Four-Faced Buddha [To My Shore] - Chap 85
Chapter 85 I Raise
2024-10-13 07:33 Category: Four-Faced BuddhaTurn off the lights
The incident caused a huge uproar, lasting for half a year. It not only brought down the entire Fan family but also implicated several political figures from neighboring countries.
As the judge brought down the gavel, all those who deserved their punishment were convicted and sentenced, and imprisoned.
The Buddha said that all phenomena are empty, except for cause and effect.
“You really don’t want to know anything about Fan Xiao?” Shi Lihua asked, leaning against the entrance of the research institute, wrapped in an exaggeratedly thick down jacket.
The New Year is almost here, and the occasional sound of firecrackers can be heard on the street. A sky rocket, with a sharp cry, leaps into the air and explodes, pulling You Shulang, who was lost in some unknown emotion, back to reality.
“I don’t want to know,” he said, clutching his name tag.
He refused entry to the research base without permission, and didn’t even offer Shi Lihua a cup of hot tea.
“Have you seen the news?” the persistent man asked again.
“I’ve been quite busy lately,” You Shulang said, glancing at the laboratory behind the glass door. “And it is now.”
Shi Lihua pulled his heavy coat tighter, somewhat indignantly saying, “Fan Xiao said you have the heart of a bodhisattva, but I don’t think so.”
“Just pretend I was never here.” He turned and walked out, cursing as he went, “Damn it, this awful weather is freezing!”
Before Shi Lihua’s figure disappeared, You Shulang used his ID card to open the door and returned to the research room. He was the only one left in the empty room; everyone else had gone home for the New Year.
After passing through the long laboratory, at the very back is the tea room. On the counter, a half-eaten box of instant noodles has gone cold, with oil solidified on the soup, which is quite unappetizing.
You Shulang put the instant noodles in a bag, threw them into the trash can, and then made himself a cup of tea with boiling water.
There is a small window in the tea room that faces the backyard of the building.
The research base of Changling Pharmaceutical was originally an old building abandoned by the school. The backyard of the old building was basically unmanaged, with withered yellow grass covered with snow, desolate and bleak.
A blade of grass caught a passing plastic bag, which was filled with wind and was shaking violently.
“I can fly plastic bags really high, higher than a kite.” You Shulang suddenly remembered something Fan Xiao had once said.
Sitting on the grass in the wetland park, the man held a cigarette between his teeth, looked at the kites in the sky, and said with a smug look on his face, “Director You, do you want to see one? If you do, I’ll fly one for you.”
You Shulang stood by the window and slowly took a sip of tea. He was thinking about how he had replied back then, and it seemed to be: naive.
Coming to his senses, You Shulang looked away, put down his teacup, and walked into the laboratory.
He wasn’t lying to Shi Lihua; he had indeed been extremely busy lately. He had taken on a new project and was also busy preparing for his master’s entrance exam. He was the oldest candidate in the pharmacy major this year. Before the exam, a former classmate invited him for drinks and encouraged him, saying, “Keep up the good work, you’re a wanderer. If you pass, you can finally hold your ‘younger’ classmate’s hand.”
You Shulang drank heartily, a smile playing on his lips: “Looking forward to it.”
Since everyone there was in the medical field, someone naturally brought up the big news from the neighboring country during the meal.
You Shulang chuckled and continued, “The young man hasn’t finished talking yet, why are you going off-topic?”
Having passed the preliminary test, You Shulang is now busy preparing for the second test.
He buried himself in books and literature day and night, uninstalled all irrelevant software from his phone, blocked out everything, and became oblivious to the world.
In northern winters, darkness falls early. After sitting at the workbench until it was getting dark, You Shulang had to get up and turn on the light. His phone, plugged into a charger and on silent mode, was placed near the entrance. You Shulang turned on the light and glanced at his phone casually.
Four or five missed calls, all from local landlines. Unplugging the charging cable, You Shulang dialed back, and the phone rang with an advertisement for the First Municipal Hospital.
A moment later, the call was answered. The other party had obviously checked the caller ID and immediately said his name: “Mr. You Shulang? I’ve finally gotten in touch with you.”
You Shulang is now alone and has no relatives or friends, so he feels he is not worthy of the word “finally”.
“What do you want?” he asked.
Do you know Wu Yuping?
You Shulang paused slightly: “Who?”
The hospital wards were finally not packed with patients on the eve of the Lunar New Year.
Chinese people value family reunion and also want good fortune at the end of the year. Therefore, unless it is a serious illness, people will not come to the hospital at this time to invite bad luck.
The ward that You Shulang knocked on was a four-person room, but now only two people were staying there.
He was still checking the patient’s name on the bedside table when he saw a woman reclining by the window and called out, “Brother You.”
Upon meeting her, the blurry face in You Shulang’s mind became clear, yet it was not quite the same; the woman now was far more withered than in his memory.
He walked over, stood in front of the woman, and said in a gentle voice, “Ms. Wu, it’s been a long time.”
You Shulang and Wu Yuping first met at the hospital. Two years ago, Wu Yuping’s son was diagnosed with a malignant brain tumor. Unable to bear the blow, she broke down and climbed over the hospital fence with her child in her arms.
