The old man was silent for a moment before speaking, "How...how is your mother?"
"My mom is doing well. Can she come to see you?"
Zhuang Rui explained the purpose of his trip: if the old man disagreed, he would arrange for his mother to only meet with his maternal grandmother, so as to avoid the father and daughter arguing again. Zhuang Rui knew that his mother was gentle on the outside but strong on the inside. Although she agreed to come and see her maternal grandparents, she might not necessarily apologize to them.
Chapter 296 Strange Things Happen One After Another
The old man didn't answer Zhuang Rui's question. Instead, he asked, "Your father's health was a bit weak back then, but it wasn't a terminal illness. Why did he die so young?"
Although Ouyang Gang had severed ties with his daughter, he still cared deeply for his youngest child. For the first five or six years after returning to Beijing, he was not assigned any work and lived a semi-retired life. Therefore, he was not very aware of what had happened to Ouyang Wan during that time. It was only after his son went to Pengcheng for the second time that he learned that Zhuang Rui's father had passed away.
In fact, parents' feelings towards their children are quite strange, especially fathers towards their daughters and mothers towards their sons. They are always reluctant to hand them over to their daughters-in-law or sons-in-law, which is one of the main reasons for discord between mothers-in-law and daughters-in-law.
Ouyang Gang was always known for his domineering ways. The fact that his daughter had arranged her marriage without consulting him and was willing to sever ties with him was the main reason for his anger. As for the marriage arranged years ago, Ouyang Gang didn't care much about it. Of course, he preferred to keep these thoughts to himself rather than mention them to anyone.
“My father’s health was not good after I was born. At that time, our family was struggling financially. My father seemed to do a lot of work. He passed away when I was five years old…”
Zhuang Rui doesn't remember the past very clearly anymore, as he was too young at the time, but he remembers his father always being busy.
"Did you do a lot of jobs?"
Upon hearing Zhuang Rui's words, Ouyang Gang's facial muscles twitched. He could naturally guess that it was his words from back then that had provoked Zhuang Rui's father. At this moment, he also understood why Ouyang Wan had said such heartless words when her eldest son went to find her later.
"You...won't you even call me Grandpa?"
After the old man said this, everyone in the room realized that Zhuang Rui had never called out the words "grandfather" from beginning to end.
"Grandpa, you're not feeling well, you should rest first. Here, let me help you lie down..."
Although Ouyang Lei had only just met Zhuang Rui, he could tell from their conversation that Zhuang Rui was the type who responded better to gentle persuasion than force, and he was afraid that Zhuang Rui would quarrel with the old man. So he quickly stepped forward to smooth things over, but he was also genuinely worried that the old man's health might not be able to handle it.
"Get out of the way, he hasn't answered me yet!"
To everyone's surprise, the old man who always doted on Ouyang Lei showed no respect whatsoever to his eldest grandson this time.
"You haven't said whether or not my mother can come to see you?"
Zhuang Rui stared directly into the old man's eyes, refusing to back down an inch. The meaning behind his words was clear: if you don't acknowledge your own daughter, why should I acknowledge you as my grandfather?
"Come on, if you don't come now, you might never see this old man again..."
When Ouyang Gang said this, his imposing aura faded, and he looked exhausted. He no longer resembled the majestic general, but rather an ordinary old man.
Suddenly, Ouyang Gang raised his head, a glint of something unnoticed by others flashing in his eyes, and said, "Now you can call me Grandpa, right? If you acknowledge me as your grandpa, you won't regret it..."
Zhuang Rui raised his head, looked at the old man in front of him, and said very seriously, "My father once told me a saying: 'Earn your own bread with your own sweat. Relying on heaven, earth, or parents doesn't make you a true hero.' I call you Grandpa only because you are my mother's father, not because you are the general I see on TV."
As a child, Zhuang Rui didn't quite understand this sentence, but he always kept it in mind. When he first graduated from university, his job in Pengcheng was not ideal. His mother suggested that he stay at home and find a suitable job later. However, Zhuang Rui still decided to go south to Zhonghai because of his father's words.
Upon hearing this, the old man fell silent. In those words, he seemed to see the stubborn young man from years ago, who stubbornly insisted, "I can take care of Wan'er. I have the ability to take care of her. We don't need anyone's help; we can live just fine."
In Ouyang Gang's eyes, Zhuang Rui's image slowly overlapped with that of the young man from back then. The old man never imagined that the words he had said in anger back then would hurt his son-in-law so deeply and cause his daughter to cut off all contact with him for decades. At this moment, the old man felt a trace of regret.
“Good, good boy, you have ambition. You have to rely on yourself. I joined the revolution with a sickle back then. This huge family business was all built by me. You’re right. At home, I’m just your grandfather, not some great general.”
