Chapter 16 Chapter Sixteen

one Father Feng made a calculation based on his financial situation: they only saved 2,000 yuan in six years, how long will he have to wait?He is thankful that he is in good health and can work for a few more years, even though he is already in his sixties.The gods were kind to him, and he got paid for his hard work. One evening in May, he said to Tom: You're graduating this year, and Mom and I want you to be well-educated.Don't work hard all your life like I did.You have to find a school where you can learn a trade, away from the laundromat trade.Big Brother works hard to provide for your schooling.After you finish your studies, don't forget what your elder brother has done for you.

After my father finished speaking, he went out to Chinatown to attend the meeting.The meeting was a guild of the older men of Chinatown, and the father had been chosen only recently.It was his first time attending such a meeting, so he was very happy.He said goodbye to his wife and told her that he might be late coming home.He looked at Tom deeply for a long while before leaving.This is an old father looking at his son full of expectation and confidence. Tragedy happened.At eleven o'clock in the evening, my father still hadn't come back.Everyone in the family thought that when he left, he said that he would come back later.At half past twelve, the phone rang. It was Bella Win Hospital. Father had had an accident, and the family decided to rush to the hospital immediately.

The hospital did not disclose further information, and the mother did not show any signs of fear.Everyone is waiting in the hospital except Flora who has to take care of the baby. When they arrived at the hospital, they found the father unconscious.He was near the Manhattan Bridge when he was hit by a car and was seriously injured.Doctors told them that even the skull was contused.Tom, Eva, and Roy were all in tears, but my mother had none.The doctor allowed them to stay at his father's bedside, hoping only that he would wake up and speak to them.Mom sat there like a statue, only occasionally calling her husband in a blank voice, but Father Feng never woke up again.The family waited for an entire hour, which was like a lifetime to them, but Father Feng still passed away.Mother also broke down, crying loudly.

Roy goes out to find out how the accident happened.It turned out that when a car drove over the bridge, it collided with a truck. The truck driver wanted to avoid the collision. As soon as he turned the steering wheel, the car rushed to the side of the road and hit Father Feng, who was bounced to the ground. a few feet away.The driver of the car died instantly.When the police arrived, they found Father Feng lying in a pool of blood dying. The family quietly left their father's bedside.They called Freddie first to give him the sad news, but he wasn't home.Then he dialed the number in Uncle Cheng's shop, and Uncle Cheng arrived within ten minutes.After they signed some papers, Uncle Cheng decided to send the body to the Longevity Funeral Home in Chinatown.

The family left the hospital in the middle of the night and took a taxi to their uncle's shop.As they passed the scene of the crash, they saw the truck and flattened car still in place.They spent the night in their uncle's shop, but none of them felt sleepy.He didn't get in touch with Freddie until two o'clock in the morning. When he came here, he found his mother crying, and Tom and Eva sat beside him in a daze. He could only try to comfort them.When they learned that their father had passed away, they were overwhelmed with shock and felt dazed.Now my uncle's neighbors heard deep wailing all night long.

two In the following week, people from other companies in the same industry came to help.As usual, an enlarged photo of the deceased was hung in the funeral home, and garlands and elegiac couplets were everywhere in the hall.Many people attended the funeral, and Mrs. Feng, her daughter, and her daughter-in-law followed closely behind the coffin.According to American customs, women wear black clothes, and men wear black cloth around their arms. Black gives people the feeling of melancholy and sadness.Mrs. Feng, Eva and Flora all wept.Outsiders saw that the deceased had so many daughters and sons to die, and said he was very lucky.Everyone who knew Father Feng said: He is a good man, a man who is honest and not deceitful.

