Chapter 606 - 212: Cooling Off Under the Crooked-Neck Tree
Jie Jingchen drove to a wide spot up ahead and made a U-turn, stopping the car in front of them. He waited for the two to get in. When he saw that Qin Mei didn’t take the front passenger seat, but sat in the back with Jie Jingling instead, his expression darkened almost imperceptibly.
"Jie Jingsi, is your Granny alright?" Qin Mei asked, offering a token show of concern.
"She should be fine." Jie Jingchen gave Qin Mei a noncommittal answer.
"Should be?" Qin Mei exchanged a look with Jie Jingling. She placed one hand on the back of the driver’s seat and the other on the back of the passenger’s seat, her gaze fixed on Jie Jingchen.
"I was in a hurry to come back and pick you and Big Sis up. I dropped them off at the hospital and left." Jie Jingchen said without a hint of guilt. He had left coolly and decisively, while his Second Uncle and Second Aunt’s faces were contorted with anger, calling him unfilial.
’Jie Jingchen thought he was plenty filial. If he were truly unfilial, he wouldn’t have even bothered driving them to the hospital.’
"You didn’t stay with them at the hospital?" Seeing Jie Jingchen shake his head, Qin Mei couldn’t help but punch him on the shoulder. "Are you stupid?! You were already there! You should see things through to the end. Even if you didn’t run around the hospital helping out, just staying quietly to the side would have shown you were involved. That way, they wouldn’t have anything to hold against you."
’Filial piety... sometimes it’s really exasperating.’
Jie Jingchen disdained putting on a show. Qin Mei thought her words would resonate with him, but instead, he just said, "My Second Uncle and Second Aunt don’t want my involvement. They want my money."
Qin Mei’s mouth twitched. ’Poor people are stingy out of necessity, but Jie Jingchen is rich and still a total cheapskate.’
’Then she remembered Jie Jingchen handing over his passbook. She really liked the numbers in it. That man was impossibly devious. He had already given her his passbook but didn’t say a word, just waited for her to find out on her own.’
’This man...’ Qin Mei was truly speechless.
Qin Mei leaned back against the seat, relaxed and languid, and looked at Jie Jingling. "Sis, are we heading home?"
"I want to go see my teacher," Jie Jingling said. She was leaving soon, and who knew when she’d be back. The people she was most worried about leaving behind in Shijiu City were her teacher and his wife.
Because Qin Mei had pulled Zhang Haoyuan back from the abyss, the elderly couple had found renewed hope and something to live for, so Jie Jingling could leave with peace of mind.
Given Old Zhang’s status, Jie Jingchen didn’t drive into the alleyway, parking on the side of the main road instead. Qin Mei didn’t go with Jie Jingling, waiting in the car with Jie Jingchen.
Waiting for people is boring, especially in a car.
"Come sit up front." Jie Jingchen turned his head to look at Qin Mei in the back seat, who was touching this and that.
"What for?" Qin Mei’s gaze focused on Jie Jingchen. His look was so intense it made her mind wander. ’He isn’t thinking about doing... *that*... with me in the car, is he?’
’It wasn’t her fault her mind was in the gutter; Jie Jingchen was just too shameless.’
’Especially when they were alone together. Things just had a way of getting heated.’
The temperature outside was high, but it was even hotter inside the car. Qin Mei wished she could install an air conditioner.
’Jie Jingchen worked at a machinery factory, yet he was clueless about mechanics. If he ever brought her home some little gadget he’d made—even just a self-assembled radio—she’d be so shocked her jaw would drop. Then she’d praise him so much he’d get embarrassed.’
"Are you hot?" Jie Jingchen asked.
Qin Mei rolled her eyes and fanned herself with her hand. "It’s scorching out," she retorted irritably. "What do you think?"
Her clothes had been soaked with sweat, then dried, then soaked again in an endless cycle. She reeked of it.
"Come sit up front," Jie Jingchen said again.
"Is it any less hot up front?" ’As long as the car isn’t moving, it’s hot everywhere. And they didn’t know when Jie Jingling would be back. If she asked Jie Jingchen to drive around just to cool off, they might miss Jie Jingling when they returned. In an era with such poor communication, finding someone was a real hassle.’
’Things were so much better in later generations. All it took was one phone call to find someone in minutes.’
