“Is this yours?” Forty-something Yan Huifang had a pair of phoenix eyes identical to Yan Jun’s, her facial features still maintaining an upward-slanting trend, her cheeks firm, making her look quite young.
She laughed, giving her son a sidelong, teasing look: “Are you willing to part with it? The workmanship of this clothing is very good; it costs at least four or five hundred.”
Three hundred yuan? Well, it was indeed a price this kid could barely accept. Yan Huifang looked at her son tenderly, said nothing, hooked her arm around his, and walked into the house. Passing by Granny, she called out: “Mom, stop sleeping, I’m back! I brought you clothes!”
Granny groggily opened her eyes and accurately called out her daughter’s name: “Huifang!… Why did you only just come back?”
The three generations of the family sat down one after another by the low table, and Yan Huifang pulled many things out of her bag: “Mom, this is cotton-silk clothing bought for you. Didn’t you always complain about the heat? Wear this, this is cool.”
She also pulled out a shoebox and handed it into her son’s hand: “The basketball shoes bought for the Chinese New Year, they’re almost worn out, right? I bought you a new pair, try them on and see if they fit.”
Seeing the Nike logo on the shoebox, Yan Jun was startled: “Mom, why did you buy Nike? I’m fine wearing Anta.”
“I saw that my employer’s son wears this exact pair, and he said they’re comfortable to wear. Although a bit expensive, the quality is good and can withstand your tossing around.” Her son was sitting right beside her, this height just right for rubbing his head. Yan Huifang smiled, rubbed his head, and said: “…Didn’t you also buy that hoodie! I figured you finally couldn’t bear to spend money.”
“That’s…” Yan Jun drooped his head dejectedly, finally closing his mouth and honestly trying on the shoes.
She looked surprised: “I thought you grew taller again… Here, this is the receipt, tomorrow you go to the store and exchange them for a size 43 pair.”
“Oh.” Yan Jun accepted it dejectedly, thinking: I’ll have to drink an extra carton of milk from now on.
On the other side, Granny enthusiastically tried on the new clothes and new shoes, her eyes crinkling into smiles, happy and cheerful like a little kid: “Huifang, did you buy so many for me!”
“How is that a lot? You only buy twice a year, of course you have to buy enough.”
“Then do you still have money?… Let me tell you, it’s not easy to make money nowadays, don’t spend indiscriminately even if you have money! That debt you’re carrying, who knows when you’ll finish paying it off… Xiaojun, Xiaojun ah! Did you give the money from my selling things to Huifang?”
“Gave it, gave it!” This old lady, with her hazy brain, actually remembered that debt clearly. Yan Jun awkwardly made eye contact with his mom, and the two tacitly split up—one went to the kitchen, and the other helped the old lady pack her clothes back into the bedroom: “Mom, let’s hang the clothes in the wardrobe…”
“Where did Xiaojun go?”
“He went to cook!”
“Cook?” The old lady instantly perked up, pulling at the top of her lungs to order dishes: “Xiaojun, I want to eat plum-braised pork ribs with rice cakes!”
Yan Jun’s helpless voice came from the kitchen: “There are no rice cakes left, is plum-braised pork ribs okay?”
Granny smacked her lips, lacking enthusiasm as she followed her daughter into the room: “…That’s fine too!”
Half an hour later, three home-style dishes were done. While wiping his hands, Yan Jun poked his head out and saw Mom and Granny talking intimately in the room. So, he loaded food onto a plate and walked quietly tip-toe toward upstairs.
During the hour or so since Mom came back, upstairs had been extremely quiet, without even a creaking sound. Wondering if this fake child was still sulking, Yan Jun climbed up to the attic stretching his neck. Qin Yize was indeed lying on the bed, still maintaining his sleeping posture facing the wall, with the smiley-face pillow exposing a pair of curved eyes in his arms.
Silently walking to the bedside, he placed the plate on the table. Yan Jun looked at him with hesitating, unspoken words for a moment, and just as he wanted to say something, Mom called out from downstairs: “Xiaojun? Where did you go?”
Yan Jun had no choice but to let out an “Ah” and turned to go downstairs.
Placing the dishes on the low table, the family of three sat down to eat. Yan Huifang hadn’t eaten food cooked by her son in a long time, and tasting a bite of the plum-braised pork ribs, she couldn’t help smiling: “Xiaojun’s culinary skills are getting better and better!”
Yan Jun was preoccupied with that sulking fake child upstairs, scratching his head absentmindedly without making a sound. As a result, the next second, what Granny said scared him almost to the point of jumping up:
“Xiaojun ah, where did Xiaoshu go, why isn’t he coming to eat?” Granny asked with concern.
