59
After a brief back-and-forth, Zheng Nanle finally made the final decision: "The world is full of storms, I think the countryside is nice, I'll leave tomorrow."
Lu Guangbai clenched his fists tightly on his lap.
Grandpa Zhang was speechless. "They're leaving already?"
He glanced at Lu Guangbai. "Not staying a little longer? I gave you a vacation so you could have fun in the capital."
Zheng Nanle smiled, raised her hand and shook Lu Guangbai's hand, then forcefully inserted her fingers into his, holding his ten fingers together.
She didn't say anything.
Grandpa Zhang nodded.
Okay.
He's a stubborn one too.
Once a decision is made, there's no going back.
He reached for the bag and asked with a smile, "Guangbai, what are you going to make for me too?"
Lu Guangbai made introductions from the side, introducing whatever Old Master Zhang picked up. Old Master Zhang stared at the longan-sized dumplings, speechless.
"Your grandpa is really something, all he knows is how to slack off."
In the end, Grandpa Zhang only laughed and scolded, "When I'm feeling better, I'll go play chess with your grandfather."
"Okay, I will talk to Grandpa."
When Grandpa Zhang was in the countryside, he endured hardship every day, relying solely on his willpower to complete his work. After returning to the capital, his health collapsed, and he recently fell seriously ill. It took Grandpa Lu Guangbai a lot of effort to save him.
After talking with Zheng Nanle and Lu Guangbai for a while, Zheng Nanle and Lu Guangbai looked tired, so they took their leave.
Old Master Zhang perked up and said, "It's rare for Er Ya to come all this way, let's have lunch before you leave."
Zheng Nanle shook his head, "No need to trouble yourself, you should get some rest. I'll have Guangbai accompany me to buy train tickets."
"Are you really leaving?" Old Master Zhang hesitated. "Why don't you stay with me and keep this old man company?"
Zheng Nanle still refused.
While walking through the military compound, Zheng Nanle used his mental powers to eavesdrop on the conversations of his neighbors. Hmm, it was a lingering effect of his recent busy schedule; when he was in an unfamiliar place or investigating someone, he subconsciously gathered information from the surrounding area.
When there is no conflict of interest, neighbors' complaints about others are always true, not objective, and even very subjective, but they are more useful than answers obtained by asking directly.
The neighbors said that Mr. Zhang's son and daughter-in-law would come over from time to time, wanting to live here, but Mr. Zhang refused.
After Mr. Zhang got into trouble, his son immediately published a notice in the newspaper to sever their father-son relationship. If that was all, Mr. Zhang would have taken it in stride. Everyone has the instinct to seek advantage and avoid harm. His son was irresponsible, but he would have been happy that his son would not be implicated by him.
But his son made a terrible mistake by joining a certain organization, which sent his old friends and acquaintances, who were trying to save him or lend him a hand, to their deaths.
This includes his former daughter-in-law's family.
In order to get promoted, he married the sister of his superior, leaving his own son back with his in-laws and ignoring him completely.
He harmed his in-laws so badly, how is it any different from abandoning his own son to his death?
Now that his former daughter-in-law's family has returned, he is too ashamed to acknowledge his grandson, nor is he ashamed to ask his grandson to change his surname back.
As for his son, he was too ashamed to acknowledge him.
If he were to acknowledge that beastly son when he was in a moment of triumph, how could he possibly face his old friends, his daughter-in-law, and his grandson?
So, the son came several times, but Old Master Zhang refused to see him even once, not even bothering to scold him. However, Old Master Zhang's son didn't think he had done anything wrong, nor did he think his father would truly not acknowledge him.
He is his father's only son. If his father doesn't acknowledge him, who will take care of him in his old age?
It's okay to be angry now; in time, his father will soften and acknowledge him as his only son.
As the only son of Old Master Zhang, everything Old Master Zhang has should be his—money, status, connections, and so on.
He can't bear to give up such enormous profits, and he'll come whenever he has time.
Zheng Nanle didn't stay with Old Master Zhang, and he also considered this point.
