Chapter 49: Telegram
Mi Yang sat in the living room, hugging a few apples and trying to wash them, while also eavesdropping with pricked ears. Hearing them say that, he was both surprised and somewhat enlightened. No wonder Mrs. Bai had come to visit that day, and then Cheng Qing had hastily gone on a “business trip.” It was probably to inform her to go to the hospital to take care of the patient. She had known early because Bai Luochuan’s father had been the first to rescue Mi Zehai.
Mi Yang silently recited the names of these people in his heart, also with a sense of gratitude.
Cheng Qing quickly made three dishes and a soup and brought them out for Mi Yang and the others to eat. Mi Yang hadn’t eaten Cheng Qing’s cooking in a long time. With his parents healthy and by his side, he felt at ease and ate his small bowl of rice with relish. Mi Zehai also hadn’t had a home-cooked meal in a long time. He had been eating bland food in the hospital and was really craving it. He ate more than half of the pot of rice, even mixing the last bit of vegetable soup with his rice and eating it all.
After the meal, Mi Zehai insisted on proving that he was not a cripple and took the dishes to the kitchen to wash them. Cheng Qing didn’t stop him and let him go. She stayed in the living room herself, holding Mi Yang and being affectionate with her son for a while.
Cheng Qing saw the wound on Mi Yang’s knee and touched it. “How did you get this?”
Mi Yang was a little embarrassed. “I saw a bug and fell by myself.”
Cheng Qing laughed at her son for a while. She knew about Mi Yang’s fear of bugs. When Mi Yang was just learning to walk, he had been holding onto the small dining table and walking in circles. Cheng Qing had been puzzled for a long time. When she got closer, she saw that there was a bug the size of a fingernail on the table. Wherever the bug crawled, Mi Yang would dodge in the other direction. But the child was not yet steady on his feet and needed support, so he could only circle the table, which was very funny.
Cheng Qing touched the wound on his knee. Seeing that it was almost scabbing over, she was not particularly worried. She held him and asked about school for a while. Hearing Mi Yang say that he was still first in his exams, besides being relieved, she also felt a little proud. She gave him a kiss. “My son is so amazing.”
Mi Yang smiled. Before he could speak, Cheng Qing held his little face and exclaimed in surprise, “Oh my! Mi Zehai, come and see! Your son has lost a tooth! Hahaha, that’s so funny!”
Mi Zehai ran out of the kitchen with his hands full of foam, pleasantly surprised. “Coming, coming! Which one fell out? Is it ugly?”
Cheng Qing said with certainty, “An upper tooth. It’s very ugly!”
Mi Yang: “…”
His own parents held his mouth open and admired it for a long while. Then, hearing that Mi Yang’s essay had won first prize at school, they immediately said they wanted to make up for the regret and have their own son read the award-winning essay to them again.
Mi Yang thought for a moment. “Alright.”
He took out the essay and began to read. The title of the essay was “My Dream,” a very broad topic that could be about anything. The new teacher was also very nice to the children and praised them no matter what their profession was, which greatly boosted everyone’s enthusiasm. What Mi Yang had written was that he wanted to be an ancient book restorer when he grew up.
He had never forgotten this little dream of his. In his previous life, because his family didn’t know much about this industry, he had also hesitated and not insisted, giving in first and thus missing the opportunity. Now that he had a chance to start over, he wanted to start from the beginning. In this life, he would just do this one thing seriously and do his own little handicrafts well.
Mi Yang’s writing was very good, but now that he was missing a tooth, he spoke with a lisp. After reading a few sentences, his parents, who were sitting on the sofa, started to laugh. Mi Yang stopped and looked up at them. They immediately sat up straight, put on a serious expression again, and gestured for Mi Yang to continue reading. But after a few minutes, they burst out laughing again.
Cheng Qing laughed until she had tears in her eyes. “Oh my, my son has become a little gap-toothed boy. What should we do, hahaha!”
Mi Zehai was also very amused. “He talks like a little old man, fufu-ing, hahaha!”
Mi Yang: “…”
Mi Yang, holding his great dream, held his breath and insisted on finishing his little essay.
Cheng Qing and Mi Zehai sat there and applauded him, praising, “That was very well written!”
Mi Yang held the composition book. “This won first prize and was even posted on the school’s bulletin board. There were a total of five essays from the whole school. You can go and see it next time you go.”
Cheng Qing said, “Okay, Mom will definitely go and see it.”
Mi Yang took the opportunity to add, “Mom, Grandpa Wei also said that this major is very good. He has a friend who is a university professor who teaches this. Grandpa Wei also said that being an ancient book restorer is very good. You can take the civil service exam in the future, or you can work at the provincial library.” He imitated Wei Xian’s tone. “The country is still lacking in talent in this area. It’s recommended to develop one’s own specialty, cultivate it from a young age, and step by step, steadily walk into a job.”
Cheng Qing was very interested. “Oh? You can even take the civil service exam? That’s great. You can work in a library in the future. That’s really good. Our Yangyang is also good at handicrafts. He can definitely do it.”
Mi Zehai nodded along from the side, also looking happy.
Mi Yang planted this little seed in their hearts and was not so worried about the future. He struck while the iron was hot. “Our teacher also said that we should set our goals in elementary school. I’m going to be a book restorer in the future!” Mi Yang said with great passion, not giving them any chance to back out.
