Chapter 146
Chu Jiujiu threatened her and belittled her. Even if what she said was all true, Cao Lu couldn't stand it.
She shrank back a bit, and when Chu Jiujiu straightened up, she seemed to realize how useless she was. Resentment and anger erupted, and Cao Lu shouted at her, "Who gives you the right to order me around? We're all students, I'm not afraid of you!"
After saying this, Cao Lu seemed to have regained her courage. She looked at Chu Jiujiu fiercely and said, "Believe it or not, I will tell everyone everything you said!"
Chu Jiujiu curled her lips.
She didn't make any sound, but Song Xiaoying next to her was gloating and had already laughed out loud. She laughed, and she looked at Cao Lu with the eyes of looking at a piece of meat, as if she was no longer a human being.
Song Xiaoying acted openly, while Shen Dongkui was acting covertly. She said nothing, but looked at the three people who were on the verge of a fight. She didn't say a word from beginning to end, but as soon as Cao Luyi met her eyes, he knew that she was also on Chu Jiujiu's side.
Cao Lu's heart felt so cold.
In her eyes, Chu Jiujiu is now the leader of a huge and deeply rooted underworld organization.
The unfathomable Chu Jiujiu, the grimly grinning Song Xiaoying, and the silent Shen Dongkui, their attitudes are the same as those of the people outside.
Only then did Cao Lu realize that her threat was insignificant. Chu Jiujiu was the beloved vice-class monitor among her classmates and a highly regarded teacher. Even if she didn't know anyone, she was still a top student, having been admitted with the third-highest score in the province and city. She had never disclosed her family's specific occupation, but Cao Lu had seen it on her first day: her family was far superior to her own.
At that time, Cao Lu still despised Chu Jiujiu in her heart, saying that their whole family were peasants. But now, the peasants have suppressed her to death. If she really goes out and lets everyone see, even if she, Cao Lu, is white, she will be highlighted as black under Chu Jiujiu's popularity and halo.
It was not until this time that Cao Lu became really scared, because she found that no matter which path she took, she would never be able to defeat Chu Jiujiu.
It was at this time that Cao Lu remembered what Han Shengyi had said to her. He said that she thought both him and Chu Jiujiu were too stupid. In just half a day, his words came true.
She thought Chu Jiujiu was a delicate flower who was raised too well, so she didn't understand anything. It's true that she didn't understand, she just didn't want to argue with her.
Cao Lu appeared stiff on the outside but was trembling inside. She didn't dare to yell at Chu Jiujiu anymore. She only climbed up to the upper bunk dejectedly after Chu Jiujiu left her sight.
Song Xiaoying watched her climb up and muttered, "What bad luck."
Cao Lu: “…”
Chu Jiujiu returned to her bed and sat down.
If possible, she really didn't want to conflict with Cao Lu. No matter what kind of person Cao Lu was, Chu Jiujiu just wanted to work hard in college, win awards, become a cadre, run clubs, and work hard to gild her resume. When she was a senior, she would use all these to take the postgraduate entrance examination.
When a person is in a conspicuous position, his every word and action is exposed to many eyes. Chu Jiujiu doesn't want to cause trouble for herself, but Cao Lu is too much.
Supporting her chin, Chu Jiujiu squinted and looked at Cao Lu's bed.
She even thought that since they had already fallen out, it would be better to just kill her. She had no ambition at all and was just spreading rumors and hooking up with people. The rumors she spread were about her, and the ones she hooked up with were those who hooked up with her. This Cao Lu was simply a match for her!
Chu Jiujiu was still angry, and the thoughts in her mind were like a barrage of comments on the screen, passing by in a flash. Some were impulsive thoughts, and some were thoughts deep in her subconscious.
Chu Jiujiu didn't stay angry for too long. At night, she stopped thinking about it. Without Cao Lu around, Chu Jiujiu felt relieved.
