22
He Became Shy
Gu Wenshu was stunned by this absurd claim. She blinked and asked Old Mrs. Lu, “I pushed you?”
Old Mrs. Lu shook her head.
Gu Wenshu continued, “Did I hit you then?”
Old Mrs. Lu gritted her teeth and said, “It was because you argued with me yesterday that made me so angry I wasn’t paying attention while walking, and that’s why I fell.”
If these two hadn’t quarreled with her at the department store yesterday, she wouldn’t have gotten hurt.
Jun Qing was thoroughly exasperated by her mother-in-law. She said sternly, “Mom, this has nothing to do with this young lady. You fell because you weren’t watching where you were going.”
Old Mrs. Lu snorted lightly, “If I hadn’t run into them yesterday, I wouldn’t have fallen.”
Jun Qing was so fed up with her mother-in-law’s twisted logic that she felt like leaving her right there.
But she quickly dismissed the idea. If she did that, the old woman would only go home and make trouble for her husband.
Gu Wenshu chuckled coldly, “So I didn’t hit you, and I didn’t push you, yet you’re blaming me for this? That’s quite a unique way of thinking.”
“Why don’t you go to the Public Security Bureau and complain that no one was guarding and protecting you, which led to you injuring your leg?”
Old Mrs. Lu was so provoked by her words that she wanted to stand up and grab Gu Wenshu’s hair, but Jun Qing held her down firmly. With a stern expression, Jun Qing said, “Mom, if you keep causing trouble, I’ll have Acheng come stay with you at the hospital, and I’ll return to Yuezhou for work.”
Their hometown was in Luo County. This time, she had taken time off to accompany her husband, who had business here, and because her stepdaughter was coming to the countryside as an Educated Youth.
If it weren’t for her concern for her husband, she wouldn’t have taken leave. Besides, she had a son to care for and didn’t want to waste time with this troublemaking old woman.
After saying this, she turned to Gu Wenshu, “Miss, this matter has nothing to do with you. We’ve disturbed you, and I’ll take my mother-in-law away now.”
She then pushed her mother-in-law’s wheelchair to leave, but the old woman, stubborn as ever, tried to stand up as her daughter-in-law turned the wheelchair.
Unexpectedly, she lost her balance and fell forward.
Jun Qing tried to catch her but was too late.
Old Mrs. Lu lay on the ground, crying out in pain.
Jun Qing was frightened and hurried to help her up, but she couldn’t manage alone with her mother-in-law screaming in pain and refusing to cooperate. Seeing this, Gu Wenshu sighed and, out of respect for Jun Qing’s reasonableness, stepped forward to assist.
But as soon as she touched the old woman’s arm, Mrs. Lu started cursing, “Don’t touch me with your dirty hands!”
Hearing this, Gu Wenshu’s eyes turned cold, and she immediately let go. Old Mrs. Lu, who had just been lifted, stumbled forward again.
“Ah!”
Her face turned pale with fright. Fortunately, Jun Qing held on tightly, preventing her from hitting the ground again.
The commotion outside disturbed the two people inside the consultation room. They rushed out just in time to see the old woman cursing and Gu Wenshu releasing her grip.
Old Mrs. Lu nearly fell a second time, infuriating Jun Qing so much that she shouted, regardless of the setting, “Mom, shut up!”
Damn it, someone was kindly helping her up, and not only was she ungrateful, but she was also cursing and carrying on.
She wondered how such a neurotic old woman could have given birth to a son as upright as her husband.
Li Xiuran walked over to Gu Wenshu and asked quietly, “Are you alright?”
Gu Wenshu smiled faintly, “I’m fine. Though I was wrongly accused, I won’t stoop to arguing with a madwoman.”
Old Mrs. Lu was already in considerable pain, and hearing this impudent woman call her a madwoman only fueled her rage further. She launched into a stream of vicious curses, each more vulgar than the last.
At that moment, Gu Wenshu thought even the uneducated elderly women in rural villages had better manners than this woman before her.
