Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio
“Auntie Du, you’re a good person. Let me buy you dinner tonight.”
Ye Tianxin was so touched that she became a tad emotional. The fact that they were able to stay in a double-story house in Capital City made Ye Tianxin feel as if she’d won the national lottery.
“Sure thing. Why don’t you start cleaning up the place? This place hasn’t been lived in all this time, and I’m not sure if some of these items are still useable. If they aren’t useable, just leave them outside, and I’ll send someone over to collect them for disposal!”
“Okay.”
Her grandmother offered to help her clean up, but Ye Tianxin didn’t need her help.
Ye Tianxin found a basin and a rag and started cleaning up with gusto. There was absolutely nothing wrong with the structure of the sturdily built two-story house.
However, because it hadn’t been lived in for a very long time, the furniture and fittings were covered in layers of dust.
Ye Tianxin became engrossed in her cleaning that she lost track of time. Fortunately, Madam Du had ordered some take-out to be delivered to the house.
“Tianxin, stop working for now and come and eat something.”
At Madam Du’s words, Ye Tianxin felt a little embarrassed and responded, “Madam Du, you should eat first.”
Madam Du, who was standing at the doorway, looking inside, noticed that Ye Tianxin was a fast and efficient worker, as the house looked like it was close to being fit to live in. “You’re really a fast worker,” she commented.
“I just did some general cleaning and tidying around the house.”
Ye Tianxin smiled shyly. Being busy meant staying focused on the task at hand, and it didn’t leave time for her mind to dwell on useless thoughts.
It was one in the afternoon by the time Ye Tianxin and her grandmother sat down in the yard to eat lunch. It was a beautiful day. The sun’s warming rays shone upon them, making them feel comforted and cozy.
Ye Tianxin looked at Madam Du, who was sitting beside her. Under the sun’s rays, Madam Du’s gambier silk qipao seemed to radiate dancing rays of light.
In that instant, Ye Tianxin suddenly felt sad as she thought of her mother.
In her mother’s generation, there were only black and white photographs, and she only had one photo of her. However, that one photo had been misplaced.
To this date, Ye Tianxin had no memory or picture of her mother whatsoever.
It wouldn’t be an exaggeration to say that she wouldn’t be able to recognize her own mother, even if she were standing right in front of her.
At that moment, however, looking at Madam Du, Ye Tianxin found herself wishing with all her heart that Madam Du was her mother. She dearly wanted someone to lean on, but, more than ever, she hoped that her grandmother could see her own daughter again before she passed on….
“Grandma, I’m going to the market to buy something later.”
Her grandmother’s clothes also looked a little shabby and old. Ye Tianxin wanted to buy her grandmother some new clothes and pretty her up for their visit to the hospital the next day.
“I’m coming with you.”
“Grandma, we’d need to make a few bus transfers to get to the market. It might get complicated, and since I’ll be busy carrying stuff after we go there, I might not be able to take care of you as well. How about this? Can you stay home and help me with the laundry instead?”
“All right.”
Grandma knew very well that she might get lost in this big city because of the huge crowds of people. If that happened, and with her being illiterate, she would only be an added burden to Ye Tianxin.
Smiling sweetly, Ye Tianxin said, “Grandma, I’m going to do some grocery shopping. Let’s cook up some delicious Jiameng food for Auntie Du. You’ll be the chef, and I’ll be your sous chef, okay?”
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“Okay.”
Her grandmother was an elderly woman. It would only make her feel useless and uneasy if she didn’t give her any tasks to do.
Ye Tianxin wanted to give her grandmother some easy tasks to be in charge of so that the old lady felt like she was still needed.
“So please tell me what ingredients I need to buy. Let me get my notebook to write them down so I don’t forget anything….”
Observing this interaction between Ye Tianxin and her grandmother, Madam Du was reminded of her own daughter, who had died in infancy. If her daughter hadn’t died, she would’ve been about Ye Tianxin’s age about now. Would she have been as considerate, obedient, kind, and filial as Tianxin?