An 80s female translator was spoiled rotten by a rough and jealous man.

Chapter 191 "Always Here!"

As night fell, the last rays of sunlight on the glass windows were gradually swallowed by the twilight.

Meng Youyou sat leaning against the headboard, her fingertips pinching the two corners of a small piece of paper, staring at the words on the paper and grinning foolishly to herself.

It was just a small piece of paper with only two lines of writing on it.

"A day apart feels like three autumns."

Take good care of yourself and get well soon. I'll pick you up from the hospital next Wednesday.

The first line was a cliché love quote, but it was rare to hear it coming from Battalion Commander Huo. Before this, Meng Youyou thought she would never receive a love letter from this blockhead.

Meng Zhengping sat in a chair by the window and, seeing this scene, shook his head with a sigh.

Hu Shulan, carrying two aluminum lunch boxes, passed by Meng Zhengping, turned her head and glared at him. Meng Zhengping stopped shaking his head instantly and turned the newspaper in his hand over.

Ms. Hu Shulan placed two lunch boxes on the bedside table and whispered, "Youyou, the cafeteria has your favorite braised pork ribs tonight. I got you two portions. Eat them first, and if you can't finish them, give them to your dad. Mom is going to the phone booth outside the hospital to call your grandma."

"Oh, oh," Meng Youyou put away the piece of paper and nodded obediently.

From then on, a silent scene of the father and daughter eating their own meals unfolded in the ward once again, as if their brief exchange in the morning was just a minor episode that could not shake their determination not to compromise.

Meng Zhengping finished his meal first, and after finishing, he didn't say anything. He silently picked up his precious newspaper again. He had been holding that tattered newspaper in his hands all day and still hadn't finished reading it.

Meng Youyou spat out the last bone she had gnawed clean, and the bone hit the metal lunchbox lid with a crisp "clang".

Hearing the noise, Meng Zhengping looked up and then got up and walked to the bedside, silently cleaning up Meng Youyou's lunchbox and trash.

Meng Zhengping also went out, probably to the hot water room to wash the dishes. During her afternoon nap, she heard Meng Zhengping and Hu Shulan whispering to each other.

Hu Shulan asked him softly, "Have you bought the tickets? What time is your train?"

Meng Zhengping replied, "Tickets for 6 a.m. tomorrow."

Hu Shulan: So early?

Meng Zhengping: With the end of the year approaching, tickets are hard to buy.

Hu Shulan: Then I'll get up early tomorrow morning and go to the train station to see you off.

Meng Zhengping: No need. The train station is a bit far from the hospital. Youyou needs to get an IV drip every morning, so someone needs to stay here with her.

A quiet conversation reached her ears without missing a single word, and afterwards, Meng Youyou couldn't fall asleep during her afternoon nap.

As the time for parting approached, Meng Youyou felt increasingly conflicted and torn.

On one hand, she didn't understand why Meng Zhengping would interfere with her freedom to love, saying those disrespectful things to the person she liked in an almost arrogant manner; on the other hand, she couldn't bear to part with this father who always hid his care and love behind a serious face, and felt that her way of sulking and ignoring people was too willful.

Meng Zhengping came back after washing the dishes. He was facing away from Meng Youyou and was turning the still-dripping lunch boxes upside down on the windowsill one by one.

Under the lamplight, the middle-aged man's back was slightly hunched. Meng Youyou called out to the man's back, "Dad!"

The words that escaped his throat were slightly choked, but not noticeably: "I'm sorry."

Meng Zhengping turned around when he heard the voice, his eyes showing surprise. "Why are you apologizing to me all of a sudden?"

"I just ate both servings of ribs by myself, and didn't leave any for you."

Meng Zhengping laughed: "If it's all gone, it's all gone. Your dad's teeth are really having a hard time gnawing on ribs these days."

Meng Youyou lowered her head and then slowly apologized: "I shouldn't have... argued with you, and I shouldn't have sulked and ignored you. Please don't be angry with me."

Regardless, parents always have the same heart, and Meng Youyou didn't want this middle-aged man, after returning to the capital, to recall his experience of traveling across most of China to the city where his daughter worked and taking care of her hospitalized daughter, to only remember her cold and indifferent attitude.

Meng Zhengping walked to the bedside, wiped the water droplets off his coat with his right hand, and then reached out to rub Meng Youyou's head. "Silly child, when has your dad ever really been angry with you?"

