Chapter 73: Waking Up (Part 1)
After watching Ge Dazhuang and Jiang Yingying enter the guesthouse, Lin Guifang asked He Jingqi.
"Why did you pull me just now?"
"Xiao Jiang is a very opinionated and resilient female comrade. This can be seen from the fact that she came to Beijing to see He Yan and from the phone call she made to decline the offer after she knew we were planning to pick her up at the station."
He Jingqi said: "Besides, He Yan's condition is unclear now. If he really can't wake up, maybe three to five years..."
There was a flash of pain in his eyes, "We are a family, we have the obligation and the emotion to wait for He Yan to wake up, but, what about Xiao Jiang?"
Lin Guifang's eyes became even redder, and He Jingqi patted the back of her hand gently.
"While Xiao Jiang is in Beijing, we will take good care of her, just like we have another daughter to take care of. Afterwards, we will find someone to send her back to Yun Province."
"I know. I'm not that confused."
He Jingqi looked at the white hair on his wife's temples, held her hand, and felt heavy in his heart.
"Let's go back too."
"good."
The night was dark, and the two men seemed to be more hunched than before, and their steps were heavy.
At the He's house, except for a few younger ones who were sent back to sleep, He He and his friends were all sitting in the living room.
He Hai rubbed his face, and Lin Wan held his hand and looked at him comfortingly.
But how could she get better? The swelling in her eyes hadn't gone down in the past few days.
When they heard a noise outside, they regained some vitality.
"Dad, Mom, why did you take so long? Next time, let me stay with you. It's so late..." He He said, and the others also agreed with what he said.
He Jingqi said: "No need for you, I can take good care of your mother."
"dad……"
Lin Guifang said: "Xiaobei just had an operation. The doctor said that he has a strong will to live. If he is lucky, he will wake up within three years."
She looked at her sons and daughters-in-law in front of her and saw the haggardness on their faces and their red eyes.
Lin Guifang choked up. There was something wrong between her and Lao He. On the way back, the two of them thought about it carefully.
I can't continue to be sad in this meaningless way.
"Really?" He Hai said, "This is good news. As long as there is hope that he can wake up, that's good."
"Yes, this is the best news in the past few days." The others echoed, and their depression was reduced a little.
Lin Guifang said: "You stay at home for two more days. Those who need to go back to work should go back to work, and those who need to go to school should go back to school."
"Mom, what do you mean?"
"This is what we discussed. He Yan's case is a heavy blow to our family." He Jingqi said, "As your brothers and sisters-in-law, you rushed back at this time and have been busy these past few days. Your mother and I are very relieved."
"dad!"
"He Yan's condition is not something you can take care of for a short time. You have jobs and families. Go to the hospital to see him tomorrow, and then go back."
Lin Guifang wiped her eyes and said, "Yes, your father is right. We have discussed it. From now on, the two of us will take care of Xiaobei."
“What if…” she said, “What if the two of us are useless and Xiao Bei can’t wake up, then we will take Xiao Bei away.”
"Mom!" He Qing couldn't bear it anymore. He looked at the two of them with red eyes. "Dad, listen to what mom is saying. With us brothers here, there's no way we'll let this happen!"
"No matter what happens to Xiaobei in the future, I will take good care of him!"
"Big brother!" He Jingqi shouted, and Cui Wan stood up, "Dad, He He is right. As the eldest brother and sister-in-law, we will take on this responsibility."
"Sister-in-law, what are you talking about? We will also take care of Xiaobei." He Hai and Lin Wan also expressed their opinions.
"Alright!" He Jingqi said, "You don't need to take care of him. He is my son and I can take good care of him. Tomorrow you all pack up your things. Those who need to go back to the Northeast should go back to the Northeast, and those who need to go back to Shanghai should go back to Shanghai!"
"Go back wherever you came from. Just come back during the holidays if you have time. If you don't have time, you don't have to come back!"
"It's settled. Don't try to snatch He Yan from me. Go see him at the hospital tomorrow and get out of here."
"dad!"
"Xiao Wang! Book tickets for them tomorrow morning." In the He family, only He Jingqi would call Wang Dawei, who is over 40 years old, "Xiao Wang".
After he entered, he stayed quietly in the corner near the door, and at this time he also responded with a sob.
"Yes, Commander."
