Although she had some mental preparation, Jiang Cheng never expected it to be for this reason.
The moment she thought about the way Zhou Qingying looked at her every time.
Uh… so it was just like what she saw when they came out of the elevator.
Admiration for a mother figure, right?
“Sorry, I privately treated you as my mom.”
“Uh… maybe you don’t need to emphasize it again.”
Jiang Cheng suddenly understood what those “painless motherhood” memes online felt like.
“No, Chengcheng, I need to properly apologize to you. How about this—you can scold me a few times.”
Are you a masochist?
Jiang Cheng couldn’t tell if Zhou Qingying was giving up on herself or what.
Her entire character setting seemed to have collapsed.
Do you still remember that you’re supposed to be a gentle, intellectual, naturally gifted high school actress?
How did your mental state suddenly jump to the next level?
Jiang Cheng also realized for the first time that she seemed to have quite a talent for tsukkomi.
“Yingying, Chengcheng’s personality makes it impossible for her to scold anyone. How about I scold you in her place instead?”
“Get lost…”
With Chen Ting smoothing things over, the strange awkwardness from earlier finally eased a little.
Still, Zhou Qingying looked a bit out of it, as if she were immersed in memories.
Her melancholic gaze fixed on the mother figure on the television screen.
“So… that’s why you were in such bad shape this morning.”
“I argued with my dad last night and even ran away from home.”
Zhou Qingying spilled her troubles as if she were talking about something trivial.
Jiang Cheng glanced at Chen Ting for confirmation, and Chen Ting nodded like a garlic pounder.
“But I was found less than two hours after leaving. Uncles, aunts, and Tingting all came looking for me. After I returned home with Dad, we argued again. Then I locked myself in my room, skipped dinner… The breakfast Dad made for me the next morning, I didn’t touch it either. Before heading to school, I wandered the streets for a while.”
No matter how Jiang Cheng listened, it sounded like Zhou Qingying was preparing for another runaway.
Zhou Qingying closed her eyes, still able to recall the scene from last night—
“Dad, why didn’t you come to watch my performance again…”
“The company’s script is pressing hard. We’ll talk when I have time.”
Zhou Ming wore a pair of black-rimmed glasses, his hair parted in a neat three-seven style, his facial features sharp and smooth.
His tall, lean frame was tucked into a crisp shirt and suit pants.
He didn’t carry the aura of someone who spent long hours with words; instead, there was a cold indifference about him.
He seemed more like an elite in the business world.
“But you promised me. Even Uncle had time to come.”
“Yingying.”
“Dad, don’t say anything more. Are you going to tell me again that I shouldn’t pursue acting?”
Zhou Qingying pouted.
Zhou Ming set down the pen in his hand.
Looking somewhat weary, he removed his glasses and rubbed the bridge of his nose.
He didn’t speak, but in Zhou Qingying’s eyes, that silence was tacit opposition.
In the end, ever since she decided to take this path, Zhou Ming had never once expressed approval.
She couldn’t understand—was it simply because Mom had also been an actress?
“You could study screenwriting or directing. Wouldn’t that be good too?”
“Is it not because of Mom?”
By the time Zhou Qingying realized it, the words had already left her mouth.
Zhou Ming fell silent again.
Not a ripple of emotion could be seen in his calm, deep eyes.
Even words that cut to the heart couldn’t provoke him.
Zhou Qingying almost began to doubt whether her parents had ever truly loved each other.
“The issues between your mother and me are far more complicated than you imagine.”
“Yeah… complicated enough that she hasn’t come back to see me in all these years, and a single phone call settles everything.”
After saying that, Zhou Qingying left the living room.
Not long after, Zhou Ming heard the sound of the security door closing.
He froze for a moment before belatedly rushing out to find his daughter…
After listening, Jiang Cheng only felt a stuffiness in her chest.
In Zhou Qingying’s recounting, it seemed no one was wrong, yet everyone was somehow not quite right.
