Like a thief, Gu Zhixing darted back to his room, closed the door, and fiddled around for a while, hiding the things in some nook or cranny.
Then he clapped his hands and came out, immediately locking the door behind him.
Gu Zhiyuan pretended not to see and let Gu Zhixing sneak back into his room. Then Gu Zhixing helped Gu Zhiyuan distribute the items: "Brother, hide these things well too! Take them with you when you leave! Give some to Mom tonight so she can have a taste. If she wants some later, I'll give it to her! But we can't give any to Mom, otherwise, with our good father around, she'll probably just give them to those people down there, and Mom won't get any!"
As he spoke, he was still searching around the room, trying to find a place where he could hide something that wouldn't be easily discovered.
Gu Zhiyuan felt a mix of anger, amusement, and pity.
If you have to be like a thief with everything in your own home, guarding against this and that, what's the point of having a home? What kind of life are they living?
My heart was filled with both sorrow and anger! Anger towards Gu Yong!
Watching Gu Zhixing carefully hide everything except a packet of dried meat, Gu Zhixing opened it and popped a piece into his own mouth. Afraid that Gu Zhiyuan would complain, he stuffed a piece into Gu Zhiyuan's mouth as well.
The dried meat is fragrant, with a hint of spiciness and numbing sensation. After being air-dried, it is very chewy, and you can only tear off thin strands with your teeth to eat.
If you stuff a big piece in, you won't be able to bite it at all.
However, the more you chew this meat, the more fragrant it becomes, and the more you want to eat it; you simply can't stop.
Gu Zhiyuan tasted the familiar flavor, glared at Gu Zhixing, and silently began chewing the jerky.
The two brothers, one sitting on the bed and the other on a chair, stared at each other as they ate jerky.
Then they heard a noise outside and there was a knock on the door. It was Gu Yong's orderly's voice: "Zhiyuan, Zhixing, the commander is back and wants you to go down!"
Gu Zhiyuan and Gu Zhixing exchanged a glance.
Gu Zhixing rolled his eyes and muttered, "What bad luck, why is he back!"
Gu Zhiyuan got up, opened the door, looked at the orderly, and asked only one question: "Where's my mother? Has she come back yet?"
The orderly shook his head: "Sister Jiang hasn't come back yet!"
Gu Zhiyuan nodded: "Alright, I understand. We'll go down in a bit."
The orderly turned and went to relay the message.
Gu Zhixing didn't want to go down: "Brother, you go down! I can't be bothered to see their faces. Just call me when it's time to eat!"
Gu Zhiyuan didn't want to make things difficult for his younger brother, so he nodded and patted his hair: "Save some of the jerky for me, don't eat it all!"
After saying that, he closed the door and went downstairs.
Downstairs, Gu Yong was sitting on the sofa, holding a newspaper, but he didn't turn the pages for a long time.
Fang Dani, sitting next to Gu Yong, was talking to him: "Brother Dayong, it's rare for Zhiyuan to come back, but I had something to do today and didn't have time to buy groceries. I guess the logistics department doesn't have any good food this time. What should we do? We can't just come back to find no meat on the table, can we? Wouldn't that make him misunderstand me?"
Gu Yong turned a page of the newspaper, turned to the orderly beside him and instructed, "Xiao Wu, go tell the logistics department to buy some meat and a fish. After all, Zhiyuan just got back!"
Orderly soldier Xiao Wu agreed and quickly went to the logistics department.
Fang Dani's face stiffened for a moment, but she quickly put on a smile: "That's good, that's good, then I'll go prepare!"
As she went to prepare, she saw Gu Zhiyuan coming downstairs and smiled at him, saying, "Zhiyuan, you've finally come back, so don't be angry with your dad anymore! Your dad has had a hard time these past few years! He's suffered a lot because of your being sent to the countryside. Look at him, his hair has turned mostly white, and the family has suffered countless scornful looks because of your family background!"
"Now that you're back, just apologize to your father and make amends. How could a father and son hold a grudge overnight? Zhiyuan, don't you agree? Don't mind your nagging; I'm doing this for your own good—"
Gu Zhiyuan noticed that although Gu Yong was holding a newspaper, his ears were perked up, clearly listening to Fang Dani. His originally calm expression turned slightly angry towards the end.
He immediately gave a mocking laugh.
Look, an army commander, who has been through countless battles and weathered many storms, can't even see through this little trick of a woman?
It's absolutely ridiculous!
After Fang Dani finished speaking, based on past experience, Gu Zhiyuan would definitely mock her a few times, and then Gu Yong would protect her and scold Gu Zhiyuan, that little brat. After being scolded, the little brat would get angrier and angrier, and the father and son would fight, making the house a mess.
But why didn't Gu Zhiyuan say anything today?
Looking up, she met Gu Zhiyuan's mocking gaze, and the smile on her face instantly froze.
Gu Zhiyuan scoffed, "Since Auntie said she'd cook me something delicious since I've finally come back, is that just talk? Or does she not want me to eat at home at all? In that case, I'd better leave."
Fang Dani panicked upon hearing this and hurriedly tried to explain.
Gu Yong spoke first, "You're already finding fault as soon as you get back. Is everything in this house an eyesore to you?"
Fang Dani's triumphant smile hadn't even had a chance to fully bloom.
Gu Yong spoke again, this time directed at Fang Dani: "What are you still standing there for? Aren't you going to help in the kitchen? What will we eat when everyone comes back?"
Fang Dani gave a stiff reply before reluctantly returning to the kitchen.
Gu Yong put down his newspaper and carefully examined Gu Zhiyuan, his eyes full of satisfaction, but he didn't say a kind word: "What? You've finally decided to come back? I thought this family couldn't keep you here!"
Gu Zhiyuan sat down on the sofa to the side, picked up the newspaper that Gu Yong had put down, and said casually while reading it, "Whether we can keep them or not, don't you know in your heart?"
Gu Yong was about to get angry, but then, for some reason, he suppressed his anger and softened his voice: "You've suffered a lot these past two years, haven't you? Since you've suffered, you should have learned something! I heard you made a great contribution this time, but don't be arrogant! You're my son, Gu Yong's son, so it's only right that you did well! Have there been any changes in your work since you came back?"
Gu Zhiyuan put down the newspaper in his hand and looked at Gu Yong with his cold eyes.
For some reason, Gu Yong was somewhat unable to look his son in the eye, and avoided his gaze by picking up a teacup from the coffee table to drink tea as a cover.
Gu Zhiyuan suddenly sneered: "Father, you're concerned about my job? That's strange! Didn't you say before that whether your son lives or dies, it's up to me, and you won't interfere or care? Why are you concerned now?"
Gu Yong was embarrassed and furious: "Look at your attitude! Is this how you talk to me? What kind of upbringing did your mother give you? You've only just gotten a little bit of skill, and you're already showing off in front of your father? Look at your older brothers, neither of them is like you! And look at yourself—"
Gu Zhiyuan interrupted him: "That's not because I'm where I am today, it's because of my own efforts! And they're where they are today because they have a good father, aren't they?"
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