sbdcsierra Chapter 106 Burying Mother Qian
Chapter 106 Burying Mother Qian
After Qian's mother was cremated, Qian's father insisted on burying her in Lijia Village, in the Li family cemetery. Qian Yizhen and Qian Yiyun obeyed Qian's father's wishes.
Qian Yizhen made an international long-distance call to Qian Zuhui who was studying in Germany: "Zuhua, our mother passed away. Can you come back and see her off?"
"Our mother, let her die. It's meaningless for her to live like that foolishly. Death will give us relief, don't you think? I won't go back. There's no point in me going back." Qian Zuhui said calmly.
Qian Yizhen put down the phone helplessly. Wang Min came over with her daughter Xiangxiang in her arms and asked Qian Yizhen, "Is there anything she needs to do?" Qian Yizhen took Xiangxiang in his arms and said, "Qian Shishu, hello. Do you miss your aunt?"
Qian Yizhen said to Wang Min, "I just called Qian Zuhua and asked him to come back to see mom off as much as possible. Not only did he not come back, he also said some sarcastic things. I was really pissed off."
"Yizhen, don't be angry. Don't you understand his temper? Just leave him alone. I called him and asked him to come back, but he thought it was too troublesome and didn't reply. I'm too lazy to be angry with him." Wang Min comforted.
"Wang Min, Dad is determined to send Mom back to Lijia Village for burial. We have decided to go to Lijia Village to bury Mom tomorrow. Do you want to go? Make your own decision. Don't force yourself."
"Oh my god, I, the daughter-in-law of Lijia Village, have never been to Lijia Village."
In the bright sunny morning, Qian Guangzong, holding Yuanyuan's urn, along with grandfather Lu Kaipu, grandmother Chen Yalu, Qian Yizheng, Qian Yiyun, Ming Yuanhui and Wang Min, got on the company's business car and drove all the way. After three and a half hours, they arrived at Qian Zuhui's home in Lijia Village.
Dad Qian got out of the car holding Mom Qian's urn and walked into the house saying, "Mother, we're home. Look, this is the new tiled house that Qian Yizhen paid for to rebuild. You haven't seen it yet. Take a good look. It's much brighter and more spacious than the mud house we lived in before." Dad Qian held Mom Qian's urn and walked around every room.
Afterwards, Qian's father carefully placed Qian's mother's urn on the bed in the main room: "Mother, you rest here first. I'll go find Qian Chenglong, the elder of the Qian family, and ask him to help us choose a cemetery."
Qian Yizhen told his grandfather Lu Kaipu, grandmother Chen Yalu and Wang Min to rest in the house, and told Ming Yuanhui to bring two bottles of Kuangfu old wine and accompany Qian's father to the home of Qian Chenglong, the elder of the Qian family.
Qian Yizhen and Qian Yiyun came to their sister-in-law Gao Cuihua's room. Gao Cuihua, who suffered from hemiplegia, was lying lazily on the bed. They could not hear clearly what she was saying to Qian Yizhen and Qian Yiyun.
Qian Yizhen and Qian Yiyun found a set of slightly cleaner clothes for Gao Cuihua to change into, and helped her sit on a stone block in the yard. Qian Yiyun fetched a bucket of water, found a pitch-black washbasin, and a towel so dirty that the color could not be seen clearly. After washing them, they wiped Gao Cuihua's face and hands. Yizhen also found a broken comb and combed Gao Cuihua's hair.
The sisters Qian Yizhen and Qian Yiyun took action without prior agreement. They took all the clothes, sheets and quilts in Gao Cuihua's room to the yard and started to fetch water and wash them.
After seeing this, Wang Min pinched her nose and said, "How can there be such dirty people? It stinks. It's unbelievable."
Grandpa Lu Kaipu felt Gao Cuihua's pulse and said, "It's very difficult for her to recover. If she was diligent, clean, and self-disciplined, she could recover 80% of her functions and take care of herself. But she is too lazy. She has given up on her body. No one can save her."
Grandpa Lu Kaipu sighed and shook his head, picked up the broom and began to sweep the yard. Grandma Chen Yalu put the messy and movable objects in the yard in order.
Wang Min silently observed everything in front of her. Wang Min began to be grateful to her mother Jiang Yuhan and father Wang Hengxiu, because her living environment since childhood was more than a hundred or a thousand times better than Qian Yizhen's.
Qian Zuhui was walking down the hill back home, carrying a shovel on his shoulder with a bundle of firewood hanging on the handle. He saw a car parked at the gate and thought that it might be Qian Yiyun who had returned.
