country bumpkin

Mu Shuyun was filled with anxiety. Her second son was a sensible and honest child, just a little slow-witted; surely nothing bad would happen to him!

It was almost afternoon and the sun was about to set. Seeing that it was getting dark and her second son, Kong Xiangdong, still hadn't returned, Mu Shuyun grew anxious and rushed outside.

Just then, a man came in from outside, pushing a large bicycle, looking travel-worn as he hurried home. Behind the bicycle was a flat, empty wooden frame. A cloth bag, or simply a pouch, hung from the handlebars in front of the bicycle, containing a steelyard balance, weights, and a knife for pounding tofu.

Who else could it be but Kong Xiangdong?

"Mom, where are you going? What are you going to do?" Kong Xiangdong asked.

The old lady stared at him in astonishment and said, "Did you go to sell tofu? I was so worried when I came back this morning and didn't see you. I thought something had happened to you since you didn't come back last night."

Kong Xiangdong said, "I soaked some beans when I got back last night and went to sleep. I woke up a little early this morning, so I made tofu and went to sell it."

"Since it wasn't market day today, the sales were a bit slow, and we're only just getting back."

As he spoke, he had already parked the car and was taking out the cloth bag.

Mu Shuyun asked with concern, "Have you eaten breakfast? Have you eaten lunch? Buy some food while you're out, so you don't go hungry."

Kong Xiangdong squinted, his eyes full of laughter. "I ate, I ate it all. I'm not stupid, I'll buy food when I'm hungry."

Hearing this, Mu Shuyun finally felt relieved. "Alright, you must be exhausted. Go and rest! I was planning not to make tofu today so you could rest for the day."

Kong Xiangdong said, "Anyway, I'm just lazing around at home with nothing to do. By the way, Mom, why are you back? Is Yunya awake?"

Mu Shuyun frowned and said, "He wasn't awake when we arrived, but he's probably waking up now. The doctor said he's stable and out of danger, but he still needs to have IV drips for two more days. He can be discharged in a few days. Your older sister and brother-in-law are there to watch over him. I'll go see him tomorrow."

Kong Xiangdong said "Oh" and went inside to wash up and rest.

…………

At the hospital, Xiaoyunya finally woke up; she had slept for far too long. She probably had a fever!

The little girl was bewildered when she woke up.

Looking up, she couldn't find her grandmother; all she saw were strangers. She opened her mouth wide and burst into tears.

Kong Xiujuan felt flustered watching her child cry, after all, her child didn't recognize her. A sense of guilt also welled up within her.

She gently stroked the little girl's head and said softly, "Yun girl, don't cry. I'm your mother. Your grandma has gone home and will be back soon."

Yunya looked at her with tears in her eyes, and didn't stop crying.

This little girl is already one year old and still can't speak. Babies who start speaking early usually begin to imitate language around nine months old, and can say one or two words, or call out to people.

Perhaps because she was born prematurely, she is small and thin, and still cannot speak. She is also very clingy.

In her memory, only her maternal grandparents and third aunt were her closest relatives. Perhaps it was because they spent the most time with her.

Kong Xiujuan was getting anxious when she couldn't soothe the child. What should she do? She was just about to ask her husband to go home and call her mother.

At this moment, Sun Limei ran to Yunya's side and talked to her and teased her.

Sun Limei was holding a candy made of syrup in her hand. She offered it to Xiaoyunya. The syrup candy was wrapped in paper; when the syrup was soft, a wooden stick was placed underneath, and it hardened when it cooled.

Seeing that Yunya didn't know how to eat candy, she took a wooden stick, stuck out her tongue, and licked the candy ball. Then she handed it to her younger sister, letting her learn to lick the candy herself.

The little girl looked at the older girl, who was about her age, stopped crying, leaned closer, and licked the candy ball. Her eyes lit up; she thought to herself, "So delicious!"

She didn't have time to cry anymore; she licked her candy and sat facing the girl, playing with her.

Kong Xiujuan finally breathed a sigh of relief. If the child had continued to fuss, she really wouldn't have been able to do anything. It was also her fault that the child didn't recognize her; she had only visited Yunya once this year, on the second day of the Lunar New Year, at her parents' home. No wonder the child didn't recognize her as her mother.

Although there are various reasons, being busy is not an excuse. She took her child away as soon as it was born and has never taken on the responsibilities of being a mother.

This was her dereliction of duty. Watching her daughter and Sun Limei play happily, Kong Xiujuan felt a pang of sadness. She realized she had missed too many moments of her child's growth and decided to spend more time with Yunya in the future.

After her husband finished his work, he came over, and Kong Xiujuan discussed with him that from now on, she should take at least one day every six months to go back to her parents' home to see the children. Feeling deeply guilty, her husband readily agreed.

From then on, Kong Xiujuan and her husband visited Yunya at her parents' home more often, trying their best to make up for the lack of maternal love.

Gradually, Yunya became familiar with her mother and began to babble and speak to her like her older sister.

Although she couldn't understand what her daughter was babbling about, Kong Xiujuan was still very happy that her daughter had finally accepted her and recognized her.

I'll gradually become as close to my eldest daughter as I am now.