Ma Ping and Ma Fan were in no mood to go to work. The two brothers sat at their doorstep, faces etched with distress. Their mother doted on Ma Xiaojuan more than anyone; if she learned that her daughter had passed away, there was no telling how devastated she would be.
The brothers stared at each other, helpless, not knowing how to break the news to their mother. Just a while ago, she had mentioned wanting to head into the city to visit her eldest grandson. Who could have foreseen such a tragedy? It was no wonder Ma Xiaojuan hadn’t returned to the countryside or sent home any grain in months.
"Big brother, what do we do? Mom’s health has never been good," Ma Fan said. "If we tell her, and she can't handle the shock, what then?"
Chapter 165