95. 095 Sticky Mom
When Su Yu left, Xiao Yuan and Ping An escorted her all the way to the train station. "Mom, let's take leave and go too, it won't make a difference if we take a few more days," Xiao Yuan pleaded.
“You’ll have to rush back after you go. Wait until your summer vacation to go there, have a few days to play, and then come back. I’m not going to graduate after only half a year at school. Besides, it’s freezing cold, so don’t catch a cold.” Su Yu patted her two sons on the shoulders and said, “Your parents won’t be home, so you two have to take good care of yourselves. Don’t fight. Come home early after school every day so your grandparents won’t worry. If you miss me, write to me. You can write one a day or one a week.”
"I know, you've told me several times already." Ping An hugged Xiao Yuan and said reassuringly, "I'll take care of Xiao Yuan, Mom, don't worry."
"Who needs you to take care of him?" Xiao Yuan retorted, shaking off his arm. "Mom, you go inside. We're going back to school. I'll make sure Ping An studies hard and doesn't mess around." With that, he turned and left.
"Who's messing around? Your grades are only slightly better than mine." Ping An waved dismissively and chased after Xiao Yuan to reason with him.
Seeing the two of them bickering and inseparable, Su Yu said to Ning Jin, "It's a good thing we both have sons. If we had a boy and a girl, we would have to get a divorce to make room for the two kids."
"Nonsense." Ning Jin glared at her. "Even if they're not the same sex, they're still good siblings."
"You're not very worldly." She glanced at him and went into the train station first.
After Su Yu left, Er Ya went to the hospital. The doctor told her that she had severe uterine coldness. Although she was sad, she was not surprised at all. Her hands and feet were always cold. Every time she had her period, she was in excruciating pain. The timing was also irregular. Sometimes it was once every three months, and sometimes it was once every month or so. As for malnutrition, she also asked the doctor to give her a prescription.
"Mom!" She ran to the supply and marketing cooperative, saw her mother, and cried out, heartbroken and desperate.
"What's wrong? Girl, get up and tell me, who bullied you?" The others in the supply and marketing cooperative quickly pulled her up and called to Du Xiaojuan, "You come and ask your girl what's wrong?"
Amidst the clamor of voices urging them on, Du Xiaojuan walked over with a sullen face, pulled Er Ya towards the door, and said, "We'll talk about it when we get back. Don't delay people from getting things done."
Er Ya seemed not to hear, clinging to her mother's leg and crying, "Mom, what should I do? The doctor said I have a cold uterus and it's hard for me to get pregnant." With trembling hands, she took out the prescription from the doctor, "Mom, I want to get treatment, I want to have a baby, give me money and I'll go get the medicine to treat myself."
With a whoosh, the words "cannot have children" exploded like a landmine in the crowd. Du Xiaojuan felt dizzy looking at the whispering and onlookers. She had just found a family and was almost at the point of an agreement when this happened.
"Impossible!" she roared. "Which quack doctor treated you? Come on, I'll take you to him, and we'll find another doctor."
Er Ya followed her to the hospital, followed by onlookers. After causing a scene at the hospital, the news that the two sisters, Daya and Er Ya, couldn't have children spread like wildfire throughout the town. Du Xiaojuan was trembling with anger. When she got back, she was going to beat her up and questioned, "What were you doing going to the hospital for no reason?"
"I haven't had my period for three months. I was scared, so I went to bed quietly." Er Ya collapsed to the ground and cried as if her heart had died, letting Daya hug her and cry out in despair.
Er Ya's father sat coughing in the main room, pulling his youngest son away from the commotion. "Stop arguing," he said, his face flushed and his voice hoarse from coughing. "Isn't it embarrassing enough already?"
"What sins have I committed to deserve this? I'm stuck with these two! Even a random hen wouldn't be unable to lay eggs!" She slapped her thigh in anger. She raised two girls to marry them off and find wives for her son, but one can't have children and the other can't either. Are they just stuck at home, destined to live off the old rice?
"Mom, Dad, I want to get treatment. The doctor said it might be curable. Please take me to see a doctor." Er Ya pleaded desperately.
Du Xiaojuan ignored her. The doctor said that she would have to take medicine for many years and could not touch cold water. She needed to eat and drink well to nourish herself. Bah, she was not a pampered young lady.
After that, Er Ya stopped doing any work and started lying in the house whimpering like Da Ya. She would hit and scold Da Ya whenever she wanted, and if it hurt, she would run out and cry loudly. When she cried, Da Ya would cry too. All the housework fell on Du Xiao Juan. If she didn't cook, the whole family would go hungry. When the food was ready, Er Ya would rush to the table and wolf down her food, saying that she needed to take care of her health.
Du Xiaojuan wished she could smash those two brats to death with a spoon. During this time, she had been working, cooking, and doing laundry, and she had also secretly asked people to find husbands for the two girls. The eldest girl wanted eighty yuan for the bride price, and the second girl wanted two hundred yuan. It was a fixed price, and she wouldn't lower it. Even so, she still felt she was losing out. The two girls had been sent off to their new homes, but they still couldn't find a wife.
Moreover, she preferred to keep Daya at home. She couldn't do chores like laundry and cooking. Even if Daya didn't get married, she could feed her three bowls of porridge a day and let her do everything at home so that she could focus on her work.
But no one came to look at her. No one was willing to pay two hundred yuan to marry a woman who couldn't have children. Du Xiaojuan was so anxious that her mouth was covered in blisters. Er Ya's schooling had cost forty or fifty yuan, and she had raised her for one or two decades. She felt that she was losing out by marrying her off for two hundred yuan. Lowering the price would be like cutting off her flesh.
