Chapter 42 Shocked (Seeking Recommendations and Bookmarks)

  After accompanying his mother to Donglin Temple, Zhang Nianyue and his mother and brother visited many places in Changsha. The small town in Jiangnan has mountains, water, temples, and many scenic spots, but there are not many like Changsha that have never been ravaged by war and have preserved their ancient beauty. The three of them were reluctant to leave the beautiful scenery behind.

  Zhang Nianheng enjoys photography, and in two days, he used up five rolls of Kodak film. Anything that caught his eye, whether it was flying in the sky, swimming in the water, or flowers, trees, and grass on the mountain, were all captured through his lens. Of course, there were also various ancient buildings that made him feel that this trip to Changjia was not in vain. With his mother accompanying him, Zhang Nianyue changed his habit of staying at home reading books during the day, and leisurely strolled through every ancient site in Changjia County. The three of them would set out early in the morning and often stroll until evening. Zhang Nianyue felt that it was not enough and wanted to stroll around the shops some more. This made Nianheng mutter about wanting to go home, but his mother stood on Nianyue's side, so Nianheng knew that this was a woman's entertainment project, and at this time, he could only return home alone.

  The shops in the county town really can't find anything satisfactory. Today, Nianyue came out of the department store and said to her mother: "Mom, everything else is fine here, it's just that there are too few things."

  Yeqing Li smiled and said: "This is a county town, can't be compared with big cities, however, the jeans you bought last time were not bad."

  Nian Yue's face lit up with joy and she said, "Mom, this was chosen by Mu Tou, I didn't expect him to have some taste."

  Ye Qingli said with a scowl: "You're always saying 'wooden wooden' all day long, girls don't know how to be steady at all." After walking a few steps, she said to Nian Yue: "I'm going back to Jianan tomorrow afternoon, you and Nian Heng come with me too."

  Nian Yue hurriedly took a step forward, grasped her mother's hand and said in a spoiled tone: "Mom, you and little brother go back first, I'll stay with grandpa for a while longer, and come back at the end of the month."

  The mother and daughter were both beautiful, walking hand in hand on the streets of the small town, becoming the focus of attention for passersby. The two women in the spotlight were so stunningly beautiful that they seemed like celestial beings who had descended to earth, and people could only gaze at them from afar, not daring to profane them.

  Ye Qingli couldn't help but understand her daughter's thoughts, shaking her head and saying: "No way, it's almost mid-August, you should also calm down and prepare for the start of school."

  Nianyue pouted and said: "Mom, there are still twenty days before school starts. I can come back in two weeks, it's okay. We're all leaving, Grandpa is so lonely."

  Yè Qīng Lì lightly patted Niàn Yuè's hand and said: "Don't use Grandpa as an excuse, I'll talk to him myself."

  Zhang Nianyue didn't make a sound anymore and followed her mother's side, silently thinking about her own thoughts.

  When they arrived home, Ye Lao immediately noticed that Nian Yue's expression was different. When Ye Qingli walked away, he asked: "Nian Yue, what's wrong?"

  Zhang Nianyue walked to Ye Lao's side and said with a pout: "Mom wants me to go back with her tomorrow, but I want to stay for two more weeks. Grandpa, can you please talk to Mom and let me stay with you a bit longer?"

  Ye Lao understood what was going on and looked at Nian Yue with a glance, smiling happily: "I can help you say something, but are you really just thinking of keeping me company?"

  Nian Yue's face suddenly turned red and she said discontentedly, "Grandfather, why are you also teasing me like my brother? If I didn't want to come and keep you company, would I have come here as soon as summer vacation started?" This meant that before coming here, she had not yet met Ye Zhen Ran.

  Ye Lao smiled and said: "What you said is also right, even if Grandfather looked down on you. Then I'll try it out, as for whether Qingli agrees or not depends on your luck."

  After hearing this, Nian Yue still felt dissatisfied and wanted to say a couple more sentences to persuade him, but the words reached her lips and she felt a bit embarrassed.

  Ye Lao looked at Nian Yue with a mixture of love and concern, beckoning her to come over: "Come have some cookies, Xiao Ye won't be here for another half hour, you go ahead and satisfy your hunger first."

  Nian Yue glanced at the watch, it was already 5:10. She estimated that Ye Zhenran would still take some time to come over after work, so she obediently walked over and took two biscuits, asking: "Grandpa, hasn't Mu Tou called yet?"

  "No." Old Ye replied.

  He didn't call and he's definitely coming over for dinner, it's a settled rule.

  Zhang Nianyue sat down beside Ye Lao to watch TV together.

  At five thirty, Ye Qingli and Zhang Nianheng both arrived at the living room of the first house, ready to have dinner. Jiang Sao saw that it was almost time and asked: "Old Ye, is dinner ready?"

  Ye Lao heard and looked at his watch, muttering to himself: "Xiao Ye should have arrived by this time."

  Zhang Nianyue hastily stood up and said to Ye Lao: "Then I'll make a phone call to ask."

  The living room and dining room of Ye Lao's home are in the middle of the first bungalow in the courtyard, originally two small rooms. After Ye Lao retired, he knocked down the wall between them, making the house feel much more spacious. This is both a living room and a dining room. The sofa and dining table can be adjusted according to need.