It was impossibly hot. Jie Jingchen glanced out the window, then turned back to Qin Mei and pointed at a crooked-neck tree up ahead. "Let’s go sit under that tree."
In this era, finding shade under a tree was the only way to cool off.
Qin Mei opened the car door and headed for the crooked-neck tree first. Jie Jingchen followed close behind. When they got under the tree, Qin Mei looked up at the lush, leafy branches and mused that the tree must have some history.
"Jie Jingsi, do you think anyone’s ever hanged themselves on this tree?" Qin Mei asked, ruining the mood.
Jie Jingchen’s mouth twitched. His eyes were so full of Qin Mei that he hadn’t even noticed the rope marks on the thickest branch. From her height, Qin Mei couldn’t see them, but from his, they were visible if one looked closely.
"Probably not." Afraid of scaring Qin Mei but unable to give a definite answer, Jie Jingchen opted for a noncommittal one.
Qin Mei didn’t dwell on it. ’It’s not dark yet, and I haven’t done anything wicked or wrong. Why would I be afraid of a hanging ghost coming for me?’
Qin Mei spotted a rock under the tree that looked like a small stool and plopped down on it. Jie Jingchen saw another rock not far away and went over, intending to move it. It was quite large, bigger than the one Qin Mei was sitting on. It was too big to lift with one hand, and his right arm was weak. Just as Jie Jingchen was about to give up, Qin Mei walked over.
"Don’t you know your own limits? There are serious consequences for trying to act tough." Qin Mei glared at Jie Jingchen. ’Would it kill him to ask for help?’
Jie Jingchen wanted to explain. ’He wasn’t trying to act tough. Couldn’t she see he was about to give up?’
Full of gusto, Qin Mei squatted down and tugged at the rock a few times, but couldn’t budge it. It was too heavy for her to move on her own. Qin Mei looked up at Jie Jingchen. "What are you staring at? Lend a hand! You didn’t really expect me to move it for you, did you? Sorry to disappoint, but the spirit is willing and the flesh is weak."
Jie Jingchen silently squatted down and, together with Qin Mei, moved the rock under the tree. After the effort, Qin Mei was sweating buckets.
Jie Jingchen took a handkerchief from his pocket and gently wiped the sweat from Qin Mei’s face. The two of them sat on the rock, shoulder to shoulder. At Qin Mei’s request, Jie Jingchen used the handkerchief as a makeshift fan to cool her down.
Passersby cast strange, almost horrified, glances at them. One such look could be ignored, two could be dismissed, but when almost every passerby did the same, something was clearly off.
"Jie Jingsi, don’t tell me someone actually did hang themselves on this tree." Qin Mei sat up straight, a somewhat uneasy expression on her face. She poked Jie Jingchen’s arm.
The faint smile on Jie Jingchen’s face froze for a second. He gazed at her with deep affection, his voice incredibly gentle. "Scared?"
Qin Mei tilted her head and leaned against his arm, speaking without much conviction. "What’s there to be scared of? I’m not the one who harmed anyone. I’ve done nothing wrong, so I don’t fear a knock at the door in the middle of the night."
’An image flashed in her mind: a woman with disheveled hair, completely consumed by despair, hanging herself.’
Qin Mei looked up at the thick branch above them. ’It really was the perfect choice for a hanging, and with the rock they were sitting on, it was a complete set.’
"How about we go sit under that tree over there?" The crooked-neck tree had been the closest one, so Jie Jingchen hadn’t thought much of it at the time. ’Stories about hanging ghosts are common with crooked trees like this. Although he wasn’t afraid, it was still a bit creepy.’
"You’re scared?" Qin Mei pulled her gaze away and let it rest on Jie Jingchen’s profile. ’His amber eyes were enchanting, his nose was straight, his thin lips were sensual, and his jaw was strong and well-defined. Every one of his features was a masterpiece of God’s creation.’
Jie Jingchen pressed his lips together into a perfect line, looking at Qin Mei speechlessly.
"I’m here, so don’t be scared." Qin Mei raised a hand and patted Jie Jingchen’s cheek, adding, "I’ll protect you."
Jie Jingchen was even more speechless. ’Shouldn’t he be the one saying that? Wouldn’t that be more fitting for the situation?’
Jie Jingchen didn’t spoil her fun. As long as she was happy, he could be the helpless, delicate man.
"What? Was I wrong?" Qin Mei asked, looking at Jie Jingchen with an innocent expression.