What Are Your Tastes? chapter 43

The Slap

“Mom, why are you here?”

Wu Lan’s face showed no trace of kindness. Her sharp gaze pierced through Lu Yunchu as if he were an enemy.

“If I didn’t come, you might have forgotten who I am,” she pushed open the inner door and brushed past his shoulder into the living room. “You’ve even blocked your dad on WeChat. Am I next?”

“I won’t block you.”

Wu Lan snorted disdainfully at his words and continued walking inside.

“Is there a guest?” Zhou Yanchuan, not paying much attention to the conversation at the door, came out of the kitchen and was stunned.

Wu Lan was a beautiful woman, still elegant and poised in her fifties. Lu Yunchu had inherited most of her features. Zhou Yanchuan had met Lu Changming but never Wu Lan. It wasn’t hard to guess their relationship with just a bit of thought, but the tension between mother and son was palpable.

Wu Lan also noticed Zhou Yanchuan. After glancing sideways at him, she turned to ask Lu Yunchu, “Is he your boyfriend?”

This dramatic scene was strikingly similar to when Tao Jin was misunderstood outside the gay bar. However, Lu Yunchu wasn’t Tao Jin; he didn’t have the desire to vent his anger, only finding the situation absurdly amusing.

“Mom, we’re just friends.”

“Friends?” Wu Lan looked incredulous.

“Auntie, we really are just friends,” Zhou Yanchuan quickly explained. “I live across the hall, and since we’re both alone here for the New Year, I thought we’d have a meal together.”

“Do you know he’s gay?” Wu Lan asked Zhou Yanchuan.

“Yes, I do,” he replied calmly. “I’ve known for a long time.”

“You knew and still wanted to be friends with him?”

Lu Yunchu’s skin was already fair, and Wu Lan’s harsh words made his face even paler, leaving him speechless.

“Auntie, I’m an outsider, so it might not be appropriate for me to say this,” Zhou Yanchuan, reluctant to argue with an elder, but felt compelled to stand up for Lu Yunchu. “Your words are too much. People with different orientations can certainly be friends. What kind of person he is has nothing to do with whether he likes men or women.”

“Sounds nice…” Wu Lan was not fully convinced but was also afraid that she had misunderstood, potentially involving an innocent person and making a fool of herself.

“Since you came all this way,” Zhou Yanchuan tried to play the peacemaker, “why don’t we have a meal together and talk things over slowly, okay?”

“I’m not here to eat,” Wu Lan suppressed her displeasure and said to the two of them, “I just want to have a few words with Yunchu right now.”

Zhou Yanchuan instinctively looked at Lu Yunchu, who nodded at him. He understood and mouthed, “I’ll come back later.”

“Yunchu,” with only the mother and son left in the living room, Wu Lan asked in an unusually calm tone, “Why don’t you come home?”

“Can I go home?”

“Are you holding a grudge against your parents?” She walked around the sofa and stood before her son. “Do you know why I came all this way to find you during the New Year?”

Lu Yunchu genuinely didn’t know, nor could he guess her intention. If she wanted him to come home for the New Year, she wouldn’t wait until the very day.

“Last night, your dad and I had another argument because of you.”

So that’s how it was. Lu Yunchu felt like laughing again. Only when they argued would he seem to have any presence.

“I was so upset that I came to find you, but you’re still like this,” Wu Lan laughed self-mockingly. “Your dad thinks I ruined you by making you learn to paint from a young age. I used to see that you weren’t interested in toys or anything else, only smiling when talking about painting, so I found you a teacher… Did I ruin you? Is it because of studying art that you became gay?”

“No.” Lu Yunchu felt a bit helpless. His mother didn’t understand these things, but her indulgence back then had given him hope, making him subconsciously think she would stand by him.

Lu Changming couldn’t hurt him, but Wu Lan could easily touch his soft spot.

“Mom,” he dropped his prickly tone, “I’ve always been grateful to you. My hobbies, everything I have now… they are my dreams, and you gave me the chance to pursue them.”

“Then why can’t you listen to me?” Wu Lan suddenly raised her voice. “I only have one child!”

“Sorry, I can only be responsible for myself.”

“Can you come back with me?” Her tone was almost pleading. “Apologize to your dad, and we’ll find a suitable girl for you to marry. Just a few years, and once you have a child, your dad probably wouldn’t oppose a divorce…”

Lu Yunchu felt a chill in his heart, looking at Wu Lan incredulously. “Mom, you’re a woman too. How can you watch your son ruin another woman’s life?”

“I’m doing this for our family,” Wu Lan retorted. “Have you ever thought about how your problem makes your dad argue with me almost every day?”

“Then if—” Lu Yunchu stared into her eyes, “if dad were gay and married you just to have a child, how would you feel?”

