1979: The child's mother is a celestial being.

Chapter 211 *Sobbing* (Please subscribe!)
"what is this?"

Chen Fusheng was distributing gifts to his family when his wife asked him a question. Following her gaze, he looked at the novel he had written and, without hiding anything, picked it up and handed it to her.

"I was quite bored in the United States, so I wrote some things to pass the time."

"Daddy, what is it?" Chen Qian, who was holding a bunch of toys in her arms, looked up curiously.

"It seems to be a novel." Liu Xiaoli had already opened her notebook and then answered her daughter's question for her husband.

“That’s right, it’s a healing novel,” Chen Fusheng added.

But it would have been better if she hadn't mentioned a cure; the moment she did, it reminded Liu Xiaoli of the classic TV series "Hachiko."

She immediately looked at her husband with suspicion and said:
"Aren't you going to write a tragic love story?"

"Huh? Honey, how did you know?"

Chen Fusheng was somewhat surprised because he hadn't seen his wife flip to the end and guess that the love story he had written was very poignant.

Is this what it means to be of one mind?
"It's true!"

Upon hearing her husband's admission, Liu Xiaoli was momentarily surprised.

However, I became even more curious about the copy of "Under the Hawthorn Tree" in my hand.

She then explained her guess to her husband, picked up a novel, and sat down on the sofa to read it with her mother-in-law.

……

Spring in 1974 seemed to arrive more hesitantly than in previous years.

The mountains and rivers of Xicunping have long been lush and green, but those few old hawthorn trees stubbornly hold up the withered fruit from last autumn, rustling in the chilly wind.

Jingqiu came to this mountain village with the school's textbook writing team. Her cloth shoes were covered in mud, but she felt a slight sense of relief, as if she had escaped the hustle and bustle of the city. Her father was still receiving "education," and her family was like an invisible shackle, forcing this seventeen-year-old girl to learn caution and silence far too early.

She was arranged to stay at the village chief's house. The village chief's wife was a warm-hearted but talkative woman. While she was helping them settle in, she said in a loud voice, "The young men from the county's exploration team are also staying here. There's one named Sun Jianxin, who is a cultured man. He lives in the room on the east side."

Jingqiu listened silently, not paying any attention.

That afternoon, she took a basin to the well outside the yard to wash clothes. The well platform was slippery, and she carefully drew water. When she looked up, she saw the man—he was wearing a worn blue sweatshirt and standing by the gate. He was tall and straight, unlike the typical rural youth.

The setting sun cast a soft golden glow on his silhouette.

He was holding a harmonica and casually playing a tune that was somewhat melancholic and one that Jingqiu had never heard before.

Later, Jingqiu learned that the song was called "Hawthorn Tree".

……

Because they were so engrossed in watching, Liu Xiaoli and her mother-in-law didn't notice that Chen Fusheng had already taken the two little ones away.

The weather in Beijing in December is already quite cold.

It might snow if the temperature drops a few more degrees.

So when Chen Fusheng left, he stuffed two more coal briquettes into the nearly burnt-out stove.

"The weather is getting colder and colder; it seems like it's time to move."

"Where are we moving to, Dad?"

"Of course we're moving to the new house. I took you to see it, Sisi, have you forgotten?"

Chen Qian remembered, but there was still some doubt in her eyes as she said:

"But there's no bed, no sofa, no TV, nothing in the new house."

"It's okay, all of these things will be there when you go next time."

"Should we move from here?"

"No."

"Where did it come from?"

Chen Fusheng was about to answer when his daughter asked and answered herself, "Oh, I get it, Daddy can do magic, right?"

Chen Fusheng was taken aback, then feigned surprise and said, "Oh! You actually found out."

"Hehe... Daddy is so amazing!"

Emotions are contagious. Seeing his sister so happy, the younger brother grinned and let out a giggle, which filled the bedroom like silver bells and extinguished any remaining chill.

The sound of laughter drifted into the living room, attracting the attention of Liu Xiaoli and her mother-in-law. They couldn't help but look up and smile. Only after the laughter stopped did they refocus their attention on the novel.

……

Another evening, he took her to see the hawthorn tree, where the flowers were in full bloom, like clouds and snow.

