The tortoise continued to chant scriptures.

“You have to think about the little brother in Mom’s belly too. Now each household can only have one or two children. Our family already has you and Zhaodi, two girls. Mom can’t have another little brother.”

Zhou Aifeng thought of those who went into hiding just to have a boy, and a flash of fear passed through her eyes.

She, she didn’t want to live a life of fear and worry.

Zhou Aifeng: “You’re going to your aunt’s house. After that, you’ll be your aunt’s child. Then, Mom will only have Zhaodi as a daughter and can have another little brother. Mom has already asked the neighborhood committee cadre, and this kind of situation is allowed…”

“No one will come to arrest Mom, and no one will come to our house to take things and smash the house…”

“Lai Di! Do you understand? Mom is doing this for our family!”

Zhou Aifeng raised her voice, a little sharp, a little piercing, like pliers, grabbing Pan Yao’s hand.

The grip was a bit strong, and Pan Yao felt pain. She struggled, but couldn’t break free.

Pan Yao sighed in resignation: …

No wonder she’s of the tortoise family, once she bites, she doesn’t let go.

Looking up, her gaze fell on Zhou Aifeng’s face, and Pan Yao suddenly realized that this cheap mom was quite young and also quite good-looking.

She had delicate features, a pair of phoenix eyes beneath slender eyebrows. It’s just that the hardships and worries of life had weighed her down. Now, her hair was messy, her cheeks were sunken, and she had a few more lines of exhaustion.

When she stared at people intently, her eyes were very bright, with a faint hint of crazed meanness.

Pan Yao lowered her eyes, looked at her flat stomach, and said softly.

“Why do you need a little brother? Zhaodi and Lai Di are both very good, they are both good girls, and they will be filial to you in the future.”

Having not spoken for a long time, her voice was a bit hoarse.

Zhou Aifeng was taken aback, and for a moment, she didn’t even notice that Pan Yao had directly called Zhaodi and Lai Di by their names.

“Your voice is so hoarse, are you sick?” She frowned and touched Pan Yao’s forehead. It was a little hot.

“Drink some more water. Drinking more water will help. Don’t get seriously ill, or your uncle might not take you.”

Speaking of Pan Sanjin, Zhou Aifeng had a bellyful of complaints and started complaining again.

“I know your uncle, he’s so stingy! And he holds grudges! I just said to let your aunt try having children with someone else, and he’s held a grudge ever since. He hasn’t been in contact with our family for years, and he didn’t even see you when you were born.”

Then, she grumbled, “He didn’t even come, not even a gift. He’s so uncouth, just a brute!”

“Sigh, I don’t even know if he’ll be willing to raise you. It’s really worrying.”

Thinking of the past, Zhou Aifeng’s eyebrows furrowed with worry again.

Pan Yao: …

This Aier^[1]“Aier Mom” (爱儿妈 – Ài’ér Mā) is a constructed, descriptive, and slightly sarcastic term that Pan Yao uses internally to refer to Zhou Aifeng, which literally … Continue reading Mom is really fashionable, even encouraging people to secretly cuckold their husbands and find someone else to have a child with. And with that, she still wants him to raise her child?

These aren’t relatives; they’re clearly enemies with a grudge!

Pan Yao felt a little desperate.

…

“Aren’t Zhaodi and Lai Di enough? Why do you need a little brother?”

Seeing that Zhou Aifeng didn’t answer her question, Pan Yao didn’t drink any water. She stubbornly asked for an answer.

“Of course it’s not enough!” Zhou Aifeng blurted out. “How can a family not have a son? If a family doesn’t have a son, people will talk behind their backs. How will your father face his ancestors in the future?”

Pan Yao remained silent.

What’s there to be unable to face the ancestors about? The ancestors didn’t pass down an imperial throne.

“Good Lai Di, Mom knows you care about me the most. Don’t worry, your aunt is also your mom. Your aunt doesn’t have children. When you go to her house, listen to her, be observant, be sensible, be capable, be diligent, and have a sweet tongue. Your life won’t be difficult.”

