Chapter 36: Fang Family Parents

Li Donghai entered Fang Mingyi’s room and sat on a small stool by the door, glancing around the youth station. 

In his mind, he couldn’t help but think that the conditions here were quite good. But if it were his daughter staying here, nothing would seem right. His heart ached for his daughter, still bedridden.

Fang Mingyi, while cooking, noticed Li Donghai staring out at the door, deep in thought. After a brief pause, he spoke: “Uncle, with the injury Li Lin sustained, especially to her lungs, it might be best for her to return to the city.”

Li Donghai lifted his head, a bit surprised. “And then?”

Fang Mingyi hesitated before answering, “If she does return to the city, I’ll help arrange something for her—maybe a light job, something she can handle without overexerting herself.”

Fang Mingyi didn’t want to separate from Li Lin, but her physical condition really didn’t allow her to stay in the countryside any longer. It seemed that returning to the city would be the best option for her. He also thought that, in time, he could figure out a way to follow her back, to avoid the pain of being apart.

Li Donghai shook his head, refusing. “No need. We’ll handle it ourselves.”

Though he was disappointed by the rejection, Fang Mingyi didn’t press further. Instead, he thought about making a call to his family once they were at the commune.

After finishing their meal, they returned to the commune. Li Donghai went to the police station, while Fang Mingyi headed to the post office.

It took a while, but after several transfers, he finally got through to his mother.

“Hello, this is Wu Mei. Who’s calling?”

Wu Mei had taken the day off, resting at home. When she heard the phone ring, she quickly picked it up.

“Mom, it’s me,” Fang Mingyi said flatly.

“Xiao Yi?”

Wu Mei was taken aback when she heard her eldest son’s voice. After a brief pause, she hurriedly asked, “Xiao Yi, why are you calling home? Is something wrong?”

It was a reasonable question. Since her son and Zhu Lijian had gone to the countryside, they only communicated through the monthly letter. They rarely contacted home otherwise. So, hearing her son’s voice on the phone made her worry something had happened.

Fang Mingyi, sensing his mother’s concern, paused before responding. “Mom, I need you to do me a favor.”

“You say, you say. Whatever I can do, I’ll help,” Wu Mei quickly replied, eager to assist her son, feeling guilty for not being able to do more for him.

“Mom, it’s about my girlfriend. She was injured and hurt her lung. She’ll be heading back to Kyoto in a couple of days. I was wondering if you could help me contact someone at the military hospital and have them find a good doctor for her.”

Fang Mingyi knew his mother had many contacts in the medical field and had decided to ask her for help instead of troubling his father.

“Ah? Your girlfriend? When did you get a girlfriend? How come I didn’t know about this?” Wu Mei’s voice tightened when she heard about her son’s girlfriend being injured. She furrowed her brow, concerned that her son might have found a country girl as his partner.

It wasn’t that Wu Mei looked down on rural people, but she was worried about the mismatch. What if, after returning to Kyoto, they couldn’t integrate into their circle of life?

“Mom, stop asking about that. Just tell me if you can help, and if not, I’ll find someone else,” Fang Mingyi said, his impatience seeping through as he didn’t want to get into a conversation about his relationship.

“I’ll help, but once I get in touch with the people over there, how do I reach this girl?” Wu Mei, sensing her son’s frustration, sighed and asked.

“Li Lin isn’t discharged yet. When she is, she’ll go back to Kyoto with her parents. You can just go to the family quarters of the Kyoto Textile Factory and find her there,” Fang Mingyi replied, giving his mother more details. “By the way, bring some gifts with you when you go, so they don’t feel like we don’t value them.”

“Alright, alright, I know, you haven’t even met her yet, and you’re already making a big deal out of it. If you do meet her, are you going to let her ride on your neck?” Wu Mei grumbled, now curious about the girl her son was dating.

“What kind of girl could possibly make my cold and quiet son fall for her?” she wondered aloud.

“Okay, that’s all. I’m hanging up now,” Fang Mingyi said, cutting the conversation short.

Wu Mei, hearing the phone click, was left fuming. She stomped her foot in frustration.

At that moment, Fang Mingyi’s father, Fang Yuanshan, came home from work. Seeing his wife’s irritated stance, he quickly approached her and asked, “What happened?”

“Isn’t it your good son?” Wu Mei huffed. “He hasn’t called home in forever, and now when he finally does, it’s to ask me for a favor.”

Fang Yuanshan was taken aback. “What? Is it something serious?”

“Just something small, but he’s asking me to help him contact a doctor for his girlfriend,” Wu Mei replied, still upset, as she explained the situation.

“A small thing?” Fang Yuanshan raised an eyebrow, unperturbed. He took off his jacket and sat on the sofa. “Why are you so upset over a little thing like that?”

“Little thing? Fang Yuanshan, our son’s dating someone, and you’re calling it a little thing?” Wu Mei snapped, clearly more agitated now.

Fang Yuanshan, seeing his wife getting worked up, raised his brows in amusement. “Isn’t it a little thing? Xiao Yi is already 19. It’s a good thing that he finally found someone. Shouldn’t we be happy about that?”

“But his girlfriend’s injured—her lung, no less. What if she doesn’t heal properly? What if it causes long-term problems?” Wu Mei fretted, pacing around. “I was worried when he didn’t have a girlfriend, now I’m even more worried with him finding one with health issues. It just adds to my concerns.”

Fang Yuanshan sighed. “Children will have their own troubles. If Xiao Yi’s girlfriend’s health isn’t great, then that’s their business. If we can help, we will, but beyond that, there’s nothing more we can do. They’ll figure it out.”

Fang Yuanshan had four sons. After the first three got married and had children, they moved out to live independently. Now, with his youngest son also having a girlfriend, he expected the same would happen once they got married. There was no need for them to stick around, after all. It was easier for everyone if they just moved on when the time came.

Wu Mei sighed. “But…”

“Small Mei, enough. It’s late, and I’m starving. Can you make me a bowl of noodles? We can talk after I’ve eaten,” Fang Yuanshan interrupted.

“Fine,” Wu Mei muttered, knowing he was changing the subject on purpose.

She stood up to prepare dinner while her mind lingered on what to say when she met her son’s girlfriend in a few days. What should she do, what should she say?

Meanwhile, far away in the hospital, Li Lin was unaware that a heavyweight was about to visit her as soon as she returned to Kyoto.

Having eaten her fill, she sat with her mother for a while, chatting. She also inquired about her brother, but when she heard there was still no news, she figured he must have gone on another mission. If he had been home, surely he would have come to visit her after hearing about her injury.

Zhao Chunmei looked at her daughter, now looking sleepy. She quickly spoke up, “Linlin, I was thinking, in a couple of days when you’re discharged, we should head back to Kyoto. We can find a good hospital there for a thorough check-up. We need to make sure this injury doesn’t leave any lasting problems, or it could be a lifelong issue.”

“Alright,” Li Lin replied softly, nodding as she closed her eyes, her thoughts drifting as sleep began to take over.