Jiang Feifei wanted to sleep alone, but suddenly remembered the scene of her mother lying beside her this morning, so she held back.
The mother and daughter lay on the kang, and before long, the little girl fell asleep. Jiang Xinyu stared at the ceiling, feeling wide awake.
The words of her two sisters advising her today kept echoing in her mind, and scenes of her time with Wei Kaiyun kept emerging.
On the train, Wei Kaiyun was also thinking about them, Niang San, once again leaving them.
Other couples live together, so leaving isn't a big deal for them. He knew many workers were —men working outside to earn money and support their families. This is also why he wanted to build dormitories.
But he hoped their family of four could be reunited.
He kept recalling bits and pieces of being with his wife, realizing how incompetent he was.
He always professed love for her, but in reality, he had given her nothing tangible.
He left her to face the fear of an out-of-wedlock pregnancy alone, left her to give birth to the child by herself.
What kind of husband is this? There wasn't even a legitimate wedding.
The more Wei Kaiyun thought about it, the more depressed he became, feeling unworthy of her.
Regret, frustration, all lingered in his heart, impossible to dispel.
Suddenly, he heard groaning coming from below; it was the old man.
Wei Kaiyun quickly jumped down from his bed, stood by the old man, and turned on the light, seeing no color on the man's face, his lips pale.
Wei Kaiyun roughly guessed it might be a heart attack.
"Sir, where's your medication?"
The old man couldn't even open his eyes, only groaning unconsciously, unable to respond to Wei Kaiyun's question. There was no choice. "Sir, forgive me for offending you."
With that, he started searching the man's pockets, finally finding a small porcelain bottle in the trouser pocket. Though there was no instruction manual, he had no choice but to pour out over ten Life-saving Pills and directly put them in the man's mouth.
After some struggle, he pried open the man's clenched teeth with a spoon, got the pills in, but the man didn't swallow.
This worried Wei Kaiyun. Hurriedly, he pinched the man's jaw, then fed him water spoon by spoon.
Feeling the pills had been swallowed, he rushed out to find the doctor on the train.
After the doctor arrived, he found the man's breathing had stabilized significantly.
"Comrade, your emergency treatment was effective; the man seems fine now."
Only then did Wei Kaiyun feel relieved. After thanking the doctor, he didn't return to the upper bunk but sat below, only relaxing when he confirmed the man's breathing was steady.
He had just intended to go back up when the old man called out, "Young man, I need some water."
Wei Kaiyun felt the teapot; it was not hot anymore. He carried it over, helping the old man sit up.
"The water isn't hot anymore; have a few sips."
The old man drank two sips with Wei Kaiyun's help, shook his head, "That's enough. Thank you."
Wei Kaiyun smiled and nodded. The old man still lacked any energy. "Sir, rest and lie down. Call me if you need anything."
Chao Baoming felt like he had come back to life again, sighing internally.
Once Wei Kaiyun lay down, he continued to think about the mother and her two children, falling asleep unknowingly.
When he woke up, it was already past six the next morning. He quickly got down and saw the old man sitting up against the wall, finally reassured.
"Sir, I'm going to freshen up. Do you want to join me?"
"Thank you, young man. I actually do wish to use the bathroom. After this attack, I have no strength."
Wei Kaiyun supported the old man to the bathroom, holding his toiletries and waiting on one side.
After helping the old man freshen up, he took him back before tending to himself.
Then he helped the old man buy food, "Young man, where are you from?"
"What do you do for work?"
"At a textile factory."
"I'm Wei Kaiyun. Sir, you're still quite weak, lie down, and I'll keep you company."
"Alright, Xiao Wei, how old are you?"
"You don't look it, quite young."
Can't afford not to look young; my wife is twelve years younger than me. If I don't take care, I'd be even more unworthy of her.
Wei Kaiyun just smiled without replying.
"Xiao Wei, how old are your kids?"
"My son's four, and my daughter's three."
"That's great, having both a son and a daughter. You're indeed blessed."
Wei Kaiyun loved hearing such remarks, so they talked more, all about the two children.
"It's indeed not easy, one woman raising two little kids, and you, their father, can't stay by their side.
Xiao Wei, let me tell you, you must be the one to teach your boy."
This made Wei Kaiyun unhappy. He too wanted desperately to teach his son, but circumstances were beyond his control.
Fortunately, Shang Zhenkun was by Shi Jing's side; otherwise, he wouldn't know what to do.
The old man noticed his discomfort and sighed, every family has its difficulties.
They became more and more in tune, "Xiao Wei, I don't think you are an ordinary worker."
Wei Kaiyun chuckled, "I'm the factory director, but no matter the position, it's all about serving the people."
"Right, serving the people. Xiao Wei, you're impressive, so young and already a director. Oh! I remembered, did you build the employee dormitory?"
"Yes, I just hope workers like me who can't live with their families can bring them over." ᴛhis chapter is ᴜpdated by 𝕟𝕠𝕧𝕖𝕝✶𝕗𝕚𝕣𝕖✶𝕟𝕖𝕥
"Well done, you're someone who gets things done. Do well; the country and the people need people like you."
Wei Kaiyun answered the old man's questions but didn't ask about him, just chatted casually.
This made Chao Baoming even more satisfied. This young man was grounded.
"Sir, I have to get off the train tomorrow night. Please take care of yourself alone."
"Yes, I'll be careful."
"The doctor said, if you feel even a hint of discomfort, take your medication right away. Don't wait until it gets serious, especially if no one is around. It could be troubling."
"Yes, I've remembered." If only he were my junior.
At noon, Wei Kaiyun helped the old man, and they went to the dining car together, each buying their own meals, preventing any psychological burden since they weren't familiar enough to treat each other to a meal.
Both were lonely, so they talked more, making time feel like it passed faster.
Indeed, they got along well, and it felt like they hadn't talked for long when it was already time for dinner. After discussing, they decided to head to the dining car again together for the meal.