1. The ideal pursuit of innocence of childishness - "to restore the father as before"
Warm sunlight slanting into the house, creating a laid-back and tranquil atmosphere. Cai Lei was lying on his side on the soft sofa, and his wife Duan Rui was sitting next to him affectionately. Their warm family of three also has a lot of warmth and harmony.
At this moment, their lovely four-year-old son is running happily, his bright smile as beautiful as an angel.
Occasionally, the child would run to his father's side and snuggle up to his broad chest. Seeing the child's clear eyes, Cai Lei's mood was complicated. Four years ago, on September 30, 2019, after a painful diagnosis, he was told that he had a rare form of ALS – a terrifying disease for which there was no definitive cure.
Although the disease is known as one of the world's five most terminal diseases, with a survival time of only 2 to 5 years, the cause of the disease remains a mystery.
Cai Lei's heart was instantly swept by the storm, and he fell into unprecedented confusion and despair. During that time, he could barely recall how he spent it, and the only clear memory was that his wife Duan Rui and son were always by his side, giving him endless strength and comfort.
At this moment, his son's childish words deeply pierced Cai Lei's heart: "Dad, are you about to die?" ”
Cai Lei took a deep breath and tried his best to explain to his son in the calmest and gentlest tone: "Yes, Dad's condition is very serious, suffering from a disease called ALS, and he may leave you in the next few years.
He paused for a moment, then continued, "This disease is like your father's revenge, and you need to avenge your father."
The child's eyes widened, obviously not yet clear about the concept of "death", but he immediately replied firmly in the child's characteristic innocent and kind tone: "My ideal is to restore my father's health."
Hearing this, Cai Lei and his wife Duan Rui looked at each other and smiled, with tears flashing in their eyes. They understand that the road ahead must be full of bumps and bumps, and that there is a fog of unknown ahead. However, with the innocent and flawless expectation of their son, they can always find the motivation and faith to move forward.
Second, Cai Lei's former glory
It was September 30, 2019, when the doctor's ruthless diagnosis came, Cai Lei seemed to be swallowed by the wind and waves, and fell into unprecedented confusion and despair.
However, time rewinds to 2015 four years ago, when Cai Lei was in the golden age of his life and career. At just 36 years old, he has become the vice president of JD.com, leading a strong team of hundreds of elites, shouldering extremely tedious and responsible tasks.
Looking back on his brilliant achievements today, all of them are thanks to Cai Lei's hard work over the years. As early as the age of 25, Cai Lei joined the world-renowned enterprise Samsung Group as a tax manager of the China headquarters; At the age of 29, he was invited to join the domestic real estate giant Vanke Group as the chief tax advisor, responsible for the tax management of the entire company.
With excellent professionalism and excellent business ability, Cai Lei has quickly won the reputation of "King of Volumes" in the industry.
And his acquaintance with his wife Duan Rui is also closely related to his career. In 2016, when Duan Rui, who was single, was looking through Cai Lei's resume, he was attracted by his rich 20 years of financial and accounting experience, so he took the initiative to invite him to meet, hoping to "discuss business in depth".
At that time, Duan Rui was also a well-known figure in the industry, she was born in a scholarly family in Beijing, and her parents were outstanding talents in the professional field, and she grew up in a privileged living environment since she was a child.
She graduated from Peking University with a degree in pharmacy and then worked for a large multinational medical company.
A few years later, Duan Rui successfully passed the CPA and CPA exams and officially transitioned to the financial industry.
The two hit it off when they first met and had a good conversation. Surprisingly, on the weekend of the second week alone, Cai Lei did not hesitate to ask Duan Rui the question of "when will he enter the marriage hall".
He confidently said, "I am sure that you have a good impression of me, otherwise you would never have spent such precious time on me," and so they walked hand in hand into the sacred hall of marriage.
At the end of 2018, the crystallization of their love - the birth of a son, the happy family of three was filled with a warm and harmonious atmosphere, and everyone was full of good expectations for the future. However, fate played a cruel joke at this time - Cai Lei was diagnosed with ALS, and the news was as shocking as a comet hitting the earth.
