Love In Fallen City

Chapter 2

 Fourth Grandma was alone in the outer room, rummaging through boxes and cabinets to look for the old lady’s private tea. Suddenly she laughed and said, “Hey! Seventh sister, where did you come from? You scared me! I was wondering what happened. You just disappeared in a flash!”

 Jennie said softly, “I was enjoying the cool air on the balcony.” Fourth Grandma giggled and said, “You are so embarrassed! I say, Seventh sister, when you get married, you must be careful about everything and don’t act so impulsively. Divorce is not an easy thing? Just divorce if you want to, it’s common! If it’s really that easy, your fourth brother Is a failure, why don’t I divorce him! I also have my parents’ family, it’s not that I have nowhere to go, but these days, I can’t help but give them a good deal. I have some humanity, so I have to take care of them a little. I can’t rely on them and drag them into poverty. I still have some sense of shame!”

Kim Lisa knelt in front of her mother’s bed, feeling miserable. When she heard this, she pressed the upper of her embroidered shoe tightly against her chest. She didn’t feel any pain from the needle stuck in her shoe, and whispered, “I can’t live in this room! … I can’t live in it!”

Her voice was grey and light, like intermittent dust. She seemed to be dreaming, with dust all over her head and face. She fell forward in a daze, thinking that she was resting her head on her mother’s knees. She sobbed and cried, “Mom, mom, please make the decision for me!” Her mother was stunned, smiling and silent.

She hugged her mother’s legs, shook her hard, and cried, “Mom! Mom!” It seemed like many years ago again, when she was only ten years old, and she was separated from her family in the pouring rain after watching a play. She stood alone on the sidewalk, staring at people, and people stared at her, through the rain-drenched car windows, through an invisible glass cover – countless strangers.

 Everyone was locked in their own little world, and she couldn’t get in even if she banged her head. She seemed to be possessed by a demon. Suddenly she heard footsteps behind her, guessing that her mother had come, so she tried her best to calm down and said nothing. The mother she prayed for and her real mother were two completely different people.

The man walked to the bed and sat down. When he spoke, it was Mrs. Lee’s voice. Mrs. Lee advised: “Sixth Miss, don’t be sad. Get up, get up. It’s so hot…”

Lisa supported herself on the bed and stood up, saying: “Aunt, I… I can’t stay here any longer. I knew that people disliked me a long time ago, but I just wanted to say it out loud. Today, they said it in public, and I don’t have the face to stay here any longer!”

Mrs. Lee pulled her to sit on the edge of the bed and whispered: “You are too honest. Don’t blame others for bullying you. Your brothers took all your money. It’s their duty to support you for the rest of your life.”

It was rare for Lisa to hear such fair words. Regardless of whether she meant them sincerely or not, she felt warmed up in her heart and burst into tears, saying, “Who told me to be so stupid? Just for this little money, I can’t leave even if I want to.”

Mrs. Lee said, “You are so young, you shouldn’t be afraid of having no way to make a living.” Lisa said, “If there was a way to make a living, I would have left long ago! I haven’t read much, I can’t carry anything on my shoulders or lift anything with my hands, what can I do?” Mrs. Lee said, “Looking for a job is all fake, but looking for a person is real.” Lisa said, “That’s not possible. My life would have ended long ago.”

Mrs. Lee said, “Only rich people who have no worries about food and clothing are qualified to say this. People without money can never end their lives even if they want to! Even if you shave your hair and become a nun, and beg for alms, it is still a worldly bond – you can’t leave people!” Lisa lowered her head and said nothing.