Chapter 26: Mother

Chapter 26: Chapter 26: Mother

The bus finally came to a stop.

Xi Yunxui stood and adjusted the small backpack hanging from her shoulder before carefully stepping down.

The backpack was tiny.

In fact, it was the only bag the original Xi Yunxui owned.

There were probably better bags somewhere in the city, but Xi Yunxui had no idea where people bought them, and she hadn’t had the time to start exploring modern shopping.

Besides, this trip had been somewhat urgent.

She was already carrying everything she needed.

A few clothes.

Her phone.

Some personal items.

And the small brown envelope she had received from the daycare.

That was enough.

She stepped away from the bus and slowly looked around.

The scenery was completely different from the city.

There were no towering skyscrapers.

No endless streams of cars.

No bright advertisements covering every building.

Instead, there were fields stretching into the distance, rows of trees, small houses scattered around the countryside and narrow roads winding between them.

The air felt different too.

Xi Yunxui stopped.

Then she took a deep breath.

Very deeply.

Her chest rose slowly as she inhaled the fresh air.

Her eyes softened.

"Hmm..."

She breathed out.

"This is nice."

There was no smell of exhaust.

No constant honking.

No crowded streets.

Just the fragrance of soil, grass and trees.

For someone who had only been in the modern city for a short time, the countryside felt strangely peaceful.

Xi Yunxui smiled.

"So this is what modern villages are like."

She looked around again.

The scenery wasn’t exactly the same as the village from her previous life, but there were similarities.

The quietness.

The fields.

The simple houses.

The feeling that life moved more slowly here.

She adjusted her backpack and began walking.

The memories of the original Xi Yunxui soon became her guide.

She knew this road.

She remembered walking along it as a child.

She remembered the small grocery store near the intersection.

The old tree beside the stream.

The narrow path that led toward her mother’s house.

Xi Yunxui followed the memories naturally.

As she walked, she occasionally looked around with curiosity.

A farmer rode past on a small motorcycle.

She watched it disappear.

She still found it somewhat strange that these machines had completely replaced horses and carriages.

But she was slowly getting used to them.

At least motorcycles weren’t as terrifying as elevators.

She continued forward.

After several minutes, she turned onto a smaller path.

The houses became fewer.

The fields became more visible.

Then, at the end of the road, she saw a modest house.

Xi Yunxui slowed.

Her expression became thoughtful.

The memories inside her mind immediately confirmed it.

This was the house where the original Xi Yunxui’s mother lived.

Xi Yunxui stood quietly for a moment.

She didn’t know how the woman would react when she saw her.

After all, from her mother’s perspective, this was her daughter returning home after being away.

But for Xi Yunxui...

This was the home of someone whose daughter had already died.

She tightened her grip on the strap of her backpack.

Then she took a slow breath.

"Alright."

She walked toward the house.

Whatever happened next, she would handle it carefully.

After all, this wasn’t just a visit to the countryside.

It was her first time meeting the woman who had once been Xi Yunxui’s mother.

---

The little courtyard was quieter than Xi Yunxui had expected.

A few clay pots were arranged neatly along the wall, each containing different kinds of plants. Some were flowering, while others were simple herbs and vegetables.

In the middle of it all, a woman was crouched beside a small patch of soil.

She was tending to the plants with a small gardening tool, occasionally brushing loose soil away from the leaves.

And as she worked, she hummed softly.

Xi Yunxui had just stepped into the courtyard when she suddenly stopped.

Her eyes widened.

That tune...

Her fingers tightened around the strap of her backpack.

It wasn’t a popular song.

It wasn’t even something she had heard on television.

It was simply a little tune.

A tune her mother in her previous life used to hum whenever she was working around the house.

Whenever she cooked.

Whenever she washed clothes.

Whenever she was tending to flowers.

Xi Yunxui had heard it countless times as a child.

She hadn’t heard it in years.

Yet somehow, she remembered every note.

The woman in front of her continued humming, completely unaware that someone was standing behind her.

Xi Yunxui’s lips trembled slightly.

"Mother..."

The word escaped her almost as a whisper.

The woman immediately stopped humming.

She slowly turned around.

For a moment, she simply stared.

Then her eyes widened.

"Yunxui?"

She hurriedly put down the gardening tool and stood up.

"Yunxui!"

The woman walked toward her quickly, and then faster.

Before Xi Yunxui could even react, she was pulled into a warm embrace.

"My daughter!"

Her mother’s arms wrapped tightly around her.

"I’ve missed you so much!"

Xi Yunxui froze.

