I couldn't take it anymore; when I went home for Chinese New Year, the family genealogy book ha

"Xiao Wei... my Xiao Wei..."

Sun Yumei slumped down on the curb.

Through the rusty black iron fence, she saw with her own eyes that her son, whom she thought would completely fall into despair, not only showed no signs of decadence, but instead possessed a vitality she had never seen before.

A heavy truck with out-of-town license plates reversed into the parking space, kicking up a cloud of dust.

Jiang Wei not only didn't show any disgust, but instead jogged over to him.

After the truck came to a stop, he bent down, took out a cloth from his pocket, and carefully wiped the rearview mirror that was splattered with mud for the driver.

The truck driver was a little surprised. He leaned out of the cab and handed him a bottle of mineral water.

If it were the old Jiang Wei, he probably wouldn't have even bothered to answer; he would have just frowned and dodged away.

But now, he extended both hands and respectfully accepted it.

He gave a somewhat simple and honest smile and thanked him repeatedly.

"Thanks, driver! Take care!"

He unscrewed the bottle cap, tilted his head back, and gulped down several large mouthfuls. Then, he casually wiped his mouth with the sleeve of his gray security guard uniform.

Under the sunlight, his dark face was drenched in sweat and mingled with a smile, creating a striking contrast.

Is this still the same precious son who used to boss her around even when he came home and wanted to pour her a glass of water?

Is this still the same unfilial son who complained about her cooking being greasy and would throw plates and curse at the drop of a hat?

Sun Yumei's heart felt as if it were being slowly tortured piece by piece by a rusty, dull knife.

Every cut was accompanied by excruciating pain that went deep into the bone marrow.

An uncontrollable impulse surged wildly from the depths of her heart.

She wanted to rush over and pound on the hard iron gate.

She wanted to hug her son, who was both familiar and unfamiliar, and cry her heart out.

She wanted to take him away from this miserable and exhausting place.

How could her son be a security guard at the gate?

Sun Yumei struggled to get up from the ground.

However, when her gaze fell upon her hands, covered in mud and grease, with black grime under her fingernails,

When she smelled the nauseating stench emanating from herself, a result of years of scavenging and sleeping under bridges,

Her foot, which had just taken half a step, seemed to be filled with lead, so heavy that it stopped in mid-air.

She was afraid.

She wasn't afraid of being kicked out by the security guards.

What she feared was Jiang Wei seeing her current state, neither human nor ghost.

She understood that her son's job was "given" to him by that little beast Jiang Chen.

This job is Jiang Weineng's only chance to start anew.

What would happen if I rushed up to him in this terrible state and recognized him?

How will everyone in Jiangjia Village and the entire logistics park view Jiang Wei?

They would point at Jiang Wei and laugh at him.

"Look, that's Jiang Wei, that elite young master. His mother's a crazy, ragpicker!"

At that point, Jiang Wei will likely lose not only his hard-won job, but also the right to stay in Jiangjia Village.

Jiang Chen would absolutely treat the mother and son like two stray dogs and drive them out again without any mercy.

"It's my fault...it's my fault that he got hurt..."

"It's all because of my insatiable greed as a mother... I've ruined our entire family!"

Endless regret turned into bitter seawater, surging in from all directions and completely engulfing her.

It was because she instilled the idea of ​​being superior to others in Jiang Wei from a young age that he became arrogant and unrealistic.

It was because she was insatiable after Jiang Chen became wealthy that she insisted on instigating her whole family to cause trouble.

Even after being driven out of Jiangjia Village, she remained unrepentant, indulging in daydreams of getting rich overnight, ultimately leading to her current predicament.

She herself pushed her son, husband, and family step by step into an abyss of no return.

Sun Yumei squatted on the curb, burying her head deeply in her knees.

Unable to suppress the overwhelming grief that welled up in his throat any longer, he let out a mournful howl like a wounded wild beast.

"Ugh... Ah—!"

The cries were hoarse and desperate.

Passersby treated her like a madwoman and kept their distance.

No one knows what kind of torment this dirty, homeless woman is going through.

Extreme self-blame and pain left her mind blank.

She suddenly looked up, her face, streaked with tears and grime, filled with a look of madness.

She raised her filthy right hand, pointing it at her face, which she had once been proud of but now looked harsh and aged.

Snapped!

She couldn't feel any pain.

Snapped!Snapped!Snapped!Snapped!

She went completely insane, slapping herself repeatedly across the face more than a dozen times.

The force was so great that bright red blood quickly seeped from the corner of her mouth.

His cheeks swelled up rapidly, visible to the naked eye.

But she still couldn't feel any pain.

Because the physical pain was nothing compared to even a fraction of the remorse she felt.

After a dozen or so slaps, she finally exhausted her last bit of strength.

She lifted her face, which was swollen beyond recognition, and took one last, long look at her son, who was still standing straight in the sunlight, sweating profusely, inside the iron fence.

Jiang Wei vaguely sensed something and subconsciously glanced in her direction.

But all that could be seen was a homeless beggar huddled by the roadside, his face obscured.

He frowned, then looked away and continued to immerse himself in his busy work.

Sun Yumei felt her heart tighten when she saw the questioning look in her son's eyes.

She dared not look anymore.

She shakily picked up the tattered snakeskin bag from the ground and haphazardly stuffed the few rotten apples that had rolled onto the ground inside.

Then she leaned on that wooden stick, like a soulless shell.

She limped along, dragging the snakeskin bag that was taller than her, slowly walking towards the twilight in the direction of the county town.

Her silhouette, silhouetted against the setting sun, appeared long and hunched.

This time, she never looked back.

"Xiaowei, just pretend... your mother is dead..."

A single, blood-tinged tear slid down from the corner of her swollen eye, landing on the dusty national highway before quickly disappearing from sight.