“Xiaojing, take Pingping and An’an to wash their hands. I’ll make some seaweed and egg drop soup, and then we can eat.”
I quickly washed the pot, added two bowls of water, tore in a handful of seaweed, and added the small bunch of greens left over from this morning.
Once the pot boiled, I whisked two eggs, stirred them vigorously, added a little salt, and poured the mixture into a soup bowl.
I sprinkled some chopped green onions and added a few drops of sesame oil. The egg drop soup was ready.
I brought the soup and dishes to the table.
While washing her nieces’ hands, Han Xiaojing sang a nursery rhyme she made up: “Wash, wash, wash your hands, use the soap, rub, rub, rub, make bubbles…”
Listening to Han Xiaojing’s nursery rhyme, Pingping and An’an, although unable to repeat it, began to hum along.
After washing their hands, they put on their bibs and sat on the stools at the table.
Han Xiaojing peeled a shrimp and held it to Pingping’s mouth: “Pingping, shrimp!”
Pingping didn’t say anything but opened her mouth wide and bit into the shrimp. The delicious taste made Pingping’s eyes light up, and she stared at the plate of shrimp on the table.
Seeing her sister eating, An’an pulled her mother’s arm and pointed at the shrimp.
Han Xiaorui looked into An’an’s eyes while peeling: “An’an, shrimp.”
“Shrimp!” To everyone’s surprise, An’an clearly pronounced the noun.
Han Xiaorui was incredibly excited and quickly shoved the shrimp into her younger daughter’s mouth: “An’an, you’re amazing! Eat the shrimp.”
Pingping reached out, pointed at the shrimp, and looked at her aunt.
Han Xiaojing mimicked her sister’s approach, staring gently into Pingping’s eyes: “Pingping, tell Auntie, what do you want to eat?”
Han Xiaorui stared into Pingping’s eyes, pointed at the shrimp, and taught her to say: “Shrimp! This is a shrimp!”
“Mom, shrimp.” Pingping not only said “shrimp,” but she even called out to her mother.
Although her speech wasn’t perfectly clear, Han Xiaorui heard it.
Overcome with excitement, Han Xiaorui quickly said, “Mom will peel shrimp for Pingping and An’an!”
Throughout the meal, Han Xiaorui and Han Xiaojing patiently guided the children.
At the table, the children said: shrimp, eat shrimp, eat food, drink soup…
Perhaps Pingping and An’an didn’t fully memorize the words, but the fact that they opened their mouths to speak was another huge step forward.
Han Xiaorui was very happy. As she cleaned up the table and kitchen, getting ready to go into the yard to play ball with the children, the phone rang.
“Xiaorui, you were at the hospital this morning, what did the doctor say?” It was Yang Zhigang calling from the seafood wholesale market after just finishing his work.
Han Xiaorui smiled and said, “The doctor said it can be treated. I took three lessons this morning. Each lesson is five yuan, five days a week.”
“This noon, I used the method the expert doctor taught me—staring into the children’s eyes and talking to them. Pingping and An’an were able to say ‘shrimp,’ ‘eat food,’ and ‘drink soup’ at lunch.”
Upon hearing this, the fatigue of Yang Zhigang’s busy morning vanished.
“As long as it can be treated, it’s fine, Xiaorui. Take it slow. Don’t worry about the treatment costs or living expenses; you just need to take good care of the children. By the way, did the doctor have any other instructions?”
“The doctor said raising some small animals is beneficial for the children’s treatment. Chickens, ducks, geese, cats, or dogs—any will do.”
Upon hearing this, Yang Zhigang immediately agreed with a smile, “Alright, I’ll go buy some at the market when I’m done here.”
“Thank you!” After hanging up, Han Xiaorui turned to look at her two daughters playing in the yard and smiled.
Everything will be fine.
To ensure her daughters would sleep soundly at night, she spent the afternoon playing soccer, games, and digging in the dirt to plant vegetables with them in the yard.
At four in the afternoon, her father-in-law, Yang Zhigang, arrived, unloading five crates from his farm tricycle.
