DBTHDCAR Chapter 3

Farewell, Dad

Posted by dapotaturs, ? Views, Released on March 17, 2024

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Translator: dapotaturs
Release Date: 03/17/2024
Edited Date: 06/21/2025
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The subway was deserted in the afternoon, with only a few passengers in each car, a stark contrast to the bustling scenes during rush hours when even shoes could get stepped on.

Currently, Ning Xiaobei works in an e-commerce company. The company is not far from home, just a half-hour drive away, which makes commuting in Shanghai enviable compared to the usual long hours spent in traffic.

However, today Ning Xiaobei felt unwell, dizzy, and disoriented. To prevent any accidents, he opted for the subway for his commute.

He studied Business Administration in college and had previously worked in several foreign companies, rising to middle management positions.

In recent years, with the rise of major e-commerce platforms, e-commerce companies in Shanghai and Hangzhou have flourished, offering salaries far higher than those in foreign companies, which were traditionally considered the highest-paying. They became the most sought-after opportunities.

After careful consideration, Ning Xiaobei also left the foreign companies three years ago and, through personal connections, joined this e-commerce enterprise that was just starting out.

The company has developed quite well, outsourcing business for many major brands. The team has grown from a dozen people to nearly a hundred, with Ning Xiaobei leading three fast-moving consumer goods teams.

With less than three months left until the annual Double Eleven¹ promotion, preparations for this annual event have kept Ning Xiaobei extremely busy lately. He can truly be described as dealing with thousands of affairs every day.

Almost every day, he has to work overtime until two or three in the morning before returning home. Forget about weekends off; he practically spends every day glued to his desk.

The salary and bonuses at this company are indeed very high. In just a few years, Ning Xiaobei has saved up enough for a down payment. He sold the old public housing he received from relocation and bought an apartment with an elevator in a nice area.

However, even after buying the house, he didn’t go home much. Even when he did go home, it was just to take a shower, sleep, and then dive into a new day of work.

Because of this, he hadn’t seen his father for almost three months and had no idea that Ning Jianguo’s health had deteriorated to such an extent…

Despite this, his father still insisted on preparing supper for him every day, covering it with gauze and placing it on the dining table. However, he had no appetite when he came home exhausted every day. So, this supper became the old man’s breakfast the next day…

Thinking of this, Ning Xiaobei couldn’t help but let out a choked sound.

He covered his mouth and looked embarrassedly at the passengers sitting next to him. He found that everyone was just looking at their phones, completely unaware of his distress.

Because of the pandemic, everyone was wearing masks, adding a sense of detachment to this cold and indifferent metropolis, which happened to alleviate Ning Xiaobei’s embarrassment.

“Dad…”

Ning Xiaobei unlocked his phone and opened Ning Jianguo’s profile picture.

Like most Chinese fathers, his father’s profile picture was either of mountains and rivers or blooming roses, embodying a calm and health-conscious lifestyle.

In the chat window, dozens of unread voice messages were stacked together. Ning Xiaobei plugged in his earphones, pressed the play button, and began listening.

【————Son, are you coming home for dinner today? Dad made your favorite braised bamboo shoots and big prawns.】

【————Son, tomorrow is Sunday. Does your company still not have a day off on Sundays?】

【————Son, in the freezer are the xiaolongbao Dad got from Wuxi through a friend. You always loved Wuxi xiaolongbao, right? If you want to eat them, just steam them for a bit.】

【————Son…】

Dad was getting old, his eyesight failing, so he could only send voice messages. But Ning Xiaobei was so busy with work, that he wished he could stretch one minute into two, so how could he spare the time to listen to these short messages, ranging from a dozen seconds to a minute long?

He figured they were just about trivial things like eating, drinking, and daily routines. He hardly ever bothered to listen, just replying with perfunctory messages like “Hmm,” “Got it,” or “Let’s talk when I get home,” without considering how his father might feel seeing these cold responses.

Now that he finally had time to sit down, Ning Xiaobei listened to each of the voice messages his father had sent, one by one. Every sentence, every word, was filled with the deep affection of a loving father. But at this moment, they were already separated by life and death.

It truly fulfilled that old saying—“The tree wishes to be still, but the wind does not stop; the child wishes to care for the parent, but the parent is no longer there.”

