Cherry Blossoms for a Long Time (Part 8)

 A two-week hospital stay wasn't long for Yingqi, yet it felt like an eternity. During this time, he smashed three mirrors in the hospital restroom, and Mr. Zheng silently paid for them all.

Gu Yingqi would always remember that late autumn afternoon when Mr. Zheng brought his daughter to visit him.
Because that day, Mr. Zheng told him a story, and at that moment, he kept his back to the Zheng family, pretending to be fast asleep.
He told Gu Yingqi that many years ago, when he was still a company commander in the army, Yanhai City encountered a once-in-a-century flood. To prevent the seawall from breaching, two people had to drive two trucks loaded with earth and rocks towards the breach and then jump out in time. That day, when he and Mr. Zheng, who was the political instructor, drove the two trucks one after the other towards the breach, they hesitated when they saw the raging flood in front of them. He slammed on the brakes a second before the trucks plunged into the breach and jumped out of the driver's seat, trembling. Blocked by the truck in front, Mr. Gu finally roared, slammed on the gas, and rammed the stopped truck into the breach. The severely deformed cab trapped his left leg,
and Mr. Gu, along with the entire truckload of earth and rocks, sank to the bottom of the sea and never resurfaced.
Gu Yingqi guessed that Zheng Jiujiu must have heard this story, which was why her attitude towards her changed so drastically.
Mr. Zheng's sobs echoed the autumn rain outside the window behind him. Filled with remorse, he told Gu Yingqi that he had never dared to mention what happened back then. After being discharged from the military, he worked desperately and bought an apartment in the military compound with his own money, asking Grandpa Zheng to use his connections to allocate it to the Gu family under the military's name. During this time, he never dared to visit the Gu family's old house.
It wasn't until later, when he went to great lengths to recruit Gu Yingqi into his company, that he realized how much she resembled the fearless instructor from back then. He said that for over a decade, he would dream of the events of that year, always suddenly sitting up in bed in the early hours of the morning, locking himself in his room, and sobbing like a child.
He, Grandpa Zheng, and Grandma Gu had agreed not to tell Gu Yingqi the truth for the time being, because they were afraid that Gu Yingqi, who was quite "hooligan" at the time, would take advantage of his father's kindness to their family and completely turn into a shameless scoundrel who only knew how to ask for money. You see, back then, Gu Yingqi wouldn't even spare the photographer taking pictures under the cherry blossom trees. This was also why Grandpa Zheng wanted Yingqi to join the army so much; he hoped the military could reform him properly.
Standing beside her father, Zheng Jiujiu's eyes reddened. She looked at Gu Yingqi's back, hesitated for a long time, but only said one sentence: "Gu Yingqi, I'll wait for you to get better!"
Gu Yingqi, with reddened eyes, still didn't turn around.
He heard the sound of the ward door closing softly, slammed his fist heavily against the white wall, and whispered "Goodbye" to the emptiness behind him.