Rebirth: My Mother is a Virgin Mary

The cost of treating Cheng Xinyuan's injury was huge, so Ms. Lin sold the yard at a low price. She had a big fight with Cheng Xingmin for this. Cheng Xingmin complained that she didn't discuss the sale with him before. Ms. Lin felt that it was her own yard, and it was not a loss to sell it for her son's treatment. I remember that it was the first time Ms. Lin quarreled with Cheng Xingmin. Cheng Xingmin couldn't win the argument, so he took it out on me. At that time, I had already developed the ability to be tough and thick-skinned. No matter how much he beat me, I didn't say a word. After the yard was sold, our family rented a house in the center of the county town. My grandparents also returned to their hometown. My uncle's family saw that there was no reason to live with us anymore, so they also found another place.

The rented house is a one-bedroom apartment. It is called a one-bedroom apartment, but the kitchen is right at the entrance, and the bedroom is further inside. The bathroom is shared, and there are several families living on that floor. Although I don’t have my own small room or my own bed, I have to sleep on the floor, but I am happy because there is no annoying brother to snatch my things, and Cheng Xingmin no longer hits me. In the past, he would carry me to another room when he hit me. The rented house is very small, and the family eats, drinks, defecates and urinates here. There are many neighbors around, so it is difficult for him to do it. After all, his persona outside has always been a gentle and honest man.

Thinking about it now, those one or two years were the happiest time of my life.

Cheng Xinyuan and I grew up, and Cheng Xingmin looked at me with more and more dissatisfaction, although I never understood why he was dissatisfied with me. His salary was not enough to support the family's expenses. Ms. Lin, with her good looks and excellent communication skills, applied for a job as a lobby manager of a leading hotel in the county. In those years, the domestic mobile phone industry developed rapidly. A friend of Cheng Xingmin made a lot of money, and his uncle also went to other places to work in this industry. Cheng Xingmin was also tempted and followed suit. At that time, I didn't understand how he could go out to do business while having his own job. Only when I grew up did I know that it was called "keeping the job but not the salary."

From then on, Cheng Xinyuan and I became each other's support. Ms. Lin was busy with her hotel work, leaving early and returning late every day, and it was common for Cheng to work overtime. Sometimes she was worried about Cheng Xinyuan, so she would take Cheng Xinyuan to work the night shift. I was the only one left at home, and of course I was not afraid, and even felt comfortable. The work in the hotel was hard and tiring, the salary was not high, and I often had to work day and night. Not long after, Ms. Lin fell ill. My uncle said it was a cardiovascular disease caused by long-term fatigue, and she would be fine after resting. Ms. Lin was hospitalized, and my aunt wanted to take Cheng Xinyuan and me back to take care of her, but my aunt's mother was also seriously ill, and my uncle was running back and forth. During that time, I had to pick up Cheng Xinyuan from preschool after school every day. Then, the two young children would go to the vegetable market to buy vegetables. After I got home, I would cook some meals and put some in lunch boxes before taking Cheng Xinyuan to eat. Then, I would carry the lunch boxes to the hospital to see Ms. Lin. After she finished her meal, I would go home to do the laundry. There was not much time at noon, but I was very busy and there was never any work to do. I seemed to have forgotten that I was just a child in his early teens.

Cheng Xinyuan also started to rely on me from that time. I picked him up from school, helped him with his homework, washed his clothes, and cooked for him. Sometimes the neighbor aunt couldn't stand it and would cook for me and Cheng Xinyuan, but Cheng Xinyuan was very picky and wouldn't eat the food made by the neighbor aunt, so I had to cook for him separately. It was okay during the day, but it was the most difficult at night. Cheng Xinyuan was at the age of being naughty and playful. He couldn't stay in the hospital for long, so Ms. Lin would ask me to take him home. At that time, there was not even a TV at home. There used to be one, but Cheng Xingmin thought that watching TV was not good for children to study, and that playing with things would ruin their ambitions, so he sold the TV. After tutoring Xinyuan's homework, he had to do his own homework. He didn't make trouble, but would wait for me quietly, and then wait for me to take him out to play. He is tireless but I have limited energy. I forced myself to take him around again and again. Fortunately, we didn’t encounter any bad people at that time, otherwise we would both be finished… I called Cheng Xingmin and told him that his mother was ill, but he was always perfunctory, saying that he was busy with business and that it would cost money and time for him to come back. I complained to Ms. Lin, and she criticized me for telling my father about her illness, saying that I was ignorant, and also said that this was an opportunity for me to exercise, and asked me to be considerate of my father… They all had understanding, who would be considerate of me…

This state lasted for more than a month, and Ms. Lin was finally discharged from the hospital. She quit her job at the hotel and was grateful for the help of many people: her husband who gave her spiritual support, her brother who arranged for her hospitalization, her colleagues who visited her, the nurses who took care of her, the clinical patients who chatted with her... She also praised Cheng Xinyuan for being brave, saying that he was a good son to his mother even though he was so young and didn't cry or make a fuss. I was the only one standing in the corner picking my fingers, thinking that I finally didn't have to suffer, and how to ask her for the book money that had been delayed for a week...

