School Beauty's Invincible Martial Expert
/ School Beauty's Invincible Martial Expert Chapter 115 – Chapter 115: Tragic Happiness
Chapter 115: Tragic Happiness
Old Liu broke down crying all of a sudden, which terrified Xiao Han and Big Fatty.
Both men looked shocked. Xiao Han quickly went over and helped Old Liu up from the ground. He then said with concern, “Old Liu, please don't be sad. Rest assured, this money is our way of honoring your elders.”
“That won't do…” Old Liu, wiping his tears with hands as withered as old tree branches, choked up and said, “I have sons and a daughter. How can I let you pay this money?”
“It's okay, Old Liu,” Xiao Han hurriedly shook his head and said, “I'll definitely be able to earn this money back in the future.”
“That still won't do.” Old Liu shook his head and said, “I will call my son and daughter and ask them to come and see their mother. Now that mom is so sick, don't they know they should come and see her?”
After saying this, Old Liu resolutely called his children.
In fact, just a few days ago, his son and daughter both called to say they would be staying out of town for the New Year and wouldn't be coming home. This made Old Liu very upset and deeply saddened. At that time, he considered that his children might be preoccupied with their families. So he didn't disturb them much. Now, at least, he had an excuse and a reason for them to come home for the New Year.
“Child, your mom is ill, come back and see her soon,” Old Liu said, holding the phone.
“Dad, what sickness does mom have?” his eldest son asked anxiously, “If it's just a minor ailment, let it be. After all, coming back is not easy. Plane tickets are too expensive, and train tickets are hard to get. Please try to understand our situation, especially since it's already New Year's Eve!”
“You!” Old Liu was furious and cursed, “Heartless thing, your mom is dying!”
There was a silence on the other end of the phone.
However, Old Liu still clearly heard a woman's voice from the other end of the phone, saying, “As long as she doesn't die, we can't be bothered to come back.”
He recognized the voice all too well—it was his eldest daughter-in-law's voice. Old Liu then fell silent, and afterwards, he silently hung up the phone. He didn't want to call his younger son and only daughter either. Grandma Liu had always cherished and favored his eldest son, and now Old Liu felt thoroughly disheartened. His heart felt like it had fallen into a thousand-year-old ice cellar.
He was chilled to the bone, his heart ice cold.
“Old Liu, what… what's going on?” Xiao Han said, watching Old Liu silently hang up the phone.
“It's nothing!” Old Liu shook his head. He leisurely pulled out a tobacco pipe from his sleeve and stuffed tobacco into the pipe bowl, silently lit it, took a deep breath, and said, “Ah, children grow up, and they eventually have to leave home.”
Xiao Han immediately understood Old Liu's meaning.
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Young birds grow up and leave their home; sons grow up and ultimately leave their parents.
Xiao Han suddenly thought, if he got married in the future, would his mother end up like Grandma Liu? At least Grandma Liu still had Old Liu, but his mother would become a completely lonely elder. Xiao Han fell silent. Old Liu's eyes shimmered with tears, yet his face bore a forced smile of helplessness, endless and inevitable.
On New Year's Eve, Xiao Han and Big Fatty were both staying in the hospital.
Mother Xiao called Xiao Han to check on the situation, and after learning about it, she hurried to the hospital as well.
“Old gentleman, what… what's going on?” Mother Xiao asked urgently, “How come you say she became ill so suddenly?”
“Ah, it's a long story,” Old Liu said, squatting at the corner of the wall, very upset.
Xiao Han gave Mother Xiao a knowing look, and the two walked outside the hospital.
“Mom, Grandma Liu's condition seems quite critical,” Xiao Han said, looking at his mother, “But the three Liu children are unwilling to come back.”
“What?!” Mother Xiao was incredulous upon hearing this. Honoring one's parents was a natural duty of a child. Now that the mother was critically ill without her children visiting or even calling with concern, it was utterly infuriating. She took a deep breath and said, “No, I must call those Liu children. This is just too much.”
“Mom, don't,” Xiao Han shook his head and said, “If they don't want to come back, why force them? A twisted melon is never sweet.”
“Ah!” Mother Xiao sighed helplessly and said, “Raising children like this, it's better to have none at all.”
“Mom, I will definitely take good care of you in the future,” Xiao Han grinned.
Mother Xiao hugged Xiao Han, feeling comforted and proud to have such an obedient and sensible child.
Mother Xiao decided to stay in the hospital as well.
“Big Fatty, you should go back home for the New Year,” Xiao Han patted Li Dapang on the shoulder and said, “Your parents must be waiting for you at home.”
“No, I should also stay,” Li Dapang shook his head and said, “There might be something I can help with. Besides, I've already called my parents. They understand me and are supportive of what I'm doing!”
“That's good!” Xiao Han nodded.
