The Gentle Breeze Reflects in My Eyes - Chapter 12

Chapter 12

Gu Yitong helped Xia Lusheng up and guided her to the sofa, where the girl sat, teeth clenched against the burning sting in her knees.

“Lusheng, did you get hurt? It’s all Jingwen’s fault for being so reckless,” Uncle Qi said, looking at her with genuine concern.

Xia Lusheng shook her head. “I’m fine. I just didn’t have my balance.”

Gu Yitong understood perfectly. Xia Lusheng was terrified of causing trouble. Someone as sensitive as her lived in constant fear of bringing even a flicker of unpleasantness to others.

Just then, Mother Gu emerged from the kitchen with a tray. Seeing everyone crowded around Xia Lusheng, she paused. “What happened?”

Uncle Qi looked at her guiltily. “Jingwen was too impulsive. He knocked Lusheng over.”

Mother Gu quickly set the tray down and sat beside Xia Lusheng, taking her hand and looking her over anxiously. “Where did you fall? Are you hurt?”

Xia Lusheng sat up stiffly, subtly pulling her hand away from Mother Gu’s grasp. “Auntie Gu, I’m okay. I didn’t get hurt.”

Mother Gu turned to the now-deflated Qi Jingwen and barked, “You brat! What are you standing there for? Get over here and apologize to Lusheng right now!”

Xia Lusheng was startled by Mother Gu’s loud voice. After a momentary daze, she stammered, “No… no need for an apology. I just didn’t have my footing. It wasn’t anyone’s fault.”

Qi Jingwen shuffled forward, step by agonizing step, and apologized dejectedly. “I’m sorry. I was just so excited to see my sister. I didn’t mean to bump into you.”

After the apology, he couldn’t help but mutter a small grievance: “But when you saw me coming down, couldn’t you have dodged? You just stood there knowing I was rushing toward you…”

His voice wasn’t loud, but everyone heard it clearly.

“Shut your mouth, you brat!” Mother Gu panicked, terrified that Jingwen’s words would hit Xia Lusheng’s sore spot. After shouting at him, she stole a cautious glance at the girl.

Fortunately, Lusheng seemed unfazed.

What Mother Gu didn’t see, however, was that the moment Qi Jingwen spoke, Xia Lusheng’s fingers curled into tight fists, her knuckles turning white. On the surface, she remained as calm as ever.

Qi Jingwen didn’t understand what he’d said wrong this time. Stung by Mother Gu’s shouting, his temper flared. He stiffened his neck and talked back, full of indignation. “Is this entirely my fault? I’ve apologized and admitted I was wrong! What more do you want?!”

“Jingwen!” Uncle Qi barked his name sternly.

Gu Yitong looked at Qi Jingwen with a heavy gaze. After a moment, she looked away and picked up a slice of watermelon from the tray, handing it to Xia Lusheng.

“Jingwen, Lusheng, come eat some watermelon.”

That single sentence shifted the heavy atmosphere in the room. Uncle Qi quickly followed up: “Yes, yes, eat some watermelon! I picked these out myself at the orchard yesterday. They’re very sweet. Lusheng, try some.”

Gu Yitong handed another slice to Qi Jingwen, coaxing him slightly. “Feeling wronged? No matter how upset you are, don’t take it out on the food. Here.”

Qi Jingwen, standing on his “dignity,” refused to compromise for a mere slice of watermelon.

He declared righteously, “I’ll eat it, but only if Mom apologizes to me first. She yelled at me for no reason, and I won’t stand for it. I am protesting for my dignity!”

Mother Gu, who had been angry a moment ago, was now amused by his dramatics. “You little brat…”

Qi Jingwen bristled again. “And Mom, stop calling me ‘little brat’! It sounds terrible! And stop calling Sis ‘little cub’ too. She’s twenty-one! It’s embarrassing!”

Mother Gu ignored his rebellion. “Even at twenty-one, she’s still the cub that came out of my belly.”

Xia Lusheng listened silently to the bickering between Mother Gu and Qi Jingwen. She took a small bite of her watermelon; the juice overflowed instantly, sweetness flooding her taste buds.

Yet, a sense of being an outsider wrapped around her.

She couldn’t join the conversation, nor did she know how to start one. She could only answer when spoken to. She felt plain and boring. She was almost relieved that Mother Gu wasn’t focusing on her; only then could her heart relax for a moment.

She ate the watermelon extremely slowly, terrified that finishing it would plunge her back into the awkwardness of not knowing what to do or say.

But no matter how slow she was, she eventually finished.

Gu Yitong suddenly reached out, took the rind from her hand to toss it in the bin, and pulled out a tissue to wipe Lusheng’s fingers. She turned to the other three. “Mom, Uncle Qi, I’m going to take Lusheng up to see my room.”

Mother Gu, who had been observing Lusheng’s discomfort, sighed inwardly and nodded to her daughter.

Gu Yitong led Xia Lusheng toward the stairs.

“Careful, step up here,” Gu Yitong whispered. They made their way upstairs unhurriedly.

Qi Jingwen watched the scene, dumbfounded. Suddenly, he realized why Mother Gu had yelled at him. This… this girl was actually blind!

Once they reached the second floor, Gu Yitong paused at the corner and shot a chilling look back at Qi Jingwen, taking in his shocked expression.

…

Inside the bedroom, with only the two of them, Xia Lusheng visibly relaxed.

Gu Yitong had her sit on the bed and then knelt before her, rolling up her trouser leg. “Let me see if you scraped the skin.”

Xia Lusheng sat obediently. “It’s just my knee. It stung a bit earlier, but it doesn’t hurt now.”

As she spoke, Gu Yitong saw the area—it was already turning a deep shade of blue; it would surely be black and purple by evening. After a month together, Gu Yitong knew Lusheng’s skin. Though she wasn’t a spoiled child, her skin was exceptionally delicate—the slightest bump left a mark.

After a moment of hesitation, Xia Lusheng lowered her head and whispered, “I’m sorry, Yitong-jie.”

Gu Yitong knew she would blame herself. This was exactly why she hadn’t scolded Qi Jingwen more harshly in front of her. The more Gu Yitong defended her, the more psychological pressure the girl felt, believing she was the cause of family discord.

Gu Yitong patted her head gently. “Let me see what’s inside this little head of yours. Why is it so full of wild thoughts? You’re clearly the victim, yet you’re putting yourself in the shoes of the one who did something wrong.”

Xia Lusheng could hear the comfort and the teasing in Gu Yitong’s voice. She playfully swatted Gu Yitong’s hand away. “Yitong-jie!”

Gu Yitong put on a mock-serious face. “What should I do with a girl who thinks too much? Is a spanking the only cure? If one doesn’t work, maybe two?”

Xia Lusheng let out a soft huff. She didn’t believe for a second that Gu Yitong would ever hit her.

Seeing that Lusheng’s mood had stabilized, Gu Yitong felt a wave of relief. Her eyes were filled with tenderness. “We’ll stay here tonight, and then we’ll head back tomorrow morning, okay?”

Xia Lusheng froze. Before leaving the city, they had agreed to stay at Auntie Gu’s for four days and return on October 5th. Gu Yitong’s sudden change of heart could only be for her.

Thinking of this, Xia Lusheng’s nose felt a bit prickly. She almost wanted to cry. It turned out that Yitong-jie had seen every bit of her helplessness and anxiety.