Chapter 586: Extra—Su Ping 1

Chapter 586 Side Story — Su Ping 1

Seeing this, Su An stopped persuading and brought up another issue, "But Big Brother may never understand your feelings."

Ren Shan shrugged it off. "It doesn’t matter. Whether he understands or not, he treats me well, and I treat him well. That’s all that matters."

Su An thought Ren Shan and her brother would continue living peacefully like this—until four months later, when Li Yulan passed away. Before her death, Ren Shan held Li Yulan’s hand in front of everyone and promised to take care of Su Ping for the rest of her life.

Wang Xiaocui once talked to Ren Shan. After their conversation, she stopped interfering. She wasn’t educated, nor as clever as the younger generation, and she was no match for Ren Shan. She decided to let things take their natural course.

Su Ping was still his oblivious self. Su An teased him, "Xiao Zuo and I are married, and I live with his family now. Shan Shan has grown up too. Once she gets married, she’ll also move to her husband’s home."

The pork rib Su Ping was chewing suddenly tasted like ash. He stood there, dumbstruck for a long, long time.

The whole day, he was listless. He didn’t want Shan Shan to go to someone else’s home. He didn’t know what to do. He missed his grandma.

That night, he had a dream. In the dream, his father returned to the city, and his mother took them on a long journey by bus and on foot to find him.

The city buzzed with life, with shops and department stores. People seemed better off, and many rode bicycles.

But his mother was never happy. She often cried. His grandmother berated her, and Father yelled too.

Then Mother left. With red eyes, she held his hand and made him promise to take good care of An An. She said, "Stay with your father. From now on, you two will have urban household registration. Even if you only find temporary work in the city, it’s better than following me back to the countryside to till the fields."

His stepmother was vicious. With a few soft words, she could make Father hit them. Little An An would shake like a leaf. They were locked outside in the rain. They worked by the dim light of a kerosene lamp, gluing matchboxes till their eyes drooped.

Once, An An scooped a little more rice into her bowl. The stepmother lightly tapped the bowl, and An An was so startled she dropped it. She got another beating. He threw himself over An An, and a stool hit his shoulder, leaving it bruised all over. Mother had told him to take care of An An, but he failed.

Father forbade them from eating for two days. He secretly hid a coarse corn bun and gave it to An An. Her eyes went wide, and she stuffed it into her mouth desperately. It tore him up inside. If only he could earn money to feed An An.

An An stained her clothes and was dragged into the courtyard to be beaten. Father and the stepmother called her a thief. He threw his bag aside and wrapped An An in his arms. She trembled like a frightened rabbit. He was heartbroken. Mother had told him to protect An An.

Grandma Qin gave them shelter. She cut some fabric and sewed it into a pad for An An, telling him to buy her sanitary pads.

He secretly took small batches of finished matchboxes to sell, using the money to buy An An sanitary pads. She was too scared to even reach for it, but thankfully, no one found out.

An An was mocked by others. She walked hunched over, afraid to lift her head. He went after those boys who bullied her and asked Grandma Qin what to do. She said An An needed an undershirt. He didn’t want An An to be laughed at, so he stole money from the stepmother’s pillow to buy her one.

The stepmother tattled. Father kicked him, and his chin hit the ground, bleeding profusely. His neck was covered in blood. An An cried hysterically. Father didn’t hit her—thankfully.

An An was too scared to pick food from the dishes. He served her some stir-fried leeks with eggs. Father snapped at them for being rude, but he didn’t back down. He urged An An to eat. Trembling, she took a bite and later whispered, grinning, "Brother, the leeks and eggs were so good."

He stroked An An’s dry, yellowish hair and promised, "I’ll eat more and grow up fast. Then Father and Mother won’t dare bully you anymore. When I earn money, I’ll buy you lots of eggs and meat."

Father said An An couldn’t continue her studies and had to quit school to become an apprentice. An An knelt and begged. Mother had told them to study hard before she left. An An was so smart—if she studied well, she could get a stable job in the future.

He told Father he would drop out instead and work to support An An’s education. He didn’t like school anyway, and the teacher said he wasn’t cut out for it.

He went to Wuzhen to mine. He wasn’t good at it. The first month, he earned only eleven yuan. At least meals were free there. He gave all the money to Father and begged him to buy An An an egg. Father said it wasn’t enough.

He asked Brother Liu to let him work double shifts. He wanted to buy eggs for An An. It was exhausting. His hands ached so much he could barely lift them. His whole body hurt, even when he slept. His palms were covered in blisters that burst, exposing raw flesh that stung. Before they healed, they were torn open again. Brother Liu pitied him and gave him antiseptic and bandages.

He forced himself to eat more, to mine more, to earn more—for An An’s eggs, sanitary pads, and tuition.

Then Su Jianjun and Ji Qingqing married An An off to Zhao Daxing. Mother had told him to protect An An. He was beside himself. When he found her, she was already pregnant. He begged her to leave with him—his mining wages could support her.

An An had gained a little weight. She said life with the Zhao family was better than at home. She could eat at the table now and even dared to pick food. She had eaten meat. Her mother-in-law scolded but didn’t hit her. The only problem was the unruly child. She said she finally had a home.

He asked An An, "Are you happy?"

An An said, "I'm happy. I finally left that home. My mother-in-law can be harsh, but it'll be better after I have the baby. Brother, you should take care of yourself too. I won't hold you back anymore—I have a home now."

She smiled with tears in her eyes. My chest felt tight. I wasn’t afraid of her being a burden.

An An didn’t come with me. I felt a little sad. I didn’t have to support her anymore, didn’t have to pay for her studies. I didn’t know what to do.

Dad and stepmom said they’d save money for me to get married, told me to work hard and help the family because things are hard.

He dreamed of returning to the mine again, rarely returning home because he felt like an outsider there. Dad, stepmom, Su Jiao, and Su Lei were the real family.

If only An An were here.

He missed An An. He went to see her, but Xiao Jiliang said An An had gone to school to deliver food for her child, so he didn’t get to meet her.

He went back to the mine. When he returned home for the New Year, he finally saw An An. She didn’t look well. He asked if she was okay, and she said yes.

Another time when he came back, he went to see An An again. He saw Zhao Daxing hitting her. Enraged, he went after Zhao Daxing. Dad and stepmom brought him back and told him, "All couples fight—it’s normal. You're only making life harder for An An. Look at how many couples in the neighborhood argue and fight."

"It's because of you that people look down on An An. Don’t go looking for her anymore."

He was upset but too afraid to visit An An again. He secretly went twice, hoping to see from afar if she was okay, but he didn’t find her.

During the New Year, An An didn’t come back either. He asked Zhao Daxing, who said they had their guests and An An, as the hostess, had to entertain them.

He went back to the mine. Later, Dad and stepmom called him back, saying Su Lei was sick. They were blood brothers—he had to save Su Lei—family should help each other, just like him and An An. Otherwise, Su Lei would die.

He didn’t understand, but he didn’t want Su Lei to die either, even though he never really liked him. They were both taken into the operating room. When he came out, he felt terrible and in pain. Luckily, the nurses took care of him. Dad said, "Su Lei is much worse off than you. He’s younger and more fragile, not as sensible as you, so Mom and I need to look after him more. Just listen to the nurses."