Su Zhinian, who had not been paying any attention to the movement in his house, gripped his phone silently for a moment before dashing toward the stairs like he had just noticed something.
Running up the stairs, he turned the corner to see Song Qingchun, who was collapsed on the second floor corridor. The girl's face was covered in tears. Her eyes were unfocused, her lips were white, and it appeared like she had just received the worst surprise in the world.
Su Zhinian's footsteps gradually slowed. The phone in his hand was still connected. The customer service personnel could be heard urging, "Sir, hello, are you still there? Sir, do you still wish to book this flight? Sir?"
Su Zhinian pulled back in his shock. He moved the phone away from his ear and ended the call without glancing at the screen. The whole bungalow was submerged into silence. Other than Song Qingchun's muffled cries, there was no other sound.
The time ticked by little by little. The sun outside the window started to set. It was not until the moon rose and the lights of the neighbourhood came on that Su Zhinian moved his creaky limbs toward Song Qingchun.There were only nine steps left, but it took Su Zhinian five minutes to walk up them. He stood before Song Qingchun and looked down at her crying figure before slowly squatting down beside her.
She has heard everything, right? She has to have. Why else would she be crying in such a state? All those years, all that effort to keep it a secret, the nightmare that I've kept hidden from her, eventually, the cat's out of the bag…
An indescribable anxiety and confusion swept through Su Zhinian's body. His eyes darted around nervously before he swallowed deeply and moved his lips. The words that came out of his mouth were surprisingly dry, and they sounded completely unlike him. "Qingchun…"
After saying her name, he already did not know how to continue.
The girl heard his voice and cried even harder. He hesitated for a long time before he raised his finger to touch the tears on her face.
He wanted to help her wipe away her tears, but he noticed how his touch made the girl flinch before she raised her eyes to look at him. The eyes that stared at him were filled with fear, confusion, shock, despair, and absurdity. Lastly, in the bottom of her eyes was a dim glow of hope. The girl suddenly reached out to grab his arms, looked into his eyes earnestly, and asked, "Su Zhinian, everything that I heard just now was a lie, right?"
Su Zhinian's finger stopped in midair. He looked at her face that was filled with anticipation, and he felt like someone had just stabbed his heart repeatedly with a knife. It caused his whole body to be overwhelmed by pain."Su Zhinian, just now, your mother was just joking with you right?" Song Qingchun repeated earnestly, her eyes shining with desperate hope. Su Zhinian averted his head in a hurry because he did not dare to look into her eyes.
"Su Zhinian, you cannot be my father's son, right?
"Su Zhinian?
"Su Zhinian…?
"Su Zhinian, are you really my father's son?"
