At the age of eight, the narrator is overcome with grief over his mother's death. His father has hired a housekeeper, named "Auntie Xu," to care for him and his siblings. The housekeeper has been working for the family for four years and has become a mother to the young narrator. The narrator's father tells the housekeeper that his son has fallen and injured himself and needs to be brought to the hospital immediately. He asks the housekeeper to bring the child to live with the family. When the housekeeper tells the father that the child's injuries are life-threatening, the father is horrified. He orders the housekeeper not to mention the incident to the child, who is hiding in the family's new bedroom. The young narrator invites the housekeeper over to play some games with him. He tells her that he has made the room big enough for her to read her novels and use her new-found knowledge of the language. She invites him to call over to her house. She tells him that she has made him a bed for him