The courtyard: the atmosphere of human life

Darong and Zhong Yunxing have been married for many years, and she understands Zhong Yunxing's sense of responsibility as the eldest son.

To be fair, Darong also has her own parents, and she doesn't want her parents to be thrown directly into a nursing home when they need care.

But their generation is different from today's only children. The support of parents cannot be easily influenced by the opinions of a child.

"Let's not talk about other issues for now. Just on the issue of rehabilitation treatment, her second aunt has already set a high tone. If you propose to let his grandfather go home now, someone will definitely accuse you of not wanting to treat the old man."

This is the world, this is what people’s words are like. Everyone is denouncing moral kidnapping, but how many people can escape from it?

The cost of Mr. and Mrs. Zhong's stay in the nursing home is shared equally by their children. Although the amount shared is not much, Zhong Yunxing, who has the worst conditions, is the least likely to suggest letting the elderly return home.

It's not just because of the cost of living in a nursing home, but also because after returning home, Mother Zhong will not be able to take care of Father Zhong, who has suffered hemiplegia, by herself, and will face the issue of support from several children.

Zhong Yunxing also knew this truth very well. Apart from crying out his distress, he had no other way to vent.

In fact, you really shouldn't look down on the tears of fifty-year-olds when you are thirty. He doesn't have your bravery and courage because he has seen too much sadness and misery in the world, and he still has a childlike deep affection.

During the time when Mr. Zhong was staying in the nursing home, Zhong Yunxing would visit him almost every day. Although food and lodging were included, he would still ask Darong to cook some delicious meals for him to take home.

"Daxing, please take me back. I want to go home."

Mr. Zhong sat on the bed, like a child who had made a mistake, pitifully begging Zhong Yunxing to take him home. Looking at his old father's appearance, Zhong Yunxing's inner emotions were simply indescribable.

He didn't know how to reply to Mr. Zhong, nor did he know how to discuss the matter with his younger brothers and sisters.

The old man has his own house and his own home, but the current situation makes it difficult for him to return home.

Mother Zhong has stayed with Father Zhong in the nursing home for so many days and has lost a lot of weight. She finally realized that the so-called "recuperation" is just a gimmick to gain profits.

"Furong, your father's birthday is in two days. We can't celebrate his birthday in a nursing home. Let's take a few days off and go home..."

Mother Zhong was smart. She didn't talk to Zhong Yunxing about going home, but went straight to Darong.

She had been with Darong for many years and knew Darong's softness and kindness too well. She could only speak of Darong in front of her, words that she dared not even mention in front of Wu Meifeng and Wenying.

"It's not that I don't want you to go home, but look at my dad's current condition. I'm afraid you won't be able to take care of him if he goes back. We're not retired yet, so we have to go to work and can't help. We need to sit down and discuss the matter of going home before we can make a decision."

Although Darong said this, in fact, Darong and Zhong Yunxing were the only two people who had to work hard to earn money to make a living.

Wenying has been taking care of the children at home for many years, and Wu Meifeng, who is one year older than Darong, also retired early due to illness.

But a daughter-in-law is a daughter-in-law, and the sons all have jobs after all, and Darong cannot be the boss of other people's families.

After hearing what Darong said, Mother Zhong just lowered her eyes and didn't speak for a long time.

Mr. Zhong suffers from hemiplegia and cerebellar atrophy, so his thinking and speech are sometimes confused. Although his family members can recognize him clearly, he will occasionally lose his temper like a child.

Zhong Yunxing had just served him a bowl of soup, which he was drinking happily, but when the nurse came in to bring him medicine, he spilled the soup all over her.

"Ah!" The young nurse screamed and her eyes turned red.

Darong and Zhong Yunxing quickly wiped the man's clothes, apologized and comforted him.

"what happened?"

When Xiaoping came in with a bag of fruits, Zhong Yunxing had just cleaned up the soup on the ground.

"He lost his temper again and splashed water all over someone else's child."

The young nurse is about the same age as Ruyi. Darong always feels a little distressed when she sees her. She wonders if Ruyi will also encounter various setbacks and difficulties when working outside.

"Dad, why are you not listening again..."

Xiaoping sat on the edge of the bed and criticized Mr. Zhong a few words, but the old man didn't even raise his eyelids or say anything. He just continued to eat the rice in the bowl, and from time to time he couldn't suppress a smile.

In fact, Mr. Zhong’s cerebellar atrophy is not serious. The reason why he is always making a fuss is that he just hopes to go home earlier.

"That Uncle Deng has slept the whole day and hasn't even eaten." Mother Zhong said softly, pointing to an old man who was sleeping soundly on the bed opposite.

Mr. and Mrs. Zhong do not live in a single room. In addition to the two beds on one side of Mr. and Mrs. Zhong, there are two other beds on the opposite side, each occupying an elderly person.

Grandpa Deng had no problems with his physical mobility, but he suffered from severe cerebellar atrophy. He didn't even recognize his own family members, and when he was awake he was always noisy and restless.

But the strange thing is that the old man would only be full of energy and active all day long on the day his son visited him, and he would spend most of the rest of the time sleeping.

Xiaoping followed Mother Zhong's gaze and looked in the direction of Grandpa Deng, pursed her lips and said nothing.

"Furong, have you moved into your new house? Take us over to show us the way there sometime."

Mother Zhong suddenly said this again, and Darong didn't react for a moment.

Zhong Yunxing and Darong's original house was on the fifth floor of an old residential complex. It was small and had no elevator. As they were old, they always felt tired climbing the stairs.

It happened to be a good time for housing prices. Although the community was old, Darong was still able to sell it at a relatively high price because it was a school district house.

The two of them bought a house with an elevator in a cheap housing complex on the edge of the southern suburbs. Because of the remote location, they moved to a slightly larger two-bedroom apartment.

I didn’t have much money to buy a new house, so I just did some simple renovations and prepared to move in directly.

It seemed that Mrs. Zhong was determined to have Darong and his wife take her and Mr. Zhong out of the nursing home. When the excuse of celebrating her birthday failed, she directly brought up the topic of going to Darong's house to get to know the family.

Darong was stunned for a moment, then saw Zhong Yunxing's slightly pleading eyes, and finally she couldn't bear to refuse.

Xiaoping of course understood what Mrs. Zhong's intention was, so she took out five hundred yuan and gave it to Darong.

"You are so kind, sister-in-law. You have already moved in, and I haven't bought you a gift. Don't despise this little money. I will give you some congratulations."

Darong didn't care about the good fortune of congratulations on moving into a new house. She was just simply attracted by the look in Zhong Yunxing's eyes and the warmth in his eyes after she agreed.