Reborn in 1966

Chapter Ninety-Eight: Old Friends

The wonton vendor said to Shen's mother, "Eat quickly, it's already this late, you must not have eaten breakfast. The child is still so young, how can he stand being hungry?"

Shen's mother stood up, thanked her softly, and picked up the spoon from the bowl to feed Pei Yin wontons.

Peiyin snatched the spoon from Shen's mother's hand and said, "Mom, let me do it." Without waiting for a reply, she stuffed a wonton into Shen's mother's mouth. The wonton was filled with meat, and the aroma of meat overwhelmed her taste buds. How long had it been since she had eaten something so delicious?

Shen's mother felt a pang of sadness. Pei Yin stuffed one into her mother's mouth, then ate one herself. Seeing that her mother was eating slowly, she urged her to eat faster, saying, "Mom, you eat one and I'll eat one. I want to eat the same amount as you, otherwise I won't eat. After we finish eating, we still have to go to class. After class, Mom, can you take me for a walk around the city?"

Pei-yin chattered away as she ate, and Shen's mother didn't say anything. In no time, she finished the wontons in her bowl. Shen's mother returned the bowl to the other person, paid for the meal, thanked them again, and then took Pei-yin's hand and left.

Pei Yin noticed that her mother looked terrible and walked hesitantly. By the time they stopped at the entrance of the county hospital, Pei Yin understood why her mother had come today.

Shen's mother stood with Pei Yin at the hospital entrance for a while, thinking about many things, before finally deciding to enter the hospital.

The hospital was a three-story building. The first floor was the outpatient department. Shen's mother pulled the silent Pei Yin directly to the obstetrics and gynecology outpatient room. Inside was an elderly doctor wearing glasses. When he saw Shen's mother and Pei Yin come in, he put down his pen.

Shen's mother sat down in the chair in front of the doctor's desk, pulled Pei Yin onto her lap, and hugged her tightly, as if this would give her a lot of strength.

The doctor examined Shen's mother's complexion and asked gently, "Where do you feel unwell?"

Shen's mother said, "Doctor, I..."

The doctor asked hesitantly, "Are you Yueran?"

Shen's mother looked up in surprise, her eyes wide with shock, and she stared at the doctor with some wariness.

Shen's mother's expression gave the doctor the answer. The old doctor looked at his glasses, smiled, and said, "Yueran, it's your Uncle Li. It's been more than twenty years since we last met."

Shen's mother asked in surprise, "Are you Uncle Li?"

The old doctor chuckled and said, "Yes, the last time we met was before the capital was liberated. Who would have thought we'd meet again in this small county town?"

Shen's mother hugged Pei Yin somewhat awkwardly and said, "Yes, Uncle Li, I didn't expect to meet you here. How have you been these past years?"

Dr. Li said, "It's alright, it's alright. I met Shengsi's older sister back in 1954. By the way, I heard from Shengsi's older sister that you two already had two children when you got married. How many is this?"

A little embarrassed, Mrs. Shen said, "Uncle Li, you're just teasing me. This is Xiao Wu. Xiao San is a boy, and Xiao Si is a girl."

Dr. Li said, "Look at me, I've been talking to you nonstop since we met. You came here today because..."

Shen's mother found it difficult to speak, but this opportunity to come here was hard-won. In order to come here, she asked the school for a morning off and even lied to her family. If she went back like this, she didn't know when she would be able to come out again. If the baby in her belly was more advanced, she would be reluctant to leave, not to mention others.

Thinking of all this, Shen's mother mustered up her courage and said to Doctor Li, "Uncle Li, I'm pregnant again."

Dr. Li sees patients here, and he's seen this kind of thing many times, so he knows what's going on. He said seriously, "Yueran, I'm not asking you from a doctor's perspective, but from the perspective of an elder. Do your family members know you're here?"

Mother Shen shook her head, and Doctor Li's expression became even more serious. He said, "Yueran, can you tell me why you don't want a child?"

Shen's mother said with a hint of sadness, "Uncle Li, we came back here after Shengsi was labeled a rightist. We've been here for over ten years now. Because of our class background, our eldest son, Peihua, is already twenty years old and still hasn't found a wife. My Peihua is a good boy. Some people advised me to find him someone slightly less desirable, but he's my child. I raised him from a young age. I don't want him to suffer like this. But what can I do? I didn't realize it before, but now I understand that I have to find him a wife and help him settle down and start a family. Otherwise, it would be my dereliction of duty as a mother."

Hearing this, Dr. Li understood what Shen's mother meant and said gently, "Yueran, you still overthink things just like when you were a child. It's your destiny that the child came into your life. You can't deprive them of their right to be born. Listen to Uncle Li, don't do this. Besides, you're getting old now. Doing this will harm your health. You still have several children to take care of. What will you do if your health deteriorates?"

Shen's mother said, "Uncle Li, I..."

