Chapter 64: The Girl's Past and a Small Request
Fujii Itsuki asked Jiuhuayue to sit down first and handed her a tissue to wipe her tears.

Then he sat on the sofa next to her and called her mother in Tokyo.

The call was connected in five seconds.

"Hey, Kukata--"

[Sorry, I'm still busy at work. If you're sure you have something to say, please call me back in an hour.]
beep--

Before Fujii Itsuki could react, Mrs. Jiuhua on the other end of the phone hung up.

He was stunned for a moment, then turned his gaze back to Jiu Huayue, who had calmed down.

Even when this child was crying, he had to hold back his tears, straighten his back, and swallow his emotions, which made people feel heartbroken.

"Is everything okay?"

Jiu Huayue took a deep breath and said, "It's okay."

"Problems at work?"

"Well, not just that. The main reason was my parents. After I returned to Tokyo, I told them that I had joined the wind band club at school and that I wanted to work hard to win a prize in the national competition. My father was very angry when he heard it. He scolded me for being ignorant and smashed the gifts I brought back from Otaru. I couldn't stand it, so I started arguing with him. In the end, my father overturned the dinner I made for them and warned me not to run around again, otherwise he would beat me."

Isn't this just simple domestic violence?
Is Jiuhua’s father so bad-tempered?

"Uncle, I don't want to pay attention to them. Every time my father gets angry, my mother waits until he finishes arguing with me before she comes up to talk to me."

"Comfort you?"

"Not at all! My mom is in cahoots with him! She always says that my dad cares about me and does this for my own good. She also says that my dad gets up early and works late every day just to give me a good future. I have to live up to them and fight for the Jiuhua family."

Such a family is somewhat suffocating.

Is this how parents talk to their children nowadays?
I guess Jiuhuayue's father is venting all his stress from work on his daughter?

"Jiuhua, what kind of job did your father have?"

“Middle management in large corporations.”

"Wasn't the Jiuhua family a famous businessman in the past? How come the head of the family went to work for a big company?"

Jiuhua Yue lowered her head and said, "The family fortune has long been in decline. My grandfather squandered it all. Now the Jiuhua family's greatest asset is this house in Otaru."

"."

Fujii Ju was choked for a long time and had no words to say.

After all, the Jiuhua family used to be a big family that controlled the entire Hokkaido trading market. They were able to do business with the British and Americans. How come they have fallen to the point where the head of the family has to go out to work?

Or is it that Jiuhuayue’s grandfather is too good at spending money, and he has squandered all the family fortune that has been accumulated for hundreds of years?

"Anyway, ever since I can remember, my father always liked to drink and smoke. He got drunk every day, and the beer bottles and cans around him could turn the house into a garbage dump. My mother couldn't persuade him at all. Later, relying on some past connections, my father had the opportunity to work in a company, so he stayed in Tokyo and got his current position."

Jiu Huayue pinched her slender left index finger with her right hand.

"At first, my mother always liked to sigh and complain. During meals, she always told me that I should work hard to make our family what it is now, and Jiuhua should shoulder more responsibilities because we are all members of this family.

"I grew up in Hyogo Prefecture. When we moved there, my mother sent me to a music and dance school. I started training with the same group of girls in the fourth grade of elementary school. I had to learn everything, including Western dance, Japanese dance, vocal music, performance, drama, body shape, female virtues, and traditional Japanese etiquette. If I didn't learn well, the teachers would punish me with military management. I had to practice all the time and I wouldn't be allowed to go home until 11 o'clock at night. This kind of life lasted until the third year of junior high school."

Fujii Itsuki's scalp tingled just by listening to it.

So many things for a group of fourth graders to learn?

Can you bear it since childhood?

"What kind of school is that? The Ministry of Education has always had regulations on the teaching hours and content for elementary school students."

Jiu Huayue obviously didn't like to recall that past experience. Her thumb nail almost dug into the flesh of her tiger's mouth. She felt very entangled and painful inside. "I don't want to mention that name."

Fujii Itsuki didn't want to expose her scars, so he didn't want to talk about these things anymore. He took her to the dining table to have dinner first.

Seeing that the girl was in a very low mood, Fujii Itsuki took the initiative to serve her rice and pick up some vegetables for her.

"Thank you, uncle."

"Is it delicious?" "Yeah! It's delicious!"

Jiuhuayue sounded like she was crying when she said this, but Fujii Itsuki strangely felt that she was well-behaved and obedient.

She looked very hungry. This time, she didn't even pay attention to her appearance while eating. She just picked up the bowl and chopsticks and started to eat rice.

Bowl after bowl, bowl after bowl.

It's hard to imagine that a girl like her can eat eight bowls of rice.

She almost finished the big pot of stewed potatoes and meat by herself.

Really edible.

No wonder both her figure and body are so well developed.

"I want more"

Fujii Itsuki refused to give her any. "Eat less. You're so hungry and you're eating so much. Your stomach will get upset."

"It's okay to be bad. No one loves me anyway. They just want me to dance."

Jiuhuayue seemed to be giving up on herself, and was obviously speaking in a sulky manner, as if she was upset.

"Who said that?"

“That’s what my mom thought.”

"I meant the part about no one loving you."

Jiuhuayue raised her eyes, her purple eyes flashing with light, looking mysterious and vast, "Uncle, do you want to say that you love me?"

"'Care' would be more accurate. You said it yourself, you and I are good friends."

good friend.
Jiu Huayue pursed her lips and secretly glanced at his gentle eyes under the half-frame glasses, "How strange."

"What's so strange?"

"My relationship with you is so strange now. You are my teacher, but I call you uncle. You need me to take care of your life, but I still have some longing for you. I feel that you are so far away, so tall, and even want to realize your dream for you.
"This feeling is both near and far. It's like the person you need to chase is right in front of you. It's unbelievable."

Fujii Itsuki couldn't quite understand her feelings, "This isn't a bad thing for you, right?"

"Of course! It should be said that it's a good thing! Because my 'idol' can be so close to me, I should be happy. My dad scolded me, and my mom never respected my ideas. Uncle, I really don't want to go back to Tokyo."

Fujii Itsuki laughed, helping her to dispel her bad mood, "Then you have successfully returned to Otaru, right?"

"I escaped! Otherwise my parents wouldn't let me go. Luckily I didn't give them all my money, otherwise I wouldn't be able to take the plane."

"clever."

".Are you praising me?"

"A child who knows that only when you have financial strength can you have a say, what else can he be but smart? There aren't many sixteen-year-olds as smart as you, Jiuhua."

Fujii Itsuki looked at the time and found that it had been an hour. "I'll call your mother again and ask her what's going on for you."

He turned around and was about to walk towards the lobby, but the moment before he left, Jiuhuayue grabbed his hand.

Fujii Itsuki looked back and saw the look in the girl's eyes. It was very strange. It was shining with expectation and longing. In short, it was a very beautiful emotion.

"what happened?"

"Don't call my mom."

"Then what to do."

Jiu Huayue looked at him intently, and after a moment, turned her face away shyly.

The girl pursed her lips tightly, her face slightly reddened, and she whispered in a voice that sounded a little arrogant, yet also a little pleading:
"How about you, uncle, listen to music and watch TV with me? I also practiced the trumpet very hard in Tokyo. I specially played a piece and recorded it. I will give you half of my headphones and we can listen to it together. I want to know your opinion."

She had just finished eight bowls of rice when she said this, and she hadn't even wiped her mouth yet. Seeing the potato-colored mustache on her lips, Fujii Itsuki nodded while trying not to smile. He felt warm in his heart as she held his hand softly.

(End of this chapter)