Chapter Fifty-Nine: Desire to Discuss Important Matters

  The operation was very successful, and everyone breathed a sigh of relief. Yun Jiangtong still had to stay in the sterile intensive care unit for several days after the surgery, so Lu Zhengdong sent everyone off.

  The Spring Festival is approaching, and every family has to prepare for the Chinese New Year. There are fewer relatives coming to our house, except for my younger uncle's family who often come, and another one is his cousin Liang Guangliang.

  Liang Guangliang is only 17 or 18 years old and still in high school, with the college entrance exam coming up after the Spring Festival. He often comes here, saying he's visiting, but actually, I guess it's because he's fed up with his family members constantly pressuring him to study, constantly educating him, and doesn't want to stay at home.

  It's almost Chinese New Year, and every family is busy preparing for the holiday. His usual friends are all occupied with their own celebrations, and there's nowhere else to go. Visiting his second aunt in the hospital, whom he hasn't seen in years, is a perfectly valid excuse. By doing so, he can avoid the noise at home and also hear some interesting stories from her experiences in the countryside.

  Lu Zhengdong and Yun Jiangtong also welcomed Liang Guangliang's arrival, which meant there was one more person to talk to their mother with. Moreover, when he fell on hard times in the capital city, only this cousin would often come and chat with him, a memory that still warmed his heart. Lu Zhengdong naturally did not want him to end up losing everything due to his own foolishness, and hoped to help this cousin who had struggled alongside him through thick and thin.

  Lu Zhengdong also had another thought, which was to take the opportunity to advise Liang Guangliang and bring himself closer to his aunt's family. After the Spring Festival, his mother would still have to stay in Beijing for a while, and no matter how much he wanted to leave, his mother would definitely send him back to work. He would definitely be away from his mother for some time, and although there were caregivers around, taking care of his mother's affairs was not too worrisome, but without family by her side, his mother would also feel lonely and isolated. His uncle treated them well, but he was busy with work and had little time to accompany his mother. As for the other uncles and aunts, it was even less possible. His aunt worked in an enterprise and had more free time, and as sisters, they could talk to each other.

  The two sons of my aunt's family, the eldest son Liang Hao is still promising, graduated from Beijing University and works in the procuratorate system, with excellent performance. However, Liang Guangliang is a good-for-nothing, and Lu Zhengdong can imagine how much his family hates him for not living up to their expectations. He also understands why they are so strict with him. Although it's not difficult to go to college from such a family background, if he doesn't study hard and gets poor grades, it would be a shameful thing. Moreover, his grandfather has some old-fashioned ideas deep down, thinking that his own grandson is better than his nephew. If Liang Guangliang doesn't make an effort and doesn't behave properly, he will lose face in front of others in the family, and basically, his life will be like that forever...

  However, ideological work still needs to be done in a way that is conducive to winning people over. Since Liang Guangliang has a strong rebellious streak, one needs to approach him gently and gain his trust before subtly influencing him with certain ideas.

  Lu Zhengdong's strategy is still effective, with the bond of kinship and Lu Zhengdong's attitude towards Wei, the two quickly become familiar. Liang Guangliang initially came to escape the noise at home, but later came to the hospital mainly to talk about his troubles and ideals, complaining that others in his family did not support or understand him. Lu Zhengdong listened patiently, and as a 17- or 18-year-old youth, these words were not something he could share with others in the family, who would not listen. Now, Lu Zhengdong not only listens but also shows understanding, which makes Liang Guangliang feel extremely grateful. Lu Zhengdong also offers timely advice to help him clarify the relationship between his main career and hobbies.

  It's likely that his parents had told him these things before, and Liang Guangliang wasn't entirely unaware of them either. However, when he put it this way, Liang Guangliang was able to take it in. Still, Liang Guangliang felt a bit resentful and thought for a moment before saying:

  "Auntie, Brother-in-law, if I do well in the college entrance exam, can I spend a summer vacation at your place?"

  Yun Jiang Tong smiled and said:

  "Your cousin is really in a rural area, it's full of mosquitoes everywhere, can you bear it if you go?"

