Bullying The Sister-In-Law - Chapter 16.1

The call was disconnected.

Su Zhiluo let out a long sigh of relief. She washed her face with cold water, then leaned by the window, lost in thought.

The next day, Guangzhou transformed into a gigantic steamer by noon, scorching and humid. The sunlight was blindingly white, and cicadas outside the window chirped with hoarse abandon.

Su Zhiluo had just finished organizing the express delivery slips when her phone vibrated.

Liu Chengxu: “Sister-in-law, I’m here.”

It was the familiar Doraemon pattern on her outfit. She wore a single-shoulder bag, with the scorching sun directly overhead. Fortunately, she wasn’t completely clueless; at least she remembered to wear a hat.

Liu Chengxu sensed her sister-in-law was looking at her and slowly lifted her head.

Su Zhiluo quickly hurried downstairs. Standing face-to-face, a strange awkwardness settled between them. Su Zhiluo was the first to break the silence: “Didn’t you think to buy a bottle of water?”

Liu Chengxu raised a hand to touch her flushed cheek, the skin under her hat brim was burning hot.

She replied evasively, “The hat you bought for me, I couldn’t bear to leave it at home.”

Su Zhiluo said, “Why didn’t you tell me you were coming?”

Liu Chengxu looked up, her tone sharp: “If I said I wanted to come, would you have let me?”

She looked thinner again, her shoulders appearing fragile. Her hat was pulled down low, and she wore that watch on her wrist.

After speaking, seeing Su Zhiluo’s hurt expression, Liu Chengxu instantly regretted it. She apologized in a strained voice, “I’m sorry, I don’t blame you, I just couldn’t control myself. I’m sorry, please don’t be sad.”

Su Zhiluo shook her head, not minding these minor things. “I just think it’s not safe to travel alone, and I didn’t prepare anything for your arrival.”

Liu Chengxu tried to suppress her discomfort, saying in a forced light tone, “It’s fine if I just come to see you. If you don’t keep me, I’ll leave on my own.”

Su Zhiluo bit her lip and reached out to take Liu Chengxu’s backpack. Liu Chengxu wore trainers and stood almost 175 cm tall; Su Zhiluo had to tilt her head up slightly to look at her.

As Su Zhiluo’s hand reached out, Liu Chengxu leaned her head against Su Zhiluo’s shoulder and choked out a sob, “I… I really missed you.”

Su Zhiluo replied with a soft “Mhm,” slowly lowering the hand that was gripping the backpack strap. She gently patted Liu Chengxu’s back. “Don’t be sad anymore.”

Su Zhiluo led Liu Chengxu upstairs.

Su Zhiluo ushered her into the room, fetched her water from the fridge, and asked if she had eaten. Liu Chengxu shook her head.

Su Zhiluo went to cook egg fried rice for her, thinking she would take her out later, when it cooled down, to a local restaurant on her scooter to try some regional specialties.

Liu Chengxu drank the water and started examining her sister-in-law’s living space: a one-bedroom apartment. Apart from the space taken up by the cooking area, the rest of the living room was stacked with the clothes Su Zhiluo had bought wholesale. It looked even smaller than their house in Beishi.

Su Zhiluo lived alone and had practically no snacks or fruit prepared at home. She was about to tell Liu Chengxu to find something to tide her over, but when she turned around, she saw Liu Chengxu sitting on the floor, efficiently handling all the packages that needed to be sent out over the next few days.

It was Liu Chengxu’s first time, yet she was incredibly quick to learn. Su Zhiluo turned back to continue frying the rice, her heart complex. Liu Chengxu was very observant whenever they video-chatted.

They only video-chatted once a week, and Liu Chengxu would stare at the screen with an intense longing, unwilling to miss any detail. Sometimes, Su Zhiluo suspected Liu Chengxu could devour her.

Su Zhiluo placed the egg fried rice on the table.

She called Liu Chengxu to eat and turned to change her shoes. Liu Chengxu had just sat down by the chair, not even having taken a bite, when she dropped her chopsticks and tightly gripped Su Zhiluo’s wrist. The force was so strong it made Su Zhiluo wince.

Liu Chengxu asked, “Where are you going?”

“To the supermarket to buy some things.” Su Zhiluo pulled her hand back. “Gently.”

Liu Chengxu didn’t let go. “Buy what?”

“Snacks, ice cream, fruit.”

Liu Chengxu: “I’ll come with you.”

“What about your food?” Su Zhiluo asked.

