Chapter 33: No Strenuous Exercise

“Uncle, it was Liu Lan. She hurt Lin Lin with an iron fork.”

Fang Mingyi spoke these words with a tight-lipped expression, then added softly, “The doctor said that Lin Lin’s injury is to her lung. After this, she’ll have to avoid heavy labor and strenuous exercise.”

This news nearly caused Zhao Chunmei, who was already crying, to faint.

She stood up, walked to her daughter’s bed, and gently held her hand. With eyes full of both love and determination, she said, “I’ll make arrangements for Lin Lin to return to the city. I’ll give my job to her.”

“Mom, there’s no need. It’s not as serious as the doctor says,” Li Lin, who had just woken up, immediately spoke up to reassure them.

“Lin Lin, you’re awake? How do you feel? Is there anything that hurts?” Zhao Chunmei and Li Donghai hurried to her side, concerned and anxious.

“I’m fine, Mom and Dad. Please don’t worry about me,” Li Lin smiled and comforted them. “You just arrived by train, go find a guesthouse and rest. Come see me tomorrow, okay?”

Zhao Chunmei reached out to touch her daughter’s head, shaking her head as she said, “No, we’re not tired. Right now, your dad and I only want to stay by your side.”

“But you’ve both been traveling for days. I’m worried about your health,” Li Lin said, her eyes filled with concern. “Please, go rest. You deserve it.”

“No…” Zhao Chunmei started to protest, but Li Donghai stopped her and nodded, agreeing to his daughter’s request. “Alright, your mother and I will go find a guesthouse to rest. You just focus on getting better. Your mother and I are fine, don’t worry about us.”

“Fang Zhiqing, please take my parents to the guesthouse,” Li Lin turned to Fang Mingyi, who was standing quietly by her side.

“Of course. I’ll take them to the guesthouse now, and you take a good rest. I’ll bring you food when I return,” Fang Mingyi replied gently.

“Okay, go ahead,” Li Lin nodded softly.

“Uncle, Auntie, please follow me. I’ll take you to the guesthouse,” Fang Mingyi said as he picked up the luggage Li Lin’s parents had brought and looked at them.

Li Donghai and Zhao Chunmei reluctantly said a few words to their daughter, then followed Fang Mingyi to the guesthouse, still looking back at her with concern.

On the way to the guesthouse, Li Donghai finally realized that this young man was his daughter’s boyfriend.

He quickly spoke up, “Young man, I heard you say at the train station that you’re Lin Lin’s boyfriend?”

“Yes, Uncle,” Fang Mingyi stopped walking and respectfully replied.

“When did you two get together? How long have you known each other? I never heard Lin Lin mention anything about having a boyfriend.”

Li Donghai, now sensing something off, couldn’t hide his displeasure. His tone turned sharp.

“We just started dating recently,” Fang Mingyi said, looking serious. “But Uncle, I really care about Lin Lin. It’s my fault she got hurt. I wasn’t able to protect her.”

He looked at Li Donghai and Zhao Chunmei earnestly, “But please rest assured, I, Fang Mingyi, swear that from now on, I’ll never let Lin Lin come to harm, not from me or anyone in my family.”

Li Donghai and Zhao Chunmei didn’t expect Fang Mingyi to say something so sincere. His words took them by surprise, and they found themselves swallowing the reproach they had been about to voice.

“Words are nothing without action. We don’t listen to empty promises,” Li Donghai said after a pause, his voice steady but resolute.

“Uncle, Auntie, you can rest assured. I will prove with my actions that I mean what I say,” Fang Mingyi replied. “Here we are, the guesthouse is right up ahead.”

Li Donghai, unable to continue his train of thought, silently followed Fang Mingyi into the guesthouse. 

Fang Mingyi opened a room for Li Donghai and Zhao Chunmei and said at the door, “Uncle, Auntie, please rest well. I’ll go back to take care of Lin Lin and come by tomorrow morning to bring you out for breakfast.”

“Thank you for your trouble,” Zhao Chunmei smiled as she saw them off, then turned to head back into the room.

Li Donghai looked at the shabby room, frowned, and said, “Wife, how about we talk to Lin Lin tomorrow at the hospital and discuss taking her home to recover? The conditions here are too poor.”

“I saw that Lin Lin doesn’t want to leave today. I don’t know if it’s because of that young man,” Zhao Chunmei sat on the bed, sighing.

Upon hearing his wife’s words, Li Donghai became displeased and snorted coldly. “Humph, tomorrow I’ll have a good talk with Lin Lin. Once we’re back in Kyoto, there are plenty of good young men. She can choose whichever one she likes. Why should she settle for this crooked tree?”

“Forget it, let’s talk about this later. The most important thing now is to ask the doctor tomorrow whether her injury is serious or not,” Zhao Chunmei said, her voice full of worry. 

“How should we treat it? If her injury can’t heal properly, even if Lin Lin disagrees, we’ll have to bring her back to Kyoto.” Zhao Chunmei was deeply concerned about her daughter’s health. As for the young man, she didn’t have the time to care about him now.

But if this young man refused to let Lin Lin return to Kyoto, she would tear them apart if she had to.

“Okay, I’ll ask tomorrow morning. Let’s rest early so we can take care of Lin Lin better,” Li Donghai said, lying down and falling asleep right away, not even bothering to wash up.

Zhao Chunmei watched her husband fall asleep, shook her head helplessly, and went to wash up before returning to bed.

On the other side, Fang Mingyi had returned to the hospital room. Seeing that Li Lin was asleep, he softly told Hu Yingying and Zhu Liyan, “You two should go rest at the guesthouse. Tomorrow you can return to the commune. Now that Uncle and Auntie are here, the hospital doesn’t need so many people.”

“Alright, we’ll head back tomorrow, but if you’re still not back, we’ll come see you again in the county,” Hu Yingying said, even though she didn’t want to leave. But now that Lin Lin’s parents had arrived, there was no need for all of them to stay at the hospital. She agreed reluctantly.

Zhu Liyan opened his mouth, wanting to say something, but when he saw Fang Mingyi was ignoring him, he shut his mouth and followed Hu Yingying to the guesthouse.

Once they had left, Fang Mingyi pulled a chair over and sat by Li Lin’s bed. He adjusted the blanket around her and tucked away the stray hair sticking to her face. He then gently held her hand and leaned over the bed, falling asleep.

—

The next day, just as dawn was breaking, before Fang Mingyi had even planned to go to the guesthouse, Li Donghai and Zhao Chunmei arrived with breakfast.

“Uncle, Auntie, you’re here,” Fang Mingyi stood up and greeted them.

“Yes, we brought breakfast for you and Lin Lin. Go wash up, then come back and eat,” Zhao Chunmei said, placing the food on the table.

“Alright,” Fang Mingyi nodded and went to wash up. When he returned, he asked if they had eaten, then sat down to eat his breakfast in a refined manner.

Zhao Chunmei glanced at her still-sleeping daughter. After thinking for a moment, she walked over to Fang Mingyi and quietly asked, “Young man, I want to ask, will the hospital be able to fully treat Lin Lin’s injury?”

“Auntie, Lin Lin’s wound has been treated, but there are lingering effects. Last night I was thinking about talking to you—would you and Uncle consider taking Lin Lin back to Kyoto?” Fang Mingyi swallowed a bite of food and continued, “I’ve already contacted a trusted doctor in my family. Once you return to Kyoto, we can arrange for Lin Lin to get proper treatment and recovery.”