Chapter 76 The Lucky Draw: Nineteen Kinds of Good Deeds Lead to Good Fortune
Lin Shukai saw his son raise his trembling fist high, but instead of landing it on him, it struck Xingmian's own chest.
His son, usually a man of few words, was so desperate beneath the calm surface of the lake.
It was only at this moment that Lin Shukai suddenly realized that he was a bad father, and that Xingmian was already terminally ill.
Lin Shukai sighed: "Son, in your eyes, your dad is the kind of person who would do such a thing by any means necessary?"
"If it wasn't you, who else could it be? Uncle Xu never went out during working hours! Don't think you've covered your tracks perfectly! I've investigated and I know everything! It's clear you set him up to go to such a far place to buy things on his way to work! There's no one else in this world who would target my sister's family except you!" Lin Xingmian cried out.
Lin Shukai calmly replied, "I didn't do it."
"You're lying!" he roared, then turned around. "You went back on your word first, so I won't keep my promise to you either. I'm leaving. I'm going back to Mushui. She needs me now. I need to go back to her!"
His son's stubborn expression was deeply etched into Lin Shukai's mind. He closed his eyes, then suddenly pointed at Lin Xingmian and said, "You dare!!"
"Ha, let's see if I dare!" He walked out without looking back. "You can have whoever you like be your son. From today onwards, you can pretend you don't have a son like me!"
Lin Shukai's temples bulged with veins; he could no longer bear it.
"Lin Xingmian, there's only a little over a month left until the college entrance exam. Can you please stop doing reckless things?"
Lin Xingmian seemed not to hear, he only knew that the only person in the world capable of doing this was Lin Shukai.
Because he was out of Lin Shukai's control during his time in Mushui, and because he did not live according to his father's arrangements, he harbored resentment towards his sister and retaliated against her in this way.
Lin Xingmian was so certain that Uncle Xu's car accident was orchestrated by her father for another reason: after learning about the incident, she investigated the details of what happened.
The restaurant where Uncle Xu works has a designated person in charge of buying and preparing the ingredients. However, on the day Uncle Xu was on duty as the head chef, the person in charge of buying the ingredients unexpectedly fell ill and took leave. But with the boss instructing him to receive a big customer at noon, he had no choice but to ride his bike to the market to buy the ingredients himself.
There's a small detail here. Logically, with so many chefs in the kitchen, who wouldn't have to go and buy the food? Why did it have to be Xu Wenfan? Apparently, the restaurant's higher-ups specifically sought out Xu Wenfan and told him that the customers they were serving at noon today were very important, and that he should take good care of the dishes.
I never expected that such a serious car accident would happen as soon as I stepped out of the house.
During the time of the accident, the taxi driver who caused it simply stood there dumbfounded and didn't call an ambulance immediately! Lin Xingmian felt something was wrong, so he investigated the taxi driver, and sure enough, it was as he guessed—the taxi driver was acting under someone else's orders. He had elderly parents and young children to support, and he did this for a large sum of money.
The car accident appeared to be accidental, but it was actually deliberate. The entire process was meticulous and precise; apart from his father, he couldn't imagine anyone else would commit such a heinous act against his sister's family.
It's all my fault! It's all my fault! It's all because of my incompetence that Uncle Xu is now lying in a hospital bed, unable to move. My sister must be heartbroken! All the blame lies with me!
He walked out with firm steps, stubbornly insisting: "I'm not going to study this book anymore, and I won't take the college entrance exam. From today onwards, we are no longer father and son. Shanghai is not my home, Mushui is my home! I want to go back to Mushui, I want to go back to my sister's side, and I want to stay with her to take care of Uncle Xu. No one in this world can separate the two of us."
"No one can separate the two of us, including you—Lin Shukai."
Lin Xingmian muttered angrily to herself as she walked out.
The father behind him, seeing his son like this, raised his hand to his forehead and sat heavily back in his chair.
Seeing this, Derek stepped forward and said, "Master, I think the young master's behavior and speech are a bit strange right now. Perhaps I could arrange for a psychologist to take a look at him?"
Unexpectedly, Lin Shukai grabbed a blue folder and threw it at Derek, his anger no longer able to be contained: "He's already this sick and you only just thought to call a psychologist? What were you doing all this time?"
"I'm sorry! I'm sorry! Sir, I will take care of this as soon as possible." Derek bowed and apologized hurriedly.
"Get it done as soon as possible! Who told him about this? Why was he able to come home from school during class time? Didn't anyone stop him?"
Lin Shukai was furious.
"What exactly are you doing? How come you're all helpless against Xingmian now that he's back? It was the same back in Mushui! And it's still the same in Yunyue! Do you really think that indulging him like this is for his own good?"
Derek was sweating profusely: "It's all my fault, sir. Please calm down, your health is important..."
Lin Shukai interrupted him: "Don't let him really leave. Take away all his documents, lock him up in a room, and we'll talk about this again after the college entrance exam."
Derek: "Understood."
