The courtyard: the atmosphere of human life

Darong and her mother had just ridden their bikes onto the small road when they ran into Zhong Yunxing who was looking for Darong.

"Auntie, Darong, where are you going?" Zhong Yunxing asked the two people who were in a hurry.

"My dad fell down." Darong kept pedaling and shouted to Zhong Yunxing behind her.

When Zhong Yunxing heard this reason, he just rode his bike and followed behind.

The three of them rushed to the hospital and walked around for a long time but didn't see Darong's father. Just when Darong was getting anxious, she saw Uncle Liu squatting at the door in the backyard.

"Uncle Liu, have you seen my dad?" Darong rushed to Uncle Liu and asked anxiously.

"Oh, Darong, I'm waiting for you here. Your father has been sent to the city's orthopedic hospital, but the hospital here said they can't take photos or see him."

After hearing what Uncle Liu said, Darong's mother immediately felt her legs go weak and she almost fell down. Fortunately, Zhong Yunxing supported her from behind.

"Did you fall hard?" Darong's mother already had tears in her eyes.

"I didn't see him either. Wu Laosan drove away. When I came over, he was in the car and I didn't see him. I only heard that he fell from the third floor."

It would have been better if Uncle Liu hadn't said anything, as he only had a vague idea about what happened in the first place, and he hadn't seen how the man fell. But his description scared Darong's mom and Darong so much that they burst into tears on the spot.

"Auntie, don't cry yet. Let's go to the hospital and see the person first." Zhong Yunxing supported Darong's mother and comforted her.

Public transportation was not well developed at that time, and buses from the southern suburbs to the city only departed at fixed times and locations, so if you wanted to go to the orthopedic hospital, you had to find a way to find a bus.

"Sister-in-law, don't worry. The manager asked me to take you to find Lao Ge from the building materials factory and borrow their car to make a trip." Uncle Liu quickly took over after hearing what Zhong Yunxing said.

Darong was carsick, so even though the ride was only half an hour, she still vomited all over the place. After finally getting off the car, Darong's mother rushed into the hospital, and Zhong Yunxing followed closely behind, supporting the staggering Darong.

“Are you a family member?”

"Yes, yes, it's me." Before Darong's mother had time to talk to Darong's father, she looked at the young doctor holding a medical record folder in front of her and quickly responded.

"The film has come out. There is a fracture in the clavicle. The dislocation is not serious, but if it needs to be corrected, surgery is necessary."

The doctor brought Darong's mother into the office and pointed to a crack on the film while explaining her condition.

"Is it okay if I don't have surgery?"

When Darong's mother heard the word "surgery", her palms began to sweat with nervousness. She was very averse to having surgery. In Darong's mother's words, once a person has surgery, it will hurt their vitality, and their physical condition will be poor due to insufficient internal energy.

"It's hard to say. Although his bones are broken, fortunately the dislocation is not serious. It may heal without surgery. So you family members need to discuss it and then make a decision."

Doctors never make promises. They can only analyze the situation based on medical data indicators, but the final decision must be made by the family members themselves.

After coming out of the office, Darong's mother walked to Darong's father's side.

"DaRong's father, how are you?"

"It hurt a lot when I just fell, but it doesn't hurt that much now."

"The doctor said that the broken clavicle is slightly dislocated. If it is to be reset, surgery is necessary..."

"Don't do it, don't do it, don't do it."

Before Darong's mother finished her words, Darong's father shook his head and refused.

"Third brother, this is a work-related injury. The team has covered the cost of the surgery. You don't have to worry about the money." Manager Xue, who was following nearby, quickly expressed his attitude.

"It's not because of this. I don't think it's that serious. If I take some medicine, it will be cured in a month. If I have surgery, I may not be sure."

Darong's father waved his hand and tentatively moved his injured arm. He felt that he could still use the strength.

"That's what I meant. Thank you, Manager. You've taken my trouble to drive all the way here." Darong's mother then noticed Manager Xue who had been following her and quickly greeted him politely.

Darong's father rejected the hospital's suggestion of surgery and signed a document requiring him to stay in the hospital for observation for two days before he could go back. After all, he fell from the third floor. Although the current examination showed that there was nothing serious, the doctor did not dare to be careless.

"Aunt, you go back with the team's car first. My brother and sister are still young at home, and if there is anything on the team, they have to wait for you to take charge. I will accompany uncle here. I just called the unit and asked for leave."

After a whole afternoon of hard work, Zhong Yunxing ran around to send Darong's father to the observation room. The sky outside had already darkened.

"This is inappropriate. I've already troubled you enough. How can I burden you further?"

The car from the building materials factory returned after dropping off Darong's mother and the others. The team's project had to be kept under watch, so besides Darong and her daughter, only Zhong Yunxing and Nanjian's driver were still waiting.

"I'll just take care of my dad here, you all can go back." Darong took a break for the entire afternoon, and the discomfort from motion sickness finally subsided.

"Then I'll accompany you. You're a girl, and you can't follow your uncle if he goes to the bathroom or something."

"My father's injury wasn't his leg..."

"Okay, let Xiao Zhong stay with you. Otherwise, I'll be worried. You're so prone to motion sickness, so don't bother yourself for now. I'll go back with your uncle Wu and tell Sibei and the others about it. I'll take a ride over tomorrow to take your place."

Darong's mother interrupted Darong and said that Zhong Yunxing was right. Darong was a girl after all. Even if Darong's father didn't need her to take care of her and she stayed in the hospital alone, Darong's mother would still be worried. She would feel more at ease if Zhong Yunxing could stay with her.

After Darong's mother followed the car back, Zhong Yunxing bought some simple meals from the hospital cafeteria, and the three of them ate together in the ward.

By the time Darong's mother arrived home, it was already completely dark.

"Mom, how is my dad?" As soon as the third child saw Darong's mother come in, he hurriedly asked about his father's condition with concern.

"Fortunately there was a pile of sand on the ground. Although a piece of his collarbone was broken, it's no big deal. Where's your brother?" Darong's mother saw the third brother and Xiaoying at home, but didn't see the fourth brother.

"My brother went to the hospital. He heated up some food for us and then rode out on his bike, leaving me at home to take care of Xiaoying."

"This is just causing more trouble. It's already midnight when he rode his bike to the hospital." Darong's mother slapped her thigh and sucked her teeth in anxiety.

"Mom! Mom!" Are you back?

The voices of the four generations in the yard immediately comforted Darong's mother's anxious mood.