Sludge to the Mountain Ghost

Almost finished?Where's the phone?Let me say a few words to them. Lin Pai stepped forward to test the temperature on her forehead, it was normal and she did not have a fever.

"Mobile... Where is the mobile phone..." The old man turned his body from side to side, slapped on the bed to find the mobile phone, and muttered, "I was on the phone just now..."

Lin Pai blocked her movement, helped her to sit on the bed, took the mobile phone from the side of the pillow and shook it at her, the old man nodded reassuringly, and looked at him seriously, "Yes, yes, yes, I can do it Where to put it..."

Lin Pai called up the call log, and it was true that he hung up a few minutes ago, so he dialed the number again.

Lin Kangrong quickly picked up the phone, but his words were inconsistent. After Lin Pai asked several times, the phone was snatched by Lin Hejing, "Hello? Xiao Pai, I'm mother."

He took a deep breath and looked at the old man worriedly, but she waved her hand and let herself lie down under the quilt, saying that she was going to sleep.

Lin Pai had no choice but to close the door for her, and sat at the dining table outside to talk on the phone, "What's going on? Why did grandma suddenly want to find you? When did you decide?"

"Don't worry, it was proposed by grandma herself. I discussed it with your father for a long time, and I think it's okay to take over and take care of it." Lin Hejing stopped talking several times, as if thinking of words, she finally said , "Xiao Pai, do you feel that Grandma has... anything unusual recently?"

"Recently...it seems that my memory is not very good, but I stayed with her all day last weekend, nothing unusual, and my appetite is not bad."

"After the Chinese New Year last time, grandma often talked with your father on the phone, which is normal. But in the past two months, she sometimes has to call several times a day, and ask the same question several times, and she still asks. "

"Isn't it normal for an old man to do this? When talking to a child, you have to say the same thing several times." Lin Pai retorted.

"It's different. In the first half of the year, when she scolded your father, she was still quick-witted and articulate. Now she doesn't even scold. You live with her every day. You should know better than us."

"So you have discussed it a long time ago, and you just came to inform me?"

"Xiao Pai, that's not what we meant. It's just that grandma is getting old and needs someone to take care of you. Now you are a third year in high school..."

"You didn't come back without saying a word, leaving me and grandma behind, and now you want to take grandma away and leave me here alone. Why did you give birth to me!"

Lin Pai raised his volume. The porcelain bowl on the table was not easy to throw away, so he threw a freshly opened pack of tissues against the wall.

Paper towels are soft and leave no trace after being smashed.

"Lin Pai! What are you talking about!" Lin Hejing also turned up the volume, and Lin Kangrong next to him wanted to persuade but dared not persuade, "I told you, grandma herself wants to live with your father, she needs You are only a child yourself, how do you take care of her?"

……

"Lin Pai? Did you hear what I was talking to you!"

Lin Pai bowed his head and remained silent. He stood up silently, picked up the pack of tissues with heavy steps, put it back in its original place, and asked feebly, "When will you pick her up?"

"National Day holiday, I will go back with your father."

Lin Pai sniffed, tried to keep his voice steady and said, "Before you leave, I have to take grandma to the hospital for a physical examination."

Hearing his voice soften, Lin Hejing's temper also softened. She comforted and said, "We will, and we planned to take you with us, but your grandma said that the third year of high school has already started, so we will move again." It's not convenient to go, so..."

"It goes without saying these excuses to prevaricate me, anyway, you can easily find them."

"That's not what we meant..."

"Let's talk about nothing else."

Lin Pai hung up the phone, walked into the room lightly, and found that the old man was really asleep under the quilt.

She breathes very lightly, and the years have whitened her temples, leaving dimples on her face, but she is still as quiet as a child when she falls asleep.

He turned his phone to silent mode, put it back on the bedside table, turned off the light for her and exited the room.

sleepless nights.

The next day, Lin Pai seldom stepped on the bell to get to the classroom.In the middle of the morning self-study, he and Li Chanjuan whispered a few words at the back of the classroom, and the two left the classroom together, not even returning to the first class.

It wasn't until the big class break that the classroom radio played deafening exercise music, urging the students in all classes to line up to go to the playground, and Xu Rui had time to say a few words to him.

"You're busy this morning..."

"Come with me." Lin Pai grabbed his hand and walked out.

The class team in the corridor has already started to move. When passing by the fifth class, Xu Rui was still worried that he might not recognize him, so he reminded, "Our class team is here."

"No more lines." Lin Pai staggered the line going downstairs and led Xu Rui upstairs.

