"How is Grandpa's health?"
After dinner, Zhang's Mother covered the portion of food she had left for Zhang's Father, then dug an ice pop out of the fridge and flopped down onto the sofa.
"Pretty good. You know him—his lifestyle is healthier than anyone's. He takes walks and exercises every day, grows flowers and plants, and even at his age, he never stops learning." After saying that, Zhang Heng pointed at the ice pop. "You, on the other hand—you're pregnant, aren't you? You should eat less cold stuff."
"It's rare for your dad to be away. I'll only eat half, okay? You can have the rest." As Zhang's Mother spoke, she hurriedly unwrapped the ice pop and licked it.
"I told Dad before that maybe we should bring Grandpa over to stay with us for a while."
"Ah, no, please. Wouldn't that mean there'd be two people in this house telling me what to do?" Zhang's Mother seemed to imagine her miserable future and could not help shivering.
"..."
"I was joking. Of course it'd be great if your dad wanted to come, but then you'd be the only one left back home." Zhang's Mother took a bite of her ice pop. "If anything happened, there wouldn't be anyone to look after you."
"I'm already twenty, and besides, isn't Auntie Han there?"
The ice pop in Zhang's Mother's mouth suddenly did not taste so good. She stared into Zhang Heng's eyes and frowned.
"What?"
"Do you keep in touch with Han Lu often? I heard from Grandpa that you even went to Japan on vacation together before."
"We did go on vacation together, but we only talk three or four times a semester."
Zhang's Mother's expression eased somewhat, but she still said, "No. You should stay a little farther away