Making a living in Dongguan, her fiery red lips offer me tenderness.

Ding Yang returned to his room and approached Wen Xiu, seemingly having mustered up his courage.

"mom!"

Upon hearing Ding Yang call out "Mom," Wenxiu immediately stood up and hugged him tightly.

My eyes welled up with tears.

She let go of Ding Yang and took his hand.

"Xiaoyang, you've grown so tall, I almost didn't recognize you. I've been thinking about you every day all these years."

What are you doing right now?

"I run a small shop in Shenzhen, and I only got home at noon today."

"Xiaoyang, do you have a girlfriend yet?"

"Yes, she's in Shenzhen. She's very busy with work, so she hasn't come back."

"Xiaoyang, is that Mercedes G-Class yours?"

"Um!"

"Well done, kid, you've struck it rich. You're much better off than your dad."

"No, I'm just trying to make a living."

Wenxiu sighed.

"Sigh, these past ten years have gone by so fast. In the blink of an eye, you've grown so much, and I've gotten old."

"Grandma, I'm so sorry to you all, and I'm so sorry to Xiaoyang."

Grandma said, "Wenxiu, Grandma has never blamed you. You don't need to blame yourself. It's not easy being a woman. My son is gone, and I can't let you stay here as a widow."

Wenxiu said, "Grandma, to be honest, I really had no choice. I was working in a factory in Guangdong when I first started, and I was able to send some money to Dingyang."

"Later I was scammed and I was smuggled to the United States. I had no choice in the matter; I couldn't send letters or money at all."

"After a while, I felt a little embarrassed to send letters back. I knew that Grandpa was raising pigs at home and making some money, and that Xiaoyang was living a good life, so I stopped contacting him."

"Wenxiu, Grandma knows it's not easy for you as a woman, so I've never blamed you. Don't worry, Grandpa Xiaoyang doesn't blame you either."

"Thanks!"

Wenxiu took out a tissue and wiped away her tears.

"Xiaoyang, come with me to the back mountain to see your dad. I have something to tell you."

"oh!"

Grandma said, "Xiaoyang, go see your father, take some paper money, and burn some paper money for him."

"good!"

Ding Yang was carrying a basket containing some paper money and a few incense sticks.

The mother and son walked towards the back of the mountain.

Halfway there, Wenxiu took out a cigarette and lit it in her mouth—Marlboro Lights.

Ding Yang took out a "He Tianxia" cigarette and lit it on his lips.

"Xiaoyang, when did you learn to smoke?"

"It started when I was studying in Changsha."

"So young and already learning bad habits."

"Everyone in my class smokes like this, so I just went along with it."

"Mom, why are you smoking now?"

"Sigh, Mom has been smoking for 10 years."

"Why did you decide to go to America?"

"In 1993, I worked in a garment factory in Bao'an, Shenzhen. Back then, I only earned a little over 400 yuan a month, and I had to work overtime. The salary was too low."

"Later I met a boyfriend who was a liar. Actually, he was also deceived by others. He said that there was gold everywhere in the United States and that you could earn four or five thousand US dollars a month, which was dozens of times more than in China. It was like picking up money. I was young and naive at the time and was persuaded."

"I trusted the swindler's words and went abroad with the smuggler. I fell into a trap and was put on an ocean liner, drifting from place to place. I first arrived in Panama and then in Mexico. In those days, there were no communication tools, and I had no choice but to be manipulated by others. I went through countless hardships on the way to the United States and almost died on the way several times."

"When I first arrived in the United States, I could only secretly do odd jobs to make ends meet. I was exploited, had no legal documents, and couldn't speak the language. I was constantly anxious, afraid of being inspected by the immigration authorities. I lived in a basement for more than a year, and in the end, I didn't save a single penny."

"Later, I was tricked into going to Chinatown, and ended up getting a foot massage at a foot massage parlor."

Ding Yang understood that saying it was a foot massage was just a cover-up; in reality, it was just street prostitution, no different from the prostitutes in the urban villages of Dongguan, all of whom were involved in import and export business.

"Xiaoyang, these past ten years have really been tough for me. I've suffered more than anyone else. I've done all sorts of dirty and tiring jobs, and I almost died out there."

Ding Yang didn't know what to say or how to comfort him.

The two arrived at their father's grave on the back hill.

The mother and son began burning paper money.

"Old Ding, my son and I have come to see you. You died too young, and I suffered so much."

As she spoke, Wenxiu's tears began to fall, dripping onto the grave. She wondered if her father would sense it.

Ding Yang knelt on the ground and kowtowed three times.

Wenxiu stood up and bowed three times to the tombstone.

After burning the paper money, I waited a while.

The mother and child returned.

"Mom, do you still have Chinese citizenship?"

"Of course. Although Mom got a green card, she didn't apply for U.S. citizenship. A green card is just a right of residence, not citizenship, so Mom is still a Chinese citizen."

"I am Chinese, my son is in China, and my roots are in China. How could I possibly become a foreigner? Getting a green card is just for the convenience of working and living here, just like getting a temporary residence permit when working in Guangdong."

"So what are you doing now? Are you married?"

"I got married. My mother opened a tea restaurant in Chinatown, New York. It's over 2 square meters and business is pretty good."

"And what about your husband? Have you had any more children?"

"My husband is also Chinese. He is a chef and his hometown is Shantou. He has two children there, a son and a daughter. His ex-wife died suddenly in a car accident. I have no children."

"oh!"

How long have you been married?

"It's been more than three years."

Is he good to you?

"It's alright, but after all, I didn't have any children of my own, and both of his children are his, so there's still a bit of a distance between us."

"Mom, you abandoned me back then, do you know why I don't hate you?"

"Xiaoyang, I'm sorry."

"You don't need to apologize. I really don't blame you. Life was already difficult in those days, let alone for a woman."

"My father passed away. If you're a woman with a child and can't work, you'll only be more pitiful."

"I'm doing well living with my grandparents. They treat me like a treasure and love me just as much as anyone else."

"If you had taken me away back then, or married me off to a stepfather, I might have been beaten by that person. My life would have been even more miserable than if I had lived with my grandparents. So I am very grateful to you."

"Now that I'm older, I know how tough life is. It's not just a decade or so ago, it's tough now too."

"When I went to work in Guangdong in the first half of this year, I did a lot of manual labor. It was really not easy. Money is not easy to earn, and life is not so wonderful."

"Beneath the glamorous exterior, there is always a side that is unknown to others. Now that I am about to become a father, I understand even more how difficult it is to be a parent."

"Xiaoyang, are you going to be a father?"

"Yes!"

"Are you married?"

"They're not married yet, but she's over two months pregnant."

"So, I'm going to be a grandmother."

"Um!"

"Xiaoyang, I came back this time to take you to America."

"What would I be doing in America? Buying you breakfast? Or going there to gather snails?"