Freddy stayed at home for a week to be with his mother.The cost of the funeral was huge. Freddy borrowed two hundred yuan, uncle helped one hundred yuan, and the gifts from friends were more than two hundred yuan. Their savings were not used, and there was still a little surplus. Every morning the family meditates on their father together.The father's photo was hung in the place where the grandfather's photo was originally hung.The grandfather's photo moved up, as if they were arranging a family tree.A pair of white candles are lit in front of the photo.As the weeks passed, they had a family meeting.Roy and Flora have brought up the matter of continuing to run the laundry, they will be short-staffed for the time being, but Tom is graduating next month.They only have 1,500 yuan left in their savings, and there is still a long way to go before their hope of opening a restaurant.Freddy also mentioned his father's refusal to buy insurance with him, and he kept going on and on. Father Feng's life was different from other people in the United States, and he didn't even get a single wish.Flora asked for compensation for the injury, but Mrs. Feng didn't understand what was going on at all.

In the United States, Flora said that if a flowerpot on a windowsill falls and injures someone, the person can use the hospital bill to claim compensation.You can also sue the landlord for injury if the stairs are broken and cause the injury.If a hospital or other public place collapses and people are injured, he can also sue the manager of that place. Tom understood now that Flora was talking about compensation.Although there are cases of compensation in China, they are usually settled privately by the parties concerned, rather than seeking lawyers and settling by law.Lowe and Freddy also had the same opinion, and Freddy also had a good understanding of the legal process of compensation.

How much compensation can we get?Mom asked Roy in a low voice, sounding like she was saying it was an insult to the dead to talk about it. At least five thousand yuan! Five thousand dollars!Mom was taken aback, but she dared not smile. It must not be less than five thousand yuan. After Tom graduated, Mrs. Feng kept planning for the future as soon as she thought that she would receive a large sum of money. Soon after, they received a check from the insurance company in the face of 5,000 yuan.This money is the goal of Father Feng's hard work all his life, and now it is in the hands of his mother.

One day, a woman came to visit them suddenly. This woman was about fifty years old.Tom went to answer the door. She wore a very formal hat, a black dress with white lace at the neckline, and a pair of long gloves on her hands.She stood straight at the door, her eyes were not big, but they were bright.She looked as if she was in a lot of trouble, her pale lips moved: May I come inside? Tom invited her in, and she went to a chair, and sat for a while in silence. What's your business?asked Tom. I want to meet your mother. When Mrs. Feng came in, the woman stood up. I came today because I felt I had to see you.She said, I was saddened to hear about your husband's death.The man driving that car is my son.I hope you don't blame me for the mistakes my boy made, you know he died too.She took out a handkerchief and blew her nose; her voice was very weak.

