Chapter 240: [My Mother] Two Extremes
Bai Cha kept her head lowered, remaining silent all along the way.
The school was not far from home, so the two walked the entire distance.
Passing by a bakery, Mother Han asked out of the blue, “Would you like some sponge cake? Should Mom buy a little for you?”
Bai Cha raised her head to look at her.
The woman’s face was brimming with softness and maternal affection.
Hesitating for a moment, Bai Cha nodded.
“Just a little is fine. Thank you, Mom.”
Mother Han’s smile turned visibly even more affectionate as she brought Bai Cha into the bakery and bought a pound of sponge cake.
Judging by the era and background here, this was indeed during Han Yingying’s early childhood.
Because the surrounding architecture still retained the aesthetic style of the years 2008 and 2009.
The sponge cake was an old-fashioned style as well, appearing a bit dry—likely because this bakery didn’t use many eggs.
The home’s location differed from the previous instance as well, set in an entirely different city.
They resided in an old-style residential compound, where the window glass possessed that dated blue tint.
At this moment, however, these buildings had not yet turned so dilapidated.
The compound comprised mere six-story structures, and they lived on the third floor in the eastern unit.
The interior was tidy and clean; since it was currently late morning, sunlight streamed across the balcony.
“Have one first, but don’t eat too many, or you won’t be able to finish your lunch later.”
Mother Han appeared completely normal.
Thus far, she had displayed zero trace of the paranoid obsession shown in the dream.
Bai Cha pinched a piece of sponge cake, nibbling it in small bites.
As she ate, she cast a hesitant glance toward Mother Han, who was busily moving about.
Mother Han detected her gaze almost instantaneously, turning her head to look over.
“What’s wrong?”
Her voice sounded exceedingly gentle as well.
“I’m sorry, Mom. I shouldn’t have written those things on the test paper.”
Bai Cha offered a quiet apology, lowering her head as one hand unconsciously picked at the cake in her grip.
Mother Han walked over, gently stroking her head and smoothing her hair.
“Ying-ying did nothing wrong, you know. It’s just that certain truths cannot be told to others.”
[Eek!]
[Holy shit?]
[Instant goosebumps all over my body.]
Bai Cha raised her head, looking at Mother Han with a touch of confusion.
“Why?”
“Because when certain truths are spoken aloud, they bring about unfortunate consequences.”
Smiling softly, Mother Han drew the sponge cake from Bai Cha’s hand, broke off a small piece, and offered it to Bai Cha’s lips.
Bai Cha parted her mouth and bit down on the cake, her face still wearing a clueless, innocent expression.
Mother Han resumed tidying up the room, washing a load of laundry and sweeping the floor.
Throughout the entire process, Bai Cha watched on in silence.
Sure enough, Mother Han’s condition had turned absurdly extreme.
This made matters tricky to handle.
How could she possibly make Mother Han accept the truth?
Regardless of the approach, however, the Dodder Vines had already been planted.
Her physical state right now wasn’t particularly great, reflecting her true personal condition.
Having worked continuously without pause for several days straight, Bai Cha felt thoroughly exhausted.
During lunch, she sensed it—she was running a fever.
No—or rather, it stemmed from a lack of energy inside her body.
Because only the most fundamental baseline of energy remained within the Dodder Vines to sustain her vital signs, yet even this reserve would drain over time.
Thus, it manifested as physical issues beginning to surface across her body.
Bai Cha hadn’t intended to utter a word, yet Mother Han detected her anomaly almost instantaneously.
Reaching out directly to feel her forehead, she promptly retrieved a thermometer.
Bai Cha measured her temperature obediently.
Yet the fever shouldn’t be very high; she could sense it was at most around 37°C at the moment.
Five minutes later, the thermometer was drawn out, and Mother Han took a look.
“37°C. A slight fever. Mom will take you to the hospital.”
Bai Cha asked with hesitation, “Are we still going to class this afternoon then?”
