Silent Separation (何以笙箫默) – Gu Man (Chapter 12.2)

August 29, 2014 by lidge 28 Comments

This is the second last post of the novel and the final post will be next week, excluding the epilogues. Are you sad that it’ll be ending soon? Before we finish off, one last mystery to be solved as to why Mo Sheng’s mum and Yi Chen acted the way they did. The cover picture is from Seoul In Love Now who is also a WC’s fan. She said it could be from WC’s movie Secret Garden. It has nothing to do with the drama but I am using it because it looks better than the drama stills and bongsd advised me to use it to support WC as it is relevant to this post:P

Chapter 12.2: As It Turns Out (translated by lidge and edited by peanuts)

The result was when she opened her eyes again, it was already past 10 o’clock. Not seeing Yi Chen in bed, Mo Sheng quickly jumped up and dressed then went out of the room. Yi Chen and Mr. He were playing chess in the living room.

Mo Sheng was nervous and called out “uncle” in greeting. Mr. He smiled and nodded his head at her.

Mo Sheng walked to Yi Chen and complained in a low voice: “Why didn’t you wake me up?”

“Ah, ah.” Yi Chen held a pawn and was concentrating on making his move on the chessboard. After making a move, he lazily raised his head and said: “Go to the kitchen and help auntie.”

“Oh.” Mo Sheng looked at the direction of the kitchen and saw only auntie was busy cooking. “Okay.”

Seeing Mo Sheng walking into the kitchen, Mrs. He smiled and said: “Xiao Sheng, you’re awake? Were you used to sleeping on a different bed last night?”

Mo Sheng repeatedly nodded her head. She was probably the last to get up, so how could she have had difficulty sleeping? “Auntie, let me do this.” Taking the knife from Mrs. He’s hand, she began to slice the pork thinly.

Mrs. He began to wash the vegetables while chatting with Mo Sheng about everything under the sun. While chatting about the daily life of a family, she suddenly cried out “aiya”  and remembered something she should have asked earlier: “Oh! how can I be so absent-minded! Xiao Sheng, your parents also live in this city, right? When can we meet and have dinner together?”

Mo Sheng was distracted and almost cut into a finger. She bit her lower lips, should she say it? Looking up and seeing Mrs. He’s kind-hearted smiling face, Mo Sheng really did not want to deceive her. Thus, she decided to tell the truth.

“My father……”

“Mo Sheng!”

Yi Chen appeared at the kitchen doorway and interrupted her, his face a bit pale and his lower jaw clenched.

“This child! Suddenly, popping up and scaring us.” Mrs. He patted her chest.

The tension on Yi Chen’s face eased a little: “Mo Sheng, where did you put my coat? I can’t find it.”

“……Oh.” Mo Sheng was startled, washed her hands and walked into the bedroom.

The coat was hanging on the rack next to the bed, an eye-catching spot which can be seen the moment you enter the bedroom. Mo Sheng stood still in front of the rack, feeling dazed and uncertain.

Yi Chen stretched out his arm and removed the coat from behind her.

“Don’t let your imagination run wild. I just don’t want them to judge you.” He said softly: “Mo Sheng, you have to have a bit more faith in me.”

There was a bit of bitterness in Yi Chen’s voice making Mo Sheng sorrowful. She has thought too much again.

“Yi Chen……”

“I would rather you’re sloppy and a little muddled, don’t think too much.”

Mo Sheng looked at him: “But you will think I’m troublesome.”

“At least you still know yourself well.” Yi Chen tenderly stroked her hair. “You’re really very troublesome!”

But she won’t feel bad.

“Let’s go out to eat. Auntie should have finished cooking.”

---

As they were eating, Mrs. He asked about Mo Sheng’s parents again. She only replied that her father had passed away and her mother was abroad. Mrs. He sighed and did not ask anything more. She wanted to persuade everyone to play mahjong which is good for the body and mind after they finished eating. Unfortunately, no one was interested. Mr. He wanted to take a nap. Yi Mei wanted to take Zhang Xu out to see the famous attractions in Y City. Hence, Mrs. He had no choice but to give up.

Yi Chen only slept a little last night, so he wanted to catch up on his sleep. Mo Sheng woke up late this morning so she did not feel sleepy. While he was sleeping, she decided to look at his old things.

An old exam paper can also make Mo Sheng studied it with keen interest for a long time. Take a look at how his hand writing was at that time. Take a look at the questions he answered wrongly. Furthermore, there were essays written by Yi Chen. Mo Sheng read each and everyone of them. Yi Chen could write argumentative essays very well, as most of his scores were in the 9o’s. Mo Sheng remembered her own argumentative essays at that time usually earned only 60’s and once in a blue moon there could be a 70 if she tried hard enough, so Mo Sheng could not help but feel jealous. Fortunately, he was not that great at writing descriptive essays, so she felt a bit comforted.