After Mrs. Feng heard her say this, she knew that she was also a good woman.I am so sorry that you have lost your son. He is my only son and I feel so lonely when he is gone.That's not what I'm here to say today, I hope you've got your insurance checks. Yes, we have, thank you very much. Don't thank me, the insurance company paid for it.I hope that money will compensate you a little for your loss, which of course can only compensate a little.I think I should wait until the money is paid before visiting you. Mrs. Feng felt very unnatural in front of this elegantly dressed woman.The woman started asking about their family.When Flora heard that a strange guest had arrived, she walked from the kitchen to the living room, and Mrs. Feng introduced them.The woman smiled more easily when she learned that Tom had graduated from high school and that the youngest, Eva, was still in school.She looked at Tom and asked what he planned to do. I'm helping my brother right now. Is it your brother who works in the laundry downstairs? Yes, he is Flora's husband. The woman turned her head and asked Mrs. Feng.Do you plan to keep your son in school? He wished he could learn more.I think we can put him in school now. The woman thought for a moment, then opened her handbag, took out a pen and wrote a check. Mrs. Feng, can you accept this for me? no!Mom said, we have already taken the insurance premium. She still handed over the check.Money is insignificant to me now, Mrs. Feng, you are also a mother, you must understand that losing my son is a big blow to me.I can see that you have a good family.If you let me do a little favor, I will feel better, maybe you can use it for your son's education, don't worry about me, use it as you like! She stood up, put the check into Mrs. Feng's hand, said goodbye and left.Mrs. Feng held the check in her hand and watched the woman go out the door.As soon as she walked out, the three of them checked the check, which was in the denomination of two thousand yuan.Mrs. Feng fell into the chair in shock and sat there blankly.Tom and Flora ran to the window and saw the strange woman get into a black sedan and drive away.They looked at the check again, but it was so badly signed that they couldn't make out what it was. Tom, mother said, here is your education fee.How kind Americans are to those who encounter misfortune.I don't know anything about them, but you should remember those who have done you good. She didn't even keep her name.Tom said. We can find out at the insurance company.Flora said, but I think she probably doesn't want us to check her information! three There are always many things that happen in people's life that we can't control. Even the most intelligent person can't predict what will happen to him tomorrow, or what will happen to him in the next month.The death of Father Feng due to an accident is an irony of life, because his death has brought about major changes in the lives of the whole family. Roy is the eldest son in the family, and he is obliged to support the life of the whole family, so he also becomes the head of the family.Mom has to rely on him for everything and discuss with him.They now had the restaurant capital of their dreams, but the laundromat had always provided them with a steady stream of income, and they were hesitant to call it off and go on to another venture.All they have now is the compensation of five thousand yuan, plus the education expenses that the woman gave to Tom, and their own savings, a total of more than eight thousand yuan.Mrs. Feng insisted on using the woman's donation as Tom's education expenses, which was always safer anyway.Mrs. Feng decided that no matter what, they could only spend 5,000 yuan on restaurants, and save the rest first. She asked Uncle Cheng for his opinion, and Uncle Cheng also agreed that they should start with a smaller restaurant.Anyone in Chinatown can come up with their own opinion on the finer points of running a restaurant.A great part of the problem would be solved if they could be supported by credit from the butchers and the hen-farms, duck-farms, and stores of all kinds.If Lowe decides to give up the laundry to run the restaurant, Uncle Cheng will let them buy on credit from his store. Lowe is a cautious man, and he doesn't know if he should give up on a laundry that has been going so well.But his mother, Flora, and the rest of the family insisted on giving up the laundry.They had to find a location first, but the big question was whether to find a basement or a storefront on the street.The rent in Chinatown is so expensive that they can hardly believe it. A corner store in a good location costs three to four hundred yuan a month; and many restaurants in the basement also have very good business, and the rent in the basement can save at least one hundred yuan.Mrs. Feng did the math, and if she saved one hundred yuan a month, she could save more than one thousand yuan a year, and there is a very good basement on Zhuoyi Street.But the whole family has another opinion on this issue. We can start a restaurant now, we should thank God very much.Mom said she didn't finish if your father was still around. But Roy, Flora, Tom, Eva and Freddie, they don't think so. Mother, Eva said, you certainly don't want to look up from the window and see people's legs coming and going. Tom and Flora felt the same way.So they gave up the basement on Zoye Street, willing to wait a few more months. They finally decided to move to Chinatown.They also feel reluctant to part with the house on 80th Street where they have lived for many years. After all, they have spent many happy times there, and there are still many unforgettable memories there.It was especially hard for Tom and Eva, who had been home since they immigrated to America as children: the sitting room where Tom lay thinking about many things every night, the kitchen where the family ate, the backyard, the balcony, and the dark staircase , these have become a part of their lives.And their surroundings: the sight and atmosphere of the street, children playing, housewives sitting on the front steps before and after dinner, sounds from the Eyre Railway, people in shops, grocers, shoe repairers, There is the Italian peddler who wears black in winter and summer, and buys their fruit and vegetables from his cart.All this makes them reluctant to leave.Tom felt this was his home, the streets he had played as a child and the way he had to go to school. As he lay in bed and looked out the window at the jagged roofs and trains speeding on the elevated tracks of Ayr, he thought he had arrived First night in New York.New York City taught him a lot, and now that he's grown up, what's in front of him is another opportunity to work hard.