Chasing Tides

Ning Lan stood up, her body tensed, her hands clenched into fists, her nails deeply embedded in her flesh, and she tried her best to restrain the urge to retreat.

Xie Tianhao had a very hostile face, and his smile was especially terrifying: "I haven't seen you for more than a year, I miss you so much."

Ning Lan glanced over his shoulder at the door from the corner of his eye, while calculating in his mind—the door is closed, he needs at least five seconds to walk to the door and then open it and run out, and the speed must be faster than Xie Tianhao's reaction be quick.

He is quite experienced in escaping, he put on a smile and said, "Happy New Year, Brother Xie."

Xie Tianhao touched his chin, and slowly approached him step by step: "Okay? Little Lanlan who can only watch me on TV all year, do you think brother is okay?"

Ning Lan's heart skipped a beat: "The money has already been repaid, aren't we paying off?"

"Double settlement?" Xie Tianhao smiled with his mouth crooked, and came over to pinch Ning Lan's chin, "Who said that the settlement is done, and the interest is not up to you, let alone your mother..."

Ning Lan slapped his hand away, took advantage of his astonishment, stretched her legs and ran out.

Three meters away from the door, Xie Tianhao dragged him back by the collar.

"Stinky bitch, you still dare to mess with me and don't want to live anymore?" Xie Tianhao was furious, grabbed Ning Lan's neck and dragged him into the house, "Let me be refreshed today, and I will let you go when I am happy."

The other rough hand tore off his coat, opened the sweater and touched the skin. Ning Lan was pinched dizzy by him, gritted her teeth and raised her arm with hard water to throw it behind her. Xie Tianhao was undefended, and was caught The water pipe hit the top of his head heavily, and he let out a cry of pain. As soon as his hands loosened, Ning Lan quickly broke free and took two big strides to the door.

When I opened the door and went out, I tripped over the threshold, and ran around without thinking about standing up.I bumped into Zhao Jinshan at the top of the stairs, and ran with her without saying a word, and stopped when I reached the crowded street one kilometer away.

"Oh, oh, what are you running for, my son, your mother's old bones are going to be torn apart by you." Zhao Jinshan leaned against the wall and complained repeatedly.

Ning Lan panted heavily, but her face was as pale as paper.It wasn't until his breathing stabilized and his brain began to supply blood that he suddenly thought of something and went forward to rummage through Zhao Jinshan's pockets.

"Hey, Lanlan, what are you doing?" Zhao Jinshan held her hand to prevent him from touching, "I don't have any money, what are you looking for?"

Ning Lan ignored her, checked all her pockets, then looked at her and asked, "Where is your key?"

Zhao Jinshan looked dodgy: "Ah...ah? The key, I think... it must have been left at home..."

Ning Lan's face became paler, mixed with sweat that hadn't dried completely, her skin looked almost transparent.He couldn't believe it and asked: "You gave Xie Tianhao the key?"

Zhao Jinshan stammered: "No... no? What did he say just now? He was talking nonsense. How could I do such a thing?"

Ning Lan was stunned for a moment, then opened the corner of her mouth: "Then how do you know that I saw him just now?"

Zhao Jinshan covered her mouth in horror, then slowly put her hand down, took Ning Lan's arm, and smiled obsequiously: "Oh, it's really not a big deal, Boss Xie told me two days ago that I will never forget you and don't miss you Married and living with him, I just think, just think..." She was also a little embarrassed, and said in another way, "You, don't think that Mom doesn't know, there are rich people in the capital, right? Otherwise, the red mark on the waist Where did it come from? Mom saw it when you changed your clothes last time."

Ning Lan's pupils shrank, and her lips trembled almost imperceptibly.

Seeing that he seemed shaken, Zhao Jinshan continued, "Thank you, boss, for being so kind. He promised to provide our family with a low-rent apartment. You can't bear to see mom living in that tube building full of cockroaches and mice, can you? Just give it to him, let him touch and fiddle with it, what can a boy suffer? Just like you serve that boss in the capital."

