novelraw Chapter 1224 - 1054: When We Stumble
Chapter 1224 - 1054: When We Stumble
We all go through times of growth, and everyone’s path is different. Sometimes I’m not particularly happy inside, but I still feel uncomfortable.
Time keeps flowing slowly towards the distance. Zhang Yichen and Ran Zhihan’s child is now gradually learning to walk on the ground. This day has come so quickly, making everyone feel a bit overwhelmed. No one expected the child to grow up so fast. But as the child grows day by day, their own parents also grow older day by day, leaving everyone’s hearts with a bit of excitement, yet inevitably also a touch of melancholy.
Old Master Zhang watched Zhang Ni, who can now start walking. He said to himself, "Time really flies, doesn’t it? A few months ago, she was just a palm-sized baby, and now she can walk on her own. I truly am getting old. I wonder how much longer the heavens will allow me to stay in this world. How great it would be if I could fulfill all my inner desires before the day I am laid in the coffin. But why are all my wishes so small to me, yet so hard for everyone else? Why is no one willing to make a small effort to fulfill my little wish? Must everything turn out like this because of me? Why isn’t there anyone who can strive for me for once? Is it really that hard to fight for myself a little?"
Every day Ran Zhihan let her grandfather talk to himself there, and there were many things she didn’t understand. She didn’t know what Old Master Zhang meant by some of his words, so she had to ask her husband, hoping he could tell her. Only then did she realize how much her grandfather was suffering inside.
"Hubby, what is Grandpa mumbling to himself about? As he talks, his eyes turn red as if he’s about to cry. I’ve never seen Grandpa so vulnerable. In my heart, he has always been a great man who wouldn’t shed a tear over small matters. But today, why is Grandpa talking to himself about what he wants to say, and his eyes are already red?"
"Wife, don’t you understand what kind of man Grandpa is? Our grandpa always gives others the impression that he’s so strong, so upright. But no one knows how much pain he’s in inside. No one has ever sought to understand or feel the pain he goes through with everything he does. Everyone acts out of self-interest and never considers what kind of encouragement Grandpa needs. Looking at Grandpa, he’s always smiling happily at us, but don’t you know he’s actually very sorrowful inside? But he doesn’t want to bring this pain upon us, so even if he’s deeply hurt inside, he can only smile forcibly in front of us. He tells us that only by smiling at life can you be rewarded. He believes that if you always repay society with a smile, one day the heavens will reward you with a smile. But Grandpa doesn’t realize that his smile gives so many people love, yet he never considered that he was never loved by anyone."
"Yes! Grandpa has been so pitiful this lifetime. He has given so much for us, yet we can’t do anything for him. I wish time could be reversed. If I could go back, I would honor Grandpa well. I’d make sure he happily lives every day, not letting any moment with him be about putting on a forced smile for us. But this day will never come. Time has already flowed into the distance and can’t be reversed. My grandpa is slowly aging as time passes, and as we grow day by day, watching our son learn to grow up, watching him get cuter every day, it makes me a little reluctant. I’m afraid that time will keep flowing in this direction forever, and I won’t be able to clearly see what my son truly grows into! What I fear most in this life is not losing someone but losing someone without understanding what exactly you lost. It’s only when you look back that you realize you lost the person who cared about you and loved you the most in the world, and at that moment, the pain in your heart is multiplied a thousand times, and no moment can ease it. No one can understand where this pain comes from, and no one can bear such pain for you."
Zhang Yichen knew that every word his wife said was heartfelt, and he understood. Everything his wife said was very real, but he didn’t know how to respond. He had heard these words more than once, but the outcome for him was always unsatisfactory. He understood that the pain inside isn’t just about the hurt easily spoken of but about the predetermined outcome others have set for you from the start. It’s like salt being rubbed into your wounds again and again, a pain that feels as if your heart is being torn apart. Who can help you? No one is willing to come and bear it with you.
Zhang Ni walked over with her parents. She wrapped her arms around Ran Zhihan and said to her, "Mommy, why do other kids seem to have their grandparents with them, but I don’t? Where are my grandparents? Why don’t they want to come back to be with me? Is it because they don’t think I’m cute enough? Or because they think I’m not obedient enough? I wish my grandparents could come back and be with me, even if it’s just for a day, I’d be so happy. Wow, I haven’t seen my grandparents for so long, I really miss them. Mommy, can you tell me where my grandparents are? I want to find them, I want them to come back and be with me, play with me. Other kids have parents to play with them, and also grandparents. I only have mommy and daddy, and a great-grandfather, but my grandma and grandpa aren’t with me, and it makes me feel so bad inside."
No one present expected this little child, not even two years old, to say such things. Such intelligence defies nature! With looks that defy nature and intelligence that defies nature, he’s bound to be a heartthrob in the future.
"In the future, we will all walk with faltering steps. We must support each other, help each other; only then can we stay together forever. We should live happily!"