Chapter 84

Grandpa Wang and Wang Hongye were both stunned, then changed the subject. The Chu family's affairs should be handled by the Chu family themselves. Grandpa Wang had finally returned home and didn't want to get involved in other people's family affairs. Chu Yue didn't recognize Chu Shao, and for some reason, Chu Shao didn't speak to her. Anyone with a discerning eye could tell there was a subtle relationship between them. As outsiders, it was best for them to keep quiet.

Therefore, Chu Yue still didn't know that the boy she had just brushed past was actually her cousin. However, she did notice that Grandpa Wang's attitude towards her had cooled down a bit, not as close as when he first came.

Strange, she didn't seem to say anything wrong?

Chu Yue was confused. After chatting for a while, she saw that Grandpa Wang looked tired, so she went home. When it comes to gaining favorability, you can't go too far. Boiling a frog in warm water is the best way.

This time, Chu Yue didn't talk much to Wang Hongye. She just smiled at him and said, "Brother, I'm leaving." Chu Yue had been married several times and met countless men. She knew what men were most attracted to, especially a wooden character like Wang Hongye. He must like the kind of person who is well-behaved and gentle.

Chu Yue felt that this first meeting was quite successful, but she didn't know that after Wang Hongye heard what she said, his first reaction was that she called him brother so intimately, but his own brother treated him like a stranger. He couldn't understand it and decided to keep his distance from him.

…

The school wasn't closed for the holiday, so Chu Yue skipped her last class this morning. She was popular and well-liked at school, and she was also the class monitor. So when she said she wasn't feeling well, the teacher just let her go home without saying anything else. After visiting Grandpa Wang, Chu Yue played outside for the rest of the afternoon, saw a newly released movie, and then headed home with her schoolbag.

At night, she sat at her desk doing her homework. The bedroom and the living room were separated by only a wooden wall, so she could hear everything people were saying outside.

"Mom, I heard today that both the Han and Wang families were rehabilitated. Wang Chunsheng came back by train, and before he even got off, their courtyard house had been returned to him. The Han family was brought back by a special plane and moved back to their own home."

Chu Lidi was a hopeless case. Even with such a huge incident, he only cared about whether or not others could move back to his own home. His thinking was understandable. Unlike Chu Liqiang, Chu Liqiang had a hard time in his early years, but Chu Lidi was born with a silver spoon in his mouth. From the first day he was born, he was the young master of the Chu family. Having never experienced hardship in his life, his family suddenly fell into decline. He moved out of their courtyard house and into this cramped, tube-shaped building. Almost every day, he missed the spacious and grand courtyard.

Across from Chu Lidi stood Old Lady Gao, and next to him stood his wife, Gao Meiyin. Old Lady Gao had always been bothered by her background. Whenever someone treated her with a bit of rudeness, she would think it was because she came from the countryside that others looked down on her. Later, Chu Liqiang also married a girl from the countryside. Old Lady Gao was initially quite happy because she finally had someone like herself. However, when Zhang Fengjuan married, she realized that, while Zhang Fengjuan was indeed from the countryside, she was a university student, a graduate of Capital University, and a world apart from her.

Because of this incident, Old Lady Gao became even angrier. Later, when it was time for Chu Lidi to get married, she went back to her hometown despite Chu Xinghua's objection and picked a rural wife who was five generations away from her parents and easy to control from among her relatives. It must be said that Old Lady Gao had a good vision. Gao Meiyin was a replica of Old Lady Gao, stingy, snobbish, bullying the weak and fearing the strong, and favoring boys over girls. Most importantly, she listened to Old Lady Gao's words.

Outsiders may not be able to see that the mother-in-law and daughter-in-law have formed a united front, but Chu Yue knows very well that their family has always been controlled by Mrs. Gao and Gao Meiyin.

Hearing Chu Lidi's words, Mrs. Gao's voice became a little irritated. "It's their business to redress their wrongdoings. Why are you so concerned?"

Gao Meiyin agreed: "That's right, it's not like your father has been rehabilitated."

