"Husband, don’t just stand there—help me hang up the clothes."
Noticing Zhao Dezhu’s gaze, Zhou Congfang turned around with a smile and said.
Zhao Dezhu stepped forward and started to help hang the clothes to dry.
Yet Zhou Congfang seemed to have not noticed that the clothes being hung up were only hers and her mother’s; not a single piece of her father’s clothing was there.
"I don’t know why, but I feel like I’ve been asleep for a very long time. It seems like a lot happened in my dreams..."
"Really? You probably just didn’t rest well," Zhao Dezhu said with a smile.
"In the dream, we got divorced and I came back to Ruijin with Zhou Zhou alone. I hoped he could grow up to be someone like you, but... but I pushed him too hard, and in the end, Zhou Zhou couldn’t take it anymore—he chose suicide. Isn’t that funny..."
Zhou Congfang talked about it being funny, but her voice was already choking up.
Hearing this, Zhao Dezhu’s throat felt dry, and facing Zhou Congfang’s sorrowful gaze, he struggled to squeeze out a few words.
"It’s all just a dream, don’t take it seriously."
His voice was very quiet, so quiet that almost only he could hear it.
But it seemed that Zhou Congfang still heard him and showed a smile: "That brat must hate me to death now..."
But before she could finish, the voice of their son Zhao Ru Jin suddenly came from the living room.
"Mom, have you finished hanging the clothes? I’m hungry."
His voice was slightly trembling, but he tried to stay calm.
He couldn’t wait to meet his mom and grandma; he didn’t want to wait another moment.
Zhao Dezhu definitely noticed that when Zhou Congfang heard her son’s voice, her own voice quivered noticeably and her face turned pale. Then, as if realizing something, she showed a look of joy, dropped the clothes in her hands and rushed toward the living room.
And someone moved faster than she did; Grandma had been in the kitchen, intending to serve the breakfast she had prepared for her daughter.
The moment she heard Zhao Ru Jin’s voice, she immediately turned around and ran out of the kitchen.
Her movements didn’t resemble those of an old woman at all.
Seeing Zhao Ru Jin standing in the living room, she rubbed her eyes in disbelief.
Grandma felt like she, too, had been infected by her daughter’s madness, suffering from mental illness, having seen her oldest grandson.
Zh Ru Jin stepped forward and took Grandma’s hand.
"Xiao Bao, you came to see Grandma?"
Grandma looked at the hand held by Zhao Ru Jin, her face beaming with joy. This illness wasn’t so bad, it felt just like reality.
No wonder her daughter couldn’t recover from her mental illness—if only she’d had this disease earlier.
Zhao Ru Jin opened his arms and hugged Grandma tightly.
Grandma paused for a moment, then gently patted Zhao Ru Jin on the back.
"You’re such a big boy now, taller than Grandma... You must get well, don’t give up, everything will pass... It will all pass..."
Grandma whispered in Zhao Ru Jin’s ear, by then unable to distinguish between reality and illusion, but did it even matter anymore?
Zhou Congfang rushed into the living room and actually saw her son. She stood frozen, staring straight at him.
It wasn’t until he walked up to her and called her "Mom" that she came back to her senses.
Zhou Congfang reached out to touch her son’s cheek, her expression slightly annoyed as she said: "Where did you run off to?"
Zhao Ru Jin was taken aback and for a moment didn’t know how to respond.
Just then, he heard Zhou Congfang continue: "Did you go to play basketball with your classmates? Haven’t I told you? Don’t associate with those classmates; they’re not good students."
Hearing this, Zhao Ru Jin came back to his senses and said with a smile, "Mom, I know."
"Be good," Zhou Congfang said, pleased.
"What do you want for dinner? Shall I cook for you?" Zhou Cong Fang asked.
Zhao Ru Jin nodded, her gaze passing over her to look at Zhao Dezhu behind her.
Zhao Dezhu shook his head, indicating that he was also unclear about Zhou Congfang’s state at the moment.
