Chapter 103
Chu Shao raised his leg and then silently put it down. He looked at Chu Liqiang. Chu Liqiang waited for a while until he heard the sound of a door closing upstairs. Then he raised his head and looked at his tall and strong son.
"What did you do today?"
Chu Shao: "Watch a movie."
Chu Liqiang narrowed his eyes and asked, "Besides watching movies, didn't you do anything else?"
Chu Shao thought for a moment and added, "I also had dinner and bought some barbecued meat."
Chu Liqiang looked at his expression in silence. Feeling that he was not lying, he put down the things in his hands and pointed to the chair opposite him. "Sit here, let's have a chat."
Chu Shao: “…”
He doesn't want to talk.
But he didn't dare to refuse, so he could only sit over there obediently.
He sat down, but Chu Liqiang was stuck.
In the army, he was responsible for political and ideological work. Sometimes when there were conflicts in the families of his subordinates, they would ask him to go and seek justice. Chu Liqiang had discussed major life issues with many new recruits, but this was the first time with his own son.
He missed his adolescence. Now Chu Shao is seventeen years old and will soon be an adult. He didn't say some things at the beginning. Now that he suddenly entered this stage, he really didn't know what to say.
Sighing, Chu Liqiang pinched his brows and said, "Chu Shao, you are grown up now. If you have any ideas, Dad won't stop you, but you have to be sensible."
"Don't do anything rogue, and don't do anything impulsive. Also, remember these four words: everything depends on fate. If it can succeed, that's great, but if it can't, you can't force it."
Chu Shao didn't expect this kind of conversation. He was stunned for a moment, and didn't ask Chu Liqiang how he saw it. After a moment of silence, he nodded to Chu Liqiang, "Dad, don't worry, I know everything you said."
He will not act like a hooligan, nor will he act on impulse. As for everything, he will just let it go. No problem, no one has a greater fate than him and Wen Xiuwei!
Chu Liqiang looked at him suspiciously, feeling that he didn't look very reliable. After thinking for a while, he added, "By the way, don't take it for granted."
Chu Shao didn't quite understand, "What does this mean?"
Chu Liqiang chuckled, "Silly son, look at Xiuwei now. She just made a movie and is an actress in a studio. She earns more money than when I first started working, and she is about to become an apprentice of a famous teacher. Look at you, what do you have now?"
"I know what you're thinking, but you also have to think about what you look like in Xiuwei's eyes."
What he said wasn't very nice, and he almost slapped Chu Shao in the face, "Son, you're not worthy of her now." Chu Shao was a student, Wen Xiuwei was an actress, and Chu Liqiang was an adult. He was more realistic, so when Chu Shao's mind was full of love, he was actually thinking about the gap between the two of them.
Of course, he hoped Chu Shao could marry Wen Xiuwei. The two families knew each other well, and Wen Xiuwei was so kind to Chu Jiujiu and himself. If she really married, he would love her as if she were his own daughter. But the problem was, life wasn't a movie, it didn't have so many dramatic plots. Wen Xiuwei was excellent, she would only be attracted to someone better, and life didn't follow a predetermined plot. Who knew one day, Wen Xiuwei would meet someone she admired more and leave him?
Chu Shao fell silent, obviously having taken his words to heart. While he was silent, Chu Liqiang was also thinking about other things. After two seconds, he straightened up and asked Chu Shao opposite him: "Son, do you want to join the army?"
With his father guiding him in the army, Chu Shao's future after joining the army will surely be bright. Their Chu family also rose to prominence through military achievements. If possible, Chu Liqiang really hopes that Chu Shao can inherit his mantle.
However, after pursing his lips, Chu Shao shook his head at Chu Liqiang, "Dad, I don't want to go down this path."
Chu Liqiang was stunned for a moment, "Why?"
"I'm not afraid of hard work, I'm just more interested in other things." Chu Shao replied.
Chu Liqiang: "Then what are you interested in?"
Thinking of the pile of spare parts in Chu Shao's room, he was silent for a second, "Repair home appliances?"
Chu Shao: “…”
"Dad, I don't like repairing appliances, I like mechanics."
Chu Shao said helplessly, "Just like Jiujiu likes the fakes she bought, I also like to assemble parts into a brand new thing. I..."
This was the first time he told someone about this. Chu Shao felt a surge of emotion, yet also a subtle timidity. "I want to be an engineer."
He looked at Chu Liqiang and said word by word, "I want to design my own things and make bigger and more powerful equipment. Dad, I'm always learning. I want you to see my achievements, and... let her see them too."
Chu Liqiang looked at Chu Shao silently. After a long time, he supported his head and laughed.
As the night deepened, his voice became much lower, as if he was talking to Chu Shao, but also as if he was talking to himself, "You can say that, it seems like you really like it."
