Before the outbreak of coronavirus, Xiaoxiu had recently begun dating a boy. However, once their relationship began, the pandemic struck, causing the entire city to come to pause and preventing them from meeting frequently despite being in the same city.
Xiaoxiu is a person near Nanning in Guangxi, and her parents are Christians. But when they learned that their daughter's boyfriend was from an area inundated with numerous Idols and favoring boys over girls, they were opposed to the relationship, afraid of potential troubles in the future. Nevertheless, Xiaoxiu affirmed that her boyfriend was a person with good character and was open to the gospel and Bible readings; he was also a fitting catechumen, as he would ask questions when in doubt.
With limited options, Xiaoxiu's parents continuously reminded her they could be in love, but should never cross the physical line before marriage. Xiaoxiu promised her mother that she would faithfully uphold these boundaries until married.
By the third year of COVID-19, individuals were finally permitted to travel home for the New Year holidays. Xiaoxiu's boyfriend was insistent on taking her home to visit his parents. Regrettably, his mother was strongly against the relationship as she knew Xiaoxiu was a devoted Christian. But her son expressed that he was infatuated with Xiaoxiu, unable to erase the image of her peacefully reading a Bible by herself during a vacation with other friends.
During the Chinese New Year, high-speed train tickets were difficult to obtain, so they took the bus home instead. The two packs of instant noodles they packed to eat on the train remained uneaten.
After a long journey, they finally arrived. However, upon seeing Xiaoxiu's cheerful smile, the boyfriend's mother only greeted her with a perfunctory "hello" and smirked, thinking how troublesome it was for an old lady like her to speak Mandarin.
Once Xiaoxiu's boyfriend came home, he eagerly engaged in conversation with his father while preparing Kung Fu tea, completely ignoring Xiaoxiu. She did not understand the local dialect and did not like to drink Kung Fu tea. Furthermore, the TV only showed Teochew's opera. Later on, she witnessed her boyfriend's mother setting food offerings on the counter next to an idol, even taking the inner pot of rice out of the rice cooker for worship. At that inexplicable moment, Xiaoxiu remembered the two packs of instant noodles still inside the suitcase.
During the family feast, Xiaoxiu enjoyed a bowl of instant noodles while the rest of the family indulged in a table of delicacies. The next day, Xiaoxiu witnessed her boyfriend's mother continuing with the same behavior as the night before and began to understand her mother's concerns about the relationship due to the potential distress marrying into a non-Christian family may cause. Thinking to herself, "These three years in a relationship are just a lesson learned," Xiaoxiu finished her second pack of instant noodles and bid farewell to her boyfriend, making her way back to her parent's home.
Moments after Xiaoxiu arrived home, her boyfriend called and started with an apology regarding his mother's actions. He went on to explain that his mother was surprised to see Xiaoxiu remain calm and treat her with sincerity despite the previous two meals. As a result, his mother believed that Xiaoxiu was a gentle and understanding person who wouldn't quarrel casually because of her son's mistakes. His mother even suggested that he could follow Xiaoxiu and become a Christian as he wished.
Upon hearing these words, Xiaoxiu’s tears fell with a snap.
- Translated by Joyce Leung
疫情开始前，小秀谈了男朋友。两个人刚刚看对了眼，整个城市就因疫情被按下了暂停键。生活在同一座城市，也不能经常见面。
小秀是慧泊市(南宁）附近的人，父母亲那一代信了耶稣。听说女儿找了男朋友，是以重男轻女且特别爱拜偶像而出名的地区，就不同意。特别是男孩子家不信耶稣，以后会有很多麻烦的。但小秀说，男朋友很不错，愿意听她讲福音，愿意读圣经。并且读不明白还提出问题，是个合格的慕道友。
小秀的父母只好再三叮嘱女儿，可以谈恋爱绝对不可以在结婚前发生男女关系。她告诉母亲到结婚前，一定保持自己的童贞。
到了第三年，终于可以回家过年了，男朋友一定要小秀陪他回老家过年。男朋友的妈妈因为小秀信耶稣，坚决反对。
但是儿子告诉母亲，他就是喜欢小秀，他忘不了他们一班人去找老乡玩的时候，小秀一个人抱着圣经坐在床边看，那种娴静那种安好。
过年高铁票不好买，两个人只好选择了坐大巴回家。本来准备于高铁上吃的两包方便面便一直没有吃。
面对着小秀如花笑靥，男朋友妈妈皮笑肉不笑的说，“你好你好，你也好啊”。几十岁了，老娘还得学说普通话，真别扭。