Meng Zhengping pulled up a chair and sat down beside the bed. He sighed softly before slowly saying, "Yoyo, Dad knows you really like that young man."

"There are many things I haven't told you before, mainly because I felt you were still a child, your heart hadn't yet opened to love, and you weren't old enough to hear these things."

But now that I think about it, Dad was wrong. Our Youyou is already twenty-one years old, a grown woman. She'll have someone she likes, she'll date, and she might even think about getting married.

Hearing this, Meng Youyou felt a little embarrassed and weakly called out, "Dad."

Meng Zhengping just smiled: "Have I ever told you about your father and mother's younger days before?"

Meng Youyou shook her head.

"Your grandfather was under the command of Huo Qingshan's grandfather in his early years, and the relationship was quite close. Moreover, your grandfather was able to rise to prominence when he was young, thanks to the promotion and appreciation of Old Master Huo. This is an indisputable fact."

Later, the Huo family fell into misfortune for various reasons, and your grandfather chose to sever ties to protect himself in order to avoid being implicated. You should already know this; Shen Xi said he told you. As for the matter between your aunt and uncle, that is, Huo Qingshan's father, you younger generation probably don't know much about it.

Your aunt and uncle grew up in the same compound and were childhood sweethearts. They liked each other since they were little. On the day your aunt came of age, your uncle confessed his feelings to her, and then the two of them naturally got together.

But in that same year, the Huo family ran into trouble. Your grandfather insisted on breaking them up and told her to break up. Your aunt disagreed and made a scene at home. Your grandfather locked her in her room and wouldn't let her out. But your aunt actually climbed out the window in the middle of the night to see him.

Your grandfather was afraid that people with ulterior motives would use your aunt's relationship with the eldest son of the Huo family to make a fuss, and that she would be implicated and suppressed by opposing forces. So, he made a tough decision and put your aunt on an ocean liner to study abroad.

After all this commotion, they finally lost contact and broke up. Afterwards, your uncle applied for a transfer to Fanzhou.

"What I'm about to tell you today is something that no one else knows except your mother and me."

That was the year the Huo family had their troubles. Your grandfather asked your mother to break up with me. At that time, we had been dating for more than two years and were almost at the point of discussing marriage.

The reason was that he looked down on my father's despicable behavior of betraying his benefactor after using him. Your maternal grandfather believed that like father, like son, and concluded that I was not a reliable or trustworthy man.

When I found out about this, I told your mom that maybe we should break up.

Firstly, although the Meng family severed ties with the Huo family quickly, the big tree they relied on suddenly collapsed, and the Meng family couldn't have been unaffected. Their situation wasn't very optimistic at the time, and your mother wouldn't have had a good life if she had stayed with me.

Secondly, your maternal grandfather was known in the compound for his uncompromising and fierce temper; no one in the family dared to disobey him. Before your mother got married, she was always the most obedient daughter in the family, with a gentle nature. At the time, I couldn't quite imagine how she could challenge her father.

After tossing and turning in bed for several nights, I finally made up my mind to ask her out and say, "Let's break up. You should find someone else, don't suffer with me."

Meng Zhengping paused for a moment, then asked his daughter, "Guess what happened?"

Before his daughter could answer, he eagerly continued, "I still remember what your mother said and her expression." As he spoke, there was a glimmer in Meng Zhengping's eyes, which Meng Youyou could clearly see—a glimmer of happiness and contentment.

"Your mother pointed her finger at me and berated me mercilessly, saying, 'Meng Zhengping, are you even a man? A grown man encountering a little difficulty doesn't think about how to solve it; all you think about is running away! I despise you from the bottom of my heart! You're such a coward!'" Meng Zhengping's imitation was quite vivid, and as Meng Youyou listened, the corresponding scene involuntarily appeared in her mind.

"Don't be fooled by the fact that your mom sometimes yells at me. When she was in her early twenties, she was really gentle. This is the first time in my life I've ever seen her so angry."

I wasn't much older than her at the time, and I was still young. Such a big change suddenly happened in my family. Your grandparents were arguing at home all day long, your aunt stayed in her room and cried every day, and friends and relatives who were usually close to us all kept their distance. There were all sorts of reasons. Some were afraid of getting into trouble, and some couldn't stand our family's way of doing things.

