Call Me Daddy

An old man yelled at the young man sitting next to him. Everyone turned to look, and they saw that the young man’s gray T-shirt was soaked with sweat, turning a darker shade. Sweat glands seemed to be spewing like faucets, with droplets appearing one after another. There was even a small puddle of water forming under his seat.

The rate of sweating was quite astonishing, and it was no wonder the old man couldn’t help but complain.

“Sorry, sorry.”

Under the gaze of so many people, the young man’s sweating only increased, and he became more anxious and embarrassed, his face turning a deep red.

The weather had been particularly hot recently, and his sweating had been more severe than usual. In these past few days, it had truly reached the level of ‘sweating like rain.’

He had originally planned to take the bus to a hospital famous for dermatology, but before reaching his destination, he was berated by an old man for sweating too much.

Under the astonished gazes of the crowd, the young man could only lower his head and hurriedly got off the bus.

Su Aobai looked at the shallow puddle left on the bench after the man had left, lost in thought.

***

News of Deng Caihua’s hospitalization quickly spread through the village. In Tuanjie Village, true to its name, most of the villagers got along well, with only a few exceptions.

(T/N: Tuanjie = unity.)

So, upon hearing the news, many people expressed their intention to visit her at the hospital.

However, to everyone’s surprise, the first visitor to the hospital was actually Ma Aifang.

“Oh, what brings you here?”

As soon as Deng Caihua saw Ma Aifang peeking at the door, her alertness was immediately raised. The old lady, who had been somewhat disheartened from all the recent medical checks, perked up instantly, feeling more invigorated than if she had taken a powerful tonic.

“I heard that you were upset by your youngest son, so I came to check on you.”

Ma Aifang wore a look of glee.

Who said Deng Caihua was on the verge of death? She still looked quite lively. Ma Aifang, not even realizing it herself, felt a sense of relief upon seeing Deng Caihua’s combative expression.

“So what if your son was fired from the company? My kid has some ability. I told him to arrange a decent job for Er Bai.”

Ma Aifang strutted over to Deng Caihua’s hospital bed with a sense of importance.

There were rumors in the village that Deng Caihua was upset because her precious youngest son was fired. She had already been supporting his little girl, and now, with him out of work and returning home in disgrace, how was a woman of Deng Caihua’s age supposed to support both father and daughter?

Deng Caihua, worried and ill, had fallen seriously sick.

“Who is the heartless scoundrel spreading such nonsense?”

Deng Caihua was about to curse, but when she saw Ma Aifang’s long face, her mood suddenly shifted.

“My Er Bai is filial. Just the other day, I mentioned on the phone that I wasn’t feeling well. Who would have thought that he took it to heart so quickly, resigned from his job, and came back to take me for a check-up? He plans to find a job nearby to take better care of me.”

Deng Caihua said with a hint of reproach.

“Don’t get me wrong. If it weren’t for his filial piety and him remembering my casual remark, I might have died at home without anyone knowing.”

Of course, there was no such phone call, but Deng Caihua would never admit defeat in front of her old rival.

“So, whether a child is successful or not is one thing, but being filial is another. Nowadays, there aren’t many children like my Er Bai who are willing to live with their elderly parents and take care of them nearby. It makes me feel more comfortable than drinking hot water in the dead of winter.”

Only a rival knows how to hit where it hurts.

Everyone praised Ma Aifang for her good fortune, but the old lady lived alone in the countryside, her son far away. He could only return once every 2 or 3 months, or even less frequently. Her daughter-in-law, unaccustomed to rural life, rarely brought the grandchildren to visit her, and the bitterness of it was known only to Ma Aifang.

Money, money, money; for women like them, having no children around made life tasteless, no matter how much money they had.

“Ah, having a son and daughter-in-law who are too filial can be annoying sometimes. Take my eldest daughter-in-law, for example. She and Er Bai both want to take care of me. I’m having all my meals prepared by our Yao Yao. I said it’s not necessary to go to all that trouble; I could just get something from the hospital cafeteria. But she refused, saying the food there doesn’t taste good and isn’t as clean and refined as what she makes. She’s always thinking of ways to make nourishing soups and stews for me. Staying in the hospital has made me gain weight…”

Deng Caihua spoke with such enthusiasm that her face lit up, but as she saw Ma Aifang’s expression darken, her voice gradually softened.

“Cough, cough.”

Deng Caihua gave a light cough.

“That gold bracelet of yours is quite nice.”

She pointed to the gold bracelet on Ma Aifang’s wrist, which was about as thick as a thumb.

“Oh, this thing? That kid insisted on buying it for me for my birthday and insisted on a solid one. Can you believe how heavy it is? I can barely lift my wrist with it on. Look at my arm; it’s gotten so much slimmer; it’s all from lifting my arm.”

