Volume 2 Chapter 40
by Need_More_SleepVolume 2 + Chapter 40: A Rare Family Reunion
“Mom, turn around, let me wipe your back.”
In a hospital room at this moment, a black-haired girl was helping a gaunt woman wash herself.
The woman was so emaciated that even her bones and sinews were starkly visible beneath her skin.
The girl beside her appeared to be no more than thirteen. A girl her age, if raised in an ordinary family, would hardly be capable of such intricate caregiving for her mother, many her age could not even manage daily chores.
“Xiao Yue, you don’t need to keep staying here with me,” the woman on the hospital bed said to the dark-haired girl before her. “It’s your weekend off, why don’t you go out and play with your friends, like other kids?”
“Mom, I’m not like Big Brother. I don’t have his ability to earn money for our family,” the girl replied, a warm smile on her face. “So in my spare time, I want to be here for you. At least this way, I can lighten his burden a little.”
“Ah… what a thoughtful child you are. Mom has only been a burden to you both. If it weren’t for me, maybe you and your brother could live as carefree as other children. Sometimes I wish I could just…”
“Mom, please don’t say that!” The girl cut her off before she could finish.
“Big Brother said you’re the reason we keep going. You’re our hope. If we lost you… we’d truly have no one left, but each other.” Tears brimmed in her dark eyes as she gently clasped her mother’s hand.
“He said you’re his anchor. It’s because you’re still here, still fighting, that he can fight for this family too.” Her voice trembled as she leaned forward and softly embraced her mother.
“Mom… please don’t say such sad things anymore, okay?” Her quiet sobs muffled against her mother’s shoulder.
“I’m sorry, Yue’er. Don’t cry.” The woman’s own eyes shimmered as she stroked her daughter’s hair. “You and your brother are my greatest pride. Having children like you… it makes me feel my life hasn’t been completely without hope.”
Sometimes, the bonds between people are more precious than any material wealth. Possessions can be stripped away in an instant by calamity or misfortune, but the truest emotions will hold you steady when your heart is breaking.
Just then, the hospital room door cracked open. A figure in a black jacket and cap peered inside.
The girl tensed at once, alert. This was a private ward; no one came here without reason, unless it was one of their father’s creditors. They’d already taken everything. Were they still not satisfied? Had they tracked them here?
Fear seized her. But then the door swung open fully, and recognition turned her terror to joy. She sprang from the bed and rushed into the newcomer’s arms.
“Brother! What are you doing here?”
It was Ouyang Qianxue. The girl nuzzled affectionately against his chest, savoring his presence.
“Work’s been lighter lately. And it’s been too long since I last saw Mom, so I came.”
Ouyang Qianxue pulled off his cap, and a golden cascade spilled over his shoulders.
“Ah… my child!” The woman on the bed gasped as her son’s face came into view. Tears spilled freely, she could not remember the last time she had seen him.
“Come, child. Come closer. Let me look at you.” Her trembling arms reached out.
“Mom… I’m sorry I haven’t visited in so long.” He sat beside her, his voice soft.
“What are you apologizing for?” She cupped his cheek, her touch gentle. “I’m the one who should be sorry. Look at you… so grown up.”
“Mm.” He nodded, tears slipping silently down his face.
“Oh, honestly! We’re finally together as a family, why is everyone crying? Now I can’t stop either!” The girl wiped her eyes and threw herself between them.
“Haha, Yue’er’s right. Today’s for a reunion, not tears. Let’s just enjoy our time together.” Ouyang Qianxue wiped his own eyes and smiled at his mother and sister.
And so the family fell into the easy rhythm of conversation, the small talk, the laughter, the quiet comforts of home. But happy moments, as they say, never last long enough. Soon the golden light of afternoon gave way to dusk.
Ouyang Qianxue rose.
“It’s getting late. I should go.” He walked toward the door.
“So soon?” His sister clung to him. “It feels like we barely talked!”
“Yue’er, don’t be difficult. You know your brother is busy.” Only at their mother’s gentle rebuke did she reluctantly let go.
“Then… come back soon, okay?” Her voice was small.
“Mm.” He answered quietly, his hand on the door handle.
He paused. “Mom, Qianyue… before I go, I want to ask you something.” His back was still turned.
“Go ahead.” The woman smiled, as though she had been expecting this.
“If… suppose, just suppose, I made a choice for someone else. A choice that might, if I’m not careful, plunge this family back into despair. Would you… could you forgive me?”
“Ah.” His mother let out a long, soft sigh. “I thought you’d been holding something like this in all along.”
“Huh?” He turned, startled.
He hadn’t realized, from the moment he walked in, his mother had seen the shadow in his eyes, though he’d thought himself so well-disguised.
“There was never really anything to forgive,” she said quietly. “Taking on the burden of this family was never something a child your age should have had to do. If anything, it’s I who should feel guilty. Without you, Yue’er and I would never have had these last few years.
“To resent someone who has given so much, simply because he can no longer give in the same way, even a stranger with any sense wouldn’t do that, let alone your own mother.”
She paused, her gaze steady and tender.
“I raised you. I watched you grow. Even though you were away for years, I never stopped believing in the person you are. If my child makes a choice like this, I trust he has his reasons, or his burdens. Whatever you decide… I will respect it.”
“Yeah! Big Brother’s been quietly giving everything for us for so long. Don’t you think it’s okay to be a little selfish for once?” His sister grinned. “I mean, Yue’er is selfish all the time!”
“…I see.”
Ouyang Qianxue stepped out and closed the door behind him.
He did not look back.
By then, tears were streaming down his face. He clenched his jaw, biting back every sound, he could not let them hear. He could not let his mother and sister see him like this.
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