"But in fact, just by hearing He Da’s words, He Teng knew that she must be severely injured, just didn’t want to show it and make him worry.
"Stay in the hospital and recuperate, I’ll get there as soon as I can." He Zhilan didn’t mention her pain, and He Teng didn’t know how to comfort her. Listening to her chuckling, He Teng figured that the He Zhilan on the phone must be grimacing and enduring her pain in order to speak to him in such a detached tone.
Her strength, her endurance, it was beyond his expectations, but it made his heart ache tremendously.
"No need!" He Zhilan hurriedly replied, "I just have an external injury that looks a bit scary, nothing else. The doctor said I could be discharged after two days of observations. After things are settled here, I’ll bring He Da home. By the time you get here, He Da and I might already be back home, so if you can take the leave, you should just wait for us at home. I have to finish up here and make a call to Dad!"
After she hung up, He Zhilan looked at He Da. "He Da, don’t tell Dad about my injury when you talk to him later. He would be very worried, and you shouldn’t feel guilty. It’s not a big deal, see, I’m in good spirit! You didn’t see how your elder brother looked when he got injured; it really scared me. And he was acting as if nothing happened!"
After she gave He Da some instructions, He Zhilan called their father, who happened to be at their local grocery store, chilling and chatting. As soon as he heard his daughter’s voice, he rapidly picked up the phone.
"Is that you, Zhilan? Just finished your work and called Dad when you got back to the hotel?" He Zhongguo’s mood was very good when he picked up the phone, he felt that since He Zhilan had married He Teng, she seemed to think more and more about their family, and always remembered her father.
"Aren’t I missing Dad? But the one who misses Dad the most is not me, it’s someone else, I’m going to make Dad curious, let him guess who it is?" He Zhilan’s tone sounded quite playful, but her eyes were already welling up with tears.
He Zhongguo, on the other end of the line at the grocery store, was puzzled by He Zhilan’s suspense, wondering if it could be He Teng. Had He Teng gone to C Province to take care of Zhilan?
Then he thought again, He Teng isn’t like that, and most importantly, He Teng is a soldier, he can’t just leave the army whenever he wants.
The rustling sound on the other end of the line made He Zhongguo more curious and expectant. He heard breathing but no speaking, He Zhongguo asked cautiously, "Who’s there?"
"Dad, it’s me, He Da."
A simple sentence, just five words, said with immense effort and received with almost dropping the phone.
"What did you say? Who are you? He Da? Ada? Are you Ada?" He Zhongguo’s hand holding the phone was violently trembling. He was sitting on a long wooden chair, but as he clung to the cabinet where the phone was placed, he slowly stood up, as if by standing, he could see the face of the person on the other end of the line.
Hearing He Zhongguo’s words, everyone in the grocery store, who were chatting, fell silent. One by one, they looked at He Zhongguo’s reaction, whispering to each other, wondering if it was indeed He Da who had called from the other end of the line.