Chapter 5 Brothers (2)

  Since the broadcast of "The New Legend of Madame White Snake", Sichuan TV station would play this drama every summer for several years. Every time when the theme song of "The New Legend of Madame White Snake" was played, families with TVs would gather around the TV set, and those without TVs would run to neighbors' homes with TVs. Although Xiao Lie liked watching cartoons at that time, he still liked the black-and-white TV's new Madame White Snake a little more.

  One time, Li Yang accidentally broke a bowl and was severely scolded by his father-in-law. As punishment, he was not allowed to watch TV and had to kneel until the end of "The Legend of the White Snake". When he heard the show being broadcast on TV, he couldn't sit still.

  "Li Lie, Li Lie." Li Yang called out as he saw little Li Lie carrying a bowl to deliver food to his father.

  "What's going on?" Li Lie asked.

  "Aren't you the one who said you wanted a BMW last time?"

  Note: Bī má pō er, a dialect in Bai Long Town, Jian Ge County, Sichuan Province, refers to a type of green beetle that drills holes in willow trees in the summer and feeds on tree bark and branches. Some rural children like to catch them, tie a thread around their legs, and then fly them like kites.

  Yes.

  "Then I'll take you to catch cicadas."

  "Just a moment, I want to watch TV." Li Lie was clearly unmoved.

  "You help me cut the grass and I'll make a kite for you later." Li Yang raised the stakes while also stating his purpose.

  "Really? Don't tease me." It's clear that playing is quite attractive to Little Li Lie.

  "You're a turtle's son." Li Yang said.

  Li Yang got up and ran to Li's father, saying that he would go cut grass with Li Yang today. Although Little Li was only six years old at the time, he could still help out a bit with things like cutting grass.

  After hearing Li Yang's words, Li Father did not object. So Li Yang took his younger brother Li Lie to the neighbor's house to watch "The New Legend of Madame White Snake". After the TV series was over, the two brothers ran to the mountain and started cutting grass quickly.

  The next day, Li Yang really caught a butterfly and made a small kite for Little Li Lie.

  That summer, Li Yang saw a few snakes and didn't think of killing them to make barbecue. What if that snake was a snake that practiced Taoism? Wouldn't he have a beautiful and capable wife for several lifetimes? And she would also know magic spells, so they wouldn't have to worry about food or clothing.

  One afternoon, two brothers bounced back home from school, when they were still over 300 meters away from home, their neighbor's second uncle stopped them and said: "Xiao Yang, Xiao Lie, your dad is quarreling with your mom. Be careful."

  The second uncle finished speaking and led the cow away.

  When Li Lie saw the water buffalo, his small heart didn't think of going to mediate, because for him, parents fighting was already a common occurrence at home. His mother had never won before, and his father always made unreasonable demands. Every time after being beaten, his mother's clothes would be torn apart, and there would be more wounds on her body. After a long time, in Xiao Lie's memory, his mother didn't have a single piece of good skin left, and those clothes were all patched up with one patch after another.

  "I'm done for."

  Just as they were approaching the door, their mother called out and rushed into the side room. Before long, she picked up a bottle of pesticide and shouted in front of Xiao's father:

  "You're a beast, without humanity. At first I regretted marrying you, now I won't suffer like this anymore."

  Then Li Lanfang drank a bottle of DDVP in front of Xiao's father.

  The two brothers did not expect such an ending, after several seconds, when Xiao Yang saw his mother vomiting continuously on the ground, and a strong smell of pesticide was emitted in the air.

  Li Yang, like a furious beast, picked up a stone from the ground and hurled it at his father. This time he was no longer afraid of him. A sorrowful anger had been building up inside him, as if his own world was about to collapse. It was a dark feeling that shrouded his heart. Although he had once thought of killing his father, it was just a fleeting thought. The long-held anger finally erupted from his soul at that moment.

  Li's father apparently did not realize the consequences would be like this, and for a long time Li Lanfang's weakness made him fearless in this family. This time when he saw Xiao Lanfang's actions, he suddenly felt a sense of fear. When Li Yang threw that stone at him, he had not reacted yet.

  Li Lie's eyes widened and he burst into tears, running towards Xiao Lanfang while wailing. At just six years old, Li Lie didn't know what to do, but he knew his mother had drunk pesticide, which could kill many insects with just a little water added, and if she drank a whole bottle, then his mother would die.

  When Little Li's heart knew that his mother was about to leave, apart from fear, sadness and crying, he had no other way. He saw in cartoons that gods could bring people back to life, but he didn't know where the gods were, so he couldn't bring his mom back to life.

  "Mom, don't die! Mom, don't die!"

  Li Lie shouted loudly, kneeling in front of his mother and seeing her moaning painfully on the ground, but he didn't know what to do.

  Xiao Lanfang saw her two sons, and suddenly a boundless sorrow rose in her heart. If I leave, what will happen to Li Yang and Li Lie? They are still young, Li Lie is so young that he doesn't know how to take care of himself, he's only one year old, but he's so obedient, so well-behaved, he can sing songs, he can make her laugh, but now she has to leave her two sons behind. Xiao Lanfang's tears began to fall continuously, her hands tightly grasped Li Lie's hand, holding him in her arms, at that moment, all the grievances and reluctance surged up, flowing down from her eyes.

  "Li Yang!" Xiao Lanfang cried out in pain.