If she moves in, who knows what kind of trouble Old Master Zhang's son will cause.
If things get out of hand and upset Old Master Zhang, all the effort Old Master Lu put in will be wasted, and all the time Old Master Zhang spent recuperating will be for nothing.
It's better to avoid trouble.
As they left Grandpa Zhang's house, Lu Guangbai asked sullenly, "Nanle, are you really leaving tomorrow?"
"I'm not leaving."
Lu Guangbai was overjoyed and suddenly turned to look at Zheng Nanle, "Are you serious? Really?"
Zheng Nanle nodded.
She never intended to leave.
It was just a feint.
"But you're with Grandpa Zhang?"
"Oh, I was worried Grandpa Zhang would force me to stay, so I lied to him." Zheng Nanle put a finger to her lips, raised an eyebrow, and smiled mischievously, like a child playing a prank, her words laced with coaxing, "You won't tell Grandpa Zhang, will you?"
Lu Guangbai was completely captivated, and all he could do was nod and giggle like an idiot.
He stared at Zheng Nanle's slender white finger, then locked onto her moist lips, licked the corner of his mouth, and his Adam's apple bobbed.
If it weren't for the last shred of reason holding him back, he would have already rushed over and kissed those lips he had longed for day and night.
Zheng Nanle was amused by Lu Guangbai's reaction.
In a different location, she would only want to lift her foot and hook his leg, but order him not to move, teasing him until his eyes are filled with tears, and then, when he really couldn't take it anymore, they would embrace and fall onto the bed, completely releasing the pent-up fire.
At this moment, she could only regretfully think about it and take the opportunity to clear Lu Guangbai's mind of the filth. She nudged Lu Guangbai and said, "Snap out of it. What unhealthy things are you thinking about?"
Lu Guangbai reached for Zheng Nanle's hand, but Zheng Nanle nimbly dodged it. He regretfully withdrew his hand, his gaze falling on Zheng Nanle's face, which appeared even whiter under the sunlight, looking at it again and again. He said softly, "How can the intimate moments between engaged couples be considered unhealthy?"
Zheng Nanle has sharp ears, but she pretended not to hear.
As soon as he stepped outside, a middle-aged man stared intently at Lu Guangbai.
Upon noticing the resemblance between the middle-aged man and Old Master Zhang, Zheng Nanle knew his identity. She ignored him and kept her eyes straight ahead.
Lu Guangbai followed suit.
As the two approached, the middle-aged man suddenly rushed over and said to Lu Guangbai, "You brat, don't think that just because you've been taking care of my father in the countryside for a few years, you can replace me as the heir of the Lu family. I am my father's only son, and everything my father has belongs to me."
Zheng Nan asked curiously, "Grandpa Zhang has a son? How come I've never heard Grandpa Zhang mention him?"
Lu Guangbai said in a serious tone, "Grandpa Zhang has no son, but he has a grandson."
Taking the mother's surname, isn't that making him a grandson?
"And who is this gentleman?"
The two of them were exasperated, making the middle-aged man so angry that his nose almost crooked. He was about to introduce himself in a fit of rage when Zheng Nanle interrupted him, "It's not important. Let's go. Don't waste our time on irrelevant people."
"Okay." Lu Guangbai chuckled, put his foot on the pedal, and with a spurt, the bicycle shot off. Zheng Nanle ran after it, her skirt fluttering like a butterfly's wings, and she ran past the middle-aged man into the distance.
The middle-aged man was left with a feeling of pent-up anger, unable to swallow it.
Zheng Nanle jumped onto the back of the bicycle, feeling very happy.
Lu Guangbai always seemed to know what she was thinking, took good care of her in daily life, and acted alongside her when she needed him.
She grabbed the fabric of Lu Guangbai's coat at the waist and asked, "He doesn't know your name?"
The opening "You little brat" didn't sound like the arrogance of someone who knew the other person's name but didn't feel they deserved to be called by it; rather, it sounded like the frustration of someone who didn't know the other person's name.
