When Lin Jin and his group went to see what the commotion was about, they discovered that the car in the accident was indeed the one that nearly hit Lin Jin earlier.
The car had directly crashed into the spot where Lin Jin had gotten off the bus. That spot was a three-way intersection with a large banyan tree in the center. The car had slammed right into the banyan tree, rather than crashing into a storefront as the person had stated.
The driver had already been rescued and was lying beside the completely wrecked vehicle, reeking of strong alcohol. Fortunately, after the driver barreled into the pedestrian street, he only grazed a few pedestrians before crashing into the tree, otherwise, the accident could have been much more serious.
Having seen enough, the group returned to the pharmacy. By then, Liu Shengqi's injury had already been treated. It was just a minor sprain, but it had become somewhat more severe because he had walked a bit after spraining it. However, it was no longer a problem after receiving treatment from the middle aged staff.
After purchasing some ointment, Liu Shengqi limped out of the pharmacy while supported by Yuli. Because of this incident, Lin Jin and the others no longer felt like continuing. Besides, it was getting late and Lin Jin was feeling somewhat tired. They flagged down a tricycle cart unique to the local county town and returned to the earlier bus stop as a group.
"I'll take Liu Shengqi home, just in case he sprains his ankle again" Yuli glanced at Liu Shengqi beside her and said to Lin Jin.
"Go ahead, go ahead" Lin Jin casually waved his hand and then headed home with Lin Chen.
Yuli seemed to like Liu Shengqi, but it wasn’t clear why she would be interested in him. Liu Shengqi looked both dull and foolish, yet Yuli, this well read young lady, actually liked this type?
Well, it was probably for the best. Maybe one day Liu Shengqi would realize Yuli's feelings for him and stop bothering Lin Jin.
When they got home, their parents were sitting on separate couches watching TV. Although they seemed to be getting along, a strange atmosphere was present in the living room.
Could the two of them be having some sort of disagreement?
Lin Jin shot them a quick glance and hastily retreated to his bedroom. Lin Chen seemed completely oblivious to the tension, plopping down next to their mother to talk about what had happened on the pedestrian street earlier in the evening.
After spending a long time on his phone in his room, Lin Jin heard a knock on the door.
If it were Lin Chen, he would have entered directly since the door wasn't locked. A knock usually meant it was either mom or dad.
Though his parents came from the countryside, having lived a long time in the city and various other factors had made them quite aware that their children needed privacy. As a result, they would always knock before entering Lin Jin's room.
"Come in" Lin Jin who was sitting on the floor called out towards the door.
The door opened, and his mom walked in, a slight smile on her face. She closed the door behind her and sat on the bed in front of Lin Jin.
"What's up?" Lin Jin looked up at his mother with his legs crossed.
The smile disappeared from mom’s face for a moment as she collected her thoughts. Then, it returned, warmer than before. She asked Lin Jin, "How would you feel if mom were to find another 'uncle'?" Her expression became somewhat awkward, but she continued, "Your brother doesn't really agree with it, but you know how your dad is these days, there's basically no hope for him anymore."
"But dad has already stopped gambling" Lin Jin frowned at his mother's suggestion. After all, nobody wants to suddenly have a new dad they don't even know.
"So what if he's stopped gambling? He's already squandered millions over the years. That man is practically ruined. Look at where we're living now. If it weren't for you being sensible enough to work part-time while in school, we wouldn't even have a boiler in the house" Mom said as she slapped the bed frame in displeasure. "Look at him! Relying on his children to buy furniture? What's he doing? Borrowing money to gamble and working odd jobs when he's broke! Who would want a man like that?"
"Dad has stopped gambling and barely drinks now. He doesn't have stable employment at the moment, but that's only because it's Chinese New Year and there's no time to look for a job" Lin Jin tried to defend his dad. Yet, everything his mother said was true. After a few moments, Lin Jin could only shake his head helplessly. "I don't want a dad I don't even know."
His mom’s eyebrows knitted tightly together. The smile she had earlier had long disappeared. She sighed softly, unsure what to say next.