And Dad, who loved him so dearly, wasn’t even his biological father…

Tears blurred Ning Xiaobei’s vision as he covered his nose and mouth with his mask, letting the tears flow from the corners of his eyes.

“Xiaobei… Xiaobei, wake up…”

Feeling someone gently tapping his cheek, Ning Xiaobei furrowed his brows and opened his eyes. To his surprise, there were five or six unfamiliar yet familiar aunties, uncles, and elderly folks leaning over him.

“He’s awake, he’s awake! Oh my goodness, you gave me such a scare, nearly scared me to death,” said an auntie with a dozen curlers in her hair, patting her chest in relief.

“Xiaobei, is there anywhere uncomfortable?²You scared your grandma half to death,” said an auntie speaking in the Yangzhou dialect, pointing to the pale-faced Ning family grandma behind her, still trembling.

“Auntie…Yang? I’m not uncomfortable,” Ning Xiaobei said, rubbing his head as he sat up, realizing he had somehow left the second floor and was now lying on a spring stool in the living room on the first floor.

The Yangzhou auntie, Auntie Yang along with the Auntie Wu, Granny Zhang, and Grandpa Song, were all old neighbors from this alley, were all old neighbors from this alley. To his surprise, they had all crowded into his home.

Wait, wasn’t that dream already over? How come it’s continuing?

Ning Xiaobei felt confused once again.

“It must be because he didn’t have breakfast, so his blood sugar dropped, and he fell down the stairs,” said Old Grandpa Song, his hands clasped behind his back, his white hair and eyebrows giving him an air of elegance.

He raised his head and pointed to the untouched breakfast on the table with his chin, saying confidently, “My great-grandson did the same a few days ago. He slept in during summer vacation and didn’t have breakfast. What happened? He fell from the third gate to the eighth gate, nearly losing his front teeth. His dad gave him a good scolding, and now he absolutely dares not skip breakfast.”

Everyone nodded in agreement, echoing the words of the old man.

Ning Xiaobei rubbed his growling stomach and shook his head, feeling his head as heavy as porridge. He also nodded along.

“Oh, you guys didn’t know just now. We steamed some Yangzhou meat buns today and wanted to bring a tray up for Xiaobei to try. We called downstairs for a while, but no one answered, and I was wondering why. Then I heard a loud noise, and when I pushed the door open, I saw the little guy rolling down the stairs. His head hit the stairs, and it scared half my soul and spirit away ³…”

Auntie Yang vividly described the scene, causing Grandma Ning’s face to turn from pale to red with anger.

“When I left this morning, I told you not to jump around on the stairs like a monkey. Now that you’ve fallen down, does it feel good? Someone has already called your dad’s factory, and when he comes back, he’ll give you a thorough scolding⁴, and then you’ll know what pain is.”

Grandma Ning’s intention was to scare her disobedient grandson, but before she could finish her words, Ning Xiaobei suddenly jumped up from the stool, grabbed her arm, and shook it excitedly, asking, “Really? Dad’s coming back? Dad’s really coming back? That’s great!”

That’s great, finally being able to see his dad, even if it’s in a dream!

Ning Xiaobei was overjoyed, but the neighbors were all frightened, whispering if the fall had messed up his head. Even Grandma Ning, who had planned to scold him further, was dumbfounded.

“Jianguo is back!”

At the entrance of the alley, someone shouted.

That’s how it is with old houses, who comes and who goes is all clear at a glance.

The downside was, if anyone had visitors—or brought over a soon-to-be-married partner⁵—every neighbor would know. The upside? Not a single stranger could sneak into the alley. All the doors stayed wide open during the day, and despite the lack of security guards or access codes, people felt safer than in modern gated communities.

Ning Xiaobei’s ears perked up, and he looked toward the entrance.

A tall figure in blue overalls, wearing a white cap, strode in through the gate and hurried toward the main hall.

“Xiaobei! Are you okay, Xiaobei?”

The man called out anxiously to the crowd in the hall.

“Dad!”

Ning Xiaobei pushed past the aunts, uncles, grandpas, and grandmas standing in front of him, opened his arms, and ran toward Ning Jianguo.

“Dad, Dad…”

Ning Xiaobei hugged Ning Jianguo’s waist, tilting his body backward, greedily looking at the long-lost face in front of him.