"I don't know, hey, I'm not going to tell him."
"Haha, well done." Zheng Nanle patted him on the back, praising him generously for his action.
Lu Guangbai's cheeks flushed, and he smiled broadly.
Upon arriving at the train station, Zheng Nanle bought a ticket to return the next day. Because it was a last-minute purchase, it was a standing ticket.
Standing tickets are better; it's harder to track their whereabouts.
If she had asked for a standing ticket herself, it would probably have aroused suspicion, so this approach is more natural.
Putting away the train ticket, Lu Guangbai asked, "Nanle, how about we go to Wangfujing or Friendship Store?"
He stroked Zheng Nanle's wrist.
The watch on Zheng Nanle's wrist was considered top-of-the-line in the county town, but it wasn't quite impressive in the capital.
"Shall I get you a new watch? How about a Patek Philippe?"
Zheng Nanle glanced at it and said, "No need, this watch works just fine."
"Go home."
Grandpa Zhang made it quite clear, and Zheng Nanle wouldn't be so disobedient as to wander around outside.
Besides, it's almost noon, and it wouldn't be good to leave Grandpa Lu alone at home.
When he got home, no one was home. Dr. Lu parked his bicycle, changed into a loose cotton-linen long-sleeved shirt and trousers, and went to make lunch.
Zheng Nanle followed behind and asked, "Where's your grandfather?"
“He would go to the big locust tree at the alley entrance to play chess with the other old men. He wouldn’t come back until it was time to eat. Sometimes, when he got too close to someone, he would go to the state-run restaurant with those old men and not come back for dinner.”
Zheng Nanle was envious. "The old man is living a carefree life."
"yes."
Lu Guangbai smiled but didn't mention that his grandfather preferred to work at the clinic and that he would be going to the People's Hospital for a shift in a few days.
If Lu Guangbai were to say it, he would actually prefer that the old man take some more time to recuperate, as the losses of the past few years cannot be made up in a short period of time. However, the old man insisted on his own way, and Lu Guangbai could not persuade him otherwise, so he could only let him be.
Old Master Lu is a doctor himself, so he knows his limits.
Zheng Nanle leaned against the door, watching Lu Guangbai cut potato shreds. His knife skills were superb, his movements were smooth, and with a rhythmic thumping sound, the potatoes were sliced and then cut into uniform shreds. It was like watching some kind of acrobatic performance, beautiful and stress-relieving.
Zheng Nanle stared for a moment, then slowly moved her gaze from his fingertips to his waist.
Dr. Lu has a narrow and slender waist with clearly defined abdominal muscles that bulge when he exerts himself, but become soft and smooth like a piece of warm jade when he relaxes.
No wonder she's a skilled ancient healer who knows how to take care of herself; her skin is simply addictive.
Zheng Nanle watched for a moment, and seeing that Doctor Lu had put down his knife, she stepped forward and reached up to touch the hem of his clothes.
Zheng Nanle's hands were slightly cool, and they tickled her waist. Doctor Lu shifted uncomfortably, grabbing Zheng Nanle's mischievous hand through her clothes. He turned around helplessly, "Nanle, stop fooling around, I'm cooking."
Zheng Nanle squeezed his hand, withdrew it, and turned to leave.
She thought casually that continuing to sleep wasn't necessarily a bad thing.
When Zheng Nanle was holding him, Lu Guangbai was focused on important matters. After Zheng Nanle left, Lu Guangbai's mind was filled with absurdities.
He turned to look at Zheng Nanle, who was sitting in the rocking chair that Old Master Lu liked to sit in, fanning himself with a palm leaf fan. Noticing his gaze, Zheng Nanle raised an eyebrow.
She traced his face, then his body, and finally his waist with her gaze, and smiled gently.
She touched her lips with her finger.
Lu Guangbai's cheeks suddenly flushed red, as if Zheng Nanle was gently stroking his entire body with her eyes.
It made him feel frivolous, yet also itchy inside.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com