Chapter 16 (2)

A Mother’s Worry

After a long while of tossing and turning, she finally got up. She couldn’t sleep, so she turned on her table lamp and flipped through the book Cheng Jingbo had recommended.

The first chapter of Wisdom’s Hometown read, When I lay on the ground, the sun’s rays hit my eyes through the gaps between the branches and leaves of the cherry blossom trees. I was breathless. They were like countless stars in broad daylight. It was noon at this time. It would be a while before the real stars would make their appearance. That was when the Meson Theory appeared in my mind, as I took that glimpse of these noon stars.

When Nobel physicist, Hideki Yukawa, recalled his childhood, he specifically mentioned this scene, which seemed to be inseparable to his success with the proposition of the Meson Field Theory.

Life always provides small lights for people to follow and use to illuminate their path.

Although she had only read a dozen pages, she already had a slight understanding of why he had recommended this book to her.

Lively people and lonely people lived in two different worlds. It was important to not easily deny anyone’s right to their type of life.

What about him?

She didn’t know much about him. She knew that he was a philosophy teacher and a manager at a cafe. He was knowledgeable, liked to read, and was patient with children. His sister was a pediatrician, and Dr. Chen was his good friend. Other than these facts, she didn’t really know anything else.

Now that she’d confirmed she liked him, she wanted to learn more about him, but she wasn’t sure where to start. She felt at a loss.

Cheng Jingbo was also unable to sleep that night, so he got up and went to the kitchen to make some noodles. Cheng Mu walked in on him as he stood beside the stove and quietly came up behind him.

“Was Xue Ling very sad in the hospital?” she whispered softly.

Cheng Jingbo jolted.

“If you can offer them any help, make sure you let them know yourself,” she continued.

“Don’t worry, I’ve already told them.”

Cheng Mu opened the refrigerator and took out an egg.

“I’ll cook an egg for you. You should eat more nutritiously.”

“I can do it myself. Go upstairs and rest.”

Cheng Mu handed the egg to her son, but she didn’t want to miss this opportunity to talk to him. She stood in the corner and said profoundly, “Xue Ling’s cousin is pretty good. She spoke well about you and still respects your ideas. You see, I am actively trying to find you a girl who can speak to you on a spiritual level.”

“Xue Ling’s cousin, I remember, is very young,” said Cheng Jingbo, his voice low.

“She has just graduated and now works in a Science Weekly. She is enthusiastic and active,” said Cheng Mu.

“Well, it’s good for young people to have such a good working attitude,” he replied.

“What do you mean, a work attitude, and why do you need to evaluate it? You need to start focusing on other aspects.”

“Other aspects are completely inappropriate.”

“You met once, a long time ago. She was still studying at the time, and her appearance has changed now. Why don’t you see each other again and consider it?”

“I really don’t like doing that. I’m not used to these kinds of situations.”

Cheng Mu sighed.

“We can’t force you if you really don’t want to. But you should know that we always talk about you. We just hope that you can find someone who can take care of you, so when we leave, you will still have hot food on your dining table.”

Cheng Jingbo said, “Come on. Stop with all the bitter dramas. You know that I can cook and eat for myself.”

Cheng Mu was about to try and persuade him again, but she stopped when she heard his next sentence.

“Okay, I understand what you mean. I will do my best to pay more attention.”

He then took a bowl out from the cupboard, ladled the noodles from the pot into it, and went out into the living room. Cheng Mu was left wondering if she had heard him correctly. He turned on a small light and was already sitting on the sofa, flipping through a book.

Since childhood, he had never liked to discuss his thoughts. He became very independent early on in life and had always had a strong self-assertion towards everything. He never made decisions lightly, but once he decided on something, he never changed his mind no matter what.

Cheng Mu knew her son’s characteristics, so she remained silent. She had always worried about his slow, emotional maturity. A young girl from their old neighbourhood had liked him very much once, and had found some opportunities to approach him, but he never seemed to have noticed. Last year she had gotten married, and the family mentioned it to them afterwards. Later he had said, “When did she pursue me? Why didn’t I know about it?”

Thinking of this made Cheng Mu sad and worried that two out of her three children were still single.

She saw her son put down the book and pick up his phone, as if about to text someone, before putting it back down again. She couldn’t help but wonder, Who does he want to contact so late at night?

In reality, Cheng Jingbo had just read a text message from Bo Ziren. He instantly started to reply, before he realized how late it was, and decided to text her back in the morning.