Sister, I Love You - Chapter 4

Chapter 4

Back in the village, a woman her age would normally already be a mother of several children.

Everyone in the village said the same thing:

She had raised him from childhood into adulthood. She had worked herself to the bone so that he could leave home and go to university. Surely, she had already done more than enough for him.

She was eleven years older than he was.

“Don't wait for him anymore,” they told her.

Now he was far away, out in a world filled with all kinds of people and temptations. Who could say whether her husband would ever come back?

Even she could no longer tell what she was waiting for.

Was she simply keeping faith with her marriage, honoring the vows of a wife? After all, more than a decade earlier, she had been a proper bride, married into his family.

Or was she waiting because of the words he had spoken before leaving:

“Sister, wait for me. I'll come back.”

Or perhaps she was simply like a mother who could never stop worrying about the child she had raised, now living far away.

Whatever the reason, she waited.

She remained as quiet and reserved as she had been for all those decades.

And eventually, the day of his graduation finally came.

He returned home.

He was no longer the frail young boy she had once known. He had grown into a mature man, carrying himself with quiet confidence and grace—the bearing of an educated, thoughtful gentleman.

And she?

Years of sun, wind, rain, and hard labor had long since erased the youthful beauty from her face.

She had become a true country woman, her features marked by a lifetime of toil.

In her heart, she still thought of him only as the younger brother she had loved and raised.

She never dared imagine that he would one day stand before her and say:

“Sister, I'm a grown man now. We can finally become husband and wife.”

She stared at him as though she were dreaming.

She was afraid she had heard him wrong.

Could he truly be a man who valued loyalty and gratitude as deeply as she did?

Then she smiled.

A radiant smile rose from the very depths of her heart.

And with it came the most beautiful tears she had ever shed.

He stayed in the town and became a teacher, while she remained at home working the fields.

Together, they had a son and a daughter.

Later, he took a teaching position in an oil-producing region. Through his education and years of teaching experience, he eventually became the principal of a high school.

Because of household-registration restrictions, their children remained in the village with her.

Once he had completed the necessary paperwork, he returned home to bring his wife and children to live with him.

The teachers at the school came to help the principal move into his new home.

One particularly blunt teacher suddenly ran outside and asked,

“Principal, why did you bring your mother and younger brother here, but not your wife and children?”

Silence fell over the room.

Everyone turned to look at her.

She stood there frozen, not knowing what to say.

A crooked, embarrassed smile appeared on her face as she looked at him.

He turned toward her.

Then, in a firm voice that left no room for misunderstanding, he said to everyone:

“She is my wife.

Without her, I would never be the man I am today.

In fact, without her, I might not even be alive.”

Tears immediately filled her eyes.

She lowered her head, unable to say a word.