Chu Lidi: "I'm just afraid that my dad will be rehabilitated. Mom, what should we do if Dad is rehabilitated?"

Mrs. Gao appeared calm, but she was actually unsure. She had done something so ruthless back then, and it would be extremely difficult to make amends now. She couldn't think of a clue, so she could only lie to herself and say, "What are you thinking? How can your father be the same as the Wang and Han families? He's a termite of New China. How do you say that? He... he's stepping on the flesh and blood of martyrs to create profits for himself. Yes, how can he be rehabilitated?"

Chu Lidi fell silent, and Gao Meiyin beside him said quietly, "Actually, it's good to be rehabilitated. That way, we can get all our things back. I hid 500 yuan under the bed, but they found it and took it away. If it's returned, our family can live a better life."

The Chu family’s daily topic is only one: money.

As long as money was mentioned, no one quarreled. They discussed calmly and looked forward to the good days of returning to wealthy families. Chu Yue in the room listened, and a trace of disgust flashed across her face.

To be honest, she didn't like her home very much, but no matter how much she disliked it, her parents gave birth to her and raised her. Even Mrs. Gao, who favored boys over girls, took care of her for several years.

Her family was unfair to her and later wanted to use her to exchange for their future. She knew she should be resentful, but at the same time, she could not let go of the people who had raised her for more than 20 years.

Chu Yue had lived for so many years, and she wasn't completely clueless. She knew she wasn't a good person, and she also knew that although she hated Old Lady Gao, unfortunately, she had inherited 70% to 80% of Old Lady Gao's personality. Perhaps, if she had been born into another family, she wouldn't be like this. But this possibility would never happen. With a soul that was nearly seventy years old, Chu Yue wanted to change her personality, but she didn't know how. She simply decided to stay dark forever. After all, no matter how bad this life was, it couldn't be worse than her previous life.

Chu Yue stopped listening to the chatter outside and turned her attention back to her homework book. On the page where she was supposed to copy ancient poems, she wrote down two names.

Wang Hongye, Han Shengyi.

The older generation has gray hair, and there is no point in trying to please them. They won’t live long, and the situation is always changing rapidly. If you want to grasp the future, you have to grasp the big guys of the future.

Chu Yue was deeply impressed by both of these people. Wang Hongye had already said that he and Chu Yue had an extremely short relationship, so Chu Yue paid special attention to him later. As for Han Shengyi, Chu Yue had never thought of paying attention to him, but the probability of his name appearing was too high, so it was difficult for Chu Yue to remember him even if she didn't want to.

Han Shengyi, the only descendant of the Han family, was unknown in his youth. However, starting around the age of thirty, his future was bright, rising from mayor to provincial governor, and then to a position Chu Yue couldn't even dream of. No matter how powerful Wang Hongye was, he was just a businessman. He had money but no power, while Han Shengyi had it all. Furthermore, he remained single throughout his life, never marrying. Because of this, many women rushed to be with him.

Logically speaking, he is Chu Yue's first target. After all, now that she knows where the future is headed, Chu Yue can just pretend to be ignorant and get close to him.

But Chu Yue didn't dare.

She can boldly seek credit and get to know all the big guys who will be successful in the future in advance, but Chu Yue dare not provoke Han Shengyi. She knows herself well and knows that Han Shengyi is not someone she can win over with just a smile and some benefits.

This man was incredibly cruel. Not long after he rose to power, his great-uncle died. His uncle's children fled abroad; one drowned, another was implicated in a shooting, and the last was sentenced to decades in prison for possessing a large amount of drugs. And none of his biological mother and stepfather's family had a good end; the one who lived the longest spent the rest of his life in a mental hospital. These things wouldn't be found online. While they were widely reported abroad, there was no evidence, so they had no impact on him.

He was a real loner. He had ruined his entire family and was the only one left. Moreover, Chu Yue had heard some gossip that Han Shengyi was extremely disgusted with women. There was a female star who threw herself into his arms, but he directly banned her. No one dared to let her film anymore, and no one dared to let her show her face in live streaming. A person whose career was at its peak had completely disappeared from people's sight. No one knew whether he was alive or dead.