小秀的男朋友回到家，就一头扎进他老爸的功夫茶，完全忘记小秀。她听不懂本地话，喝不了功夫茶，电视里也是唱潮剧。后来她发现男朋友的妈妈鬼鬼祟祟的把做好的菜放到家里摆放偶像的那张台子上。最后，把电饭锅内胆拿出来，一锅饭也放到那上面去拜。小秀想起行李箱里的两包方便面。
一家人在一大桌美味面前大吃特吃，小秀端着一碗方便面也吃得很开心。
第二天早上，小秀又看到男朋友的妈妈又重复昨晚的操作。她觉得妈妈的反对很有道理，嫁进一个不信主的家庭真的很辛苦。那就算了吧，三年的感情就当是交了学费。开开心心地吃完第二包方便面之后，小秀告别了男朋友，坐车回去看父母了。
等到小秀回到家之后，男朋友的电话也来了。第一句话就是对不起，因为他妈妈跟他坦白了这两餐饭的事。说她完全没有想到小秀看到之后，没有一点生气，还是很真诚的阿姨前阿姨后。她觉得小秀很大气，以后不会因为儿子做错一点什么而随意吵架。最后，还跟他说，你想跟着她信耶稣就去信吧。
小秀的眼泪，啪的一声，掉了下来。
两包快餐面
Before the outbreak of coronavirus, Xiaoxiu had recently begun dating a boy. However, once their relationship began, the pandemic struck, causing the entire city to come to pause and preventing them from meeting frequently despite being in the same city.
Xiaoxiu is a person near Nanning in Guangxi, and her parents are Christians. But when they learned that their daughter's boyfriend was from an area inundated with numerous Idols and favoring boys over girls, they were opposed to the relationship, afraid of potential troubles in the future. Nevertheless, Xiaoxiu affirmed that her boyfriend was a person with good character and was open to the gospel and Bible readings; he was also a fitting catechumen, as he would ask questions when in doubt.
With limited options, Xiaoxiu's parents continuously reminded her they could be in love, but should never cross the physical line before marriage. Xiaoxiu promised her mother that she would faithfully uphold these boundaries until married.
By the third year of COVID-19, individuals were finally permitted to travel home for the New Year holidays. Xiaoxiu's boyfriend was insistent on taking her home to visit his parents. Regrettably, his mother was strongly against the relationship as she knew Xiaoxiu was a devoted Christian. But her son expressed that he was infatuated with Xiaoxiu, unable to erase the image of her peacefully reading a Bible by herself during a vacation with other friends.
During the Chinese New Year, high-speed train tickets were difficult to obtain, so they took the bus home instead. The two packs of instant noodles they packed to eat on the train remained uneaten.
After a long journey, they finally arrived. However, upon seeing Xiaoxiu's cheerful smile, the boyfriend's mother only greeted her with a perfunctory "hello" and smirked, thinking how troublesome it was for an old lady like her to speak Mandarin.
Once Xiaoxiu's boyfriend came home, he eagerly engaged in conversation with his father while preparing Kung Fu tea, completely ignoring Xiaoxiu. She did not understand the local dialect and did not like to drink Kung Fu tea. Furthermore, the TV only showed Teochew's opera. Later on, she witnessed her boyfriend's mother setting food offerings on the counter next to an idol, even taking the inner pot of rice out of the rice cooker for worship. At that inexplicable moment, Xiaoxiu remembered the two packs of instant noodles still inside the suitcase.
During the family feast, Xiaoxiu enjoyed a bowl of instant noodles while the rest of the family indulged in a table of delicacies. The next day, Xiaoxiu witnessed her boyfriend's mother continuing with the same behavior as the night before and began to understand her mother's concerns about the relationship due to the potential distress marrying into a non-Christian family may cause. Thinking to herself, "These three years in a relationship are just a lesson learned," Xiaoxiu finished her second pack of instant noodles and bid farewell to her boyfriend, making her way back to her parent's home.
Moments after Xiaoxiu arrived home, her boyfriend called and started with an apology regarding his mother's actions. He went on to explain that his mother was surprised to see Xiaoxiu remain calm and treat her with sincerity despite the previous two meals. As a result, his mother believed that Xiaoxiu was a gentle and understanding person who wouldn't quarrel casually because of her son's mistakes. His mother even suggested that he could follow Xiaoxiu and become a Christian as he wished.
Upon hearing these words, Xiaoxiu’s tears fell with a snap.
- Translated by Joyce Leung
Two Packs of Instant Noodles
