novelden Chapter 1854 Mountains and Rivers
Chapter 1854 Mountains and Rivers
The early November morning light, with its unique autumn clarity, gently shone on Qin Ruobai's face through the white gauze curtains of the ward.
Her long eyelashes fluttered a few times, and she finally slowly woke up from her deep sleep.
The fatigue from childbirth still weighed heavily on her body, but a strange sense of fulfillment and tranquility, a feeling of becoming a new mother, enveloped her.
She closed her eyes and felt her body. Soon, she subconsciously moved her fingers and opened her eyes, wanting to touch the tiny life in the stroller next to her.
Suddenly, she froze, captivated by a familiar, delicate fragrance!
This is……
Begonia?
The fragrance of crabapple?
She suddenly opened her eyes wide, turned her head to follow the source of the fragrance, and then her eyes widened again.
On the bedside table next to the hospital bed, a few blooming begonias were diagonally inserted in a simple glass vase.
Begonias bloom year-round. The flowers are small, but they cluster together, displaying a beautiful mix of pink and white!
That delicate, subtle, and slightly sweet fragrance was continuously spreading in the air, dispelling the inherent smell of disinfectant in the hospital ward!
It really is a crabapple blossom!
Qin Ruobai's pupils dilated, and he felt as if something had hit his chest. A surge of hot, acidic air rushed from his chest cavity into his nasal cavity and eye sockets.
Almost without thinking or special recall, a name, a figure, a thought, accompanied by the soul-stirring fragrance, clearly emerges in the mind.
White crabapple!
One's own mother.
She was also a police captain, and many years ago, she heroically sacrificed her life to protect the people during a mission!
Haitang, my mother's name, is just like her hobby. She loved crabapple blossoms, and I love crabapple blossoms too, a love that is passed down from generation to generation.
When I was a child, my father, Qin Kunlun, stubbornly kept the crabapple tree for a long time, as if my mother had never left.
There are always begonias growing on the windowsill at home.
My father said that this flower looks ordinary and not delicate, but it always blooms all year round, regardless of wind or rain, thunder or sunshine, hail or blizzard. Just looking at it makes people feel bright and hopeful.
Just like the white crabapple.
So Qin Ruobai remembered the characteristics of the crabapple.
So she wanted to become someone like Haitang.
"mom……"
Qin Ruobai moved her lips silently, tears rolling down her cheeks without warning, soaking the pillow.
The crabapple blossoms sway gently in the morning light, still glistening with the mist her husband may have sprayed on them that morning. The dewdrops clinging to the petals are crystal clear, just like the bright, smiling eyes her mother used to have when she looked at her.
Mom, did you see that?
Your daughter is a mother now!
I also have my own child, a daughter.
Just as I inherited your profession and beliefs, I have now inherited the identity of 'mother'.
I will love her, protect her, and teach her as you loved me.
Mom, I miss you, I really miss you.
I want to so much!
If you were here, you would look at your granddaughter. She looks like me, and she looks like you too!
Qin Ruobai silently spoke in her heart, her tears flowing even more profusely.
This unexpected crabapple tree was like a bridge spanning life and death, connecting her with her mother and giving her indescribable strength.
It was as if she was no longer the little girl who needed her mother's protection.
She, Qin Ruobai, has become a sanctuary for another little life.
This legacy is both weighty and glorious.
"mom--"
Qin Ruobai was immersed in memories of her mother, sobbing softly, her shoulders trembling slightly.
Suddenly, a very faint rustling sound of fabric rubbing came from beside me.
anyone?
Qin Ruobai was startled and subconsciously stopped crying.
She assumed it was her husband, Li Xiangnan, or her mother-in-law, Zhu Qiuju, who, seeing her awake and reminded of her mother by the crabapple blossoms, were quietly keeping her company and trying to soothe her emotions, but this commotion…
It seems closer.
And she pulled the blanket up a little higher over her chest.
With tears streaming down her face, Qin Ruobai turned her head in confusion and looked at the chair beside the bed.
The next second!
She seemed to be frozen in place, completely stunned!
That is……
Her pupils contracted sharply!
On the chair, an elderly man wearing a dark blue cotton-padded jacket, with his hair neatly combed and a thin but kind face, sat quietly.
The morning light outlined the old woman's wrinkled yet serene profile. Her weathered eyes were now fixed on me with a loving smile.
It’s grandma!
"grandmother!?"
Qin Ruobai's voice trembled with disbelief, almost doubting whether he was hallucinating. He immediately raised his hand to rub his red eyes, feeling that he must be mentally deranged due to exhaustion!
My maternal grandmother's home is in southern Hunan, which is more than a thousand miles away from Beijing!
The mountainous area is rugged and transportation is inconvenient; the county town is far away and remote!
How could she possibly appear at his bedside overnight?
No, no!
I must be out of my mind, I'm just imagining things!
It must be because I missed my mother so much that I longed for my grandmother to be by my side, which made my dream come true!
She rubbed her eyes again.
However, the person in front of me was still there, and even more smiling than before!
She's moving!
It's real!
After the immense shock came an overwhelming surge of joy and an indescribable heartache!
Her tears flowed again, even more intensely than before!
"Grandma! Is that really you? What brings you here?"
Qin Ruobai struggled to sit up and hug her, her voice already choked with sobs.
"Don't move, don't move! My little Bai has just given birth and needs to rest. Don't move!" Tang Qingshuang quickly got up and used her calloused but warm hands to hold down her granddaughter Qin Ruobai, her tone tender and loving.
Grandma's hands were a little cold, but they possessed an incredibly comforting power.
"Grandma!" Qin Ruobai grabbed those rough hands tightly and pressed them against her face, sobbing uncontrollably, just like when she was a child and had been wronged. "I missed you... I missed Mom too... How did you get here... such a long way... I only just got here yesterday... How could you have endured it all..."
She simply couldn't imagine how her elderly grandmother had endured such a long and arduous journey to reach her side.
This affection was so heavy, so profound, so overwhelming that it made her heart burn with emotion, yet also caused her unbearable heartache.
On the anniversary of my mother's death that year, my maternal grandmother brought my maternal grandfather's ashes to Beijing, and even brought a basket of eggs, taking a train for a day and a half overnight to come over...
This time, however, there's only one night!
Tang Qingshuang gently stroked her granddaughter's hair with her thin hand. Her eyes were full of love, yet she said calmly, "Child, what are you worried about! I'm perfectly healthy. Your uncle received a call from Xiang Nan and found out you gave birth, and even gave birth early. He was very worried. So he went and borrowed a jeep. My daughter and I didn't eat anything, just took some flatbread and set off!"
The old man paused, as if walking this distance was just an ordinary outing for a stroll.
"Your uncle drove all night without stopping, and finally arrived before dawn. Seeing my great-granddaughter and my little white baby safe and sound is so good, so good!"
I drove all night without rest!
What a journey it was! A rugged mountain road, a pitch-black night, and my elderly grandmother sitting in the bumpy car...
Qin Ruobai's heart clenched as he listened.
She clung tightly to her grandmother's arm, as if the old woman would disappear if she let go.
Then I felt the old man pat my back and point to the crabapple tree by the bedside.
"By the way, Xiang Nan told your uncle on the phone to pick a crabapple blossom that your mother grew up with, saying that Ruo Bai's child will be born safely and smoothly!"
Qin Ruobai shuddered and looked at the crabapple tree. At this moment, the feeling was even more vivid, and tears streamed down his face.
"I finally understand him better now, why he named the child Li Xitang!"