Meng Po Gave Her A Bowl Of Soup - Chapter 8

—Auntie, who did you say made this congee?

Song Wanyue’s tone was far too serious, making Huang Lan pause. She looked at her and repeated, “Xiao Xu.”

Oh no.

She thought of how Wanyue did not seem to like President Xu very much. Was she angry again because Huang Lan had rashly accepted the congee someone else made?

Song Wanyue did not say anything else. She lowered her head and fed another spoonful of congee into her mouth.

Huang Lan could not see her expression. Only in the end did she see ripples spreading through the congee in Wanyue’s bowl. “Child, you…”

Wanyue shook her head and wiped the tears from her cheeks with the back of her hand. She always could not help herself. She had only just said she would be someone Huang Lan could rely on, yet now she was making her worry again. “It’s nothing, Auntie. This congee… tastes very good.”

It tasted so much like Mingyu’s cooking.

In the past, when she was sick and did not want to eat anything, Mingyu would make preserved egg congee for her, drag her out from under the covers, hold her in her arms, and feed her spoonful by spoonful. Sometimes, when Wanyue felt awful from the fever and lost her temper, Mingyu would smile and poke her nose. “You want me to coax you again.”

Song Wanyue would wave her hand irritably. “Not eating, not eating.”

And Mingyu? She would never get angry with her. She would smile, hold the congee in her mouth, and feed her one bite after another, leaving her no way to refuse.

Song Wanyue could not help wondering: perhaps because Mingyu had often stayed by President Xu’s side, she had taught her how to make it?

Huang Lan looked at Song Wanyue half-believingly and said softly, “If you want to cry, then cry. Don’t hold it in.”

Seeing Wanyue force herself to look strong made her heart ache too.

Wanyue did not say anything more. She ate the congee bite by bite. She ate very slowly, wanting that familiar feeling to remain a little longer.

But no matter how slowly she ate, there would always come a time when a bowl of congee was finished. Song Wanyue gathered the bowls and chopsticks and went to wash them. Huang Lan had originally wanted to help, but Wanyue drove her out of the kitchen. “Auntie, go rest on the sofa for a while. Later, I’ll take you out to buy some daily necessities.”

From the moment Song Wanyue was born until now, she had always been the one being taken care of.

She had never taken care of anyone.

Now, she could only recall the way Mingyu took care of others and learn bit by bit.

Only…

As Song Wanyue washed the dishes, she could not help remembering long ago, when she had finished eating and hugged Xiao Mingyu from behind, acting spoiled. “Let me wash the dishes.”

The morning sunlight was beautiful, and Mingyu’s dark eyes were full of tenderness that made one’s heart stir. “Go rest on the sofa. Don’t you still have lessons to prepare?”

“But you cooked, so I should wash the dishes.” Song Wanyue’s eyes drifted a little. Xiao Mingyu looked at her in amusement. “Did you hear some gossip from one of your students again?”

Song Wanyue’s face flushed faintly, her gaze dodging. “I did not.”

“You still say you didn’t. Look, you don’t even dare look me in the eyes.” Xiao Mingyu set the bowl down, wiped her hands, then turned around and hugged Wanyue. “What happened?”

Nestled in Mingyu’s arms, breathing in the fragrance on her body, Song Wanyue became honest. She said faintly, “I heard a student in class say her parents got divorced because her mother was greedy and lazy, and made her father do everything. Even when it came to eating, she only ate and didn’t care about anything else.”

She pouted, and the sight of those red lips made Xiao Mingyu’s heart sway. She could not resist lowering her head to kiss her. Her long hair slipped down along both their cheeks, tickling them.

Song Wanyue was kissed until she was a little dazed. When she lifted her head and looked into Xiao Mingyu’s eyes, she could not help punching her lightly. “We only just finished eating.”

“Well, when wine and food are enough, thoughts naturally turn to desire.” Xiao Mingyu curved her lips. “Doing a little exercise with me is still better than letting that little head of yours think nonsense.”

…

Later, much later…

Not only did capable Mingyu wash the bowls and chopsticks, she also tormented her along the way.

“Don’t listen to other people’s nonsense in the future.” Xiao Mingyu held Song Wanyue, who was drenched in fragrant sweat and curled weakly in her arms like a kitten. Wanyue leaned against her and said feebly, “This is wisdom passed down through generations of blood and tears. A household has to be fair.”