Ma Aifang perked up. She had worn the new bracelet deliberately, hoping Deng Caihua would notice.

Last year, when Deng Caihua’s birthday came around, her eldest son bought her a pair of gold earrings, and her youngest son gave her a delicate gold necklace. The weight of those gifts was nothing compared to the bracelet Ma Aifang was showing off.

Seeing Ma Aifang’s pride growing, Deng Caihua’s expression turned sour. She realized she shouldn’t be soft-hearted toward this old rival.

“What are you even here for? You came to see a patient and didn’t bring a fruit basket? Go on, go on. My Yao Yao will be here soon to bring me lunch, and she hasn’t prepared anything for you.”

Deng Caihua’s face changed as she shooed her away.

“Look at you cursing, you don’t look like a seriously ill person at all. Why would I bring a fruit basket?”

Ma Aifang muttered. She had come in a hurry and didn’t have time to buy one.

“Think about the work situation again. Humph, who cares about the food a daughter-in-law makes? My son gave me a lot of money, so I’ll be going out for a nice meal soon.”

As she spoke, Ma Aifang lifted her bottom to leave. At that moment, Su Aobai and Kong Yao came in with two children and a bunch of thermal food containers. They saw Ma Aifang and the spirited old lady who just had a verbal altercation.

“Aunt Ma, are you here to see my Mom? Have you eaten? I’ve made quite a few dishes, so why don’t you sit down and join us?”

Kong Yao glanced at the old lady and then at Aunt Ma. She felt that her mother’s spirits seemed to have lifted after Aunt Ma’s arrival.

Ma Aifang, who had already lifted her bottom to leave, plopped back down.

What had she just said? She had already forgotten.

I can’t eat my daughter-in-law’s cooking, so why not eat someone else’s?

I’ll finish Deng Caihua’s meal and starve her!

Deng Caihua was stunned by Ma Aifang’s shamelessness, but since her daughter-in-law had invited her, she felt uncomfortable asking her to leave, which would be embarrassing for Kong Yao.

She needed to eat more, making sure Ma Aifang didn’t get full and starved her.

At this meal, the two old ladies wielded their chopsticks with great enthusiasm, and the result was that both of them ended up stuffed.

Since Ma Aifang’s appearance, it seemed the old lady had been invigorated, eager to return to the village and argue with Ma Aifang a hundred more times, as well as clear up the false rumors about her son. Her recovery was progressing rapidly.

After spending nearly half a month in the hospital, she was finally allowed to be discharged.

***

“These days, there are all sorts of strange cases. Recently, an emergency vehicle brought in a man whose clothes had inexplicably caught fire. His pants and clothes were almost entirely burned, but his skin was only slightly red.”

As her daughter-in-law and youngest son were organizing things, Deng Caihua continued to talk about the oddities she had heard in the hospital.

“That can’t be right. It’s probably just a case of rumors being exaggerated.”

Kong Yao thought to herself. How could clothes be burned without causing skin injuries? It was likely just another rumor.

Deng Caihua was merely passing on what she had heard and didn’t truly believe it. Her mind was already back in the village; she felt that the hospital’s environment was bad.

Her bed was near the window, and occasionally some foolish birds would crash into the window, seeming to knock their brains even dumber. They wouldn’t give up, crashing into the window several times, until one would eventually fall, fluttering its wings before taking off again.

This wasn’t the strangest part; the strange part was that Deng Caihua felt as though those foolish birds were crashing into the window just for her.

Deng Caihua thought she might be getting sick from being cooped up in the hospital, which was causing these strange delusions.

At times like these, she needed to return to the village and argue with Ma Aifang a few more times. That way, she would probably stop overthinking things.

Su Aobai borrowed a car to pick up the old lady upon her discharge. Just as he finished placing the luggage in the trunk and was about to open the car door for her, a German Shepherd suddenly bounded out from a short distance away.

“Guai Guai! Guai Guai!”

The male owner struggled to drag the German Shepherd, named Guai Guai, away from the old lady. The dog kept circling around her, wagging its tail, and he exerted considerable effort to pull the dog close.

“I’m so sorry! I don’t know why Guai Guai is so excited today. It’s usually very well-behaved. It didn’t scare you, did it?”

The owner kept apologizing, but the large dog still tried to leap towards the old lady. The leash had left red marks on the owner’s palms. He had no choice but to squat down and hold the dog’s head tightly in his arms.

“It’s okay, it’s okay.”

Seeing the owner’s good attitude, Deng Caihua couldn’t stay angry. “Young man, your dog is quite large. You should hold it tightly in the future; otherwise, it might scare small children.”

Despite feeling uneasy about the dog that was still wildly wagging its tail, Deng Caihua chose not to dwell on it and quickly got into the car to leave.

At that moment, both Su Aobai and Deng Caihua thought it was just an accident, not realizing that it was only the beginning.