed money and hadn't paid back yet; and in the big city, it was women like Cao Qianying. Although Xiaoyao's mother was beautiful and elegant, she wasn't enough to make Chen Ergou restrain his nature of being afraid of nothing except for those who would stop at nothing to achieve their own interests. In Chen Ergou's dictionary, such people were called "刁民" (a term used to describe someone who is ruthless and cunning). Xiaoyao's mother was just a little bit related to this type, so not only did Chen Ergou not fear her intimidating aura, but he even had the audacity to think that he could take her down along with Xiaoyao.

  One slap is not enough to make a sound, if Chen Ergou continues to tolerate and retreat, Xiaoyao's mother might still show mercy and let Chen Ergou survive for a few more days. But when she saw this young man dare to make fun of her, it made her furious, but her good upbringing and elegant demeanor kept her calm, only with undercurrents surging. The nearby Xiaoyao and middle-aged man were already so tense that they didn't even dare to breathe. A mature and knowledgeable woman pushed her glasses and said: "Chen Ergou, if you can become someone like Du Yuesheng in twenty years, then you are a real rogue. But sorry, after Du Yuesheng, there is no second Du Yuesheng in China. I'm saying this just to tell you that nowadays being a hoodlum, even if you're big, it's not enough to make me look at you with respect. Yes, I'm just a teacher, but I still look down on you bunch of idle rascals. I don't require Xiaoyao to marry a famous celebrity or a wealthy family, nor do I demand that she marry into a prestigious family. I only ask her not to ruin herself. You, Chen Ergou, looking at you, to be honest, it's not like Xiaoyao has bad eyesight, but at least she's made a mistake. As a mother, I don't blame her, rebellious girls in their youth, if they're too restricted and strict when they're young, will indeed do some irrational things. Chen Ergou, you also shouldn't be so smooth-tongued and playful in front of me, I've had enough of that kind of thing since Xiaoyao's age."

  Chen Ergou is not a shrew, he won't attack people indiscriminately, he thinks that's what a rabbit driven mad or a dog backed into a corner would do. When arguing with others, one should be calm and composed whether they're in the right or not, the worst thing to do is to lose control of oneself. Chen Ergou thought that even if he won this small battle against Xiaoyi's mother, strategically speaking it would still be a big loss. He wisely kept silent, at most he'd just be insulted by this middle-aged woman who was sensitive about her status. Chen Ergou wasn't the kind of man who would prioritize his own satisfaction over Xiaoyi's dignity.

  A slap in the face can't be loud, especially for a woman like Xiaoyao's mother who is very particular about her demeanor. Losing face to someone, especially a younger junior, is not her style. Seeing Chen Ergou retreat, she didn't take advantage of the situation to attack and humiliate him further. Instead, she took a deep breath, carefully sizing up this little girl Zhang Xixi's mouthful of scolding, that good-for-nothing rascal. He was of average height, looked okay, if not for her preconceived notions, his calmness would have even earned some appreciation from her as a teacher noticing a student's occasional flash of brilliance. However, this faint praise only went so far, and there was no way she could accept him becoming Xiaoyao's boyfriend in reality.

  She was observing Chen Ergou, and her husband was too. The elegant and calm middle-aged man seemed to have no strong resistance or disgust towards Chen Ergou. Among the four people, he might be the relatively clearer-headed bystander. When Zhang Xixi described Chen Ergou, he felt that there was something fishy about it. Zhang Xixi wasn't an ordinary girl; a man who could make her both hate and fear him to the point of slandering and hurting him couldn't be simple. How could he just be the good-for-nothing rascal she made him out to be, always getting into fights at bars? He stood up, smiled at Chen Ergou, and nodded, then said to Xiaoyao's mother: "Qinglan, you chat with Xiaoyao, I'll go talk to Fusheng. We have things to discuss, and it's not like we're class enemies; there's no need to make the conversation so tense."

  Arriving at the corridor outside the apartment, a middle-aged man handed Chen Ergou a cigarette, and lit one for himself, smiling: "Fosheng, I hope you can understand a mother's intentions."

  Chen Ergou crouched at the elevator entrance, lit up that Lucky Strike, nodded and said: "Uncle, I really understand. To be honest, even if Auntie spoke more harshly, I wouldn't mind, nor would I get angry, this isn't just politeness. I'm a country bumpkin, I've seen too many old cows protecting their calves."

