Translator: CKtalon Editor: CKtalon
Red Boy looked bitterly at Fangzheng with a look of yearning, as though he was saying: “Master, can’t you show mercy now that she said that?”
Fangzheng pretended as if he didn’t hear him. “Your little brother has become a monk. A monk doesn’t eat meat or spicy food. Young Patron, eat your dinner. It was especially made by your Granny.”
“Thank you, Granny.” She was indeed a child. She immediately beamed happily after eating something delicious. Her relationship with Ma Guifen also warmed up as they became closer with each other.
“Xiaoxue, you’re such a good girl. Eat more. This is a chicken we reared back home. It’s very nutritious.” Ma Guifen gave Xiaoxue a huge drumstick.
Xiaoxue chewed on it happily, causing another child to gulp mouthfuls of saliva.
Fangzheng secretly gulped saliva as well, lowering his head and quickly eating his meal. He wanted to finish his meal quickly and leave to be liberated already. He couldn’t stand it any longer.
The hosts had the best time eating their meal, while the guests were suffering. But overall, the meal was indeed a sumptuous one.
After finishing the meal, Ma Guifen refused to let Deng Xiao do the dishes. She occupied the kitchen alone, leaving Deng Xiao helpless. All she could do was sit there to chat with Fangzheng.
“Patron, you haven’t been back at your hometown in a long while, right?” Fangzheng asked.
Deng Xiao nodded before guiltily saying, “That’s right. It’s been more than a year. The last time I went back was for Chinese New Year the year before last. Too many things happened last year. I had a divorce and wasn’t feeling well. I was afraid I would affect my mom, so I didn’t return. Employees like us are known as white-collared workers to put it nicely, but to put it bluntly, we are just workers that endlessly toil away. We have few holidays in a year and when they finally come, there are all sorts of reasons given for us to work overtime. Even long holidays can be shortened to a three-day break by the company. Traveling from Dawu to my hometown takes two days. A day to get to the city, and three hours by car. The rest of the way has to be covered by walking, with it taking a day to cross the mountains to return home.”
“You still need to cross mountains?” Red Boy asked incredulously. To him, One Finger Monastery was already considered quite a poor place, but they at least had roads that allowed for cars to travel there.
“Yeah. Our area has a lot of mountains. Many of the villages are deep in the mountains, so it’s extremely inconvenient to get there. Even though the country has invested large sums of money in infrastructure and the government is supportive of it, it’s not something that can come to fruition in a day or two. Besides, most people are leaving the mountains these days. There aren’t that many people left in the villages. Investing large amounts of money to mend the roads is really not a profitable endeavor. I believe the local government is also in a dilemma about whether they should mend the roads or not. To go to my hometown from the county city, I need to cross two huge mountains and a river.” Deng Xiao’s eyes turned red when she explained all of this.
Fangzheng and Red Boy subconsciously looked at Ma Guifen who was busy in the kitchen. Then they looked at the huge knitted bag and the basket of undamaged free-range eggs.
A scene flashed in Fangzheng’s subconscious: an elderly mother walking through the mountains with her back hunched while protecting the basket of eggs in her hand. She carried a huge knitted bag and walked through the turbulent river, crossing over mountains before finally entering an unfamiliar city… Those scenes left Fangzheng amazed. His heart winced as he felt moved for a baffling reason. In the entire world, the only people who could go this far for another person were parents! The woe of all parents—they paid such an enormous price, but what was it for?
Fangzheng had never had parents except for his master and all the villagers. Although everyone was nice to him, it was still unable to make up for Fangzheng’s regret of not having parents take care of him. As such, he didn’t understand everything that parents could do for their children. Therefore, he was perplexed. For what reason did parents do so much for their children? Could it be that they were just using them as a form of insurance so that they would be taken care of when they turned old?
Red Boy was also puzzled. His impression of parents was based on his own parents; one of which went out looking for mistresses all the time, while the other reclused herself in the mountain. As a son, he was thrown out before he even grew up… He had never seen his parents go through troubles for him.
Even so, he still felt moved. Fangzheng subconsciously pressed his palms together. “Amitabha.”
Deng Xiao snapped to her senses and sighed. “I owe my mom too much in this life. I also wish I could spend more time with her, but I can’t return.” With that said, Deng Xiao had a look of helplessness and loss.
She continued. “I do not wish for Xiaoxue to be like me, having to work several times harder than the children of other families to receive an equal living environment. I wish for her to live better. I’m now using all my available strength to change the destiny of this family. I do not know if what I’m doing is right, but I have no other choice.”
Having said that, Deng Xiao cried.
Fangzheng sighed. Examples of Deng Xiao’s predicament were common all over the country and the world. A lot of young people have ambition, hoping to change the fate of the future generations of their family. Therefore they leave their hometowns and their parents to forge a path for themselves. People only see their hard work, but not the misery in their hearts. If there were another way, who would wish to leave their home? In a world without family, even lands covered in gold would turn insipid. Perhaps some people would say that everyone can return if they can’t bear it, but reality prevents most people from doing so even if they feel that way.
“Mom, don’t cry. I won’t leave you again in the future. I will stay by your side and take care of you, alright? When I grow up, I’ll also be filial to Granny.” Xiaoxue saw how sad Deng Xiao was, and she tugged at her hand and whispered.
Deng Xiao wiped her tears away and smiled at Xiaoxue while stroking her head. “Okay. We will be filial to Granny in the future.”
“Okay,” Xiaoxue said.
Fangzheng was silently drinking his water as he felt puzzled. “Patron, why did Patron Ma come here in such a rush?”
Deng Xiao said with a wry smile, “It’s all my fault. I had caught a cold recently and due to stress, I felt rather depressed. I called home and told my mom about it… And she ended up coming over.”
Fangzheng was taken aback. He never expected Ma Guifen to rush over just because her daughter told her she had caught a cold and was feeling bad!
Looking at Deng Xiao and then Ma Guifen, Fangzheng sighed. “You have a good mother.”
Deng Xiao nodded. “Unfortunately, I’m not a good daughter. I owe her too much.”
Fangzheng did not say a word. Instead, he got up and bade them farewell. The rest of the time was for the family to be together. There was no need for him to be intruding on them any further.
After leaving Deng Xiao’s home, Red Boy grumbled. “Master, Patron Ma is really nice to Patron Deng. Just because of a cold, she rushed over across thousands of kilometers. Do you think my mother will miss me?”
Fangzheng said, “How many parents in this world can be bad to their children? Your mother definitely misses you.”
Red Boy didn’t say a word. He lowered his head, his thoughts a mystery.
Fangzheng knew that the brat finally missed home after being on Earth for so long. Therefore, he gently stroked his head and pulled his tiny hand as they disappeared into the faint street lights.
