I nodded and boarded the train. Two hours later, I finally arrived in New York City.

As soon as I walked out of the station, a light rain started falling. A cold wind, mixed with raindrops, slipped into my collar, making me instinctively hunch my shoulders.

I gripped the hand warmer, eyes fixed on the exit, afraid I might miss Sarah.

Half an hour passed after our agreed time, yet she still hadn’t shown up.

Another half hour went by, and the rain grew heavier. My pants and shoes were soaked, and the hand warmer had almost gone cold. Anxiously, I pulled out my phone and dialed Sarah again and again.

She finally picked up on the twelfth call.

“Mom, I’m really sorry, something urgent happened at home, and I can’t leave to pick you up.” Her voice sounded hurried, and I could faintly hear laughter and chatting behind her.

I was just about to tell her that I had too many things and taking a taxi would be difficult.

Then Sarah said, “There are plenty of taxis at the station. Just take one yourself, I’ll send you the address on Instagram.” Before I could say anything else, the call ended.

I stared at the dark screen, then at the things I brought, and finally let out a long sigh.

What if Sarah truly had something urgent?

Thinking that, I braced myself, managed to hail a taxi, and squeezed myself and all my things inside.

After all that effort, I finally reached Sarah’s place with my bags. But the moment I arrived, I heard bursts of laughter and cheerful voices from inside.

I pushed the door open and saw Mrs. Adams on the sofa, eating sunflower seeds, David leaning against her scrolling on his phone, and Sarah playing with Henry, who was laughing so hard he was rolling on the floor. Nothing about the scene looked urgent.

When Sarah saw me come in, she quickly stood up, rubbing her hands as she explained,

“Mom! You’re here! Henry kept begging me to play with him all day, and I really couldn’t pull away, so I wasn’t able to pick you up.”

I looked at her, then at Mrs. Adams and David lounging comfortably in the room, and I couldn’t help feeling disappointed.

There were so many people in the house; even if Henry was clingy, couldn’t they have asked Mrs. Adams or David to pick me up?

The words reached my lips, but I held them back.

Just then, the goose I brought suddenly flapped its wings, tipping the bamboo basket over, sending vegetables rolling everywhere and feathers drifting all over the floor.

The laughter stopped instantly.

David shot to his feet. He glanced at the mess near my feet, and his expression darkened at once.

“Mom, what exactly are you doing?”

“We just had this floor waxed, it cost thousands! Look at this stuff you dragged in, making such a mess. Can you even cover the cleaning and maintenance costs?”

He bent down and nudged the vegetables on the floor, his brows knitted, stepping back in disgust.

“And these wilted vegetables you brought, grown with manure—are they even safe to eat? What if Henry gets bacteria from them? He only eats imported organic produce; he can’t touch things with such questionable origins!”

Seeing the stains on the floor, I felt a wave of guilt, but I still hoped Sarah would speak up for me.

But Sarah avoided my eyes and went to her husband, gently saying, “Mom, don’t get upset. It’s really easy for us in the city. We can buy anything we need just downstairs. You don’t have to go through so much trouble bringing things from the countryside next time. It’s tiring, and nobody at home really eats them anyway, so they just end up being thrown out.” Seeing her expression, my heart sank, yet I still explained, “

“I deliberately didn’t kill this goose first, just in case it wasn’t fresh enough. I thought I would slaughter it right away for you to eat immediately, so you could enjoy the freshest taste.”

“And these vegetables, they’re not dirty at all—they’re all homegrown and very fresh.” Halfway through my explanation, I noticed the feathers scattered across the floor and went to the kitchen to look for a rag to clean things up.

“Mrs. Adams, which rag is used for wiping the floor? I’ll clean this right now.”

I smiled and asked Mrs. Adams and David twice, yet both acted as if they hadn’t heard me. David stared out the window, while Mrs. Adams kept cracking sunflower seeds without even looking up.

I took a rag from the shelf by the kitchen door and was about to crouch down to wipe the floor when Mrs. Adams suddenly yelled, “Hey!” and hurried over, snatching the rag from my hand.

“This isn’t for wiping the floor, it’s for wiping the table! How could you use this for that?”

She turned around, took another rag from the bathroom, and tossed it to the floor near me.

“Use this one.”

I stood there for a second, the rag at my feet, feeling awkward but still determined to clean up the mess.

I picked it up just as the memory of earlier flashed through my mind—the phone call with Sarah, her voice rushed, laughter faintly drifting behind her words.

I had wanted to tell her that I was carrying too many things, that taking a taxi would be difficult.

But she simply said, “There are taxis everywhere at the station. Just take one yourself, I’ll send you the address on Instagram.” And before I could say another word, the call had already ended.

I stared at my dim phone screen, then at all the things I had brought for her, and finally sighed.

What if Sarah really had an urgent issue at home?

Thinking that, I forced myself to flag down a taxi, loaded all my things inside, and tried to ignore the cold wind soaking my clothes.

