Casually turning off the living room TV, Liu Ming rubbed his belly and stood up, waving his hand at the table with leftover dishes: “I’ll go busy myself now. Once I get my bonus, I’ll definitely treat you to a good meal, well, not anywhere else, just at Jinhui to show off!”
“…” Hao Yunyang was stunned, watching Liu Ming rush back to his room and close the door, only then remembering the agreement before cooking: Hao Yunyang cooks, Liu Ming washes the pots and dishes?
That night, Hao Yunyang didn’t do much else, just topped up 500 yuan of phone credit on Taobao and then dialed his son’s number, chatting for half an hour. The conversation mostly revolved around Zhao Xinxin, such as what she likes and doesn’t like.
What surprised Hao Yunyang most was that in his son Hao Zhenhua’s recollection, there was a Chen Auntie who didn’t get along with Hao Yunyang but was very close to Zhao Xinxin. Most of Hao Zhenhua’s pocket money came from this Chen Auntie when he was young.
According to Hao Zhenhua, this Chen Auntie was named Chen Pingping, who finally got married many years after Hao Yunyang and Zhao Xinxin’s marriage. Though Hao Zhenhua wasn’t very clear about the details, Hao Yunyang almost conclusively determined that the Chen Auntie his son spoke of was the girl with the wine-red hair!
“Chen Auntie was good to me and my mom,” Hao Zhenhua paused, then suddenly said, “Oh right!”
“What?”
“Dad, I remember… Chen Auntie seems to have been in jail!” Hao Zhenhua was initially uncertain, but then spoke with certainty: “When I was five or six, we even went to the prison to see her. Mom said Chen Auntie was convicted of fraud and sentenced to eleven years!”
“That girl, convicted of fraud?” Hao Yunyang clicked his tongue, his scalp tingling.
“Yes, but I don’t know the exact time of the case,” Hao Zhenhua sounded helpless. “Chen Auntie died in a car accident three years ago. Mom’s mind isn’t sharp now and can’t remember much. Dad, considering how good Chen Auntie was to our family, you can’t just stand by!”
“The problem is, how can I get involved?” Hao Yunyang was exasperated: “I’ve only met your mom for the third time!”
