Free Web NovelChapter 27: Chapter 14: Seventh Grade
The night was deep, and the flame in the oil lamp sputtered and danced.
Beneath the dim lamplight, Mrs. Xue of the Fang Family tilted her head, her eyes straining as she squinted. Every so often, she would moisten the linen thread with a dab of saliva or snip the end with her teeth, sewing a piece of clothing.
This was how the siblings, Fang Rui and Fang Ling, had gotten every set of clothes they owned, from childhood to the present day.
The children of their neighbors wore a single outfit, patching it when it tore and letting out the seams when it grew too small. It was always just that one set of clothes.
But the two siblings had almost never worn patched clothes. This was all thanks to the deft hands of Mrs. Xue of the Fang Family. She would take garments apart and mend them, add a bit of new fabric, and could even make a patchwork of scraps look like a deliberate embellishment...
Thanks to her deft hands, the siblings always looked clean and sharp when they went out, allowing them to hold their heads high in front of their peers.
Even though the Fang Family was doing much better now, they were far from wealthy enough to splurge on ready-made clothes.
A few days ago, Fang Rui had purchased several feet of fabric from the Black Market. After he brought it back, Mrs. Xue of the Fang Family decided to make a new set of clothes for each of the siblings before autumn and winter set in.
As for herself?
She didn’t need any.
’I’m used to my old clothes,’ Mrs. Xue of the Fang Family would always say.
After finishing the seam on a cuff, Mrs. Xue of the Fang Family set down her needle and thread. She flexed her stiff, aching knuckles and instinctively turned her head to look out the window.
’It’s almost time. Brother Rui is usually just about back by now.’
Mrs. Xue of the Fang Family estimated the time, then got up and went to the kitchen to boil a pot of water.
Whenever Fang Rui came home from the Black Market, he liked to wash his feet with hot water, and sometimes give his body a quick wipe-down as well.
Ever since the first time, Mrs. Xue of the Fang Family had remembered this little habit. She would always estimate his arrival and boil the water ahead of time to make things more convenient for Fang Rui.
She put the water on to boil.
Mrs. Xue of the Fang Family returned to the window, staring out anxiously, waiting for Fang Rui to come home.
This was a typical evening for Mrs. Xue of the Fang Family.
Or rather, this was how she spent every night that Fang Rui went to the Black Market.
But tonight, something seemed different.
The time Fang Rui usually returned had already passed, but tonight... there was still no sign of him!
’Could something have happened to Brother Rui... No! He must have just been delayed by something.’
Even as she said the words, she began to pace anxiously. Clasping her hands together, she muttered, "Ancestors, protect him! Immortals, protect him!"
Time slipped by in silence.
Half a tea’s time.
A full tea’s time.
A quarter of an hour. freewёbnoνel.com
...
’Brother Rui... could it be... did something really happen?! What do I do?! What on earth do I do?!’
The color drained from Mrs. Xue of the Fang Family’s face. She clenched her hands so tightly that veins bulged on her wrists, and her forehead was beaded with cold sweat that glistened in the dim candlelight.
She desperately wanted to go out and look for Fang Rui, but her rational mind told her: ’Don’t go!’
—She was just a woman, with no martial skills to speak of. Going out would only make her a burden. Besides, what if she left just moments before Fang Rui returned? That would only make him worry!
’I’m just a useless, helpless woman!’
Never before had Mrs. Xue of the Fang Family resented her own powerlessness as much as she did at this moment.
As she was tormented by her inner turmoil, she was overcome with regret—regret for ever letting Fang Rui go to the Black Market.
Although the Fang Family’s situation was better now, in her heart of hearts, Mrs. Xue of the Fang Family was completely against Fang Rui taking such risks, unless it was a year of disaster and they truly had no other way to survive.
She would rather suffer and toil herself than let Fang Rui face such dangers.
But Fang Ling’s well-being was a factor, and besides... she couldn’t dissuade Fang Rui anyway.
At this moment, Mrs. Xue of the Fang Family had only one thought: ’Please, let Fang Rui come home safe!’
’If Brother Rui is safe, I’m willing to trade away the thousand catties of grain we have at home. You can take my remaining years of life, even if it means a life for a life...’
Mrs. Xue of the Fang Family clasped her hands, murmuring lowly, her tear-filled eyes shining with sincere devotion.
One could be certain that if such an opportunity ever arose, she would accept without a moment’s hesitation.
Perhaps her fervent prayers were answered.
The next moment.
KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK.
The sound of knocking echoed, followed by Fang Rui’s voice, "Mother!"
In the eyes of Mrs. Xue of the Fang Family, it was as if time itself had frozen in that instant.
"Brother Rui!"
Her heart was suddenly flooded with immense joy. She rushed to open the door, but the violent emotional swing from deep anxiety to elation left her weak, and she stumbled.
"Mother!"
Fang Rui quickly caught Mrs. Xue of the Fang Family, and seeing his mother’s paper-white face, he immediately asked what was wrong.
"It’s nothing, Brother Rui. All that matters is that you’re back safe..." Mrs. Xue of the Fang Family shook her head with a smile, her face still pale.
She didn’t say a word about her earlier worry, her deep anxiety, or the desperate vows she had made.
But Fang Rui was exceptionally perceptive. After a moment’s thought, he understood. And once he understood, he fell into a long silence.
He knew Mrs. Xue of the Fang Family worried whenever he went to the Black Market, but he never imagined she was this on pins and needles.
In that moment, a realization dawned on Fang Rui.
Perhaps, every time he went to the Black Market, the one who suffered the most wasn’t him—the one who had to be cautious, prepare countless contingencies, consider every possible outcome, and exhaust himself both mentally and physically.
It was Mrs. Xue of the Fang Family, waiting at home, on pins and needles, for whom every second must have felt like a day.
"Mother!"
Fang Rui sniffled, his nose stinging. He didn’t say anything sentimental that would only exhaust Mrs. Xue of the Fang Family’s spirit further. Instead, he changed the subject, saying cheerfully, "Mother, look what I brought back! Hey, a full fifty catties of Sorghum Flour!"
"You said not to buy cornmeal, but to get all Sorghum Flour because it’s more filling. This time, I listened to you."
After he began cooperating with Gao Yao, the profits from the finished medicine business had multiplied, and the Fang Family’s staple food had become a mix of half cornmeal and half Sorghum Flour. Because of this, Mrs. Xue of the Fang Family had often chided him for not knowing how to run a proper household.
This time, he had finally managed to ’run a proper household’ for once.
