Times of Our Lives - Chapter 34

“If you can’t find a match, your sister’s condition won’t last much longer. You should be mentally prepared,” the doctor said, adjusting his glasses and looking at the young man with little emotion. “Are your parents really unable to come?”

 

Zhuo Xiaoyuan replied, “It’s not that they can’t come; it’s that they won’t.”

 

The doctor seemed to expect this and didn’t press further. “If you don’t want your sister to suffer too much in her last days, it’s advisable to pause the chemotherapy. Her body is too fragile, and it’s distressing for her.”

 

When Zhuo Xiaoyuan returned to the ward, Xie Meng was cutting fruit. Zhuo Jinjin now slept more than she was awake. The little girl lay quietly, with the shadow of the IV bag falling on her slender cheekbones.

 

Xie Meng handed him the fruit platter. “What did the doctor say?”

 

Zhuo Xiaoyuan sat down and gently squeezed Zhuo Jinjin’s hand. “We’re thinking of pausing the chemotherapy.”

 

Xie Meng frowned. “Is it because there’s not enough money?”

 

Zhuo Xiaoyuan shook his head. “There’s still some left from what Ji Qinyang gave. Don’t worry.”

 

Xie Meng remained concerned. “Should we contact Han Dong for a loan?”

 

Zhuo Xiaoyuan said, “The money I brought was from him, and the doctor here was also arranged by him. I don’t want to trouble him any further.”

 

Xie Meng was at a loss for words.

 

Zhuo Xiaoyuan continued, “While I was in Suzhou, Qi Fei and Gang Gang’s family gave me a lot of money, which I haven’t yet repaid. I don’t want to owe more.”

 

Xie Meng asked, “What about your parents…”

 

Zhuo Xiaoyuan suddenly smiled and said, “Jinjin isn’t our biological child.”

 

His parents were from the countryside, uneducated, and worked in farming in the spring and summer while working elsewhere in the winter. Zhuo Xiaoyuan’s childhood was mostly filled with endless fields. In May and June, the family grew loquats, but due to his poor health, he couldn’t climb the trees to pick them like other children.

 

Later, a distant relative had a daughter, and his superstitious parents wanted to bring good luck to Zhuo Xiaoyuan’s frail health by having another child, which led to Zhuo Jinjin being born.

 

At that time, Zhuo Xiaoyuan was 8 years old, and Zhuo Jinjin was only 2.

 

Initially, he didn’t like his new sister; she was too thin and uninteresting, timid, and aside from being clingy and loving to eat, she didn’t seem to be of much use. However, Zhuo Jinjin liked him. Due to her poor health, she couldn’t play with other children, so aside from going to school, most of the time, it was just Zhuo Xiaoyuan and his not-so-liked sister at home.

 

When Zhuo Xiaoyuan did his homework, Zhuo Jinjin would play with building blocks next to him. The toys she played with were leftover from his childhood, as were her clothes. With short hair, it was hard to distinguish whether she was a boy or a girl.

 

“That’s not how you build it,” Zhuo Xiaoyuan said after finishing his homework, watching Zhuo Jinjin building a skyscraper. He had played with it many times as a child and could build it even with his eyes closed.

 

Zhuo Jinjin looked up at him and smiled, calling him “哥哥” (older brother).

 

Zhuo Xiaoyuan, somewhat impatiently, helped her finish the skyscraper. Zhuo Jinjin sat in his lap, watching intently.

 

They spent the whole afternoon building skyscrapers, bridges, and other structures from the same series. Zhuo Xiaoyuan felt like he had relived his own childhood.

 

“Is it fun?” he asked his sister.

 

Zhuo Jinjin nodded vigorously. “It’s fun.”

 

Zhuo Xiaoyuan patted her head, and he began to like her a little.

 

Perhaps the so-called “good fortune” really worked; Zhuo Jinjin’s presence seemed to improve Zhuo Xiaoyuan’s health over time. By then, he was in the fourth grade of elementary school. Although his health had improved, he had come to the group of boys too late and had few friends.

 

Every day, Zhuo Jinjin would wait for him at the entrance of the yard after school. When she saw Zhuo Xiaoyuan from afar, she would run over, grinning and calling “哥哥.”

 

In May and June, the loquats ripened again. Zhuo Xiaoyuan, while doing his homework, couldn’t help but look out the window several times. Zhuo Jinjin was drawing on the leftover draft paper from her brother. She tilted her head, looking at Zhuo Xiaoyuan.

 

“Brother, let me help you pick the loquats,” Zhuo Jinjin offered.

 

Zhuo Xiaoyuan replied, “No, I can pick them myself.”

 

Zhuo Jinjin pouted. “You had a cold and cough last week. You shouldn’t be moving around.”

 

Although the frequency had decreased, whenever Zhuo Xiaoyuan’s health worsened, their parents would vent their anger on Zhuo Jinjin. While they didn’t beat or scold her, their expressions were always unpleasant.

 

“Don’t mind them,” Zhuo Xiaoyuan said unhappily. “I’ll take you to live somewhere else in the future.”

 

Zhuo Jinjin smiled, put down her pen, and ran to the yard. She agilely climbed the loquat tree, picked many fruits, and brought them to Zhuo Xiaoyuan. “I picked these loquats for you,” she said.

 

When Zhuo Jinjin was 7, she fainted in front of the podium during a small event. At first, their parents took it seriously. Major hospitals in Suzhou examined her, but when the diagnosis was finally confirmed, they fell silent.

 

Before this, Zhuo Xiaoyuan had never heard of aplastic anemia. He thought that even if one was in poor health, they would get better with time. So when adults said his sister would die, he found it very absurd.