He saw his dad’s sharp chin and the faint stubble shading it.

He saw the two dimples faintly curving at the corners of his mouth, the straight nose, the thick eyebrows.

Ning Jianguo was praised by everyone in the nearby lanes as a handsome man. Even when Ning Xiaobei occasionally went shopping with his father in high school, he could see the stunning looks cast by women toward him.

He hugged Ning Jianguo’s strong waist, and the familiar smell of machinery and oil came from his overalls, reminding him of his childhood. Tears couldn’t help but flow down.

At only 36 years old, Ning Jianguo was young and healthy.

Just the thought of the white-haired, frail body at the farewell ceremony made Ning Xiaobei feel a sharp pain in his heart.

“Xiaobei, what’s wrong with you? Why is your face so pale? Let Dad take you to the hospital!”

Ning Jianguo picked up his son, looking at his pale face devoid of color, and asked worriedly.

“Dad…”

Tears streamed down Ning Xiaobei’s eyes as he reached out his hands, tightly embracing Ning Jianguo’s neck, and burst into tears.

Dad, I miss you so much… I miss you so much…

Because of the overwhelming emotions, his chest started to feel tight. He struggled to breathe, feeling like he couldn’t get enough air.

“Oh no, Xiaobei fainted again!”

His vision went black, and before passing out, Ning Xiaobei heard Auntie Yang’s exclamation.

“Sir, sir, are you okay?”

Ning Xiaobei was shaken awake by someone, and a group of subway staff looked at him nervously. He realized that his mask had been removed at some point and he was lying flat in the carriage. One staff member noticed a nearby passenger trying to take out their phone to record a video and hurriedly stepped forward to stop them.

“I… I can’t breathe. Ah, my inhaler…”

Clutching his chest, Ning Xiaobei fumbled in his sling bag and pulled out an inhaler. He shook it, shoved it into his mouth, and pressed hard.

After about ten seconds, the suffocating feeling finally eased, and Ning Xiaobei let out a long sigh of relief.

Seeing the color gradually appearing on his face, the staff around him also felt relieved.

“Sir, you may have been suffocated from wearing a mask for too long. Why don’t you get off at the next stop and rest in our office for a while? If you still feel uncomfortable, we’ll have a colleague accompany you to the hospital.”

The staff member crouched down beside him and spoke softly.

Ning Xiaobei felt the curious gazes of the surrounding passengers and touched his chest. He then followed the subway staff and got off at the next station.

As he stepped off the train, he glanced at the station sign and realized that he had only traveled three stops before his asthma attack occurred.

So, in such a short time just now, he had another dream, and it seemed to connect with the one from this morning.

At the thought of seeing his father in the ‘dream’ just now, Ning Xiaobei felt dizzy again. Fortunately, the subway staff quickly came forward to support him, and they all walked into the subway office together.

“Xiaobei…”

In the dream, the anxious voice of Ning Jianguo calling his name seemed to echo in his ears, and Ning Xiaobei’s fingers trembled slightly.

If possible, he didn’t want to wake up from that dream…

1
Double Eleven, also known as Singles’ Day, is a shopping holiday originating from China that falls on November 11th each year. It started as an informal event for unmarried individuals to celebrate being single, but it has since evolved into the world’s largest online shopping festival.
2
(Yanzhou dialect: ā yǒu là kuài dìfāng bù sè yǐ -“辣块” (là kuài) = “that area” (dialectal corruption of “那块”) “不涩以” (bù sè yǐ) = “not unwell/uncomfortable” (corruption of “不舒服”) It’s affectionate and local—literally meaningless if read word for word.
3
Idiom: My three souls and six spirits flew halfway out,” meaning “I was scared half to death.” This references traditional Chinese soul anatomy: three hun (魂 – soul) and six po (魄 – spirit)
4
煞煞勃勃” (shà shà bó bó) – Shanghainese, meaning “completely” or “thoroughly,” used here as “get a thorough beating.” Possibly derived from Ningbo dialect
5
“毛脚” (máo jiǎo) – Shanghainese, refers to an unmarried boyfriend/girlfriend who is already close to the family or likely to marry. “毛脚上门” = bringing the soon-to-be spouse home to meet the parent