salt by salt

I have a guess.

The scenery outside the window is skipped, and there is a baffle between the rear seat and the driver, enclosing a private space.I looked at Lu Jingfan's side face, his nose bridge was straight, his eye sockets were deeper than ordinary people, and his lips were tightly pursed.

"Is something on my face?"

I thought for a while: "Are you a mixed race?"

"I don't know, but it should be." Lu Jingfan said after a short pause, "The woman who sent me to the orphanage can't speak Chinese, she might be a victim of abduction from somewhere."

With a calm expression, he turned his head and cast a glance at me: "Xu Junyan, you don't have to pity me."

"That's not true." I said, "Heroes don't ask where they come from. You are so successful now, I can't envy you enough."

"Really?" Lu Jingfan seemed to want to laugh, and he approached me, "What can I envy? The teacher has no children, and everything in his hands will belong to you in the future. Isn't it easier than fighting by yourself? You don't know me. How I want to be you-"

I thought about what he said seriously, and felt a little pity.Considering that my biological father is in the prime of life, if there is no accident, this property will have to wait at least three to forty years before it can be used by me.

The distance between each other shrinks, the feeling brought by that kiss has not yet dissipated, and there is suddenly more ambiguity in the air.I sat up straight and looked at Lu Jingfan, and saw that his expression did not change, but his hands were unconsciously clenched.

Except for the curvature of the lips when she smiled, this face was nothing like her beautiful and soft mother.

In other words... I look like my father.

I thought of Cheng Heyun, who was also similar to me. He should have married his beloved girlfriend by now and lived a happy and warm life.I wonder what would Lu Jingfan say if he saw him?

I shook my head, shaking off the messy thoughts.Lu Jingfan had already sat back to his original position, his expression still serious.

I have a guess.

This conjecture will soon be confirmed in front of my biological father.

Lu Jingfan walked ahead and led the way with ease, the front of the single-family villa was full of flowers, S city is warmer than the north, and there are delicate and beautiful flowers blooming all year round.

This kind of layout of the front garden and the back of the main house is very common. At a glance, the flower garden carefully pruned by the owner reminds me of the days in Jincheng, and the small courtyard that trapped me in Songcheng is also full of plants. Early mornings take a long time to take care of them.

Su Wan, the teacher's wife that Lu Jingfan mentioned—also my stepmother—opened the door for us in person.

She has a rich figure, with a beige shawl on her arm, and her skin is fair and smooth.However, her appearance is ordinary, she is not really a beauty, only a pair of narrow and long red phoenix eyes are slightly curved, she looks kind and easy-going.

"I gave the nanny a break. I was going to make some special dishes for Yan Yan to try, but Mr. Lu refused to let me go to the kitchen and insisted on frying them myself."

Su Guan smiled and led us into the room, and asked me to sit on the sofa.She poured a cup of hot tea and handed it to me, then looked at my face carefully, and sighed: "You and Mr. Lu are worthy of being father and son, it looks like he was carved out of the same mold when he was young, even the moles under the eyes are the same .”

I raised my eyes and looked at Lu Jingfan, my thick eyelashes blocked the emotion in his eyes.A few seconds later, he looked away as if nothing had happened, took off his coat and hung it on the hanger, rolled up his snow-white sleeves: "I'm going to help the teacher."

"You are not allowed to go, you are not in good health, sit and rest." Su Wan stopped him, and said angrily with a smile, "It's not like you don't know Teacher Lu's temper, if you let him show off, you will be kicked out by him even if you go. "

Lu Jingfan said softly, "Then I'll go and see what's cooked."

"Okay, you remind Teacher Lu, we are all waiting for the dinner he personally prepared. Does Yanyan usually have any taboos? Do you like sweet or spicy food?" She stroked my shoulder, "I'm fine at home. I'm bigger than Teacher Lu. I knit a few sweaters for you, but I don’t know if they fit well. They look about the same, and I’ll give you a try later.”

I couldn't stand her enthusiastic attitude, so I smiled awkwardly.Su Wan shook my hand and frowned: "Hands are so cold, it's cold, why come out wearing only one piece? I'll go upstairs and get you a coat."

I stammered and said, "Auntie, no need, I'm not cold."

"Why are you polite?" She stood up smiling, "This is your own home, don't be restrained."

Her voice made people feel a sense of relief.She is neither dignified and alienated, nor deliberately intimate. She is different from any female elders I have come into contact with. It is what my mother would look like in my fantasy.

Maybe not pretty, but soft and warm.

My mother never took the initiative to hold my hand, but just raised her beautifully shaped chin to me, like a distant portrait, with no dust in her eyes.