  "I also came from the countryside."

  "So I understand your difficulties, but the biggest difference between us is probably that I was luckier back then and got into college. For a rural kid at that time, getting into college was like a carp jumping over the dragon gate. That's how I met Xiaoyao's mother. I chased her for seven years, from college to our workplace. It took four years in college and three years at work to finally win her heart. I remember there were no competitors when I was pursuing Xiaoyao's mother, not even one with a strong background. I really fought my way out of the crowd."

  The man said this with a warm and gentle smile, very charming. At the age of 41, his temperament and character had been fully brewed by life. He seemed to be lost in thought and said: "Fú Shēng, do you know why she dislikes people like you? It's because her first love was just like that, similar to Xiǎo Yāo. Now that I think about it, they're really a matching mother-daughter pair. She was deeply hurt by that man, and even now, she may not have fully recovered. I watched with my own eyes as she fell deeply into it and couldn't extricate herself. In the end, she wanted to elope with him, but she paid so much and only got bitter fruit in return. After her heart turned cold, she married me, the most unremarkable of her suitors. So now, she's taking it out on you, looking at you with disdain. Don't take it too seriously; she doesn't really hate you, she's just hating her past self. Otherwise, with my and Xiǎo Yāo's mother's experience, how could we sentence you to death based on a few words from that little girl Zhang Xiangxiang? A young person, meeting once, saying a few words, can basically tell their character."

  Chen Ergou couldn't help but sigh, he really didn't expect that the seemingly rational Xiaoyu's mother was such a sentimental woman back then.

  The man spat out a smoke ring and said, "I'm telling you these words that I've been hiding for twenty years, just because I don't consider you an outsider. When I see you, it's like seeing the young man who hurt my mother, with the same stubbornness and sharp tongue. And also like seeing myself, from a poor background, suffering from cold eyes."

  "Indeed, every family has its own difficult scripture to recite."

  Chen Ergou sighed and said, "When I was young, my grandfather always liked to say that comparing hearts is the Buddha's heart, or that being able to spare a life is better than taking one. When I read books, I thought it was just some useless and outdated stuff. But after coming to Shanghai, I realized it's really like that. Uncle, you'd better call me Ergou again, this name may be rustic but it sounds pleasant to the ear. If you call me Fusheng, I'll feel guilty. Every time I think of him, I get choked up. I'm half a Northeasterner, my grandfather brought someone from the south and moved north, to a small village on the border of Heilongjiang Province. My mother was a local, but that person messed with her and then ran away. He left my mother alone with a big belly, my grandfather liked to drink, but the liquor was too strong, and he had no way to vent his frustrations, so he drank himself to death. My mother brought me and my brother up, I was raised in a medicine jar, causing trouble for my mother every day, she didn't have a good day until this year when she passed away. When I was young, I hated that old man who still thought of me after his death, but now I don't dare to. He left behind a water pipe, and I don't even dare to touch it."

  Chen Ergou's eyes reddened as he said, "I remember that seven days after Grandfather died, he appeared to me in a dream and told me that the cow horn bow at home needed to be moved to a different position, which would bring good fortune to our Chen family. I told Mother about it, and she asked me if I had asked Grandfather how he was doing down there. I said no, and at the time, Mother raised her hand but couldn't bear to slap me, so instead she took me to that grave mound and offered a cup of wine to Grandfather. Later on, when I wanted to ask Grandfather how he was doing down there again, I never had another dream about him."

  Chen Ergou raised his head and let out a deep sigh.

  Some words can be so suffocating that they can actually kill a person.

  "Transient life, transient life."

  Xiao Yao's father read "Floating Life" twice, and accompanied Chen Er Gou to squat down, saying: "Comparing hearts is the heart of Buddha. What a wonderful 'Breaking through the floating life halfway, half-Buddha and half-immortal', this name, not even an illiterate old man can come up with it. Er Gou, you feel apologetic towards the old man, which is normal. I dare say that many people are like you, feeling guilty towards such an old man."

  Chen Ergou leaned against the wall and calmly said: "So now I just want to climb up, like a mad dog."

  Just to let people know that Chen's family has a fleeting life.

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