 

“Such a young age, I heard she was brought here to bring good luck… No wonder.”

 

### Chapter 34

 

“Isn’t it so? When the older brother’s health improved, the younger sister… tsk tsk, it’s actually quite effective,” Zhuo Xiaoyuan often heard such comments from the neighbors. He carried his sister on his back, like a lonely shadow, standing expressionlessly under the loquat tree in the yard.

 

Zhuo Jinjin asked softly from his back, “Brother, do you want to eat loquats?”

 

Zhuo Xiaoyuan shook his head. “No, brother doesn’t want any.”

 

He then asked his sister, “Jinjin, do you want some?”

 

Zhuo Jinjin thought for a moment and said, “No, I don’t want any.”

 

Zhuo Xiaoyuan carefully set her down, rolled up his sleeves, and crouched to roll up his pants. “You wait here for brother.”

 

Zhuo Jinjin nervously looked up at him. She watched as Zhuo Xiaoyuan, awkwardly climbing the tree, got scratched by the branches but didn’t mind. He focused entirely on picking a lot of loquats.

 

He chose the largest ones, peeled them, and handed them to Zhuo Jinjin. “Eat up.”

 

The little girl smiled happily and ate them.

 

When Zhuo Xiaoyuan was in the second year of junior high, Zhuo Jinjin started chemotherapy. Initially, their parents could afford the treatment, but gradually they became unable to manage. Their work trips extended, leaving only the two children at home.

 

Zhuo Xiaoyuan attended classes while taking care of Zhuo Jinjin, turning their routine from a simple two-point line to a three-point line.

 

Miraculously, Zhuo Xiaoyuan never fell ill again.

 

During the coldest part of winter in Suzhou, he saved a few bucks on bus fare by wrapping his coat around his newly finished chemotherapy sister, carrying her home all the way.

 

Zhuo Jinjin, in pain on his back, couldn’t sleep but was mature enough not to cry or make a fuss. The siblings talked to distract her.

 

“How much did we spend today?” Though only 10 years old, Zhuo Jinjin had a basic grasp of financial matters.

 

“Not much,” Zhuo Xiaoyuan counted on his fingers. “Tonight, I can buy you a bowl of wontons.”

 

The little girl shook her head. “I don’t want to, you eat.”

 

Zhuo Xiaoyuan adjusted her position on his back and spun around. “Brother had a full dinner. Look, I’m strong.”

 

Zhuo Jinjin laughed out loud.

 

Due to financial issues, Zhuo Jinjin’s chemotherapy was always intermittent. Zhuo Xiaoyuan began to look into treatments for blood cancer. After graduating from high school, he sought Zhuo Jinjin’s biological parents to see if they could be a match. However, after taking a night train, he was barred from entering the next day, as they wouldn’t let him in.

 

“It’s not easy for us either.” The rural couple, frightened by Zhuo Xiaoyuan’s aggressive door pounding, nearly knelt and kowtowed. “We have the elderly and young children… Just consider that we never had the child.”

 

Zhuo Xiaoyuan’s eyes were red. He grabbed the male head of the household by the collar, his teeth clenched, unable to utter a single word.

 

At that moment, Zhuo Xiaoyuan realized how unimaginably cruel the world could be.

 

The so-called parents refusing to acknowledge their child, the so-called ignoring of someone in need.

 

It was really not surprising.

 

When Zhuo Jinjin underwent her last chemotherapy in Suzhou, her parents talked to Zhuo Xiaoyuan.

 

His mother, looking old and exhausted, said, “We really can’t afford it anymore… The doctor also said there’s no hope. Look…”

 

Zhuo Xiaoyuan interrupted, “Do you want Jinjin to die?”

 

The woman opened her mouth, slowly covering her face with her hands.

 

Zhuo Xiaoyuan stared at her expressionlessly. “When I was young and sick, you had her to bring good luck. She’s suffering for me. She’s my sister.”

 

“If Jinjin dies,” Zhuo Xiaoyuan said slowly, “it will be my sin, one that I will never repay in my lifetime.”

 

After setting the date for Beijing, Han Dong came to see Zhuo Xiaoyuan.

 

“I’ve found an expert in this field for you,” Han Dong handed Zhuo Xiaoyuan a doctor’s business card. “The money has been taken care of. There’s some left, contributed by Zhang Gang and Qi Fei. Take it with you.”

 

Zhuo Xiaoyuan frowned. He closed the door to Zhuo Jinjin’s room and silently smoked in the living room.

 

“Consider it a loan from us,” Zhuo Xiaoyuan finally said. “I’ll repay you when I return.”

 

Han Dong patted him on the shoulder. “You don’t need to repay the money. Just bring your sister back safe and sound.”

 

Zhuo Xiaoyuan didn’t respond. He saw Han Dong out and spent some time in the courtyard, slowly finishing a cigarette.

 

“Brother?” Zhuo Jinjin, rubbing her eyes, got out of bed to find him.

 

Zhuo Xiaoyuan made a sound of acknowledgment.

 

He stood up, rubbed his smoke-scented hands, and held his sister close.

 

“Who came just now?” Zhuo Jinjin rested her head on Zhuo Xiaoyuan’s shoulder and asked.

 

Zhuo Xiaoyuan smiled. “The Goddess of Mercy came.”

 

Zhuo Jinjin murmured, “I don’t believe it.”

 

“Really,” Zhuo Xiaoyuan kissed his sister’s forehead. “Everyone is taking care of us, so you need to be well. Brother will take you to the Great Wall.”

 

Zhuo Jinjin asked, “Will Xie Meng and Brother Qinyang come too?”

 

“Of course,” Zhuo Xiaoyuan hugged his sister tightly. “We’ll always be together.”