Her arms remained hanging by her sides.

She couldn’t move.

She couldn’t even speak.

Because the moment she looked closely at the woman holding her, something inside her seemed to crack.

She looked so much like her mother.

Not exactly.

There were differences in their facial features, their hairstyles and even their voices.

But there was something about her.

The warmth in her eyes.

The softness of her smile.

The way she held her daughter.

It was almost as if the woman standing before her was her mother’s younger sister.

For a moment, Xi Yunxui forgot that this wasn’t her mother.

She was simply looking at someone who reminded her painfully of the person she had lost.

Her eyes slowly became wet.

She tried to blink the tears away.

It didn’t work.

One tear slipped down her cheek.

Then another.

Her mother’s smile gradually faded.

"Yunxui?"

Xi Yunxui lowered her head.

She tried desperately to hold herself together.

She had always been the strong one.

In her previous life, she had three younger siblings depending on her.

Two brothers.

One sister.

After their parents were gone, she had become the person who had to worry about everything.

Food.

Clothes.

Shelter.

Their future.

There had been no room for weakness.

Even when she was exhausted, she had to smile.

Even when she was frightened, she had to pretend she wasn’t.

And crying?

Crying had almost become a luxury.

Who would comfort her if she cried?

Her siblings needed her.

So she endured.

Again and again.

Until she became so accustomed to carrying everything that she had almost forgotten what it felt like to be held by someone else.

But now...

Someone was holding her.

Someone was calling her daughter.

Someone who looked so much like the mother she had lost.

Xi Yunxui’s lips trembled.

Then the tears came harder.

Her shoulders shook.

Her mother didn’t ask what was wrong.

She simply held her tighter.

One hand gently patted her back.

"It’s alright."

Her voice was soft.

"Mother is here."

Those words broke the last bit of resistance Xi Yunxui had left.

She cried.

Quietly at first.

Then the tears continued falling until she could no longer stop them.

Her mother simply stood there and let her cry.

No questions.

No judgment.

Just a gentle hand patting her back.

After quite some time, Xi Yunxui finally calmed down.

Her mother carefully wiped the tears from her face.

"Come inside."

She took her daughter’s hand and led her toward the entrance of the house.

The house itself was simple.

Nothing compared to the enormous Huo residence.

But it was clean and comfortable.

Her mother made Xi Yunxui sit on a small chair near the entrance before disappearing inside.

A moment later, she returned with a glass of water.

"Drink this."

Xi Yunxui accepted it with both hands.

"Thank you, Mother."

She took a few sips.

Then she suddenly remembered what had just happened.

Her face became bright red.

She had cried.

And she had cried so much.

In front of her mother.

Xi Yunxui wanted nothing more than to find a hole and disappear into it.

Her mother noticed her flushed cheeks.

A smile immediately appeared on her face.

"What?"

Xi Yunxui looked away.

"Nothing."

"You were crying like a little girl just now."

"Mother..."

Her mother laughed softly.

"Look at you. You’re already embarrassed."

Xi Yunxui’s cheeks became even redder.

"I just..."

She couldn’t think of an excuse.

Her mother reached over and took both of her hands.

The teasing expression on her face slowly disappeared.

She looked into Xi Yunxui’s eyes.

"I’m sorry."

Xi Yunxui blinked.

Her mother squeezed her hands gently.

"I shouldn’t have let you go to the city alone."

Her voice carried a trace of guilt.

"It’s such an unfamiliar place, and you’re working so hard. I kept worrying that you wouldn’t be able to cope."

Xi Yunxui stared at her.

Her mother continued.

"If the work is too much for you, don’t force yourself."

"You can come home."

"Your mother may not have much, but I can still take care of you."

Xi Yunxui’s heart warmed.

She immediately shook her head.

"No."

Her mother looked surprised.

Xi Yunxui smiled.

"There’s no need to worry, Mother."

She squeezed her mother’s hands in return.

"I really enjoy my work now."

It wasn’t entirely a lie.

Perhaps the original Xi Yunxui had struggled with the work.

But for the current Xi Yunxui...

Being an all-works maid had somehow become an entirely different experience.

She had the system.

She had discovered modern life.

She had even begun to encounter cultivation.

And strangely enough, she was beginning to enjoy this new life.

Her mother studied her face for several seconds.

Then she smiled.

"Since you’re happy, Mother won’t stop you."

Xi Yunxui smiled back.

For the first time since waking up in this unfamiliar world, she felt something she hadn’t expected to feel.

She felt like she had truly come home.