Chapter 150: Breakdown
Yu Linna caused trouble.
Less than three weeks after moving into the Huo family home, she got into a fight.
It started with the chubby boy from before, harassing her again with his insults. Yu Linna, already troubled by recent events, ignored him. But the boy persisted, repeatedly calling her “foreign devil,” even shouting it in front of everyone. Yu Linna, finally snapping, pushed him, and he dramatically fell to the ground, feigning injury, alerting their homeroom teacher.
It would have been a trivial incident, but the boy’s wealthy family pressured the school, forcing the homeroom teacher to take action. Wu Siyu was called to the school to apologize to the boy’s parents.
“I’m so sorry. My child caused you trouble.”
Wu Siyu took Yu Linna home, humiliated and defeated, though they hadn’t had to pay any compensation. She knew who they had offended; there was nothing she could do but warn Yu Linna to stay away from the boy.
“I’m sorry, Auntie.”
“It’s okay. Just avoid him in the future. Some people… it’s best not to provoke them.”
Wu Siyu was too exhausted to lecture Yu Linna, her voice filled with weariness. She had been working tirelessly.
She couldn’t afford to offend anyone; she didn’t have the money. She didn’t even know how they would survive the next month, having borrowed money from her family, over thirty thousand yuan from relatives alone, unsure if she could ever repay it.
Life had become a struggle, each day a challenge.
Yu Linna knew she had caused trouble. Uncle Huo was in the hospital, Aunt Wu was struggling to support the family alone, and she, unable to contribute, felt like a burden. If she hadn’t come, they wouldn’t be in this situation, saving money on food, at least.
“Auntie, was it a mistake… bringing me home?”
“Silly girl, what are you talking about? Don’t think like that. I’ll take care of everything.”
Wu Siyu forced a smile, patting Yu Linna’s nose. She had promised to give her a home; she couldn’t break that promise. She had known this day might come, just not so soon.
They desperately needed money, and with a child to care for, she had to be strong. With her husband incapacitated, she had to be the pillar of the family.
Yu Linna had considered leaving, but she couldn’t bring herself to do it. She had grown attached to this family, to Aunt Wu, to Huo Ningning. She didn’t want to lose them.
But staying here only added to their burden. She knew that.
Wu Siyu continued working long hours, rarely home except to sleep, preparing meals before leaving for work.
Huo Ningning’s smiles became less frequent. With her father in the hospital and her mother working tirelessly, she sensed the changes in their family.
Happiness felt like a distant dream.
One Saturday, after finishing her homework, Huo Ningning went to Yu Linna’s room, hoping to play and distract herself. And then, it happened.
The phone rang.
The shrill ringing shattered the quiet of the apartment, each ring grating on Huo Ningning’s nerves, like a needle about to burst a balloon. It was just an ordinary phone call, yet she felt a sense of foreboding.
With trembling hands, she picked up the receiver, the plastic burning against her skin, the voice on the other end piercing her heart like a shard of ice.
“Ningning, your mother collapsed from exhaustion! She’s in the hospital! Come quickly!”
It was Huo Ningning’s aunt, her voice frantic, the words tumbling out in a rush. She had called immediately upon hearing the news, urging Ningning to come to the hospital.
Huo Ningning’s hand went limp, the receiver dangling in the air. Her mind went blank, the world around her fading, the only thought echoing in her mind: Mommy is in the hospital.
“Ningning? Ningning! Are you there? Hello?!”
She mechanically picked up the phone, asked for the hospital address, hung up, and ran to her room, sobbing uncontrollably, frantically searching for her clothes. She had to go to the hospital.
“Ningning, what’s wrong?”
Yu Linna, seeing her distress, was terrified. She had never seen Ningning like this before.
“Mommy collapsed! She’s in the hospital! I have to go! I have to see her!”
She sobbed, changing her clothes.
Yu Linna’s mind also went blank, but she quickly regained her composure, asking for the hospital address.
“Tell me where the hospital is! I want to see Aunt Wu! Tell me!”