When Yi Chen woke up, he saw Mo Sheng sitting on the wooden floor and looking through his old things. He coughed once and reminded her: “Mrs. He, you are invading my privacy.”

“Yi Chen, you’re awake?” Mo Sheng raised her head, her eyes shone brightly and asked with keen interest, “Do you have anything else fun for me to look at?”

She has really become addicted to looking through her husband’s things. Yi Chen laughed and pulled her up: “Don’t sit on the floor.”

He bent down to look at the scattered things on the floor, “Why does auntie still keep these things?”

“How old were you in this photo?” Mo Sheng handed an old photo to Yi Chen. In the photo was a young Yi Chen looking tall and handsome in Yi Zhong school uniform and holding a trophy.

“That was probably participating in the National Physics Olympiad during year one in senior high.”

“Physics? But didn’t you study law?”

“Yes, but I was in the science stream in high school.”

“If I knew you studied in Yi Zhong School, I would’ve gone there too.” Mo Sheng said with regret. “Actually I could study there, but I thought it was too far from home and I was certain I could not get up in the morning to go to school.”

“Fortunately you’re lazy.” Yi Chen sounded absolutely glad. “I was able to finish senior high school in peace.”

Mo Sheng glared at him fiercely: “Are there any more photos?”

Yi Chen retrieved a photo album on top of a cabinet: “There’s not much because my family didn’t like to take pictures.”

The photo album is a very old-fashioned kind. It was obvious as the cover had turned yellow in the years. Opening the first page was a little baby photo with this sentence written on it—— “Yi Chen at one hundred days old.”

The baby in the photo was fair and tender but frowning and appearing spirited. Mo Sheng stared blankly at it for a long time, then suddenly discovered something and said: “Yi Chen, from the time you were born, you already looked so serious.”

“A baby doesn’t have much facial expression.” Yi Chen frowned.

“Got!” Mo Sheng argued, “My father said when I was little, I always smiled whenever I was in front of the camera.”

A large part at the back of the album are group photos. A young woman holding a child in her arm, sitting next to her husband and smiling happily at the camera. Although the technology back then were not good, the photo still captured the woman’s vivid beauty and the man’s tall and handsome demeanor. It appeared that Yi Chen took after his father.

Mo Sheng did not speak as she quietly finished looking through the only photo album. Then she raised her head to look at Yi Chen.

“I am fine.” Yi Chen took the photo album from her hand, “It has been so long, everything has faded.”

Mo Sheng looked deep into his eyes and only felt reassured after a long time: “We’ll go to see them, okay?”

“Let’s wait until the Tomb Sweeping Day.” Yi Chen lightly stroked her hair which seemed as if a puppy nibbled on it, “Wait until your hair grow neater or else you’d really be an ugly daughter-in-law.”

---

The Lunar New Year break was not long. Most of the time Mrs. He pulled Mo Sheng to the mahjong table but what a pity she did not improve at all after several days of intensive training. After looking at the mahjong tiles on the table, she would forget what mahjong tiles she held. After looking at her own tiles, she would not know what tiles the other players had released.

Yi Chen only shook his head and sighed, not knowing whether to be embarrassed by his wife’s lack of talent or happy that she would not be an addict at the mahjong table and ruin them financially.

They would return to A City tomorrow, Mo Sheng could not sleep that night. Yi Chen took her into his arms when she turned for the third time.

“What are you thinking?”

“Yi Chen.” In the darkness, Mo Sheng was silent for a moment before saying in a low voice: “Have I told you about my mother before?”

Yi Chen placed his hand on her back and said: “No.”

“My mother and father had a very strange relationship……” Pausing for a moment to reminiscence, Mo Sheng continued, “When I was little, I always felt as if my mother didn’t like me. It seemed like because of my father, but I didn’t think too much at that time. After my father’s incident and I lived in the U.S., resulting in my mother and I lost contact. An old classmate of my father told me several years later that my parents divorced a month before my father’s suicide in prison. In fact, the reason why my father would commit suicide in prison was because my mother was also implicated, but my father didn’t want to incriminate her so he killed himself to bear all the charges.”

The disbelief she felt when she first found out had faded, but Mo Sheng’s voice was still very depressed. “Although I knew they had problems, I’ve never thought it would be so serious.”

Feeling her body was trembling, Yi Chen embraced her. “Don’t think too much of the past.” He might be an eloquent speaker, but Yi Chen was not good at comforting people. He only gently patted her like coaxing a baby.

Mo Sheng imagined Yi Chen coaxing a baby and could not help but laugh, she suddenly felt lighter. “I am not feeling sad. It is just that I realized, I’m very happy now. I wonder how was my mother celebrating the Lunar New Year alone.”

Yi Chen looked at the ceiling, the expression in his eyes in the dark appeared indifferent, but his tone was soft like the dim light of the night: “If you worry, we will go to see your mother tomorrow morning.”

