Belated Love

By Lao Long

When we had a meal with that woman, my brother and I intended to express our disagreement at the table, but to be polite, we did not say it out loud and waited to talk to our father alone after the meal.

Everyone at the table chatted as we ate. My chatty aunt told us about the past of Father and that lady. It turned out that she had been Father’s first love.

When they were young, both of them worked for a well-digging team. During work break, they always talked a lot with each other. When they finished work

in the evening, they walked home together. Talking about this, Aunt said to Brother and me that our mother would have been that lady if our grandfather had not died early, which left Father in poverty. We both frowned at Aunt’s words.

The old lady, Father’s first love, afterwards married a soldier, who, after leaving the army, became a worker and died two years ago.

After the meal, Father came to ask for our opinions. Both of my brother and I were in a dilemma.Originally, we wanted to express our disapproval, but she was our father’s first love, how could we disapprove seeing them so deeply attached to each other?

There seemed to be no way out, so we only confessed to Father our worry that the lady might be too old to take care of him. Hearing this, Father assured us that she would be able to take good care of him. Hence the marriage between them was settled.

The old lady had a house in the neighboring county, and Father has his own pension, so he relocated to live with her.

A few months later, my brother and I made a special trip to visit Father in the neighboring county. We were surprised to see our old father who used to be dressed slovenly wearing new clothes that were clean and tidy and a top hat typical of elderly urban gentlemen. His face was rosy, and his eyes shining.

由于从小学到中学，学生从学习自然数到整数、分数再到有理数，接触的数越来越具有抽象性．作为学生刚步入中学便接触到的内容，大多数学生对有理数的掌握情况并不理想，而有理数是数与代数部分的基础内容，是日后学习无理数和实数的根基．所以，如何更好地配备有理数部分的例题，使学生真正理解并掌握有理数显得尤为重要．

My father turned eloquent and excited when talking about his life after the relocation. He told us that his new wife made three nutritionally balanced meals for him every day and bathed his feet before going to bed every night. As he talked, his face was beaming. ◆

(From New Horizon,September 2017. Translation:Chen Jiani)

当初母亲辞世时，我和弟弟赞同父亲找后老伴，是想让父亲找一个年龄小些、能够伺候他的老太太，可是谁能想到，父亲看中的后老伴和他同龄，而且看上去比他还要老。

在饭桌上，我和弟弟想当场表明观点，不同意父亲找这个老太太，但碍于礼貌和情面，我们没有说，想等饭后单独和父亲说。

开始吃饭了，大家一边吃饭一边聊天，表姑是个爱说爱笑、口无遮拦的人，说着说着，表姑说起父亲和这个老太太年轻时的事情。原来，老太太是父亲年轻时的初恋情人。那时，两人都在机井队干活，休息时，总是挤在

一起有说不完的话；晚上收工时，也是结伴走回家。说到这里，表姑指着我和弟弟说，要不是当年你爷爷去世早，你家穷，你们的妈就是这个老太太。表姑的话让我和弟弟都皱起了眉，心里非常不爽。

那位老太太后来嫁了个军人，军人退伍后当了工人，两年前也辞世了。

饭后，父亲过来征求我和弟弟的意见，我们为难了。本来我们想说不同意，但老太太是父亲的初恋情人，两个人情深意切，怎么能不同意啊。

没办法，我们只好对父亲说，老太太也老了，怕照顾不了你。父亲马上拍胸脯保证说，老太太能照顾好他。就这样，父亲和老太太的事定下来了。

老太太在邻县县城有套小楼房，父亲就搬过去住。父亲有工资，两个老人生活在一起。

几个月后，我和弟弟专程去邻县县城看父亲。初见之时，我和弟弟大吃一惊，我们的父亲与以前相比判若两人，穿着干净整洁的新衣服，戴着城里有身份的老头戴的礼帽，全然没有以前邋里邋遢的样子，脸色红润不少，眼睛也亮闪闪的。

谈及日常生活，父亲兴奋地说个不停，说老太太按营养给他搭配做一日三餐，晚上睡觉前给他洗脚泡脚，幸福之情溢于言表。◆