To not become a burden, Chen Danian learned to walk with his hands. When no one was home, he would abandon the wheelchair and grit his teeth in pain, binding his legs as he moved forward with his hands propping up his body. This practice exhausted him, but he needed to act unfazed when his family was back.
However, there was no way to keep it a secret for long. Yingying eventually discovered it.
One afternoon, Yingying returned ahead of time and saw Chen Danian in the stairwell moving upwards with his hands. At that instant, Yingying’s tears streamed down her cheeks as she knelt in front of Chen Danian and wailed.
“Dad! Sob!” Yingying cried.
However, Chen Danian laughed. “Silly girl, why are you crying? You are already so old, yet you cry like you are a hundred-kilogram fatty.”
Yingying was tickled by Chen Danian’s words, but her tears continued streaming down. “Dad, why are you out here? If you want to come out, tell me. I’ll take you down. Also, where’s your wheelchair?”
“Silly girl. I just wanted to get some air. Is there a need for that? Besides, your dad isn’t a cripple. It’s just going downstairs, so why would I need your help?” Chen Danian laughed. “Silly girl. Daddy could walk with his legs, so Daddy can also walk with his hands. If Daddy can stand up with his legs, Daddy can also stand up with his hands.”
“Dad, I feel bad seeing you like that. Wait for me. I’ll get you the wheelchair. Besides, the doctor said that if you do physiotherapy on your legs, there’s still a chance of recovery.” As Yingying spoke, her eyes were darting around. Clearly, the doctor had never said anything like that.
However, Chen Danian laughed out loud. “Silly girl. You are Dad’s child. Do you think I can’t tell when you are lying? Don’t worry. Dad can still take this tiny bit of setback. It’s just a pair of legs anyway. Dad still has his hands! As for a wheelchair, do you really treat me as a cripple? Daddy isn’t going to sit in a wheelchair in the future. Only cripples sit in wheelchairs. Daddy is fine! If you don’t believe me, we can compete. These hands of mine might not be slower than those short legs of yours!”
“My legs aren’t short,” Yingying said, peeved.
Finally, Yingying competed with Chen Danian in a race, and obviously, Chen Danian was no match for her. However, Yingying didn’t run very fast either. She stayed behind Chen Danian and when she saw how much effort he took to climb up the stairs, her eyes turned moist without her realizing it. She knew that Chen Danian was doing that solely to reduce her guilt.
Yingying followed behind while covering her mouth, trying hard not to cry out loud. All she did was follow silently.
Seeing her father’s optimistic and diligent attitude, Yingying gradually got over her psychological trauma.
The dark clouds that hung over the family gradually dispersed as a result.
Squirrel asked, perplexed, “Master, why doesn’t he use a wheelchair? There’s no need to insist on using his hands when his legs are broken, right? Why do I feel like that’s a bit unnecessary?”
Fangzheng shook his head without providing an explanation.
However, Lone Wolf raised his head and said, “It’s a form of dignity, the dignity of a man. If the mind doesn’t crumble, there’s nothing that can beat us down! He is likely using his own way to prove himself. But more importantly, it’s to show Yingying that he hasn’t been taken down and that life is still filled with hope. He wanted to make Yingying not feel guilty and get over her psychological trauma. From the looks of it, he succeeded.”
Squirrel listened as though he vaguely understood.
However, Fangzheng nodded slightly in agreement with Lone Wolf. He continued. “There’s a kind of pain known as a painless pain, a type of tears known as tearless tears, a kind of love known as unspoken love, a type of responsibility known as silent responsibility, and a type of laughter known as a man’s laughter. This is what makes a man. Men hide their misery inwardly, but release their laughter to prop up a happy family.”
When the others heard him, all of them fell into deep thought.
Salted Fish suddenly asked, “Then what about women? Do they not do anything?”
Fangzheng shook his head and said, “No matter how powerful a man is, he is just a pillar. To make the family warm and beautiful, it still relies on the woman. Together, they form bliss.”
As an ancient bachelor, Salted Fish knew nothing about this. His fish brain couldn’t fathom those words.
Red Boy patted him on the head and said, “Enough. Stop thinking about it. I didn’t understand when I first came either. Follow Master more often and observe. When you have nothing to do, go on the Internet and learn. You will learn it sooner or later.”
“Internet? The glass rectangle you play with all the time?” asked Salted Fish.
Red Boy nodded. Like an elder brother, he brought Salted Fish to the side and began teaching him.
The scenes before them changed again as Chen Danian grew older and older. Although his smile remained as his daughter grew older, he turned increasingly forlorn.