“Leave me alone! It’s none of your business! That’s my mommy, not yours!”
“But I can’t just leave you alone.”
Huo Ningning glared at the blonde girl, the girl whose arrival had brought so much misfortune to their family. If it weren’t for her, her father wouldn’t be in the hospital, and her mother wouldn’t have collapsed.
She pushed Yu Linna away, her face contorted with anger and grief, tears streaming down her cheeks.
“Mind your own business! It’s none of your concern! Who are you to tell me what to do?! You’re not my family! Leave me alone!”
Yu Linna, stunned by the outburst, didn’t react, even after being pushed.
“Ever since you came here, everything has gone wrong! My parents were fine before you arrived! You ruined everything!”
“Ningning, that’s not true! I…”
“They’re my parents! You don’t have parents! You can’t understand how it feels when your parents are sick! You can’t understand my pain!”
The words, once spoken, couldn’t be taken back. Huo Ningning instantly regretted them.
Yu Linna sat on the floor, her face pale, her eyes unfocused, her body trembling.
The topic of parents… it was always a sensitive subject, a wound that never healed.
Her most vulnerable spot.
Huo Ningning, tears streaming down her face, ran out of the house, towards the hospital, oblivious to Yu Linna’s reaction, consumed by her own emotions.
Yu Linna sat there, numb, her heart shattered. Whether Huo Ningning’s words had been sincere or fueled by grief, they had struck her deepest wound. She hadn’t cried when they were poor, hadn’t cried when she felt like a burden, hadn’t cried when she was hungry at the orphanage.
But now, she cried.
“Wuwuwu…”
Tears streamed down her face, uncontrollable. Children were sensitive, their emotions raw, and this attack on her most vulnerable spot had unleashed a torrent of pain, a pain that could only be expressed through tears.
She was truly an outsider here.
She had thought she had found a home, a friend, but it was all an illusion, a one-sided attachment. Huo Ningning hadn’t considered her as important as she had thought.
She remembered playing house with Huo Ningning, playing with dolls, believing she had found a friend, a friend for life. But it wasn’t true; it was all in her head.
Just like Huo Ningning had said, she didn’t have parents; she couldn’t understand the pain of a child whose parents were sick. Ningning, loved and cherished by her parents, her pain at their illness… Yu Linna couldn’t comprehend it. But did Ningning understand her pain?
She was an outsider…
Aunt Wu had brought her here, promising to adopt her, a promise she hadn’t believed. Now, it seemed it was indeed a lie. She could never be their child; without the bond of blood, she could never truly be part of their family. This family didn’t need a Yu Linna. Their child wasn’t a Yu.
As she cried, she finally understood…
Later, Yu Linna found out where Wu Siyu was hospitalized and went to visit her alone. Huo Ningning was there, crying, clinging to her mother, who looked exhausted, dark circles under her eyes, her face gaunt from stress and worry, looking years older than her thirty years.
“Nana, you’re here. Sit down. I’m fine. Really. I just need some rest, and then I can go back to work.”
Wu Siyu’s forced smile couldn’t hide her exhaustion. Yu Linna knew she was just putting on a brave face. For her family, for her child, she had to be strong. Her act might fool Huo Ningning, but not Yu Linna.
“Mommy, please don’t die! I don’t want you to die! Please be okay…”
“I’m fine, sweetie. I’m okay. Ningning, be a good girl, study hard, and then Mommy will get better.”
Watching them, Yu Linna felt like an intruder, an outsider.
Aunt Wu had been kind to her, treating her like her own child, but she didn’t belong here. Aunt Wu had her own daughter, her own family. Yu Linna was just a guest.
She couldn’t understand the bond between a mother and daughter, the feeling of having parents. She couldn’t comprehend it.
She looked at them again, a flicker of envy in her eyes. The world was vast, full of possibilities, but this place… it wasn’t for her. It was time for her to leave. She didn’t belong here.
From the orphanage’s closure to the Huo family’s misfortunes, she began to believe she truly was a jinx.
Yu Linna finally decided to leave.
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