Grandpa didn't understand and just stared at Liu Zhi blankly.
"Where did Grandma go?" Liu Zhi asked, emphasizing each word. "I'm going out to look for Grandma."
Grandpa blinked, but still didn't understand.
"I haven't been feeling well these past couple of days," Grandpa said, ignoring Liu Zhi's words. "Could you take a look at me?"
"Where do you feel unwell?" Liu Zhi asked.
"I can't breathe... I have no strength," Grandpa said.
"Why are you selectively ignoring what you're hearing?" Liu Zhi pulled up a stool and sat down next to her grandfather.
"Feeling tightness in your chest?" Liu Zhi observed the color of his lips. "You've been smoking a lot lately, haven't you?"
Grandpa blinked.
"Are you still drinking?" Liu Zhi's expression unconsciously changed from that of a doctor during a consultation.
Grandpa blinked again.
Liu Zhi was almost certain that her grandfather was pretending not to hear her.
"Stop pretending," Liu Zhi said helplessly. "I know your bronchitis is acting up again."
Grandpa answered quickly this time, "I have a cold."
"Please listen to my advice, Grandpa." Liu Zhi sighed, "You've been thinking about quitting smoking since you were sixty-three, and now you're seventy-six."
"I don't smoke much," Grandpa replied.
"How much less?" Liu Zhi asked. "From two packs to one pack?"
Grandpa stopped talking.
"You absolutely cannot smoke, do you understand?" Liu Zhi squatted down and rolled up her grandfather's trouser leg.
Most elderly people are sensitive to the cold, and Grandpa is no exception. It's been spring for quite some time now, but Grandpa is still wearing thermal underwear and long johns.
Liu Zhi laboriously rolled up several layers and then pinched her grandfather's calf.
"It's swollen," Liu Zhi said. "It's a bit serious. You should come to the hospital with me."
"Why do we need to go to the hospital?" Grandpa pulled his leg away and slowly bent down to pull up his trouser leg.
"Your bronchitis has flared up again." Liu Zhi straightened up. "This time it looks a bit serious. It would be best to go to the hospital for a check-up."
"No, I won't go," Grandpa answered decisively. "Just buy me the medicine."
Liu Zhi said decisively, "No, we have to go to the hospital this time."
The moment the words were spoken, the door opened.
"Xiao Zhi is back?" Grandma came in, leaning on her cane, her face full of surprise.
"Grandma!" Liu Zhi turned around and rushed to help her. "Where have you been?"
"She went to exercise." Grandma walked to the chair and sat down. "Why didn't you call when you got back?"
Grandma wiped away her tears, "It's been more than two years since I've come back."
Liu Zhi's eyes stung with tears, and she let her grandmother pull her to sit on the other side.
"I'm very busy, I don't have any holidays," Liu Zhi said in a low voice.
"I know," Grandma said. "Grandma just misses you."
After my grandmother suffered a stroke, her eyes lost their former sparkle and now look as if they are covered in dust, cloudy and dim.
Liu Zhi dared not look directly into her grandmother's eyes.
"What's wrong with your grandpa?" Grandma asked, looking at Grandpa.
Grandpa lowered his head and breathed heavily, not speaking to Grandma.
"He caught a cold these past two days... he has a fever and isn't feeling well," Grandma said.
"I'll take Grandpa to the clinic." Liu Zhi checked Grandpa's forehead to check his temperature. "He's not hot right now."
“I reckon Grandpa’s bronchitis has flared up again,” Liu Zhi said. “It’s worse than before.”
The old man was heavily addicted to smoking and drinking, and no matter how much his children and grandchildren tried to persuade him, he wouldn't listen.
Over the years, the old man's bronchitis has gotten worse each year. He easily catches a cold when the seasons change and the temperature drops, and every time he catches a cold, his bronchitis flares up, resulting in his current condition.
"He gets out of breath just walking," Grandma complained. "I can walk faster than him even with my cane."
"I understand," Liu Zhi said. "I'll take him to the hospital right away."
Annoyed by Liu Zhi's attempts to persuade him, the old man had no choice but to go to the hospital with her.