"How about you give dad another chance?" Lin Jin carefully suggested. "Starting tomorrow, let him start working. If he shows some accomplishments this year, will you consider reconciling with him?"
Mom hesitantly nodded her head, then laid down her terms: "If your dad doesn't show any progress this year, I will find another uncle, and you won't have the right to object. Moreover, you'll have to move with me to Guangdong."
"Alright" Lin Jin nodded.
If dad were to find out about this promise made with mom, he would probably go mad trying to become a more successful person, right?
At least, successful in mom’s eyes.
Of course, there's also the possibility that his father would simply give up and become an even more degenerate gambler.
"I'm going to bed now."
Mom had a lot on her mind as she walked out of Lin Jin's bedroom. Her thoughts were so consuming that she bumped straight into the wall of the corridor outside Lin Jin's room. The impact made her yelp and fall to the ground.
Dad, who was in the living room, immediately rushed over. He almost freaked out seeing the red swelling and trace of blood on mom’s forehead. Hurriedly, he rummaged through some drawers to find the household's only bottle of medicinal fluid.
Lin Jin and Lin Chen closely followed, helping their mother to the living room sofa. Then, their father rushed over with a damp cloth and the medicinal fluid, gently cleaning the blood from their mother’s forehead before dabbing some medicine on with a cotton swab.
The moment the cotton swab touched mom’s forehead, her body jolted from the pain. She scolded discontentedly, "Are you trying to kill me? Be gentler!"
"I know, I know" Dad's movements became even more gentle.
Lin Jin and Lin Chen exchanged glances, feeling that perhaps now was a moment for mom and dad alone. They should not be extra third wheels in this scenario, so they retreated quietly to their bedroom, leaving their parents alone in the living room.
"Don't keep your head down when walking. See, you bumped into something" Dad chided softly. After applying the medicine to mom’s wound, he took out a bandaid and carefully stuck it on her forehead.
Mom rolled her eyes but didn't say much, silently letting dad proceed.
Maybe reconciling with him might not be a bad idea after all.
When Lin Jin and his group went to see what the commotion was about, they discovered that the car in the accident was indeed the one that nearly hit Lin Jin earlier.
The car had directly crashed into the spot where Lin Jin had gotten off the bus. That spot was a three-way intersection with a large banyan tree in the center. The car had slammed right into the banyan tree, rather than crashing into a storefront as the person had stated.
The driver had already been rescued and was lying beside the completely wrecked vehicle, reeking of strong alcohol. Fortunately, after the driver barreled into the pedestrian street, he only grazed a few pedestrians before crashing into the tree, otherwise, the accident could have been much more serious.
Having seen enough, the group returned to the pharmacy. By then, Liu Shengqi's injury had already been treated. It was just a minor sprain, but it had become somewhat more severe because he had walked a bit after spraining it. However, it was no longer a problem after receiving treatment from the middle aged staff.
After purchasing some ointment, Liu Shengqi limped out of the pharmacy while supported by Yuli. Because of this incident, Lin Jin and the others no longer felt like continuing. Besides, it was getting late and Lin Jin was feeling somewhat tired. They flagged down a tricycle cart unique to the local county town and returned to the earlier bus stop as a group.
"I'll take Liu Shengqi home, just in case he sprains his ankle again" Yuli glanced at Liu Shengqi beside her and said to Lin Jin.
"Go ahead, go ahead" Lin Jin casually waved his hand and then headed home with Lin Chen.
Yuli seemed to like Liu Shengqi, but it wasn’t clear why she would be interested in him. Liu Shengqi looked both dull and foolish, yet Yuli, this well read young lady, actually liked this type?
Well, it was probably for the best. Maybe one day Liu Shengqi would realize Yuli's feelings for him and stop bothering Lin Jin.
When they got home, their parents were sitting on separate couches watching TV. Although they seemed to be getting along, a strange atmosphere was present in the living room.
Could the two of them be having some sort of disagreement?
Lin Jin shot them a quick glance and hastily retreated to his bedroom. Lin Chen seemed completely oblivious to the tension, plopping down next to their mother to talk about what had happened on the pedestrian street earlier in the evening.
