In the evening, Hieu told me to go to a hotel a few kilometers away to sleep well, but I refused, wanting to sleep with his grandmother for one night.
After dating for 6 months, Hieu took me home to meet his family. Hieu is handsome, has a good job with a high salary, and pampers his girlfriend, so I also want to have a serious conversation with him.
Before that, I knew that Hieu lived with his grandmother since childhood, because his parents divorced, both of them were looking for a new happiness so that he might let his grandmother take care of him. I think that at that time, his grandmother was old and still had to take care of small children, worked hard to raise him to adulthood, so when I become Hieu’s wife, I will definitely take good care of her.
However, when I stood in front of his grandmother’s house, I mightn’t help but be stunned. It was too small, simple and old fashioned for me to imagine. Stepping inside, I was even more distraught when I saw that the furniture was all very old, the chair broke one leg and had to add a broken brick for the balance. The TV is small, the design is also 2 decades ago. Ms. Hieu does not use a rice cooker, a gas stove, and does not have a refrigerator or washing machine in the house.
I pulled Hieu to a corner and asked him why he didn’t prepare for her, he smiled and told her that she was used to living a simple life. I didn’t think twice but believed him. In the evening, Hieu told me to go to a hotel a few kilometers away to sleep well, but I refused, wanting to sleep with his grandmother for one night. Hieu was not satisfied but still agreed, he slept in another room.
Mrs. Hieu knew we were back, although the blankets and mattresses were old, but they were all fragrant with the scent of the sun. My grandmother and I talked for a while, then I fell asleep without realizing it. It wasn’t until I felt the coolness on my face that I woke up. It turned out that it was raining heavily and the water was leaking straight from the roof to the bed.
I didn’t know what to do, but my grandmother ran in from outside, holding an old pot in her hands, hastily collecting rain water. She chuckled. “Just go to sleep, don’t be afraid, I’m tired of traveling all day, let me carry a basin to collect water”, She smiled affectionately at me. Looking at her gentle smile, I only felt panic in my heart.
It rained very heavily, the water leaked a lot, it took a while to get the whole pot back. Seeing that I was not sleeping, she smiled and told me a story:
“The roof was just repaired 2 years ago, at that time Hieu sent money back, but it was only a temporary fix, not a new roof. This house has been around for a long time, since the time of the great-grandfather of Hieu. After his parents left, she raised him alone, and many times she sat up and collected rain water for him to sleep like this. She just wants to fix the house so that her granddaughter-in-law will not have to suffer later. But it’s difficult for Hieu to make money in the city. Grandma still collects things to sell for money at home, but it doesn’t work… Don’t blame him for being poor.”
That night, until the rain stopped, Mrs. Hieu went back to sleep, and I stayed up until morning. (Illustration)
Thinking regarding the scene where the two grandchildren live dependent on each other in hardship, picking up every penny to earn a living, I feel sad in my heart. But his grandmother recounted everything with such serenity, as if the toil had become familiar to her. Loving her, I am even more afraid of Hieu. Grandma worked hard to raise Hieu, but now his salary is regarding 50 million, living well in the city, why leave his grandmother in the countryside like this?
That night, until the rain stopped, Mrs. Hieu went back to sleep, and I stayed up until morning. The next day, I asked to go back to the city, and when I got there, I immediately said goodbye to Hieu. “You’re funny, people are worried regarding the burden of the grandfather’s house, and how much do you give to me, but you don’t even like it!”, Hieu was annoyed when I told him the reason for wanting to break up.
I have it wrong? Is it good for a man to spend all his money on his girlfriend/wife, not taking care of his family? It is true that I was very cherished by him, but thinking of his grandmother’s gentle smile while holding a basin to collect rain that night, my heart was heavy once more…