“Ah.” Mo Sheng began to feel sleepy. She buried her face in his chest and said in a tired voice: “At the very least, to tell her I’m doing well.”

---

The next morning, Mo Sheng and Yi Chen reluctantly bid Mr. and Mrs. He goodbye to return home. Yi Mei and Zhang Xu did not have as much time off so they’ve already left  the day before yesterday.

Before leaving Y City, they traveled to Qing He Village. However, this time, it seemed like luck was also not with them. Mo Sheng knocked for several minutes on the door, but no one answered.

“Do you want to wait for a while?”

Mo Sheng shook her head and said: “Never mind, let’s go.”

The old building has stairs that were deep and narrow. When they were walking down, Mo Sheng shared her experience by saying: “You have to walk slowly on this staircase or you might bump into someone when you turn a corner.”

Yi Chen looked teasingly at her: “How many times have you bumped into people?”

“……” Mo Sheng mumbled, “Fortunately, only a few times.”

It meant a lot of times. Walking without paying attention to the people around is also one of her bad habits. Yi Chen touched her cheeks and looked at them, then sighed: “Fortunately, each side is not crooked.”

Mo Sheng made a face at him.

Sitting in the car, Mo Sheng turned back to look at the old building, her heart felt a faint sense of disappointment. This time, she still did not get to see her. Although they are mother and daughter, maybe the fate between them was still too shallow.

The car was about to be driven out of the neighborhood, Mo Sheng casually looked out the window. Then she suddenly shouted: “Yi Chen, stop the car!”

Yi Chen quickly braked, the luxurious car stopped immediately. Mo Sheng opened the door and ran back. Yi Chen did not get out of the car but from the rear view mirror he saw Mo Sheng catching up to a thin, middle-aged woman.

His heart suddenly felt agitated, so he subconsciously reached into his pocket for a cigarette, but there was nothing. He then remembered that he intended to quit smoking completely since he was not that addicted in the first place so he did not have cigarettes with him. He closed his eyes, sighed and leaned his head back. Then, he turned on the radio and soft melodies began to soothe his thoughts.

He did not know how many times he had listened to the same piano piece, when he heard knocking on the window. Yi Chen opened his eyes to see Mo Sheng standing outside gesturing for him to roll down the window.

“I just told my mother that I got married. Do you want to meet her?” Mo Sheng asked him.

Yi Chen nodded in silent.

From afar, Mo Sheng’s mother Pei Fang Mei watched as her daughter and a tall, young man walked up to her. Her eyesight is poor, so she could not see his appearance clearly but her intuition told her the man is outstanding. It seemed Xiao Sheng has good taste.

But…… Pei Fang Mei frowned, did Xiao Sheng just say his name is He Yi Chen?

He Yi Chen, why did the name sound familiar?

In the blink of an eye,  he already stood before her eyes. Pei Fang Mei could now see his appearance clearly. Indeed, he is a man of striking appearance.

Mo Sheng introduced them to each other.

“My mother.”

“This is He Yi Chen, who I’ve told you about.”

“Hello.” Yi Chen greeted her without much enthusiasm.

Pei Fang Mei’s thoughtful gaze rested on him, the uneasy feeling increased. She forced a smile and said: “So you’re He Yi Chen? Xiao Sheng has pretty good taste.”

“Oh, mom.” Mo Sheng was embarrassed.

They did not speak further and Mo Sheng also did not have anything more to say. She was afraid to ask what she wanted to know because the topics seemed off limit. After a few words of greeting, there was nothing else to talk about.

“Yi Chen, do you have your business cards with you?” Mo Sheng remembered and asked.

Yi Chen nodded and said: “It’s in the car, I’ll get it.”

Writing her mobile phone number quickly on the back of Yi Chen’s business card, Mo Sheng gave it to her mother, “This is my contact information. If you need me, you can call this number.”

Pei Fang Mei took it and glanced at it, then said: “Since both of you are in a hurry, I won’t keep you.”

“Ah.” Mo Sheng responded, hesitated a little, then said: “Then we’ll get going.”

After saying goodbye to her mother hurriedly, she sat back in the car. Mo Sheng immediately looked a lot better than before. “This is the best I can hope for.” After all, they’ve already lost touch for eight years. This kind of polite and formal first meeting made Mo Sheng felt relaxed.

Yi Chen did not pay attention to what she said. He recalled Pei Fang Mei was gazing thoughtfully at him just now, resulting in him have misgivings now——Did she remember something?”

Mo Sheng saw that he did not start the car for a long time. She did not know what he was thinking, so she could not help but pulled at his sleeve: “Driver Yi Chen, have you returned to earth yet?”

Mo Sheng looked at him with her bright and smiling eyes. This eliminated Yi Chen’s misgivings but he started to have a headache. Lately, why he increasingly felt some personality traits of someone who used to give him headaches have returned once again to haunt him?

Could it be true that a leopard cannot change its spots?