The doctor, growing impatient, pointed to a passing nurse and said, “Take this elderly lady to Doctor Chen.”
The nurse promptly responded, “Don’t worry, Vice President. I’ll take her to Doctor Chen right away.”
Jun Qing, not wanting to endure further embarrassment with the old woman, quickly left with the nurse. Before going, she apologized to Gu Wenshu and Li Xiuran.
After they left, peace finally returned. Gu Wenshu asked, “Is the check-up done?”
Li Xiuran nodded, “Yes.”
He took the little girl’s hand and said, “Let’s go.”
Then he nodded to the vice president, “I’ll come back for a follow-up in a few days.”
The vice president acknowledged with a hum, “Remember to get your medicine and come back in ten days.”
After collecting the medicine, Li Xiuran led Gu Wenshu and the children out of the hospital. He crouched down to look at the siblings, “Daddy will take you out to play. Would you like that?”
Both children nodded eagerly, “Yes, yes!”
He chuckled heartily, holding their hands as he said, “Come on, Daddy will take you and Mommy to play.”
Gu Wenshu followed behind, carrying their medicine. Listening to their laughter and watching the hurried passersby, she pondered deeply about how to establish herself in this environment.
Li Xiuran took them to the only park in Luo County. Having witnessed China’s prosperity decades later, and now seeing the park in the 1970s, Gu Wenshu truly felt she had stepped into a historical era—no longer just reading about it in books, watching it in dramas, or browsing online materials.
Xiao Ni’er and Sanbao ran ahead hand in hand, the little girl constantly calling out, “Daddy, come catch me! Catch me!”
The three-year-old could already speak quite well, expressing her desires clearly.
Watching the innocent, lively siblings, Gu Wenshu silently vowed to protect them at all costs.
Noticing his mother standing aside watching, Sanbao quickly ran over to pull her along, “Mommy, come play with us.”
After playing in the park for a long time, Xiao Ni’er started complaining of hunger, so they left for the nearby State-Owned Restaurant.
The lunch special was braised pork, which Gu Wenshu had been eager to try from this era. She ordered a portion of braised pork, steamed fish, a vegetable dish, four bowls of rice, and several meat buns.
She glanced at the man holding both children, “Is this enough?”
Li Xiuran hummed in agreement, “That’s fine.”
He told Gu Wenshu, “The money and coupons are in my pocket. Get them yourself.”
Saying this, he turned slightly to expose his shirt pocket, indicating she should retrieve the money herself.
Gu Wenshu wanted to suggest he put the children down and get it himself, but seeing how tightly they clung to their father’s neck, she could only reach into his shirt pocket to take out the money, grain coupons, and meat coupons.
As she reached into her pocket, someone accidentally bumped into her from behind, sending her stumbling straight into Li Xiuran. Instinctively, she wrapped her arms tightly around his waist. Had he not been standing firmly, the entire family would have tumbled to the ground together.
Glancing at the woman clinging to him, he cleared his throat twice: “Are you alright?” The man who should have remained composed was now completely rigid, his ears and neck flushed red.
Gu Wenshu quickly straightened up. The person who had bumped into her had already left the restaurant. “I’m fine,” she said.
Recalling what had just happened, she felt slightly awkward. To change the subject, she hastily asked the waiter for the bill.
While paying, Gu Wenshu inadvertently glanced at Li Xiuran, only to see him hurriedly scoop up the children and flee as if escaping disaster.
At first, she was puzzled, but when she noticed his red ears and neck, she couldn’t help but laugh in disbelief.
What? She hadn’t even felt embarrassed, yet this old man was already blushing?
He’d already had two children with the original host, and he could still get shy?
The entire meal had only cost two yuan and twenty fen, plus half a jin of meat ration coupons and over a jin of grain coupons.
After sitting down, she glanced at the man across from her, only to find him deliberately avoiding her gaze, pretending to be calm while talking to their son and daughter.
But his flushed neck and ears betrayed him.
Was this really the same man who had tried to strangle her upon his return?