At the hospital's main entrance, a lone figure squatted, a cigarette drooping from his lips, occasionally exhaling wisps of blue smoke. These wisps of smoke made the figure appear all the more isolated and desolate.
“Old Liu is truly heartbroken,” Xiao Han sighed deeply.
“Damn, raising such sons, Old Liu should have just shot them against the wall from the start!” Li Dapang cursed irritably.
“What's the point of saying these things now?” Xiao Han also felt somewhat angry.
From morning until the afternoon, it was almost time for the New Year's Eve dinner.
Mother Xiao stood up from the corridor's chair and then smilingly said, “Old master, why don't you come and join us for the New Year's Eve dinner at our place, how about it?”
“I'm not going!” Old Liu shook his head and said, “My partner is in the hospital, how can I leave her.”
“But…” Mother Xiao didn't know what to say for a moment, she hesitated and then said, “Aunt Liu is lying in the ward, and we can't see her now. How about we come back after eating the New Year's Eve dinner. Perhaps by then she will have been moved out of intensive care.”
Old Liu still shook his head, silently refusing Mother Xiao. This left Mother Xiao at even more of a loss. She looked innocently at Xiao Han, seemingly seeking his help. Xiao Han also helplessly shook his head, as if to say, “I can't do anything either.”
The group fell silent once again.
From nine in the morning, they had waited until past three in the afternoon.
“Grandpa…” Suddenly, a crisp voice came in from outside the hospital.
Old Liu was startled; he quickly looked up. At the entrance of the corridor, a five-or-six-year-old girl, wearing a cartoon version of a down jacket and a hat, looked very adorable. She excitedly ran toward Old Liu. Behind her were Old Liu's eldest son and his wife.
“Lin Lin!” Old Liu quickly stood up and ran excitedly toward the little girl.
Old Liu excitedly held his granddaughter in his arms, tears of excitement forming. It was rare to see his granddaughter once a year. He hadn't expected to see her just when he was overwhelmed with sadness. A sense of happiness suddenly welled up. Old Liu felt he had instantly become the happiest old man in the world.
“Dad, we've come back to see you and mom,” the eldest son, Liu Dajun, said.
“It's good you're back, so good,” Old Liu said, immensely excited.
At this moment, the younger son's family also appeared at the hospital entrance. The family of three went upstairs, and the younger son Liu Xiaojun shouted, “Dad, I'm back.”
“Xiao Jun, you're back too?” Old Liu was even happier.
“Dad, how is mom? What's going on?” Liu Xiaojun said excitedly, “If my brother hadn't called me, I wouldn't even have known anything!”
“Your mom is inside!” Old Liu sighed and said, “The doctor said that if she hadn't been brought in on time, she probably wouldn't have survived tonight. I just wanted to inform you guys to come back, not to have you waste your money. But I was afraid that if you didn't come back today, you might never see your mom again.”
“Why didn't you say so earlier?” Liu Xiaojun said anxiously, “Mom is in such a condition, we should have come back earlier.”
“Ah…”
Old Liu sighed deeply. He tapped his cigarette holder.
“Old master, New Year is almost here, hurry and invite the kids to come eat New Year's Eve dinner at my place!” Mother Xiao hurriedly said.
“Aunt Xiao,” Liu Xiaojun saw Mother Xiao and smiled, “It's not necessary to trouble you; today, I'll take my brother and my dad's family to a hotel for the New Year's Eve dinner. My dad has worked hard all his life, and I should really honor him properly.”
“Why waste that money?” Old Liu heard this and said, “The six thousand yuan for your mom's hospital bill was even fronted by Xiao Han!”
“Uh…” Liu Xiaojun was startled and said, “No problem, we'll discuss it later; my brother and I can split the cost of mom's medical bills.”
Liu Dajun's wife, upon hearing this, her face sank, appearing very unhappy. Naturally, she was very unhappy whenever money was mentioned. However, she did not speak but stood by her husband's side.
“Big brother, what do you say?” Liu Xiaojun looked at his elder brother.
“Of course, of course,” Liu Dajun nodded.
Liu Xiaojun, doing business in another city, had somewhat better financial strength. Liu Dajun was different; he worked in SH, lived under great pressure, and had taken a loan to buy a small apartment in SH. His wife was a strong-willed local from SH. He could barely lift his head at home daily and was financially tight. He felt as if it was very difficult to survive.
So, normally, he just followed his wife's wishes. If it hadn't been for hearing that their mother was dying, he probably wouldn't have rushed back so soon.
“Let's go, we're going to the hotel for the New Year's Eve dinner,” Liu Xiaojun said cheerfully, he took Mother Xiao's hand, “Aunt Xiao, come with us. I know you have been helping out at the hospital since this morning. I should really thank you!”
Source: Webnovel.com, updated on Novlove.com
Chapter end
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