Ten-year-old Grisha was hurrying home from school. His mother had strictly ordered him not to dawdle. That night, their cow had calved, and Lyudmila Sergeyevna spent the entire day by Zoryka and the newborn calf.
Grisha was supposed to heat up lunch, wash the dishes, and do his homework. But it wasn’t household chores that drove him home—it was his eagerness to see the little one. Newborn calves are so cute and gentle, and they drink milk from a bottle so amusingly—how could one miss such a wonder?
He happily bounced along, walking by the river where the ice had completely melted, and young grass curled along the banks. As he got closer, the boy noticed an elderly woman, soaked from head to toe, trembling from the cold and bursting into tears.
«Hello! What happened?» he asked, and he saw a pile of wet rags lying nearby. «Did you fall into the river?»
«Oh, dear! I didn’t fall—I was pushed! And now I weep, having learned what cruelties people are capable of!» the old woman sniffled, trembling even more. «I thought I’d make it to the village, maybe someone would let me warm up, but a cramp seized me so badly I can neither breathe nor move!»
«Grandmother, wait, I’ll be right back!» Grisha shouted as he ran to the village.
Lyudmila Sergeyevna had just returned from the cowshed, washed up, and gone to lie down and rest. Zoryka stubbornly refused to give milk; apparently, she was afraid that people would take everything, leaving nothing for little Mayka—the name they had given to the calf born in May.
Lyuda did not want to let the little one near the mother; later it would be difficult to train him to drink from a bucket. And Zoryka, having fed the calf herself, would no longer allow herself to be milked.
Through the open window, Lyudmila could hear a conversation between a mother and her son in the cowshed. Her rest was interrupted by a sharp slam of the front door.
«Grisha, is that you?» she asked. «What’s with slamming the door, a fire or something?»
«No, Mom, not a fire—worse! There’s a person dying by the river!»
«What person?» Lyudmila immediately sprang up.
«Some old woman, all wet, saying she was pushed into the river, that she’s frozen and can’t move! I’ll bring her something warm!»
«Oh my, what a calamity!» the mother began frantically rummaging in the closet. «Here, take your father’s old sheepskin coat and shawl. Wait!» she suddenly exclaimed. «Let’s take the cart for the milk jugs; it might come in handy!»
Grisha dashed to the shed and rolled out the four-wheeled cart on which Lyudmila usually transported the milk to the highway. She covered it with a sheepskin, tossed her late husband’s sheepskin coat on top, and almost ran towards the river.
The old woman was no longer sitting by her belongings but lying on the grass, curled up from the cold. Lyudmila quickly threw some clothes over her, then carefully lifted her and placed her on the cart. The woman was as light as a child. She regained consciousness, looked around with unfocused eyes, and tried to smile.
«Don’t worry, Grandmother, everything will be alright,» said Lyudmila, and she and her son took her home.
When Ksenia Petrovna was warmed in a hot bath, fed, and given hot tea to drink, she did not know how to thank her rescuers.
«Oh, my dears, may God grant you health, happiness, and prosperity for your kind hearts! Thank you, Lyudochka, for raising such a fine son!»
«Oh, Ksenia Petrovna, anyone in our place would have done the same,» replied the hostess, but old lady Asya, as she insisted on being called, objected:
«Don’t say that—I was the one pushed into that river!»
«And where will you live now?» asked Lyudmila.
«We almost reached our destination. What’s the name of your village?»
«Rubtsy.»
«And the next one is Lozovaya. There, my younger son farms; he manages orchards and fields.»
«So you’re the mother of our famous Rudkovsky? He is a well-known sponsor and patron!»
«Yes, Rudkovsky. My husband and I hail from Lozovaya. Vitalik went to the city, and when his father died, he took me in. He said that there are no women in Vitya’s house, so how could he take care of his mother? And at that time, his wife was Lenochka.»
Suddenly, Grisha returned, his face flushed from running, and sprinkled with grass blades.
«What’s with you, Grish? Were you rolling in the hay?» his mother marveled, pulling dry stalks out of his hair.
«No, I went to see Mayka. I climbed into the stall, lay down beside him, and he licked my face! Wow, what a rough tongue!»
His mother smiled: «Grishenka, remember, we have guests coming over on Saturday?»
«Of course I remember! We even rehearsed everything, so I’m ready.»
«That’s wonderful!» rejoiced Lyudmila. «Ksenia Petrovna, please stay with us until Saturday, and then we’ll hand you over to my son.»
«Oh, why would I trouble you for an extra three days? Maybe I can make my way to Lozovaya on my own?»
