417: Who is Tongtong?

When Liu Xiaolin stepped out of the elevator, he pulled out his phone and called his mother, "Mom, what are you doing?"

"Son, it's been a long time since I received your call. How have you been recently?" Hao Xiuhua said happily after answering the phone.

"I've been very well recently. How about you? How's your health? I'm quite worried about you being home alone." Liu Xiaolin couldn't help but worry a little, thinking that Liu Xiaoman had already gone to school and his mother was home alone.

"Mom is very healthy now. During the day, I work at the Medical Aid Foundation, and in the evening, I go home to watch TV, soak my feet, and then rest. Every day is very fulfilling," Hao Xiuhua said with confidence when talking about her life.

"As long as you're happy! By the way, how's Zhen Yexin doing recently?" Whenever Liu Xiaolin called his mother, he would think of Zhen Yexin, and thinking of Zhen Yexin, he would inevitably ask about his current situation.

"How else could he be? He's always been like that, lying there motionless every day, truly pitiful." Hao Xiuhua sighed, "Aunt Zhen is too pitiful. Fortunately, our Medical Aid Foundation helped her solve the problem of evening care, which relieved her of more than half her burden. I've seen her complexion improve a lot recently, and she's gained a little weight."

"It's good that it's like this. It shows that the work of our Medical Aid Foundation wasn't in vain." Liu Xiaolin was also very satisfied with the decision he made back then, which could solve medical expenses for many patients.

"Recently, several young leukemia patients were successfully rescued. Through the new 'Gene Editing' technology, the genes in their blood were edited, completely curing their leukemia," Hao Xiuhua shared another good piece of news. "This treatment model is less costly and causes less pain, and it's very well-received by patients. Especially, the attending physician said that this new Gene Editing technology was extracted by Professor Liang from the hematopoietic instrument you developed."

Liu Xiaolin had long forgotten about this matter. After his mother's reminder, he suddenly remembered, "I can't believe Professor Liang actually applied this technology to clinical practice? He's too amazing!"

"Isn't he? There were several children who were about to run out of time because they couldn't find a matching bone marrow. When Professor Liang proposed this Gene Editing plan, they also adopted an attitude of treating a dead horse as if it were alive, and they didn't expect it to succeed so quickly. Several children are now discharged and jumping around," Hao Xiuhua became more and more excited as she spoke. "It's really great! Do you know how happy I was when I saw those dying children suddenly jumping around? There's a sense of pride in saving lives!"

Listening to his mother speak so emotionally, Liu Xiaolin also became excited, "That's great, this is the meaning of life, isn't it? Using our small glimmer of light to illuminate the lives of patients, so they no longer walk in darkness."

"Son, what you said is so good! I'm going to write that down tomorrow and have Uncle Wang write it on Xuan paper to hang in my office," Hao Xiuhua said with a smile.

"Mom, aren't you afraid of embarrassing your son? Haha." Liu Xiaolin was amused by his mother.

"This isn't embarrassing; it's the truth. If everyone emits a little light to illuminate others, our world will no longer have darkness," Hao Xiuhua said seriously.

"Anyway, please don't do that. I'm really afraid of being embarrassed," Liu Xiaolin quickly refused again.

"I don't care what you say; as long as I'm happy, it's fine," Hao Xiuhua ignored her son's words.

"How's Xiao Man doing recently? Has she called you?" Liu Xiaolin asked.

"She seems even busier than you. She hasn't called me in a long time, but I'm also busy, and I haven't called you two either. Our family of three is just alike, haha," Hao Xiuhua laughed heartily.

"One day, when I have time, I'll call her and scold her. Ignoring her own mother, what kind of behavior is that!" Liu Xiaolin said, pretending to be angry.

"Oh, come on, you're just calling the pot black," Hao Xiuhua smiled, defending her daughter. "She has classes and needs to get along well with her classmates, so it's normal for her to be very busy. There's no need to get angry with her."

"Mom, you're just spoiling Xiao Man, hmph," Liu Xiaolin said. "One day you'll spoil her rotten."

"My children are all excellent; they won't be spoiled rotten. I have that confidence," Hao Xiuhua said proudly. "When you first went to university, didn't you only call once every six months too?"

"Alright, as long as you're happy." Liu Xiaolin was just joking with his mother earlier; he couldn't care less about doting on his sister. "You should rest early. I need to go back and rest too."

"Where's Hong Tongtong? I haven't heard Hong Tongtong chattering for so long. I feel like something's off," Hao Xiuhua felt something was wrong for a while before she realized the reason.

"I'm on a business trip, and Hong Tongtong didn't come along," Liu Xiaolin quickly said.

"Ah? Then when are you coming back?" Hao Xiuhua said worriedly, "You can't let Hong Tongtong stay alone for too long."

"I'll go back once I finish things here. As for exactly when, I really don't know," Liu Xiaolin said. "I also hope it gets better and better, but I can't make the decision."

"Alright, then finish your work quickly and go back early," Hao Xiuhua said. "Since I can't chat with Hong Tongtong, then I'll hang up. I need to rest."

"You..." Liu Xiaolin was so choked by his mother's actions that he couldn't speak. "In your eyes, Hong Tongtong is more important than me, isn't she?"

"Of course, Hong Tongtong is my future daughter-in-law, so of course I'll protect her," Hao Xiuhua said righteously.

"Alright, then I'm hanging up. You should rest early," Liu Xiaolin said helplessly.

"Hung up." Hao Xiuhua hung up immediately after saying those two words.

Liu Xiaolin listened to the dial tone on his phone, stunned downstairs of his building. "Is this mother of mine my real mother?"

"Xiaolin, who is Hong Tongtong?"

Xiao Hongmei's voice rang in Liu Xiaolin's ears, startling him in the pitch-black night.

"Ah? Why are you here?" Liu Xiaolin asked, patting his chest, still startled after seeing Xiao Hongmei.

"I was taking a walk in the community after dinner and ended up here. I happened to hear you talking to your mother." Xiao Hongmei's tone was full of doubt. "You still haven't answered me, who is Hong Tongtong?"

"Hong Tongtong is a good friend of mine," Liu Xiaolin said after thinking for a long time.

"A good friend? A good friend even your mother knows?" Xiao Hongmei was unwilling to believe it, but she now felt as if she didn't have the right to press further. "Never mind, I can't control your affairs, and you don't need to tell me."

"She really is a good friend. She also worked with my mother, which is why my mom asked about her," Liu Xiaolin said, half-truths mixed in.

At this moment, he didn't know why he was hiding Hong Tongtong's identity from Xiao Hongmei, but his heart told him not to tell the truth, not to tell her the reality.

It was as if once the truth was spoken, he would lose Xiao Hongmei!

Lose? Why would he think of the word lose? Did he feel like he already possessed her?