Those years, the eldest son was reluctant to talk to the two old people when he returned home. He would throw tantrums, smash things, turn his head and walk away. The most he would say is: "You spend all the money on outsiders, what for?" Not only did the villagers not understand the actions of Chen Tianwen and his wife, but even their three children were very conflicted at first. The eldest son originally wanted Chen Tianwen to help him out when he got married, but never expected that those tens of thousands of yuan were all given to strangers. After taking care of this family of more than thirty people for a long time, Guo Gainan's health deteriorated. In 2002, she had a heart attack and was hospitalized for more than half a year. The attending doctor warned: "You can't take care of so many children anymore, or your life will be in danger at any time." This also made Chen Tianwen have the intention to give up for the first time. "It's really nothing, I just feel sorry for the children" "Okay." Later, the eldest son finally understood the difficulties of the old couple and helped take care of several children after getting married, reducing the heavy burden on his father.
A month ago, the Times reported on Su Jiaming, a student at Zhejiang Gongshang University's Zhijiang College, who established a charity fund called Hua'er Fund on Weibo, aiming to help a special family in Shanxi that adopted more than 30 abandoned children, raising funds to realize their "new home dream".
"Children are truly pitiful, let's take her home." On a snowy day 23 years ago, Chen Tianwen and his wife were rushing home from work when they picked up their first abandoned baby by the roadside, unfortunately, this adorable little girl passed away three years later.
From then on, whenever they saw an abandoned child, they would bring them home. By the time they reached home, they already had three children of their own. From then on, the Chen couple continued to receive children sent by the Civil Affairs Bureau and those they picked up themselves, such as Rourou, Dahu, Xiaohu, Aimin, Aishan... gradually becoming new members of this special family...
As the children grew day by day, Chen Tianwen and Guo Gainan were also in their sixties. They thought a lot about how to continue supporting this family in the future.
Actually, the eldest son didn't know that his background was somewhat similar to his "strange" brothers and sisters. He was also adopted by Chen Tianwen and Guo Gainan, being the first person to enjoy the selfless love of this family. Only the second and third children were the biological children of the Chen family.
"I think economy is not a problem, one more person is just one more pair of chopsticks." What Chen Tianwen didn't expect was that as the number of chopsticks increased, the family gradually faced the situation of "being unable to make ends meet".
63-year-old Chen Tianwen looks older and thinner because of his high myopia. He is bold yet meticulous when doing things. 57-year-old Guo Gainan is playing with the children nearby.
When explaining his actions, the simplest and most common thing Chen Tianwen said was: "It's really nothing, I just feel sorry for the children."
"When we left, the children were all clinging to the windows, clapping their hands and shouting: 'Dad and mom are back, dad and mom are back...'"
On the way, the reporter had doubts all the time: what kind of spirit supported the Chen couple's selfless love for the children day after day for more than 20 years? Have they ever thought of giving up? As they get older, what plans do they have for the future?
"Thought about giving up, but seeing the children makes our hearts soften"
"Have you considered the pressure of raising children?"
"That's good, we'll take her."
"Not embarrassed, used to it at home." Chen Tianwen took off his black cloth shoes, crossed his legs, sat on the bed in the hotel, "Just watched TV and heard that it snowed in Shanxi today, don't know if the children on the kang will be cold, need to call home later."
Despite the overcast weather, the smile of the flower family during the outing was bright, just like their unwavering persistence in life.
Throughout the journey, the reporter had doubts: what kind of spirit supported the Chen couple's selfless love for the children day after day for more than 20 years? Have they ever thought of giving up? As they get older, what plans do they have for the future?
"Thought about giving up, but seeing the children makes our hearts soften." After dinner, the two of them sorted out the dishes silently, but they could see from each other's eyes that neither of them could bear to give up on this family.
The happiness of the "flowers" fulfilled their dream of visiting the West Lake
By Times reporter Jiang Yuejun (text) Wang Zicheng (photography)
"After we're gone, we'll entrust the children to our descendants to take care of"
Even though he only has a junior high school education, the simple Chen uncle remembers a sentence his father said when he was alive: "Do good deeds all your life, be a good person all your life." His father once jumped into an ice hole to save someone and ended up with a leg injury. His father's actions made him feel that the people of the old Chen family should act straightforwardly and without ulterior motives.
[Connection]
On the morning of September 21st at 9:30, in the second-floor meeting room of the Youth Times office, "Flower Dad" Chen Tianwen, "Flower Mom" Guo Gainan, and "flowers" Ouou and Xiaodan will hold a meeting with kind-hearted people who want to help them. If you want to help them or see them, you can come to the Times for a gathering. Address: No. 69 Zhonghe North Road; Contact number: 0571-28111111.
At that moment, Chen Tianwen felt an excruciating pain, quietly squatting in the corner and crying loudly. All the grievances, hardships, and misunderstandings of these many years poured out like a flood...