Hearing that, Xiao Mingyu could not help scraping her finger along Wanyue’s nose. “That was because he didn’t love her enough.”

She loved her enough.

She was willing to do everything for her.

She wished she could spoil her into a child. Who would fuss over these things with a precious child?

Before she knew it.

The water in the sink overflowed just like Song Wanyue’s tears. She took a deep breath, controlled the tears, and looked up at the blue sky outside the window.

Mingyu…

If you were still here, you would definitely laugh at me for being weak and not strong enough.

But if you were here, how could you ever make me want to be strong?

…

Every scene, every drop, in this home was the sediment of all these years of love between her and Mingyu.

Every corner held their laughter and joy.

Song Wanyue felt terrible inside. Taking Huang Lan out could also be counted as a kind of escape.

First, she took her to get glasses. While getting the glasses, Wanyue secretly spoke with the sales assistant beforehand, asking her to tell the old lady a very cheap price and say they were the most basic model. Then Wanyue would privately transfer the payment, so Huang Lan would feel a little better in her heart.

The sales assistant could not help smiling. “You’re truly filial.”

Wanyue did not speak. She only could not help thinking that if Mingyu were here, she would praise her for being clever and tap her nose, wouldn’t she?

Restraining her grief, Song Wanyue then took Huang Lan to buy some daily necessities. She also bought some health supplements for her, especially ones for cardiovascular and cerebrovascular health. Seeing the prices, Huang Lan’s heart ached terribly, but on the surface, she still pretended to be calm and indifferent. Song Wanyue saw it, pressed her lips together, and her heart twisted with pain.

After returning home.

Song Wanyue washed the clothes and other things she had bought for Huang Lan and hung them up to dry. As for the underwear and such, Wanyue wanted to wash them too, but Huang Lan took them away herself with a flushed face. “This old lady isn’t useless. It’s fine, it’s fine. You’ve been tired all day, child. Hurry and go rest.”

Child…

She treated Wanyue the same way she had treated Mingyu.

In this world, even her own parents no longer called her child.

Song Wanyue did not rest. She simply could not sleep. As soon as she closed her eyes, all the memories of her and Mingyu’s past would play scene by scene like a film.

She went to the study.

From the safe, she took out Huang Lan’s medical insurance card. She planned to take Huang Lan to have another physical examination, to make sure there were no aftereffects and to check the extent of the previous lacunar infarction.

This was something Mingyu had always paid for on Huang Lan’s behalf, just in case. Beside it were all kinds of documents. When Wanyue saw the awkward smile on Mingyu’s ID card, she remembered that when Mingyu had gone to renew her identification, Wanyue had gone with her. Mingyu always got nervous and stiff-faced when taking photos, so Wanyue had teased her from the side, and only then had Mingyu squeezed out such an awkward smile.

In the past, Mingyu had carried this household bit by bit. She had never told Wanyue about expenses and the like.

But Wanyue knew she had worked hard. Mingyu’s salary card and such had always been kept with her, because every time the school deposited her pay each month, she would receive a text notification.

Only after so long did Song Wanyue know that Mingyu had never once spent her money.

Now, Mingyu was no longer here. Perhaps fear was at work in her heart, but Song Wanyue picked up a pen and wrote down, bit by bit, the passwords to all the cards and where the documents were kept.

The old her had never been so pessimistic.

But now, she could not avoid planning for the unexpected. If one day something happened to her too, she could not let Huang Lan, an old lady, be left all alone.

Early the next morning.

Song Wanyue rarely took the initiative to speak, asking Huang Lan to go to the vegetable market to buy groceries. Huang Lan was happy when she heard this. She was an old lady who had worked hard for half her life and could not stay idle. Being assigned something to do instead made her happy.

Not long after she left, people from Mingyu’s company came by. Among them was President Xu.

Before this, Wanyue had received a message from Xiao He and knew they were coming. She was afraid the old lady would not be able to bear it, so she had sent her out to buy groceries.

They were all from the leadership level. Everyone was dressed in solemn black, their faces heavy.

Mingyu had been unexpectedly popular at the company. Over the years, her relationship with Wanyue had also gone from being cautiously hidden at first to half-public. Everyone understood them very well, and very few people criticized them for anything.

After her colleagues learned that she had passed away, many people cried. Many people had also come to Mingyu’s funeral, but no matter how sad outsiders were, they were not her family.