It was obvious that this person had mental problems. Chu Yue wanted to live a better life when she was reborn. She didn't want to experience adventure mode. She still liked those harmless big guys. Like Han Shengyi, let him grow up slowly. If possible, she would show her face in front of him and make an impression. As for improving his favorability, forget it. She didn't understand the world of the crazy. Who knew if the favor she improved would turn into resentment in Han Shengyi's eyes.

After taking a sip of water, Chu Yue silently crossed out Han Shengyi's name and added a new one.

Guan Yuelong.

When writing this name, Chu Yue obviously put more force into it, and she wrote very slowly. After writing, she tapped the paper lightly, leaving a dark blue ink dot.

She muttered to herself.

Guan Yuelong.

Guan, Yue, Long.

——

Even if an adult's soul returns to a child's body, he or she will not be able to enjoy the fun that only children can enjoy. However, people who are children themselves do not have this worry.

There were really few people in the Forbidden City. When Chu Jiujiu ran in, the first thing she did was to rush up the white marble steps. Just like touching the Han family's wall tiles, Chu Jiujiu couldn't let go and touched the white marble that shone silver in the sun for a long time. Then she hurried to the top to see the Golden Throne Hall.

The Golden Palace was pitch black and there were no lights on. Chu Jiujiu was facing the light, so she couldn't see what was inside at all. There was a cordon in front, preventing people from getting too close. Chu Jiujiu had no choice but to stand at the edge of the cordon, stretching her neck to look inside.

After staring at it for a long time, she murmured, "Why does the dragon throne look so small?"

This is not the first time Han Shengyi has come to the Forbidden City. The flowers are the same year after year, but the people are different year after year. The Forbidden City is still the same Forbidden City, but Han Shengyi standing on this brick and stone is not the same Han Shengyi as before.

However, there doesn't seem to be much difference. At most, it's changed from others leading him to him leading others.

"It's a matter of distance. Standing so far away, even if there's an elephant over there, it will look very small."

Okay.

Chu Jiujiu looked at it for a while, lost interest, and continued walking forward.

The Forbidden City is really huge. They visited half of it in one morning, and that was when the Forbidden City was not fully open. When they visited the Treasure House, Chu Jiujiu was most excited. There were so many antiques here, and several of them were the treasures of the museum.

When Chu Jiujiu saw the Golden Ou Eternal Cup, she couldn't help but laugh out loud.

Han Shengyi asked her, "What are you laughing at?"

Chu Jiujiu pointed at the extremely luxurious cup from a distance. "Qianlong might be the most dragon-like of all the emperors. He loves gold and gems so much. I guess if it weren't for the need to save face as an emperor, he might also want to build a cave, fill it with gold, and sleep in it."

Han Shengyi leaned down slightly and carefully examined the pattern on the cup. He said, "There's blue paint on it, and it's not quite complete. Maybe the cup was blue before, but over time it turned into pure gold."

Chu Jiujiu listened and leaned over, blinking her eyes. She replied, "What blue? That's called inlaid with kingfisher feathers. Hmm... if you look closely, it's indeed true. I remember there was more than one Golden Ou Yonggu cup. There was one in Taiwan and two in London. Alas, they must have left the worst one for us. Anything better was snatched up by others."

This sentence sounded a bit heavy. After all, the theft of cultural relics would make people feel angry no matter how many years had passed. Chu Jiujiu just said it casually. She didn't notice that a middle-aged man next to her looked at her in surprise.

Han Shengyi: "I'll get it back later."

His tone was flat. Chu Jiujiu looked up at him and they exchanged glances. Han Shengyi smiled at her. Chu Jiujiu tilted her head and looked back at the cup used exclusively for the emperor. She changed the subject subtly, "It's truly luxurious, as expected of an emperor's cup. Every New Year's Eve, at midnight, this cup comes in handy. Just like the imperial seal, the cup is brought out and filled with Tusu wine. The emperor takes a sip and then writes down his hopes for the country in the coming year on his desk. Wow, what a strong sense of ritual in life."