After Chen Danian returned from work, Chen Danian sat there, watching his daughter as though she was still young. It appeared as though he could never look at her enough and would never get sick of it.
Chen Yingying said with a rueful smile, “Dad, if you keep looking at me like that, I might not have the appetite to eat.”
Chen Danian chuckled foolishly. “Seriously? Dad watched you grow up, so how can you lose your appetite from a short look?”
“Enough. You crazy old man. Eat,” Bi Ruxin berated.
Only then did Chen Danian start eating, but instead of looking at Yingying, he kept serving her food. It frightened Chen Yingying so much that she hurriedly asked, “Dad, are you ill? Your behavior is scaring me.”
Bi Ruxin said with a smile, “What nonsense are you saying? This old man is as fit as a fiddle. He went for a physical examination the day before yesterday. His results were better than mine in every category.”
Only then did Chen Yingying feel relieved. However, she still felt that Chen Danian had been a little odd recently.
Deep into the night, Chen Danian sat on the bed and kept staring at Chen Yingying’s photo.
Bi Ruxin asked out of curiosity, “Danian, what’s wrong with you?”
Chen Danian sighed and shook his head without saying anything else before falling asleep.
With the new year arriving, a bashful Chen Yingying finally brought back an equally bashful boy. The boy was good in every aspect, satisfying Bi Ruxin’s expectations greatly. Only Chen Danian kept drinking silently with an ugly expression. He only spoke when Bi Ruxin secretly pinched him.
“Little Lu, it’s important to have feelings, but your career is equally important. You are now in the beginning stages of your career. You can always delay the wedding a little…” Chen Danian said.
“Dad, we already discussed it!” Chen Yingying cried out.
For the first time, Chen Danian glared at Chen Yingying and continued. “You are a girl, so why are you in a rush to get married? It’s not like I’m not letting you get married. It’ll just be a few days later.”
Towards the end, Chen Danian’s eyes turned red. After another glare, he turned his head and lifted it slightly to prevent his tears from falling. He muttered. “Sigh, I’m getting old. My body can’t take it any longer. I need to rest.”
With that said, Chen Danian rolled away in a wheelchair and returned to his room.
“Mom, what’s wrong with Dad?” Chen Yingying asked.
To not become a burden, Chen Danian learned to walk with his hands. When no one was home, he would abandon the wheelchair and grit his teeth in pain, binding his legs as he moved forward with his hands propping up his body. This practice exhausted him, but he needed to act unfazed when his family was back.
However, there was no way to keep it a secret for long. Yingying eventually discovered it.
One afternoon, Yingying returned ahead of time and saw Chen Danian in the stairwell moving upwards with his hands. At that instant, Yingying’s tears streamed down her cheeks as she knelt in front of Chen Danian and wailed.
“Dad! Sob!” Yingying cried.
However, Chen Danian laughed. “Silly girl, why are you crying? You are already so old, yet you cry like you are a hundred-kilogram fatty.”
Yingying was tickled by Chen Danian’s words, but her tears continued streaming down. “Dad, why are you out here? If you want to come out, tell me. I’ll take you down. Also, where’s your wheelchair?”
“Silly girl. I just wanted to get some air. Is there a need for that? Besides, your dad isn’t a cripple. It’s just going downstairs, so why would I need your help?” Chen Danian laughed. “Silly girl. Daddy could walk with his legs, so Daddy can also walk with his hands. If Daddy can stand up with his legs, Daddy can also stand up with his hands.”
“Dad, I feel bad seeing you like that. Wait for me. I’ll get you the wheelchair. Besides, the doctor said that if you do physiotherapy on your legs, there’s still a chance of recovery.” As Yingying spoke, her eyes were darting around. Clearly, the doctor had never said anything like that.
However, Chen Danian laughed out loud. “Silly girl. You are Dad’s child. Do you think I can’t tell when you are lying? Don’t worry. Dad can still take this tiny bit of setback. It’s just a pair of legs anyway. Dad still has his hands! As for a wheelchair, do you really treat me as a cripple? Daddy isn’t going to sit in a wheelchair in the future. Only cripples sit in wheelchairs. Daddy is fine! If you don’t believe me, we can compete. These hands of mine might not be slower than those short legs of yours!”
“My legs aren’t short,” Yingying said, peeved.
Finally, Yingying competed with Chen Danian in a race, and obviously, Chen Danian was no match for her. However, Yingying didn’t run very fast either. She stayed behind Chen Danian and when she saw how much effort he took to climb up the stairs, her eyes turned moist without her realizing it. She knew that Chen Danian was doing that solely to reduce her guilt.
