Explore Chapter 22 of "牛天赐传" with the original Chinese text, English translation, detailed Chinese vocabulary explanations, and audio of the Chinese original. Listen and improve your reading skills.
With the death of Old Niu, Mrs. Niu could no longer hold up. She began selling off things, and the house grew emptier day by day. Tianci was still the same, not very sensible. He only felt that the house had become more stifling. Nanny Ji still went about her work as usual, but her heart was no longer in the Niu family. Sihu, too, was somehow listless. Even Mr. Wang Baozhai came to see them a few times, but there was nothing he could do. Soon, Mrs. Niu also fell ill, gravely ill. On her deathbed, she held Tianci's hand, weeping but unable to speak. Tianci cried too, but he didn't know why. He only felt fear.
After Mrs. Niu died, the household fell into even greater chaos. Relatives came and discussed what to do with the child and the property. Tianci was taken to the countryside by Nanny Ji. The shadow of ruin hung over the Niu residence, and even the two crabapple trees seemed to have lost their color. In the countryside, Tianci learned to gather firewood and cut grass, just like the wild children. He no longer thought of the apple blossoms and the clouds over Mount Tai. He only thought about filling his stomach. Although Nanny Ji felt for him, she had to look after her own family. Sometimes, when she looked at Tianci, she thought of her own dead child, and her tears would not stop. Tianci, on the contrary, comforted her with the words he had learned from books.
Mr. Wang Baozhai was indeed a man of honor. He inquired about Tianci's whereabouts and went personally to the countryside to fetch him. When he saw Tianci, he hardly recognized him: the fair-skinned young master had become dark and thin, wearing tattered clothes. Wang Baozhai heaved a sigh and brought Tianci back to the city, sending him to a school. Tianci began studying again, but his heart had changed. He had come to understand what poverty was, what death was, and what the fickleness of human relationships meant.