Before leaving, he brewed a cup of tea to take with him and also had a pack of cigarettes in his pocket.
Liu Zhi searched her pockets and found more than one pack of cigarettes—Grandpa had packed them in two boxes, one in each pocket.
Liu Zhi: "..."
"Grandpa, it's really serious," Liu Zhi said solemnly.
Grandpa blinked for the third time.
Liu Zhi brought her maternal grandfather to the township health center.
Grandpa was panting after every step he took, and he even sat down on the curb to rest for a while.
Grandpa instinctively reached for his cigarette, and Liu Zhi confiscated it from him.
"Grandpa," Liu Zhi said seriously, "it's a matter of life and death."
Grandpa really didn't hear it this time; he didn't even lift his head.
When they arrived at the health center, Grandpa sat by the flowerbed again before going in.
The registration and consultation process, though simple, took almost half an hour.
The on-call doctor in the internal medicine department, like Liu Zhi, advised Grandpa to quit smoking and drinking. Grandpa either genuinely couldn't hear them, or if he did, he pretended not to understand.
The doctor ordered tests for Grandpa: a complete blood count, a chest X-ray, and an ultrasound.
Grandpa, growing impatient, sat down in the waiting area and complained, "Why use a sledgehammer to crack a nut?"
Liu Zhi explained the process to him, but Grandpa still didn't believe it.
“In the past, all you needed was some medicine and an IV drip. Why do we have to do so many tests now?” Grandpa didn’t have much of a sense of volume, but when he said that, the waiting patients immediately turned to look at him, seemingly resonating with him.
Liu Zhi understood the predicament of her colleagues and kept explaining.
Grandpa, however, was determined to do things his own way and tried to abandon his duties and leave several times, but Liu Zhi stopped him each time.
“Grandpa, this is necessary. You’re older, and your condition is different from that of younger people. It’s good that the doctor is being cautious,” Liu Zhi said.
Grandpa finally nodded this time.
However, when it came time to draw blood, Grandpa said those words again.
The doctor drawing blood was used to it and ignored him, continuing with his work.
This made Liu Zhi even more embarrassed. She explained and apologized, and finally got her grandfather hooked up to an IV drip safely.
--------------------
Author's Note:
I'm so sleepy, I'll update now. (orz)
Goodnight, everyone~
Chapter 41 Shame
After administering the medication, the nurse asked him, "What's your name?"
Grandpa was so focused on looking down at the back of his hand that he didn't hear what the nurse was saying.
"What's your name?" the nurse asked again.
Liu Zhi hurriedly replied, "His name is Sun Changhe."
Which hand should I stab?
The old man didn't understand and looked to Liu Zhi for help.
"Punch the hand that isn't wearing a watch." Liu Zhi made the decision for her grandfather.
When the nurse came to examine his wrist, Grandpa instinctively pulled the hand with the watch behind his back.
That watch was a gift Liu Zhi brought to her grandfather when she went home a few years ago, and her grandfather treasured it.
"This syringe," the nurse handed to Liu Zhi. "Remind the nurse to push it in when the IV is almost finished."
Just as Liu Zhigang took the call, the nurse added, "Whatever you do, don't push that lever."
Liu Zhi nodded.
The nurse probably felt uneasy because Liu Zhi was young.
"Be careful!"
Liu Zhi nodded again, holding the IV drip bottle and finding a sheltered spot.
The dropper was too slow, so Liu Zhi compared it with the others around her and adjusted it slightly faster.
"Hey, hey, hey!" the nurse called out to Liu Zhi, "Don't move around."
Liu Zhi lowered her hands and looked at the nurse with some confusion.
"The doctor noted that the old man has a heart condition and can't be given a fast injection," the young nurse said earnestly.
Liu Zhi smiled and said, "It's okay to go a little faster. At that speed, this bottle would have taken at least three hours to hang."
She felt that this nurse was probably younger than her, very careful in everything she did, and still had a sincere heart towards her patients.
"In short, go slowly and be careful," the young nurse said softly.
Liu Zhi hummed in agreement and said, "Thanks for the reminder."