By the time I finally reached Sarah’s doorstep, tired and carrying bag after bag, I hadn’t expected to hear loud laughter and cheerful voices echoing from inside the house.

I opened the door and saw David, leaning back scrolling on his phone, and Sarah playing happily with little Henry, who was laughing so hard, he rolled across the floor. Nothing in sight looked urgent at all.

When Sarah noticed me entering, she quickly stood up, rubbing her hands awkwardly as she explained,

“Mom! You’re here! Henry kept begging me to play with him the whole day, and I just couldn’t pull myself away, so I couldn’t come pick you up.”

I looked at her, then at Mrs. Adams and David relaxing comfortably in the room, and disappointment quietly settled in my chest.

There were so many adults at home. Even if Henry was clingy, would it really have been so hard for David to pick me up?

The words hovered on my lips, but I forced myself to swallow them.

Just then, the goose I brought suddenly flapped its wings, tipping the bamboo basket over and scattering vegetables all over the floor, feathers drifting through the air.

The laughter in the room stopped immediately.

David sprang to his feet, glanced sharply at the mess in front of me, and his face clouded over.

“Mom, what are you doing?”

“We just had this floor waxed—spent thousands on it! And look at this junk you dragged in, messing up everything. Can you even cover the cleaning and maintenance costs?”

He bent down and nudged the vegetables with his foot, frowning deeper as he stepped back in disgust.

“And these wilted vegetables you brought, grown with manure—are they even safe? What if they transmit bacteria to Henry? He only eats imported organic produce; he can’t eat things from who knows where!”

Seeing the stains spreading across the floor, guilt washed over me, yet I still hoped Sarah would defend me somehow.

But she avoided my eyes and moved to stand beside her husband, gently saying, “Mom, don’t be upset. Life in the city is very convenient. We can get anything we need just downstairs. Really, you don’t need to trouble yourself bringing things from the countryside anymore. It’s tiring for you, and honestly, no one at home really eats them, so they just end up being thrown away.”

Seeing Sarah’s expression, a sharp sadness rose in my chest, but I still explained, “I didn’t kill the goose beforehand in case it wasn’t fresh enough. I planned to slaughter it right here so you could taste the freshest flavor.”

“And these vegetables aren’t dirty at all; they’re all homegrown and perfectly fresh.”

Halfway through my words, I noticed the feathers scattered on the floor and went to the kitchen to find a rag to clean them up.

“Mrs. Adams, which rag is for the floor? I’ll wipe this up.”

I smiled and asked Mrs. Adams and David twice, yet they ignored me completely. David stared out the window, and Mrs. Adams kept eating sunflower seeds.

I reached for a rag on the shelf by the kitchen door and was about to crouch down to wipe the floor when Mrs. Adams suddenly shouted, “Hey!” rushing over to snatch the rag from my hand.

“This isn’t for wiping the floor, it’s for wiping the table! How could you use this like that?”

As she scolded me, she turned and grabbed another rag from the bathroom, tossing it to the floor by my feet.

“Use this one.”

I looked blankly at Sarah; the impatience and protectiveness in her eyes chilled me more than any insult from David.

Seeing me speechless, her eyes shifted to the tied chicken and goose at my feet, her tone softening slightly.

“If you want to take the vegetables back, go ahead. We don’t need them. Keep the chicken and goose; country poultry tastes good. I’ll make soup for Henry tomorrow to help him recover.”

As she spoke, she reached out to take the straw rope from my hand.

I instinctively stepped back, avoiding her hand.

“Since you don’t want these vegetables, fine, don’t take any. I’ll bring all of them back.” David sneered even deeper.

“Sure, take everything. They’re just a few scruffy chickens and geese. Who even needs that cheap stuff?”

Sarah frowned, her voice sinking.

“Mom, why are you being so stubborn? Is it worth making a fuss over something this small? Henry is still sleeping inside. Can’t you just cut me some slack?”

Her words shattered the last bit of hope I had in her.

I stayed silent, unwilling to argue anymore. I gathered my things, turned around, and walked toward the door.

When I reached the bottom of the building, I took out my phone. My fingers were numb from the cold, and it took several tries to dial Michael’s number.

I barely managed to say “Hello” before my throat tightened, making me unable to continue.

Michael immediately sounded alarmed. “Mom, are they treating you badly? Don’t move. Emily and I are coming to get you now.” After hanging up, I sat on the stone bench near the entrance of the residential area, holding my bamboo basket. The cold wind lashed at me, making me shiver nonstop.

I thought I would have to wait two long hours for Michael in the freezing wind, but unexpectedly, only fifty minutes later, I saw his car rushing toward me.

Before it even fully stopped, Emily jumped out and hurried to my side, pushing a thermos into my hands.

“Mom, drink some hot water first. We were worried you’d be freezing, so we drove faster. Don’t worry, we didn’t break any rules.”

Michael took the thermos from me without speaking, frowning as he asked.