Han Shengyi didn't know what the future would be like, but Chu Jiujiu knew that there would probably be no more wars in their motherland during their lifetime. This was actually a good thing. Peace was the most important thing at all times.

If you want to take back what's yours, you don't have to resort to such brutal means as robbery. Chu Jiujiu has confidence in her country. Those things that belong to her people will eventually return to their land. This will require the efforts of a generation or even several generations. Who knows, maybe she and Han Shengyi can even contribute to it.

Chu Jiujiu didn't like Chu Shao's talk of violence, and naturally, she didn't like Han Shengyi's comments either. Chu Shao, with his well-developed limbs, was more violent than Han Shengyi, so when everyone heard about a fight, their first reaction was to worry about Chu Shao. However, few people seemed to realize that Han Shengyi was actually quite restless. He often solved problems with just a few words and a few brains, without him having to resort to violence. But if violence was truly necessary, Han Shengyi wouldn't hesitate.

Boys are trouble, not at all like girls, who know how to win without bloodshed.

Chu Jiujiu has forgotten how brave she used to be when she was angry and wanted to kick the other person down.

…

The two continued chatting as they walked. Later, they talked about basically everything related to cultural relics. They took a look at the introduction of the cultural relics, and then talked about what they knew. Chu Jiujiu's knowledge reserve was obviously higher than that of ordinary people. Han Shengyi was not as good as her, but he could still chat with her. They talked about everything from the Qing Dynasty to the Han Dynasty, from Zhang Qian to the Yuezhi Kingdom, and finally, even ancient Babylon was brought up and asked to comment on it.

"Nebuchadnezzar II is similar to our Qin Shi Huang. They are both serving as a wedding dress for others. Even if they are capable, their children will still be doomed. That's why education is so important!"

Han Shengyi agreed: "You're right, it's almost twelve o'clock, what are you planning to eat for lunch?"

The person eavesdropping behind them: "..."

You two jump around too quickly.

The two of them followed the tour route and soon went out. The person behind them was originally following them slowly, because everyone was walking in the same way, so they didn't notice him. It was not until they went out that the person turned around and returned to the Jin Ou Yonggu Cup booth.

After a while, a man walked in quickly and stopped in front of him. "Director, I asked, and they said we can come back on Monday when the museum closes. However, we are only allowed to take photos, not take anything out."

The middle-aged man nodded, his hands behind his back, his eyes still fixed on the Golden Ou Yonggu Cup. "That's already very good. Goldware research has been stagnant for so long, it's time to pick it up again."

As he said this, the man had a smile on his face. The person opposite him looked curious and asked, "Director, what are you laughing at?"

Just because they agreed to take photos inside the museum? That's not necessary.

He was quite curious, but the man called the director shook his head and didn't want to say more. "I just met two interesting kids. Well, since they agreed, let's go and have dinner."

She walked around half in the morning and half in the afternoon. When she came out of the Imperial Garden, Chu Jiujiu felt like her legs were useless.

She cried, leaning against the wall, and complained to Han Shengyi, "I must have walked 30,000 steps today! How can the Forbidden City be so huge? The emperor lives here. Doesn't he feel tired walking so much every day?"

Han Shengyi asked her to hold his arm and then led her forward. He sighed, not knowing whether he was lamenting Chu Jiujiu's poor physical strength or her naive ideas.

"Do you think the emperor needs to walk by himself?"

Chu Jiujiu: “…”

Evil feudalism.

There was only one water stall inside the Forbidden City, and none of the usual tourist attraction food, like instant noodles and corn, was available. Chu Jiujiu and Han Shengyi each bought a glass bottle of drink, which they could return for a refund. Hungry and exhausted, Chu Jiujiu was completely exhausted, and let Han Shengyi drag him back. At the entrance of the alley, Han Shengyi left her there to rest, then returned to the Meridian Gate to retrieve the photo they had taken that morning.

The reason for charging four dollars and fifty cents was because Chu Jiujiu asked for the largest photo, a full ten inches, which could be hung on the wall as a painting.

