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墨書 Inktalez
As Wen Sheng rode along, images of Wen Xin kept flashing through his mind, each utterance of "Er Ge" echoing in his ears. Tall poplar trees lined both sides of the road, creating a serene atmosphere. Although the path was unpaved and had been muddy from recent rains, making it difficult to navigate, Wen Sheng pedaled vigorously on his old bicycle. Sunlight filtered through the gaps in the treetops, casting dappled golden light on the uneven ground where puddles lingered. It wasn't too hot in the morning, but Wen Sheng was still sweating profusely. He wiped his forehead with the sleeve of his blue and white shirt, took a deep breath, and continued to pedal hard.
When he was nearly fifteen miles away from Aunt's house, Wen Sheng grew tired. He leaned his bike against a large tree by the roadside and looked up at the sun, which was approaching its zenith. After riding for so long, he felt quite hungry and thirsty, and the heat was becoming uncomfortable. The sunlight spilled onto the ground in bright patches, and Wen Sheng glanced at his clothes, feeling somewhat shabby. His family was indeed poor, which explained why Aunt and some relatives looked down on him. During the New Year visits to their homes, he could sense that their smiles were often forced.
What could be happening with Wen Xin? Why hadn’t she called home? Even a message sent through someone would suffice!
Around two o'clock in the afternoon, Wen Sheng finally arrived at Aunt's house. He wiped the sweat off his face and looked at the tall entrance gate adorned with a bright red iron door flanked by two green stone lions. The courtyard wall of Aunt's house was quite high—about two meters! The door was locked, and as Wen Sheng looked up, he noticed that the sun was already tilting towards the west.
There was no one home at Aunt's place; it seemed they hadn't eaten lunch yet. His stomach grumbled incessantly. Fortunately, there was a black locust tree by the roadside near Aunt's house, its leaves lush and providing a decent amount of shade. Wen Sheng parked his bicycle and found a scrap of paper to sit on under the tree while waiting for someone from Aunt's family to return.
After about half an hour of waiting, his cousin Jia Ao drove back with Auntie Jin; Aunt and his younger cousin were also in the car. They must have gone to the market since they were carrying quite a few items. His cousin had a big bag filled with beautiful summer clothes and some fruits.
"Jia Ao!" As the car pulled up in front of Aunt's house, Wen Sheng called out to his cousin.
Jia Ao was Wen Sheng's second cousin, one year younger than him. He was dark-skinned and chubby, giving him a strong appearance. He was also slightly taller than Wen Sheng, with small but spirited eyes and a mouth that often got him into trouble; some funny guys in the village had given him an amusing nickname: "Mouth!" Despite being talkative and friendly, he had a knack for quick speech—hence "Fast-talking Jia Ao."
Today, Jia Ao wore a black-and-white patterned short-sleeve shirt paired with white trousers and a shiny black belt cinched around his waist. His neat crew cut complemented his black sunglasses, giving him quite a youthful look. Spotting Wen Sheng from afar made him break into a grin.
Auntie Jin pulled up close to Wen Sheng and suddenly hit the brakes. Jia Ao stood up on his bike while holding onto the handlebars and craned his neck: "Bro! Why did you come over now? Have you eaten?"
"Just arrived! I had something before leaving home!" Wen Sheng replied playfully.
"Haha!" Jia Ao chuckled lightly. "Let’s go home; my mom will make us something to eat! I haven't eaten anything since we just got back from market! Why aren’t you getting down to open the door?" He turned around to glare at Jia Yu.
"Wen Sheng Ge can't go open the door!" Jia Yu twisted her neck and rolled her eyes.
“Guests are here, and you, you little brat, don’t know how to behave at all!” Jia Ao said with a stern face.
“Hmph!” Jia Yu turned her face away, ignoring Jia Ao and showing no intention of getting up to open the door.
“Here’s the key! Go open the door! Your sister, don’t mind her!” Aunt handed a set of keys tied with a red string to Wen Sheng from the car.
“Okay!” Wen Sheng took the key to the front door, feeling somewhat reluctant to go open it.
“I’ll do it!” Jia Ao quickly jumped out of the car and ran over to take the key from Wen Sheng.
Wen Sheng stood aside while his cousin opened the door and invited him inside. After waiting in the yard for a moment, he went back to drive the car in.
Aunt and Jia Yu also got out of the car with their things. Jia Yu was very happy; Aunt had bought her many beautiful clothes at the market.
