Chapter 51 (Memories)
Yao Yingmo called back during dinner.
Shi Xuze glanced across the table. Shi Congyan waved his hand, indicating that he was free to answer the phone. He picked up the phone and walked to the living room, a little further away from the dining table, to answer it.
Behind him, Lin Man and Shi Congyan stopped what they were doing at the same time, followed him with their eyes fixed, and listened to his intermittent voice with their ears wide open.
"Are you guys here yet?"
"I saw that you haven't replied to my message, and I'm a little worried."
"Have you had dinner yet?"
"Sure, I'm looking forward to it. It's bound to be delicious. By the way, when will you be back?"
"Okay, I'll pick you up at the station."
"Yes, I'm having dinner."
"Bye."
When Shi Xuze hung up the phone and turned around, he saw his parents looking at him as if they had seen a ghost.
Shi Xuze's mouth twitched, "Are you eavesdropping?"
"You were the one who spoke so loudly," Lin Man admitted generously, confidently putting all the blame on Shi Xuze. "Was it her phone?"
Shi Xuze: “…Yes.”
Lin Man got the answer she wanted and immediately smiled. Her smile was so meaningful that it made Shi Xuze's hair stand on end.
He looked at Shi Congyan for help, hoping that his father would be more serious. Unexpectedly, Shi Congyan nodded and said, "Find some time to take her home."
Shi Xuze: “?”
"Who am I to take her home?"
Shi Congyan pondered for a long moment before saying, "It all depends on whether you're up to the task. If not, just say we want to thank her for taking care of you and ask her to come to the banquet."
Shi Xuze: "Why do I feel like you have no confidence in me?"
Lin Man: "Because we are your parents."
Shi Xuze curled his lips, lowered his head to eat and ignored them.
Lin Man and Shi Congyan smiled at each other and started eating seriously, no longer teasing their love-struck son.
The next day, as soon as the first light of dawn appeared on the horizon, Zhou Yu and Yao Yingmo drove off.
When we arrived at the cemetery, it was already bright outside and the administrator had just opened the iron gate to welcome the crowds of tomb-sweepers during the Qingming Festival.
Yao Yingmo bought flowers at the entrance of the cemetery. She held the flowers and said, "Xiaoyu, go to grandma first. I'll be there soon."
Zhou Yu shook his head and looked at Yao Yingmo stubbornly, "I'll go with you. Without them, there will be no me."
Yao Yingmo lowered his eyelashes and sighed softly, "Okay, then, let's go together."
The sky was covered with gray clouds, and the air was filled with the smell of rain. The grass in front of the tomb was covered with water droplets, and when you stepped on it, the soles of your shoes would be covered with wet and sticky mud.
No one cares about the dirt on the soles of their shoes.
Yao Yingmo slowly squatted down and placed the bouquet in front of her parents' grave. She clasped her hands together, closed her eyes, and muttered silently. Zhou Yu stood behind her, his expression solemn.
Yao Yingmo had so much to say that she squatted there for half an hour. Zhou Yu did not urge her, but only offered her a hand to support her when she reluctantly stood up.
"Thanks, let's go see grandma."
"good."
They left the cemetery area and walked towards the columbarium nearby.
Yao Yingmo originally wanted to bury Zhou Yu's grandmother next to his parents, but Zhou Yu flatly refused. He didn't want to rely on Yao Yingmo for even his grandmother's funeral. Besides, he was also worried that someone would come looking for him. The individual graves outside were more vulnerable to destruction than the columbarium with access control.
Yao Yingmo respected his wishes.
"Grandma, Xiaoyu has grown up. He is very reliable and capable now. Don't worry about him in heaven."
Yao Yingmo stood behind Zhou Yu, and together with him, they looked up at the box where grandma's name was written.
There were people all around paying their respects and mourning. The whole space was filled with a low pressure, with sobs and sighs coming one after another, but the vast majority of people remained silent.
In the corner, a figure flashed by, followed by a flash of light.
"Who's the psychopath taking pictures here?" someone cursed.
Another voice soothed, "Maybe it was just an accidental touch."
Yao Yingmo seemed to have sensed something and looked in the direction of the flash, only to see a hurriedly departing figure. She frowned and subconsciously chased after it, but the figure disappeared too quickly and she stopped after taking only one step.
Zhou Yu noticed the movement and turned around to ask, "What happened?"
"It's okay." Yao Yingmo's face remained worried. "I just have a bad feeling."
Zhou Yu's face darkened as well. He wanted to speak, but seeing so many people around him, he took a deep breath and said, "Let's talk on the way back. Let's go."
Zhou Yu drove on the return trip.
He was dragged into the test by his college roommate, who told him that if he passed, he could drive Yao Yingmo around. At the driving school, he was nervous about interacting with the unfamiliar instructor and worried that the driving school jokes he'd read about online would happen to him. But the instructor only briefly explained it to him once and then left him alone in the car. He felt comfortable, and he passed on his first try.
It was not until he passed the test that he told Yao Yingmo that this time he could finally share Yao Yingmo's hard work of driving.
Yao Yingmo felt relaxed and gave Zhou Yu full trust. He sat in the passenger seat and closed his eyes to rest.
"Was that... my dad?"
