Just as Lin Zhilan finished her meeting and returned to the Traditional Chinese Medicine department to grab her bag and head home, she found that Chang San still hadn’t left, and there was an unexpected person in the department as well.
Shen Man rushed over first and hugged Lin Zhilan. “Auntie, my dad has been exonerated!”
Lin Zhilan wrapped her arms around the young girl and looked at Chang San and Kong Baozhu, surprised. “Really?”
The Shen family had already cried together at home, and everyone’s eyes were swollen.
Kong Baozhu’s mind had mostly recovered by now, but she still didn’t like going out or interacting with people, always feeling that others would laugh at her.
As far as Lin Zhilan could remember, this was the first time she had come to the Traditional Chinese Medicine department.
Chang San nodded with red-rimmed eyes. “It’s true.”
Exoneration, ten years.
Just a few simple words, yet they carried an endless amount of heartache.
A speck of dust from an era, when it falls on one person or one family, becomes a heavy mountain.
From this day forward, the dust that had shrouded the fate of the Shen family was finally, completely brushed away.
Kong Baozhu turned her head to look at her husband, and Chang San smiled at her and nodded before she shyly walked over to Lin Zhilan. “Doctor Lin, over all these years, our whole family owes you our thanks.”
Their family had gone through so many ups and downs, and it wasn’t until they reached the island that they finally had a period of stable life.
Because of their family background, even the neighbors didn’t dare to have much to do with them.
Back then, when Xu Yueyun and Su Bingcheng were still alive, they had taken the initiative to befriend them and had been very kind to them.
And there were the children, too.
Back when Chang San’s family lived in the fishing village, because of their background and Shen Man’s leg, the villagers would tell their own kids not to play with Shen Man.
Those children would also tease her and call her a cripple.
When they arrived on the island, Jiang Chengzhou and Linlin became Shen Man’s first friends.
Shen Man had a strong-willed personality, but Lin Zhilan’s two children were open-minded and generous, and they never minded Shen Man’s leg or her prickly temper.
Jiang Chengzhou and Linlin had great personalities and plenty of friends, and it was precisely because of them that Shen Man gradually became accepted by the other children.
When Jiang Chengzhou got the chance to study with the second-year seniors at school because he’d shared his study materials, he didn’t forget to bring Shen Man along to join the extra tutoring sessions either.
Let alone the fact that Lin Zhilan had cured Shen Man’s leg…
In Kong Baozhu’s heart, Lin Zhilan was the great benefactor of their entire family.
When they learned of the family’s exoneration, their first instinct was to share the news with Lin Zhilan before anyone else.
Lin Zhilan, of course, was overjoyed. She held Shen Man’s face in both hands and gave her a big kiss on the cheek. “Wonderful, wonderful! Congratulations to you all. Let me treat you to a meal.”
Shen Man was already a grown young woman by now, and suddenly being kissed made her blush. “Auntie, my mom and dad want to invite your whole family over to our place for dinner.”
The Shen family hadn’t hosted guests in years, partly because they were afraid of dragging others down.
Without a second thought, Lin Zhilan agreed. “Great! When? We’ll definitely come.”
Chang San said, “How about Sunday evening?”
Sunday was a day off, so both Lin Zhilan and Su Lang would be free.
“Fine, then we’ll be there right on time.”
Chang San let out a sigh of relief, relieved that she hadn’t turned them down.
When Sunday came, Lin Zhilan and Su Lang arrived on time with their three children.
Wearing an apron, Kong Baozhu came out to greet them, and even the fine lines at the corners of her eyes seemed to hold a smile. “You’re here! Come in, come in.”
She still wasn’t very used to socializing. The moment she said one sentence, two patches of red bloomed on her cheeks, and her hands kept rubbing at the edge of her apron.
Lin Zhilan found her adorable, like a young girl. She was really quite endearing.
Chang San also came out, welcoming them in while muttering, “It’s nothing fancy, don’t mind, please.”
Yet the table was clearly piled high with dishes.
Braised pork belly, steamed pomfret, boiled shrimp, pork rib and lotus root soup…
Even the chopsticks by the bowls were arranged neatly and carefully, clearly the result of a great deal of thought.
Once all the dishes were on the table, Chang San took off his apron and sat down. He looked at the full table of food and the room full of people, and suddenly his eyes began to well up.
He raised his glass and first toasted Su Lang and Lin Zhilan, tossing the drink back in one go.
“Thank you…”
The moment he started to speak, his voice was already choked with emotion. “Over the years, Baozhu and I had already thought there was no hope. If not for Manman, we might have given up long ago. If not for Doctor Lin saving Manman’s leg, our family might still be trapped in that whirlpool. I have to thank Doctor Lin!”
He raised another toast to Lin Zhilan and downed it.
Lin Zhilan quickly took a sip of her own wine. “Let’s not talk about the past anymore. From here on out, we’ll all keep getting better. And all these years, your family has helped us plenty too. So there’s no need for so much ceremony between us.”
“Right, right, right.” Chang San nodded repeatedly, urging everyone to start eating.
After a few rounds of drinks, Chang San’s taut nerves finally loosened completely. The rationality he’d held together all these years, the dignity he’d guarded so carefully — it all came crashing down in the haze of the alcohol.
Nobody had expected Chang San to suddenly burst into tears in front of everyone.
He buried his face in his hands, shoulders shaking, and muffled weeping leaked through the gaps between his fingers. Everyone fell silent.
Even Su Li, who was usually so rambunctious, quietly settled down, grabbing his brother’s hand with one hand and his sister’s with the other.
Kong Baozhu turned her face away, tears silently streaming down her cheeks.
Shen Man bit her lip, and big tears rolled down her face one after another.
Lin Zhilan let out a soft sigh.
With his emotions running so high and the alcohol on top of it, Chang San’s body swayed, and he nearly slipped off his chair.
Su Lang caught him in the nick of time and, together with Kong Baozhu, helped him into the inner room, laying him down on the bed to rest.
While Kong Baozhu stayed in the room to look after Chang San, Lin Zhilan got up and helped Shen Man clear the messy dishes from the table.
Su Lang came out of the room, saw what she was doing, and gently took the bowls and chopsticks from her hands. “You rest. Chengzhou and I will do the washing.”
“Uncle, I can handle it,” Shen Man quickly said.
Lin Zhilan took her by the hand. “Let them do it. In our family, the boys always do the dishes.”
Shen Man gave an embarrassed little smile.
Su Lang and Jiang Chengzhou headed into the kitchen, and Su Li went wild.
His face flushed red, he ran out into the alley outside, running back and forth, letting out cackling laughter.
As Lin Zhilan tried to call him over, he’d run right up to her and then dart off again.
Some of the neighbors were drawn over by the commotion, and, seeing Su Li like this, joked at Lin Zhilan, “Doctor Lin, boys get hot for clear skies, girls get hot for rain — looks like tomorrow’s going to be a beautiful sunny day!”
Lin Zhilan smiled. She grabbed hold of Su Li and touched his face.
His skin was burning hot — a little alarming.
But he was full of energy, and he didn’t seem sick.
It was more like…
“Su Li, how’s the wine? Tasty?”
“Not tasty!” No sooner had the words left his mouth than he immediately clamped his hands over his own lips.
Lin Zhilan poked him in the forehead. “Keep drinking, then. Soon you’ll turn into a little fool, and then we’ll see if Nuonuo still wants you.”
“She won’t mind!” Su Li said, looking a little sheepish.
Shen Man quickly ran inside the house to find some dried kudzu root, brewed a few slices in warm water, and handed it to him. “Li Li, drink this right away.”
