A Mother’s Love and a Father’s Secret: A Short Story

Some people on the street have succumbed to slumber. Whether it is the weather or something in their hearts, Yingzi and her daughter Juanzi are lying in bed, gazing at the dark ceiling in a trance. They recall the last words of the old day. Daughter Juanzi cuddled her head and darted into her mother’s arms to escape the thunderclap after a flash of white lightning. When the thunder subsided, she blinked her watery furry eyes and said: Mom, can I wear a white shirt tomorrow, please? Aunt Wang said that Juanzi looked like a little white dove when she ran in a white shirt. Mom, can I wear it just for one day tomorrow? Mom! Juanzi held her mother’s face in both hands and shook it. Only then did Yingzi snap out of it. Huh? Okay. Who said that Juanzi is like a little white dove? Aunt Wang! Juanzi said sweetly. Yes! Dad just wants to dress up his precious daughter like a beautiful little white dove. Yingzi looked at her daughter Juanzi. Yes. Juanzi whispered in her mother’s ear, and said mysteriously, “My father treats me very well!” Dad said that when I grow up, he will make a lot of lovely flowered shirts for me! Do you miss dad? Yingzi kissed Juanzi. Of course! I miss my dad so much. Juanzi said tenderly, and rubbed her small round face against her mother’s face. Suddenly, she exclaimed loudly, Mom, you are crying. Yingzi hastily pretended to be calm while sniffing, while wiping her eyes and face blurred by tears with her hands.

Juanzi’s father came home during the rainstorm last time and discussed with his mother to make a shirt for Juanzi. Mom wants to make a flowered shirt for Juanzi. Girls love beauty and fancy clothes. Dad said that Juanzi would look best in a white shirt! Like a little white dove. Mom wanted to say something else, but Dad hugged Juanzi in his arms and kissed him first, saying, I know Juanzi likes to wear white shirts, right? Juanzi said softly in her father’s arms, I do like to wear white shirts. I want to be a lovely little white dove. Make a pigeon whistle and soar high into the blue sky, fly, fly, fly into the blue sky to pick a lot of stars for mom and dad! Then take Mom and Dad to go boating on the moon. Row, row, row.

Making white shirts for Juanzi, Yingzi still couldn’t accept it mentally. Is it suitable for little girls to wear white shirts at home? Wearing a white shirt is… the word came to her mind, but she didn’t say it. She turned her face and saw tears in his eyes. Moreover, he deliberately avoided and dodged, not daring to face her squarely. She suddenly felt that he was a little abnormal, he had never been like this before? She always felt that he had something on his mind or was hiding something from her. That night, Juanzi made an exception to sleep with her father. Father and daughter had fun. They didn’t know when they fell asleep. After the rooster crowed twice, Juanzi’s father was leaving. He went out and came back to kiss Juanzi on the face. He dawdled and chattered, forgetting things. When he got to the end, he specially adjusted the quilt for Juanzi before going out.

　　Encountering such a thunderstorm and heavy rain, Yingzi felt quite complicated. It’s fear and love. It’s fear, but it’s a little love; it’s love, but it’s a little fear. I don’t know what’s wrong? This has become an old problem, and I hope for a while that the thunderstorm and heavy rain will be more severe and last longer. After a while, he cursed the damn weather to stop quickly. Why is it so endless? In my mind, I always see him staggering and walking in the thunderstorm. He was soaked by the heavy rain, his coat and trousers were tightly wrapped around his body, one foot was deep and the other was shallow, the shoes and socks were full of rainwater, and his feet were soaked in the shoes. slipped, slipped and fell while walking, and rolled into a clay figurine… After a while, he crawled in from under the barbed wire and was groping into the gun tower… Always thinking about it, but didn’t dare to go too
　　far think. After thinking about it, Yingzi was confused. I don’t know when the thunderstorm outside stopped. Da da da da da, suddenly, in her sleep, she vaguely heard a sound like a machine gun in the distance. She broke out in a cold sweat. Especially those with sweaty soles and palms. My heart skipped a beat. I couldn’t hold it down even if I pressed my hands hard. Her hair stood up one by one, and she simply sat up and listened with her ears sideways, but she didn’t hear anything. She subconsciously touched her daughter Juanzi’s head, and the child was sleeping soundly. She breathed a long sigh of relief. So I comforted myself and said: Maybe I am dreaming. God bless you, be safe. But no matter how much I relieved myself and comforted myself, I was always flustered. His mind is full of images.
　　Suddenly, a disturbing siren disturbed the quiet town. Japanese police cars roared past like locusts. Teams of Japanese military police with bayonets on their shoulders followed.
　　Bang! Bang! Bang! Attention, something big happened! A middle-aged man, like a clown in a costume drama, was a middle-aged man who maintained the meeting, knocking on the gong and shouting along the street. Last night, the Longshan martial arts team attacked the imperial army in the turret, killing two imperial soldiers, and one member was killed downstairs in the turret. If you find suspicious persons, report them as soon as possible, otherwise, you will be punished as gangsters!
　　People on the street looked terrified and flustered. Those who have trouble hurried to the place where the accident happened. As they walked, a group of people stood still. Just look ahead: each one looks like a duck with its neck choked. Follow people’s line of sight. I saw:
　　a little white pigeon landed on a pool of blood.