Putting down his hand, Chu Liqiang stood up and said, "Just do it if you want to. You're young and have the confidence to do it. But let me make it clear in advance, if you fail, I won't care about you anymore. You have to live your own life. My mission is just to raise you. Whether you can live a glorious life in the future depends on your own ability."
Chu Shao raised the corner of his mouth and smiled, "Don't worry, Dad, I won't let you down."
Chu Liqiang waved his hands at him, not sure whether he didn't want to hear these nonsense words or simply wanted to express that he understood.
…
Only the two of them knew about the conversation between the Chu family's father and son. Chu Jiujiu was sleeping soundly upstairs and didn't even hear the father come back, let alone eavesdrop on their conversation.
Life continued the same as before, going to school on time, eating on time, and it was so boring that it was almost fatal.
Chu Jiujiu went to the courtyard several times. She wanted to go to the Cultural Relics Archives as soon as possible, but Director Ma suddenly changed his mind and decided to devote all his efforts to completing the task given by his superiors. As for her wish, she had to postpone it until summer vacation.
Summer vacation wasn't far away. The semester was short, with exams at the end of June, and then vacation. For someone as skilled as Chu Jiujiu, high school exams were a piece of cake. She was the first to finish and the first to leave. She'd already finished two popsicles outside, while her classmates inside hadn't even finished their fill-in-the-blank questions.
This is really, I don't know what to say. Some people would be jealous of other students who have good grades, but when it comes to Chu Jiujiu, they completely lose their temper.
Qi Baozhu's academic performance was average. On the day after the exam, while sitting in the classroom waiting for the head teacher to discuss the final matters, Qi Baozhu suddenly told Chu Jiujiu that she wanted to invite her to her home next Tuesday.
Chief Qi had invited her countless times in secret, but Chu Jiujiu's extracurricular life was too rich. She would either stroll through the streets with Han Shengyi, or run around the mountains and plains with Erbao in the military area. She was finally forced to stay at home because she had to attend someone else's wedding banquet with Chu Liqiang.
When Chief Qi didn't have time, he couldn't invite Chu Liqiang, and when he had time, Chu Liqiang turned them all down. In fact, Chief Qi made a mistake. He shouldn't have asked Chu Liqiang for help. He should have gone directly to Chu Jiujiu, just like Qi Baozhu did.
When Chu Jiujiu heard Qi Baozhu invite her to her house for the first time, she felt that something was wrong, so she asked. Qi Baozhu hesitated for a while before replying that it was her birthday that day.
When Chu Jiujiu heard this, her eyes suddenly lit up. It was her birthday, so she had to go.
She patted her chest and promised that even if it hailed, she would run to her house with an iron pot to make Qi Baozhu laugh. The two little girls made an agreement like this.
Chu Jiujiu acted first and asked for permission later. When she returned home, Chu Liqiang found out that she was going to the Qi family to celebrate Qi Baozhu's birthday. On Tuesday, he couldn't come back from the military area. Seeing that Chu Jiujiu looked very excited, Chu Liqiang didn't stop her. Instead, he secretly found Chu Shao and asked him to go with Chu Jiujiu.
Chu Shao: "No, I have to pick up Xiuwei every day after the holiday."
Chu Liqiang: "Can't you answer it less often?"
Chu Shao frowned: "After she finished the movie, people recognized her wherever she went. If I don't accept it once, what if something goes wrong?"
Chu Liqiang: "What about Jiujiu? What if something happens to Jiujiu?"
Chu Shao: "...Dad, the Qi family is not a dangerous place. Qi Baozhu and Jiujiu have a good relationship. Their family members are busy supporting her, so how could they let her get into trouble?"
Chu Shao's side was not working, and Wen Xiuwei's side was naturally even less working. Chu Liqiang, who had a refugee mentality, had no choice but to go to the Han family to find someone.
Who knew that Han Shengyi actually had something to do. He had made an appointment with someone several days ago to go play in the suburbs on Tuesday, and it was made together with several children of officials.
No one in the entire Chu and Han families combined understood why Chu Liqiang was so wary of the Qi family. Even Grandma Han, who was like an old hen protecting her chicks, thought his behavior was unnecessary. In the end, it was Grandpa Han who put down the newspaper and saved Chu Liqiang like an angel. "Okay, I'll take Jiujiu with me. I've heard about Baozhu from Jiujiu too. She's a very nice girl."
Chu Liqiang: "Thank you, I'll ask Jiujiu to buy some more things and send them over."
Grandpa Han: "Well, you have to bring some. By the way, Baozhu's last name is Qi, right? What's her father's name?"
