Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios
There was no shortage of such blankets in the Zhai family. As soldiers, Zhai Yaohui and Zhai Sheng had lived through much tougher circumstances. Tonight, they had just laid down a futon in Old Master Zhai’s room. Because the warm temperatures of September had not completely passed, it was much more cooling to sleep on the floor rather than the bed, even if the floor was a little hard.
After a night, Zhai Sheng, who was in his early thirties, did not feel anything at all. On the other hand, Zhai Yaohui, who was almost sixty, was feeling sore all over, and he looked frail.
Seeing Zhai Yaohui in this state, Miao Jing quickly pulled Zhai Yaohui back to their room and helped Zhai Yaohui massage his back and waist. “You’re already quite senior in age. Just admit it.” In the past, there was no way that Old Zhai would face such severe consequences from sleeping on the floor for one night.
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Zhai Yaohui’s face darkened as he eyed Miao Jing impatiently. “Are you disdaining me because I’m old? Weren’t you happy the night before yesterday?” Had his performance been so poor that he had been unable to satisfy Miao Miao?
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Miao Jing’s face flushed with anger and she landed a hard slap squarely on Zhai Yaohui’s back. “You old foggy! What are you blabbering about? The triplets are still young. Just wait and see how I’ll deal with you if the triplets hear these dirty words.” Miao Jing did not wish for Da Bao and Er Bao to know too much and speak like hooligans.
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As for San Bao, she should be a pure girl who was clear like crystal. These dirty words were in no way suitable for any of her grandchildren to hear.
Zhai Yaohui was dissatisfied. “Weren’t you the one talking about it?”
“Did I mean that?” Miao Jing retorted with a shout.
“To men, as long as you mention it, that is what you mean!” Zhai Yaohui refused to back down.
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Qiao Nan, who had wanted to ask if she could help with anything, stood awkwardly at the door. She had inadvertently overhead her parents-in-law flirting and felt second-hand embarrassment.
In the past two years, Qiao Nan had clearly felt that her parents-in-law’s relationship had improved tremendously as compared to ten years ago.
At such a time, Qiao Nan naturally would not have been so foolish to knock on the door to interrupt her parents-in-law. Instead, she got the triplets, who had already woken up and changed, to quickly head downstairs for breakfast before sending them to school.
“Great-grandpa!” Da Bao shouted loudly when he saw Old Master Zhai return to drink soymilk after shadowboxing.
Old Master Zhai’s expression lightened and he burst into a wide smile. “Ah, good morning, Da Bao! Our Zhai family’s children should be like this indeed. Greeting with a loud voice, just like shouting commands in the army. Come, Da Bao. Come drink soymilk with great-grandpa!”
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Da Bao nodded and automatically sat next to Old Master Zhai, holding up his cup and drinking his soymilk. Old Master Zhai valued Da Bao but loved Er Bao and San Bao all the same. So the soymilk that the three children drank was all poured by Old Master Zhai alone.
As such, Er Bao and San Bao had never felt as though their great-grandfather, Old Master Zhai, was ever biased. Their great-grandfather loved all three of them equally.
“Great-grandpa, we’ve eaten our fill and we’re going to school now.” Upon finishing their meal, the three children did not need any reminders or help from the adults. They picked up their hefty bags and followed obediently after Qiao Nan to take their leave.
Old Master Zhai nodded with a smile. “Okay. Great-grandpa will wait for you to return home.”
“Okay,” the three children replied in unison. Only with that did they let their mother send them to school.
Qiao Nan and her children went to work and school respectively. On the other hand, Zhai Sheng, who rarely had time to spend at home, was idle with nothing to do. Zhai Sheng had discussed it with Qiao Nan, and he would find something to occupy himself with. “Mom, I’m going next door to see Old Lin. Nan Nan said that Old Lin rarely comes out to walk around nowadays. Sometimes, Nan Nan takes the three children to visit Old Lin but he is never willing to open the door for the four of them.”
It was not just Old Master Zhai that worried them, but Lin Yuankang worried them too.
The problem was that if Lin Yuankang did not open the door for them to enter, Qiao Nan could not possibly force the door open and scare Old Lin. But after a few days of not seeing Old Lin, Qiao Nan had become very uneasy. If not for the few sentences that they exchanged through the door, Qiao Nan might even think that…
Qiao Nan did not understand why Old Lin refused to see her and her three children anymore. And since she could not make any progress, the only person Qiao Nan could call on for help was Zhai Sheng.
“Fine.” Miao Jing sighed anxiously. “Old Lin is around the same age as our old master. I know that Nan Nan has been so worried about Old Lin’s health these days that she hasn’t been able to sleep well.”
The mention of this topic made Miao Jing’s eyes turn red.
When the elderly reach a certain age, there is only one thing that their family constantly worries about. Moreover, Old Lin and Old Master Zhai’s health was deteriorating by the year. It was not as if they did not know that.
Two years ago, Old Zhu could no longer hold on and among the veteran revolutionaries, and he was the first to pass on.
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At Old Zhu’s age, passing on could have been seen as a closure as well as joyful. But as joyful as it was, losing a loved one was ultimately painful for the Zhu family.
Zhu Chengqi had already lost his wife at a young age. And now that even his father had passed on, he only had his son, Zhu Baoguo, by his side. Even though Zhu Chengqi had never uttered a single word, Miao Jing could still sense deep sorrow and loneliness in this tough chief.
The only thing the Zhu family could rejoice about was that Old Zhu had always kept Zhu Baoguo in his mind before his death. Zhu Baoguo was already a young man of over twenty years old. As a mother, Qiao Nan did not want to say, but her children could fend for themselves and were already in kindergarten. But there was nothing from Zhu Baoguo’s side. Old Zhu said that he was uneasy if he were to leave just like that.
In order to reassure the old man, Zhu Baoguo told Old Zhu that he actually had a girlfriend and that his girlfriend was Shi Qing. It was just that the two of them were too passionate about the army and did not want to get married too early. Hence, they had kept it under wraps.
Zhu Chengqi and Shi Peng had all along known about the situation between the two children. Thus, the two of them decided to arrange for the engagement of their children before Old Zhu passed on so as to reassure him.
Old Zhu was rather satisfied with Shi Qing as his granddaughter-in-law. He personally witnessed Zhu Baoguo and Shi Qing exchange engagement rings. And maybe it was because his wish had been fulfilled that Old Zhu passed on that very night. When the Zhu family found him, Old Zhu’s lips were still curled up in a smile.
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Half a year later, Old Zhu’s in-law, who was also a family friend of the Qiao family, passed on as well. With the deaths of two veteran revolutionaries, everyone felt uneasy. Especially those of similar age, they were worried and did not know when such a day would come for them too. Perhaps if they shut their eyes today, they would never open them again.
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The death of Old Lee cast another shadow on the Zhu family. On the day of Old Lee’s funeral, Qiao Dongliang specially rushed back from Ping Cheng to mourn Old Lee’s death.
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