In the chaos, the child slipped from her arms and was in imminent danger, but You Shulang and Fan Xiao worked together to save the child.
At that moment, Fan Xiao… You Shulang stopped his thoughts and asked, “Ms. Wu, are you sick?”
Wu Yuping, whose manuscript was as dry as bone, patted the stool and invited You Shulang to sit down.
“I,” just one word, like a sigh that had been used up for a lifetime, “liver cancer, I don’t have many days left to live. The doctor said that my family members all carry this ‘bacterium’ in their bodies, my son’s is in his brain, and mine is in my liver.”
You Shulang slowly furrowed his brow: “I heard the child has recovered.”
A smile appeared in the woman’s tearful eyes. She nodded and said, “Thanks to you and President Fan, Tiantian has undergone two surgeries and several rounds of chemotherapy. The doctor said she’s fine now.”
You Shulang gently comforted him, “You will recover too, just like Tiantian.”
“I have no hope. It’s terminal. I don’t have many days left.” The woman stared at the corner of the wall, her eyes terrifyingly empty. “To be honest, I’m terrified of death. What will happen to Tiantian if I die? I’m his only family in this world. He’s so young, all alone. How can I be at ease?”
“But what’s the use of being afraid? I can’t fight against fate.” The woman was only a few years older than You Shulang, but she was pale and aged from the torment of illness. She wiped away her tears with her bony hands and, after hesitating for a while, timidly said, “Brother You, I know you are a good person. You gave Tiantian his life; you are his second parent. After I die, Tiantian will definitely be sent to an orphanage. Could you… could you please visit him more often?”
“I know this will cause you a lot of trouble, but I really have no other choice. The only two people in this world who can be good to Tiantian and whom I can trust are you and President Fan.”
“Fan Xiao,” You Shulang repeated subconsciously.
“I couldn’t get through to him on the phone, so I could only reach you.” Hu Yuping persuaded incoherently, “Tian Tian is very well-behaved and obedient. He’s so young and he hardly ever cries. You just need to go and see if he’s doing well, if he’s healthy, and if he’s happy.”
You Shulang gently patted the woman’s shoulder: “Ms. Wu, please don’t get agitated. Let’s talk this out slowly.”
He comforted him, saying, “The country now has many policies for raising and caring for orphans, so you don’t need to worry too much.”
The woman fell silent for a long while before finally speaking helplessly: “The policies are all good, but I hope he can have someone by his side who cares about him, and who he cares about in return.”
You Shulang hooked his fingers on his knee, creating several wrinkles in his trousers.
The woman looked at You Shulang with a stubborn hope in her eyes: “He doesn’t remember things now, and he’ll forget me in the future. In this big world, he’ll be all alone. How heartbreaking that must be.”
You Shulang squeezed the cigarette case in his pocket from the outside of his clothes, remaining silent for a moment.
“Brother You, you can refuse.” The woman smiled, her skin flaring slightly. “Mothers are all selfish; they always think of their own children first. You don’t need to…”
The woman’s words were interrupted by a series of light, shuffling footsteps coming from the corridor, followed by a deep, middle-aged woman’s voice.
“Tian Tian, don’t run away. Here, here, your mother is in this room.”
No sooner had he finished speaking than a little boy appeared at the door. He was grabbed by a large hand from behind and started giggling.
“Why are you here?” Wu Yuping stretched out her arms to the child. “Come here, Tiantian, come to Mommy.”
The middle-aged woman, a little overweight, was panting as she chased after the child. After catching her breath, she said, “Tian Tian’s mom, haven’t you found a nanny yet? It’s almost Chinese New Year, and my husband and child are urging me to go back home for the holidays. They’ve already bought my train ticket, but it’s for tonight. What are we going to do?”
Tian Tian is two and a half years old, but he is shorter than most children. He is at a very active age. He rolled around in his mother’s arms and then climbed off the bed.
He doesn’t often see strangers, but now he was curious about You Shulang. He took small, quick steps closer and tilted his head to look into You Shulang’s eyes.
The baby who was three or four months old has now grown into a toddler with sparse hair that can’t cover the scar on his head.
You Shulang looked at the child’s round, doe-like eyes and smiled gently.
One smile, and you’re glued to them.
The child moved closer to him, raised his arm, and grasped You Shulang’s thumb with his short, chubby fingers…
Outside the ward, Shi Lihua leaned against a corner deep in the corridor, making a phone call.
“I’ve done everything you asked. I had Wu Yuping contact You Shulang. Do you think You Shulang would adopt Tiantian? Is he crazy? What does that child have to do with him?”
A deep voice came through the phone: “You don’t understand him.”
Shi Lihua snorted: “That’s a child, not a kitten or puppy. What if you guessed wrong? We’ll send Tiantian to an orphanage, right? The doctor said Wu Yuping doesn’t have many days left to live.”
“If You Shulang doesn’t adopt Tiantian, then I will.” The voice on the phone was languid, yet serious.
“You raised him?” Shi Lihua exclaimed in surprise. “No, why do I feel like I don’t recognize you?”
“Those are the children we rescued together. They will grow up happily, and someone will tell them that the world is not so bad after all.”