When the old man said these words, his eyes were full of admiration as he looked at Zhuang Rui. In the past twenty years, very few people had spoken to him in the same tone as Zhuang Rui. However, even Ouyang Gang himself did not realize that his appreciation for Zhuang Rui was actually mixed with a trace of guilt towards his daughter and son-in-law.
Seeing that the relationship between the grandfather and grandson had eased, Ouyang Zhenwu quickly gave Zhuang Rui a wink, telling him to persuade the old man to rest. Ouyang Zhenwu was also very puzzled. The old man had been lying in bed for almost half a year, only coming out to bask in the sun when the weather was nice. Today's energy was the first time. Could it be... a final burst of energy before death?
Thinking of this, Ouyang Zhenwu could no longer stand still and quickly stepped forward, saying, "Dad, let's rest for a bit before we talk. Xiao Rui will stay here tonight."
"Okay, child, bring a chair for your grandma, come and sit here."
Ouyang Gang sat for a long time and also felt a little tired. After all, Zhuang Rui's spiritual energy was not omnipotent. He had been sick for so long, how could he get better so easily?
"Hey. Old woman, doesn't your leg hurt?"
Ouyang Gang then realized that his wife had been standing for quite some time; normally, her legs would ache after just a few steps.
"You old codger, you're only just noticing me now?"
The old lady grumbled in dissatisfaction, but then had Ouyang Jun bring over another chair, pulled Zhuang Rui to sit down next to her.
At this moment, Ouyang Zhenwu was called out by the special nurse. When he came back in, he was followed by a group of people, led by Dr. Dou. It turned out that the special nurse had seen the old man was in a high spirit and was afraid that something might happen, so he called Dr. Dou and the others back.
"Xiao Dou, I feel great today, so I don't need any injections or medicine, right? Alright, you can go back now. Let my grandson keep me company."
The old man looked somewhat awkward when he saw Dr. Dou.
"Commander, have you been secretly drinking again?"
Dr. Dou walked over with a smile. This old man was easier to take care of than the old woman, but he often couldn't resist his drinking habit and would secretly drink some baijiu.
"No, absolutely not. I said I'd quit, and I really did. Sigh, I only drank a tiny bit..."
The old man denied it outright, but Dr. Dou suddenly pulled out a two-ounce liquor bottle from the bedside table. The old man lost face and looked sullen.
"Please step out for a moment, we need to check on the commander..."
Dr. Dou turned to Zhuang Rui and the others and said that Ouyang Gang wanted to stop it, but he had just been caught red-handed and could only accept it helplessly.
Zhuang Rui helped his grandmother out of the room and sat down in the courtyard. Even in summer, the nights at Yuquan Mountain weren't too hot. Everyone waited in the courtyard for the doctor's examination results.
About half an hour later, Dr. Dou came out first, his face full of doubt and confusion, which made everyone present except Zhuang Rui feel a little uneasy.
"Dr. Dou, how is my father's health?"
Ouyang Zhenwu went to greet him. He had already suspected that his father had experienced a sudden surge of lucidity after hearing the news about his daughter, and seeing the expression on Dr. Dou's face confirmed his suspicions. His face turned very ugly.
"The commander... how should I put it, he's a bit strange..."
"Hey Dr. Dou, what's wrong with my grandfather? Can you give me a straight answer?"
Seeing that Dr. Dou was speaking hesitantly, Ouyang Jun interrupted him.
While speaking, Dr. Dou had been lost in thought, only looking up after hearing Ouyang Jun's words. Seeing everyone's anxious expressions, he realized he had been presumptuous and quickly said, "Hey, don't worry, the commander is fine, and some of his functions are recovering very well..."
"Dr. Dou, please explain more clearly, what exactly is wrong with my grandfather's health? What part of his health is recovering well?"
Ouyang Lei stepped forward and pressed on, saying that the old man's health was the most important thing for the Ouyang family. As long as the old man could make it through this year, and Ouyang Lei's father could take over after the plenary session, then the overall situation would be settled.
"It's hard to say. Some tools can't be carried around, and the examination just now wasn't very thorough. However, the commander's hearing has recovered, and the numbness and tingling on the right side of his body has disappeared. I just tried to help the commander walk a bit, and I found that his leg function also showed signs of improvement. Of course, these are just our preliminary diagnoses, and it's too early to draw any conclusions. I hope that the commander and the old lady can come for a check-up tomorrow."
When Dr. Dou said these words, he was really puzzled. Although the old man did not have any terminal illness, he was old and his old injuries and ailments could be fatal if they relapsed. But just now, after the examination, it turned out that most of the problems with his organs had recovered.
This left Dr. Dou and the others completely baffled. Coupled with the old lady's inexplicable restoration of her eyesight, one strange thing after another happened today.