The next day, they had no classes in the morning and everyone else was sleeping soundly. Chu Jiujiu opened her eyes automatically without waiting for the alarm clock to ring. She glanced at the time and quickly lifted the quilt and sat up.
Today is a special day. Chu Shao can receive calls now. He can now receive three calls a month. Originally, two calls were from Wen Xiuwei and one was from Chu Liqiang. Now Wen Xiuwei has gone to Qinghai, and Chu Jiujiu has never seen her. However, according to a letter from Wen Xiuwei, she said that the people there are extremely poor and the roads are underdeveloped. It is more difficult for her to make a phone call than it is for Chu Shao. Therefore, the opportunity to make a phone call is left to the Chu family, and she only communicates with Chu Shao.
The quotas were allocated, and Chu Jiujiu got the opportunity to make a phone call once a month. Of the remaining two, one still went to Chu Liqiang, and the last one went to everyone. The whole family would have dinner together one or two times a month, so they saved the third time for when everyone was there.
Ever since she got the date, Chu Jiujiu has been dreaming about the number 28. So, early in the morning, she didn't even have breakfast and rushed to the school post office.
There is only an office here, which is not a formal post office. It was originally set up for students like them. Students communicate with their families a lot and send and receive a lot of packages, but the peak period for sending and receiving packages is during the start of the school year. Nowadays, there are not many people sending packages. Most of them are sending letters and making phone calls like Chu Jiujiu.
Chu Jiujiu got up so early, but she didn't get to be the first in line. Fortunately, there were only five people in front of her, so she didn't have to wait too long.
In the early morning, a group of wild geese flew across the sky. They were heading south for the winter. I don’t know if they would land in Qingzhu Village.
Chu Jiujiu raised her head and watched the flock of geese leave. When she lowered her head again, her stomach growled twice.
I'm hungry and want to eat wild geese.
…
Being alone, Chu Jiujiu also felt like joking with herself. She was in a good mood today, and even ignored the vague glances from others that fell on her.
You know, normally, she would glare back.
The place to make phone calls here is different from other post offices. There is a special telephone room here, which is a very small house. There is only a telephone and no chair inside. People can only stand when they go in.
It looks a bit like a telephone booth from the 1990s.
Chu Jiujiu waited patiently, and finally, it was her turn. Because they were all students, and these students were the future pillars of the country, the attitude of the staff here was much better than outside. After hearing Chu Jiujiu give her number, the staff fiddled with it for a while, and then told her to go to telephone room number two.
Chu Jiujiu walked in, held up the receiver, and waited for a long time before a rough voice came from inside.
"Hello?"
God have mercy on me. Chu Jiujiu really thought she was in a good mood today, but as soon as she heard Chu Shao's voice, her nose felt sore and a surge of grievances hit her. Chu Jiujiu didn't know why she suddenly became like this. Although she didn't cry, you could tell that something was wrong with her voice.
Holding the receiver, her throat was blocked. After two seconds, she was able to utter a sound: "Chu Shao..."
Chu Shao was sitting in the message room. He was very sleepy. He almost stayed up all night yesterday and had only slept for two hours when someone came to call him and said someone was calling him. Chu Shao almost fell asleep while sitting in the message room waiting for the call to come back. Now, when he heard this voice full of grievance and weakness, he suddenly opened his eyes and became completely alert.
The soldiers watching nearby were amazed.
It turns out that Engineer Chu's eyes are so big. He has been here for several months, and others have always thought that he was born with only half an eye, and he can't open it any further.
…
Chu Shao didn't pay attention to other people's expressions. He frowned and asked the person on the other end of the phone, "Who bullied you?"
Chu Shao skipped the normal questions like "What happened to you?", "Did someone bully you?", etc., and went straight to the point, asking the culprit directly.
Chu Jiujiu lowered her eyes, feeling her nose getting even more sour. "No one bullies me."
"I am..."
"I just missed you a little."