While I was distracted, Lu Jingfan had already returned to the living room, and he asked a little suspiciously, "Where is the teacher's wife?"

"Help me get my coat."

I stretched out my hand to grab his shirt, Lu Jingfan was stunned, and leaned close to me.I looked straight into his eyes and asked softly, "Why did you kiss me before?"

"Xu Junyan, what's wrong with you?" He frowned angrily, but he hadn't lost his mind yet, and subconsciously lowered his voice, "Before you're self-willed, please look at the situation—"

"At the house of your most respected Teacher Lu, I want to ask you." My fingertips brushed Lu Jingfan's pale lips, and said in a breathy voice, "I look so similar to him, why are you able to kiss? Yes. Is that what I think?"

Lu Jingfan is so strict with my private life, I intuitively feel that this is not out of brotherly concern, but a kind of hidden possessiveness.When he mentioned "teacher", his tone was adoring, but the subtle look of longing betrayed this completely inappropriate feeling.

Those eyes stared through me at another human being.I'm too familiar with the feeling of being used as a double, otherwise I wouldn't recognize the emotional but hesitant feeling when he kissed me.

Longing cannot be hidden, especially in front of such a similar face.

Lu Jingfan gritted his teeth and said, "What on earth are you going to do? Expose me and make me ashamed to show up again? I have been in this family for more than ten years. If you are new here, they will not believe you."

At first I only planned to tell his truth, but I didn't expect to be reprimanded by him, so I sneered and said, "How do you know if you don't try?"

He lowered his eyes and said softly: "Xu Junyan, you are worthy of the Xu family. Using this method to attack me is so vicious that it makes people sick."

"Thank you for the compliment."

Lu Jingfan's forehead trembled slightly, his chest rose and fell several times, and he let out a breath slowly.He closed his eyes resignedly, showing an extremely complicated expression.

There is regret, there is despair, and perhaps there is even a hint of relief.

relief?Think beautifully.

I stared intently at the change in his expression. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Su Wan walking down the stairs. She said in surprise, "This is...?"

"Brother Lu's shirt collar is a little wrinkled, I'll smooth it out for him." I let go of my hand naturally, and patted Lu Jingfan's front, "It's done."

The stunned look he cast made me want to laugh, but in the end I just took the clothes from Su Wan's hand, lowered my head and let her wrap the scarf around me, and said obediently, "Thank you, auntie."

My father, the direct perpetrator of my broken life, a dark shadow that runs through the entire growth process, the high school teacher who shot semen into the body of underage students more than 20 years ago.

Right now, he is sitting across from me, smiling at me.

The atmosphere at the table was very warm, and the dishes tasted better than expected, but my mind was completely focused on the person opposite.

He is a middle-aged man in his 40s, with good features and a steady temperament.We do look very similar, but his eyes are similar to Yang Chen's father, and there is a kind of calmness that only belongs to successful people.

The white hairs on both sides of the temples and the faint wrinkles at the corners of the eyes showed that this man was older than he appeared.

Introverted.

I can think of two words that best suit him.

Watching from the sidelines throughout the night, he showed just the right amount of pleasure at my presence, looked at Su Wan with tenderness, and mentioned Lu Jingfan's work with encouragement, he was a good father and patriarch who rejoiced in the reunion of father and son.

Maybe because of the hidden blood connection, I always feel that this is not his real joy, anger, sorrow and joy.

His posture coincided with that of Song Cheng at certain times, but he controlled the situation more maturely and accurately than Song Cheng.I can vaguely guess Song Cheng's emotions, but I can't capture his real thoughts at all.

While I was watching him, he was also looking at me.Our eyes collided, and he picked up a crab with chopsticks for me, and said in a loving tone: "Come, try this dish, it tastes good."

"Teacher Lu's fried crab in the typhoon shelter is a must." Su Wan said, "Yanyan eat more."

He laughed and looked at his wife: "Teacher Su can cook Cantonese cuisine. I don't have as much experience as you. Jingfan likes to eat what you cook."

A slight smile appeared on Lu Jingfan's indifferent face, and he said in agreement: "Both the teacher and the teacher's wife are good at craftsmanship."

I lowered my eyes, and the middle-aged man on the opposite side smiled: "You kid, no one will offend you..."

Warm and hearty, he looks like an ordinary father.However, an ordinary father might not be able to maintain a calm attitude after learning about me, Yang Chen and others, take the initiative to cover up my whereabouts, and not interact with me at all.

Father and son are reunited. If you want to get together, you can see each other long ago. Why wait until today?

This man is anything but reserved.

——It should be more cunning.