Sun Lifang woke up to find herself lying in a small room with an old-fashioned chandelier hanging overhead and old-fashioned floral patterns on the floor tiles from the 1980s. The morning sunlight, along with the shadows of the trees, shone through the green iron windows of the office building onto the walls.
How many years has it been since I've seen this scene?
She's been having this dream lately: in the dream, they've just moved into their new apartment at work. Looking back, it turns out to be the most comfortable period of the next twenty years.
The feeling was terrifyingly real. The creaking of the fan brought a cool breeze, and then, the sound of the elementary school bell ringing outside the window seemed to be right next to my ears.
Sun Lifang's thoughts drifted far away. Lying in the hospital bed for a long time, she often experienced this. This time, just like before, she was aware that she was dreaming.
Just now, the doctor said she's preparing for cervical cancer surgery. Her youngest son is about to take a big exam but hasn't been notified yet. Her eldest daughter came back from abroad to stay by her side. Her youngest daughter sent a fruit basket and then disappeared.
Her husband gave her a card and told her to use the best one.
Clearly, she is only in her early fifties, has considerable wealth, and two children; to outsiders, her life seems perfect.
But why am I so sad?
The eldest daughter, Zhou Xinya, was on the phone in the hallway, seemingly arguing fiercely with someone.
Sun Lifang raised her hand to refuse the nurse's help, leaned over and pressed herself against the door, quietly opening it a crack, and the sounds from outside drifted in.
"Did you even ask for my opinion? Who gave you the confidence to propose to me at my company?" the daughter said irritably. "Don't you know I hate persistent pestering?"
"Fine, let's break up!"
I don't know what the other person said, but her voice was nonchalant and casual, "It's just for fun, it's no fun if you take it seriously."
As she put her phone away, she opened the door, and the mother and daughter looked at each other in bewilderment.
The question she wanted to ask was instead changed; Sun Lifang asked her daughter, "Is she your friend?"
Zhou Xinya paused, but didn't reply.
My daughter doesn't like me interfering in her affairs. She's changed boyfriends repeatedly, and she's almost thirty with no plans to settle down.
Sun Lifang got anxious and said, "If you don't have children, who will take care of you in your old age?" Zhou Xinya still smiled carefree and said, "I don't see any benefits of marriage in you. It's good that you don't get married or have children. You're being responsible for the next generation."
The tattoo on her daughter's wrist couldn't hide the hideous scars. Sun Lifang's eyes flickered with sadness, and she changed the subject.
The corridor outside the operating room was empty. Sun Lifang turned her head, and Zhou Xinya guessed what she was thinking and relayed the message: "Dad said he will come after he finishes his meeting with Aunt Lin. There are the best doctors here. Just tell him if you need anything."
This was expected, but it felt like a spark igniting gasoline, which ignited Sun Lifang's heart. She felt a deafening roar, and her heart, liver, spleen, lungs, and kidneys were burning with excruciating pain.
She took a deep breath, trying to calm her anger, when she heard her daughter ask, "Did you know? Aunt Lin got promoted again, to a department-level cadre. Now that she's looking after your younger siblings, you can focus on your recovery..."
Sun Lifang felt a fire raging within her, threatening to erupt from her throat and surge to her head. Unable to contain herself any longer, she yanked out the IV drip, ripped it apart, and smashed it to pieces. She roared, "Why is Lin Zhenzhen telling me about her promotion? Is being someone's mistress something to be proud of? Zhou Xinya, I'm telling you this! If you like her, then acknowledge her as your mother! Don't pretend to serve her here; I can't take it!"
"Mom, what nonsense are you talking about?" Zhou Xinya frowned, looking at the stares coming from all around. "I understand you're in a bad mood because you're a patient, but Aunt Lin isn't the kind of person you're describing! Besides, she's worried about your children... If Dad hears this... Mom, can't you be a little gentler?"
Sun Lifang sneered, "I could never learn to be gentle, even if I died. Don't praise her so much. She's involved in a transaction of interests and emotions. She's getting a lot of benefits, and her official position is rising steadily!"
As soon as she finished speaking, her daughter immediately retorted, "Don't talk nonsense! He earned his skills through his own abilities, you're just bored at home making trouble... It's all the same thing over and over... Forget it, you're a patient, I won't argue with you."
Are you bored out of your mind? Giving up a promising future to take care of your family has turned into making trouble out of nothing!
"Mom, I have something to do. Have the doctor call me when you're done!"
After saying that, Zhou Xinya put on her wireless earphones, looking unwilling to talk any further, and left her with her back turned.
What's the matter? Isn't it to deliver a "promotion gift"?
Sun Lifang watched everything with a cold eye; this was the result of her hard work and struggle for half a lifetime! The good sons and daughters she had raised!
After being given anesthesia, she had a dream.
I dreamt that my husband asked our daughter to give me the watch he had given her.
It was the smartwatch that she had been trying to refuse. Sun Lifang was used to being frugal, but her daughter said it was a family account for easy communication among family members and also had a location tracking function.
In her dream, everything was a white blur. Sun Lifang hurriedly turned on her GPS to see where she was, but as soon as she touched it, the screen changed—
"Facial recognition successful. People from the future can contact you through this watch."
"【Zhiyuan】System initial completion, you can enjoy one free replacement. You need to complete the platform tasks as required. If you fail to complete them, the services you have enjoyed will be deducted and you will be permanently eliminated."
"The replacement function will be unlocked after completing the task. Please reply upon receipt."
...
Sun Lifang was very vigilant. These days, news of people being ruined by telecom fraud is everywhere. She remembered that she was on the operating table.
Since it's all just a dream anyway, might as well give it a try.
After a long battle with illness, her personality underwent a complete transformation; it couldn't get any worse.
Sun Lifang checked the agreement on the [Zhiyuan] software and successfully registered and logged in.
The system's aperture kept spinning, and countless images of light and shadow flashed before her eyes. She was like an observer watching her own life unfold.
Have a pleasant trip and best of luck!
The floating text on the screen turned into dots of light and then disappeared into darkness.
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