章)She had traversed through time.
That was the first thought that crossed her mind upon opening her eyes. The dilapidated and dimly lit adobe walls, the simple wooden boxes placed in the corner, the hard earthen bed beneath her, and her two-year-old body all confirmed that she had indeed traveled through time.
Closing her eyes, she felt a wrenching pain in her heart, not for the hardships of life that lay ahead, but for the unforgettable scenes from her past life: she had never imagined that the plotlines of television dramas would play out in her own home. As an only child, she had a happy family. When she was thirteen, her father brought home a girl, claiming she was the child of his deceased brother. Her naive mother and she had believed him and welcomed the new member of their family with open arms.
But what followed was a downfall. From that moment on, her status in her fathers heart plummeted. No matter what she did, she could never match the new sister in her fathers eyes. Whenever she complained to her mother, her mother would comfort her, saying that the sister was an orphan, a pitiable child, while she still had her mothers love. She listened to her mother and endured, but gradually she realized that what was stolen from her was not only her fathers love but also that of teachers, classmates, relatives, friends, and eventually, her boyfriend.
It wasnt that she was too foolish to compete with the malicious sister; it was that no one would believe that an orphan living under someone elses roof would receive more attention than a biological daughter.
On the night of that womans engagement, she revealed the truth in her excitement: she was not the child of her fathers deceased brother but his own daughter. Without her and her mother, she could have enjoyed all of this. Enjoy all of it? A joke. All the family wealth was her grandfathers legacy. Without her father marrying her mother, where would he be now? He was ungrateful and had an affair behind her mothers back.
"Enjoy everything? Do you deserve it? Youve been eating my mothers food and wearing her clothes, and you dont know how to be grateful. You are an ungrateful, white-eyed wolf."
Hearing her furious scolding, the woman cursed and lunged at her. Unprepared, she was pushed off the balcony, and in the moment of falling, she grabbed the womans hand, dragging her drunken self down with her...
Ha, she was dead, so how could she let her have an easy time? Without her kind mother, she would have kept silent. And she would never know that there was a camera in the dead corner of the balcony, capturing her true confession for all to see. Even if she didnt die, she would face legal punishment. That adulterous father, dont think you can escape; the public opinion will hunt you down. Poor mother, with a daughter dead and a husband who betrayed her, how could she survive?
Thinking of her mother, tears slid slowly down her cheeks...
"YaYa, whats wrong? Why are you crying?" A gentle voice sounded by her ear, and then her small body was picked up.
She could feel that the woman holding her was very thin, with a lingering smell of medicine that was not pleasant, but the caring actions and worried tone reminded her of her own mother, causing her tears to flow incessantly.
"Mom, why is YaYa crying so much? Could it be that she was scared? This child has never cried like this before."
"Ah, its all because of your wicked sister-in-law. If she hadnt come to this room to make a scene, our little YaYa wouldnt have been scared. Grandmas good girl, come, grandma will hold you." With that, grandma took her granddaughter from her daughters arms.
Little YaYa didnt care who held her; she just wanted to cry out all her grievances and worries. Dont talk to her about the age and dignity; she only knew that she would never see her mother again, and she was no longer the person she once was.
Seeing her granddaughter crying non-stop, grandma also became worried. She held the child and paced the floor a few times, then, as if remembering something, quickly handed the child to her daughter, turned, and went back to her room to take out a gray, rusty iron chain.
"Mom?" Duan Yuzhen looked at her mother in a daze, not knowing why she took this thing out. It was old and some parts were rusted.
"You dont understand." Grandma gave her daughter a look that said she was still young and put the chain around little YaYas neck. Coincidentally, as soon as she put it on, YaYa stopped crying? She closed her wet eyes and fell asleep.
In fact, the child had cried to the point of oxygen deprivation and fainted. However, Duan Yuzhen and her mother looked at each other and smiled: Was it really better?
Seeing her daughters incredulous look, grandma said with pride, "This is actually an antique, but it looks so shabby that even the Red Guards who ransacked our home didnt take it as a good thing." As she spoke, she wiped her granddaughters face with the sleeve of her cotton jacket. In winter, childrens faces are prone to chapping, and if the tears were not wiped off, it would be easier for the skin to chap.
"But why didnt you give it to sister-in-law?" Everything better in their home had been taken by her sister-in-law to her room. There was only one man in the family, her brother, and her mother didnt care because in the end, these things would belong to her son. She just didnt know why this one was left behind.
"Ah - your sister-in-laws temperament, how could she appreciate this? Besides, I said its a good thing, but its only because its been around for a long time. If it werent for the fact that this was passed down by my mother, I wouldnt care about it either. I kept it as a memento." Mentioning her mother, grandma said nostalgically, "This was passed down from your great-grandmother. Its said that when she was a child, she was affected by something and cried all day. Later, a Taoist priest put this on her, and she got better that night. Isnt that amazing? Your grandmother told me at the time to keep it for the children. When your nephew Chengzi was crying, I really wanted to put it on him, but your sister-in-law said it was too shabby and might hurt the child, so she threw it back at me. If its thrown back, its thrown back. Lets give it to our YaYa. Look how well YaYa sleeps? If our YaYa grows up, she will definitely be a great beauty." Grandma said in the end, tilting her head and smiling as she looked at her granddaughters appearance. The little girl was only two years old, but she was born with red lips and white teeth, without any flaws, and it was lovable no matter how you looked at her.
Listening to her mothers story, Duan Yuzhen also turned to look at her daughter. Whether the magic of that thing was true or false, she didnt care. As long as her daughter was fine, it was her greatest happiness.
"Mom, dont argue with sister-in-law for me." Her mother would have to rely on her sister-in-law when she was old. With her own broken body, even if she wanted to be filial to her mother, she might not be able to last until that day.
Knowing her daughters thoughts, grandma smiled and touched her thin cheek: "Zhener, you are my daughter, and I will always take care of you. When I am old, you dont have to worry, dont you have my granddaughter? I am in such good health, I can live for ten or twenty years. You just stay at ease." Thinking of that heartless man who left and never returned, grandmas heart was full of hatred, but her face was smiling and comforting her daughter.
Her daughter has been weaker than others since she was young. After marrying that man from the city who came to the countryside, she got much better, but before she could be happy for long, the man returned home and never came back. After her daughter gave birth to YaYa alone, her body was completely broken. Thinking of what Doctor Zhang at the head of the village said, her heart was even more uncomfortable.
Feeling her nose sour, grandma hurriedly smiled at her daughter and said