See Dad
She knelt in front of her mother's grave all night, and then went directly to the police station to report the incident.
Her mother's death and the suffering she has endured these past few months are all thanks to her grandmother, Liu Lan. How could she possibly let that wicked old woman get away with it?
Liu Lan probably never imagined she could escape from that remote mountain forest. She still remembers the shocked look on her face when she saw her after being taken to the police station.
In the end, Liu Lan took all the blame and was sentenced to prison.
Wang Yao knew that her grandfather couldn't possibly be unaware that she had been sold, but all the transactions were handled by Liu Lan, and there was no evidence that her grandfather was involved.
Even if the grandfather escapes legal punishment, he cannot escape the pressure of rumors: kidnapping his granddaughter, causing the death of his daughter-in-law...
He would be drowned in the spittle of his neighbors, and would never be able to stand up straight again.
I later heard that my grandfather passed away the year after Liu Lan went to prison.
As for my uncle's family, they moved away to a distant place after my grandfather passed away.
She herself has been living in the south, only returning to pay her respects on the anniversaries of her parents' deaths each year.
Later, she started a business with her friends, and the business grew bigger and bigger, and she became richer and richer, but she didn't even have a single photo of her mother.
In the decades that followed, whenever she missed her mother, she could only recall the days she spent with her mother over and over again.
*
Wang Yao picked up the admission notice on the table, her mind filled with mixed emotions.
Their home is in Jinhua Village, Jinchuan Town, which is the town furthest from the county seat. It takes four or five hours to cycle from the town to the county seat, and the level of education is very low.
This year, only two students from Jinchuan Town Middle School were admitted to high schools in the county seat, and Wang Yao was one of them. You can imagine how proud Wang Tianmiao and Liu Xiangmei were.
But at this moment, Wang Yao wanted to tear the notice to shreds.
Liu Xiangmei walked in carrying a freshly made egg pancake and saw Wang Yao staring blankly, clutching the admission notice tightly.
She quickly pried Wang Yao's fingers apart: "Oh dear, why are you so rough? Look, they're all wrinkled. If your dad sees this, he'll definitely scold you."
Wang Yao remembered that her father had told her to keep the admission notice safe before he went to the coal mine. She grinned and said to him, "Yao Yao, wait for Daddy to come back. I'm going to personally take my daughter to register so everyone can see how outstanding my daughter is."
Her eyes began to redden again.
After her father died in her previous life, she didn't want to go to school anymore. Her father died on the way to earn her tuition fees, and she didn't want her tuition fees to become a burden on her mother again.
Later, her mother forced her to go, telling her to study hard so that her father, if he could see her success in the afterlife, would know that his daughter had become successful. This would also make up for her father's regret that he couldn't attend junior high school because of poverty. But she never came back.
Wang Yao looked at Liu Xiangmei and said, "Mom, let's go see Dad in a little while. I miss him."
Liu Xiangmei took Wang Yao's hand and nodded, saying, "Okay, let's eat first, and then we'll go."
It was midday, and everyone in the village was taking a nap at home. After finishing their meal, Wang Yao and Liu Xiangmei each put on a straw hat and headed towards the cemetery.
Most of the Wang family members who died in this area were buried in the Wang family cemetery.
Wang Tianmiao's grave is new and has been kept very clean, unlike in her previous life when every time she came back, the graves of Wang Tianmiao and Liu Xiangmei were overgrown with grass, making her, who was already lonely, feel even more desolate and sad.
Wang Yao offered incense to Wang Tianmiao, knelt before his grave to burn paper money, and spoke to him in her heart: "Dad, your daughter has come to see you. If I could do it all over again, I would still continue my studies. Mom was right; you always dreamed of me succeeding. I will definitely live up to your expectations and protect myself and Mom. I will live a good life with Mom. If you miss me, come and see me in your dreams. I really miss you..."
Wang Yao waited until her legs were numb from kneeling before slowly walking home with Liu Xiangmei.
On the way back, the sun, which had been shining brightly, suddenly started to blow and then large patches of dark clouds gathered, and it looked like a heavy rain was about to come.
Wang Yao and Liu Xiangmei hurried home. Just as they reached their doorstep, they heard their aunt Liu Ailing's malicious voice:
"Sister-in-law, where did you take Yao Yao in the middle of the day?"
Liu Xiangmei wanted to answer, but then she remembered that when she borrowed the bicycle that morning, her sister-in-law not only didn't speak up for her, but also added fuel to the fire by complaining to her mother-in-law that Yao Yao was lazy, so she shut her mouth and didn't say anything.
Liu Ailing noticed that Liu Xiangmei was angry, so she changed the subject and asked Wang Yao, "Yao Yao, didn't your mother say you were unconscious and dying? I see your arms and legs are perfectly fine!"
Before Wang Yao could speak, Liu Xiangmei, who was very protective of her own, retorted: "When did I say Yao Yao... you know what? Can't you speak properly? If you can't speak properly, shut your dog mouth. If you spout nonsense again, I'll slap you until your mouth is swollen."
After saying that, he pulled Wang Yao into the house.
