I stood in the yard, holding the hose spraying water in my hand, watching the water column refract a rainbow of light in the sunlight. The early summer breeze gently brushes the face, bringing a touch of coolness.
The moon flowers in the courtyard are in full bloom, and the pink and white flowers are particularly beautiful against the green leaves. I was immersed in this moment of tranquility when suddenly the phone in my pocket vibrate.
took out his mobile phone and saw that it was a call from his son Xiaohui. I pressed the answer button: "Hey, Xiaohui? ”
"Mom......" The son's choked voice came from the other end of the phone: "I'm sorry, Mom, I'm ...... I can't make up the mortgage for this month......"
My heart sank, and the hand holding the hose tightened unconsciously: "What's going on?" Didn't you say last month that you had saved enough? ”
"I ...... I had saved enough, but ...... But ......" Xiaohui's voice became smaller and smaller: "There are some unexpected expenses temporary......"
I took a deep breath and tried to calm my emotions. "What contingencies? Make it clear. ”
"It's just ......," Xiaohui couldn't say why.
I shook my head helplessly: "The unexpected expenses you mentioned should be that your brother-in-law needs to spend money again, your mother-in-law came to make trouble, and when your wife cried, you softened your heart and gave it!" In that case, what are you coming to me for? ”
"Mom, I know it's wrong, I really know it's wrong." Xiaohui interrupted me with a crying voice: "Can you help me this time again?" I promise to plan well in the future and never ...... again"
I was about to speak when my phone vibrated again. It was her daughter-in-law Xiaolei who called.
"Xiaohui, wait a minute, your wife is calling." I hurriedly hung up my son's phone and connected to Xiaolei.
"Mom......" Xiaolei's voice was also crying: "I'm sorry, it's all my fault......"
I was speechless for a moment, not knowing what to say.
"Mom, I know it's wrong, I really know it's wrong." Xiaolei sobbed and said: "My mother has returned to her hometown, I promise that I will never dare to spend money indiscriminately in the future, and I will not subsidize my brother again, please forgive us this time......"
Hearing this, I sighed, and my heart was mixed. On the one hand, I was angry and disappointed that my son and daughter-in-law were not sensible; On the other hand, I knew very well that they didn't realize that they were doing something wrong, and they just wanted to use this trick to force me to relent, so that I could continue to pay their mortgage.
Thinking of this, I sighed and my mind went back to the past.
My name is Li Xiulan, I am 58 years old, and I was a primary school Chinese teacher before I retired.
Standing in front of the mirror, I saw that my hair was already a little gray, and the wrinkles at the corners of my eyes were becoming more and more obvious. But my eyes are still bright because I know that I have dedicated my life to my family and students.
Thinking back to the past years, it seems like it was just yesterday. My wife Wang Jianguo and I are both ordinary teachers with low salaries, but we are diligent and thrifty, and we have worked hard to raise our son Xiaohui to adulthood.
I remember when Xiaohui was in elementary school, I used to stay up late to help him with his homework; When he was in junior high school, we saved money and enrolled him in cram school; In the year of the college entrance examination, I took a long leave to take care of his diet and daily life at home.
The hard work paid off, and Xiaohui was finally admitted to the university in the provincial capital. On that day, my wife and I cried tears of joy and felt that all the efforts were worth it.
In order to provide for Xiaohui to go to college, we continued to live a frugal life, and we were reluctant to repair even the roof of the house that had fallen into disrepair.
Every time Xiaohui came back from school and saw our haggard faces, he always said distressedly: "Dad, Mom, when I graduate and work, I will definitely let you live a good life." ”
Four years of college passed in a blink of an eye, and Xiaohui successfully graduated and found a job in a company in the provincial capital. Although the salary is not high, it is good for a recent college graduate.
At this time, Xiaohui met his current daughter-in-law Xiaolei. Xiaolei is a colleague of Xiaohui's company, beautiful and generous, and has a cheerful and lively personality. When we met for the first time, Xiaolei sweetly called me "Auntie" and brought a lot of gifts, which made me very happy.