“Jingqiu.” The third brother looked at her solemnly: “You may not have loved before, so you don’t believe in eternal love.”

“I believe you,” the girl blurted out.

Hearing this answer, the third brother became happy, and a glimmer of light appeared in his eyes.

He looked at the girl, took a step forward, and the two were now only breaths apart. Jingqiu closed her eyes nervously, her heart pounding wildly.

However, after waiting for a long time, the expected contact did not come, so she quietly opened her eyes again, only to see that the third brother had retreated again.

Her pretty face flushed even more, whether from disappointment or embarrassment, it was hard to tell.

Just as she was about to turn her head away, she heard the third brother look at her and say in a gentle tone:
"Jingqiu, I will wait for you, wait for you to graduate, wait for you to get a job, wait for the day when you are willing to come to me."

As the third brother spoke, he reached out and gently brushed away a fallen leaf that had just landed on Jingqiu's head, then continued:

"I promise you I won't touch you until you nod."

She felt the love of the man in front of her was so sincere, so passionate, yet so restrained, like the hawthorn blossoms on the tree, silent yet fragrant throughout her youth.

At that moment, Jingqiu seemed to hear the sound of a barrier within her heart shattering.

……

Upon seeing this subtle yet passionate declaration of love, Liu Xiaoli couldn't help but recall the summer of 78, when she and Teacher Chen had just started dating.

It was as beautiful and sweet as the love between Lao San and Jing Qiu.

Fortunately, their relationship didn't face many obstacles.

They even achieved enlightenment back then...

Looking back now, it all seems like it happened just yesterday, and it's still vivid in her mind.

And so, the corners of my mouth involuntarily turned up.

Seeing her like this, her mother-in-law next to her seemed to see her own youth reflected in her…

However, the sweeter the beginning of this story, the more heartbreaking it becomes later.

The third brother was diagnosed with leukemia, and in order not to burden Jingqiu, he chose to leave without saying goodbye.

However, he had already completely entered the girl's heart.

Jingqiu wrote him letters and sent them to the exploration team, but they all disappeared without a trace.

More than a month later, she found a note and a key left by the third brother in an old book.

Following the address on the note, she found the old house that the third brother had rented by the river with his savings. She opened the door with the key and found it empty except for a bed, a table, and photos covering the walls.

The photos are all about her: working diligently, walking, smiling, lost in thought...

Seeing this, Jingqiu's initial doubts about the third brother completely disappeared.

But instead, a bad thought arose.

Her gaze fell upon the diary on the table. She walked over quietly, reached out, and turned to the first page. It read:

"Jingqiu, if you see this, it means I can no longer tell you my longing in person. But I hope you remember that there is a man named Sun Jianxin who values ​​you more than his own life."

She barely managed to finish reading it, tears already blurring Jingqiu's vision.

She rushed out of the house and ran like a madwoman to every place the third brother might be.

Finally, she found him in an isolation ward at the county hospital.

But at this moment, he was so thin he was unrecognizable, his face was as pale as paper, and he could no longer speak. Only his eyes, when they saw her, flashed a hint of panic and surprise.

……

After putting his son and daughter to sleep, Chen Fusheng went to wash up. As he passed through the living room, he noticed that his wife and mother were still engrossed in their novels, so he went back to his bedroom and lay down to rest.

In the middle of the night, Liu Xiaoli walked into the bedroom with red eyes. Seeing that the father and his two sons had taken up the entire large bed, she sighed and then tiptoed over to gently carry her son and daughter to the small bed.

Her movements didn't wake the baby, but they did wake her husband.

"Hmm, honey, why are your eyes so red?" Chen Fusheng woke up and noticed his wife's eyes, asking knowingly.

"What do you think?"

Liu Xiaoli rolled her eyes at her husband.

Then she took off her clothes and crawled into bed.

"Ouch, you're so cold." Chen Fusheng was suddenly numb from the cold of his wife's hands and feet.

Liu Xiaoli did it on purpose, of course.

Why did this guy have to write such a heartbreaking love story?

However, Chen Fusheng was not someone to be easily bullied.

He had already spent more than a month recuperating in the United States, so he couldn't resist his wife's teasing.

The balance of power between the two quickly shifted.

"嘤嘤~"

(End of this chapter)