“Brother, hurry up and open the door! I’m so tired!” Jia Yu called out to Jia Ao while carrying two bags of red clothes.
Jia Ao glanced back at her without saying a word; Jia Yu was too spoiled. Aunt had two sons and one daughter, and she doted on this daughter immensely. Jia Yu was a year older than Wen Xin and was currently in fourth grade. At school, she didn’t learn much but was always comparing her clothes and food with her classmates.
Jia Yu was also quite pretty, about the same height as Wen Xin but slightly plumper. Her round face was fair and chubby, making her very adorable. Yet she constantly imitated the girls on television by shouting about wanting to lose weight and maintain a good figure. However, she loved good food, snacks, and disliked any form of labor. As a result, her weight continued to rise steadily like a flourishing economy.
“Wen Sheng! Do you think my clothes are pretty?” Jia Yu tugged at her green top and pink skirt, smiling as she asked Wen Sheng.
“They look great! Really great!” Wen Sheng replied with a smile.
"Red and green make a terrible combination! It's beautiful! Truly beautiful!" Wen Sheng thought to himself, though his face betrayed none of his feelings.
"Look at the dress Mama bought me today! It's even prettier!" Jia Yu exclaimed, shaking her bag to show off her prize to Wen Sheng.
"Come inside!" Jia Ao called out as he opened the door to the main room and reached for Wen Sheng's hand.
"Yu, go pour your brother some water!" Aunt instructed Jia Yu.
"I don't want to!" Jia Yu replied stubbornly.
"Ao! You go do it!" Aunt chuckled as she directed Jia Ao.
"Okay!" Jia Ao agreed, pouring several bowls of water and placing them on the table.
"Here, have an apple first!" Jia Ao said, pulling out two apples from his bag. He wiped one with a towel and took a bite before handing the other to Wen Sheng.
"Don't give it to him! Mama bought it for me!" Jia Yu shouted, her voice sharp as she snatched the apple from Jia Ao's hand and began eating it herself.
Wen Sheng's face turned red at that moment.
"How can you be so inconsiderate! I'll hit you!" Jia Ao shouted angrily, raising his right hand toward Jia Yu.
"Touch her and see what happens!" Aunt warned, pointing at Jia Ao. "You don't even know how to let her be, do you?"
"Look at what you've spoiled him into!" Jia Ao turned his face away.
"Haha!" Jia Yu made a face at Jia Ao, feeling quite pleased with himself.
"I'm going to make dinner. You two keep talking, and give your brother one!" Aunt said with a smile, trying to coax Jia Yu.
"Just give him one!" Jia Yu replied cautiously.
He rummaged through his pocket and pulled out a slightly green apple, handing it to Wen Sheng. "You can have this!"
"Thank you!" Wen Sheng accepted the apple, which matched the color of his own face at the moment, and then placed it on the table.
"You think you can get away with that?" Jia Ao glared at Jia Yu as their mother went to cook.
"Mom! Brother is going to hit me!" Jia Yu shouted at the top of his lungs.
Jia Yu stood up, hunched his shoulders, and covered his head with his hands while yelling loudly.
"Are you just going to bully your sister? I'll deal with you in a minute!" Aunt's voice floated out from the kitchen, slightly hoarse.
"I didn't hit her! I didn't do anything!" Jia Ao protested, feeling wronged as he stomped outside.
"It's him! He wants to hit me!" Jia Yu chased after him into the yard, leaping onto Jia Ao and starting to wrestle with him.
“Did you see that! Who is hitting whom?” Jia Ao shouted towards the kitchen.
“It’s only right for your sister to hit you!” Aunt laughed.
“Is there any reason for this?” Jia Ao squatted down on the ground, cradling his head in his hands.
“You little brat! Why do you hit so hard?” Jia Ao broke free, running a few steps before turning back with wide eyes.
“I’ll hit you!” Jia Yu pouted, standing there shaking her hands. “Come back and let me hit you!”
“Am I that stupid?” Jia Ao grinned mischievously.
“I’m going to chase you!” Jia Yu brushed a strand of hair that had fallen over her forehead and took off after Jia Ao.
At that moment, Wen Sheng stood at the doorway, smiling as he watched the siblings playfully chase each other in the yard. Seeing Jia Yu running back and forth after Jia Ao, Wen Sheng couldn’t help but think of Wen Xin.
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