“No more class! Ying-ying’s health is the most important!”
Mother Han’s current attitude toward school stood in absolute contrast to her demeanor back in the “Passing with Flying Colors” instance.
Back then, she had driven Han Yingying to study with near-demonic obsession.
Now, at the slightest hint of trouble, she pulled her from school directly.
Yet if Han Yingying were still present, would this be the dream mother she craved with all her heart?
In truth, minor ailments didn’t require a hospital visit at all, yet Mother Han remained intensely nervous, refusing even to let her walk on the ground and carrying her in her arms all the way to the hospital.
Bai Cha indicated several times that she could step down and walk on her own.
Mother Han replied every time: “It’s fine, Mom will carry you.”
Until Bai Cha spoke up once more.
“Mom, I’m really fine. Let me step down and walk.”
The smile on Mother Han’s face vanished in an instant.
She leaned close to Bai Cha.
“Why must you step down and walk on your own? Is there somewhere Mom hasn’t done well enough?”
Mother Han’s face pressed nearly flush against Bai Cha’s, their noses almost touching.
At such a close distance, Bai Cha could even catch the reflection of her own eyes in the other woman’s gaze.
Yet she failed to sense a single trace of warmth radiating from her body.
Ever since being picked up, she felt every bit as though she were being held by a stone statue.
“I just feel sorry for Mom. Mom is already so tired, yet you still have to carry me.”
A look of aggrieved hurt surfaced in Bai Cha’s eyes.
Mother Han restored her normal demeanor instantly.
Drawing distance from Bai Cha once more, she stroked her head with a smile.
“It doesn’t matter. Mom isn’t tired at all—for Ying-ying’s sake, nothing is too tiring for Mom.”
Bai Cha lowered her eyes, refraining from speaking further.
This was a small town where taxi rides were out of the question, but the hospital wasn’t very far from here either, and Bai Cha was brought to the hospital in short order.
The doctor conducted a brief inquiry and listened to Bai Cha’s heart rate.
“It’s fine. The child might simply have a slight fever from internal heat; prescribing some fever medicine will do.”
“Is that really all? Is there no need for further tests? Shouldn’t we run a full-body checkup?”
“Uh…” The doctor couldn’t help stealing a couple extra glances at Mother Han.
Truth be told, under normal circumstances, doctors were the ones suggesting full-body checkups, while family members were usually reluctant.
Particularly in a small town like this—let alone coming to a hospital—a fever like this would at most warrant picking up some medicine from a local clinic.
“It’s not impossible, though I personally feel there’s no real need for it. But if you feel uneasy, we can run a test—a complete blood count? Usually, if there’s any underlying issue, a complete blood count can pick it up.”
Mother Han nodded.
“Alright, let’s run a complete blood count first.”
Bai Cha couldn’t help putting on a bitter face.
“Mom, I don’t want to draw blood, it hurts…”
She tugged at Mother Han’s sleeve, and Mother Han hesitated briefly.
“No, this pain is something you must endure. We need to check if you have any other underlying problems.”
By all appearances, Mother Han maintained rather strict principles.
Her current approach to managing everything prioritized her daughter above all else, as long as it proved good for her daughter.
On that premise, whether it caused incidental harm to her daughter in the process proved entirely unimportant.
It remained the exact same old flaw as before.
Bai Cha had no choice but to go get tested.
And this test was no minor affair—the physical traits exhibited by her current body state yielded an exceptionally terrible result upon testing.
Even Bai Cha herself hadn’t anticipated this.
Holding the test results, the doctor looked at Mother Han with a grave expression.
“There are some issues with your daughter’s complete blood count. Further, more detailed examinations might be required, but our hospital’s equipment isn’t particularly advanced here. I suggest heading to the city for a checkup.”
Bai Cha paused, shocked, and Mother Han froze as well, her anxiety spiking even higher immediately after.
“Doctor, what kind of issue is it?”