When he entered the house, he saw Grandpa Lu Kaipu, Grandma Chen Yalu, Qian Yizhen, and Qian Yiyun, washing clothes and cleaning in the yard. Qian Zuhui put down his tools and firewood and said, "Why are you here? Are you here to make fun of me? I'm not afraid. It's like this anyway."
"Qian Zuhui, don't worry, we don't have the leisure to laugh at you. You live your own life and we won't interfere. Don't you think your home is worse than a pigsty, dirty, messy, poor and smelly?" Qian Yiyun said depressedly.
"Qian Zuhui, our mother has passed away. Let's send her back to Lijia Village and let her rest in peace. Our father and your brother-in-law Ming Yuanhui have gone to find someone to choose a cemetery. As soon as we entered your house, we started cleaning so that we can hold a memorial ceremony for our mother in a clean environment. Do you understand?" Qian Yizheng said angrily.
Qian Zuhui said nothing more, looked at Gao Cuihua with disgust, and sat in the corner to smoke the cigarette he rolled himself.
Goudan walked into the house lazily, and seeing so many people coming to the house, he turned around and left. "Goudan, come back here. You didn't go up the hill to work today. What are you doing?" Qian Zuhui questioned his eldest son Goudan.
"I'm so bored from working all day, so Mudunzi and I went to the river to fish." Goudan defended.
Goudan's real name is Qian Baofu. He graduated from junior high school last year and failed to get into high school. Qian Zuhui asked Goudan to work with him up the hill, but Goudan didn't like farm work and wandered around aimlessly all day. When he came home and saw his mother Gao Cuihua, he got annoyed and disliked her for being ugly and smelly. He often stayed out all night, sleeping under a bridge in the summer and in a pile of firewood in the winter.
Seeing Goudan living such a life, Qian Zuhui, as a father, was helpless because he didn't have the confidence to control his son.
Gou Huan came home from school and saw many people at home. He only knew Qian Yizhen and Qian Yiyun. When he was a child, he went to the provincial capital with his father to meet these two aunts. They bought him books, stationery and clothes. He was very grateful to the two aunts. His academic performance was not bad, and he hoped to be admitted to high school next year.
Gou Huan's real name is Qian Baogui. He walked up to Qian Yiyun and said, "Aunt, you are here. I am Gou Huan." Qian Yiyun looked at the boy in front of her. He had changed a lot from when he was a child. He was thinner, more energetic, and more polite.
"Hello, nephew Gou Huan. I haven't seen you for a few years. You have grown up now. Come over and introduce yourself to your great-grandfather Lu Kaipu, great-grandmother Chen Yalu, aunt Wang Min, and eldest aunt Qian Yizheng." Gou Huan called out to all his relatives politely.
Gou Huan put down his schoolbag and went to the kitchen to cook. Qian Yizhen followed Gou Huan to the kitchen and asked: "Do you go home to cook every day?" Gou Huan nodded.
Gou Huan skillfully filled the large iron pot with water, picked up a handful of soft firewood, lit it, put it in the stove, then put in some dry branches, pulled the bellows, and bright red flames began to burn.
Gou Huan took down the food basket from the beam, put the sweet potato and cornmeal steamed bread in the steamer, covered the pot, and put it on top of the iron pot. Then he put some dry branches in the stove and pulled the bellows.
Gou Huan poured cornmeal into a bowl, rinsed it with cold water and stirred it well. After the steamed bread in the steamer was heated thoroughly, he took the steamer aside and put the corn paste into the pot and stirred it. Then a pot of corn porridge was ready.
Gou Huan took out a large pickled radish from the big jar, put it on the chopping board, cut it into strips, put it in a big bowl, and the dish was ready.
Qian Yizheng watched Goudan cook silently from beginning to end, and recalled from beginning to end how he cooked for his family in the same way when he was a child.
Gou Huan has to go to school, and after school he has to cook for Qian Zuhui, Gao Cuihua, Goudan, and himself. It is really difficult for Qian Baogui.
Qian Yizhen patted Qian Baogui on the shoulder and said, "Baogui, study hard and work hard. You must get into high school. Your aunt will pay for your tuition and support you to go to high school and college." Qian Baogui nodded solemnly. Qian Yizhen saw hope in Qian Baogui.
When Qian's father and Ming Yuanhui came back from work, Qian's father drew a bucket of water from the well and asked Ming Yuanhui to wash his face and hands. Qian Yiyun handed them a clean towel.