Having always had a smooth life since childhood, I had never experienced anything like this, so I was in a daze every day back then. Your mother's scolding made me cry." Meng Zhengping shook his head and laughed to himself as he said the last sentence.

"Later, when your mom saw me crying, she softened and hugged me, saying that no matter what happened, she would never leave me and would be there to get through this with me. She would also be there to help me overcome any obstacles we encountered in the future."

Then we started having a secret relationship; her family all thought she had broken up with me. Once, someone at work was ostracizing me and deliberately trying to trick me into making a mistake. Your mom stayed up all night with me at work, helping me research and correct documents together. At dawn, she went off alone to catch the early bus back to school. In the end, thankfully, I made amends in time and wasn't fired.

There are so many similar stories. Your mother is truly a heroine, braver and more resilient than me. She always keeps her word and has helped me overcome one hurdle after another over the years.

Later, your mother married me. During your childbirth, she suffered a severe postpartum hemorrhage and her life hung in the balance. I stood outside the operating room and swore that I would give my own life for her safety.

Meng Zhengping looked at Meng Youyou with loving eyes and called her name: "Youyou, this is the name your mother gave you, meaning that our daughter can always be healthy, happy and free."

Yoyo, remember, Daddy and Mommy love you very much. But what I'm about to tell you, I hope... you won't blame Grandpa and Grandma.

Each generation has its own way of thinking. In your grandparents' generation, they believed that having a son to carry on the family line was a matter of course. So, a few years after you were born, your grandparents started urging your mother and me to have a second child.

Your mother's health has been compromised ever since she gave birth to you. It took her a long time to recover with traditional Chinese medicine, so naturally I couldn't agree to her taking any more risks.

But as time went on, not only grandparents, but also relatives inside and outside the Meng family and neighbors would start to gossip and put pressure on your mother, both openly and secretly.

So, in the end, I made the decision to move out of the compound with your mother and you.

Hearing this, Meng Youyou gave a heartfelt thumbs up and praised him generously, saying, "Dad, you're a real man!"

Meng Zhengping waved his hand and laughed, "Stop teasing your dad."

The topic quickly returned to the present, and Meng Zhengping's tone became more serious: "You're young, and you've been abroad and studied, so your thinking is more modern. You may not be able to understand many things about the previous generation—for example, why your grandparents were so determined to have a boy; or why, even though your mother and I jointly decided not to have a second child, people generally tend to put pressure on your mother; and the so-called great principle of 'filial piety is the most important virtue'."

Filial piety is the most important thing in everything. These four words are engraved in the bones of our generation, and your father is no exception. He has heard similar words since he was a child, and most of the people around him have followed this example. It is impossible for him not to have been completely influenced by this kind of thinking.

To be honest, your father wasn't exactly a good man. If I hadn't married your mother, and faced the same situation, I wouldn't have forced her to have a child, but I don't think I would have had the courage to move out with her. In those days, for the only son to propose separating the family property before the parents even mentioned it was considered extremely disrespectful.

So, after saying all that, what I really want to tell you today is that I don't expect you to marry someone from a wealthy or powerful family. I know my daughter isn't someone who craves riches and status. But I hope you can find a man who will stand in front of you when things go wrong, shield you from criticism and pressure, love you, cherish you, protect you, genuinely respect you, and have the courage to move out with you.

Meng Youyou felt her eyes suddenly burning, and it seemed like she had so much to say, but it all got stuck in her throat, and she couldn't utter a single word.

Meng Zhengping continued, "After your aunt was forced to break up, she never liked anyone else. Your mother is also very stubborn in this regard. Your father has been through it all and wouldn't do the kind of despicable things that break up free love and arrange marriages for his children."

The only thing Dad wants to tell you is that no matter what happens, Mom and Dad will always be there for you. Of course, I hope my daughter can find a good partner and live a happy life. But if you're not so lucky, if you suffer injustice, take the wrong path, or love the wrong person, don't be afraid. Look back, Mom and Dad will always be there.

……

When Hu Shulan returned to the ward after making the phone call, this was the scene she saw—her daughter's head was resting on her husband's shoulder, and her husband was gently putting his arm around her shoulder and patting her back.

Hu Shulan was a little puzzled. Before she left, the father and daughter were like strangers. How could they make up after just one phone call?