He Will Come Back Before Dawn

5

Jiang Wenjuan brought Pei Chuan home. She washed his face and took a cup of water to rinse his mouth.

Pei Chuan had been quiet all along. Jiang Wenjuan looked at the child’s pale clear profile and caressed his black hair with some light movements while asking, “Why did Xiao Chuan bite Chen Hu?”

Pei Chuan lowered his eyelashes and said, “He stole my cookie.”

Jiang Wenjuan frowned.

She knew that Pei Chuan was lying. Their family was considered to be the most affluent in the entire neighborhood. That kind of sandwich cookie may not be available in other people’s homes, but their home not only had cookies but also chocolates. Therefore Pei Chuan wouldn’t fight over a biscuit.

Even if the child didn’t say so, her eyes subconsciously fell on Pei Chuan’s legs and there were tears in her eyes. Jiang Wenjuan actually understood that it must be because of his legs.

She gently hugged him and then smiled, “Mommy is going to cook dinner. You can eat in a while. Is there anything particular Pei Chuan wants to eat?”

Pei Chuan shook his head. He dark-eyed looked at Jiang Wenjuan’s busy figure quietly and thoughtfully.

Pei Haobin didn’t come home until late in the evening. He was recently on the hunt for a drug criminal and was often busy until late at night. When he came back, the atmosphere of the entire house became quiet for a second.

Pei Chuan’s family had a color TV set in the living room, which was a rare item in 1996. Jiang Wenjuan was watching a singing program with Pei Chuan. Despite noticing Pei Haobin’s return, Pei Wenjuan didn’t turn around to look at him. Instead, it was Pei Haobin who took the lead to say, “I’m back.”

He came over and first looked at his tired wife before caressing his son’s little head.

Pei Chuan tilted his head to look at his father. His eyes were very clear without any trace of resentment. Looking at such pure eyes, Pei Haobin’s heart ached imperceptibly.

Jiang Wenjuan blamed him for getting Pei Chuan into trouble, and the two of them quarreled every now and then.

Last night, both of them were busy as Jiang Wenjuan was the section chief of emergency surgery and Pei Haobin was also still working. Both of them thought that the other one had picked up Pei Chuan. However when they came back, they realized that neither of them had gone to pick him up from the kindergarten. Jiang Wenjuan cried hysterically all night.

*

Although it was an arranged marriage, the couple was very sweet when they first got married. In particular, after the birth of Pei Chuan, this happiness reached its peak. However, when Pei Chuan’s legs were broken, Jiang Wenjuan couldn’t help but hate Pei Haobin.

She hated her husband for the retaliation brought by his work on their family and getting their child’s calves cut off by criminals when he was only at the age of four.

At that time, when she saw Pei Chuan covered in blood, Jiang Wenjuan was so heartbroken that she felt devastated.

*

Pei Haobin found that there wasn’t any food kept for him in the kitchen, so he settled down to finish his own bowl of noodles. After he finished eating, he came back to talk to Pei Chuan for a while. The little boy very sensibly answered to whatever Pei Haobin asked of him.

Jiang Wenjuan watched them with cold eyes. At nine o’clock in the evening, she helped Pei Chuan wash his face to let him go to sleep.

The little boy reached his hand to pull at the hem of her dress.