  Li Yang, who was facing his father Li, heard the call of his mother and ran to Xiao Lanfang's side in tears, then threw himself into his mother's arms.

  The two brothers suddenly had a feeling that this might be the last time they were in their mother's arms. Eleven-year-old Li Yang understood more than his younger brother that their mother was about to leave them, she would be buried in the ground, and he and his brother would never see her again.

  At that moment, Li Yang wanted time to slow down. He would listen from now on, he would listen to his mother's words, and wouldn't make her unhappy again. But then he hated himself even more, for not being able to protect his mother and little brother. He hated himself. With one arm around his mother and the other around little Li Lie, the three of them hugged each other tightly.

  "Li Lie, sing another song for Mom, 'The Best in the World is Mom', okay?" Xiao Lanfang's voice gradually weakened.

  Mom, don't say that anymore, even if I sing to you every day, all the time, and every moment, I'm willing. I just want you to live well and not leave us.

  "In the world, only mothers are good. Children with mothers are like precious gems, embracing their mother's bosom, happiness is endless. In the world, only mothers are good. Children without mothers are like weeds, even if they enter their mother's bosom, happiness is still unattainable."

  When Li Lie sang in a childish and trembling voice, tears streaked across his small face.

  "There is only one good mother in the world, a child with a mother is like a precious treasure. Throwing oneself into mother's arms, happiness cannot be enjoyed. Without a mother, one will suffer. Leaving mother's arms, where can happiness be found?"

  "Li Yang, you must take good care of your brother from now on, you have to take good care of him." Xiao Lanfang said tightly grasping the hands of her two sons.

  Li Yang nodded his head while crying nonstop.

  "Li Lie ah, you must listen to your brother's words, you must listen to your brother's words."

  "Mom, waaahhh..." Little Li Lie only knew to hug his mother's body and cry nonstop, cry nonstop. As for Xiao Lanfang's words, they were etched in his young heart one word at a time in that instant.

  If there is a god, take me with my mom, don't let us be apart, don't leave her alone and lonely, nor us. Wherever mom goes, we will go too.

  The cries of the two children alarmed the neighbors, and when the aunt from next door arrived at the Li's home, the intense smell of pesticide in the air hinted at what had happened.

  Second Aunt saw Xiao Lanfang vomiting non-stop on the ground, with two helpless little children, while Li Father was watching indifferently. At this point, she couldn't ignore it anymore. She called her husband and asked Second Uncle to carry Xiao Lanfang to the hospital. As she passed by Li Father's side, she didn't care about his tall and strong build, stretched out her hand and slapped him hard on the face.

  "Are you still human?" Second Aunt shouted angrily: "If Lanfang has an accident, get out of Mengjiawan. Hurry up and go to the hospital with them."

  Li's father was slapped and then followed Erniang to run away.

  Second Aunt Li took Yang and Lie and ran to the hospital. As soon as Xiao Lanfang's matter was known, everyone in the village wanted to beat up Father Li. In everyone's eyes, although Father Li was a bit of a scoundrel, Xiao Lanfang was a very kind person who was always willing to help others with their affairs.

  In the small clinic in the village, the doctor gave Xiaolan Fang a gastric lavage and an emetic injection, then administered an antidote injection, after which he told Li's father that they must send the person to the town as soon as possible.

  Seeing the tractor carrying their mother rushing to the town, Li Yang and Li Lie were hugged by Auntie Er in her arms. The two brothers' eyes were swollen like peaches. Auntie Er was heartbroken, touched the heads of the two children, and took them back home.

  That night, Second Aunt brought her daughter Xu Jiadai to the Li's house. They were worried that something unexpected might happen between the two brothers, but what was strange to the mother and daughter was that except for not talking much, everything seemed normal. What they didn't know was that behind everyone's back, when Li Lie thought of crying, Li Yang said to Li Lie:

  "What are you crying about? Mom won't die, why are you crying? If you cry again, I'll spank you."

  When Little Li Lie heard his brother Li Yang say that, he didn't dare to cry anymore. He held back all his grievances in his mouth and when tears welled up in his eyes, he made a low humming sound with his mouth.

  Li Yang picked up a bucket of pig feed, this time he didn't ask his brother to hold the lantern, and poured the feed into the feeding trough. The bucket fell to the ground with a clang, but he didn't pick it up immediately, instead covering his face and crying. He could feel the scorching heat welling up in his eyes, but he dared not let out a sound in the darkness. Li Yang struggled to hold back his voice in his throat.

  The gentle breeze at night blew beside him, blowing across his face and fingers. Was that Mom? Li Yang wondered.

  Is that Mom? Li Lie thought.

  The night sky, the stars are clearly printed in the sky, some big stars can be seen with the naked eye twinkling, I once heard my mother say that the stars were winking, but was it really my mother?

  Is that Mom?

  When Li Yang was quietly crying on one side of the pigpen, he didn't let himself make any sound because he was the eldest son and had to protect his mother and younger brother, so he couldn't cry.

  Little Li Lie crouched in the corner of the wall, the ground was a bit damp and cold. But he didn't dare to make any noise, even though tears were recklessly washing his small heart, a six-year-old child who still had a month before his birthday, he still remembered that on that day he could eat popsicles, but now little Li Lie no longer wanted popsicles, as long as mom was okay.

  Two brothers, in different places, not far apart, were doing the same thing, neither of them dared to make a sound.