In the face of this sudden blow, Duan Rui chose to stand up bravely and become Cai Lei's most solid backing. "Let's get a divorce." When Duan Rui looked at Cai Lei with doubts, he said these four words in an unwavering tone.
Cai Lei, who had just learned that he was suffering from ALS, seemed to have lost all his strength in an instant, and he felt that he would become a burden to his family.
Therefore, Cai Lei decided to send his wife Duan Rui and son away from his side first to bear the challenges of the future alone. He is well aware of the seriousness of the disease and understands that it can only cause untold pain and a heavy burden to his loved ones.
Duan Rui was dumbfounded, and then his eyes were much firmer: "This is something that will never happen." Isn't marriage just so that both parties can provide strong support and support for each other? Now it's me who should shield you from the wind and rain and become your strongest pillar! ”。
Cai Lei finally couldn't suppress the pain in his heart, and tears kept falling. The two hugged each other tightly, and found inner comfort in this most intimate way.
Although he successfully persuaded his husband to dispel the idea of divorce, the following days were also full of challenges for Duan Rui. Cai Lei's physical condition deteriorated, from standing to walking, and even swallowing and coughing up phlegm became more and more difficult.
In the later stages, he even needs to wear a ventilator all night, and he is in danger of suffocating four breaths per night.
In order to fully support her husband, Duan Rui did not hesitate to quit his position as an accountant with an annual salary of up to one million and joined a small research team led by Cai Lei without hesitation.
Due to financial constraints, the couple has almost exhausted all their savings, but they still feel stretched thin.
In desperation, they had no choice but to launch the live broadcast room "Cai Lei Icebreaker Station", hoping to raise more funds through this platform.
As his condition worsened, Cai Lei's dependence on his wife became higher and higher. Whether it is basic life chores such as eating, going to the toilet or washing, it is inseparable from Duan Rui's personal care, and she has become Cai Lei's last dignity.
It is precisely because of his wife's selfless dedication that Cai Lei was able to devote himself to his work and lead the team to devote himself to researching ways to treat ALS.
Part 4: Working together to overcome difficulties, Duan Rui fully supports Cai Lei
In the face of the difficulties encountered by Cai Lei and his family, all walks of life have reached out to help and contributed their own strength.
There have also been wealthy businessmen who have expressed their willingness to invest hundreds of millions of yuan to fund Cai Lei to set up an investment fund dedicated to the study of ALS. However, when these wealthy businessmen expected a certain financial return, Cai Lei politely rejected them.
He doesn't want anyone to have unrealistic illusions about his career.
In this most difficult battle in his life, his wife Duan Rui is undoubtedly Cai Lei's most solid backing. She is fully responsible for Cai Lei's daily life, taking care of her, and waiting by her husband's side 24 hours a day.
Whenever there was silence in the middle of the night, the thrilling suffocation attack struck again, Duan Rui could always wake up quickly, quickly take out the ventilator, and help her husband get through the difficulties in his life.
Due to the lack of funding, Duan Rui had to do his best to take on the responsibility of paying all members of Cai Lei's research group and providing logistical support. To that end, she needed to raise sufficient funds to ensure that the members of the team were able to carry out their work normally.
Sometimes, although the revenue from the live broadcast did not meet expectations, Duan Rui still resolutely chose to take out part of his personal savings for turnover to ensure the normal operation of the team.
When Cai Lei's health gradually deteriorated, and even most of his ability to take care of himself in daily life was lost, Duan Rui always stayed by his side and took care of his diet and daily life around the clock.
From trivial things such as peeling an orange for Cai Lei, to tedious matters such as cleaning his body, Duan Rui personally handled it, without any complaints, Cai Lei often joked to himself, now he is simply a "big living person", if it weren't for his wife's careful care, I am afraid that he would not be able to survive in this world for a long time.
In this long journey, Duan Rui fulfilled his solemn promise of "being a strong backing for her husband" with practical actions. It is precisely because of her full support that Cai Lei was able to devote all his limited energy to the in-depth study of ALS, so as to avoid being troubled by the trivial things of life.
Whenever he is physically and mentally exhausted, Cai Lei will always be deeply grateful for his wife's company, and it is she who has made herself the last dignity and safe haven.