Chapter 37: Marinated Through and Through

Looking at the girl in front of him, Zheng Fei suddenly felt that it didn't matter whether she was the biological child of that cheap father of his or adopted.

Since she shared the same household registration as Zheng Yuanshan, legally speaking, this girl was his sister.

Yet, Zheng Fei genuinely intended to send her back to where she came from. After all, he had only just begun to live a decent life, and having a burden suddenly dumped on him was enough to annoy anyone.

Once the chattering neighbors had dispersed, Zheng Fei opened the glue-sealed kraft paper envelope. He hadn't expected to find ten "Big Unity" banknotes and a letter inside.

------

"Words are like meeting in person.

Xiao Fei, it has been several years since I last wrote to you. I am a very incompetent father; not only did I bring disaster upon the family, but now, I have burdened you with such a heavy trouble."

Reading this, Zheng Fei couldn't help but snort. At least the man had some self-awareness.

...

"If you truly cannot accept Shu Yao, you may buy her a train ticket and send her back; I will not force you.

I have always wanted to return to see you and Xiao Yun, but for certain reasons, I cannot. Shu Yao is a very well-behaved and sensible sister. If you are willing to accept her, I hope you will take good care of her."

------

The letter was very brief, and the paper didn't look very clean, covered in many ink stains. As someone who often drew, Zheng Fei understood at a glance.

Zheng Yuanshan’s hands were likely incapacitated; he was probably barely able to write at all.

This left Zheng Fei feeling vaguely uneasy, and he asked the girl who was shivering at the door.

"Father, what happened? Why can't he even write properly?"

The girl’s lips trembled, and she looked quite pitiful. "He fell off a horse and injured himself. For all these years, Apa (Mother) has been the one taking care of him."

Zheng Fei frowned. "Is it serious?"

The girl nodded. "A few years ago, it was very severe; he couldn't walk at all. This year is slightly better; he can walk with a cane."

Zheng Fei: ...

It must have been a nasty fall. No wonder that cheap father didn't want to come back—he couldn't.

Zheng Fei finally understood why he didn't want to return to Shanghai. To go from being such a high-spirited comic book artist to a disabled man—the contrast was simply too great.

Furthermore, for an artist, the hands are everything. The thought of being unable to draw was despairing enough.

If he returned to Shanghai in such a state, he would not only be looked down upon but would also become a burden to Zheng Fei. Staying there, where at least there was someone to care for him, was the best choice for him.

Looking at the shivering girl, Zheng Fei said in a low voice, "Come in."

Seeing Zheng Fei let her in, the girl, who had been feeling incredibly aggrieved, burst into tears and carried her bags into the room.

"Have you eaten?"

The girl nodded. "I have."

She took half a piece of flatbread from her cloth bag. "I have naan bread to eat."

"You ate this the whole way?"

"Yes, naan is delicious. Apa made it for me. Do you want some?" With that, the girl held out the naan to Zheng Fei.

Zheng Fei shook his head.

"How long did it take you to get here?"

The girl counted on her fingers. "From the time Apa put me on the train until today, it has been five days. I could have arrived yesterday, but I took the wrong turn and had to ask for directions for a long time before I found this place."

Zheng Fei frowned deeply. Was his cheap father out of his mind? Sending such a young girl on a train for so long—was he not afraid she would be abducted?

Seeing her still shivering, Zheng Fei poured her a cup of hot water. "Drink this first to warm yourself up."

He then handed her his hot water bottle and said, "Hold this for a while, and you won't feel so cold."

After taking the hot water bottle, the girl asked in confusion, "Why is Shanghai so cold?"

Zheng Fei paused. He wanted to explain that Shanghai wasn't actually that cold, just humid.

Moreover, everyone here was frugal; unlike where she came from, where every household had a fireplace for heating, using a fireplace in Shanghai was an extreme luxury. Everyone was long used to just enduring the cold.

When Zheng Shu Yao entered the room, Zheng Fei immediately caught an indescribable odor filling the small space.

In his past life, Zheng Fei had encountered real herdsmen. The smell was truly intense; due to their living conditions, they rarely bathed, and on top of that, she had been on a train for four days.