Zhou Aifeng felt that she was truly a kind and loving mother, full of tender affection.

Giving up Lai Di, it was truly like tearing a piece of her flesh, it hurt so much.

With a loving mother’s heart, tears welled up in her eyes again. She raised her hand to gently stroke her little daughter’s fine, slightly damp hair.

Pan Yao turned her head away. The tortoise was chanting scriptures again. Don’t listen, don’t listen.

“Sigh, it’s all for your old Wu family. With a little brother, you’ll have someone to rely on in the future. You’ll understand when you’re older.” Zhou Aifeng sighed.

Pan Yao let it go in one ear and out the other, completely unmoved.

Zhou Aifeng saw her expression, felt a pang in her heart, and her tone became heavier.

“Forget it, what am I telling you, a little girl? Counting the time, your aunt should be sending news in the next two or three days. From now on, let your aunt take care of you.”

Before leaving, she didn’t forget to warn her.

“Don’t think about opening the window, and don’t think about going downstairs. If the neighbors find out you’re still alive, you know your father’s bad temper. He’ll beat you with a stick. Mom is useless, I can’t make decisions, and I can’t protect you.”

Finally, Zhou Aifeng looked at Pan Yao intently. “Lai Di, be good.”

Good children have a chance to live.

…

The wooden door creaked shut, and the room in the attic became dark again. Light shone in from the cracks in the wooden window on the west wall, but it wasn’t much, only about a finger’s width.

The light was narrow, and dust particles danced within it.

Pan Yao was startled.

What did this Aier Mom mean?

Could it be that this family had really considered abandoning their conscience and confirming her death?

That’s right, that’s right, it’s 1984. She vaguely remembered that this was the time when family planning was enforced most strictly. There was also the Family Planning Office, and they had work quotas. This Aier Mom’s family wanted a son, and Lai Di was really an eyesore.

She didn’t know if her aunt would come. If she didn’t, she’d have to think of a way to run away with Lai Di.

The light shining through the crack dimmed a little, carrying the orange-yellow of dusk. Pan Yao’s train of thought was interrupted. She felt that there was something else in the corner of the room. Turning her head to look, she was stunned.

“Lai Di?”

At some point, Lai Di, who had been curled up in the depths of her body, had awakened and separated from the body.

Now, her soul stood in the corner, wearing a small floral dress, her fine hair damp, her eyes staring straight at the closed wooden door.

Darkly, as if she wanted to see through the door and look again at the heartless Zhou Aifeng who had left.

“Lai Di, why did you come out? Go back into your body.”

Pan Yao walked over and reached out to pull the little girl.

She didn’t know if it was because she had died once, or because of the light that had protected her at the bottom of the river, or perhaps because of the whirlpool that had arisen at the bottom of the water.

Besides returning from 2020 to 1984, Pan Yao could also see things that ordinary people couldn’t see with the naked eye.

Right now, Pan Yao held Lai Di’s soul.

Wu Lai Di looked down. Their two small hands were clasped together, one warm, the other a glowing soul, cool.

Wu Lai Di raised her head and looked at her own body. It was a familiar appearance, but because of the different soul inside, it gave off a different feeling.

Over there, Pan Yao was still muttering.

“Don’t be careless just because we’re staying in the room. This room has cracks, and if you get sunburned, it’ll be us who suffer. Mmm… the evening sun is also harsh.”

Compared to her reserve with Zhou Aifeng, Pan Yao had a lot to say to Wu Lai Di, chattering away.

Wu Lai Di listened without getting annoyed, a sweet smile on her face.

Warm, her sister’s voice, like her hand, was warm.

She liked to listen to her sister talk, just like on the road back from the Great River. Because of her sister, she was able to walk back.

“Hmm? What’s wrong?” Pulling and failing to pull Wu Lai Di, Pan Yao turned her head in surprise.

