Chapter 12 Chapter 12 But he felt hot all over, as if something was wrong...
Chen Ying was brewing tea at the side. When she heard his words, she clearly felt a gaze with a locked feeling falling heavily on her.
She didn't look up, twisting the tea leaves with her fingertips, leisurely dividing the tea and adding water. She leisurely brewed the tea, the rising hot steam floating in front of her lowered brows, and handed a cup to the father and son respectively.
When she handed the teacup to Chen Jinshi with her fingertips, he held her hand with his whole hand while holding the cup.
At the same time, his eyes were still fixed on him, bringing a sense of oppression that made it impossible to escape.
Chen Ying didn't understand, he just grew taller than her.
Her whole body tensed up, and she pulled her hand back suddenly, and the teacup landed steadily in his hand without spilling a drop.
"Am, do you think I'm right?" he asked stubbornly.
Chen Ying turned her head away, avoiding the locked gaze: "I don't know, Chen Jinshi."
Chen Jichuan laughed and said, "Alright, I was just joking. Dulan has always been gentle and kind, treating everyone the same. She wouldn't say anything hurtful, and it's not like she's only kind to you."
His eyes were always glued to her. Chen Ying felt a little uncomfortable, but she still cleaned up the tea set as if nothing had happened, and occasionally chatted with Chen Jichuan about family matters.
He belatedly savored the aroma of the tea and whispered, "I feel like Eminem treats me differently."
He watched her every move. Chen Jinshi learned to observe everything silently, instead of making himself the center of everyone, her center.
He saw her hand caressing his father's arm, saw her putting a waistcoat on his father, and then carefully asked him what he wanted to eat in the evening and whether he slept well last night, and so on, a series of small details of concern.
Chen Jinshi imagined her hand caressing his head again. Ever since she had tied a crown for him, he always had the lingering feeling of her touch on his head.
The head should be a very taboo part, and he felt uncomfortable when her fingers touched it for the first time.
She straightened his head and held all his hair in her hands, as if she was about to take complete control of him, like a mother?
He felt uneasy and even offended by this, but he was also hot all over, as if some principle had been shattered...
I want to put my head under her palm and rub it again and again.
Is this... a betrayal of his biological mother, or... I'm afraid it will be worse than being pierced by thousands of arrows and despised by everyone.
It seemed as if there was a huge distance between him and her by nature. A single thought could lead to eternal damnation.
Why is this happening?
When she first arrived at his house, everyone wanted him to be closer to her.
After Chen Jinxing came back from the counter, he came to pay his respects to them. Chen Ying asked him about some things at the counter. The family business was mostly like that. The reward that the eldest wife received from Chen Jichuan was enough for the whole family to live a worry-free life.
Before Shen Ying came, the business of the first house was in a loss-making state. Chen Jichuan had no time to manage it. Chen Jinxing wanted to manage it but did not have much ability at that time. Chen Jinshi was even less reliable.
Chen Jinxing stood beside her, bowing slightly, his eyes downcast, his voice steady and respectful, "Mom, this month's Qingxin Pills are really selling fast. The shop has made 30% more profit than last month."
As he spoke, he handed her a thread-bound volume, then stood up straight, wearing a blue-gray robe, with his back straight and a faint smile on his face.
Speaking of the second wife's lawsuit, after Chen Jinshi had caused a scene, Chen Ying reported it to the authorities, but he hadn't intervened since then, leaving the case to Chen Jichuan. Despite irrefutable evidence, Chen Jichuan still offered favors to the authorities, and later asked Chen Jinxing to help with the legal process, hiring lawyers, and bringing the case to court.
Now the lawsuit has been decided: the second wife lost, the second uncle broke a rib, and he has to pay all the profits from Dingchuansan to the first wife, and he has to suspend the business for half a year.
But the old lady tried to smooth things over, saying that the second and third wives made their living from the medical business passed down from their ancestors, and that brothers should show some affection and let the eldest wife give more ground.
Chen Jinxing knew that Chen Ying was soft-hearted, so he came to ask her opinion.
Chen Jinxing knew Chen Ying was kind and gentle, always forgiving others when possible, so he harbored a selfish motive: if his second uncle bore a grudge against him because of this incident, he would have a hard time navigating the medical profession in Jinling. The Chen family was a long-established medical family in Jinling, and with the old man being supported by the second wife, there was no telling how many business relationships were involved.
His father was a soldier, his younger brother was a scholar, and he was the only one in the eldest branch of the family who practiced medicine. If he failed in this path, his life would be over.
Although he thought so, he still did not make a decision for Shen Ying privately on this matter, even though she gave him full authority.
Hearing this, Chen Ying frowned and said, "It's my fault for not thinking it through. I shouldn't have asked you to handle this matter. You're stuck in the middle, and it's not going to be easy for you over there."
Chen Jinxing lowered his head. Although he always knew that Am was a very good person and had a kind heart, he did not expect that she could be so understanding of his difficulties.
In the end, he said nothing. As long as it was her decision, he would follow it and would not plead for others in front of her.
Chen Jichuan said directly: "Dulan, don't worry about them, just do things according to your ideas."
Chen Jinshi sat on the chair, his jawline tense, his brows twisted into a knot, one foot kicked on the small table in front of him, his fingertips tapping on the armrest, and the irritation in his heart rose up.
He frowned and looked at Chen Ying. She was a softie, so he had to be careful with this matter.
He looked at Chen Jinxing again. Don't think that he didn't know what Chen Jinxing was thinking. If he were Chen Jinxing, he would never come to Am to ask about this matter. He would just deal with it according to the government's decision.