The southern climate wasn't as dry as the north, and now that the humidity had set in, the odor was overwhelming.

"I'll fetch you some water; go take a bath."

"I don't need to wash."

Seeing she was reluctant, Zheng Fei grew stern. "If you don't wash, I'll buy you a train ticket right now and send you packing."

Seeing Zheng Fei suddenly become so fierce, Zheng Shu Yao was bewildered and felt very wronged.

Where she came from, they only bathed once a month. She had bathed before setting off and was already very clean; she wasn't due for another bath for twenty more days.

Zheng Fei grabbed a bucket and headed out, but before leaving, he specifically warned her, "Do not touch anything on my desk, do you hear me?"

"I understand, Brother."

Hearing the girl call him brother, Zheng Fei was caught off guard, but he didn't feel uncomfortable. On the contrary, he felt quite happy.

Who wouldn't want a well-behaved, obedient sister who might grow up to be as beautiful as Dilraba?

At the end of the alley, at a public water-heating stall, Zheng Fei spent two cents to fill a whole bucket of hot water.

Old Man Zhang, who was in charge of selling the water, saw Zheng Fei and said with a lecherous grin, "Xiao Fei, you've suddenly got a sister at home; you must not do anything reckless."

Looking at the grinning old man, Zheng Fei retorted, "Actually, I'm more interested in your granddaughter."

Old Man Zhang was stunned for a moment before he started cursing: "Are you crazy? Xiao Nan is only seven!"

"It's fine, I'm a patient man. I can wait for her to grow up."

"You rascal!"

Hearing this, Old Man Zhang immediately bent down to pick up a wooden stick, intending to fight Zheng Fei, but when he looked up, the boy had already vanished.

When Zheng Fei carried the hot water into the room, he found his sister standing there, not knowing whether to sit or stand, looking quite timid.

"You have a towel, right?"

"Yes." The girl nodded.

"Good. I'm going outside. Wash thoroughly, and wash your hair too, you hear me?"

Though the girl wanted to say that back home they only washed their hair once every six months, she saw how stern her brother looked and didn't dare to speak.

The neighbor, Auntie Huang, saw Zheng Fei crouching at the door. "Xiao Fei, is that girl really your sister?"

"Yes." Zheng Fei nodded.

Auntie Huang frowned immediately. "What kind of situation is this? How could a father be like that? Not coming back himself is one thing, but dumping an illegitimate daughter here? Is he trying to say you haven't suffered enough?"

"It's alright, with you helping..."

Auntie Huang swallowed her words, because in ten days, her family was moving back to the countryside.

It would be hard to look after Zheng Fei in the future. Although they hadn't been in Shanghai for many years, she had grown fond of the boy after living next to him for so long—he was at least more pleasant than her own son, Lai Sheng.

"Tonight, I'll stir-fry a couple of extra dishes; bring your sister over to eat with us."

"I'm troubling you again."

"What trouble? It's just adding another pair of chopsticks. And let me tell you, if you offer me money again, you're being too much of a stranger, and I'll be truly hurt."

Zheng Fei had indeed been about to reach into his pocket to pay for Zheng Shu Yao’s meals.

Zheng Fei didn't explain to Auntie Huang that his cheap father was now a semi-invalid who would likely die if left unattended, which was why he hadn't returned.

But the fact that he hadn't returned was, to Zheng Fei, a good thing. If the man were truly incapable of self-care, would he have to attend to his every need?

"Brother, I'm done washing."

Zheng Fei returned to the room and, seeing the shocking state of the washbasin, couldn't help but shake his head.

He sniffed the air as he approached her; the smell had faded slightly, but that intense, "pickled-in" odor remained. It would be hard to get rid of it in a short time.

Zheng Fei decided that when it was time to eat, he wouldn't let her sit at the same table as Auntie Huang’s family, so as not to offend them.

Zheng Shu Yao looked at the manuscripts on the table and smiled. "Brother, do you draw comic books too?"

Zheng Fei nodded.

"When I was little, Father used to draw comic books too. But every time he drew in secret, those bad people would burn all his manuscripts and tell him he needed to undergo 're-education'."