When Song Xia was about to leave this world, she was already ninety-nine years old. When she was seventy, she saw her parents pass away. Now, when she was about to leave, Tingting was already seventy-five years old. She had transformed from a once-genius girl into a master of traditional Chinese painting, with many children and grandchildren, and had achieved both fame and fortune.
"Mom probably won't make it. Don't be sad. Everyone has to go through this."
"Mmm." Ye Tingting nodded, her eyes red and swollen.
"Don't cry, or the younger generation will laugh at you."
"I won't cry, Mom, you'll be alright."
"He's talking nonsense again."
As she spoke, Song Xia, who had been sleeping soundly in bed for the past two days, suddenly sat up with a rosy complexion: "Mom hasn't cooked for you in a long time. What do you want to eat? Mom will make it for you."
Seeing this, Ye Tingting was not happy at all, but even more sad. She held back her tears and said, "Mom, I love to eat whatever you make."
Song Xia said to herself, "Then let's stew a chicken and make some braised shrimp. When your mother reformed and decided to come home to take care of you, just tell her that you like to eat chicken and shrimp."
Ye Tingting burst into tears instantly, then turned away to wipe them silently. She never expected that after so many years, her mother would still remember.
"Mom, I'll do it with you."
Song Xia just kept smiling: "What can you do? Just eat what Mom makes."
She rambled on, "There are some pickles and chili sauces I made in the jar. Although they're very salty, it's best to eat them within six months."
"Um."
"There are dumplings and steamed buns in the freezer. You're getting older, so don't eat too much at once. The same goes for Xiao Tang. At this age, be careful of high blood sugar and high cholesterol."
Tang Qi, whose eyes were also red, sighed. He could say that he had grown up eating his mother-in-law's cooking since he was a child. Over the years, she was no different from his own mother. The New Year was just around the corner, and it seemed that his mother-in-law wouldn't even make it through the New Year.
Song Xia chattered on and on. She had cooked all her life and was still very organized even at this age. Soon, a table full of dishes was ready.
However, once they sat down at the table, no one touched their chopsticks. She urged, "Eat quickly, or it will get cold."
"Eat, we'll all eat." Ye Tingting forced a smile, took a sip of soup, glanced at her mother, took another bite of vegetables, and glanced at her again. When she finished her bowl of rice and put it down, she found that her mother had already closed her eyes.
"Waaah..." Ye Tingting stumbled over, she no longer had a mother.
Tang Qi hugged her from behind, equally heartbroken. The younger generation all had tears in their eyes, and then, in accordance with Song Xia's last wishes, they carried out the funeral arrangements in an orderly manner.
Today, Song Xia is considered a well-known local entrepreneur. In addition, her extraordinary skills during her lifetime led to her being reported by some media outlets after her death.
Upon hearing the news, Qin Jiawei, who was already seventy-seven years old, walked out of his residence shakily, leaning on his cane. He had already sold the old house that his grandmother had left him, and unfortunately, the old neighborhood that had not been demolished for so many years began to be renovated a year after he sold it.
He did try to cause trouble, but he was kicked out. He even lost his balance while kicking the door and fell, breaking his leg.
His aunt didn't care about him at all, and his biological mother wouldn't even come to see him. Without money to treat his leg, he could only let himself become a cripple. It was then that he realized that in his whole life, apart from his grandmother, only his stepmother Song Xia had ever been truly good to him.
All these years he has been hoping that his stepmother would come to him and raise him as her own son, just like before.
Although my hopes have been dashed after so many years, I can't leave myself with nothing, given the friendships we shared. Even just a little bit of inheritance would be nice.
So, with that tiny bit of hope, Qin Jiawei walked to Song Xia's funeral, but before he could get close, he was stopped.
“I am Song Xia’s son. I’m here to see her off. Please let me in.”
The security guard said expressionlessly, "You're not the first person to come here claiming to be my mother. Ms. Song has passed away. Please don't cause trouble here."
"I'm not joking, I'm telling the truth." Qin Jiawei stumbled from the push. "My stepmother definitely left me an inheritance. You want me to see the will? If you won't, you're guilty. I'm going to sue you."
The security guard and the other man exchanged a glance, then led him to an empty room and called the police. These were all respectable people; how could they let him run wild? They should leave everything to the police.
Qin Jiawei was furious, but no matter how much he banged on the door or yelled, no one paid any attention to him. When the police arrived, they were also speechless.
This man is a regular at their police station. He has been detained and reported many times for stealing, but because he has no immediate family, is old, and has no property, even they are helpless. They never expected that things would escalate to this point today.
Ms. Song Xia was a local celebrity who had donated to the community many times during her lifetime. How could they tolerate this scoundrel causing trouble at Ms. Song Xia's funeral? Isn't this breaking the hearts of Ms. Song Xia and her descendants?
“Come with us. This is not a place for you to cause trouble. Don’t think that just because you’re old, we won’t dare to lock you up.”
“I’m not being ridiculous. She really is my stepmother. She used to be very good to me. She must have left me an inheritance.” Qin Jiawei refused to cooperate, leaving the police speechless. They then forcibly took him away.
The matter eventually reached Ye Tingting through the mouth of a younger relative. She truly never expected that there would be such a shameless person who still harbored illusions after so many years.
“Mom was just too kind-hearted, which gave him room for fantasy.” Tang Qi looked at the candle that was about to go out and slowly led his wife outside. “Although Mom is gone, she will live in our hearts forever. Let’s not let her worry in heaven.”
"Hmm." Ye Tingting's sorrow had subsided considerably, but her face still looked extremely tired.
She has to accept reality, doesn't she? From the age of eleven until now, her mother has been with her for sixty-four years, cooking for her for sixty-four years. She should be content.
However, even though she said she would let it go, Ye Tingting didn't touch the pickles and dumplings that Song Xia left behind in the days that followed, as if her mother was still there because the food hadn't been eaten.
Tang Qi didn't try to persuade him, after all, everyone needs to have some hope.
Song Xia returned to the system space. He had lived a relatively comfortable and smooth life, and finally his daughter's dream was fulfilled, leaving him with no regrets.
"Xiaxia, welcome back." System Xiaoling was still hopping around, because another world mission was completed and his system shop was expanded and improved. He felt full of energy.
Song Xia rubbed his head and watched Tingting slowly emerge from her sadness in the system interface before gently falling asleep.
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