The atmosphere of Mi Ning in the room of the female manager was broken by the old woman, and the old woman was the most suitable to serve as the mourner, because she was old and hunched over, her limbs were sloppy, her face was crooked, and she was always rolling her eyes, looking at her like that, it was not so much the work of creation as a monster smeared with a letter pen.

How rare are the beautiful faces of creation left for us to admire. The labor, sorrow, and hunger of the world can change people's hearts and faces.

It is only when all kinds of troubles pass away and lose their control forever that the tumbling clouds dissipate, leaving a clear face.

Even if the face of the deceased is completely ossified, it often takes on the expression of a sleeping baby that has long been forgotten, and reverts to the appearance of a newborn.

The countenances were once again so calm, so gentle, that some of those who had known them from their joyful childhood knelt down beside the coffin, as if they had seen an angel descend from earth.

The shriveled old woman stumbled through the hallway and up the stairs, muttering and muttering in a slurred reply to the stewardess's scolding. At last she could not hold it any longer, so she stopped to catch her breath, and handed the lamp to Mrs. Corney, and rested herself for a while, and then tried to keep along, and her superior, who became more and more agile, went straight into the room where the sick woman lived.

It was an empty attic with a dim lamp at the end of the front. Another old woman waited by the bedside, and the doctor's apprentice stood by the fire.

"Mrs. Ke, it's cold at night." The stewardess walked in the door, and the young man said.

"It's cold indeed, sir." Mrs. Ke replied in the most modest tone, and bowed as she spoke.

"You should make a little better coal," the doctor said, grabbing rusty tongs and smashing a chunk of coal from the stove. "This kind of thing can't handle a cold night."

"That's what they bought from above," replied the stewardess, "they should at least keep us warm, and we're bad enough in these places." ”

The patient interrupted their conversation with a loud voice*.

"Yo." The young man turned his face toward the bedside, as if he had completely forgotten about the patient. "Mrs. Ke, there's no hope."

"There's no hope, is there?" The stewardess asked.

"I'd be surprised if he dragged on for more than two hours," the doctor said, focusing on the tip of a toothpick. "The whole system collapsed. Old woman, he's dozing off, isn't he? ”

The nurse leaned over to look at the bed and nodded affirmatively.

"As long as you don't make a mess, he might just go," said the young man, "and put the lamp on the floor, where she can't see." ”

The nurse did as she was told, and at the same time, she shook her head, meaning that this person would not die so easily. When she was done, she returned to the seat next to the other caretaker, and her companion had already returned to the room.

Mrs. Ke looked impatient, wrapped her scarf, and sat down under the bed.

The doctor sharpened his toothpick, stood motionless in front of the stove, and for about ten minutes he picked his teeth, and then he became more and more impatient, and he said a few kind words to Mrs. Co, and crept out.

They sat in silence for a while, and then the two old women got up from the side of the bed, curled up near the fire, and stretched out their crumpled hands to keep warm. The flames cast a white light on their withered faces, making their ugly appearance even more terrifying. They will talk in a low voice in this position.

"Did he say anything after I left?" The mourner asked.

"Without saying a word," replied another, "for a while he was pulling and twisting his arm, and I caught his hand, and in a short time she fell asleep." He didn't have a lot of energy, so I easily subdued him. ”

"The doctor told him to give him some hot wine, did you drink it?" The former asked.

"I wanted to pour it on her," replied the other, "but his teeth were so tight that his hands clung to the cup, and I couldn't do it, so I had to retract it, and drink it, which was not bad." ”

The two ugly creatures looked back apprehensively, and concluded that no one was eavesdropping, and leaned in to the fireplace again, giggling happily.

"I know in my heart," said the one who spoke first, "that he will come here anyway, and then he will make a haha." ”

"Well," replied another, "I've seen a lot more with my old eyes—hey, these old hands have touched it." I'll do it to her, dozens of times. ”

As she spoke, the old woman stretched out her fingers tremblingly, shook them triumphantly in front of her, and then put her hand into her pocket and fumbled with it, took out an old white-iron snuff box that had long since faded, and shook out a few snuff powders into the palm of her companion's outstretched hand. The two were being used, and the stewardess, who had been waiting for the dying man to wake up from his coma, came over and joined them in the fire, and she asked how long she would have to wait.

"Madame, it won't be long," said the second old woman, looking up at the patient's face. "None of us will not be able to wait for Lord Yama. Don't worry, don't worry. Lord Yama will be here soon to see us. ”

"Shut up, you crazy." The female steward said with a stern face, "You, tell me the truth, was she like this before?" ”

"It's a common thing." The first old woman replied.