As Mingyu’s highest superior, President Xu looked at Song Wanyue for a long time.

Wanyue’s eyes were still a little swollen, and her complexion was not very good. Her skin, once as white as jade, now carried an ashen pallor.

“We’re here on behalf of the company.”

Xu Ruying restrained the emotions in her heart, and the people around her lowered their heads one after another. She simply said a few words of condolence, her eyes fixed on Wanyue the whole time.

Wanyue remained silent. She sat upright there, loose strands of hair at her forehead slipping down along her cheeks. She had no reaction to everyone’s words. Only every time “Mingyu” was mentioned, her body would tremble slightly.

Grief had reached its extreme.

Every time the person she deeply loved was mentioned, it was as if a whip were lashing fiercely against the bottom of her heart.

It was an indescribable emotion.

To announce the news of her own death to the person she loved most, the person she treasured most.

Even while wearing someone else’s body, she still felt that heart-piercing pain.

Only now did Mingyu gain another understanding of death.

Before, she had seen all kinds of people in hospitals suffering from serious illnesses. Some found it hard to accept, some were in unbearable pain, and some opened their hearts and actively accepted treatment…

Every person behaved differently.

But the grief in the hearts of their family members and closest loved ones was surprisingly the same.

Perhaps when a person truly reached the day of death, it was like a lamp going out, and there was no more physical pain.

But the pain left to the people around them was permanent.

“The driver of the large truck has already woken up. He bears full responsibility. Their company had full insurance on the vehicle, and he himself was also insured… and on our company’s side…”

Xu Ruying looked at Song Wanyue and gently explained all this. The person had already left. Grief existed, yes, but life still had to go on afterward.

In the end, Xu Ruying handed a kraft paper envelope to Song Wanyue. Wanyue looked at it without moving.

Everyone understood her grief and remained silent, saying nothing. After a very long time.

Only then did Song Wanyue raise her head. Tears shimmered in her eyes as she said softly, “I can’t accept it.”

Those words stunned everyone.

Song Wanyue stared into Xu Ruying’s eyes. “We weren’t married yet.”

Legally, she did not have inheritance rights.

The wedding dress she had tried on countless times was already prepared.

But her Mingyu had never seen it. All she had left her was a wedding ring.

This was the tacit understanding they had held for ten years, day after day. Mingyu must have been the same as her, thinking that after returning from the business trip, she would propose.

But… this was also the last time their hearts had understood each other.

From now on, never again.

The people present were all stunned. They had not expected her to suddenly say such a thing. Such a large sum of money—she did not want it?

Xiao He, who had been standing by the door the whole time, suddenly crouched down with red eyes. She could not help crying.

She had once heard Boss say so many times that she was going to get married. Xiao He had even prepared the wedding money.

Heaven had no eyes.

It was far too cruel.

Song Wanyue said softly, “All of this should belong to her mother.”

She did not want it to be like this. Even looking at it once wounded her heart once.

What use was any amount of compensation?

If she could, she was willing to ruin herself financially and give up everything, wanting only for her Mingyu to come back.

Xu Ruying’s hand tightened. To cover it up, she lowered her head slightly, opened the kraft paper envelope, and pulled out a sheet of paper from the very inside. “It’s like this. When we were organizing the belongings she left at the company, we found a will she had once made.”

Song Wanyue looked at Xu Ruying, her eyes somewhat blank.

Mingyu made a will?

She had been so young. How could she have made a will?

Xu Ruying handed the will to her and asked softly and gently, “Take a look. Is this her handwriting?”

The curtains in the living room were drawn, leaving only a narrow gap. A faint light projected in from outside the window and fell across Xu Ruying’s face, illuminating the tenderness in her eyes. Yet the exhaustion in her gaze and the dark circles beneath her eyes could not be hidden.

These past few days, she had been busy running around handling all kinds of procedures.

She understood Wanyue. She knew why Wanyue had brought Huang Lan over.

She had already died. In this one year, she had to arrange everything properly for the mother and daughter.

Living in this world, aside from love, material needs would always be indispensable.

The first thing she had to do was ensure that the two of them would have no worries about food and clothing, and would not have to worry about money.

Listening to Xu Ruying’s words, Song Wanyue did not take the will. She only stared blankly into her eyes, sitting upright and unmoving.