"Breast cancer... advanced stage."
"It is cancer and advanced stage. Gloria, let's leave it at that for now. I'm a bit busy, but I'll come visit your mom tomorrow..."
Before I could respond, the line went dead.
They are indeed a family.
Then I called my aunt, and got a similar reaction. They showed feigned concern upon hearing about Mom's illness, but avoided involvement once they knew it was cancer.
I truly felt sad for my mom. With advanced cancer, her son only wanted her inheritance, and the relatives avoided any connection.
I did everything I could for her, yet she was blind to it.
This time, treating her was the greatest filial piety I could offer.
The next morning, relatives came to our house.
My uncle, aunt, and to my surprise, my aunt-in-law also came.
She had never liked our family much, always frowning at gatherings.
My uncle broke the silence. "Where's Steven? Why isn't he here?"
I choked up and shook my head. "I don't know. I haven't seen him for days."
Steven indeed hadn't visited for several days, having kept vigil for two nights and then excusing himself on a business trip, unreachable by phone.