Chapter 370: Medal Awarding Ceremony
Xia Xubai's fingertips trembled slightly, and with an almost pious temptation, he gently stroked Xia Lili's cheek.
A warm touch came from his fingertips, and the face of his sister in front of him slowly overlapped with the childish outline in his memory.
But it adds countless unfamiliar and vivid details.
“Lili…”
Xia Xubai's voice was hoarse, choked with disbelief, "You've grown up..."
His fingertips traced her brow bone and brushed the corners of her eyes.
“It’s become more beautiful…”
"She's not the little girl who used to follow me around and sniffle in my memory."
Xia Lili's tears burst out instantly, but the corners of her mouth were raised high, and she punched her brother's shoulder with her fist, crying and laughing.
Then, as if she suddenly remembered something, she reached out and pinched her brother's arm hard.
"Ah!" Xia Xubai cried out in pain, looking at his sister with a mixture of laughter and tears, "Why are you pinching me?"
Xia Lili said with a heavy nasal voice and a choked voice, "I, I'm afraid this is a dream... What if I wake up and you can't see again..."
Xia Xubai felt both distressed and amused when he heard this.
He raised his hand and gently tapped his sister's forehead: "Silly girl, do you believe it now? It's not a dream, brother can really see."
The slight touch on her forehead made Xia Lili burst into laughter. She once again held her brother's hand tightly, feeling the real warmth.
Xia Lili suppressed her excitement, immediately took out her cell phone, and called home, trying to speak calmly: "Dad, Mom, can you come to the hospital now? There's something...um, it's about my brother."
She carefully kept this huge surprise a secret.
When Xia Lintian and Chang Yue hurried to the door of the ward with some worry, the scene they saw made them freeze in place.
They saw their son, who once had to rely on a blind stick to carefully explore the way forward, now walking towards them steadily and with big strides.
Xia Xubai had a bright and confident smile on his face that they had not seen in many years.
The usual calmness and loneliness on his face were completely gone.
"Xu Bai, you...your eyes..." Chang Yue covered her mouth, her voice trembling, and tears instantly blurred her vision.
Xia Lintian's eyes also turned red, and he looked at his son in disbelief as he walked up to them with precision.
"Dad, Mom! I can see!"
Xia Xubai opened his arms and hugged his parents tightly.
Xia Lili, standing by, explained with tears in her eyes, but full of joy, "My brother has had a retinal prosthesis implanted. He's now in the clinical recovery phase and is adapting very well... He can see again!"
These words were like opening the floodgates of emotion.
Chang Yue's tears burst out, she hugged her son tightly, as if she wanted to rub him into her bones and blood, and cried uncontrollably.
Xia Lintian, who was always cheerful, also patted his son's back hard, with tears in his eyes, and nodded continuously, unable to say a word.
Xia Xubai let go of his parents and looked at their faces carefully and greedily.
The traces of time on their faces are so clear.
Every wrinkle on their face revealed the days and nights of worry and toil that he could not see.
Xia Xubai's tears finally fell, and his voice choked: "Dad, Mom... You've aged a lot... During these years that I couldn't see, you... You worked so hard..."
Chang Yue stroked her son's eyes, which reflected her own reflection, with trembling hands, and cried, "It's not hard, not hard at all... As long as you and Lili are fine, everything is worth it for Mom..."
Xia Lintian also wiped his tears and nodded heavily.
At this moment, countless days and nights seemed to flash before Xia Lili's eyes, and she shed tears silently.
The silhouette of my brother sitting in front of the piano, revising the music score over and over again; his sweat-soaked back in the rehearsal room; and his determined eyes as he continued to invest all his income as a singer into a seemingly unattainable retinal research project.
Those unknown efforts and persistence finally brought about the miracle of Xia Xubai regaining his sight today.
Xia Xubai turned around and looked at his sister who was crying silently.
He reached out and gently ruffled her hair, his movements gentle yet powerful.
His fox eyes were filled with soft light, solemn and gentle:
"Lili, from now on...I can help you share more of the burden."
"Brother is back."
At this moment, all the waiting and all the hardships were best rewarded in the family's tears and tight hugs.
The doctor arranged for Xia Xubai to watch TV news first to help him adapt to visual information.
On the screen, the host announced in clear voice: "The annual National Medal Award Ceremony will be held in the capital at the end of December this year."
When Xia Lili saw this news, her eyes lit up and her tone was full of unconcealable pride.
She came close to her brother, pointed at the TV screen and said, "Brother, I will attend this commendation meeting."
Xia Lili specifically emphasized, "And you're sitting in the front row to receive the medal!"
If she had a tail, it would be up in the air by now.
Xia Lintian and Chang Yue standing by also looked pleased.
Chang Yue gently patted her son's hand, her voice choking with sobs, "Xubai, your eyesight has improved at the perfect time. Now, you can see your sister standing on the highest national podium with your own eyes."
"Yes," Xia Lintian nodded with red eyes, "Our Lili has really brought honor to our family."
Xia Xubai chuckled: "Our Lili is really amazing."
Xia Lili smiled and looked at her family: "Then your families can come to the capital together. Our whole family will go, so it's a good opportunity to take you to have a good time in the capital."
"Really?" Chang Yue shook her daughter's hand in surprise. "Your father and I have never been to the capital."
Xia Xubai looked at his excited family gently and continued softly, "It just so happens that I'm going to have a concert at the Bird's Nest Stadium soon, so I'll go familiarize you with the venue first."
His words were full of doting, "When you come, I'll take you for a good stroll."
The family looked at each other and smiled, and the ward was filled with long-lost laughter.
This sudden double piece of good news made everyone's face glow with happiness.
It was the end of December in a blink of an eye, and the capital was filled with a cold wind.
The plane landed smoothly at the Capital Airport. As Xia Lili and her family walked to the pick-up gate, they saw the familiar tall figure.
Li Qihan arrived in the capital half a month in advance to attend a criminal investigation expert exchange meeting. When he learned that Xia Lili and her family were coming, he took time out to pick them up at the airport.
On the way here, Xia Lili mentioned to her parents during a casual chat, "Captain Li has a place to stay in the capital and a car, so it would be convenient for him to come pick us up."
Chang Yue listened with approval in her eyes. She gently touched her daughter's hand and asked in a low voice, "Lili, you and Qihan...where are you at now?"
Xia Lili's ears turned red and she scratched her head embarrassedly: "Mom, it's almost there..."
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