Chu Shao's gloomy expression froze immediately. The ice and snow on his face visibly melted away. He subconsciously twitched the corners of his mouth, and his voice suddenly softened. "How are you doing at school? Did you bring a thin blanket or a thick one?"
Chu Jiujiu replied sullenly, "It's fine. I brought everything, both thin and thick. It's not cold in the capital right now. The daytime temperature is 20 degrees."
Chu Shao wasn't good at saying sweet things; he just kept asking Chu Jiujiu for details, trying to confirm that she would really take care of herself. Originally, Chu Shao was going to follow this process and use the precious ten minutes of phone time on this. But when he heard Chu Jiujiu's listless voice, he suddenly realized something.
"Jiujiu, let Han Shengyi answer the phone."
Everyone thought the same thing. Giving Chu Jiujiu the call also gave it to Han Shengyi. They were so close, and now they were in the same university. Not only the family, but even Grandpa Wang and Wang Hongye thought their personalities meant they'd be inseparable at university. Chu Shao asked Chu Jiujiu to do this because he thought she wouldn't tell the truth, so he might as well ask Han Shengyi directly.
But after hearing his order, the air on Chu Jiujiu's side stagnated for a moment.
“…He’s not next to me.”
Very good, now Chu Shao realized that something was wrong.
Chu Shao asked, "Why isn't he here?"
Chu Jiujiu's breathing hitched, "Then why should he be here? He and I are not conjoined twins."
Chu Shao thought to himself, you and he are indeed not conjoined twins, conjoined twins wouldn’t be as clingy as you two.
Even Chu Shao, who was a bit of a tough guy, became more discerning at this point. He said confidently, "You two had a fight."
Chu Jiujiu: "I..."
Chu Shao continued to make a firm judgment: "The person who bullied you must be him."
Chu Jiujiu: “No…”
Chu Shao: "How ridiculous! I asked him to take good care of you, but today I'm writing back to scold him!"
Chu Jiujiu: “No…”
Chu Shao: "I've only been gone for a short time, and he's already so bold!"
At this point, he suddenly shouted, "Chu Jiujiu!"
Chu Jiujiu, who was named, stood at attention with a start. This was a habit engraved in the DNA of the Chu family. Even though Chu Jiujiu had never served in the army, she would subconsciously make this action.
Chu Shao didn't know what was wrong with her, and he didn't care about anything else. He just said angrily, "I don't need to ask you. You know what I said eight years ago better than I do. This is his second time doing it, right? Stay away from him! You absolutely cannot forgive him. If you forgive me, I will never recognize you again!"
Chu Jiujiu: “…………”
The soldier next to him listened silently and felt that something was wrong with the style of painting.
Aren’t you just an older brother? Why are you acting like a boss?
You are not allowed to do XXX, otherwise I will no longer recognize you. Isn’t this a common method used by parents?
…
Chu Jiujiu had a headache, but after Chu Shao yelled at her, the sadness in her heart mostly dissipated. "Can you please listen to me? He didn't bully me. I..."
Her mind was in a mess like a tangled knot. Chu Jiujiu wanted to explain everything to Chu Shao, but even she herself didn't understand what the truth that could be explained was.
It’s a mess, very messy.
Chu Jiujiu fell silent, and Chu Shao also fell silent.
Chu Jiujiu wasn't the type to endure being bullied. She would always seek revenge on the spot, never leaving it to the next day. After venting her anger, Chu Shao realized that regardless of whether Han Shengyi would bully Chu Jiujiu, if he did, Chu Jiujiu would handle it herself, and it wouldn't be his turn to tell her what to do.
But if she hadn't been bullied...what would happen to her in this state?
Suddenly, a strong sense of crisis arose in Chu Shao's heart.
A few vague images flashed through his mind. Chu Shao didn't understand what they were. He only knew that he was extremely worried.
In comparison, being bullied openly might be a good thing...
Chu Shao's voice suddenly became extremely serious, "Chu Jiujiu, don't force yourself."
Chu Jiujiu was stunned.