Two years ago, Xiaohui and Xiaolei decided to get married. As parents, we certainly want our son to have a warm home.
However, the housing prices in the provincial capital are too high, and the savings of the small couple are simply not enough. My wife and I discussed it for a long time and finally decided to give everything we had to help them buy a house. We took out all our savings and borrowed some from relatives and friends to make a down payment.
In this way, Xiaohui and Xiaolei have their own new home. However, a monthly mortgage of 7,000 yuan is still a big burden for them.
Seeing them running for life, my wife and I were distressed and decided to continue to help them pay off their mortgages.
"Xiaohui, your father and I transfer 5,000 to you every month, and you pay back 2,000 yourself, so it shouldn't be too difficult." I said to my son.
Xiaohui was so moved that he couldn't speak, but just hugged me tightly. I touched his head, relieved and sad at the same time. I know that if we do this, we may make our children dependent, but as parents, who can bear to watch them suffer?
However, life doesn't get any easier just because you have a new house. Both Xiaohui and Xiaolei's work is unstable and they often encounter various difficulties. Sometimes it's the company that lays off people, sometimes it's the project that fails, and every time they come to us for help.
I still remember one time, Xiaohui called and said, "Mom, I'm ...... I haven't paid my bonus this month, and I'm a little tight on hand, can I ...... it?"
I sighed, "Okay, Mom will help you again this time." But Xiaohui, you have to learn to plan your own income and expenses. ”
"I know, Mom. When I find a better job, I will definitely be filial to you and Dad. Xiaohui said guiltily.
What's even more troublesome for us is that Xiaolei's mother-in-law also moved into Xiaohui's house. Originally, we thought that it would be good for multiple elders to take care of the children, but we didn't expect that the arrival of the mother-in-law would bring greater financial pressure to the young couple.
"Mom, do you think this dress looks good? It's only 998, it's very cheap. "I often hear Xiaolei say this to her mother.
"Buy, it's really beautiful, if you don't have money, go to your mother-in-law to ask for it, they are retired teachers, they must have money. By the way, this skirt is also quite suitable for your brother and daughter-in-law, you can buy another one for your brother and daughter-in-law and send it over, saying that I will send it, so that the relationship between our mother-in-law and daughter-in-law can be better. My mother's voice came from the other end of the phone.
Every time I hear such a conversation, I feel very angry, thinking that my mother-in-law is biased, so I know to ask my daughter for money to subsidize my son. But as a mother-in-law, I can't say much, so I can only silently pray in my heart that they will wake up soon.
In this way, my wife and I continued to save money and tighten our belts to help them pay off their mortgage. Sometimes, looking at the little food left in the fridge, I can't help but wonder: Is it right for us to do this? Is it harmful to the child?
But whenever I see Xiaohui's tired but still strong face, and Xiaolei takes care of her family gently, I feel that everything is worth it.
It wasn't until some time ago that I witnessed my mother-in-law's eccentricity, my daughter-in-law's demonic attribute of helping my brother, and my son's confusion, that I realized that I really spoiled my son.
That weekend three months ago, I brought some pickles and lo-mei that I had made to visit Xiaohui and Xiaolei. I shuffled up the stairs with heavy steps, thinking about what I would tell the children later.
As soon as I reached the door, I heard a hurried voice from inside the house. I wanted to knock on the door, but when I heard the voice of my mother, I unconsciously stopped.
"Xiaolei, how much money have you saved this month?" My mother-in-law asked.
"Mom, Xiaohui and I saved fifteen thousand this month." Xiaolei's voice was a little hesitant: "But ......"
"But what? Give it to me. Your brother is still waiting to buy a car and marry a daughter-in-law! The mother said impatiently.
"But Mom, we still have a mortgage to ......pay," Xiaolei whispered.
"Mortgage? Didn't you have your mother-in-law to help you pay it back? Just keep some pocket money for yy, and give me the rest. The mother-in-law said undoubtedly.