“I admit that wanting to study acting was influenced by my mom…”
Zhou Qingying recalled the time before her parents divorced.
Occasionally, Mom would take her to the theater, and she would sit in the audience watching her usually expressionless mother suddenly come alive.
Her life bloomed on stage, captivating everyone.
It was then that Zhou Qingying developed a longing for that place bathed in lights.
Her uncle, aunt, grandpa, and grandma all supported her.
Only Dad opposed it, yet he never said so outright, giving her just a sliver of hope.
Zhou Qingying truly wished Dad would speak openly about it.
However, he and Mom were practically carved from the same mold.
Taciturn silence had become their trademark.
“So, Chengcheng, the reason I feel you resemble Mom is because you have a similar aura to hers. It always makes me dazed… I even had the thought that Mom never truly left me, and I wanted to keep her by my side.”
“That way, nothing would change. Our family of three would still be fine—Mom would guide me, Dad would support me… But in reality, Mom left without a backward glance, and Dad never mentions her at all.”
Jiang Cheng’s heart trembled, and at the same time, she grew worried about Zhou Qingying’s state.
This was no longer just a knot in her heart; the obsession was already affecting her daily life.
“I’ll go upstairs and sleep for a bit.”
Perhaps from exhaustion, fatigue appeared on Zhou Qingying’s face.
Chen Ting accompanied her upstairs and soon came back down. Jiang Cheng and she sat silently on the sofa.
The interview program on TV was nearing its end. Finally, the host helped promote Ma Lijun.
“Teacher Ma, I heard you returned to the country this time with a new production?”
“Yes, it’s a stage play project I want to bring to the domestic market. Once it’s officially launched, everyone is welcome to come watch.”
A faint smile appeared on Ma Lijun’s face, but it was far less vivid than when she had been performing earlier.
That sense of distance… even through the television screen, Jiang Cheng could feel the solitary aura surrounding Ma Lijun.
“Aunt Ma… has she been living alone abroad all this time?”
“Mm, that’s what I heard from my parents. Yingying also occasionally mentions how Aunt Ma is out there all by herself and wonders how she keeps going…”
Chen Ting seemed to recall something and added, “Also, Yingying’s maternal grandparents passed away before she was born.”
Indeed, just as Chen Ting said, just as Zhou Qingying said.
A complicated and helpless family relationship.
“When I went upstairs just now, I asked Yingying—she’s already eaten dinner. What do you think? Should the two of us go downstairs and grab something?”
“I don’t have much appetite.” After the ice cream, Jiang Cheng wasn’t very hungry.
“That’s fine then.”
“Are you hungry? If so, I can go with you.” Jiang Cheng stood up, figuring it would almost be time to head home after eating.
“I’m not really hungry either, but we should put something in our stomachs. I don’t want to wake up in the middle of the night raiding the fridge. Oh, right—I know a snack shop. Let’s buy some oden to go.”
She knew all the nearby old, famous eateries like the back of her hand and had visited many of the good ones.
The two grabbed their school bags and headed downstairs. Before leaving, Chen Ting sent Zhou Qingying a message.
“Let’s go. It’ll be good to get some fresh air too. After we eat, I’ll come back and keep Yingying company.”
She waved the access card in her hand—it was the one she had gotten from Zhou Qingying.
The two walked through the east gate.
Outside was a long street leading to an older neighborhood, and the everyday, lively atmosphere immediately grew thicker.
“Look, there are still quite a lot of people.” Chen Ting pointed at a small shop tucked in the corner of the street.
Judging by the length of the queue at the door, it clearly had many repeat customers.
“In the past, Yingying and I used to come here often, but later she had to watch her weight and rarely ate snacks outside anymore. Giving her ice cream today really was a sin.”
Chen Ting’s tone sounded light, but every sentence revolved around Zhou Qingying.
She took a deep breath, as if trying to inhale all the bubbling, fragrant broth aroma.
“Yingying… she’s really exhausted.”