He Jingqi helped Lin Guifang back to the room. Looking at the old couple, the people in the living room looked at each other several times.
In the end, the two sisters-in-law, Cui Wan and Lin Wan, actually hugged each other and cried out loud.
When Cui Wan came in, He Yan was still a young boy. At that time, He He was studying at the grassroots level, and the work he went to was hard, so he left Cui Wan in Beijing.
He Jingqi and Lin Guifang, one works in the military region and the other in the hospital. They are both busier than the other and are often not seen at home.
Cui Wan had been married for several years but had not gotten pregnant. The family compound and even her parents' home were urging her to take medicine.
He He rarely went home. Once, when Cui Wan went to the county to see him, she heard rumors and was even ridiculed and humiliated by a female comrade.
It was He Yan, who was only a teenager at the time, who stood up for her, refuted the rumors, and helped to eliminate the rift between her and He He.
Over the years, in Cui Wan's heart, He Yan was like her own brother.
When Lin Wan was ten years old, after her parents died, she was taken home by He Jingqi and Lin Guifang and taken care of as their own daughter.
When she first came to the family compound, people in the compound said that she was an unlucky person to her parents and was a disaster star. It was He Hai and He Yan who had always taken care of her.
Now, a healthy person is lying on the hospital bed. During these days since they came back, they can't stop resentment towards the person who hurt He Yan.
Anyone who harms He Yan should go to the Avici Hell, and after death, he should be burned by nine hellfires.
He He and He Hai also felt very uncomfortable. In the room upstairs, there was a thin figure leaning against the wall, sitting quietly.
Early the next morning, the adults gathered around a table to eat breakfast, pretending nothing had happened the night before.
Lin Guifang said: "Xiao Qin, your pastry-making skills are getting better and better."
Qin Xin is the cook of the He family. Her husband and son both died on the battlefield.
Later, she also went to the battlefield.
She met Lin Guifang after she was injured. After that, she could no longer fight.
Qin Xin first went back to her hometown and found that her parents, brother and sister-in-law were all gone.
She spent several years outside in a daze until she met Lin Guifang again, and stayed in the He family because of her cooking skills.
At first, she didn't want to stay, but after living in the He family for a few days, she found that He Jingqi and Lin Guifang were really hard-working at work but were not in a hurry to eat.
There were several other children in the family, and in the end, Qin Xin stayed.
I have been staying in the He family for most of my life.
These days, she was in a very bad mood and wanted to cry whenever she thought of He Yan.
She knew that everyone in her family was in a bad mood recently, so she cooked more carefully. But except at mealtimes or taking care of the children He Ping and He An, she hid in her little room at other times.
Qin Xin's eye sockets were shallow. She knew that Lin Guifang and the others were having the most difficult time right now. She didn't want to cry in front of them and make them feel even more uncomfortable.
At this moment, hearing Lin Guifang's words, she curled her lips and smiled.
"Sister Fang, if you like, eat more. There's more in the kitchen. You've lost weight recently."
"Xiao Qin, please help me make some more and put them in the lunch box." Lin Guifang said, "I want to bring some to Comrade Xiao Jiang."
Comrade Xiao Jiang?
Everyone present thought of Jiang Yingying, He Yan's girlfriend.
When the two of them were dating, He Yan called He Jingqi and his friends in Beijing, and also called all the brothers he could get through.
Qin Xin was stunned for a moment, and she responded, "Okay, I'll go make a new one for Comrade Xiao Jiang."
After saying that, Qin Xin hurried into the kitchen, thinking about how to come up with something that would best showcase her cooking skills in such a short period of time.
When He Jingqi and his group arrived at the hospital, visiting time was almost up.
When they arrived at the hospital entrance, Lin Guifang and the others couldn't tell what they felt for a moment. Qin Xin tightened her hands holding the food box.
"Let's go."
The group went upstairs and walked through the corridor. When they were almost at He Yan's ward, they saw Jiang Yingying and Ge Dazhuang standing in the corridor waiting.
The group of people immediately quickened their pace, and when their eyes met, Lin Guifang felt a burning sensation in her throat, and she was unable to speak.
Jiang Yingying looked up when she heard the footsteps, and when she saw them, she greeted them, "Uncle, aunt, hello."
"Comrade Xiao Jiang." He Jingqi said.
Lin Guifang noticed Qin Xin pulling at the corner of her clothes, so she said, "Comrade Xiao Jiang, have you had breakfast?"