I was shaken, as if I had been struck by lightning. It turns out that they have been lying to me all along! The wages of our sons and daughters-in-law are not low, but they have been crying poverty to us, and most of the money is given to our mother-in-law. Fighting back my anger, I pushed open the door of concealment.
When the three people in the room saw me, they panicked. Xiaolei hurriedly got up: "Mom, you...... How did you get here? ”
I took a deep breath and tried to calm my emotions: "I heard it, I heard it. Is that how you lied to me? ”
Xiaohui lowered his head and said nothing. But the mother-in-law said confidently: "This is our family matter, what's wrong with me being a mother asking my daughter for money?" Shouldn't my daughter be my sister's helper brother? You don't care. ”
I was trembling with anger: "Family matter? We worked so hard to help you pay off your mortgage, but you gave money to someone else to buy a car? Is this your conscience? ”
Xiaolei interjected: "Mom, don't be angry. We can't ...... either."
"No way?" I sneered: "There's no way to pay off the mortgage if you don't have money, but if you have money to buy a car for your brother, there's a way?" ”
The mother-in-law suddenly took the case: "Li Xiulan, you don't point fingers here!" My daughter's money, I can spend it as much as I love, and you can use it? ”
I was completely enraged by these words: "Good, good. Since I'm nosy, then I won't care about it in the future. From today onwards, I will not give you another penny. Find a way to repay the mortgage yourself! With that, I turned and walked away, leaving them staring at each other.
When I got home, I told my wife about it. After discussion, we decided not to help them pay their mortgage. We can't let their hard-earned savings go to waste.
At first, Xiaohui and Xiaolei didn't seem to take my words seriously. They may think that I am soft-hearted and will feel sorry for them in a few days. However, when I didn't send them the money as usual at the end of the month, they started to panic.
The phone kept ringing, and I looked at the caller ID, but I never answered. Until one day, Xiaohui sent a voice message: "Mom, I'm sorry, we were wrong. Don't leave us alone......"
I listened to my son's choked voice, and my heart tingled. But I know I can't be soft-hearted. I replied with a message: "Do it yourself. Then he turned off his phone.
And so it went on for a month. One day, I met Aunt Zhang, who lived downstairs from my son's house, at the vegetable market. She said to me mysteriously, "Teacher Li, do you know? Your daughter-in-law kicked her mother out! ”
I was shocked, but my face remained unmoved: "Oh? What's going on? ”
Aunt Zhang continued: "I heard that it was for money. Your daughter-in-law doesn't dare to spend money indiscriminately now, and she has a sad face all day long. ”
I listened silently, with mixed feelings. I know they're finally starting to face reality.
A few days later, Xiaohui and Xiaolei came to my house together. Their haggard appearance made me feel distressed, but I knew I couldn't be soft-hearted.
"Mom......" Xiaohui knelt in front of me: "We know it's wrong, we really know it's wrong." Forgive us, help us......"
Xiaolei also knelt down: "Mom, it's all my fault, I won't dare in the future." ”
I looked at them with a pang of sourness. But I still relented: "You are already adults, and you should be responsible for your own choices." Your dad and I are old, and we can't help you anymore. ”
"But Mom, without your help, we really can't afford to pay the mortgage!" Xiaohui was so anxious that he was about to cry.
I took a deep breath: "That's your own business. I'm sure you have what it takes. ”
Xiaolei suddenly lost her temper: "Don't you really feel sorry for us at all?" If you don't care about us, we won't care about you in the future! ”
I was stunned for a moment, then smiled wryly, "Okay, so be it." I don't care if you live or die, and you don't care if I live or die. ”
Watching them leave in despair, I leaned against the doorframe and tears flowed down my eyes. I knew that this decision could completely change my relationship with my son, but I had no choice. Sometimes, love is about being ruthless and letting them learn to be independent.
Late at night, I stood in front of the window and looked at the lights in the distance. I don't know what the future holds, but I believe that this lesson will make them grow. Maybe one day, we can be a family again. But at that time, it must have been based on mutual respect and understanding.