A mouthful of rice choked in Yan Jun’s throat, and he coughed strenuously, his face flushing red. Yan Huifang looked at him strangely, then looked toward Granny: “Mom, who is Xiaoshu?”
“Xiaoshu is just Xiaoshu, the one who’s exceptionally handsome and smiles very obediently.” Granny wore a self-righteous expression, making her even more bewildered.
“Is that so?” Yan Huifang dawned in realization, harboring no suspicions: “Has he stayed over for meals before?”
“Um…” Yan Jun guiltily averted his eyes: “Stayed twice.”
“Hah, no wonder your mom remembered!” Yan Huifang smiled, turning to pick up a piece of pork rib for her mom, not taking this small episode to heart.
After eating, Yan Jun tidied up the bowls and plates to wash them in the kitchen, while Yan Huifang served Granny a bath, conveniently clipping her nails and trimming her hair.
Soon the bowls and plates were washed, and she was still helping Granny clean her ears. Yan Jun leaned against the doorway, quietly watching his mom’s focused profile and Granny’s dozing figure, and couldn’t help saying: “Mom, Granny’s illness… seems to have gotten worse.”
Alleviation, rather than treatment. Yan Jun looked at his mom with unspoken words, wanting to ask what they should do in the future? What if he passed the college entrance exam and left this city—then who would take care of Granny?
Hesitating, Yan Huifang wiped the tools clean and helped Granny lie down to sleep. Standing up wearily, she beckoned to her son, and the two walked one after another to the edge of the counter.
Pulling out that fully packed iron box, Yan Huifang tallied the paper money while asking softly: “Now that Granny sells buns in the morning, how much money can she make every day?”
“Two hundred and fifty-something,” The numbers in the bank card were crystal clear, so Yan Jun couldn’t hide it. “Selling snacks during the day can also make another thirty-something yuan.”
“…Then that’s quite stable.” Counting the money in the box, it happened to be two hundred and ninety-something. Yan Huifang sighed in surprise and said: “Nowadays, factory-made buns have so many people buying them too? Ay, it seems in the future, the breakfast business won’t be easy to do either.”
Clutching the paper money in his palm, Yan Jun hung his head and asked in a low voice: “How much is left now?”
“But after a year, if I go to college, no one will help Granny restock goods. Although Granny can barely take care of herself, she can’t be left alone. Who will take care of her then?”
Pondering for a moment, Yan Huifang smiled consolingly: “If worst comes to worst… she can only be sent to a nursing home. Find one for four or five thousand; this money can’t be saved.”
“Just like that then,” Yan Jun answered passively.
Yan Huifang looked at him quietly, and after a long while, let out a long sigh: “Xiaojun… although physical education majors don’t need to score too high, at least you have to pass the cutoff line. For this final year, you still need to review and properly test into a college…”
“…Then I can still be a teacher.”
“Be a teacher? You only make five thousand and something a month, which isn’t even as good as Granny selling buns!” Snorting coldly, Yan Jun finally raised his head, his expression stubborn: “If I concentrate on making breakfast, making 500 yuan a day is a piece of cake! Is there even any need to be a teacher?”
Yan Jun bit his lip stubbornly and looked elsewhere, his slender face hidden in the shadows, remaining silent.
Unable to resist raising her hand to stroke the back of his head, Yan Huifang looked at this teenager who had already grown to one meter eight, and said earnestly:
“People always have to move upward. You have to try some things; how would you know if it won’t work if you don’t try? If you really can’t climb up, you can take a step back; but if you are satisfied with the status quo from the beginning, when you want to climb up later, you won’t have the chance, you know?”
In the dimness, Yan Jun still made no sound, except that the obstinacy on his face dissipated a fraction.
Seeing this, Yan Huifang smiled with gratification, touched his face, and stood up to return to her room: “I’m getting ready to go back. I transferred two thousand yuan into your card; buy a few new clothes for the new semester, don’t always think about saving money.”
“No need…” Yan Jun tilted his head away, dodging his mom’s touch. Yan Huifang smiled again: “Don’t I know! Kids your age care about face the most. Dress up when you should; I’m just in debt, it’s not like I can’t earn.”
She turned and walked toward the room, and Yan Jun trailed closely behind, leaning against the door frame and watching his mom pack her things. Looking at her slightly gaunt back, the boy hesitated for a moment and asked: “Mom, my dad… has he still been harassing you recently?”
“Him?” Packing up her backpack, the mother and son walked out together. “I live in a high-end residential complex now; he doesn’t know the address, so even if he wants to harass me he has no way. A while ago he did call me a few times, but I didn’t answer, and just sent him a message asking if he no longer needed me to help him pay off that 1.26 million gambling debt?”
Saying this, Yan Huifang