“I’ll carry it, or you can wait for me to finish, and we’ll go together,” Liu Chengxu insisted stubbornly.

Su Zhiluo had no choice but to follow her back to the table.

Liu Chengxu ate with good appetite. Su Zhiluo then quickly made a simple soup for her, also cabbage and egg, which was very hot when served.

“Didn’t you eat on the train?” Su Zhiluo asked.

Liu Chengxu said, “The boxed meals are very expensive, even more than outside.”

Su Zhiluo: “It’s only five or six yuan more. You should eat if you’re hungry.”

Liu Chengxu pursed her lips. “If you didn’t let me in, I would have starved myself to death.”

Su Zhiluo was both exasperated and amused. She sighed helplessly, her gaze falling on Liu Chengxu’s collarbone. The line was clearer and more distinct than before; she had lost more weight.

After Liu Chengxu finished eating, Su Zhiluo led her to a nearby large supermarket. Her neighborhood wasn’t great; it was only a medium-sized supermarket.

Su Zhiluo first bought vegetables, fruit, and snacks, then led her to buy toiletries, a toothbrush holder, and a towel. After buying those, she went to grab a pair of slippers for her. Liu Chengxu was also browsing nearby. She was about to buy sanitary pads when she looked up and saw a box labeled: “Finger sleeves for sexual pleasure.”

It was the first time Liu Chengxu had seen such a thing, but she instantly understood what it was. She reached out to pick it up. Su Zhiluo, who had just straightened up after choosing the slippers, immediately put her hand down. Su Zhiluo hadn’t seen her action. Noticing she was holding sanitary pads, she pushed the basket forward for her to place them in.

Su Zhiluo went to the checkout. Liu Chengxu glanced back again during the process.

Su Zhiluo noticed and asked, “Is there anything else you want to buy?”

Liu Chengxu shook her head.

Su Zhiluo spoke sharply, saying, “If you want something, just buy it. It doesn’t cost much.”

Liu Chengxu gave her a deep look. “I’ll buy what I want myself.”

Su Zhiluo didn’t press further, only felt a pang of disappointment. Their relationship had clearly become colder.

She felt it was her fault. Liu Chengxu was visibly more reserved now, spoke less, and barely smiled. She felt a surge of powerlessness; this was not the outcome she desired.

Liu Chengxu took all the bags from her hands.

The temperature had peaked, and her skin was stinging.

Back at the rented apartment, Su Zhiluo told her to go to sleep. She turned on the air conditioner—it was a rental unit, with poor cooling efficiency and high energy consumption.

Su Zhiluo also turned on the fan in the room. She said, “You sleep on the bed.”

Liu Chengxu had originally thought that if Su Zhiluo wasn’t sleeping, she wouldn’t bother, but this sentence blocked all her words. She said in a deep voice, “I want to shower.”

The shower was inside the bedroom. Su Zhiluo gave her a clean T-shirt and asked, “Didn’t you bring any clothes?”

Liu Chengxu took the shirt. “No, I won’t wear any for now. The sun is strong; they’ll be dry by the time I wake up.”

Su Zhiluo’s shop didn’t sell underwear, but she bought it for herself. If she came across good value ones, she would buy a couple of extra sets at a special price to hang on the link for traffic.

She said, “You should wear the underwear. I’ll wash a set for you.”

Su Zhiluo went looking. There was one style she had bought in several colors. She hadn’t worn all of them after washing them clean. She found and pulled out a clean pair, hung them on the door lock, and then knocked.

Liu Chengxu’s backpack was on the plastic chair in the living room. It felt quite heavy when she picked it up. Su Zhiluo opened the bag. Inside, besides Liu Chengxu’s laptop, there were food items: salted duck eggs, her favorite pastries, a box of milk candies, a single sunflower…

Liu Chengxu had packed all this just for her.

She had food with her, yet she had starved on the train.

A pang of bitterness rose to her nose.

Su Zhiluo endured all the discomfort and let out a soft sigh.

Was this gentle and deep affection simply the nature of everyone with the surname Liu? Always nibbling away at her heart and her sanity, little by little.

How could someone carry a jar of salted duck eggs on their back?

Su Zhiluo put the duck eggs in the refrigerator.

Liu Chengxu came out after showering and washing her hair, asking, “Where do I hang the clothes?”

Su Zhiluo pointed to the security window.

Liu Chengxu hung the clothes up. She stood for a short while, and her hair was already half-dry. She got into Su Zhiluo’s bed, clean and smelling good—the scent she had longed for. She buried her face in Su Zhiluo’s pillow.