salt by salt

Xiao Wang said to me: "Mr. Xu, I will take Andre downstairs for a walk."

I nodded and said, "Don't wander too far, just stay near the community."

I didn't tell anyone about Andre's return to normal, for fear of causing unnecessary trouble.However, it would be too cruel to lock a sane person at home, so I had no intention of restricting him from going out, but asked Xiao Wang to follow.

Xiao Wang agreed, and carefully put on a hat and mask on Andre, covering his face as much as possible.Andre lowered the brim of his hat, and tilted his head at me over Xiao Wang's shoulder, with a childish air.

I couldn't help but smile and said softly, "Be careful."

When they went out one after the other, I rubbed the space between my brows, preparing to meet an unexpected visitor.

"...Ma'am." I didn't know her last name, so I had to ask, "You came to me suddenly, does your mother have something to tell you?"

My mother's housekeeper sat across from me. He was about 50 years old.

Although she was sent to take care of Andre for a long time, I also had contact with her when I lived in the villa in the mountains.But I have nothing to talk to her, and my memory of her is only on the top of her hair when she bowed deeply, and her expressionless face.

"In two days, it will be your birthday, Mr. Xu." The housekeeper said, "Madam can't celebrate your birthday in person, so I will give you a gift on behalf of Madam."

I was stunned for a while, as if someone had slapped me out of thin air: Since you don’t want to face my birth so much, why bother to give any gift, is it to remind me that my survival depends on her dedication?

I almost mocked and laughed: "That's really hard work for you, please tell my mother a thank you for me, thank her for remembering my birthday."

"The child's birthday is a difficult day for the mother, and the wife will never forget this day."

"Of course she won't forget." I said, "Isn't the day I was born one of her shames?"

The housekeeper looked up at me, and said in a low voice, "Mr. Xu, you were born nearly half a month earlier than the expected date of delivery. Madam entered the delivery room the morning before, and stayed up until 20:[-] the next morning. When she was born, she asked about your safety after waking up. At that time, she only knew that she should not have endured the pain of childbirth. How can you deny a mother’s dedication like this?”

I want to refute her, obviously it was not me who caused my mother to suffer this kind of pain, obviously all I got was ignorance and use, why does everyone want me to understand and forgive?

But what's the use of saying it?They don't change their minds, they just want to change me.

Perhaps because I was silent, the housekeeper changed the subject: "Why haven't I seen Master Andre, how is he doing recently?"

"I asked the nurse to take him for a walk." I squeezed the space between my eyebrows, "He...is still the same."

"It's a pity." A trace of regret flashed in the housekeeper's eyes, "Young master was so outstanding before."

I suddenly thought of André's father, about his mysterious aunt, and Hélène—no one is more likely to know these things in depth than this housekeeper who has been with his mother for decades.

After calming my mind, I said, "Mom said that Andre's family has hereditary mental illness. If I can get the predecessor's illness and treatment, maybe it will inspire his doctor."

She said: "Mr. Xu, I know you really want Andre to live well, so I suggest you entrust him to his father. The young master is the only son and the only heir. I think their family must have properly handled it." Way."

I couldn't believe it and asked: "What are you talking about? Isn't mom going to take care of it? She made Andre like this!"

"Everyone has their own destiny. The madam wanted to treat the young master with good intentions. The current situation cannot be considered her fault." The housekeeper said, "Furthermore, the madam gave birth to the young master and raised him for so many years. Even if the young master is sober, he will not Do you have any complaints about Madam?"

I was deeply shocked by her gangster logic.In her eyes, everything a mother does is reasonable, let alone hurting her two sons only "little".After all, the child owes his mother a debt by nature, so what position does he have to criticize her?

My background is dishonorable, and it is reasonable for her not to like me.But no matter what, I couldn't figure it out, my mother used to love Andre so much, and even arranged the domestic industry for him in detail, how could she suddenly change her attitude and be so cruel to him?

That was her own son——

I raised my head suddenly, and the question that had been buried in my heart for many years surfaced with this almost absurd idea: "Why is Andre's hair blond?"

If I remember correctly, there are dominant and recessive eye and hair colors.And black is a dominant gene, so even if one of the parents is blond, as long as the other is black, the hair color of the mixed race will basically not be pure blond.

Even if there are occasional accidents in the genetic inheritance process, the chances of a flawless blond hair and blue eyes like Andre appearing in a mixed race child are extremely low.