«No-no-no!» Lyuda firmly objected. «Stay, rest, and do your laundry. And we’ll even give you clean bags.»
«Oh, how inconvenient, that I even added laundry to your chores…»
«Don’t worry, the washing machine is already running; it will dry quickly in the sun.»
Old lady Asya got up, walked around the room: «Well, I feel a little better now. Perhaps I can help with something. I can help Grisha with his homework—I used to work as a teacher in Lozovaya.»
Grisha took her to his room, laid out his textbooks and notebooks. When she asked about the teachers, it turned out that almost half of the teachers in Rubtsy were her former students. She remembered everyone and recounted amusing stories. Grisha was amazed: «Grandmother Asya, how do you remember so many people? That’s more than a hundred!»
«I loved my work and the children,» she sighed. «It’s just a pity that Vitalik doesn’t delight in grandchildren.»
Three days later, old lady Asya put on an evening dress, took out her «concert» shoes, and fixed her hair. When Lyudmila entered the house, she did not recognize her.
«Ksenia Petrovna, you’re a beauty!»
«Oh, but I’ve greysed so much,» the old lady smiled. «There are so many fine young ladies these days, and Vitya went to the city in search of happiness.»
At the school, music was playing. Ksenia Petrovna quietly followed Lyudmila and sat on a bench.
The celebration was dedicated to the school’s tenth anniversary. After the principal’s speech, an SUV arrived, and out stepped Viktor Rudkovsky. He congratulated everyone and presented bouquets to the teachers. Suddenly, one teacher announced loudly: «Today with us is the first teacher of many of our educators, the honored Ksenia Petrovna Rudkovskaya!»
Old lady Asya looked at Lyuda in surprise, who clapped and beckoned her to the stage. Limping slightly, she approached the microphone: «What joy it is to see so many of my former pupils among the teachers!»
Viktor ran up to her, handed her a bouquet, and almost whisked her off the stage. They embraced tightly around the corner of the school.
«Surprise! They told me to bring an extra bouquet. But what are you doing here—I didn’t expect you! What brings you here?»
«Oh, Vitenka, I’ll tell you at home. If it hadn’t been for Grisha and Lyuda…»
The next morning, as soon as Lyuda had finished milking Zoryka, Viktor pulled up to the gate. He produced a huge bouquet and knocked on the gate.
«Lyudmila, hello! My mother and I invite you and Grisha to dinner at seven. What do you say?» he offered the bouquet.
«Thank you, Viktor! I’d love to, but I just gave birth and can’t leave.»
«Then we’ll postpone it. And why do you milk by hand?»
«We only have one cow, so why mechanize?»
«Today I’ll bring the machine,» the farmer promised.
By evening, Lyuda had a milking machine. Viktor had delivered it and asked to see the cowshed.
«Oh, why such gifts?»
«You need to take care of your health. Your son is growing up, and maybe there will be more children.»
In the evening, he brought fruit and gifted Grisha a bicycle. The boy couldn’t believe it: «This is for me, for keeps?»
«Of course! For all your boyish adventures,» Viktor smiled.
Grisha rushed to hug him. Earlier, Rudkovsky had helped families with groceries or stationery, but such a gift was something special. Old lady Asya brought a pie: «Lyudochka, I decided to bake one like in the old days. Let’s have some tea—I’ve missed you!»
Viktor’s visits became a regular occurrence. Each time, Ksenia Petrovna did her best to prepare something delicious. Sometimes he came alone, showed interest in the household, and offered help. One day, he warmly said: «Lyudochka, over this time I’ve grown so attached. You’ve become a real comfort.»
«I feel the same… But you’ve probably noticed,» Lyudmila admitted.
At the end of June, they got married. Viktor moved the entire farm to Lozovaya, the house was rented out to summer residents, and Grisha was transferred to a new school. In July of the following year, they celebrated Viktor’s anniversary, but Lyuda couldn’t attend—she had just given birth to her second son, Stёpka.
And Viktor’s brother, Vitaly, appeared in Lozovaya a week after the rescue of his mother. His young wife was involved in an accident—her car was thrown into the river. She suffered a spinal injury and was bedridden.
When Ksenia Petrovna asked her son if he was surprised by her disappearance, he replied without any hesitation: «Mila said you had gone to Vitya’s, so I wasn’t worried.»
Meanwhile, Grisha was enjoying his bicycle. He rode to his friends’ houses, to the store, to get medicine for his grandmother. The boy felt needed and happy.
