Wei Yuxian is pregnant.
She sat on the steel bench in the hospital, holding an ultrasound report, and the words the doctor had just said echoed in her mind: "Young lady, congratulations on your pregnancy. Not just one, but two. Congratulations..."
Yet, Wei Yuxian couldn't feel happy. Instead, as she observed the people coming and going in the hospital, she only felt an overwhelming sense of bewilderment.
She was unsure about her future path, and where she and her two unborn children should go.
Everything started a little over a month ago.
-
A month ago, Wei Yuxian took a green-skin train alone to the capital, luggage in tow.
She had come to the capital to attend university and had been accepted into the finance program at Capital University of Economics.
Yet, after her arrival in the capital, she discovered that the hard-earned money she had saved from working - amazingly disappeared!
At first, she panicked, checking several websites with her off-brand mobile phone she bought for just two or three hundred yuan, only to find out her eight thousand yuan was really gone from her bank account!
Tears threatened to spill from her eyes in her desperation, until, five minutes later, she discovered where her money had gone.
It was transferred to her mother's bank account.
She had no idea when her mother stealthily transferred her money, or how her mother knew her password.
The moment she discovered this, Wei Yuxian didn't hesitate and squatted on the side of the road, dialing her mother's number. The first words out of her mouth were, "Mom, why did you transfer my money? That's my college tuition!"
That eight thousand yuan came not only from her hard-earned money, but also from what she borrowed. It was not easy for her to gather the sum, but her mother just transferred it away!
Wei Yuxian wished she could charge back home and have a serious confrontation with her mother, coercing her to cough up the money!
Why? Why did she have the audacity to transfer her money away?!
Wei's mother on the other end of the phone, scolded her a few times, before saying, "I told you not to go to university, but you insisted! What's the use of going to this damn university? It's a waste of money, better to work and earn a few more bucks early on!"
Tears welled up in Wei Yuxian's eyes as she clenched her teeth, vehemently asserting, "That's my money! I'm using my money to go to school!"
"Psh! Your money?! Your money is my money! I haven't even said anything about you secretly hiding so much money! Good thing I'm smart, I knew you, the spendthrift, wasn't up to anything good, hoping to use the money to go to school, well you can give that up now!
"Now that you've run out of money, I want to see how you'll go to school. Why does a girl need to go to school instead of working? What's the point of reading so many books, when you'll end up marrying into another family and earning money for them anyway?
"Wei Yuxian, mark my words, you stop dreaming about going to school, I won't let you go!
"Your 8,000 yuan happens to be enough to pay your brother's tuition, I'd been worried about where to get the money, and here you are offering it up."
Wei's mother was overjoyed, her laughter traveling through the phone to Wei Yuxian's ears, striking a harsh discord.
It is always like this!
Always like this!
Every time, her mother is more than willing to splurge on her two sons, yet when it comes to Wei Yuxian, her mother begrudges every penny, even pocketing money that Wei Yuxian had earned from working!
Why? Why on earth?!
Isn’t she also her child? Is it because she's a girl, she's destined not to be educated?!
Wei Yuxian's tears flowed increasingly, quickly smudging her entire face. She was trembling all over, with the hand holding her phone clenching tightly, struggling to suppress her cries.
The stream of insults started from the time she could remember. Her mother would always say she was worthless, proclaiming that she brought no benefits to the household. The only use they saw in her was as a potential bride whose dowry money could be used to marry off her brothers.
She staunchly believed that knowledge had the power to change life, and this belief never made her abandon her pursuit of education. Even when her parents refused to provide her with the necessary funds, she would opt for part-time jobs to be able to continue her studies.
Finally, when she thought she had made it, that she could fly away from the confines of her tiny village and explore the larger world outside, her mother crushed all her dreams and hopes.
Eight thousand yuan ...
Without money, not only was her education in jeopardy but even basic survival loomed as an issue.
With a heavy heart, she found herself alone in a big, unfamiliar city with no acquaintances to turn to.
In a hoarse voice, she asked, "What do I do now?" her voice barely being a trembling whisper.
Hearing her gloomy tone, Wei's mother did not show any signs of sympathy. On the contrary, she responded with a perverse sense of satisfaction, “Aren’t you always so competent? Weren't you stubborn about going to Kyoto? Then stay there and work. I hear the pay is good there. Don't forget to send money home each month, I need to support your brothers. You can sustain yourself on a few hundred yuan, do you understand?”
Her tone was anything but sympathetic, the final words rang out like a command.
It seemed as if Wei Yuxian owed her this as her birthright.
Wei Yuxian couldn't believe her mother could be so heartless, to spout such venomous words! Her heart ached like it was pierced by thousands of needles.
“You might as well let me die!” Choked Wei Yuxian and with trembling hands, she hung up the call.
Squatting by the roadside, clutching her knees with her head buried between her legs, she gave in to her despair and wept quietly.
People passing by glanced at her with sympathy, but they didn't intervene. They silently walked away.
Wei Yuxian wept intensely for a while, her eyes and nose reddening, a tingling sensation coursing through her body. Wiping away her tears, she shakily stood up and started dragging her luggage aimlessly down the busy street.
Curious onlookers were casting glances at her, only serving to heighten her acute sense of embarrassment.
Where was she supposed to go next? To school perhaps? No, even if she went to school, she was destitute.
Should she start working somewhere then? But where to? What job could she take? Was she fated to stay in Kyoto for the rest of her life, eking out a living?
She was certain about one thing; she never wanted to go back to that small village!
She did not want to end up like the other girls from her village, who were married off as soon as they hit their teens or twenties, with no prospects for a better life.
Moreover, if she went back, she knew her mother would not spare her. She didn't want her mother to take her money to support her brothers anymore!
It was her money after all. Why should it fall into the hands of her brothers? Wasn’t their living allowance enough already?
Being born into such a family was Wei Yuxian's misfortune, but she never gave up. She always dreamt of leaving the small village to see the larger world outside!
And education, it was her only way out!
But now, even this sole avenue seemed to be closing off on her…