I was admitted to the No. 100 Middle School in the county with the first place. Ms. Lin was so happy that she called Cheng Xingmin to tell him the good news. Cheng Xingmin only asked one question: "How much is the tuition?" Ms. Lin said happily: "No tuition is required, even the first students don't have to pay!" Cheng Xingmin just said "um" and said nothing else.

A few days later, Ms. Lin was very busy. She heard that my uncle's cousin Cheng Xinlin did not pass the county's No. 1 Middle School. My uncle said that he did not perform well. Cheng Xingmin also asked Ms. Lin to use his connections to send Cheng Xinlin to the county's No. 1 Middle School. I felt very uncomfortable. Doesn't he have his own parents? Why did he look for Ms. Lin? Ms. Lin knew that I had this idea and scolded me, saying that I didn't know family affection, that I was proud because I got the first place in the exam, and that she was the reason why she was chosen because she trusted her. Why didn't she look for someone else? I was so tired of hearing this kind of talk...

It doesn’t matter, as long as we are not in the same class.

Ms. Lin had a good junior high school classmate who wanted to open a clothing store. Due to lack of funds and thinking that Ms. Lin had good vision, she asked Ms. Lin to join. Ms. Lin was naturally very happy to follow her to the market every day, leaving early and returning late, sometimes not coming back for several days in a row. I asked her where she went, a normal question, but she was very unhappy: "Why, your mother has to report to you where she goes?" I said no, it's just that Cheng Xinyuan will cry when he can't see his mother. Ms. Lin said: "Don't you have it? How do you manage your brother?" Oh, it turns out that she knew about me...

I thought I would be fine without Cheng Xingmin at home, but I just went from one extreme to another.

I bit the straw, unwrapped the paper cover on the cup and wrapped it around my wrist, wrapping it nearly twice. People who knew me said I was too skinny. How could I not be skinny? I thought to myself, it would be strange if I could gain weight doing that kind of work...

Ms. Lin invested all her family savings and the 20,000 yuan she borrowed from her uncle in her friend. The friend promised to let Ms. Lin be the store manager and give her dividends. The store was rented and the clothes were put on the shelves. All relatives and friends were notified. They were waiting for the opening, but the friend ran away with all the money. Many people came to Ms. Lin's door and she found out that the friend not only let Ms. Lin invest, but also many people's money, which was tens of thousands of yuan. However, the store was rented in Ms. Lin's name, and the business license was also in her name. The landlord also said that she only paid one month's rent. Not to mention the clothes, they were not the ones Ms. Lin had liked before. They would fall apart if pulled, and no one wanted them even if they were given away...

I advised Ms. Lin to call the police, but she said it was a private matter, why call the police. I asked her: "What about those people's money? You can't pay it back, you are also a victim..." She gritted her teeth and said: "I will pay it back, it's a lesson learned!" A lesson of hundreds of thousands of dollars, huh... I said: "That auntie came to cheat you from the beginning, she is a fraud!" Ms. Lin yelled at me: "She is not! She must have encountered some difficulties! She didn't mean it!" I said: "You can't know a person's heart by his face." She said: "Why are you so dark in your heart! Can't you think positively! I have known her for so long, don't I know what kind of person she is! Can she cheat me!" Well, I am dark in my heart...

Ms. Lin started to get busy again, running around for the opening of the store. She was running around, and I was not stopping either. Junior high schools in the county have morning and evening self-study classes. I didn't live on campus, and my home was not far from the school. But Cheng Xinyuan became a problem. He couldn't get up that early as he was in elementary school, but I was really worried about him being alone at home. Ms. Lin was not at home every other day, because she was doing renovations and purchasing goods. I could only bring Cheng Xinyuan to my school and let him play on the playground. I would send him to school after my morning self-study class and buy breakfast on the way. At noon, Cheng Xinyuan got out of school earlier than me and came to wait for me. Cheng Xinyuan got out of school at five in the afternoon, but I had to study in the evening until eight. The head teacher was very nice and let Cheng Xinyuan stay in her office when she knew my situation. The living expenses that Ms. Lin gave me were originally only enough for me to spend, but with Cheng Xinyuan, the money was still the same. He could eat well, but I couldn't, and being hungry became the norm.

I once mentioned to Ms. Lin that I should get some living expenses, but she said I was ignorant. How could she have the nerve to ask for money when she worked so hard? Couldn’t she just save some money? Once, I was really broke and there was no food at home. Ms. Lin was still in the provincial capital to buy goods. I could only take Cheng Xinyuan to my uncle’s house. I ate two bowls of dumplings in a row. My aunt was distressed and cried. Before leaving, my uncle gave me 100 yuan and said that I could ask him for money if I had no money in the future. When Ms. Lin found out, she beat me severely. She had never beaten me like that before. She kept hitting me with a long fly swatter. She said I was a disgrace to her. She asked how I could raise such a shameless daughter like me. She said how could I have the nerve to ask others for money when I had enough food and clothes... Cheng Xinyuan stopped her from beating her. Ms. Lin was so angry that she beat him too. After beating us, she hugged us and cried, saying she was sorry for us...

Although my living expenses doubled later, I developed stomach problems. I would vomit if I ate too much and could not gain weight no matter what I did.

I finished the last sip of lemonade. The doctor told me not to eat cold food or watermelon because my stomach would hurt. For many years I have forgotten what ice cream tastes like. Today I will celebrate my rebirth and let myself go...