The couple sitting on the sofa opposite him were still applauding Mi Yang. What parents would discourage their child? Not only did they not object, but they also encouraged him, “Yangyang said it well. My son is amazing!”
Mi Yang asked them, “Dad, what do you think if I study ancient book restoration when I go to university in the future?”
Mi Zehai had never heard of it. Cheng Qing nudged him with her arm, and he immediately applauded. “Good! We’ll study that!”
Mi Yang’s eyes curved into a smile. “Then I’ll listen to Mom and Dad in the future and work hard towards this goal!”
Although Cheng Qing and Mi Zehai felt that something was not quite right, they still did their best to encourage their baby. Mi Yang looked at them with an expectant expression, and their hearts were filled with sweetness, with a special sense of pride in being parents.
Cheng Qing and Mi Zehai: My son is so outstanding!
Mi Yang: Mom and Dad are so easy to coax when they’re young. So happy.
Winning first prize for this essay was a pleasant surprise. Mi Yang had originally written it to coax Cheng Qing and Mi Zehai. That was his purpose. Mi Yang’s wish was very small, and he was happy with every little bit of progress, every small step forward.
Mi Zehai knew that there had been trouble in Mi Yang’s class before and asked him how the new homeroom teacher was. After all, he hadn’t seen his son for a long time and was worried. Mi Yang naturally said that everything was fine. His eyes were fixed on Mi Zehai’s waist. He carefully touched it. Mi Zehai chuckled. “Son, do you want to see a man’s medal?”
Mi Yang nodded. Mi Zehai then lifted his clothes to show him the scar from the shrapnel. The stitched wound still looked very gruesome. Mi Zehai boasted to his son, “At that time, your dad wasn’t scared at all. I pushed that new recruit aside and rolled away. The shell was a dud. Aiya, it was all fate. I was the only one who came out of a shell explosion completely unscathed… I didn’t make a sound in the hospital either. I gritted my teeth and endured it when they were removing the shrapnel. A man has to be like that!”
Cheng Qing was taking the clothes to wash. When she passed by and heard him bragging, she couldn’t help but give him a small slap on the back, saying angrily, “You still dare to say that! I’m too lazy to say anything else about you, but you endured it in the hospital without a sound? Who was it in the operating room, crying and snotting, asking me to take good care of the child and move on with my life, huh? And who was it who begged me to think of him for another year before remarrying, huh?!”
Mi Zehai sheepishly put down the hem of his clothes and didn’t dare to refute a single word. Seeing Cheng Qing leave, he winked at Mi Yang, and the two of them snuggled on the sofa, laughing secretly.
Mi Zehai had taken leave from work to focus on his recovery. He was at home for a long time, and Mi Yang gradually noticed that Mi Zehai’s injury was not just to his waist and abdomen. His hearing was also damaged. There was a not-so-obvious scar behind his ear, but it definitely had an effect.
Mi Zehai was no longer suitable to stay in the field army. His physical condition did not allow it. Perhaps with this anxiety, the initial joy of being discharged from the hospital also slowly faded. He still talked and laughed in front of Cheng Qing and Mi Yang, but the time he spent in silence also became longer and longer. He was not from a civilian background and had never thought of a civilian job. At his prime, he could not advance any further, which really made him feel frustrated.
After recuperating at home for a while, Mi Zehai received a telegram from his hometown.
The telegram was from Shanhai Town, but it was not from Cheng Qing’s family, but the Mi family.
When Mi Zehai was young, because his family was poor and could not support many children, he was sent to the Mi family to be raised. He also treated his adoptive parents as his own biological parents. When he subsidized his biological parents, he would never neglect his adoptive parents. The grace of raising was greater than the grace of birth. Mi Zehai was a filial son, and he could not let go of either side.
This was also the reason why their small family had not saved anything for so many years. Mi Zehai did not have high material demands, and Cheng Qing was also a kind person. This kind of family had made Mi Yang also very easygoing. He was content with having enough to eat and wear, and a small apartment.
The telegram from the Mi family was very short. The line of words made Mi Zehai’s eyes sore: Mother critically ill, return immediately.
Without a word, the couple packed their things that night. Cheng Qing hastily asked for leave for herself and Mi Yang from school, and the family hurriedly prepared to go back to their hometown.
Mi Yang packed a couple of his own things, then put them down. “Mom, I’m going out for a bit.”
Cheng Qing was too busy to look up. “Where are you going?”
Mi Yang had already put on his coat and was walking out. As he was changing his shoes, he said, “To Bai Luochuan’s house. I’m going to tell him.”
Cheng Qing reminded him, “Come back early. We’re going to be staying in our hometown for a while this time, so we have to bring a lot of things.”
“I know.” Mi Yang nodded in agreement and ran out.
Bai Luochuan was at home, bored, reading a book. Hearing the doorbell ring, he immediately went to open the door. When he saw Mi Yang, his eyes lit up, and he was about to pull him in.
Mi Yang stood at the door and shook his head. “I’m not coming in. I have to go home for something urgent in a bit. I just came to tell you that something has come up at home, and we have to go back to our hometown to live for a while.”
Bai Luochuan was taken aback. “Where are you going? Shanhai Town?”
Mi Yang nodded. “Yes. My grandmother is not well. My parents are taking me back to see her.”
