Chapter 8: The Death of My Mother

  She got up late this morning, she had been thinking about it for a long time and couldn't fall asleep last night. It wasn't until the sky was bright that she fell into a daze.

  Waking up in the middle of the night, I first looked at my mother, reached out and felt her breath, then put my mind at ease.

  "Are you afraid Mom won't wake up?" Yu Youyue opened her eyes, her voice weak.

  At night, I rubbed my head in embarrassment. The first thing I did after waking up these past few days was to confirm that my mother had made it through another night, and then quickly changed the subject.

  "Mom, today is Laba Festival, I soaked the rice last night. Can I make Laba porridge for you? I'll add more red dates that you love."

  "Yèzi, I had a dream about your dad, he looked very spirited."

  "Mom, you miss Dad."

  "Yes, it's been a long time since we've been apart. Go ahead and pack more peanuts, your dad loves to eat them."

  Staring at the sand pot on the stove in the kitchen, the eight-treasure porridge inside was rolling out waves of rice fragrance. The porridge smelled delicious and had a faint sweetness even without sugar, thanks to the addition of red dates.

  She brought two bowls of porridge to her mother's room. Her mother was lying in bed as usual, but Xing Ye felt a strange sensation spreading throughout her body.

  She walked quickly to the bedside, "Mom, porridge is ready, you can eat now" Xing Ye's voice was slightly trembling, "Mom".

  The person on the bed didn't respond, and Xing Ye hastily stretched his hand under his mother's nose, then suddenly withdrew it.

  Grabbing his mother's hand, he shouted loudly: "Mom, wake up, hurry up!" But no matter how he called out to his mother, she had no reaction.

  Xīng yè pū zài mǔ qīn shàng dà kū le yī chǎng, kū zì jǐ lì liang de miǎo xiǎo, chóng shēng hòu miàn duì de jiù shì yī chǎng yòu yī chǎng de shēng lí sǐ bié, míng míng zhī dào jié guǒ què yòu wú lì gǎi biàn, zhǐ néng yǎn jìng zhe tā fā shēng.

  After all, having gone through life and death, she was no longer the little girl who only knew how to cry. After a night of loud crying to vent her emotions, she went to invite the neighbor Auntie Ah-po and Third Uncle and Third Auntie from the Luo family, as well as other close relatives, to help with the funeral arrangements.

  The body of the father is still in the county funeral home, and someone has pulled it back to be buried with his mother. The women of our family helped prepare the clothes, and San Shu and Ah Po's son Liang Bo arranged for two good coffins to be bought, and they were buried in the ancestral tomb. Because the deceased couple was not very old, the funeral was simple, and it took only two days to complete everything.

  Xing Ye is a filial child, she doesn't care about anything else, she kneels in the mourning hall, crying one after another, for two days without eating a single grain of rice, both mentally and physically exhausted, when the funeral procession came out, she almost fainted and was supported by others.

  Sent away the crowd, and she fell onto her bed in exhaustion, sleeping soundly. Third Aunt had prepared food for her, but no matter how loudly she was called, she couldn't be woken up. Third Aunt was frightened, thinking that she had fainted from exhaustion. It was Old Lady Luo who came to take a look and said, "Don't worry, this child is just too tired, let her sleep. When she wakes up, she'll be hungry. She's really suffered." Only then did everyone feel at ease and let her continue sleeping. This one sleep lasted for over ten hours, until the next day when she finally woke up.

  What was unexpected during the funeral was that Manager Liu from Yaofa Company also came to pay his respects, and even sent a condolence gift of 1,000 yuan. He also told Xingye that he could arrange for him to work at the county's reception center after the funeral. Xingye was surprised by Manager Liu's enthusiasm, but politely declined his offer due to having his own plans. Manager Liu left with regret and once again expressed that if Xingye had any difficulties, he could come find him.

  Afterwards, San Shu told Xing Ye that Director Liu was also from a poor background and was actually a good person. It's really a pity that Xing Ye refused the job offer from the county government. Because it is said that the guesthouse belongs to the county government, which is different from those small inns opened by individuals. Many girls in the county town are still looking for ways to get in, and it's indeed a good job for girls.

  Xing Ye didn't quite agree with San Shu's words, after all, it was this Liu boss who wanted to shirk responsibility and even tried to get rid of her with 2,000 yuan back then. Now he's being too enthusiastic, which makes one suspect his intentions. Even if he's being kind-hearted without any ill intentions, she still has many plans to carry out and wouldn't be staying in this small county town for long anyway.

  The stars were gathered at night, and the parents' belongings were collected. The old clothes and quilts of the two people were all burned away, and some things with memorial significance were collected. The whole house seemed to be empty, and after burning the stove, the room still felt cold and clear.

  At midnight, Xing Ye sat on the bed with her mother's diary and read it page by page. After carefully reading it, she also looked at those dozen letters in chronological order. When the sky was slightly bright, Xing Ye finished writing in the diary, let out a long sigh, and suddenly understood that everything had passed. That person wasn't a bad guy, but Xing Ye still felt sorry for her mother after all, his choice had hurt her mother.

