The elderly person paying the phone bill
I went to the telecom building's service hall to pay the phone bill. The line was extremely long, and I could only wait slowly. Finally, I became the second in line. In front of me was an elderly woman with graying hair, who, judging from the way she walked and carried herself, seemed to be over sixty years old.\ “May I have your phone number, please?” the clerk asked the elderly woman. The woman blurted out a phone number. The clerk looked it up on the computer and then asked, “Is it Li Min?” The elderly woman said, “No, that's my son's name!” Then she gave another phone number, again without any hesitation. The clerk checked it on the computer and asked, “Is it Li Jie?” The woman said, “No, that's my daughter's name!” The clerk said, “Sorry, ma'am! What exactly is your family's phone number?” The elderly woman tilted her head and thought at the counter for several minutes but just couldn't remember. People behind started to grow impatient, and there was some chattering and commotion.\ Perhaps noticing the unrest behind her, she turned around and, half speaking to herself and half apologizing to everyone, said, “I didn't remember my own phone number. I'm old, I forget things. I can remember the kids' numbers just fine, mainly because I call them every day to check on my grandchildren.” She was about to leave, but then seemed to remember something: “Those two phone bills haven't been paid yet, right?” “Not yet.” “Then I'll pay for them so they don't have to come all the way here again.” With that, the elderly woman gave a sheepish smile and again stood in line in front of me.\ This time, there was complete silence behind her.
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