There was not much money in the pillow. It was only 500 yuan. She squatted down again, laid her head sideways to peek under the heatable brick bed and retrieved a brick. The brick did not have much space in it. She placed the brick back in place and it was no different from a brick wall. The amount of money in it remained the same. She placed the money back into it, turned behind and leaned her face against the wall. There was a small crack on it which made the money visible to her. The money was not lost. Next, the cabinet. She extended her hands out, and exerted strength to lift the cabinet. Beneath the cabinet was some money hidden, which was still there. She only lost the money in her pillow, which was 500 yuan. It was not that bad. She was giving it more thought at the moment and became more cautious. Otherwise, she might not have been able to safeguard these money. She did not expect the thief who stole the money to return them to her again.
As for the thief who stole her money, she did not have to think any further. There would be no other person other than Changsheng’s mother.
Changsheng’s mother never entered her house, no, that was in the past. After Changsheng left, she became a different person. She could empathize with Changsheng’s mother’s feelings. She was a widow who raised her son alone. Without her son by her side, she must be feeling lonely. She needed someone to rely on or to vent her feelings at, but empathy aside, she could never forgive Changsheng’s mother for stealing her money.
That was the money she earned from selling her ring. It was the money she prepared to use to go home. She even said she wanted to use this money to visit a hospital to seek treatment for her leg. However, now that Changsheng’s mother had stolen a large proportion of her money, if she did not hide her money, all of her money would be stolen by Changsheng’s mother without an ounce of guilt, leaving no leeway for her.
She nibbled on her lips as if she wanted to hurt herself. When there is a first time, there would be a second time. Changsheng’s mother had found her money once, and maybe she would come for her money again the second or even the third time. Hence, this money should not be hidden here, not even a single penny, or else, one day, all her travel expenses needed for her journey back home would be stolen by Changsheng’s mother. This was not her home, but Changsheng and his mother’s home, where they lived for decades. There were no good hiding spots. Now that Changsheng’s mother found some money, she might be delighted and not search thoroughly. Once she recovers from her excitement, she would search for her money again.
If Yan Huan could think of it, then naturally, Changsheng’s mother could think of this too.
She removed all her money again and hid her money in three different places: above the fireplace, in a plastic paper, and wrapped inside an old rug hidden in her clothes. The cotton clothes she tailored were extremely thick and loose, so even if she stuffed things inside, no one would be able to see through it. When she left the room, she noticed that Changsheng’s mother’s room was locked. She pursed her lips.
Usually, no one in this house would lock their room. It was obvious that the woman was guilty of something, wasn’t it? She could enter other peoples’ rooms but she was afraid of others looking through hers. She had stolen others’ stuff, so sure enough, she would be afraid. It was just that this time, the more she tried to hide, the more she revealed… Was she trying to deceive others or herself?
She reached out and touched the cloth on her chest. Then, she dipped her head down and walked out of the room. The wind outside was getting warmer, but no matter how warm it was, it was still the weather of a cold spring. She had no idea when she would be able to leave, but that day might come soon.
She exhaled a warm breath into her hands. Her fingers were not as swollen as before, the swelling was subsiding slowly, but there were some traces of bruises that were still visible. This began to look more like her hands in the past, but as she rubbed her palms together, she could still feel the callousness in them. It was as if both her hands never had smooth skin.
It was not frostbite, but it could be scratched from twigs, an abrasion, an old injury in the process of recovery, or a new injury. There was also the possibility that it was because of the cold temperature in the winter, hence sometimes she could feel numbness along with the pain.
She walked to the back. This time, she was not here to pick firewood, but to find a suitable hiding spot. As she walked to a big tree which required many hands to lift the bottom of the tree, she located a big hole. There was sufficient space for her hand to stretch in. The hole was deep and dry. She took out what she was hiding, hid it in the tree hole, grabbed some dried leaves and stuffed it in the hole along with some sticks. The tree hole was now completely sealed.
After hiding the money, she continued to pick firewood. She was in the deepest part of the woods, which many villagers do not frequent often. Hence, hiding her money here was the safest, at least as compared to hiding them in Changsheng’s house.
After picking a substantial amount of firewood, she decided to head back home. Once she reached home, she noticed that Changsheng’s mother’s room was still locked. She placed the firewood down and returned to her own house, preparing to change into her clothes before making a meal.
However, the stuff in her room was rummaged through again. Compared to the previous incident, this time even the position of the cabinet was shifted.
Yan Huan never knew that although Changsheng’s mother was so old to the point that she could not carry a pail of water usually, she was still able to lift such a heavy table up. Indeed, her strength was not inferior to that of a youth.
She took off the cotton-padded coat she was wearing and changed to new clothes before moving the table back to its original position. She was sure Changsheng’s mother did not loot any goods because there was no money in her room. Even if she flipped thoroughly, she would never be able to find a single penny.
Changsheng’s mother was not back yet when she left the room. She had no clue where his mother went. Nonetheless, now that Yan Huan gave it a second thought, she could have only gone to one place, which was to find Jin Gen’s, who was also Changsheng’s colleague, mother.
“Anyone home? I’m here for a haircut.” Someone shouted for her outside.
“Coming.” Yan Huan exhaled softly, her red lips were lifted into a smile which carried mild satire. Of course, it could mostly be helplessness or just a normal sigh.
After cutting the customer’s hair, she placed the five eggs she earned in the kitchen. The basket containing eggs was half filled. Changsheng had left for almost a month. In just a month, she had earned this many eggs. In the past, it was Changsheng’s responsibility to sell the eggs. If they were not sold, they would never be able to finish eating the eggs. Furthermore, as they were on a farm, eggs were used to trade for money. No one would enjoy eating eggs daily. This was not enjoyment, this was plain foolishness.