One

"It is the same to write in the living room, hurry up, don't delay Uncle and Aunt from playing mahjong." She grabbed my books and pulled me towards the living room

Perhaps my resistance exceeded her expectations, as she looked at me with a gaze that suggested madness, a look that grew increasingly cold amidst the crowd's scrutiny

What she dislikes the most is my contradicting her in front of others, and that is exactly what I am doing now

I brushed off the dust that had settled on me, took one last look at Pei Zhiming, and hurriedly descended the mountain

Without needing to open the door, I could hear the clattering sound of mahjong from inside the house. With my usual heavy heart, I opened the door and immediately saw Chen Meihua, who was holding a cigarette in her mouth while sorting through the tiles. Before she could notice me, I quickly slipped into the kitchen. I turned on the gas, took out the only eggs and tomatoes from the refrigerator, and began to prepare dinner for her

I do not know where I found the courage, but in front of the two tables of people playing Mahjong, I suddenly pushed her away and shouted at her at several times my usual volume: "I cannot do my homework here, it is too noisy!"

I knew she would say that, so I quietly looked at her for a while, feeling defeated like a deflated balloon

The broken phone in my pocket started ringing at that moment, and without thinking, I knew it was Chen Meihua.

"If you can't write, then don't write." She said each word clearly and, without any courtesy, snatched the book from my hands and threw it on the ground

When I returned home, it was already 7 o'clock

I do not consider myself particularly good-looking; at best, I can only be described as delicate. My mother, Chen Meihua, who prides herself on her beauty, blames all of this on Pei Zhiming. This blame has become increasingly apparent as I have grown older. She harbors resentment towards my father; otherwise, she would not have failed to bring me to see him during the ten years he has been gone.

However, this gratitude turned into a sharp slap across my face after I finished my meal. She brought in four people from somewhere, set up a new mahjong table, and then she directly pushed open my room door, pointed at my nose, and ordered me to go to the living room to do my homework

At this time, I always express my gratitude to her, as she has cleared out my room; otherwise, I would not even have a place to eat and study in peace now

On my seventeenth birthday, I finally fulfilled my wish to visit the cemetery alone

I loosened the scarf that was covering my face, revealing the lower half of my face

She does not have a formal job; during the day, she works at a dry cleaner in the neighborhood. In the evening, she transforms her home into an unprofessional mahjong parlor, inviting three to five friends over to play mahjong and earn a little bit of money. Sometimes, when luck is on her side, she can win a bit. However, judging by her performance today, her luck does not seem to be good. Therefore, I do not wish to provoke her

"You cannot do this." I slowly picked up the book from the ground, my voice trembling noticeably, "I still want to read."

In countless lonely nights, I have been pondering whether Chen Meihua is truly my biological mother; otherwise, how could she have committed such incomprehensible acts against her own daughter

Thinking this way, I suddenly feel a pang of sympathy for him. Even though during the ten years of his absence, I had occasionally harbored some resentment towards him. If he had not left so easily, perhaps my life over the past decade would not have been so difficult.

It is a text message urging me to come home and cook. If it weren't for her hunger, she wouldn't have remembered that her daughter, whose birthday it is today, did not return home promptly after school.

In that moment, I seemed to hear the sound of my blood flowing backward due to anger and fear

I reached out my hand and wiped the dust off his photograph

I looked at her in disbelief, with anger surging within my chest

What a cruel fact this is. My mother does not love me

The bouquet of white chrysanthemums in my arms was wilted by the wind, I gently shook off the snow that had accumulated on it and placed it under the tombstone

In previous years, it seemed to be somewhat better, but this year, Chen Meihua has completely ignored my intentions. However, I can understand, after all, it is not easy for her to support me.

"Do you want to study? Sure, go ahead and study outside, just don't delay my business." She crossed her arms and glared at me, looking even more unfamiliar than a stranger.

He is my father, the most familiar stranger who has exited my life for ten years

The thick snow blocked the road up the mountain, and the cold wind scraped against my skin like a knife. After a long time, I finally found Pei Zhiming's tombstone

His appearance clearly emerged before my eyes, overlapping with the blurry face from my dreams, a pretentious pang surged into my eyes. I wonder if, at this moment, seeing the grown-up me, he also feels the urge to cry

I divided the dishes and rice into two portions, and I silently returned to my room holding my share

Looking at the disarray in front of the tombstone, one can tell that no one has visited him for a long time. He was like a shooting star that briefly flashed across the night sky; having lived for several decades, few remain who remember him

Every year's birthday seems to be spent in such neglect, and this year is no exception

Over the years, such disputes have occurred countless times, and each time I have endured in silence. I have become quite numb, for I know that in order to survive, I must rely on her

This matter became clear to me after my father, Pei Zhiming, left