"Do whatever you want. Don't be afraid of embarrassing others or that they won't treat you well anymore. Life is all about coming and going. You may feel that someone is particularly important now, but after a while, when you're no longer in this situation, you won't feel that way anymore. You're a member of the Chu family, you're mine... In short, you have the confidence to refuse anyone. Even if the king of heaven comes, if you don't want to, just slap him in the face and tell him to get out. Do you understand?!"
Chu Jiujiu inexplicably felt very passionate, moved, and a little confused.
What the hell is going on here?
Although she didn't understand, she felt it was amazing. Chu Jiujiu agreed softly, "I understand."
Chu Shao nodded calmly. He sat there reservedly, glancing at the soldier who had been curiously listening in. Chu Shao knew that this call was being recorded and monitored by someone else, but he couldn't help but ask, "Then... do you want to do it or not?"
Chu Jiujiu: “…” I don’t think so.
The ten minutes passed quickly, and after putting the receiver back, Chu Jiujiu was still confused.
She only understood what Chu Shao was saying in the first few minutes. After that, it was as if they were in secret. The two of them chatted back and forth, and every sentence connected, but she always felt that they were not talking about the same thing.
strangeness……
Chu Jiujiu was thinking about what Chu Shao had just said. While thinking, she walked out. There were still many people waiting to make phone calls, but the exit was very open. Chu Jiujiu walked out with brisk steps. She was going to go to the cafeteria to see if there was any leftover food. If not, she would sit in the cafeteria until lunch.
...When Chu Jiujiu is hungry, she always knows what she wants most.
However, just as her plan was formed, it was aborted by the appearance of someone.
Chu Jiujiu looked at Han Shengyi standing at the door of the office in surprise, not knowing what to say for a moment.
Han Shengyi leaned against the wall, half lowered his head, looking at a fallen leaf on the ground. He didn't even look up. In this way, he might miss Chu Jiujiu at some point, but he was not worried at all, because he knew without looking whether it was Chu Jiujiu who came out.
Because he remembered her footsteps.
Some are light, some are fast, and after taking a few steps, they bounce a few times, like a little rabbit.
Standing at the door of the office, the two looked at each other, and Han Shengyi was the first to say, "Are you done with the call?"
Chu Jiujiu was a little embarrassed, but still nodded.
Hearing this, Han Shengyi glanced at the watch on his wrist. The hour hand was only at nine, and the minute hand had not even reached eight.
Putting down his hand, Han Shengyi looked at her and said, "Let's go."
After he finished speaking, he had already turned around. Chu Jiujiu was stunned for a moment. She didn't want to go over, but Han Shengyi walked too fast. He didn't even give her a chance to refuse. Chu Jiujiu had no choice but to run over and asked, "Where are you going?"
Han Shengyi turned his head and glanced at her. "There's no food in the cafeteria. Aren't you hungry?"
Touching her stomach, Chu Jiujiu wanted to say against her will that she was not hungry, but her stomach disagreed.
After a long silence, Chu Jiujiu bowed to the hungry force and said, "Hungry, where are we going to eat?"
——
The market is being liberalized, and private transactions are still prohibited, but there are many more shops in the streets and alleys than before.
It still carries the name of a state-owned enterprise, but only a few people know that a considerable number of people are just trying to take advantage of the situation.
Han Shengyi brought Chu Jiujiu to a newly opened restaurant. This restaurant was not a scam, but the dishes here were fresher than others, and the pricing was not as rigid as that of ordinary state-owned restaurants.
Han Shengyi ordered four dishes. Seeing how much he ordered, Chu Jiujiu quickly stopped him and said, "You can't finish it all!"
Han Shengyi glanced at her size and smiled, "Not necessarily. Let's try it first."
Chu Jiujiu: “…”
Her expression was a little unhappy. Chu Jiujiu never considered her big appetite as a shortcoming before. Her family members often teased her, but she always laughed it off. But today, she was unhappy when Han Shengyi teased her.
