On the passenger seat, a boy in a school uniform was playing a game on his phone and said, "Alright, if you've got the guts, go down there and tell her yourself. What's the point of all this nagging?"
"Stop playing your game," the woman said, glancing at the traffic light. "It's all because of that girl; I have to wait a bit longer."
"You're really something else, Mom. You're the one who does all the nagging in this family," the boy said, his eyes glued to the phone screen.
The woman glanced at the boy, annoyed. "Feng Qishi, you really think you're something because you study well. You're always playing games. I wonder if you'll be able to support yourself after graduating from college."
"Mom, you've been saying that to me since I was little. Aren't you tired?" Feng Qishi turned off his phone and looked out the car window. "Other people's children who study well are their parents' pride, but you, you scold me for studying well. I've had enough."
"Society is different from school. With your temper, you'll find it hard to get by in the world," the woman said, starting the car.
Feng Qishi closed his eyes.
The woman continued, "By the way, have you found a girlfriend yet?"
"Why do you ask?" Feng Qishi asked with his eyes closed.
"Your two older brothers had girlfriends when they were your age and brought them home. You haven't interacted with girls much since you were little. I'm really worried if you'll ever find a girlfriend, get married, and start a family," the woman said while driving.
Feng Qishi was used to his mother's words. He opened his eyes and said, "Mom, I just don't get it. In other families, the youngest is the most respected. Why am I... the opposite?"
"You're not the youngest in our family. You have a sister below you," the woman said, staring straight ahead.
"Yeah, if you hadn't mentioned it, I would have forgotten about that sister," Feng Qishi said lazily.
"How dare you," the woman said. She reached out with one hand and hit Feng Qishi's shoulder forcefully, then stopped the car. "We're here."
"Let's go," Feng Qishi said. Just as he reached for the car door handle, the woman suddenly grabbed his arm.
"Mom, what are you doing?" He looked down at her hand on his arm, a sense of unease creeping into his heart.
"Wait a moment," the woman said. She took her hand away and pulled a stack of medical records from her bag, handing them to Feng Qishi. "I told your teacher you went to see a doctor. If he asks, show him these."
Feng Qishi took the stack of medical records and said, "I understand. You've been like this since I started junior high. I don't know what your relationship with hospitals is, but honestly, aren't you afraid I'll actually get a terminal illness?"
"You really have a terminal illness," the woman said seriously.
Feng Qishi blinked. "Are you kidding me?" he asked, looking at his mother's stern face.
"Your two older brothers didn't study well, but you specifically study better than them. Tell me," the woman said, slightly frowning, "do you have some kind of terminal illness, or perhaps, is there something wrong with your brain?"
Hearing his mother's words, Feng Qishi's expression instantly turned grim. "I'm not talking to you anymore. Is this how a mother should be?" he said, opening the car door with one hand and stuffing the medical records into his schoolbag before getting out.
"It's evening, I'll have someone meet you," the woman called out, leaning over.
Feng Qishi glanced at his mother and slammed the door shut.
After watching the woman drive away, Feng Qishi breathed a sigh of relief, turned, and walked outside the school gate, saying, "I asked for leave."