Rapid Collapse (GL) - Chapter 19

After a long pause, Shen Fengmei looked up into her daughter’s eyes. Shen Xi noticed that the wrinkles on her mother’s face seemed even deeper, and her once-bright eyes had become cloudy. Her heart ached—her mother had aged so much in just a few years.

Tears welled up in Shen Fengmei’s eyes, and she started sobbing, her tears falling one after another. Shen Xi, confused, frowned and asked, “What do you want?”

Han Ning, hiding behind a pine tree, was getting impatient. She scratched her head and muttered, “This auntie sure takes her time. Why doesn’t she just say what she wants?”

“I did come to ask you for money… but it’s not for gambling…” Shen Fengmei’s voice grew softer as she spoke. She glanced at Shen Xi nervously, unsure of herself. After all, she had used this excuse before when asking her daughter for money.

Shen Xi didn’t believe her. She let out a cold laugh and murmured, “Mom, I’ve heard this excuse more than once.”

She picked up her bag and stood up. “If you really don’t have money, I can buy groceries and essentials for you every week and bring them to you. I won’t let you go hungry.” She handed the shopping bag to Shen Fengmei and said coldly, “But I won’t give you money anymore.”

With that, she turned and walked away. Shen Fengmei watched her leave, holding the heavy shopping bag in one hand while covering her mouth with the other. The veins on her forehead bulged as she slowly crouched down and began to cry.

After Shen Xi left, Han Ning stood in the distance, watching Shen Fengmei. She felt a pang of sadness. In a few days, it would be her mother’s death anniversary, and she missed her mother more than ever.

Han Ning’s eyes grew misty with tears, her beautiful eyes glistening. She took a deep breath to steady herself before stepping forward. She approached Shen Fengmei and called softly, “Auntie…”

From the corner of her eye, Shen Fengmei saw a pair of spotless white sneakers. She looked up and saw slender, fair legs and a pretty young girl smiling at her.

“Auntie, look. Did you drop this?” Han Ning opened her palm, revealing several rolled-up hundred-yuan bills.

“This…” Shen Fengmei looked at Han Ning, then at the money in her hand. Han Ning smiled, took her hand, and placed the money in her palm. “Keep it safe so you don’t lose it again.

There aren’t many honest people like me around these days,” she said playfully before walking away with a grin.

Shen Fengmei, tears still in her eyes, looked down at the money and then at Han Ning’s retreating figure. She felt like she had seen this girl before but couldn’t remember where.

A few minutes later, she stood up, holding her things and gripping the money tightly as she left the neighborhood.

There were no buses in sight, only a few taxis. Shen Fengmei hesitated, then bit her lip and waved one down. She gave the driver an address.

“180 yuan, no bargaining,” the driver said.

Shen Fengmei was taken aback. “What? That expensive? It’s not even that far.”

The driver blew out a puff of smoke and turned to her. “Lady, the place you’re going is outside the city. And at this hour, I won’t find passengers on the way back.”

“Can’t you lower it a little?” Shen Fengmei pleaded.

“No way. I’m not even using the meter; otherwise, it would cost more,” the driver replied, glancing at her as if to scare her.

Believing him, Shen Fengmei sighed in defeat and leaned back against the seat. “Fine, let’s go.”

The driver stepped on the gas, and the car sped off. As time passed, the wide roads grew narrower, the pavement rougher, and the city lights faded. The bustling city was left far behind, replaced by occasional six- or seven-story buildings scattered sparsely along the way.

Yulin County

After crossing a large overpass, the taxi pulled over to the side of the road. Shen Fengmei paid the fare and got out with her bags.

She crossed the street to an old neighborhood. At the end of the road, she turned right and walked fifty meters into a narrow alley. The alley walls were old and peeling, with patches of cement missing and colorful graffiti everywhere. There were no streetlights, and the road was uneven with potholes. She stopped, took out her phone, and turned on the flashlight to see her way.

After making her way through the alley, she arrived at a residential building, two or three stories high, painted gray and white.

She walked to the left side and pushed open a green, rusting iron door. She climbed the stairs to the second floor, walked a few steps, and stopped in front of a door. She knocked.

A woman’s voice came from inside. “Who is it?”

“It’s me, Meizi. I came to see Mengmeng,” Shen Fengmei replied.

The woman inside wore a faded pink-gray jacket and had a slightly plump figure. Her name was Su Yu, a childhood friend of Shen Fengmei. Hearing her voice, Su Yu quickly opened the door.

“Oh, Meizi, you’re finally here… The child isn’t doing well again. She has a low fever.

Come in and see her,” she said, pulling Shen Fengmei inside.

The apartment was damp and dim, a bit rundown but clean and tidy thanks to Su Yu’s care.

They walked to the bed. A little girl, about six or seven years old, lay there. She had a round, chubby face, long curled eyelashes, and two pigtails. She was adorable.

Shen Fengmei sat beside the bed, eyes filled with tears. She reached out, stroking Mengmeng’s hair with trembling hands, full of love and sorrow.

“I’ve done my best. Ever since you entrusted her to me, I’ve cared for her like my own… but this child…” Su Yu trailed off, afraid to say the worst.

Shen Fengmei wiped her nose and nodded. She believed every word.

Su Yu was beautiful but came from an average family. After marriage, health issues left her unable to have children. Her in-laws never let her forget it. Seven years ago, after Shen Fengmei gave birth, she couldn’t afford to raise the baby. Seeing her friend’s struggle, Su Yu, longing for a child, begged Shen Fengmei to let her raise the baby as her own. Shen Fengmei agreed.

“My husband…” Su Yu sighed, exhaustion in her eyes. “He wants a divorce. He still wants a son, even if he has to raise someone else’s.”

Shen Fengmei squeezed her hand. “Su Yu…”

Su Yu patted her hand. “It’s okay. We’re separating peacefully. I understand him. But his mother… Ah, forget it. If he wants a divorce, so be it.”

Shen Fengmei sighed. “We’re both unlucky in life.”

Su Yu hesitated, then said, “Meizi, Mengmeng is often sick. We’ve spent so much money on her health. And now… I’m getting divorced. I don’t think I can keep raising her.”

Her words struck Shen Fengmei like lightning. After a moment of shock, she slowly regained her senses.

Su Yu was still young. Alone, she could remarry, but with a sick child who wasn’t even hers, it would be much harder.

“Thank you… for taking care of her for so long…” Shen Fengmei wept, nearly falling to her knees.

“Don’t do that! Get up,” Su Yu quickly helped her. “Don’t cry. I still care about her. I just can’t keep her with me. But first, we’ll take her to the doctor. We need to cure her illness.”

Mengmeng woke up, looked at Shen Fengmei, and smiled sweetly. “Auntie…” she called, before drifting back to sleep.

Shen Fengmei’s heart ached. She wiped her tears, filled with regret for her past choices.

Mengmeng’s father was a miner from another town, a handsome man with sharp features. He and Shen Fengmei had a brief romance, and after he left, she realized she was pregnant.

Terrified, she told Su Yu.

“She doesn’t know?” Su Yu asked.

Shen Fengmei shook her head. “How could I tell her? Only over my dead body.”

Su Yu nodded. “The doctor said Mengmeng has a tumor in her abdomen. Luckily, it’s benign.”

“But surgery at her age… it’s painful.” Shen Fengmei wiped her tears again.

“She needs it. It’s a tumor. We’re lucky it’s not cancer.” Su Yu sighed. “Meizi, I’ll cover half the surgery cost. But once she’s better… I’ve decided. We should send her to an orphanage.”