Du Ruo walked forward with full of doubts. When she passed by the entrance of the farmers' market, she looked at the gate of the farmers' market, thought of the situation at home, and walked directly to the fruit stall.
Although there are not many kinds of fruits on the stalls, they all have common ones, such as apples, pears, bananas, strawberries, and pineapples.
Du Ruo ordered a pound of apples and half a bunch of bananas, spending a total of one dollar and fifty cents, intending to take them back for his children.
After paying, she turned to leave and saw a child in front of the vegetable stall in front of her. He was about four or five years old, covered in dirt, wearing only a torn vest that was so dirty that the original color could not be seen. He was dragging a large basket in his hand and crawling on the ground to pick up unwanted rotten vegetable leaves.
Du Ruo's heart suddenly ached, and heat rushed to her eyes. She stretched out her trembling hand to touch her chest and ran over quickly.
When the little boy saw her coming, his eyes lit up, then dimmed in an instant, with a hint of panic in his eyes.
Du Ruo rushed forward, hugged his son in his arms, and asked him, "Why are you wearing so little? Mom, where are the clothes I put on you when you left this morning?"
Han Zhe whispered, "Grandma said she didn't want me to wear it because she was afraid it would get dirty."
What do you mean by afraid of getting it dirty? You're obviously afraid of finding it when you get back, right?
Du Ruo was so distressed that she cried. Her son was only four years old, but he was so precocious that it was heartbreaking.
Du Ruo gently stroked her son's hair and glanced at the basket: "Who told you to pick it?"
When Han Zhe saw his mother asking, he whispered, "Grandma asked me to pick it up."
Du Ruo frowned. She took out a handkerchief and wiped the stains off her son's face. She said in a reproachful tone, "Why didn't you tell your mother? You are a child. If there is anything, you should tell your mother and let her solve it."
Han Zhe shook his head: "Mom is very tired. You look bad recently. I'm afraid you will be like Wang Xiaohu's mother and never wake up after falling asleep."
Du Ruo said: "Who told you that?"
Han Zhe whispered: "Grandma said that, she said it would be better if you died, I heard it secretly."
Du Ruo sneered in his heart, thinking that if both mother and son died, everything would be clean.
Du Ruo asked, "Have you had lunch?"
Han Zhe shook his head: "Grandma said she won't let me eat unless I fill a basket with rotten vegetable leaves."
Du Ruo was furious. Her mother-in-law babysat her child, and she gave her five dollars for food every month. She took her food money and asked her son to pick up rotten vegetable leaves. It was simply too much.
She never knew about this.
She asked, “When did it start?”
Han Zhe said: "It started last week."
Does that mean the Du family knows that Han Ming is in Gangcheng?
Du Ruo held her son in her arms, feeling his warm body, tears streaming down her face.
She remembered that when her son had the accident, she had a high fever and held her son's cold body, but she couldn't warm it up. She was shivering all over and was frozen from the inside out. She woke up from her dreams countless nights after that.
Du Ruo calmed herself down, threw the basket aside, picked up her son and left.
Han Zhe struggled to pick it up, but Du Ruo held him back and said, "No, this is not what you should do. Mom will take care of everything."
Looking at his mother's determined eyes, Han Zhe slowly stopped struggling. He kept looking back and was pulled away by his mother.
Du Ruo took her son home, and thinking of Han Zhe's words, she felt in her pocket and found that she had about ten yuan left. She led Han Zhe into the convenience store.
Han Zhe hid behind his mother, staring at the colorful snacks on the counter in a daze. The financial situation of the mother and son has always been poor, and Han Zhe never asked for anything.
Du Ruo ordered two packs of instant noodles with minced meat and a pack of dried noodles, then asked Mrs. Sun, "How much is that in total?"
Looking down, she saw Xiaozhe staring at the counter in a daze. Du Ruo smiled and asked, "What do you want to eat?"
Han Zhe shook his head hesitantly, and Du Ruo said, “Then I’ll have two packs of hawthorn slices and one grilled fish fillet.”
Mrs. Sun said, "Two packs of instant noodles with minced meat cost one dollar, the dried noodles cost one dollar, and the hawthorn slices and grilled fish slices cost fifty cents, for a total of two dollars and fifty cents."
Du Ruo paid the money, handed the hawthorn slices and grilled fish fillets to Han Zhe, and went home with the instant noodles and dried noodles.
Han Zhe held the snacks in his dirty little hands, with a big smile on his face, and ran around his mother happily.
The Han family's house is a small courtyard. As soon as the mother and son walked into the gate, a little fat boy rushed over and reached out to grab the things in Han Zhe's hand, but was slapped back by Du Ruo.
With a "pa" sound, a crisp slapping sound rang out in the yard, accompanied by the sound of the little fat boy Han Chong crying loudly.
Han Zhe looked at his mother worriedly, bit his lip, and took a step forward unnoticeably. He wanted to protect his mother.
Mother Han rushed out of the kitchen, yelling, and hugged Han Chong in her arms, coaxing him, "Oh, my dear grandson, what happened to you?"
Han Chong pointed at Du Ruo and said, "How dare he hit me?"
Han's mother's expression suddenly changed. She angrily said, "You've grown so capable? Is there some wild man backing you up?"
Du Ruo sneered and said, "Whether there is anyone supporting me or not is none of your business. George Han is your grandson, can you bear to let him starve?"
When Han's mother heard Du Ruo questioning her, she slapped her thigh and said, "Why didn't I give it to Xiaozhe? Doesn't he have a bowl of porridge every day?"
Du Ruo said, "I heard that my son won't have food to eat unless he can pick up a basket of rotten vegetable leaves? Where's the food money I gave you? Did you eat it all?"
Han's eldest sister-in-law, Liu Mei, rushed into the yard and pointed at Du Ruo's nose and said, "A son of a labor camp inmate, you think you can eat without working? That little beggar on the street wants to pick up a basket of vegetable leaves to exchange for a bowl of porridge. Can he get it?"
Du Ruo asked coldly, "I pay the food allowance to my family every month, just to provide my son with a meal at noon, and you are reluctant to do it? Then take the money back, and you don't have to do it!"
Han's father walked out of the house and said with a stern face, "Second brother, I know that Han Ming has been gone for so many years, and you may have other thoughts. You are still young, and I won't stop you, but you can't act like a spoiled child at home."
Du Ruo was so angry that she laughed. She said, "It's none of your business whether I leave or not. You took my food money and didn't cook for my son. Then give me back the money!"
Liu Mei sneered and said, "If you want to leave, take this little bastard with you. No one will keep a bastard for you."
Du Ruo asked, "Who said my son is a bastard? Why don't you go ask Han Ming?"
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