Chapter 297 Picking Up the Girl at the Airport
"Okay, okay, I'll definitely take the old man for a check-up tomorrow. Dr. Dou, please go ahead with your work..."
Upon hearing this good news, Ouyang Lei and the others didn't even bother to greet Dr. Dou and the others. They rushed into the room. To them, the fact that the old man could recover his health and even just walk around the courtyard was a powerful deterrent.
Don't underestimate these elderly people who came from the war years. Although they have seemingly retired to the mountains, their influence is far beyond your imagination. Their students and old friends are spread throughout the entire country. Even the current rulers have to be wary of them.
Zhuang Rui didn't go inside. He stayed outside and called his mother, knowing she must be anxiously waiting at home. When the call connected, his mother's slightly trembling voice came through the phone: "Xiao Rui, have you... have you seen Grandma?"
Zhuang Rui could imagine his mother's anxiety, so he quickly said, "Mom, I'm at Grandma's house right now. They're all fine, so don't worry..."
"Don't worry, Mom isn't worried..."
Ouyang Wan's voice choked up on the phone. As a child, how could she not worry about her parents' health?
"Child, is this Wan'er? Give the phone to your grandmother."
Just as Zhuang Rui was about to say a few more words to his mother, he heard his grandmother's voice beside him. It turned out that while the group of people were crowding into the house to see the old man, the old lady had been paying attention to Zhuang Rui, her grandson whom she was meeting for the first time.
"Mom, Grandma wants to talk to you."
After Zhuang Rui spoke into the phone, he handed the phone to the old lady.
"Wan'er, is that you?"
After a moment of silence on the phone, the old lady asked a question cautiously, only to hear a heart-wrenching cry from the other end: "Mom, your daughter is unfilial and sorry."
The old lady's eyes also welled up with tears, and she said repeatedly, "Good child, don't cry, come to Beijing to see your mother quickly. Your mother has missed you so much these past decades..."
As she spoke, tears streamed down the old lady's face, and her voice trembled with sobs. This stopped Ouyang Wan from crying. She said, "Mom, I'm going to Beijing tomorrow, taking your granddaughter and great-granddaughter with me."
"Okay, okay, Mom will be waiting for you..."
The old lady couldn't continue speaking, so Zhuang Rui quickly took the phone from her. The old lady's emotions shouldn't be too strong, and if something happened, it would all be his fault.
"Hey, Xiao Rui, what's wrong? What did you say on the phone? Why is Mom crying so hard?"
As soon as Zhuang Rui answered the phone, Zhuang Min's accusatory voice came through.
"It's alright. Try to comfort Mom and tell her not to be too sad. Oh, and book your plane tickets for tomorrow morning. Bring your daughter and brother-in-law along too."
Zhuang Rui wanted them to come to Beijing as soon as possible to keep the two elderly people company, otherwise his grandmother would definitely stop him and he wouldn't be able to do anything.
Zhuang Rui still has a lot of things to do in Beijing. Yesterday, he received a call from Uncle De. He said that Professor Meng had returned to Beijing and asked him to pay a visit, which was only right and proper. There was also Grandpa Gu's place to visit; he couldn't possibly not go when he came to Beijing.
In addition, the house needs renovation, and I also need to keep an eye on it. Tomorrow, Miao Feifei is going to Panjiayuan with me. Good heavens, Zhuang Rui wished he had the ability to be in two places at once, so he could split his body into several pieces to use.
"Xiao Rui, I can't go to Beijing tomorrow. The equipment you requested will arrive tomorrow. Also, the factory is too busy, I can't leave."
The voice on the phone had changed to Zhao Guodong's.
"Brother-in-law, it's okay if you can't come, but you must see Mom and the others off at the airport tomorrow. Call me after they get on the plane so I can pick them up."
Zhuang Rui knew that Zhao Guodong's business was doing well, so he didn't insist. Anyway, there was plenty of time in the future, and it wouldn't be too late to come when the old man turned 90.
"Uncle, why are you all out here?"
After hanging up the phone, Zhuang Rui found that Ouyang Zhenwu and the others had come into the courtyard.
"Grandpa's asleep, Xiao Rui, are you on the phone with your little sister?"
The "little sister" that Ouyang Zhenwu was referring to was naturally Ouyang Wan.
Zhuang Rui nodded and said, "Yes, my mom's flight is tomorrow morning. She should arrive in Beijing around 10 a.m.
Ouyang Zhenwu thought for a moment and said, "Tomorrow morning? Hmm, I'll see if I have time to go to the airport then..."
"Uncle, how about I arrange for a plane to bring Aunt over? I'm leaving Beijing first thing tomorrow morning."
Ouyang Lei had never met his aunt; he had only heard his father mention her often.
"Nonsense, can't you see me next time?"