“Earth Sister^[2]Pan Yao’s real name is Pan Yao (潘垚), where 垚 is a relatively uncommon character pronounced “Yao.” It is comprised of three “earth” (土 – tǔ) characters … Continue reading, I’m leaving.” (Pan Yao corrected.)

“Leaving? Where are you going?” Before she could object to being called “Earth,” hearing the second half of the sentence, Pan Yao was startled and quickly asked.

“Sister, I died a long time ago.”

In the room illuminated by a beam of light, two identical little girls sat together, shoulder to shoulder, heads together, both looking at the warm light shining through the crack.

“I heard Grandma say before that when a person dies, the soul in the body will stay in the body for a while, because there are many things they can’t let go of…”

“I floated in the river for a long time, I died a long time ago. If I hadn’t met you, Sister, I wouldn’t have been able to stay this long.”

Wu Lai Di’s voice was soft. “I was greedy. I wanted to come back and see Mom and Dad, to talk to them, to tell them I was okay… I was afraid they would be sad if I died.”

“I… I couldn’t bear to let them be sad.”

But, none of them were sad. She, a little girl, had overthought things.

Hearing this, Pan Yao was silent for a moment.

Wu Lai Di also paused, her suspended feet kicking lightly. Pan Yao saw that Lai Di’s body was emitting faint points of white light.

Very bright, very beautiful.

But, it made one so sad to see.

As if sensing Pan Yao’s mood, Wu Lai Di reached out and held Pan Yao’s hand, turning her head and smiling sweetly.

“Earth Sister, you always say my name is bad. When I’m gone, I’m going to find a mom who will give me a nice name like Earth Sister’s.”

Pan Yao gripped the little girl’s hand. It was cool, cool like the water of a mountain stream, clean and clear.

“Lai Di…” Her heart ached, “Sister was just talking nonsense. Lai Di’s name isn’t bad. Sister’s name is the bad one. So much earth, it sounds so rustic.”

“I’m telling you, in the future, when people say they’re poor, they say they’re so poor they have to eat dirt. My name has so much earth in it, it just sounds poor!”

“Giggle.” Wu Lai Di was amused.

As if remembering something, Pan Yao quickly continued, “Your aunt is coming soon. You’ll go to your aunt’s house to be her child. We’ll let your aunt change your name to a nice one, one that’s even better than Lai Di and Tutu.”

She gently shook the little girl’s hand, which was emitting specks of light. “Don’t go, okay?”

Wu Lai Di shook her head, turned her head, and stared at the light shining through the crack in the window, lost in thought.

Her mom was wrong. An aunt is not a mom. She only had one father and one mother in her heart. But, after returning from the Great River, she understood one thing: in her parents’ hearts, they didn’t have just one child.

Lai Di, Lai Di… from the very beginning, when they gave her this name, they told her that she was less important than another child. And even today, she had to make way for it.

Wu Lai Di’s eyes were full of gloom.

“Sister, does Mom have a little brother now?”

Pan Yao shook her head. “Maybe.”

She didn’t sense a new life in Aier Mom’s body, but even if there wasn’t one now, they were planning to have one in the future.

The two of them stopped talking. At the last moment before the sun set, Wu Lai Di leaned against Pan Yao, her voice soft.

“Goodbye, Sister.”

“Thank you for bringing me back from the water. It was really dark down there, and I was a little scared. Now, I’m not scared anymore.”

…So, I’m leaving.

The light from the crack in the wooden window extinguished, and Wu Lai Di, who had been beside Pan Yao, also disappeared.

Pan Yao sat alone for a long time.

She raised her hand and touched her face. The place where the little girl had touched her was cool and wet.

“…Bad girl.”

Pan Yao closed her eyes. The evening breeze blew in through the crack in the wooden window, cool and refreshing.

Lai Di, don’t be afraid…

See, the light is gone, but there can still be wind.