If it weren't for Tao Huainan's sleep in the car, and the blanket that his brother left behind when packing his things in the morning, they wouldn't have been able to turn around and go back that day.
Tao Huainan had to sleep with that little blanket close to his body. It hadn't been changed since he was born, and it was already very old. Tao Huainan would not be able to sleep if he changed it, even if he couldn't see it.
Tao Xiaodong went back to get the blanket, just in time to see the old lady running out of Tao's old house holding the child, crying, the child's head was covered with blood, his eyes closed and his body was twitching naked.
The old man saw Tao Xiaodong grabbed his arm, the child slipped from her hand, and his two bare legs hung limply.
The child of the Chi family was spanked by his father.
A pick was struck on the head, and the back of the head was immediately sprayed with blood. The short and thin child lost consciousness with his eyes closed, lying on the ground, his hands and feet twitching from time to time.
The grandma ran after her screaming, took off her padded jacket and covered the child, picked up the child and ran out to call for help.
Tao Xiaodong just came back at this time, and all of this may be fate.
Outside the emergency room of the hospital, Tao Huainan was brought in by his brother to sit on a chair and wait. The old man on the opposite side was crying all the time, she seemed a little delirious, babbling about the things of the Chi family's generation, saying that the Chi family's ancestral grave is not good, the old ancestors blamed them, and the Chi family's ancestors have lived to this day In this way, it is better to die than to live.
She kept talking to Tao Xiaodong, Tao Xiaodong didn't respond to her very much, but her mouth didn't stop.
Tao Xiaodong carried Tao Huainan out to get the money halfway, and paid 10,000 yuan to the hospital. The old lady had no money in her pocket, and bowed to Tao Xiaodong with clasped hands.
Tao Xiaodong hugged Tao Huainan and said to her, "The doctor said he could stay in the hospital for a few days. He suffered a concussion and needed stitches for the wound on his head. The money should be enough."
What he said meant that he wanted to leave, and there were still many things waiting for him to go back to do. This time, his friends were helping him to keep an eye on his things when he came out.
The old man understood what he meant, and immediately burst into tears again. He grabbed Tao Xiaodong's arm and held it tightly, but he didn't say anything. Her eyes are a little bit bad. There is a gray film on the outside of the eyeballs, which looks cloudy and stiff.
In Tao Xiaodong's memory, she was crying all the time. She was still young when he was young, and she was crying often at that time.
"If this goes on like this, he will be beaten to death sooner or later." Tao Xiaodong glanced in the direction of the ward, "Take care of it if you can."
It was useless to say this, and he knew it himself. She can't control it, an old man who has been tortured by life for most of his life is really too weak.
The old man grabbed his arm like he was holding the last tree, clenched tightly, his old fingertips turned white. Cloudy tears kept flowing out of her eyes, and her hands were shaking so hard that Tao Xiaodong's arm holding Tao Huainan was trembling with her.
Her knuckles clung to Tao Huainan's leg, and she was afraid that one hand would not be able to hold Tao Xiaodong, so she grabbed Tao Huainan's calf with the other hand.
Tao Huainan trembled when she grabbed her, his hands were cold and dry, Tao Huainan was startled.
The old man's lips began to tremble, and every inch of wrinkled skin on his face was trembling with struggle.
She held onto the two brothers in front of her tightly, her eyes half blinded by tears lingering on them.
The Tao family is a good family, and their ancestors have been kind-hearted for generations.
There was a muffled thump as the knee landed—
"Tao's boy... you can take him away, just give him something to eat—"
"Your brother's eyes are not good, so you should raise a kitten and dog for your brother, and treat him like a little animal as a companion..."
"It's good to be alive, to live is life..."
The child woke up the next day, and the first thing he saw when he woke up was Tao Huainan sitting cross-legged at his feet.
His head throbbed violently, he raised his hand to press his head, and touched a piece of gauze.
Tao Huainan heard the voice and asked softly, "Are you awake?"
The child didn't speak, and looked at the ward, at Tao Huainan, and at the shelf with the needles hanging from it.
He didn't speak and Tao Huainan didn't ask any more questions. He sat cross-legged at the foot of the bed, holding a sandbag in his hand, making it rustle. The two children in the ward were silent, just like most of the time they were together in the past few days.
When Tao Xiaodong came back with the porridge, Tao Huainan turned his head to listen.
Tao Xiaodong asked: "Are you awake?"
Tao Huainan said, "It seems to be awake."
Tao Xiaodong put the porridge on the sideboard and asked, "Where does it hurt?"
The child on the bed stared at him, but still didn't speak.
Tao Xiaodong didn't ask any more, and said to him, "Tell me where it hurts, and I'll call you a doctor."
The child ate half a bowl of porridge and vomited completely.
The cleaner in the hospital came over to mop the floor with a mop, and after mopping, he said blankly: "If you can't eat it, don't eat it."
Tao Xiaodong asked him if he would still eat, but he didn't respond in a daze, and it took a long time before he opened his mouth and said, "I don't want to eat."
Tao Xiaodong and Tao Huainan all looked at him, and Tao Xiaodong said, "Tell me if you're hungry."
He has been silent and dull since he woke up, never asking him why he is here, nor why they are here.
After he finished the bottle of needles, he had some tests. In the afternoon, he put on clothes that were apparently newly bought and was taken away from the hospital by them without asking where they were going.