  It's best if you and he live parallel lives from now on, never intersecting again.

  After the seventh day of mourning, Xing Ye looked at the room full of people. These people were both relatives and neighbors, as well as creditors. In order to pay for his mother's medical treatment, his father had borrowed a lot of money. Xing Ye asked Luo San Shu to take charge and invited all these people over.

  "Everyone, uncles and elders, our family's matters were helped by all of you, I thank everyone first," Xing Ye said, finishing her words and kneeling down to kowtow three times. The crowd knew this was a filial piety ritual and didn't stop her, waiting for her to finish before someone helped her up.

  "And also when my mom was ill, I borrowed a lot of money from everyone, thanks to everyone's help, my mom can hold on until now, otherwise she would have been gone last year" Xing Ye said with tears in his eyes.

  Everyone says: "There are no outsiders here, helping each other is what we should do."

  Xing Ye wiped away tears and said seriously: "Although my parents are gone, I acknowledge this debt. Every family has a hard life, today I let everyone come, I can return as much as I can, if not enough, I will go out to work and earn money to pay back, absolutely cannot default on everyone's account."

  Everyone in the house heard Xing Ye's words and felt a bit embarrassed. The IOU was still in their pockets, and many people were worried about how to deal with this debt on their way here. But now that they've heard Xing Ye's straightforward words, these honest villagers all feel ashamed of themselves - aren't they bullying someone who has just lost their parents and is helpless?

  Looking at the expressions of everyone under the starry night, I secretly praised in my heart, it's really a simple and honest rural style. If this were to happen in a big city, these close brothers would have become enemies because of money. It's just this small mountain town, where people still retain a childlike innocence.

  "Third Uncle, you first, please."

  Someone took the lead and everyone else followed suit, making things simpler. Initially, they all wrote IOUs, which are now convenient. Each household received a loan contract in one hand and cash in the other, with amounts ranging from several hundred to one or two thousand yuan. For wealthy families, this amount is equivalent to the cost of a lavish meal, but for most households in this small town where per capita income is unknown, it's a sum that many people can't save up in a year.

  It's just that the compensation of over 20,000 yuan is left with only 2,000 yuan, but Xing Ye feels a weight off her shoulders, no longer having to live with debt on her back. She believes Hui Ye Ge Ge would do the same if he were here too.

  The crowd dispersed with their money, leaving behind Old Man Luo and his wife, as well as a young couple.

  "Third Uncle, is everything all right?" Xing Ye felt grateful to his father's cousin from the bottom of his heart. For such a long time, both inside and outside, he had been helped by this couple.

  "This is your cousin Yuancun's wife's brother from her hometown, they want to do some small business in the town." San Shu introduced the two young people.

  The starry night nodded with them as a greeting. The two men looked ordinary, the man had a loyal and honest face, while the woman looked sharp but not showy.

  "Our town is small, all the small businesses are on this street, so I've taken a liking to the storefront outside your house and want to buy it."

  The starry night didn't frown, it turned out that Father had opened a small hardware store, the two storefronts in front of the courtyard were connected to the residence, this house was an ancestral property, selling the ancestral property in this ancient town would be unfilial, and would be criticized by others. Even if one doesn't consider these things, they should consider Hikaru's older brother, after all, he is the true master of this house.

  "Third Uncle, this house can't be sold. My brother is still out there and after two years he'll come back. Everything will belong to him then. Even if he gives the house away to someone else, I won't say a word. But I don't have that right."

  After hearing Xing Ye's words, the young couple looked disappointed. They had just seen how neat and efficient this girl was in her speech and actions, and now she had flatly refused their request to buy a house. The town was so small, where else could they find a suitable house?

  "It's your third uncle who didn't think it through, and also because our town is small, we can't find a suitable place right away." Third Aunt thought about Xing Ye's adopted daughter's identity and felt that this matter was not brought up properly. If Xing Ye really found someone to sell the house, the townspeople's saliva could drown her.

  "It's not for sale, but renting is possible. If it works out, I can rent it to you for the next two years before my brother returns, and we can discuss further when he gets back." Seeing that they were somewhat moved, Xing Ye continued: "If it's a rental, the rent would be only 100 yuan per month, and except for our family's original bedroom, you can use this wing of the house, kitchen, storage room, and courtyard."

  "And you, sister, where are you going?" the young woman asked.

  "On New Year's Day, I'll be leaving and won't be back for a few years. Even my brother probably won't return. The only reason I'm keeping this house is so that in the future, we have a place to come back to, no matter where our journey takes us. So, sister-in-law, if you're willing to rent it from me, I'll give you a good deal and also ask for your help in taking care of the house."

  The couple discussed it and both thought it was a good deal. The wife made the decision on the spot, and they agreed to pay the full amount after the New Year.