Chu Liqiang said a name, and Grandpa Han felt that it sounded a little familiar, but when he thought about it carefully, he had no impression of it.
Never mind, it doesn’t matter. He just wants to accompany the little girl at home.
As they were talking, it was Tuesday. Although Chu Liqiang didn't like the Qi family, he still prepared a lot of gifts, several bags, with food, clothes, and useful things. They were all things that the little girl liked. Chu Jiujiu took a look inside and felt that Qi Baozhu might not use any of them.
Compared with the various high-end products bought by Chu Liqiang, the blue and white porcelain that Chu Jiujiu bought on the black market looked like something he had picked up, and was very shabby.
But Chu Jiujiu really likes this blue and white porcelain. Even if it is a fake, it looks beautiful and there is a pattern underneath, but she just can't understand it.
If it wasn't Qi Baozhu's birthday, she wouldn't have taken out the cup.
It was still impossible to put sensitive things in the open now, so Chu Jiujiu stuffed the cup to the bottom of the bag. The sound of a jeep was heard at the door, and Chu Jiujiu hurried downstairs with the things.
Opening the car door, Grandpa Han looked at her carrying so many bags and couldn't help but exclaimed, "Jiujiu, are you celebrating someone's birthday or giving them a gift?"
Chu Jiujiu also thought it was too exaggerated. "It's my dad who insisted that I bring so much."
Grandpa Han smiled and said, "I didn't expect Xiao Chu to be so generous."
Chu Jiujiu curled his lips. He was not being generous at all. He just didn't want to owe the Qi family a favor. The last time they treated him to a meal, he always found ways to repay them.
It was only a distance of three blocks, but Grandpa Han still asked Secretary Lin to drive the car out. After all, it was hot, and it would be uncomfortable to walk in the sun for too long.
When they arrived at Qi's house, the old man and the child got out of the car. Grandpa Han asked Secretary Lin to drive away and come back to pick them up in the evening.
Chu Jiujiu knocked on the door. When someone came to open it, Grandpa Han whispered to Chu Jiujiu, "Your father won't let you stay here. It's okay, Jiujiu. Have fun with Baozhu. If you want to stay, you can. Grandpa will come to pick you up tomorrow. We'll do this secretly without telling your father."
Chu Jiujiu smiled. She quite liked this little secret hidden from her parents. The Qi family looked very impressive from the outside, and Chu Jiujiu actually thought about staying there for a night.
As she was talking, the door opened. Seeing Jiujiu, Qi Baozhu's mother laughed and said, "Come in quickly. Oh, why did you bring so many things? You are really being so formal, kid."
After she finished speaking, she looked behind Chu Jiujiu and asked, "Who is this?"
Chu Jiujiu introduced: "This is Grandpa Han, he brought me here. Aunt, can Grandpa Han come in with us?"
"No problem, come in, it's more lively when we eat together."
Qi Baozhu's mother had never seen Grandpa Han before. At this moment, she only felt that he had a kind face. Grandpa Han was also very polite and nodded to Qi Baozhu's mother repeatedly. When they walked into the Qi family's house, Qi Baozhu's grandfather and father were sitting in the living room.
Seeing Chu Jiujiu coming, Chief Qi said with a smile: "Jiujiu is here, come and sit over here. Baoguo, go call Baozhu down, and..."
Halfway through his words, he saw Grandpa Han behind Chu Jiujiu and couldn't help but panic, "Han Tinghui, what are you doing in my house?"
Grandpa Han looked at Chief Qi and glared, "Qi Wantang?! How can this be your home?"
Oh... yes, Qi Wantang's surname is Qi, and Qi Baozhu's surname is also Qi. No wonder he felt that Qi Baozhu's father's name was familiar. It turned out that it was related to Qi Wantang.
Suddenly, the atmosphere became awkward.
Grandpa Han and Commander Qi had a feud when they were young, and they never got along after that. One of them smiled at everyone, while the other spoke bluntly, their personalities dictated that they couldn't be friends. After all these years apart, Grandpa Han still felt that Qi Wantang's face was as hideous as ever.
…
Grandpa Han sat on the chair farthest from Chief Qi. He felt a little embarrassed and wanted to leave, but if he left at this time, he always felt that he would lose. He had no choice but to keep sitting there with a stern face.
After Qi Baozhu came down, she saw a stranger in the living room. She was stunned for a moment, but without asking anything, she walked over to Qi Baoguo and sat down. This seat was very close to Chu Jiujiu, who walked past Grandpa Han and said happily to Qi Baozhu: "Baozhu, after dinner, I will go to your room to play. Tonight -"
Grandpa Han interrupted her: "Don't even think about it. Just come home with me obediently tonight."
Chu Jiujiu: “……???”
That's not what you just said!
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