"But never again," added another, "that is, he will wake up again at most—you have to be careful, ma'am, it won't last long." ”

"It doesn't matter how long or short it is," said the lady irritably, "she won't see me here even when she wakes up, so be careful, you two, and see that you dare to disturb me for no reason, and it is not my business to send all the people in the courtyard to the end at all, so I won't-say it." Be careful, you ghost old women, you really don't know each other. If you dare to fool me again, I'll clean you up at once, and that's the way it goes. ”

She was about to hurry out of the room when the two women turned towards the bed, and suddenly they shouted in unison, and Mrs. Ke could not help but look back. It turned out that the patient sat up straight and held out his arm to them.

"Who's that?" He shouted in a hollow voice.

"Shhh A woman leaned over and said to her, "Lie down, lie down." ”

"I'm never going to lie down again." The patient struggled and said, "I have to tell him." Come up here. Closer. Let me tell you quietly. ”

He grabbed the buttens's shoulders and pressed them into a chair beside the bed, and was about to speak, when he turned his head to look again, and saw that the two old women were bowing forward, in a posture very much like that of a group of anxious listeners.

"Get them away," the patient said groggyly, "quick, quick." ”

The two shriveled old women let out a loud cry of sorrow together, and began to pour out countless pitiful lamentations, that the good man who was so sick that he did not even know his closest friend, and they made all kinds of assurances that they would never leave him.

At this time, their boss pushed the two of them out, closed the door, and returned to the bedside. When the two old women had been driven out, their tone changed, and they shouted through the keyhole that the old fellow was drunk, which was not impossible, except for a moderate dose of opium prescribed by the doctor, and she was tormented by the last tasting of the watered wine, which the two venerable old women, out of kindness, had secretly let her drink.

"Now you listen," said the dying old man aloud, as if struggling to rekindle a spark of life that was about to be extinguished. "It was in this room—in this bed—that I had served a man who, when she brought her into the nursery, had her feet scarred with her walking, covered with dust and blood. She brought a boy. Let me think about it – what year was that. ”

"It doesn't matter what year it is," said the disapprehensive listener, "what's wrong with her?" ”

"Alas," murmured the patient, returning to his previous lethargic state, "what is wrong with her?" - How did she - I remembered. She cried out, her body shaking violently, her face flushed, and her eyes bulging out—"I stole her things, I stole them." She's not cold yet—I tell you, she wasn't cold when I stole it. ”

"What did you steal?" The stewardess yelled as if she was shouting for help.

"This!" The patient covered the mouth of the opposite party with his hand and replied. "The only thing she has left. She needed clothes to keep out the wind and cold, and she needed something to eat, but she kept this firmly and kept it in her heart. I'm telling you, it's golden. Valuable gold that could be used to keep her alive. ”

"Gold!" The stewardess responded, and the patient fell backwards, and she leaned down impatiently. "Say, say, yes—what is it? Who's that? When was this? ”

"She told me to keep it safe," replied the patient,* "she entrusted me, and I was the only one by her side." The first time she showed me the thing around her neck, I had already stolen it in my mind. ”

"Know what?" The other person asked, "Say." ”

"The child really looks like his mother," the patient babbled, ignoring the question. "As soon as I saw his face, I could never forget it. Hard-working girl. Hard-working girl. She's still so young. What a tame little lamb. Wait, there's more to say. I haven't told you all yet, have I? ”

"No, no," replied the stewardess, bowing her head with all her might, catching every word uttered by the dying man, whose voice was getting more and more low. "Soon, it's too late."

"The mother," said the patient, speaking more forcefully than before, "the mother, as soon as the pain of death came to her, she whispered in my ear that as long as her baby was born alive and could grow up, that day would come, and he would not be ashamed to hear people mention his mother." "Whether it's a boy or a girl, in this messy world, you have to arrange a few good people for this child, you have to pity a lonely child, you can't leave it alone!" ’

"What's the child's name?"

"They call him Yongchang," replied the patient feebly, "I stole the gold jewelry, yes—"

"yes, yes—what is it?" The other party shouted.

She stooped down to the old woman urgently, wanting to hear her answer, and instinctively shrank back. The old man sat up slowly and stiffly again, his hands clutching the sheets, a few muffled sounds in his throat, and he collapsed on the bed without moving.

"It's hard." As soon as the door opened, two old women rushed in, one of whom said.

"At the end of the day, I didn't say anything." The female steward answered and walked out nonchalantly.

The two old women, apparently too busy preparing for their terrible duty, to do nothing, stayed behind, wandering around the corpse.