The brigade captain of Chenjia Village shouted for Gloria Whitfield to come answer the phone. "Hurry up! That boy Victor Whitfield is calling!"
Gloria was in the back yard, tidying up the vegetable patch. The second she heard him, she put down the little hoe in her hand, washed up quick, and strode after him without wasting a breath.
At the captain’s house, she waited about five minutes before the phone finally rang.
Gloria sat down by the table, reached for the receiver neat and brisk. "Hello, is that Victor Whitfield?"
"Mom, it’s me. Helena Whitfield is pregnant. You need to come over as soon as you can."
"When’s the baby due?"
"Probably June."
"Alright."
With a sharp click, mother and son hung up at the exact same moment, smooth as if they’d planned it.
Back in Chenjia Village, Gloria went straight home and harvested every last vegetable in her plot. She gave most of it away to the neighbors and the brigade captain, kept one share for herself, and after lunch, tied a basket of greens to the back of her bicycle and took it to her daughter’s place.
When Serena Whitfield saw her mother coming, she ran over with her long braid swinging behind her and happily took the basket.
The mother and daughter sat cross-legged on the kang, eating the roasted snacks Serena brought out.
"Mom, why’d you bring over so many vegetables?"
"Your sister-in-law’s pregnant. I’m leaving tomorrow. If anything comes up on your end, we’ll keep in touch."
Serena slapped her thigh, grinning from ear to ear. "My brother’s finally going to be a dad, and he’s already thirty." She and her brother were twins, a boy and a girl. Her own daughter was already eight, while her brother had only just gotten married. For a long time, she’d honestly thought he might stay single all his life.
He’d been in the army more than ten years, only came home once every few years, and stayed unmarried the whole time. Then last year he called to say he was getting married. Who would’ve thought a baby would come this fast?
Serena practically wanted to pack her mother off to the military district that very second. "Mom, don’t worry about things here. If something happens, I can talk it over with Auntie too. You just stay there with my brother and sister-in-law and help with the baby."
As she spoke, Serena climbed down from the kang. A little while later, she came back holding fifty yuan wrapped in red paper. "This is a gift for the little one. Mom, give it to my sister-in-law for me when you get there."
"Alright." Gloria took the red packet and tucked it into her pocket. Brothers and sisters looking out for each other like that was exactly what parents liked to see.
The two of them went on talking, saying the sort of close, honest words only family could say. "If your marriage can go on, then go on. If it can’t, bring Vivienne Thornton home with you. I raised you for over twenty years. I can raise the two of you for the rest of my life too."
When Serena Whitfield gave birth to her daughter, the labor had been rough. To this day, she still hadn’t had a second child, and her in-laws had never been happy about it.
Gloria Whitfield was worried that once she left, Serena’s husband’s family might start getting bold, so before going, she made sure to warn her daughter a few things.
Serena let out a cold little laugh. “Don’t worry. They can’t do a thing to me. If one day I get fed up, then we’ll talk.”
Seeing her daughter had a clear mind and her own plans, Gloria felt a bit more at ease. Not long after that, she got on her bicycle and left.
She didn’t head straight home. Instead, she stopped by the supply co-op, bought peanut candy and canned goods, then went to Old Aunt Chen’s house, which was also the home of her closest friend.
Beatrice Harmon looked at Gloria in surprise. “Sister-in-law, what brings you here at this hour?”
Beatrice, her elder brother, and Gloria were all from Chenjia Village. The three of them had grown up together. Later, Gloria and her brother had thrown themselves into the revolution. Beatrice had wanted to go too, but the two of them had refused. They both said the Chen family had to leave someone behind to keep the bloodline going. They were not saints, not some great selfless heroes. They had joined the revolution because life had cornered them. When the fighting had already come right up to your doorstep, how could you still act like a coward? All they wanted was that if they won, their families might one day live in a world without war.
The two old friends went inside hand in hand, and Gloria told her about Helena Whitfield’s pregnancy.
Beatrice lit up at once, happy like an older version of Serena. “That’s wonderful news! The Chen family’s getting another new member.”
“My brother would be so happy he’d laugh his coffin lid clean off, hahahaha!”