Yingying followed behind while covering her mouth, trying hard not to cry out loud. All she did was follow silently.
Seeing her father’s optimistic and diligent attitude, Yingying gradually got over her psychological trauma.
The dark clouds that hung over the family gradually dispersed as a result.
Squirrel asked, perplexed, “Master, why doesn’t he use a wheelchair? There’s no need to insist on using his hands when his legs are broken, right? Why do I feel like that’s a bit unnecessary?”
Fangzheng shook his head without providing an explanation.
However, Lone Wolf raised his head and said, “It’s a form of dignity, the dignity of a man. If the mind doesn’t crumble, there’s nothing that can beat us down! He is likely using his own way to prove himself. But more importantly, it’s to show Yingying that he hasn’t been taken down and that life is still filled with hope. He wanted to make Yingying not feel guilty and get over her psychological trauma. From the looks of it, he succeeded.”
Squirrel listened as though he vaguely understood.
However, Fangzheng nodded slightly in agreement with Lone Wolf. He continued. “There’s a kind of pain known as a painless pain, a type of tears known as tearless tears, a kind of love known as unspoken love, a type of responsibility known as silent responsibility, and a type of laughter known as a man’s laughter. This is what makes a man. Men hide their misery inwardly, but release their laughter to prop up a happy family.”
When the others heard him, all of them fell into deep thought.
Salted Fish suddenly asked, “Then what about women? Do they not do anything?”
Fangzheng shook his head and said, “No matter how powerful a man is, he is just a pillar. To make the family warm and beautiful, it still relies on the woman. Together, they form bliss.”
As an ancient bachelor, Salted Fish knew nothing about this. His fish brain couldn’t fathom those words.
Red Boy patted him on the head and said, “Enough. Stop thinking about it. I didn’t understand when I first came either. Follow Master more often and observe. When you have nothing to do, go on the Internet and learn. You will learn it sooner or later.”
“Internet? The glass rectangle you play with all the time?” asked Salted Fish.
Red Boy nodded. Like an elder brother, he brought Salted Fish to the side and began teaching him.
The scenes before them changed again as Chen Danian grew older and older. Although his smile remained as his daughter grew older, he turned increasingly forlorn.
After Chen Danian returned from work, Chen Danian sat there, watching his daughter as though she was still young. It appeared as though he could never look at her enough and would never get sick of it.
Chen Yingying said with a rueful smile, “Dad, if you keep looking at me like that, I might not have the appetite to eat.”
Chen Danian chuckled foolishly. “Seriously? Dad watched you grow up, so how can you lose your appetite from a short look?”
“Enough. You crazy old man. Eat,” Bi Ruxin berated.
Only then did Chen Danian start eating, but instead of looking at Yingying, he kept serving her food. It frightened Chen Yingying so much that she hurriedly asked, “Dad, are you ill? Your behavior is scaring me.”
Bi Ruxin said with a smile, “What nonsense are you saying? This old man is as fit as a fiddle. He went for a physical examination the day before yesterday. His results were better than mine in every category.”
Only then did Chen Yingying feel relieved. However, she still felt that Chen Danian had been a little odd recently.
Deep into the night, Chen Danian sat on the bed and kept staring at Chen Yingying’s photo.
Bi Ruxin asked out of curiosity, “Danian, what’s wrong with you?”
Chen Danian sighed and shook his head without saying anything else before falling asleep.
With the new year arriving, a bashful Chen Yingying finally brought back an equally bashful boy. The boy was good in every aspect, satisfying Bi Ruxin’s expectations greatly. Only Chen Danian kept drinking silently with an ugly expression. He only spoke when Bi Ruxin secretly pinched him.
“Little Lu, it’s important to have feelings, but your career is equally important. You are now in the beginning stages of your career. You can always delay the wedding a little…” Chen Danian said.
“Dad, we already discussed it!” Chen Yingying cried out.
For the first time, Chen Danian glared at Chen Yingying and continued. “You are a girl, so why are you in a rush to get married? It’s not like I’m not letting you get married. It’ll just be a few days later.”
Towards the end, Chen Danian’s eyes turned red. After another glare, he turned his head and lifted it slightly to prevent his tears from falling. He muttered. “Sigh, I’m getting old. My body can’t take it any longer. I need to rest.”
With that said, Chen Danian rolled away in a wheelchair and returned to his room.
“Mom, what’s wrong with Dad?” Chen Yingying asked.