There was a crate with thirty chicks, one with twenty ducklings, one with ten goslings, two puppies that had just been weaned, and two kittens.
This was way too many!
“You bought so many; I don’t have anywhere to put them!” Han Xiaorui was between laughter and tears, once again feeling that her father-in-law was truly kind.
When Pingping and An’an saw the chicks and ducklings, they ran over, staring intently at the small animals.
They looked at one, then another, feeling very curious.
Seeing his granddaughters’ interest, Yang Zhigang felt it was worth it. “You’ve never raised them before; they aren’t easy to keep alive. This way, if something happens to one, you won’t have to buy more immediately.”
Han Xiaorui squatted down and said softly: “Pingping, An’an, Grandpa bought us little animals. Thank Grandpa. Thank you, Grandpa…”
Pingping looked up at her mother, then at her grandfather, smiled faintly, and opened her mouth. As if with great effort, she squeezed out the words, “Thank… you… Grandpa!”
Hearing her sister, An’an shook her head and said it even more clearly: “Thank you, Grandpa.”
It was as if they had suddenly had a breakthrough.
Yang Zhigang squatted down and hugged a granddaughter in each arm, his eyes red with emotion.
“Good, good! Pingping and An’an are both amazing. No need to thank me. If you want anything in the future, just tell Grandpa, and Grandpa will buy it for you.” Yang Zhigang’s throat felt tight, and his eyes were stinging. “Xiaorui, seeing the doctor really had an effect. Go ahead and take the kids for treatment without worry; you don’t need to stress about the money.”
Han Xiaorui felt her own nose sting as well. “Dad, I understand. I might not be able to call you that for many more days, but I still want to say thank you.”
Yang Zhigang looked at his daughter-in-law with deep regret and finally sighed, “Sigh, Jianming has let you down.”
Han Xiaorui shook her head, her smile calm. “I figured it out yesterday. The moment I agreed to the divorce, Yang Jianming ceased to be important in my heart.”
“From now on, he only has one identity to me: the children’s father. I won’t have any involvement with him in the future.”
Yang Zhigang was actually very satisfied with Han Xiaorui as a daughter-in-law, but his son was useless, and his wife was a troublemaker.
“You’re right to think that way; Jianming isn’t worthy of you.” Yang Zhigang spoke the truth, especially regarding the children—Yang Jianming was not fit to be a father.
When Yang Zhigang left, his usually straight back was slightly hunched; he felt ashamed to have a son like that.
Seeing these small animals, Pingping and An’an’s eyes became much more lively, and they were already able to say the names of these creatures.
Han Xiaorui found some cardboard from the storage room. “Pingping, An’an, we have a house, but the chicks, ducklings, and goslings don’t. Shall we make them a house?”
“Okay!”
“Look at my eyes: House!” Han Xiaorui slowed down her movements; everything she did was centered on teaching the children.
An’an learned relatively quickly: “House!”
“Hou…se!” It was a bit of a struggle for Pingping, but she managed to say it.
Han Xiaorui felt gratified, using simple language to explain while modifying the cardboard boxes.
“This is the door, this is the window, this is the roof…”
When the children’s attention was on Han Xiaorui, they repeated whatever she said, as long as it was simple.
Perhaps they didn’t remember it after saying it once, but Expert Wang had said that as long as they could speak, it was a good start.
If it didn’t work once, she would teach them twice, then even more. Eventually, they would remember.
Additionally, Han Xiaorui made two houses—one big and one small—to cultivate the concept of “big and small” in the children.
Even though they were attending classes, parents must always look for opportunities to teach children daily knowledge.
It must be said, the doctor’s suggestion was excellent; these cute pets were incredibly useful.
By nightfall, Han Xiaojing arrived back after resigning from the factory, carrying her luggage and a bucket.
“Xiaojing, did you get all your wages?” Han Xiaorui asked.
Han Xiaojing smiled. “I got them all. The accountant originally wanted to withhold a month’s pay, but I mentioned Pingping and An’an’s grandfather’s name. The accountant was afraid the locals would come to cause trouble, so he obediently paid me.”