  Liang Guangliang did not agree with this:

  "Second aunt, are you not welcoming me to go? I heard from my cousin that your place is scenic and beautiful, and even if there are more mosquitoes, it's still better than my home. There are mosquitoes buzzing around my ears every day, and staying in this place makes people feel suffocated..."

  Yun Jiangtong couldn't help but smile when he saw Liang Guangliang's miserable appearance.

  Lu Zhengdong also smiled. In Liang Guangliang's eyes, his own home was a prison cell, and this capital city was just a big cage. This child must have been driven too hard by his family. So he said with a smile:

  "Come on, think about it carefully. Even if you're tired and miserable for just half a year, once the exams are over and you get into university, you can live in the dorms and won't have to listen to me nagging you every day. And even if you don't do well, when you go to university or start working, your family will still meet up with you and talk about you behind your back. So it's all worth it for half a year of hard work in exchange for a lifetime of peace and quiet... Alright, I'll give you some more encouragement: if you study hard over the next half year and do well on the exams, not only will I let you come play at our place, but I'll also get you your favorite gift..."

  Liang Guangliang's heart itched upon hearing this and hastily asked:

  "What gift?"

  Lu Zhengdong smiled:

  "It's a secret for now, you'll know when the time comes, it's definitely going to be a surprise beyond your imagination, just go back and study hard..."

  Liáng Guāngliàng saw that he couldn't get an answer and gave up, happily saying he was going home to review his lessons...

  Not long after seeing off Liang Guangliang, a new year arrived, and the Spring Festival of 1991 finally came. Since his mother was still unable to get out of bed, he couldn't leave her alone in the ward, so Lu Zhengdong politely declined his uncle and aunt's invitation and stayed with his mother in the ward to bid farewell to the old and welcome the new, welcoming the Spring Festival of 91.

  On the third day of the Lunar New Year, Lu Zhengdong was carefully pondering a newspaper when Yun Jiangmin arrived at the hospital again. After chatting with his mother for a while, he called him to the end of the corridor on the side when his mother rested.

  "Zheng Dong, your mother may have to stay in the hospital for several more months. Even after she's discharged, her body will still need time to recover. You and your mother are far away from home, and it's hard to take care of everything at home. Moreover, you're not working near your mother now, so it's also difficult to take care of her. What do you plan to do?"

  This time it's just the two of them, uncle and nephew. It seems that Yun Jiangmin wants to take this opportunity to have a good talk with him about his mother.

  "My personal idea is still to work in the lower reaches. My mother's opinion is that he has already gotten used to life in Changsha and also wants to return to Changsha to take care of his mother's affairs, I have a way... Judging from the current situation, it should be no big deal, mainly depending on the recovery situation over the next month, if it's not very optimistic, then consider..."

  Lu Zhengdong had already asked his mother's intention, and his mother was unwilling to stay in Beijing.

  Lu Zhengdong didn't want to work in Beijing at this time. In the eyes of many ordinary people, working in Beijing is a dream come true, but for Lu Zhengdong, it doesn't have much significance. He was already familiar with many things in Beijing, and he was now a formal cadre; even if he went to Beijing, it would be just to accumulate experience. If he really wanted to work in Beijing, Lu Zhengdong hoped that it would be after reaching a certain height, so that he could truly make use of his abilities.

  Moreover, he has already opened up a small world in the mountains and rivers. With a bit of effort, it's time to achieve results. He doesn't want to end in failure, if he really needs to make adjustments, he hopes to at least set up a framework for others to "follow in his footsteps".

  But all this depends on the mother's physical recovery, he is not noble enough to abandon his mother for the sake of revolution, nor is he vulgar enough to abandon his mother for his own future. If the mother's physical recovery is not optimistic, then everything else will have to give way.

  Yun Jiangmin thought for a moment and said:

  "Since you and your mom have discussed it seriously, let's just do it this way for now."

  Lu Zhengdong saw Yun Jiangmin finish speaking and hastily said:

  "Little uncle, have you seen the article 'Being the pioneer of reform and opening up'?"

  This newspaper was not published in the capital, but rather from a thousand miles away. Lu Zhengdong had to go to great lengths to get it, running around many places before finally buying it. The main purpose was to use this as an excuse to discuss important matters with Xiao Shu...

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