The fifth floor is used as a self-study classroom for decoration. Except for the occasional examination room, it is open at other times.

The school's discipline inspection department will send people to check the hygiene of the classrooms in each class during morning exercises, but they will not come to the fifth floor.

"You look so bad, you didn't sleep all night, did you?" Xu Rui leaned against the wall, raised his hand to support Lin Pai's face, and asked, "What happened after you went back last night?"

"That's what I'm going to tell you."

Lin Pai briefly recounted what happened on the phone last night, and added, "I'm worried about them, and I'm going to ask for leave tomorrow, and I plan to take my grandma to the hospital in person, and there is..."

"What is it?" Xu Rui's palm slid down his cheek to his shoulder, squeezed it lightly, and patiently waited for him to continue speaking.

"I thought about it all night. I have been busy with myself for the past few months, and I didn't notice my grandma. I discussed it with Teacher Li in the morning. It is less than a week before the National Day, and the recent self-study classes are not Come on, go back and take care of my grandma, she has a bad memory and it's inconvenient to stay by herself."

"Well, have you made an appointment for the hospital's registration? Is there anything I can do for you?"

"I'll take care of things at home. It's just that... I may be a little neglectful of you recently."

"Seeing how hard you are talking, I thought it was a big deal." Xu Rui took him into a self-study classroom, leaned over and hugged him behind the door, and said softly, "Lin Pai, we still have a long way to go." later."

"There seems to be surveillance in the classroom." Lin Pai pushed him away, turned his head to look at the corner above the blackboard, and found that the camera was broken beyond recognition.

Xu Rui stood there and laughed, "Someone got into a fight in this classroom before and smashed the camera."

"How do you know...you won't be the one fighting?"

"Smart!" Xu Rui gave him a thumbs up, "But I didn't smash the camera. I'm a good student and don't destroy public property."

Lin Pai looked away from the camera, bowed his head in silence for a moment, he hugged Xu Rui again, and then a burst of warmth fell on his forehead.

Xu Rui patted him on the back lightly, and said, "It's normal for old people to be forgetful, and we will do the same when we get old. You don't have to worry too much, let alone blame yourself."

Lin Pai rubbed against his face, and responded with a muffled sound through his nose.

-

The day came to the National Day without any saltiness, and Lin Pai stayed in the room to read a book, feeling that the house had never been so lively.

The voices of men, women, and old people are intertwined. It cannot be said that they are arguing, but their voices are indeed louder than the other, and often the other interrupts before one has finished speaking, so the one who originally spoke has to raise his voice again. So that I can finish my sentence.

In the desk drawer were all kinds of checklists from the hospital a few days ago. Lin Pai took out a handful and sorted them out again. The doctor gave the judgment that it was an early symptom of Alzheimer’s disease. Other than that, it was some very common old age symptoms. Illness, just pay more attention in daily life.

Frankly speaking, after getting along with her for the past few days, Lin Pai felt that grandma didn't have a big problem, and her forgetfulness was only intermittent, and her movements were more agile than herself when she was awake.

"Grandma, are you really going to live with them?" Lin Pai asked her once during dinner.

Hearing this question, the old man stopped his chopsticks, raised his eyelids and looked at him with guilt, still chewing a mouthful of rice.

Lin Pai thought she would not answer, but she put the chopsticks aside and said seriously, "How can a mother not want her son... It's not that I don't know, I can't remember things more and more, so I want to take advantage of it." I can still move to see your father, I didn't teach him well, but I really miss him..."

Lin Pai also put down his chopsticks, lowered his head and asked, "Do all mothers miss their sons?"

"Who said no..."

"Really?" Lin Pai sneered and asked again.

The old man picked up the chopsticks again, leaving only a long sigh in the room.

"Xiao Pai—"

Lin Hejing shouted to him from outside, and it sounded like they had finally ended their long argument.

Lin Pai took a pile of hospital checklists that had been sorted out, opened the door and went out, and saw that their big and small bags had been sorted out.

"Is the train packed up so soon for tomorrow afternoon?" Lin Pai asked in a daze.

With a loving face, Lin Hejing stretched out her hand towards the back of Lin Pai's head, but Lin Pai tilted her head to avoid it. She smiled and said, "Since I have already been to the hospital, your father and I will take the train back tonight. There are still many things to deal with.”

What are many things?Do you really not want to delay my study?

Or just don't want multiple baggage?Why are you not even willing to discuss with me, but leave in such a hurry...

A series of questions rolled in Lin Pai's mind,