He was tied up and left to one side, with Xiao Wu lying next to him in the same situation.
"Brother, are we going to be doomed here today?"
Xiao Wu's voice was choked with sobs, as if she were reminiscing or longing for something.
"My wife and I have only been married for a month, and I promised to buy her a silk scarf when I go back."
Hou Siyuan, however, was thinking of his father's lonely and desolate figure sitting on his mother's grave.
Hou Pinxuan sat on the grave, reminiscing for a while, but afterwards he couldn't recall what Pingping looked like back then.
Everyone says that Uncle Zhao's youngest daughter looks a lot like her, but Hou Pinxuan doesn't feel any sense of familiarity, and now she has even forgotten what she looks like.
He was just used to sitting there; his legs were weak, he walked with a limp, and he couldn't do any heavy work.
Rumors are spreading in the village. People are saying that he only came to find his son because he's old and wants to rely on him for his old age, but he clearly has a pension and subsidies.
"Pingping, were you like this back then, enduring other people's gossip and rumors, but only able to silently swallow all the bitterness?"
At this moment, he felt closer to the two of them than ever before, even though fate had treated them so cruelly.
The sun had set when he slowly and unsteadily made his way home.
☆
"Brother Hou, I don't want to die. My mother is waiting for me to come back and take care of her. She's not in good health and can't take the shock."
Hou Siyuan frowned in frustration. What could he do? They were all tied up, weren't they?
"Hey kid over there, call me 'Dad,' and I'll give you a quick death. How about it?"
"Hahaha……"
"Big brother, this kid just slapped me in the face, I'm going to slap him back."
The leader glanced at his underling and said, "Go ahead, do whatever you want, but don't go too bloody and attract wild beasts."
"Okay!"
The henchman came over and kicked him a few times, but that wasn't enough, so he pulled out his belt and started hitting him repeatedly.
Xiao Wu shrank back, not daring to look. "Brother Hou, please protect me. I can't save you. I'm scared too."
As Hou Siyuan lay dying, a commotion came from the mountain, and a group of plainclothes officers rushed out quickly. They were armed and soon subdued the group.
Hou Siyuan struggled to lift his head and saw a blurry figure.
"Siyuan, Siyuan, how are you?"
"Get him to the hospital quickly."
All around me was a cacophony of sounds, the roar of machinery, and people shouting.
After a long while, it finally quieted down.
Three days later, Hou Siyuan woke up to find the hospital's white walls before him.
Hou Pinxuan stood up. "Son, you're awake. How are you feeling?"
Hou Siyuan felt his mouth was extremely dry. He opened his mouth but no sound came out.
"What's wrong with you family members? The patient's lips are dry, why didn't you moisten them with water? I taught you yesterday."
Yesterday, his eldest uncle came to stay with him at the hospital, and Hou Pinxuan only came to replace him this morning. He had no idea about this, but he still nodded and admitted his mistake in a good-natured manner.
"Blame me, blame me."
The nurse moistened Hou Siyuan's lips with a cotton swab dipped in water. Her long eyelashes cast a small shadow on her eyelids, and Hou Siyuan couldn't help but think of Xiao Wu's incessant chatter.
"My wife is the most beautiful woman in our area, and countless people envy me."
Hou Siyuan thought that his wife was definitely not as pretty as this girl named Sun Tingting.
His gaze fell on the ID tag on Sun Tingting's chest, but Sun Tingting blushed. Where was this kid looking?
"snort!"
Sun Tingting threw the cotton swab down and stormed off.
Hou Siyuan was taken aback. What was going on?
He looked at Hou Pinxuan, who also looked bewildered.
Hou Pinxuan continued Sun Tingting's actions with the cotton swab in hand. Hou Siyuan unconsciously looked at the ID card and then realized that she had misunderstood.
The door opened, and a tall, upright figure walked in.
"Brother Hou, our operation was a great success. We've captured all those people; not a single one escaped."
He paused, then continued.
How is Siyuan?
Hou Siyuan looked at the person who had come with difficulty; it was his former colleague, Lan Ying.
Speaking of Lan Ying, he is a very sentimental person. Hou Pinxuan saved him once, so he felt very indignant on Hou Pinxuan's behalf.
And so, the newly appointed Gu Ting found a fault with him and sent him to this grassroots position.
This operation was also a coincidence; they just happened to run into Hou Siyuan, who was being robbed.
"It's much better now. The doctor said I broke a few ribs and it will take a few months to recover."
"Having survived such a calamity, you're bound to have good fortune in the future, Brother Hou. Don't worry, things will be fine from now on. I've already spoken to the hospital, and they'll give Siyuan the best medicine. Don't fret."
"Okay, that's kind of you. Go ahead and do what you need to do, don't worry about us."
Lan Ying agreed and went out.
Hou Siyuan wasn't in a bad mood; on the contrary, he suddenly felt like he had found some enjoyment.
Hou Siyuan stayed in the hospital for a month before his health improved, but he did not leave the hospital and refused to leave the inpatient department.
"What's wrong with you? We've already discharged you, why are you still refusing to leave?"
Hou Siyuan didn't even look up, letting the head nurse nag on. Ten minutes later, the head nurse finally left.
"Siyuan, are you alright? That's just how the head nurse is. She's actually a very nice person, she just likes to nag."
Sun Tingting and Hou Siyuan are already quite familiar with each other, and the two have become friends.
"Yeah, I'm fine, I'm used to it."
"Hehe, you too, why aren't you discharged yet? Do you really consider this place your home?"
Hou Siyuan had decided to go home, but before he left, he wanted to confirm one thing.
"Tingting, I have something I want to tell you. Could you come sit over there with me for a bit?"
Sun Tingting glanced at her watch. "I'll be off work in ten minutes. I'll come find you then."
"Um."
Hou Siyuan kept rehearsing in his mind, but after sitting on the bench for half an hour, he still couldn't say it.
"Hey, what's wrong with you? Weren't you going to tell me something? Why aren't you saying anything now?"
Hou Siyuan was going all out.
"Tingting, I...I..."
"What are you talking about?"
Sun Tingting looked at Hou Siyuan strangely and found that his face was flushed and his eyes were darting around. Suddenly she understood.
People in this era are still very conservative. Confessions and love are very pure. Some people have never even held hands when they are in love, let alone kissed.
"Are you willing?"
Sun Tingting blushed. "What do you mean you're willing? I didn't hear you."
Hou Siyuan took a deep breath and declared loudly, "Sun Tingting, I like you, let's be together."
Sun Tingting quickly covered his mouth and looked around. Her frightened little eyes made Hou Siyuan laugh.
"You're so mean, shouting like that. I'm ignoring you."
Hou Siyuan took her little hand and asked, "Then are you willing to be with me?"
Sun Tingting nodded shyly; there was no doubt that she also liked Hou Siyuan.
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