"If you don't mind, we'll bring it to you." Lin Guifang also looked at Ge Dazhuang, "Little Ge, don't be polite with us. It's hard work for you to come here."
Ge Dazhuang waved his hands in panic, "It's not hard, it's not hard. He Tuan was injured, we should come and see him."
As soon as he said this, Ge Dazhuang felt that he really couldn't speak well.
He and his sister-in-law just looked through the window at He Tuan lying on the hospital bed. The more they looked, the more upset they felt.
It was just him who felt so uncomfortable seeing He Tuan in this state, let alone He Tuan's family.
Ge Dazhuang lowered his eyes. He felt that he couldn't speak, so it was better not to speak.
At this time, Dr. Luo from yesterday came over.
"You can go in to visit the patient for an hour today," he said, "but not too many people can go in. You can go in as a group of two or three."
"Also, if something happens to the patient during the visit, today's visit will be terminated."
After saying this, Dr. Luo and a nurse stood guard outside the ward, leaving the visiting time to the family members.
Jiang Yingying looked at the He family and asked, "Can I go in and see He Yan?"
"Of course." He Jingqi said, "Xiao Jiang, you and Xiao Ge go in and see him first."
The others had no objection to He Jingqi's words.
Jiang Yingying said: "Thank you, uncle. Comrade Ge and I will go in first. Thank you so much."
Ge Dazhuang couldn't speak. He just saluted He Jingqi and the others, then followed Jiang Yingying into the ward.
Before hearing the news that He Yan was injured, Jiang Yingying had never thought that one day, every step she took towards him would be heavy.
It was so heavy that after just a dozen steps, she was already in tears.
"Woo woo, He Tuan, my sister-in-law and I are here to see you."
Ge Dazhuang had been crying since he entered the ward. He sobbed and wiped his tears with his hands.
Jiang Yingying tilted her head to glance at him, then turned her gaze back to He Yan.
"Does it hurt?"
After so many days, he still had thick gauze on his body and a scar between his brows.
She raised her hand, and tears fell on his face.
Jiang Yingying raised her hand to wipe it, "I cried accidentally. If you feel unhappy, you can get up and talk to me." She said, "Well, you can open your eyes immediately and then say fiercely, don't cry, crying is so ugly."
Her fingertips rested on the scar on his brow bone. "It should leave a scar, but it's okay. It doesn't look bad."
Jiang Yingying moved a chair and sat down, and she also moved a chair for Ge Dazhuang.
"Do you have anything to say to your leader?"
Ge Dazhuang was crying sadly, and when Jiang Yingying asked him this, he started to hiccup.
"I, burp, burp, sister-in-law, you, burp, you say, burp, I'm not good at talking." After saying the word "not good at talking", Ge Dazhuang started crying again.
Seeing He Yan like this, he was really sad. Since he joined the army as a recruit, he had been a soldier led by He Yan.
He Yan has saved his life many times, big and small.
But, but now, he has not yet repaid his He Tuan, and he has not spent the money he started saving after hearing that He Tuan had a girlfriend, and his He Tuan is lying here.
Jiang Yingying said: "Okay, I'll talk to him first."
"He Yan, I'm Jiang Yingying. Comrade Ge Dazhuang and I came from Yun Province to see you. I'm grateful to Comrade Ge for taking care of me along the way."
"If you want to repay us for our hard work along the way, please work hard and wake up early to repay us."
"He Yan, the doctor said that there is a high chance that you will wake up within three years, or you may never wake up again."
"By the way, if you never wake up, will you not age? Then, when I grow old, will you still look like this?"
…
Jiang Yingying said a lot, but most of the time, she didn't know what she was saying.
He Yan's left index finger moved slightly, but the two people in the ward who were immersed in sadness did not notice this subtle change.
Jiang Yingying wiped her tears, looked at Ge Dazhuang, and said, "Talk to him, I'll be back in two days."
Ge Dazhuang pursed his lips and said, "Sister-in-law, are we leaving?"
In fact, it was time for him to leave. This time, it was because He Yan was from their military region and was seriously injured and fell into a coma while performing a mission while out on a mission.
Jiang Yingying wanted to come and see him, so Ge Dazhuang was sent out on this trip.
After Ge Dazhuang asked the question, He Yan moved his fingers a few more times.
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