Book Synopsis
Book Tags
Donation Rankings
Comment
0 Comments
You May Also Like
墨書 Inktalez
The winter break has ended.
Spring has come and gone.
Another new summer is here, and the cicadas have started to scream hysterically again.
Qilan's breast cancer relapsed in spring, and the Mahjong Parlor in Rain River Alley has been closed for a long time.
Life probably won't get any better.
The bar was closing around three in the morning, and Tongtong was cleaning up the tables.
A drunken woman was slumped at the entrance. Feng Ning, used to this sight, put down her broom and went over to help the woman sit in a chair. She fished out her phone from her pocket, opened her eyes wide, unlocked the screen, and dialed a quick contact from her address book.
Zhao Huiyun was checking today's accounts at the bar. Feng Ning walked over and said, "Boss, I need to take a month off. My mom has been unwell and is in the hospital; I need to take care of her."
There was no hint of unusual emotion in her tone.
"Sure, no problem." Zhao Huiyun understood her family situation and thought for a moment. "If you have any difficulties, feel free to reach out to me."
Feng Ning rode her electric scooter home. The streets were empty late at night, with hardly anyone around. She fumbled for her keys to unlock the door; there was no one at home.
She turned on the lights, and the big yellow dog curled up in the corner lazily glanced at her before going back to sleep. Feng Ning went to the kitchen, listening to English listening exercises while cooking herself a bowl of noodles.
The next day at noon, Shuang Yao accompanied her to the hospital, bringing along a thermos filled with food prepared by Shuang Yao's parents.
Last night, it was Zhao Weichen's Mother who kept watch.
Qilan was inside eating, while Feng Ning stood outside in the corridor, listening to the doctor explain her mother's health condition.
The doctor flipped through the chart: "There are many treatment options for Breast Cancer. With this recurrence, the patient needs to maintain a good mindset and not be overly anxious or stressed. However, you family members should also prepare yourselves mentally. After completing cryotherapy, radiation therapy, and chemotherapy, the test results are honestly not very optimistic; there are signs of metastasis. Currently, the condition is considered to be in a stabilization phase. We will do our best to minimize complications."
In just a few seconds, Feng Ning's expression returned to normal as she nodded, "Thank you for your trouble."
Before leaving, the doctor asked, "How old is the young girl?"
"She’s in high school."
"Are there no other adults at home?"
"Mm."
The doctor also had a child around that age. Upon hearing the response, his gaze towards Feng Ning became significantly more complex. However, in their line of work, they were accustomed to life and death; everyone had their own struggles. He didn’t say much more and left.
Feng Ning sat on a bench outside, lost in thought, giving herself three minutes. When the time was up, she stood up, rubbed her face, put on a relaxed expression, and pushed open the ward door to go inside.
As before, no matter what happened, she would not show any signs of weakness in front of her mother.
Qilan forced herself to drink some porridge but soon threw it up.
Feng Ning wet a towel with hot water, wrung it out, and carefully wiped her mouth. "Not feeling well today?"
Qilan replied, "A bit uncomfortable."
"It's okay, Mom." Feng Ning was tidying up the dishes. "If you can't eat, don't force it. You can eat later."
Shuang Yao tried to lighten the mood while Feng Ning helped Qilan get out of bed and move around.
The sun was shining brightly today, and everything seemed full of life in the summer. Qilan touched Feng Ning's hair and said, "Don't worry about me. Just focus on your studies at school."
"I know." Feng Ning smiled slightly. "The junior high school Feng Ning can get through this with Ms. Qilan, and the high school Feng Ning has grown up, evolved into Big Feng Ning! Why would I be afraid of a little wind and waves?"
"What Big Feng Ning?" Knowing her daughter was joking, a wave of discomfort still surged in her heart. "Others your age are loved by their dads and moms; they are still children."
"Then I'm your child." Feng Ning pouted. "I will always be Mommy's little princess."
Feng Ning applied for a half-boarding arrangement at school, coming to the hospital on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday nights to keep her mother company, while Shuang Yao and Zhao Weichen's parents took turns on the other days.
Originally, the adults in Rain River Alley discussed letting Feng Ning continue boarding at school, but she refused. "I'm not afraid of being tired; I just want to spend more time with my mom."
She had made up her mind and didn't care what others said.
At night in the hospital, Feng Ning set up a small desk at the foot of the bed and studied under a lamp. She wore a coat over her pajamas while doing her homework and said, "Ms. Qilan, you better get better soon."
"What's wrong?"
"I'll graduate in two years." Feng Ning put down her pen, counting on her fingers, chattering away, "Once I graduate, I'll make it big and earn a lot of money. By then, I want to send you ten thousand yuan as pocket money every month, and buy a really big house for us to live in together. I'll even open a chain store for your Mahjong Parlor."
"Haha." Qilan was very happy to hear this, "Other kids dream of becoming scientists or police officers, but my daughter has such ordinary dreams—wanting a big house and to make a lot of money."
"Hehehe, you know how much I love money." Feng Ning grinned, "I buy lottery tickets every Wednesday, hoping that my sincerity will move God and I’ll win a big prize."
"Then I must have moved God before."
Feng Ning was curious, "What prize did you win without telling me?"
"You being such an obedient and capable daughter is the biggest prize I've ever won." Qilan smiled slightly, "I can feel at ease when I go find your father."
"I don't want to hear it; I don't want to hear it. You're not allowed to say that." Feng Ning covered her ears, her little face scrunching up, "Why do you have to go find Dad? I don't want that; I want you to stay with me."
Qilan sighed, "Hurry up and finish your homework."
"I'm not doing it anymore." Feng Ning kicked off her slippers, carefully climbed onto the bed, and hugged her mother's waist. The unique smell of disinfectant mixed with the bitterness of traditional Chinese medicine in the hospital room didn't bother her at all. "Mom, I want to sleep with you tonight."
"You're so grown up yet still clingy." Qilan raised her arm and pulled her into an embrace. "When you're at school during the day, you don’t need to come over at night; I'm fine alone. It's tough for me."
"I'm not tough at all; really, I don't feel tired at all." Feng Ning said, "You need to get better quickly; Shuang Yao's mom is waiting for you to come back and play cards together."
Qilan made a sound of acknowledgment.
*
Feng Ning,
Feng Ning?
Feng Ning!
Before being called for the fourth time, Feng Ning focused her gaze.
teacher Tie stood beside her, slightly dissatisfied, and lowered her voice in restraint: "This is the third time you've zoned out in class."
The other students in the class were reading the text. A few noticed the teacher walking over to Feng Ning, but they couldn't hear what they were saying. This was the treatment reserved for good students. Even teacher Tie's criticism became very gentle when addressing her prized student.
"Come to my office after class."
Tumor Hospital is diagonally across from Qide. Just getting there by subway requires several transfers. Feng Ning often stays overnight at the hospital, and sometimes Qilan needs to get injections until midnight, forcing her to wake up around five or six in the morning the next day.
Feng Ning had already mentally prepared herself. After several days of endless back-and-forth between the hospital and school, she tried to balance the trivial matters of school and life. However, with limited energy, it was inevitable that she felt somewhat fatigued.
Comment 0 Comment Count