"Why can't it be golden? There is no precedent for a child inheriting the characteristics of the father. Birth itself is a process full of accidents, and occasionally there will be unexpected results. Even the mother herself cannot be sure what the fetus in the womb will become. Sample."

I smiled, and just said: "Brothers of different fathers can also do a blood test."

The housekeeper said: "Mr. Xu, you are too distracted. The young master looks so much like Madam, I don't understand where your doubts come from. Besides, if the young master knows about this, he will be so chilled."

Indeed, Andre and his mother have too many similarities in appearance, and there is no evidence that they are not mother and child. Even though I had question marks, I silently dispelled the confusion.

"It's better to prove it." I stared at her face calmly, not letting go of any changes in her expression, and then threw a bomb in a firm tone, "After all, Andre's aunt Hélène doesn't look the same as her mother. Is it similar?"

In fact, I'm not entirely sure about Hélène's life experience—but what's the point of cheating?

The butler lowered his eyelids, the corners of his lips were pursed tightly, and two deep nasolabial folds appeared on his cheeks.After a long silence, she sighed deeply.

"Young Master was definitely born from Madam's womb," she said, "There is no doubt about it."

This sentence is too ambiguous.A mother can also give birth to a child who has no blood relationship with herself. If the real biological mother of the child happens to be similar to her, perhaps she will never discover this secret in her entire life——

Or maybe, I have already got the answer.

I raised my eyes and looked at the butler. She seemed to know what I wanted to ask, and shook her head: "Madam doesn't know."

"Mom doesn't know...then how could she be so cruel and watch her son go crazy?" I muttered to myself, "It doesn't make sense."

All I got was the housekeeper's light words: "The madam has always been strict with the young master."

"Strict? Strict enough to drive him into a mental illness, so that he doesn't know anyone?"

"The young master used to be able to bear it very well, and my wife didn't expect the situation to suddenly deteriorate." She said, "Mr. Xu, the young master is different from ordinary people, so the way my wife educates him has also changed. It is normal for you not to understand."

I couldn't help interrupting her: "In my opinion, Andre is normal, and it's my mother who has the problem."

The butler paused and explained: "The young master was noisier than ordinary babies after he was born, and he often cried all night. Madam was still young at that time, busy with her own business, and didn't have the energy to take care of him, so she handed him over to him most of the time. maid."

"However, one of the life nanny concealed her severe drug dependence, and in order to keep him quiet during the care of the young master, she gave the young master her own sedatives. She served several cousins ​​of the young master Andre However, he performed very well, so this matter was not discovered until the young master was six years old."

"Madam felt very guilty about this, and decided not to let the young master leave her, so she invited a tutor so that he would not have to contact other people. After quitting the drug, the young master's temper became uncontrollable. In order not to let him hurt the visiting guests, Madam had no choice but to order the servant to tie him to the bed, or lock him into the room until he woke up. If the young master made a mistake, the madam would never be willing to criticize him, but forbid everyone to talk to him, so that the young master can reflect on himself."

She said it lightly, as if these things didn't matter, but I was dumbfounded: "This is abuse!"

The housekeeper said: "The young master was young at the time and needed his mother to accompany him. For him, Madam invested in several hospitals and nursing homes, and the doctor also agreed with Madam's approach."

"Where's his father?" I couldn't believe that such a horrible childhood experience would actually happen, "Is he not going to care about his mother treating Andre like this?"

Her tone is unquestionable: "Madam did not cause any damage to the young master, everything is to make him better. Moreover, the young master's father is busy with work, and the husband and wife don't have much time to live together. As long as the young master is very healthy, he I can also understand Madam's good intentions."

"Do you really think there is nothing wrong with it?" I asked, "You follow your mother and see her treat the child in this way, don't you think she is cruel?"

The butler was quiet for a few seconds, and then said, "Mr. Xu, how can a mother have the heart to harm her own child?"

"Okay, okay, you're right." I clenched my fists by my side, restraining the desire to laugh miserably, "Would it be convenient for me to ask, what birthday present did my 'kind' mother prepare?"

She nodded, and took out a document bag from the black briefcase she carried with her.Before I saw the details, my eyebrows twitched: Judging from past experience, the documents that I took out in front of me would not be good things.

"This is……"

The butler bowed and handed it to me, and replied in that respectful but emotionless voice that I remember:

"Madam's will."