Chapter 26: Kindness

"Old lady, why aren't you going home so late?" Liu Dong asked an elderly woman who was wearing a dark blue jacket with several patches on the cuffs, black trousers with patches on the knees but very clean, and black cloth shoes commonly seen in the countryside. Her hair was slightly gray, and her face was gaunt.

Hearing his words, the old woman, who was huddled under the dim streetlight, quickly wiped her eyes with her thin right hand and then looked up.

From Liu Dong's perspective, under the bright streetlight, he could clearly see the deep marks of time on the old woman's face, her dark and thin cheeks, high cheekbones, and deep wrinkles on her forehead, all indicating that she had endured the hardships of life and the ravages of time.

"Are you talking to me, young man?" She looked around and, seeing no one else, carefully examined the young man standing in front of her, then asked cautiously.

"Yes, Grandma! It's almost dark, why aren't you going home?" Liu Dong asked with a smile. Having grown up in the countryside, he understood the difficulties of rural life, so his face was full of kindness.

Hearing his words, the old woman suddenly sighed deeply, her worried expression becoming even more pronounced, and her eyes, which had just been crying, welled up with tears again. She instinctively hugged the small blue-and-white bundle in her arms tighter.

"If you have any difficulties, you can tell me. Maybe I can help!" Liu Dong said kindly.

The old woman looked up at him instinctively. She had been in the city for two days, and apart from speaking to people when buying things, no one had offered to help her.

Moreover, although the young man in front of her didn't look wealthy, she felt a sense of security from him. After enduring so many rejections and feeling bitter, she couldn't help but share her troubles with Liu Dong.

It turned out that the old lady was from a small village called Liujiayao in the suburbs of Quancheng. Her surname was Jia, and her ancestors for three generations had been honest farmers. Her husband's ancestors, however, had some background, with a high-ranking official during the Qianlong era. But the family had fallen on hard times and returned to their hometown.

Although the family no longer had the glory of their ancestors, they managed to live a decent life thanks to her husband's carpentry skills and a few acres of land.

However, the family's problems began with the education of their children. The three children, whom they had raised with great effort, were not filial. They divided the land and property between them, leaving the old couple homeless.

Although the villagers criticized the children's behavior and the village committee tried to mediate, it was ultimately a family matter, and outsiders couldn't intervene. After several failed attempts, the village gave up.

In the end, the village found an old, unoccupied house for the old couple to live in. Thanks to the husband's carpentry skills and the villagers' help, they didn't have to worry about food and drink.

But as the saying goes, "Heaven has unpredictable weather, and people have unexpected misfortunes." When one is down, even drinking cold water can cause problems.

One afternoon, after finishing his carpentry work and preparing to go home, the old man suddenly collapsed, foaming at the mouth. The villagers rushed him to the county hospital, where he was diagnosed with hypertension.

According to the hospital bill, just the hospitalization fee alone was 30,000 yuan, and with medication and other expenses, it would cost at least 100,000 yuan.

100,000 yuan is a huge sum, even for city dwellers with decent incomes, let alone villagers with an average annual income of less than 5,000 yuan.

The old lady, who was almost destitute, couldn't come up with such a large sum. Fortunately, the villagers helped her borrow money from almost every household, and they managed to gather 10,000 yuan. The doctors, moved by their plight, allowed the old man to be admitted to the hospital.

However, the medical expenses were a major problem. Fortunately, the antique market had been booming in recent years, and antique dealers often visited the village. This reminded the old lady of the calligraphy and books her husband had cherished, which were said to be family heirlooms. When they were driven out of their home, the old man had taken only these items.

With a glimmer of hope, the old lady showed these items to a few antique dealers who came to the village, but they couldn't determine their authenticity and offered only a few hundred yuan, far below her expectations.

Later, a kind antique dealer, moved by her story, suggested she try the antique market in Quancheng, where her items might fetch a higher price to cover the medical expenses.

Thus, the old lady took a village tractor and traveled dozens of kilometers to Quancheng. Although she found the antique market in the city center, none of the dealers were willing to offer a high price, and the highest offer was around 5,000 yuan.

5,000 yuan was a significant amount, but it was far too little for the old lady, who needed a large sum to save her husband. She kept the items and stayed in the city, hoping to find a way to raise the remaining money. If she couldn't, the hospital would evict them.

"If he goes, I don't want to live either!" The old lady's eyes welled with tears, and her face showed deep sorrow.

The pain of losing a loved one was the greatest sorrow, and it was a true reflection of the old lady's feelings.

Hearing her story, Liu Dong sighed deeply. If her husband died, the old lady would lose her only means of support. Living in pain might be worse than death. No wonder she had thoughts of suicide.

"Grandma, I'll buy your items. How about 150,000 yuan?" Liu Dong said without hesitation.

In the past, he might have given her a few hundred yuan out of sympathy, but now that he had money, 150,000 yuan, though a lot, was not a significant amount for him.

"Are you serious, young man?" The old woman's face showed shock and intense excitement, her eyes still wet with tears, and her body trembling.

"Of course, come with me!" Liu Dong parked his car, led the old woman to an ATM at a nearby bank, and took out his bank card from his pocket. After inserting it and entering the password, he checked the balance, which showed 3,605,500 yuan. Besides his own savings of over 100,000 yuan, the rest was from selling the snuff bottle that afternoon.

Seeing the number, although he had known it before, Liu Dong felt a surge of excitement when he saw the money in his bank account.

After taking a deep breath to calm himself, Liu Dong pressed the withdrawal button. It took him about five minutes to withdraw 150,000 yuan in several transactions.

"Grandma, count it!" Although it was the first time he had handled such a large sum, Liu Dong quickly handed the money to the old lady, who was visibly nervous and excited.

"Young man, there's no need to count it. Thank you so much! You've saved our lives!" The old lady's eyes welled with tears, and she trembled as she knelt before Liu Dong.