Dr. Li said, "Alright, Yueran, Uncle Li has nothing to do today. I'll take you home to see your Aunt Zhou. We were both brought here together. Your Aunt Zhou will be very happy to see you."

Without saying a word, Dr. Li grabbed Shen's mother, locked the office door, and headed towards a row of small courtyards behind the hospital.

Pei Yin walked and looked around. Behind the hospital was a row of red brick bungalows with courtyards. Some had two rooms and a small courtyard, while others had three rooms and a small courtyard. Dr. Li opened the gate to the outermost courtyard. As the door opened, a cheerful voice came from inside the house and said, "Didn't you just start work? Why are you back already?" As she spoke, a woman in her sixties, dressed in a gray cloth shirt and trousers, wearing off-the-shoulder shoes, and with her short hair clipped back on both sides, stood at the door.

Dr. Li chuckled and said, "Old woman, look who this is?"

The person at the door looked Shen's mother up and down, then exclaimed excitedly, "It's Yue Ran! Oh my, Yue Ran! I never expected to see you here! Come in, come in!"

Mrs. Shen first bowed respectfully and called out, "Aunt Zhou."

Aunt Zhou smiled and said, "Come in quickly, come in quickly. I really didn't expect to run into you here."

It was a three-room red brick house with vegetables growing in the small courtyard. Pei Yin also discovered several kinds of Chinese medicinal herbs. In the courtyard, there was a water tap by the door, and under the water tap was a water trough plastered with cement. These conditions should have been considered top-notch at the time.

Upon entering the house, there was a living room with a wooden sofa and a wooden coffee table in front of it. There was a room on each side and a kitchen at the back. The house was very clean.

After everyone sat down, Aunt Zhou pulled Pei Yin over and said, "This is your daughter, right? Let me see who she looks like." After looking her over, she smiled and said, "This girl is prettier than you and Sheng Si, but she looks a bit like her aunt."

Shen's mother said with a smile, "My mother-in-law said the same thing, saying that Pei Yin looks a lot like my eldest sister."

Aunt Zhou poured a cup of tea for Shen's mother and said, "Yueran, it's been so many years, and we haven't heard from you. Are you and Shengsi in Xiping too?"

Shen's mother said, "Yes, after Shengsi was labeled a rightist, we returned to our hometown of Xiping and have been here for more than ten years. We have no contact with our former friends and colleagues."

Aunt Zhou sighed and said, "It's good that we haven't been in contact. Yueran, your Uncle Li and I have been here for several years now. Your brother Boxuan died on the Korean battlefield, and your brother Zhongxuan was always in the army. Then the political movement started. I had already retired and had nothing to do, but because your Uncle Li had been abroad for a few years, they used the fact that someone who practices traditional Chinese medicine went abroad to study something to hold a criticism meeting against us. Your brother Zhongxuan has a short temper, so he took your brother Boxuan's medals and certificates and went directly to the highest level of the army, saying that we couldn't let the heroes' families shed tears after they had shed their blood. Then we were sent here."

Pei Yin made it sound so casual, but she guessed that the two of them had suffered a lot, because Aunt Zhou walked with a limp.

Shen's mother said, "Uncle and Aunt have suffered all these years."

Aunt Zhou said, "It's alright, we're still together. It's quiet here. Your Uncle Li can go to the clinic in front to see patients when he has time. We don't have anything else to do. By the way, when I wrote last time, your Brother Zhongxuan said there was a letter from your sister and her husband."

Shen's mother said, "Yes, I've inquired about it. My eldest sister and her family are in Qinghe. Their living conditions are a bit poor, but they are safe."

Uncle Li said, "As long as people are safe, that's all that matters. Yueran, there aren't many of your father's old buddies left."

Upon hearing Uncle Li mention her father, Mrs. Shen's face fell with sorrow, and she didn't know what to say.

Seeing Shen's mother's expression, Aunt Zhou scolded Uncle Li, "Look at you, there are some snacks that Zhongxuan sent in the kitchen cabinet, bring them over for the little girl to eat."

Dr. Li went to the kitchen to get something, and Aunt Zhou asked, "Yueran, is the little girl's name Peiyin? How many children do you have?"

Shen's mother said, "This is Xiao Wu. She has three older brothers and one older sister."

Aunt Zhou said enviously, "That's wonderful. You were just a child back then, and now you're a mother of five."

Dr. Li, holding a box of pastries, said, "Old Zhou, we watched Yueran grow up. Old Ma and his wife passed away early, and this is our own daughter. Tell me, she came to the hospital this time because she doesn't want the baby in her belly."

Aunt Zhou asked, "Yueran, what happened?"

After Dr. Li opened the snack box, he placed it in front of Pei Yin. Pei Yin smiled and said to Dr. Li, "Thank you, Grandpa Li."

Dr. Li pulled Pei Yin to his side with a fondness, patted her head, and said, "Take whatever you like to eat."

Pei-Yin took a piece of peach shortbread and took small bites while listening to her mother talking to Aunt Zhou.