At this time, Zhou Congfang’s eyes landed on her grandmother, and she happily said, "Mom, has Zhou Zhou grown up a lot?"
The grandmother nodded her head with a complicated expression.
Zhou Congfang immediately said happily again, "He’s very sensible now, very obedient..."
But the grandmother did not respond and instead turned and went to the kitchen.
"Let’s have breakfast, you haven’t eaten anything since yesterday afternoon."
"But I’m not hungry at all." She was somewhat puzzled.
Then, holding Zhao Ru Jin’s hand, she happily said, "Right, Zhou Zhou, how did you do on your last test? Tell your dad."
"What are you pretending to be confused about? Didn’t you score full marks in several subjects?"
Zhou Congfang turned her head to look at Zhao Dezhu and said, "Your son is as smart as you are, he did really well last time, ranked third in the whole grade. Didn’t he want to change his racket last time? Get him a new one when you have time."
"Oh, okay." Zhao Dezhu hurriedly responded.
Zhou Congfang turned back and, taking Zhao Ru Jin’s hand, walked toward the sofa.
"Don’t just think about playing, you need to study hard, don’t let your dad look down on you, you have to make your mom proud..."
"I don’t know if your dad will be free this Sunday, if he is, let’s go for a picnic together..."
"Right, the girl who walked home with you today is very cute. Does she like you..."
"Your dad is still a good person, your mom and dad’s divorce is a matter between us adults, you shouldn’t hate him..."
Zhao Ru Jin turned to look at Zhao Dezhu again.
By now, they had realized that Zhou Congfang’s mind was completely in disarray.
Some events had happened before the divorce, some after, but she had mixed everything up.
Sitting on the sofa, Zhou Congfang had a lot to say.
Sometimes she was happy, sometimes angry, and at times, she acted coquettishly towards Zhao Dezhu, seeking his affection.
The grandmother brought out breakfast and just stood by the table, staring blankly at her daughter’s condition during the episode.
By this time, she faintly understood that perhaps everything was not a dream, nor a problem with her sanity, but she still did not understand exactly what was happening.
Just then, Zhou Congfang, who had been full of smiles, suddenly burst into tears, clutching Zhao Ru Jin’s hand as she cried.
"I’m sorry, I’m sorry... It’s all mom’s fault, mom shouldn’t have pressured you, don’t blame mom..."
"Mom, I don’t blame you..." Zhao Ru Jin said, a bit choked up.
"I’m sorry, it’s all mom’s fault, I was wrong, can you forgive mom, forgive me..." Zhou Congfang continued to plead without stopping.
"Mom..." Zhao Ru Jin looked helplessly at Zhao Dezhu, seeking help with his eyes.
"Alright, your son has said he forgives you, he doesn’t blame you anymore, please stop crying." Zhao Dezhu reached out and put his arm around her shoulder.
Startled, Zhou Congfang turned her head to look back, seeing Zhao Dezhu, she immediately showed a look of panic.
"Old... Zhao Dezhu, it’s not my fault, I didn’t mean to pressure him, I just wanted to... I just wanted to... Waah..."
Zhou Congfang burst into loud sobs.
"I did it all for his sake, don’t blame me... I’m sorry... I’m sorry, it’s my fault, it’s all my fault, please don’t blame me, don’t blame me..."
She said this and then raised her hand, beginning to beat herself frantically. ɴᴇᴡ ɴᴏᴠᴇʟ ᴄʜᴀᴘᴛᴇʀs ᴀʀᴇ ᴘᴜʙʟɪsʜᴇᴅ ᴏɴ 𝕟𝕠𝕧𝕖𝕝⁂𝕗𝕚𝕣𝕖⁂𝕟𝕖𝕥
Zhao Dezhu hurriedly grabbed her hands, but found that despite her feeble body, her strength was surprisingly great.
"Mom, don’t do this, I don’t blame you already, you need to be well..."
Zhao Ru Jin said while crying on the side, trying hard to soothe his mom’s emotions.
Only the grandmother stood to one side, stunned, as if she had still not come back to her senses.