The blood on the car was simply wiped off, but there was still a stench that didn't dissipate. He lay flat on the back seat and looked sideways at the two brothers in front.
It was snowing outside and the sky was gray.
After driving for several hours, it was dark when we got out of the car.
After getting out of the car, he vomited again, and Tao Xiaodong reached out and patted him on the back a few times.
He was sent to another hospital, where Tao Xiaodong hired a nurse to take care of him in a double room. The nurse made a list of the necessities needed for hospitalization. Tao Xiaodong went out for a trip, and after making arrangements, he carried Tao Huainan and left.
There is also a child in the next bed, the father sleeps in the accompanying bed next to it, and the mother sleeps on the hospital bed with the child squeezed together.
The nurse took the urine for him, and then slept on the accompanying bed next to him, snoring not lightly. He fell asleep with the snoring.
He stayed in the hospital for a week, during which Tao Xiaodong visited him twice.
There are two radiators under the windows of the ward, and the hot air is coming in, making people dizzy. His nose had been frozen long ago, and he always had a runny nose no matter the heat or cold. The nurse came over to wipe him with toilet paper. After a few days of wiping, the underside of his nose became red and hurt when he touched it.
When the nurse came to pinch his nose again, he pushed and opened the nurse's hand. The nurse didn't care about him after that.
When Tao Xiaodong led Tao Huainan over to pick him up, there was a stream of snot under his nose. Tao Xiaodong asked him to change his clothes, and at the same time tore a piece of paper and threw it to him, asking him to wipe his nose.
He took it in silence and wiped it under his nose. Tao Huainan still had a cold, so he also sniffed. Tao Xiaodong also tore a piece of paper and handed it over.
Tao Huainan wore a wool cap on his head and a hand-woven scarf around his neck. He also held a hat in his hand, and handed it over to Chi's children.
"Take it with you, you can't blow your hair." Tao Xiaodong said.
The child took it and took it with him. Without asking anything, he followed them out of the hospital and into the car.
This time I took a car, not the van last time. Tao Huainan sat on the back seat with him, and after a while, he took out his pocket and stuffed two lollipops into his hands.
"You tear one up for me, and I'll give you the other."
The child lowered his head and tore open one and gave it to him, but did not eat the other.
"Do you miss home?" Tao Xiaodong suddenly spoke from the front.
The child looked up at him and said, "I don't want to."
"It's good if you don't want to." Tao Xiaodong took advantage of the red light to look back at him, "From now on, you will follow us."
He didn't say anything more, and turned his head out of the window after a while, watching the traffic and pedestrians outside.
He talked too little, and he basically wouldn't make a sound without asking him anything, and always looked down with drooping eyelids. Tao Huainan always had a small snack in his pocket, and he stuffed one into his hand from time to time. He didn't eat anything, didn't talk, and sat there without moving.
On the way, Tao Xiaodong got off the car to pick up his things and asked them to wait.
After his brother got out of the car, Tao Huainan turned the lollipop in his mouth for a while, then took it out and pinched it with his fingertips, and moved to the side of Chi's children, talking with a lychee smell of lollipop Son.
"Don't be afraid, my brother is fine."
The children of Chi's family hid to the side, they had never been so close to anyone before.
Tao Huainan ate the candy for a while, took it out and pasted it on him again, and said in a low voice, "From now on, no one will beat you at my house."
His mouth smelled of sugar, and when he spoke, his breath sprayed on people's faces, and there was also a milky smell that was inherent in him.
The child turned to look at him, his big watery and empty eyes were particularly conspicuous.
They live in a building, a house with two bedrooms and two living rooms.
Tao Xiaodong brought him a pair of children's slippers, and after changing the shoes, he stood against the wall.
"I didn't punish you to stand," Tao Xiaodong told him, "Take off your coat and wash your hands."
His eyes swept around, and Tao Xiaodong raised his chin in the direction of the bathroom.
"Don't be cautious, you will live here from now on." Tao Xiaodong came over to help him turn on the light in the bathroom, "The left side is hot water, and the right side is cold water. When using hot water, don't screw it all the way, otherwise it will burn you."
Tao Huainan followed and also came to wash his hands. Two children and an adult were crowded in front of the sink. The adult adjusted the water temperature for the two of them, Tao Huainan touched the soap and wiped it in his hand, and stuffed it into his hand after wiping.
"In terms of seniority, you have to call me Uncle Tao." Tao Xiaodong stood behind them, looked at them in the mirror, and said to Chi's children, "Your father and I are of the same generation."
The child looked up at the mirror and met Tao Xiaodong's gaze. Tao Xiaodong continued: "But you are about the same age as my brother, so you follow him and call me brother."
The Chi family child didn't say anything, Tao Xiaodong looked down at him: "Scream."
He was not stubborn, and called out: "Brother."
"Yeah." Tao Xiaodong responded, and continued, "My brother can't see, so you take care of him from now on, you two live and play together, don't fight."
After Tao Huainan finished washing his hands, he touched the towel to wipe his hands. After wiping, pass it to the side, so that Chi's children can do the same.
He just put down the soap in his hand and continued to flush the water. After rinsing, he took the towel from Tao Huainan and wiped it on his hands.
After everyone went out, Tao Xiaodong remembered, and asked casually, "What's your name?"
He replied: "Late suffering."
Tao Xiaodong didn't seem to hear clearly: "What's the delay?"
"Bitter." The child repeated with thin single eyelids, "Slowness."