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The little boy pouted, feeling bored. He jumped off the sofa and returned to his bedroom to play with his toys, all of which his mother had bought for him! Li Yanhong watched the little guy's retreating figure, chuckling softly as she shook her head. "Take your time!" After all, he was only four years old—what did he understand?
She picked up a jar of beef jerky from the coffee table, opened it, and took out a piece. Nestled in the sofa, she slowly tore off bits and popped them into her mouth. Life was good now, without worries about money! Next, she just needed to give that man a son; only then would she feel secure!
"Ugh, I'm suffocating."
In the middle of the night, Li Yanhong suddenly got up. She crossed her legs and hurried to the bathroom for a quick relief. After a while, she finally sighed in relief. Just as she flushed the toilet and was about to head back to her bedroom, she heard soft sobbing coming from the next room.
For a moment, fear gripped her. It was nearly nine at night, and she had just watched a horror movie—could it be real? As she stood at the bathroom door, torn about whether to check or not, she heard a muffled song from the bedroom. After listening to the first two lines, her heart sank.
Gently opening the door, she stepped inside. The dim light from the bedside lamp illuminated Little Guy, who was holding a picture frame, wiping his tears while softly humming "Only Mom Is Good In The World."
Missing your mom?
Li Yanhong climbed onto the bed and snuggled under the covers with him. "Ali," she said softly, "tell Auntie what your mom is like."
"My mom is great!" Little Guy raised the picture frame high. His chubby finger pointed at the woman in the photo. "Auntie, look! This is my mom. She hugs me to sleep every night and sings me stories."
Seeing the photo of his late mother made Li Yanhong sigh inwardly as she gently stroked his little head. "How about Auntie keeps you company every night from now on?"
"Okay!"
Little Guy beamed with joy and hugged Li Yanhong's neck tightly. His little face pressed against her soft chest as he quickly drifted off to sleep. Li Yanhong carefully placed the picture frame on the bedside table and held him close, unsure of what thoughts were swirling in his mind before she too fell asleep.
Days passed by like this. When the man returned home one evening, exhausted from work, he was surprised to find that his son and Li Yanhong were getting along quite well. They were laughing together on the sofa while watching TV.
"Daddy, you're back!"
Little Guy happily rushed over to hug his father's leg, looking up with his chubby face. "Did you bring me a gift?"
"Here you go—Teddy Ultraman!"
The man pulled out a toy from his briefcase that he had bought for ten yuan at a roadside shop on his way back. Little Guy excitedly took the toy box and bounced back to his bedroom.
Li Yanhong stepped forward to help him take off his coat and scarf, placing the briefcase aside. "Take a bath first; I'll prepare some hot dishes for you."
"Okay."
That night, the two of them lingered together for a long time. When Li Yanhong planned to get up and check on the Little Guy, the man would always hold her close. "He’s asleep; I just checked on him."
"Da Gui, when should we get the certificate?"
Her words left Xu Haigui momentarily stunned. "Let's wait a bit longer, at least until A Juan is ready."
"Alright."
They fell silent, quickly embracing each other as they drifted into dreams.
The following year was the happiest one for the little boy. Although his father often had to travel for work, he had an aunt at home who accompanied him, frequently taking him out to play, buy toys, and enjoy delicious food. At night, she would tell him stories.
One morning, his father and aunt dressed beautifully and took him somewhere special. He sat in a chair sipping Wahaha milk while his father and aunt entered a large room together. They held a red booklet in their hands, leaning their heads together and smiling happily. There was also an uncle taking pictures of them.
His aunt was pregnant with a baby. If they didn’t marry, the baby wouldn’t be able to have a household registration. He didn’t fully understand this, but he felt a bit sad about his father marrying his aunt.
He had heard from his friends at kindergarten that only after parents got married could they have children, and they could only marry once! But his father and mother had already been married and had him; why did he need to marry his aunt?
Would his mother be sad if she found out?
He sipped the Wahaha milk slowly with his chubby little feet swinging back and forth as his father held his hand to take him home. As soon as they entered the house, he saw some unfamiliar uncles helping to pack things away.
The Little Guy quickly ran back to the bedroom and dug out a photo of himself with his mother from a cardboard box, holding it tightly in his arms as he watched those unfamiliar uncles move box after box.
The man walked by him and patted his head. "Dad bought a new house. Today, Dad is marrying Aunt Li, and our family will move into the new house together. This house will be kept for you; when you grow up, you can decorate it as your secret base or come visit sometimes."
The boy didn’t say anything but allowed his father to hold his little hand as they climbed into the back seat of a new car. He held the photo frame close to him, resting his head against the car window while watching the unfamiliar streets and pedestrians outside until they arrived at a tall apartment building.
That night, he lay on his new bed waiting for his aunt to come tell him a story. However, it was only his father who came in after a while. He squatted by the bed and stroked the boy's head gently. "Aunt Li is pregnant and needs to rest well. You’ll sleep alone from now on, okay?"
The Little Guy met his father's gaze for a long time before silently reaching for the photo album on the bedside table, hugging it to his chest as he turned away from his father and closed his eyes.
"Mm."
The man opened his mouth as if to say something but ultimately sighed quietly, got up to turn off the bedside lamp, and carefully closed the bedroom door behind him. When he returned to their room, he found Li Yanhong looking somewhat displeased.
"It took so long for him to accept me."
"But now you’re pregnant with Ali; what if he kicks your belly while sleeping?"
They exchanged silent glances for a while before finally turning off the lamp and going to sleep. In the room diagonally across from them, the Little Guy did not cry this time; instead, he tightly hugged the photo frame and softly sang:
A child without a mother is like a blade of grass.
Leaving the embrace of a mother,
where can happiness be found?
Outside the window, the bright moonlight streams through the glass, casting its glow on the floor beside the bed, a chill mingling with a hint of loneliness.
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