The more Zhao Jinshan talked, the more she felt that the deal was a good deal, and she felt that she was very reasonable, so she patted Ning Lan's face affectionately: "Tell me, isn't your good looks all given to you by your mother? God rewards you with food, who cares?" Are you envious?"

Ning Lan listened silently, and finally had some reaction, snorted shortly from her nose: "Envy?"

"No." Zhao Jinshan got excited, "It's because you look like me. If you want to be like your father who died young, how can you get on TV and become a star? How can anyone see it? Where..."

There was a buzzing in Ning Lan's head. He didn't want to hear anything, so he yanked his arms and threw her away. Zhao Jinshan fell to the ground inadvertently, biting his lip and about to cry, and shouted, "Oh, come and see Hey, the son hit his mother..."

Ning Lan knelt down to look at her, Sen Han's eyes were on the same level as hers, which scared Zhao Jinshan back, and moved back as if afraid of being beaten.

They confronted each other in the alleyway at the entrance of the downtown area, and people slowly gathered around to watch the excitement.Ning Lan's face was expressionless, and his eyes were empty, like clay sculptures and wood sculptures. Only the white air exhaled from his mouth and nose proved that he was a living person.

It took a few minutes before he opened his mouth and said word by word: "From now on, except for the fixed monthly living expenses, don't expect me to give you any more money."

Zhao Jinshan was in a hurry: "Then, what can I do, my mother is not in good health, she needs to see a doctor, and seeing a doctor will cost a lot of money..."

Ning Lan looked at the woman in front of him who had the deepest blood relationship with him. One second, she felt that her eyebrows and eyes were kind and warm, but the next second, she felt as if she was separated by mountains and mountains.He seldom spends time thinking about whether he should be nice to her, whether she is worth it, and he believes that at least the moment his mother decides to give birth to him, she must love him.

He never wanted much.

"If you don't like it, you don't have to." He said coldly.

Zhao Jinshan hurriedly said: "Yes, yes, no matter how small a fly is, it's still meat..." She was a little bit aggrieved as she spoke, with tears in her eyes, "Well, if my mother is sick or bullied, you, you Just leave it alone?"

Ning Lan stood up slowly, his legs were numb after squatting for a long time, making him a little unsteady.

"Then what if I die? If I die, who cares about you?"

His voice was calmer than his expression.Zhao Jinshan looked up at Ning Lan, he was standing against the light, the rising sun outlined a hunched silhouette, so fragile that it seemed that any gust of wind could blow him away.

Zhao Jinshan flinched for no reason, opened her mouth, but finally said nothing.

Ning Lan didn't go home again, and walked along the sidewalk alone. The city is very small, and the train station can be seen just a few streets away.

Ever since his ID card was stolen by Zhao Jinshan, he has developed the habit of carrying his ID card with him.When queuing at the window, I took out my mobile phone, removed the case and took out my ID card, which contained three hundred-yuan bills.

It wasn't until she got in the car and looked at the desolate and unfamiliar winter scenery outside the window that Ning Lan felt a sense of being far away from home.

He just doesn't want to stay there anymore, he wants to leave quickly, wherever he wants to go.When I bought the ticket, my head was still at a loss, and I was confused about which destination I said. Now, after listening to the station announcement, I know that the train is going all the way north, and the terminal is the capital.

Ning Lan slowly raised her hand to cover her eyes.

I can only think of him when I am the most depressed and sad. This habit is not good and I have to get rid of it.

The next morning, I got off at the Capital Station. When I got out of the station, the plastic water pipe was stopped by the security inspector to check it inside and out. After all, it is common to run around with a piano bag on your back, and a stick with a bow on it. Not very common.

Walking out of the train station, Ning Lan hugged the water pipe even tighter, facing a gust of cold wind.This thing is not only the most valuable thing in his body, but also the treasure that saved his life.

Ning Lan sniffed, thinking to herself, she was a little bit reluctant to give it to Sui Yi.