Chu Jiujiu suddenly realized that she was really unhappy with Han Shengyi recently.
It's like wearing tinted glasses.
Chu Jiujiu opposite was holding a pair of chopsticks, rubbing them mechanically. By the time she came to her senses, the chopsticks had probably turned into toothpicks.
There was a moment of silence before Han Shengyi spoke first: "Jiang Xiaowu came to see me again."
Chu Jiujiu looked up, "Why did he look for you?"
Han Shengyi: "He wanted to open a factory and asked me to work with him."
Chu Jiujiu paused, "What factory?"
"Shipyard," Han Shengyi smiled. "He said his parents heard a little bit about it and said it was a big money-making business, but he couldn't support it himself, so he wanted to drag me into it."
Chu Jiujiu's expression didn't change at all. "What do you want to do?"
Their eyes converged and Han Shengyi shook his head.
"You can't get rich overnight. Shipbuilding has always been a lucrative business, and everyone knows that. But it's too difficult to actually do it. Even if I wanted to do it, I wouldn't do it now."
A ship could easily cost tens or millions of dollars, and that was the tens or millions of dollars in that era. If converted into modern prices, each ship would be priced sky-high. There are not many rich people these days. If the country does not pay, then we can only go the route of foreign trade. However, there is still a gap between our country's technology and that of foreign countries.
That is, sell it to some small countries.
Chu Jiujiu quickly looked through the world map. Coastal countries have two characteristics: either they are so poor that they have no pants to wear, or they are so rich that they don't need to wear pants. There are very few people who can afford and are willing to buy their products.
In less than half a minute, Chu Jiujiu had thought through all the pros and cons. Then, she said, "Which factory do you plan to switch to?"
Chu Jiujiu looked at Han Shengyi silently, waiting for his answer, but after hearing her question, Han Shengyi laughed softly.
Chu Jiujiu was confused by his laughter.
She wasn't telling a joke.
Han Shengyi finished laughing, and seeing her inexplicable look, there was still a smile in the corner of his eyes, and the words he said were more touching than before, "Jiujiu, you really know me too well."
Han Shengyi's chat is sometimes just casual chat, but sometimes it has a deeper meaning. Ninety-nine percent of people can't tell the difference, but Chu Jiujiu can always tell it apart accurately.
Han Shengyi sighed softly and said, "I need to think about it again. I need land to open a factory. During the winter vacation, I plan to go and take a look at the site and find out what is the most profitable."
Chu Jiujiu looked at him doubtfully, "Are you planning to do business?"
After studying economics, are you really ready to take this path?
Han Shengyi shook his head again. "Just testing the waters. I have a lot of free time at school, and I don't want to waste it. Besides..."
Chu Jiujiu looked innocent.
Looking at her, Han Shengyi's eyebrows were always soft. "Don't you always complain about not having money? You can never save enough money for what you want. When I set up the factory, you won't have to save money anymore. All my money is yours."
Chu Jiujiu's expression changed.
Surprise, confusion, surprise, flattered, and resistance.
She opened her mouth and her voice became softer. "You don't have to be like this. Your money will definitely still be yours. I'm that old now. I have a job and I can support myself in the future. Even if, even if my salary is very low, I still have my dad. He will always protect me. There are also Chu Shao, Weiwei, and..."
Han Shengyi listened to her softly. No matter what she said, Han Shengyi's expression remained the same, but there were subtle changes, such as his eyes. With each sentence Chu Jiujiu said, the temperature in his eyes dropped a little. When he heard the last sentence, there was no temperature in Han Shengyi's eyes anymore.
"Who else?" he asked gently.
Chu Jiujiu felt as if danger was approaching, and her back shuddered.
She looked up blankly and saw Han Shengyi's gentle expression, but his voice was inexplicably cold. Chu Jiujiu got goosebumps. "Are you trying to say, there's also Fang Cheng?"
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