  The phone was right next to Ye Lao's sofa, and after Zhang Nianyue dialed the number, no one answered. She hung up the phone and said to Ye Lao: "Grandpa, no one is answering his office phone."

  Ye Lao knew that Ye Zhen would ride his bicycle from the office to here in no more than fifteen minutes, he nodded and said: "That means they've already left, Jiang Shu can serve the dishes, Xiao Ye should be arriving soon."

  Another five minutes passed and Ye Ziran still hadn't arrived, but all the dishes were already served. Mr. Ye looked at Nian Yue and said, "Let's eat, maybe Little Ye has something urgent to attend to, we won't wait."

  Zhang Nianyue silently sat down beside her mother to eat, muttering to herself that when Ye Zhenran arrived, she would scold him a few times. "He didn't come home for dinner last night and now he's going to be late again," she thought angrily to herself.

  Because Ye Lao cares about current events, the TV in the living room mostly plays provincial and CCTV news channels. At the dinner table, Ye Lao, Cai Shu, Ye Qingli, Zhang Nianyue, and Zhang Nianheng had just eaten a few bites of food when they heard the 6 o'clock provincial news channel report an important piece of news.

  "According to the latest news just received by our station, the 'A' class wanted criminal of the Ministry of Public Security, the 'two Li' brothers who have been on the run for over four months, were shot dead this afternoon in Mashan Township, Changjiang County, Jianan City, our province. Here is the latest report from the scene..."

  The five people eating almost simultaneously let out a cry of "ah", and turned their heads to look at the TV, the notorious robbers and murderers "Two Lis" who had committed numerous crimes and made the national public security system change color were shot dead in Changsha?!

  The camera cuts to a tall and thin live reporter, who points at the blood-stained house of Zhu, saying: "Ladies and gentlemen, what you are seeing now is a villager's home in Jiangjing Village, Mashih Township, Changnan City, Jianan Province. This is where the 'Two Lis' brothers were shot dead. This afternoon around 2 o'clock, Vice Township Head Ye Zhenran of Mashih Township, Changnan City, led Police Station Director Zhang Liping and police officer Liu Bing, as well as villager Huang Rucheng, unexpectedly encountered the fleeing 'Two Lis' brothers here. After a fierce fight to the death, they successfully shot dead the 'Two Lis' brothers, who had committed 16 crimes, robbed and murdered people for over four months..."

  "Ah!" The crowd exclaimed in unison again. Zhang Nianyue excitedly shouted: "Grandpa, Mom, the TV said that Muthu killed 'Two Lis' with a wooden stick..."

  Before he could finish, the TV camera cut to a hospital room in Changja County Central Hospital, where another live reporter was reporting: "Ladies and gentlemen, this is a live report. The four comrades who bravely fought against the thugs are seriously injured and are being treated at the county central hospital. Their condition is currently stable. We will continue to report on the details of the situation in our 10 o'clock evening news program. Next, let's follow the reporter for an interview..." The TV camera then cut to Ye Zhenran, Zhang Liping, Liu Bing and others lying in their hospital beds, with the last shot being two medical staff pushing Ye Zhenran into the operating room.

  Zhang Nianyue's delighted expression immediately froze, her face turned pale in an instant, and she shouted: "Mom, look quickly, Muzi is seriously injured, we need to go to the operating room, let's hurry to the hospital."

  The news was too sudden and explosive, Ye Qingli was a bit overwhelmed, feeling that her thinking couldn't keep up. What? The "two Lis" who made the national public security system helpless and lost face were actually killed by Chang Jia? And at the hands of Ye Zhenran? It was really unexpected! This Ye Zhenran really made her look at him in a new light. To be honest, in Ye Qingli's heart, because of Ye Lao and her daughter, she had been paying more attention to Ye Zhenran, and through these few days of interaction, she had already developed some good feelings towards the steady and sincere Ye Zhenran. So now, seeing her daughter's flustered and anxious appearance, she didn't have any blaming intentions. She glanced at Ye Lao, saw that her uncle was also looking at her with expectant eyes, and nodded slightly, saying: "Okay, let's go take a look."

  The mother and daughter rushed to the hospital. As a surgeon at the troop hospital, Ye Qingli was familiar with the treatment process for external injuries. She went to the doctor's duty room and learned that Ye Zhenran's injury was not too serious, just because the bullet on his arm had not been removed, so he needed surgery. Her heart was much more settled. Zhang Nianyue listened to the doctor's introduction, her mood also greatly relaxed, and asked the doctor again how long Ye Zhenran had been in the operating room? After hearing the doctor's answer, she knew that this operation would not take long. The mother and daughter exchanged a few words and decided to wait at the door of the operating room for Ye Zhenran to come out.

  When she arrived at the operating room door, Zhang Nianyue saw many people waiting outside the operating room door. She also saw Yang Hongmei, Zhang Liren's wife, and hurried over to greet her, asking: "Sister Yang, I just found out about this from TV, how is Director Zhang doing?"

  Yang Hongmei's face was solemn, and she said: "He was stabbed in the left chest with a dagger. Because it was stabbed deeply, a lot of blood flowed out. Fortunately, it didn't hurt his heart and lungs. The rescue was also relatively timely, otherwise, it would have been dangerous."

  Nian Yue said, "Oh", and then said: "It's okay, it's okay, Yang sister, they are really lucky, you don't have to worry too much, but after they recover from their injuries, you should warn them well to avoid this kind of risk."