In fact, to be honest, the old man's son had no complaints against the two old men in his heart.
The moment he learned that his son had an accident, his eyes went dark for a moment.
only......
The two old men were none other than his parents. Besides being angry for a while, what else could he do?
He couldn't even express his anger in front of them.
...
The old lady sat blankly on the bed for a long time.
"......It was my fault."
she murmured.
"It was my fault......"
"If it weren't for me..."
…
"mom!"
The old man's son shouted uncontrollably.
The next second, as if he realized that he was out of control, the man took a deep breath.
"Mom, stop talking."
The man's voice was deep.
"None of us want this to happen..."
"……do not talk……"
"Dad, look at Mom."
"I... Lele..."
For a moment, the man really couldn't say that he had to deal with his son's death.
…
The old man nodded understandingly.
"Go ahead."
"Your mother has me here."
…
The man left.
But the unnatural atmosphere in the ward did not dissipate when the man left.
The old lady lowered her eyes.
The old man was also silent.
…
After a long time, the old man put his hand on the old lady's back and patted her gently.
"We are sorry for the children."
"I know you feel guilty and regretful."
"Me too."
"...but don't show it in front of the children next time."
"Otherwise... wouldn't it be like reminding them again and again... of the fact that Lele left?"
…
The behavior of his son and daughter-in-law made the old man realize the harm his actions had caused to them.
They deliberately suppressed their emotions.
Return home again.
Nothing has changed.
All furnishings.
Including the little plum tree in the yard.
In a daze, they seemed to see a small figure beside the plum tree.
Not as tall as a plum tree.
The little figure grinned at them.
He vowed that he would soon be taller than this little plum tree...
For this reason, children who don’t like to drink milk are willing to drink it every day.
…
The old lady walked over involuntarily.
The outstretched fingertips only touched a mass of coldness.
What a small figure...
absolutely not.
…
At that moment, the old lady bent down in discomfort.
…
The old man walked to the old lady's side silently.
He reached out and gently stroked the old lady's rickety back.
Once upon a time.
Conveying silent comfort.
…
The old lady's eyes regained focus.
Then she looked stunned.
"……Why?"
…
"What's wrong?"
The old lady's too "normal" low voice made the old man curious.
…
"look."
The old lady knelt down.
"What?"
The old man also squatted down.
He looked ahead.
But he didn't find anything special that the old lady had shown before.
…
"Nothing at all."
The old lady's words made the old man's eyebrows twitch uncontrollably.
Why did you tell him to look at nothing?
The old woman was really hit hard, so she was in a very bad mental state.
The old man couldn't hide his eyes and looked at the old lady with worry.
…
"Yeah, nothing."
The old lady became a little excited.
She grabbed the old man with both hands.
"How come there is nothing?"
"This place should have the branch that Lele picked up!"
"This is where we inserted it before!"
…
"But look!"
The old lady opened her eyes wide.
"It's gone!"
…
When the old lady said this, the old man also thought about the tree branch.
He glanced around the plum trees.
indeed……
"Gone……"
…
"Have you unplugged it?"
The old lady looked at the old man.
The implication was that she had not touched the branches.
If she didn't do this in this house, then the most likely person to do it is the old man.
…
"No."
The old man shook his head.
"Why should I pull it out?"
I just thought it was a branch picked up by a child.
Children like it.
Although they found a "fake" substitute in order not to disappoint their children.
But as for the "authentic product", they all agreed that it should be kept.
It was so good, why did he go back on his word and pull out the branch?
…
"It's not you..."
The old lady did not doubt the old man's words.
"Who is that……"
"Lele...?"
Thinking of Lele, the old lady's temporarily diverted attention returned to the fact that made her extremely sad.
The old lady's mouth opened slightly.
No more sound came out.
…
The old man sighed silently.
Soon, he tried to cheer up.
"Maybe it was blown away by the wind?"
"Some time ago, was it very windy for a few days?"
…
"……Have it?"
The old lady murmured.
Blow away in the wind?
It's not impossible...
A single branch is weak...
But there are plum trees blocking the branches.
Or was it blown away by the wind?
She couldn't remember if there had been such a strong wind in the past days...
…
"Then there is no other reason..."
The old man shook his head, "Forget it, the reason doesn't matter anymore."
"It's just a branch. If you lose it, you'll lose it."
…
"But……"
The old lady frowned.
That's the kid Lele...
…
"Lele is taking care of this plum tree."
Without the old lady having to say it explicitly, the old man already knew what his wife was going to say.
He reached out and gently touched the bark of the plum tree.
"He didn't even notice that branch."
They were worried that it would be strange when Lele came back and found that the branches of a plum tree a few days ago had suddenly turned into a small tree.
They thought of their words.
Unexpectedly, Lele accepted their introduction to Plum Tree without any doubt.
He is indeed a child.
After being surprised, they breathed a sigh of relief.
They don't want the child to feel like they cheated on him.
I don’t want to let my children down either.
If the child is willing to accept the plum tree, it is naturally the best outcome.
…
Moreover, nothing they worried about happened.
The child Lele didn't notice the branch next to the plum tree at all.
Maybe he noticed it but didn't notice it?
they do not know.
But since things are progressing in the direction they want, they don't need to worry about the details.
…
The old lady was stunned for a moment.
Then nodded.
yes.
…
The old lady stopped talking.
The old man didn't speak either.
They all need time... to let them... not to say forgive themselves... but to stop themselves from getting into trouble.
Their grandson is no longer here.
This tragedy cannot be reversed.
No matter what they do.
At least……
They can no longer cause more trouble to their son and daughter-in-law...