After getting the photos and the negatives, Han Shengyi carefully put the negatives away. Seeing someone selling photo frames at the door, he asked the price, then took out one dollar and fifty cents and bought a black sandalwood photo frame.

The boss said it was sandalwood, but Han Shengyi smelled it and didn't find any sandalwood smell at all, so he guessed it was a fake.

Taking the photo frame back, Chu Jiujiu had also rested by then. She stood up and went home with Han Shengyi. It was good to live close to home, and they arrived there within 200 meters.

Chu Jiujiu was holding her large photo frame. It was really big, and since she was very thin, she held it against her chest, covering her upper body horizontally. This was the first photo she had taken since entering this era, and Chu Jiujiu treasured it very much. She would look at it as she walked in.

Han Shengyi walked faster than her and had already opened the gate. Chu Jiujiu raised her head and glanced casually. She suddenly saw that there was something extra in the mailbox next to her.

There was a mailbox at the door of the Han family's house. It was covered with rust and it looked like it had been used for many years. Chu Jiujiu had never seen any letters in it in the few days she had lived there. She had not paid much attention to it at the door. When she saw it, she could not help but walk over and pull out the things inside.

It was an envelope, without a signature or any words on it, and not even any glue. Chu Jiujiu opened it and took a look out of curiosity, and found a few bills and some tickets inside, but nothing else.

The money and bills were not much, but not a small amount either. When Chu Jiujiu was wondering, Han Shengyi turned around and came over and took out a brown paper bag from the mailbox.

The packaging was very tight, but it couldn't cover up the smell inside. Chu Jiujiu knew it was herbs as soon as she smelled it.

But she was even more puzzled. "What? Who sent it? Money and medicine, but not even a name."

There was movement in the small western-style building, indicating that someone was at home, but this person was very low-key and didn't let anyone inside see him delivering the things.

When Han Shengyi saw these things, he knew who they belonged to. He rubbed the rust on the brown paper package with his thumb and said, "It must be sent by my uncle."

Han Jibin?

Chu Jiujiu frowned and was about to ask why he sent the herbs, but suddenly, she realized, "These herbs are for Grandpa Han. Guo Heizi helped him spy on you, so he knew Grandpa Han was in poor health. But that was several years ago. Grandpa Han has recovered a lot now. Why would he send them again?"

Who knows.

Han Shengyi did not answer. People's hearts are fickle. Who knows what Han Jibin is trying to do by doing this? Anyway, he has no good intentions.

It was a coincidence that Han Shengyi and the others came back. If they had come back a little later and Grandma Han had come out and seen them, the scene would probably have been different.

Chu Jiujiu was a little angry and a little anxious. She could keep some things to herself before, but now that they were back, she didn't know what would happen if she didn't tell them. She didn't care about her leg pain and quickly pulled Han Shengyi to her side. She looked inside the building warily and found that no one came out. She lowered her voice and said, "Brother Shengyi, don't hide it from Grandpa Han and Grandma Han. You have to tell them what kind of person Han Jibin is, otherwise, they will be deceived again!"

Han Shengyi chuckled and said, "Don't worry."

Chu Jiujiu: “…”

People are coming to your house to give gifts, and you are not in a hurry!

Noticing Chu Jiujiu's face full of confusion, he paused and explained, "Han Jibin is very cautious. He won't come over so soon."

Today was Laba, a day for family reunions, so he had chosen this day to deliver a nameless, yet caring, traditional Chinese medicine package. Given his personality, the Han family wouldn't hear from him for a long time until the Spring Festival, when he would do this again to deepen the bond between Grandpa and Grandma Han. He wanted to let them know that he cared about them, and that he didn't leave a name on the gift because he couldn't face them.

Chu Jiujiu didn't understand what a conciliatory policy was, but seeing Han Shengyi's calm and confident look, she slowly calmed down.

"Forget it, I don't care. But let me tell you in advance, if he really comes over, I can't guarantee that I will say anything nice."

It may not be exposed on the spot, but there will definitely be sarcasm.

Han Shengyi understood what she meant. He lowered his eyes and smiled, then reached out and pushed her shoulder. "Okay, got it. Come in."