Wang Yao followed behind Liu Xiangmei and turned around to see that her aunt's face had darkened. She hadn't felt this kind of protection in many years.
She smiled sweetly and said, "Mom, you're amazing!"
Liu Xiangmei snorted, "What's so special about that? Even if it's your uncle who provokes me, I'll still beat him up without hesitation. Your mother has never been one to suffer indignities since she was a child."
Wang Yao knew that her mother and her uncle were elementary school classmates. They often fought when they were in school. However, when her mother was in fifth grade, her grandfather used the excuse that the family had no money to stop her from continuing her studies.
Wang Yao gave a thumbs up, "I want to learn from you. We, mother and daughter, must be this capable from now on."
Liu Xiangmei thought that her daughter would soon be going to high school, which would be far from home and she would have to live on campus. She felt that her daughter's soft nature would indeed make her vulnerable to being bullied.
She said to Wang Yao, "Learn from your mother in this respect. Don't be like your father. He's too soft-hearted. When we're out and about, we don't cause trouble, but we're not afraid of trouble either. If someone bullies you, you can't just swallow your anger, understand?"
Wang Yao nodded: "I know. From now on, we'll support each other and not be afraid of anyone." After thinking for a moment, she added: "We won't rely on anyone. We'll definitely be able to live a good life."
In my past life, I always thought of my grandparents as family, even if we weren't close. I never imagined they would harm anyone.
So on the day of registration, Grandma said she would take her there on her bike. Neither she nor her mother were on guard, thinking that since they were family, they would help each other in times of need.
The end result was that she was sold and separated from her mother by death.
It is evident that you can know a person's face but not their heart, and it is even more frightening when relatives harm you.
Looking at her daughter, Liu Xiangmei saw that she had a childlike face, but she was saying such things, as if she had suddenly grown up a lot. Her good mood just now suddenly dropped.
She knew that with her husband dead, only she and her daughter were left at home, and the days ahead would definitely be difficult.
Especially since her parents-in-law are unreliable, and her younger brother and sister-in-law are more likely to cause her trouble than lend a hand.
My daughter must have thought of all this too, which is why she wanted to support each other. But my daughter is still young, and she'll be starting school in September, so she has to support the family on her own.
Although her husband is gone, she and her daughter still have to live on, and she will raise her daughter well.
With her daughter's excellent grades, she'll definitely go to university in the future. She wants to take over her husband's responsibilities, support her daughter, and help her leave the mountains to see the outside world.
"Making a living is an adult's responsibility. You're still young. The most important thing for you now is to study hard, get into a good university, and tell your dad so he can be happy too. Once you graduate from university and find a good job, Mom can enjoy life with you. I'll visit you in the city every now and then, and stay home with your dad to tell him how useful his daughter is."
Seeing her mother's face full of anticipation for the future, Wang Yao felt a pang of sadness.
Is that what Mom was thinking? In her past life, she also went out again and again with the same expectation to search for her missing daughter, until she accidentally fell off a cliff.
Wang Yao stepped forward, gently hugged Liu Xiangmei, buried her face in Liu Xiangmei's shoulder to hide her tears, and choked out, "I don't want to, I want to stay with Mom, forever."
Liu Xiangmei patted Wang Yao's hair and scolded her with a smile, "Don't talk like a child. You'll grow up and have your own little family. Mom will just watch over you from behind."
Wang Yao shook her head. No, her mother died in her past life, and she never had a home again. Because of her experience of being trafficked when she was young, she was unable to have intimate contact with men. Later, she received psychological treatment and slowly recovered, but she had already gotten used to living alone.
"No, I want you to stay with me."
Liu Xiangmei replied dismissively, "Okay, okay, I'll stay with you until you get annoyed with me, then I'll come back to stay with your dad."
"I wouldn't..."
A deafening rumble of thunder suddenly broke the silence, interrupting Wang Yao's words.
The mother and daughter looked out the door. The sky was already covered with dark clouds. A bolt of lightning ripped through the sky and disappeared over the opposite mountain. Then, a series of claps of thunder sounded.
Liu Xiangmei said, "It looks like there will be a heavy rain today. It's good that it's raining. It's been almost half a month since it rained. It won't be so muggy anymore. These past few days have been unbearably hot."
Wang Yao looked out the door. Her house was halfway up the mountain, almost at the top. In front of the door was a large courtyard, with five or six steps leading up to it, and dozens of bamboo trees planted on both sides of the steps.
The bamboo swayed from side to side in the strong wind, making a rustling sound.
Has it been half a month without rain? Then a heavy rain tonight is inevitable. Did it rain on this day in my past life too?
Wang Yao suddenly paused, then quickly ran to the bedroom and saw the date on the calendar on the wall: August 15th.
That's right, tonight.
The rain lasted all night, which wasn't long, but no one expected that it would claim two lives.
On the night of the Mid-Autumn Festival in my past life, a large rock rushed down from the mountain and crashed into the roof of the Li family's bedroom in the village. The roof was smashed through, and Grandpa Li and his grandson, who were sleeping, were killed instantly.
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