.
Besides Tian Jingjing, there was another person who came to deliver the money.
Today is April 15th, ten days after my father's car accident.
Grandma Huang collects recyclables on the 15th and 30th of each month. She has been coming to the supermarket every day this month, but it hasn't been open since her father's accident, so she doesn't have many empty water bottles and old cardboard boxes left.
But kind-hearted Ayu thought about how Grandma Huang had ridden her tricycle all the way to this street alone, and worried that she would leave empty-handed, so she forced herself to get out of bed, opened the supermarket door, and waited for Grandma Huang to come over.
Xu Zhiyu hadn't calculated it, but she felt that these ten days were longer and more unbearable than the previous twenty years combined.
In the first three days after her father's accident, she was busy running around handling various procedures and documents, feeling numb and unresponsive to the outside world.
Now, ten days later, she gradually understands what it means to be in a lifelong vegetative state.
For example, where there used to be two people on the big bed in the bedroom at home—Dad and Mom—now there is only one person or no one at all; for example, sometimes Dad would come home early from get off work and cook dinner for her and Mom, but now no one prepares dinner for them in the evening; for example, Dad's social media posts are no longer updated, and there is no longer a pair of clean and carefully placed leather shoes in the entryway.
A living person slowly faded out of Xu Zhiyu's world. She could still call him "Dad," but she could no longer hear him call her "Ayu."
Sometimes she would sit by her father's hospital bed, looking at his lifeless face. Strangely—even though he was right in front of her, Ah Yu missed him terribly...
It turns out that happiness can disappear so easily.
The ordinary, mundane memories of the past almost overwhelmed her. In the past, Ah Yu always heard others say they envied her, but she didn't understand. What was so enviable about her ordinary and boring life?
Only now does she realize that a simple and peaceful life is the most expensive luxury in the world.
"I'm here~ Ah Yu—"
Ah Yu was dozing off on the second floor, propping her head up with her hand. After hearing the sound, she dragged her tired body downstairs.
When Grandma Huang entered the store, she saw that Ah Yu seemed to have lost a lot of weight and looked haggard.
Xu Zhiyu forced a pale smile at Grandma Huang, then moved the pre-packaged bags out one by one without saying a word.
Grandma Huang pretended to be unaware of the changes in A Yu's family, and chatted and laughed with Boss Xu. While chatting and laughing, she loaded the scrap onto the tricycle. Then, she flipped up the seat cushion of the tricycle driver's seat and took out a heavy black cloth bag.
Grandma Huang said to Xu Zhiyu, "Thank you, little Ayu, for always saving these empty bottles and cardboard boxes for me. My son came back a few days ago and brought some local specialties from his workplace. I put some in a bag for you to take back and share with your mother."
After saying that, Grandma Huang handed the heavy black cloth bag to Xu Zhiyu. Xu Zhiyu took it and touched it, guessing that it was probably dried tofu or something similar, in pieces, and it was very heavy.
She was very careful, afraid that if she used too much force, she would break the tofu inside.
After collecting the recyclables, Grandma Huang left this cloth bag behind and then departed.
Ah Yu stood at the door and watched Grandma Huang leave.
She didn't have the energy to open the shop today, so she tidied up and went upstairs to see if the local specialties Grandma Huang had given her needed to be frozen.
However, to her surprise—
When the heavy black cloth bag was opened, it was found to be filled with huge amounts of banknotes!
She roughly counted them; each stack contained ten thousand yuan, and there were twenty stacks in total.
"Grandma Huang must have taken the wrong bag, right?" This was Xu Zhiyu's first thought.
But below the cash was a note, written in neat handwriting, which read:
[Dear Ms. Xu, I am Huang Yimei's son. Thank you for taking care of my mother over the past few days. I now run a business in the old capital and have settled down here after getting married. I originally wanted to bring my mother to live with me, but she insisted on staying in Mushui City. Collecting empty bottles and old cardboard boxes has become a personal habit and hobby for my mother over the years. I often call her, and she tells me that you, Ms. Xu, are a kind-hearted girl! Recently, I heard that Ms. Xu's family has encountered misfortune. You have shown my mother care and concern over the past few days, and I would like to express my gratitude with this small amount of cash, hoping it can help you in your immediate crisis!]
Ayu was stunned. She never imagined that such a good thing could happen to her.
It is indeed an urgent matter, a matter of utmost urgency.
Because she has run out of cash, and her father will basically be living in the hospital for the rest of his life, she is currently considering whether to sell the new house and car that her parents just bought for her.
With this 200,000 yuan, we can barely make ends meet for a few more days, but it is far from enough to cover my father's lifelong medical expenses.
Having always been the one helping others, now that the roles are reversed, Ah Yu still doesn't feel the malice of this world.
Honestly, she would never have accepted the money if she didn't need it!
She stared at the cash for a long time, realizing for the first time that 200,000 yuan in cash looked like this.
She carefully placed the money in stacks and silently wiped away her tears.
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