Wu Lan was shocked and angry. “How can you think like that about your parents?”

“It’s not impossible,” Lu Yunchu said coldly. “My brother and I are both gay. Maybe dad has that gene. Mom, you better be careful—”

“Smack!” A loud slap cut him off. Wu Lan had hit him.

“How can you talk like that?” Wu Lan was hysterical. “When have I ever wronged you to deserve this curse? Befriending strangers while speaking harshly to your mother, how can you be so heartless?”

Standing over six feet tall, one slap didn’t stun Lu Yunchu, but it made him stagger back a step. He hadn’t expected Wu Lan to slap his face.

“Fine, if you don’t want to go home and don’t acknowledge your dad, then don’t call me mom anymore,” Wu Lan showed no regret for the slap and was still angry. She picked up a nearby iron canister and threw it at him. “It was a mistake to come looking for you.”

The canister hit Lu Yunchu’s arm, landed on the wooden floor with a loud bang, and rolled to the bedroom door.

She turned around and forcefully opened the door, startled to see Zhou Yanchuan at the entrance.

“You….you’re still here?”

“Oh, no, I mean…” Zhou Yanchuan tried to cover up the fact that he had been standing there for a while. “I thought you might have finished talking and just came over.”

Wu Lan had no interest in dealing with him anymore and didn’t want to see Lu Yunchu again. She bypassed Zhou Yanchuan and entered the elevator without lingering a moment longer.

The apartment door wasn’t closed earlier, and with only a wooden door in between, Zhou Yanchuan had heard bits and pieces of their conversation. He could tell the mother-son exchange hadn’t gone well. Even if Wu Lan hadn’t come out at that moment, he had planned to go in and check on Lu Yunchu.

Now that Wu Lan was gone, the apartment only had Lu Yunchu standing by the sofa.

His hair was parted to the side, leaving his left cheek mostly uncovered. The clear red handprint was still visible on his face.

Zhou Yanchuan silently went to the bathroom, grabbed a clean towel, dampened it, and also picked up the iron canister that had rolled aside. He returned to where he was and handed the towel to him for his face.

Lu Yunchu rubbed his arm that had been hit before reaching out to take the towel.

“Did your mom hit your arm?” Zhou Yanchuan wasn’t sure exactly what had happened, but seeing the overturned canister and his actions, he immediately understood. “Let me see,” he said, reaching to lift his sleeve.

“What are you doing?”

“The canister is so heavy, let’s see if there’s any injury,” Zhou Yanchuan said gently. “You’re going to paint and sculpt, right? Your arms and hands shouldn’t have any injuries.”

“It’s okay,” he shook his head, “just a bit sore.”

“You…” Zhou Yanchuan was curious about what had caused such a conflict between him and his mother, but judging from his current state, it was clearly not the time for discussion.

Lu Yunchu looked up at him, calmly saying, “I said something extremely rude to my mom. Was I very immature?”

Zhou Yanchuan was taken aback. Was he still remembering his previous evaluation of Tao Jin?

“I did tell you I changed my mind. Everyone’s situation is different,” even though Lu Yunchu’s parents probably wouldn’t reach his grandfather’s level, such severe actions were unlike typical parents. “Regardless of the reason, violence is never justified.”

Zhou Yanchuan had only been beaten when he was very young. He was mostly slapped, and at worst, smacked on the bottom in anger. How could anyone be slapped in the face?

“I’m sorry,” Lu Yunchu completely lost his New Year’s mood. “I don’t want to eat anymore. Let’s separate tonight.”

Zhou Yanchuan held his shoulders, moved him to sit on the sofa, and sat quietly beside him for a while. “My parents, although they didn’t read many books, couldn’t teach me much, but one thing they said is that no one should ever go hungry. When you’re upset, eat something. When your stomach is comfortable, your mind will be at ease, okay?”

Lu Yunchu squeezed out a light laugh. “Are you coaxing a child?”

“Children are easier to coax than you.” Zhou Yanchuan knocked his head. “By the way, what did you say last time? Eating sweets is beneficial—improves mood? The fish I’m going to make is sweet. How about trying it?”

“But I—”

“Shall I make an omelet as well? You know, I’m much more skilled at it now.”

With these words in his ears, memories gushed out from his mind. Lu Yunchu clearly felt like laughing, but his eyes were uncomfortable. He pressed the towel on his eyes twice, nodding as he spoke, “Alright.”

Zhou Yanchuan’s squirrel fish was made from a recipe found online, following it without much experience. It tasted rich in sweet and sour flavors but didn’t look very appealing.

When this dish was served, Lu Yunchu leaned on the table for a while, silently smiling.

“How is it?” Zhou Yanchuan asked from across the table.

Lu Yunchu pointed at the fish and murmured, “Doesn’t look like a squirrel, more like a hedgehog.”