He used the last few steel coins on his body to take the subway to the dormitory. When he went downstairs and looked up, it seemed that there was no one there, and when he went up to knock on the door, no one answered.

He didn't bring the key, so he stood at the door and called Fang Yu. This kid hadn't contacted him since the vacation, and he didn't reply to his WeChat messages. At this moment, the phone couldn't be connected directly, and the tone was busy all the time, and he didn't know where he went.

Ning Lan stood for a while and dialed Sui Yi's phone number.

It rang several times before answering. It wasn't Sui Yi who answered the phone, but a strange man with a gentle voice: "Are you looking for Sui Yi? He's gone out. I'll ask him to call you back later."

When Sui Yi called again, Ning Lan had already been escorted downstairs by the patrolling security guards.He is a tenant, not an owner. Because of his occupation, he covers up like a thief every time he enters and leaves the complex, and now he can't take out the key. Not only does the security guard not recognize him, he even thinks he is a homeless man who sneaked in to avoid the cold.

Ning Lan looked down at her padded jacket that was so torn that the cotton was leaking, she really looked like a homeless man.

After the call was connected, Sui Yi spoke first: "Hello, are you looking for me?"

Almost at the moment when he heard the voice, Ning Lan's nose turned sour, and he suddenly wanted to cry.

He swallowed hard, raised his head to hold back his tears, quickly found a place with his back to the wind, and said, "Yes."

"What's the matter?" Sui Yi asked.

In the short ten minutes just now, Ning Lan thought about a lot of things to say, where is she now, what did she eat for breakfast, how is the new year, have you gained weight, guess where I am... and He also wanted to tell him the four words he didn't send out this time.

But at this time, he couldn't speak anymore.

It's a bit ridiculous to say, he still hopes to develop an equal relationship with Sui Yi one day, so the only thing he can do now is not to show weakness to him.

"Can I borrow some more money from you?" Ning Lan's throat was bitter, and her words were difficult, "When I get paid, I will..."

Sui Yi didn't have the patience to listen to him finish, and asked straightforwardly, "How much do you want?"

After receiving a transfer reminder on her mobile phone, Ning Lan bought the ticket online, but did not get up and leave immediately, but continued to squat on the curb at the gate of the community, until the last bit of battery power of the mobile phone ran out, put it back in her pocket, and stood up Go in the direction of the train station.

He felt a little regretful, but at the same time rejoiced that if Sui Yi had just casually asked what was the matter and why he wanted money, he might have felt overwhelmed and poured out all his sadness and grievances to him.

Luckily he didn't ask.

While Ning Lan got on the train again, Sui Yi was watching his father being pushed into the operating room.

When the teacher called him yesterday, he thought that the two of them were playing some tricks, one fell down and the other got sick.Hearing Sui Cheng's uncontrollable cough on the phone, he realized that he might not be lying to him.

He drove to the hospital last night, found the ward according to the room number sent by the teacher, Sui Cheng was lying quietly on the bed, he had lost a lot of weight, and was even more haggard than when he saw him downstairs in the crew hotel last time.

He no longer accepts what his father gave, but it doesn't mean that he can really abandon his biological father at such a critical moment of life and death.

When the operating light came on, Sui Yi sent the teacher who was also sick back to the ward, and then returned to the door of the operating room to continue guarding.A few hours later, the doctor came out to tell him that the operation was a success, and he did not leave until the nurses arrived.

He put AOW's song in the car on the way, and when he heard Ning Lan's voice, he vaguely remembered that Ning Lan had called him in the morning.

He was a little worried, and he called back while waiting for the red light, but he didn't get through even after calling three times.

Sui Yi's mouth twitched up, forming a self-deprecating arc.That guy just asked for money, and of course he didn't bother to talk to him after he achieved his goal.

The smile stayed on his face for only a few seconds before disappearing without a trace.Sui Yi stayed up all night, threw the phone back on the center console, and pinched the space between his brows wearily.