This article is a fictional novel, the pictures are all network pictures, and the names of people and places are all apocryphal.
1
My name is Zhou Cuilan and I am 63 years old.
My wife and I have worked hard for most of our lives and saved 800,000 yuan every penny.
The 800,000 yuan, we have been keeping it in the bank, except for watching the numbers rise and fall in the account, it seems that it has little intersection with our daily life.
However, having said that, with such a sum of money behind me, I always feel a lot more sure, especially at our age.
A few days ago, my son Xiaohui called me, and his voice was a little urgent: "Mom, come and stay for a few days, the child here is naughty, you can help take care of it when you come." ”
Listening to his words, I was quite happy in my heart, after all, who doesn't like to be needed?
I prepared simple luggage, of course, I deliberately put the bank card with 800,000 yuan into my wallet, after all, this is half a lifetime savings for my wife and me, and it is more practical to carry it with me.
When I arrived at my son's house, I found that my daughter-in-law Huanhuan was polite to me and dealt with me very politely, but there seemed to be a layer between me and me, and there was no sense of closeness at all.
Looking at it in my eyes, I feel a little bit of admiration in my heart, but think about it, maybe people are not familiar with each other, I don't want to say much, after all, I usually have less contact, and I still know too little about each other.
Besides, my grandson Xiaobao is only five years old this year, and it is the time to make a fuss, and it is of course not very enthusiastic to meet me, an old man who can only see me every three or five times.
He was busy with his toy car, and I was busy helping with some chores, both of which seemed to be so busy that sometimes I didn't even bother to say a word.
In the past few days at my son's house, while fulfilling the obligations of the elderly, I have paid attention to getting along with my family.
Although I felt some subtle atmosphere, I always secretly warned myself to be patient, to understand the pressure and busyness of young people, and to communicate more, maybe our relationship will gradually improve.
2
Since I moved to my son Xiaohui's house, I have lived for such a week, and life has been quite ordinary.
Whenever the meal arrived, I sat at the table, always expecting some hearty meal, but every time I was in front of me, some simple pickles, accompanied by two bowls of white rice.
Although I felt a little chill in my heart, I thought that it might be a financial constraint at home, so I didn't say much, after all, I am a person who does not care.
That afternoon, I had just returned from the vegetable market outside, bought myself some vegetables, and planned to stir-fry two vegetables myself to improve my diet.
Before I could enter the door to take a good rest, I heard the sound of my grandson Xiaobao and my daughter-in-law Huanhuan whispering from the kitchen.
It turned out that they thought I hadn't come back.
Xiaobao said excitedly: "Mom, when grandma is gone, we can eat fried steak, especially the black pepper one, it's delicious!" Don't let grandma know. ”
Huanhuan responded with a smile: "Yes, yes, I will make you a big meal when the time comes." ”
I hid behind the door and felt a tingling in my heart.
This sudden scene made me reflect on my relationship with my family.
I originally planned to come here to help out and get along with my family for a while.
Unexpectedly, not only did they fail to shorten the distance between each other, but they found that they may have been looking at the situation at home too simply.
I thought that coming to my son's house with the 800,000 yuan in savings might be able to solve some financial difficulties for them, but who knows, before the money is used, I find that I may not understand their real needs and lives at all.
I thought that the 3,000 yuan pension I received every month for my wife and children might be just a drop in the bucket for them.
As the head of the family, his son Xiaohui has to work hard every day, and the pressure is definitely not small.
Daughter-in-law Huanhuan is also working outside, and the two are busy maintaining the family.
When I think of this, I can't help but feel a sour feeling in my heart, which makes me hesitate whether I can get the 800,000 or not.
As time passed, I also slowly experienced the hardships and helplessness of young people.
They may have considerations and concerns that they are reluctant to speak.
The simple meals every day are actually silently telling their living conditions.
As an elderly person, I just wanted to come over and help out and enjoy family fun.
But now, I have fallen into deep thought: how can I better communicate and understand with my family, and really do something meaningful for them?
This visit to my son's house made me realize the importance of communication between family members, although I gained some unexpected sadness.
3
After a conversation I overheard in the kitchen that day, I really couldn't tell what I was feeling in my heart.
As the week drew to a close, I packed my bags and prepared to go back to my hometown.
Although I kept thinking about it, in the end I still didn't mention the 800,000 thing.
On the day they left, the son and daughter-in-law were full of apologies, but no one mentioned the fried steak that had never been served.
With a little loss, I returned to my familiar and warm cabin, and my wife and I, who were over sixty years old, had been dependent on each other for many years.
I told my wife about my experience at my son's house.
After hearing this, the expression on his face gradually changed from surprise to dissatisfaction, and finally he was a little angry.
"What's the matter, how can our son and daughter-in-law be like this?"
The wife shook her head as she spoke.
That night, we sat on the old sofa, listening to the evening breeze outside, while slowly drinking Pu'er tea, immersed in our own thoughts.
After some in-depth exchanges, the two of us reached a consensus - it is better to leave the 800,000 yuan to our own pension.
We can't put all our hopes in our son's family, after all, we are disappointed by their attitude towards us from this experience.
"Yes, we are old, we have to keep some of our own foundation, how can we all rely on them?"
My wife said, I nodded, although there was a trace of regret in my heart, but more relief.
When we are old, my wife and I don't need much, and the 3,000 yuan pension we receive every month, plus the 800,000 deposits, is enough for us to have a stable life in our old age.
We decided that we would save the money for immediate use in the future, and at least ensure that we don't have to worry too much about medical care.
You can also enjoy the occasional pleasure, such as a trip to a nearby place to see the outside world.
That night, we talked late, and even took out a pen and paper, and began to make a rough plan for the rest of our lives, such as where we were going and what we wanted to do.
That time I went back to my son's house, I realized a lot, maybe this encounter is a reminder for us.
It tells us that even if it is family affection, sometimes we need to give the right distance and respect, and we need to do more for our future.
Now, my wife and I have a deeper understanding with each other, and we know that no matter how the outside world changes, we always have a harbor of our own that we can rely on each other to face the future together.
This story is purely fictional, the names and events in the story are fictional, and the purpose of using place names is only for the purpose of describing the plot and making it easy to read and understand.