Yao Yingmo was startled. He opened his eyes and saw the car had already driven down the mountain and was now safely on the flat road. No wonder Zhou Yu, a novice driver, dared to speak. But his questions were even more treacherous than the mountain road itself, and Yao Yingmo didn't dare to answer.
"Don't hide it from me." Zhou Yu said, "I should learn to handle it myself."
Yao Yingmo took a deep breath and sighed, "Yes, it's your dad."
"I understand." Zhou Yu said.
Yao Yingmo turned to look at him, and suddenly remembered the noise she heard in the stairwell yesterday, "You heard what Grandma Yang and I said."
That's why he guessed it.
Zhou Yu looked straight ahead and agreed.
"You... forget it." Yao Yingmo wanted to say something to him, but swallowed the words back. Zhou Yu should have known about this matter, but the way he knew it was different from what she expected.
Fortunately, Zhou Yu was relatively calm, so Yao Yingmo felt relieved and tried to discuss with him.
"What do you think his purpose is in coming back? He should have known that grandma didn't leave any inheritance. He was the one who signed the document to sever ties with you. Even if he doesn't want to acknowledge you, you're still just a child. What does he want to get by coming back now?"
Zhou Yu scoffed, "Sister, you've forgotten he's a lunatic. Maybe he just wants revenge?"
Yao Yingmo's face turned pale, "You're right."
She thought she would never forget the shock and anger she felt that day.
She was a college student at the time, and she rushed back after hearing the news that her parents had been killed in a fire.
The fire was raging that day, and all the neighbors in the building suffered some kind of bruise or choking injury, and the emergency room was in chaos.
"I'm sorry, but the patient inhaled too much smoke and couldn't be saved."
She didn't see her parents for the last time.
The blood in her body seemed to be cold, her eyes were dark, and her ears were roaring. At that moment, she felt like she was pulled out of this world, separated by a piece of foggy glass, everything was blurry, she couldn't hear clearly, and couldn't touch.
In a daze, she heard a familiar and gentle voice talking to her. She should recognize it. It must be one of her neighbors, but at that time her brain could not recognize who was speaking.
"They were strong and managed to escape a long time ago, but the family next door, well, you know, an old man and a child, couldn't escape at all."
"The fire truck was stuck outside the alley, so they rushed back to carry the people out. They ended up rescuing the people, but they collapsed at the gate."
"Son, your parents are heroes. You should be proud of them."
What hero? How can a hero die?
Shouldn't a hero stand and be admired by everyone? Why is he lying there motionless?
Can you still be called a hero if you don’t know your own abilities?
Why do people want to be heroes?
They get to be heroes, but what about her?
A surge of anger surged up from my abdomen, completely blocking my chest. My lungs felt hot and cold, and I could hardly breathe.
There is no one to vent to.
A noise broke out at the other end of the emergency room, abruptly interrupting the neighbor's ineffective consolation and Yao Yingmo's breakdown.
"It's the family next door," the neighbor said. "It seems their family is arguing with the doctor. They said there's no danger to their lives, so why are they still arguing? Oh my god, what's that person doing? Is he going to hit the doctor?"
Yao Yingmo frowned and stepped forward, "I'll go take a look."
"Xiao Yao, that's very dangerous, don't go near it."
Yao Yingmo walked forward without hesitation, ignoring the anxious shouts of his neighbors behind him.
She had to go and see the person her parents saved with their lives.
"I told you I don't have any money! Don't save him. I'll take him back and leave him to die."
"The patient's life is not in danger. With proper treatment, he will definitely regain consciousness. As medical staff, we cannot watch a life that could have been saved pass away."
"I'm her son. I said I don't have money and I won't save him. You don't understand what I'm saying."
"It's impossible not to save him."
The middle-aged man with a fierce look on his face reached out and grabbed the collar of the white coat in front of him, pulled the young doctor whose lips were pale but whose eyes and tone were still calm closer, clenched his right fist and raised it high.
Yao Yingmo couldn't help but take a breath.
The girl in the next bed screamed, "Help! Someone's being beaten!"
"Shut up!" The middle-aged man glared at the girl fiercely, and she quickly covered her mouth.
Yao Yingmo knew that he was powerless, so he stood still and did not dare to move forward.
Among the other family members watching, there were several strong men. Before the man could swing his fist, several of them stepped forward and subdued him.
"Doctor, please save the life quickly, we are here to help!"
The man was taken aside and the doctor was finally able to stand by the bed.
The person in the hospital bed was a petite, white-haired man, hooked up to a respirator and an electrocardiogram machine. A frail boy sat beside the bed, his back hunched, shoulders hunched, head bowed. He clasped his arms, his arms covered in red welts, likely scratched.
The man continued to shout, and every time he shouted, the boy trembled and lowered his head even lower.
She knew them and knew that they depended on each other for survival. At this moment, listening to the middle-aged man's shouting, she rationally understood her parents' actions.
"The old woman is a nuisance, and the child is a nuisance too. It would be better if they were burned to death. Don't save them! I say don't save them! I won't pay!"
Everyone present frowned, as they didn't want to talk about other people's family affairs, and they were also afraid that the man would become even more emotional and might not be able to be suppressed by the people present.
No one responded, and the man shouted even louder.
Yao Yingmo retracted his gaze, walked to the bedside, raised his hand and patted the boy's furry head, "Doctor, I will pay for their medical expenses. Please do your best to treat them."
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