The matter was put on hold, and Er Ya's emotions gradually calmed down. She started cooking one or two meals again, and Du Xiaojuan breathed a sigh of relief. Her husband and son both thought her cooking was terrible, but now that someone else was cooking, she was happy to stay out of the kitchen.
"I want to go to school." Er Ya suddenly said during lunch that day.
Du Xiaojuan glanced at her but ignored her. Da Bao scoffed and continued eating.
“I want to go to school, go to high school and take the college entrance exam. Even if I don’t get into college, I can still find a job after graduating from high school. I can’t have children, so I can only work to earn money and save for my retirement,” Er Ya continued.
Er Ya's father paused as he picked up food with his chopsticks.
“If I can’t find a job and can’t get married, I’ll stay at home with my eldest sister and we’ll take care of Xiao Hu. His children will take care of us in our old age. Eldest brother, second brother, if you let your sons take care of me in our old age, I’ll take care of your children too.”
Da Bao spat and said viciously, "Dream on, no one will take care of you in your old age."
"Sister, I'll take care of you in your old age," Xiao Hu said, patting his chest.
"Okay, I'll be counting on you from now on." Er Ya seemed relieved, and diligently served food to Xiao Hu, not caring about the glare she received from her father.
"Er Ya, are your grades pretty good?" Er Bao suddenly spoke up, smiling as he asked, "I remember your junior high graduation exam score was only slightly lower than the two kids next door."
"The scores were quite different, but I was fifth in the class."
Erbao secretly pursed his lips. He and his brother had never even been in the fifth-to-last place. He glanced at his father and said nothing more.
On his way to work in the afternoon, Erbao shook off his brother and followed his father out the door one after the other. "Dad, let's talk for a bit," he said as he caught up.
"say what?"
“Let Er Ya go to school.” Er Bao looked around and continued in a low voice, “I heard from my friend that last year, some of the educated youth from the village did not go to university, but the village chief’s daughter, who only graduated from elementary school, did.”
The man immediately understood what he meant, but still frowned, "Er Ya is a woman, even if she passes the exam, you can't replace her."
Erbao, as if he had heard a joke, put his arm around his father's shoulder and said, "Dad, do I look like someone who can study? But there are plenty of girls who want to go to university, and then we can set the price."
"You're quick-witted." The two exchanged a glance, both satisfied.
Er Ya was still at home thinking about what to do next. According to Aunt Su, she would keep trying for a few more days and then promise to give all the money she earned to her family. She would also give the job to her nephew or Xiao Hu. But when she brought it up again that night, her father agreed immediately and told her to go to school without worry, leaving all the housework to Da Ya.
"Of the five of you brothers and sisters, not counting Xiaohu, you are the only one with the potential to study. If you can get into university, you will bring honor to our family. Dad is counting on you to make me proud. Study hard, and you don't need to worry about tuition or anything, but your grades must be good. If they drop, you might as well go back to your grandpa's house and farm."
"Okay, I will definitely study hard." Er Ya smiled and readily agreed. She thought her father was moved by what she had said at noon. She rubbed Xiao Hu's head and said, "When your second sister has a job and can earn money, I will support your studies."
She looked up at her father, and he was indeed satisfied.
Next, she went to Xiaoyuan and borrowed all his books from last semester. She spent her days at home doing housework or reading and memorizing, and sometimes she would ask Xiaoyuan questions.
"Sister Er Ya, my mom wrote a letter. Do you want to write one back? I'll put it in an envelope and take it with me," Xiao Yuan asked.
"Write, tear off a piece of paper for me, I'll write now."
Ping An pulled the letter over and read it again, saying enviously, "Mom said it was still snowing there when she went, but now it's spring, and there are even squirrels and birds at the school. It's also very close to the farm, so there's plenty of food. She even told us to go there during our summer vacation, and she'll pick us up at the station. I really want to go on vacation soon."
Xiao Yuan ignored him and continued writing his letter, covering his face with his hand as if afraid someone would peek. Ping An felt a pang of jealousy watching him and said to his grandfather sitting next to him, "Look at him, he's definitely writing something mushy. One night he was even calling for his mother in his dream. He's so clingy."
"This is the first time Xiao Yuan has been away from his mother for so long. He'll get used to it next year," Old Man Su said with a smile, trying to make amends for his grandson.
"I don't really miss my dad since he's never home," he muttered to himself, then pulled over his notebook and started writing a letter.
After Su Yu arrived at the school and moved into the dormitory, Ning Jin came to reserve a spot and took Su Yu for a tour of the school before leaving by car the next day. The absence of familiar people did not affect her university life at all. There were eight people in their dormitory, sleeping on a large communal bed. When it was cold, they burned firewood to keep warm. This experience was novel, and Su Yu did not feel uncomfortable at all.
"Reading letters again, Sister Su?" A girl in her early twenties walked into the dormitory carrying books. Su Yu was definitely the person who wrote letters most frequently in their school. She sent out and received two or three letters every week, and she wrote from the beginning of spring to the beginning of summer, basically without stopping.
"Yes, my two sons have finished their exams and they're getting ready to come over."
"You came by car yourself?"
“My husband drove here to deliver goods, and the two of them hitched a ride.” Su Yu put down the letter, turned to look at Lin Xin, and asked, “How’s your exam preparation going?”
"It's alright, but I can't compare to you. You seem to know everything." She pouted.
“I have work experience, and you’re young. When you reach my age, you’ll know just as much as I do now.” She reads whenever she has free time, and with teachers lecturing in real life and a tutoring system in her mind, she’s learning from both sides, which has indeed put her ahead of her classmates. This is exactly the effect she wants: to make an impression on her teachers from her freshman year, laying the foundation for future job assignments and using her excellence to make up for her age disadvantage.
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