Chen Jinxing came to ask her, wasn't it because he thought that she would definitely let them go?
Chen Jinxing stood respectfully with his clothes lowered. He felt his second brother give him a cold look. He looked back and saw that the other party was rolling his eyes.
He turned around calmly, waiting for Am to speak.
"How about this..."
"Chen Ying."
Chen Ying was about to speak when Chen Jinshi interrupted her.
She looked at him in confusion. Chen Jinshi stood up, sneered, and gradually approached her until his figure completely covered her. He squeezed past Chen Jinxing, put him behind himself, and took his place.
Compared with Chen Jinxing's upright posture, Chen Jinshi has an unruly wildness.
"Mom, Chen Jinxing can't do this, I'll do it for you. I'm not afraid of offending anyone."
Behind him, Chen Jinxing let out a barely perceptible sigh of relief and quietly took a step back.
Chen Ying looked up and saw Chen Jinshi staring at her intently, as if if she said something like "Forget it", he would immediately grab her hands, push her against the wall and give her a lecture, pointing at her nose and scolding her for her weak character.
She shook her head to get rid of this ridiculous idea.
She said slowly: "I mean, I can handle this matter myself, without you getting involved."
If the three men in the family hadn't been so eager to help her with this little favor, she would have done it herself long ago.
Chen Jinshi said, "No, I won't give up until they close down. I can't leave this matter to you."
Chen Jinshi refused to give in.
Chen Ying felt that Chen Jinshi had some misunderstanding about her, and she was not the person he imagined.
Well, forget it, it doesn't matter what he thinks of her.
A few days later, the results of the college entrance examination were announced. Chen Ying specially went to the screen wall outside the government office in advance to wait. Even Chen Jinshi himself was not as enthusiastic as her.
Half the street was already crowded in front of the screen wall. Many people came to join in the fun. Even if they didn't have any children at home who were taking the exam, they still wanted to see which of their neighbors had a son who passed the exam to become a scholar. This was a big event for the neighborhood.
The officers used wooden sticks to push away the crowd, and the yellow case was held by two clerks.
Starting from the top of the table and working upwards, the crowd began to surge forward. Chen Ying was squeezed and staggered forward. She scanned the yellow paper one by one, and when she was almost in the middle, she still hadn't seen the three words "Chen Jinshi". Her heart sank.
Inwardly, he cursed, "Chen Jinshi, you are such a piece of shit. You handed in your paper early, and when you came back you acted like a lord."
She continued to search on tiptoe. Someone ahead of her who had already made the list laughed excitedly, and as they retreated, they stepped on her foot, causing her to stumble again. Suddenly, a "hard board" hit her from behind. She turned around and saw it was Chen Jinshi.
His face was grim, and his arms were wrapped around her tightly like iron arms, forcibly leaving a space for her where no one could get close.
"Chen Ying, can't you wait until there are fewer people before coming to watch? Why are you crowding with them?"
Chen Ying was held in his arms, and she breathed a sigh of relief. She felt a little more at ease, and then she looked up again.
The officers continued to post the notices.
"I thought, I'll be the first one to see your name, and the first one to tell your father the good news. Your father will be so happy."
Chen Jinshi frowned: "Are you here to be the first to see my name, or to be the first to tell my father the good news?"
Chen Ying didn't answer and continued to stare at the yellow list and count down one by one.
"You're in such a hurry, haven't you found it yet?"
Chen Jinshi looked up impatiently.
Chen Ying cursed, "If you weren't on this, Chen Jinshi, you'd be beaten."
Chen Ying counted down two more lines and suddenly saw the words "Chen Jinshi" embedded in it. She suddenly grabbed his arm and said, "Here it is! No. 37! Brother Shi, you passed!"
After taking a closer look, she saw that only forty people had passed the exam. Shocked and frightened, she turned around and punched him twice in the chest: "I told you not to hand in your paper early next time. You almost got eliminated from this exam!"
Her eyes were bright as if they contained stars, and her words of reproach were shrouded in fear. She punched him with all her might. She was quite strong, and her punches were like hitting an iron wall. Chen Jinshi did not dodge, but lowered his eyes to look at her, a smile welling up in his eyes.
"What are you afraid of? If I'm gone, then I'm gone. The Autumn Examination will have to wait until next year. I'll still have time to take the exam next year."
"I'm afraid your father can't wait..." Chen Ying stopped talking halfway.
Chen Jinshi raised his hand and grasped her fist. His palm was warm and his fingertips were rough. With a light squeeze, he held her hand in his palm.
"I know." He said in a low voice, his Adam's apple moving, and added, "Didn't you pass the exam?"
Chen Ying knew she had said the wrong thing, her cheeks felt hot, and she was speechless for a moment.
She pulled her hand back and pushed him out.
Chen Jinshi continued to protect her with his arms until they walked out of the crowd.
Walking onto the empty street, Chen Ying stopped and breathed freely. Chen Jinshi smiled and said, "It's still early for the Autumn Examination. I don't have anything to do now. You don't have to urge me to study all day, right?"
Chen Ying glanced at him: "Then what are you going to do?"
Chen Jinshi thought to himself, of course I should challenge Black Iron.
But what he said was: "Of course I am helping Emu. If you need any help with your counter, feel free to call me."
Chen Ying walked back: "I don't need any help from you."
Chen Jinshi followed her and pointed at the candied haws stall on the street and said, "Mom, do you want to eat candied haws? I'll buy some for you."
Chen Ying shook her head and continued walking forward.
He pointed to the stall selling pearl flowers and said, "How long has it been since you bought new jewelry? I'll buy you two new ones to wear."
The author has something to say:
----------------------
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