After spending a long time on his phone in his room, Lin Jin heard a knock on the door.
If it were Lin Chen, he would have entered directly since the door wasn't locked. A knock usually meant it was either mom or dad.
Though his parents came from the countryside, having lived a long time in the city and various other factors had made them quite aware that their children needed privacy. As a result, they would always knock before entering Lin Jin's room.
"Come in" Lin Jin who was sitting on the floor called out towards the door.
The door opened, and his mom walked in, a slight smile on her face. She closed the door behind her and sat on the bed in front of Lin Jin.
"What's up?" Lin Jin looked up at his mother with his legs crossed.
The smile disappeared from mom’s face for a moment as she collected her thoughts. Then, it returned, warmer than before. She asked Lin Jin, "How would you feel if mom were to find another 'uncle'?" Her expression became somewhat awkward, but she continued, "Your brother doesn't really agree with it, but you know how your dad is these days, there's basically no hope for him anymore."
"But dad has already stopped gambling" Lin Jin frowned at his mother's suggestion. After all, nobody wants to suddenly have a new dad they don't even know.
"So what if he's stopped gambling? He's already squandered millions over the years. That man is practically ruined. Look at where we're living now. If it weren't for you being sensible enough to work part-time while in school, we wouldn't even have a boiler in the house" Mom said as she slapped the bed frame in displeasure. "Look at him! Relying on his children to buy furniture? What's he doing? Borrowing money to gamble and working odd jobs when he's broke! Who would want a man like that?"
"Dad has stopped gambling and barely drinks now. He doesn't have stable employment at the moment, but that's only because it's Chinese New Year and there's no time to look for a job" Lin Jin tried to defend his dad. Yet, everything his mother said was true. After a few moments, Lin Jin could only shake his head helplessly. "I don't want a dad I don't even know."
His mom’s eyebrows knitted tightly together. The smile she had earlier had long disappeared. She sighed softly, unsure what to say next.
"How about you give dad another chance?" Lin Jin carefully suggested. "Starting tomorrow, let him start working. If he shows some accomplishments this year, will you consider reconciling with him?"
Mom hesitantly nodded her head, then laid down her terms: "If your dad doesn't show any progress this year, I will find another uncle, and you won't have the right to object. Moreover, you'll have to move with me to Guangdong."
"Alright" Lin Jin nodded.
If dad were to find out about this promise made with mom, he would probably go mad trying to become a more successful person, right?
At least, successful in mom’s eyes.
Of course, there's also the possibility that his father would simply give up and become an even more degenerate gambler.
"I'm going to bed now."
Mom had a lot on her mind as she walked out of Lin Jin's bedroom. Her thoughts were so consuming that she bumped straight into the wall of the corridor outside Lin Jin's room. The impact made her yelp and fall to the ground.
Dad, who was in the living room, immediately rushed over. He almost freaked out seeing the red swelling and trace of blood on mom’s forehead. Hurriedly, he rummaged through some drawers to find the household's only bottle of medicinal fluid.
Lin Jin and Lin Chen closely followed, helping their mother to the living room sofa. Then, their father rushed over with a damp cloth and the medicinal fluid, gently cleaning the blood from their mother’s forehead before dabbing some medicine on with a cotton swab.
The moment the cotton swab touched mom’s forehead, her body jolted from the pain. She scolded discontentedly, "Are you trying to kill me? Be gentler!"
"I know, I know" Dad's movements became even more gentle.
Lin Jin and Lin Chen exchanged glances, feeling that perhaps now was a moment for mom and dad alone. They should not be extra third wheels in this scenario, so they retreated quietly to their bedroom, leaving their parents alone in the living room.
"Don't keep your head down when walking. See, you bumped into something" Dad chided softly. After applying the medicine to mom’s wound, he took out a bandaid and carefully stuck it on her forehead.
Mom rolled her eyes but didn't say much, silently letting dad proceed.
Maybe reconciling with him might not be a bad idea after all.
