Zhou Jiao thought about it and shook her head. "No, I've never heard him talk about it. But when I was a kid, he often brought me eggs and chicken legs to eat. He wouldn't let me tell anyone and would secretly pull me to the middle of the bridge. He would stand there and look around. If there was anyone around, he would stuff the eggs into his clothes and tell me to wipe my mouth clean and drink water so no one would notice. I think I was only 5 years old at the time. I remember it very clearly. The first time he gave it to me, he must have been greedy himself and kept asking me if it smelled good. Later, we shared the chicken leg. It seemed that the chicken leg was not fully cooked yet, and it was still roasted black and charred."
Lin Lishan laughed heartily, "At such a young age, he knew to stand in the middle of the bridge. He even knew when people from both ends came. He's really smart."
Zhang Meihao laughed and said to Lin Lishan, "That's not all fun. He's been very well-behaved since he was little, but that was in front of the elders. He's very domineering around other children. When he was only four years old, we were all playing house games and getting married, but he wouldn't let Jiaojiao be anyone else's bride. There were kids from Zhoujia Village who tried to snatch her from him, and I couldn't stop them. I'm four years older than him, and he's so strong he could knock them down with one punch. He even kicked them and kept saying, 'Do you still want Jiaojiao? She's mine.' Later, my mother scolded him, and he said there were so many girls in the village who would be fine with him, but not Jiaojiao, because she was mine. Our whole family was so happy."
Zhou Jiao smiled and said, "I remember this. Later he told me that the child was this old, over 6 years old, and still wet the bed. He told me not to play with him, otherwise he would pee all over me and make me stink. I was young at the time and believed him. Whenever I saw that child, I thought his pee smelled bad."
Lin Lishan found it amusing that such a young boy was already so cunning. "That's why Xiaowu was so smart from a young age. He's only 4 years old, but he already has a sense of territory. He knows to keep you away from others. I think Ping'an will be as smart as his father in the future."
Zhang Meihao nodded repeatedly, "Yes, his son wasn't smart even though he taught him. Look at Xizi, he's been following him since he was little and he's smarter than the other kids. Xiaowu has been smart since he was little. My grandfather has more than a dozen grandchildren, and except for my eldest cousin, he's the best to him. My grandfather always said that the world is in chaos, otherwise Xiaowu would have been the top scholar in the imperial examination, both civil and military. When he was four years old, he watched my grandfather set traps, and when he came back, he dragged his eldest brother to dig traps at the foot of the mountain. My grandfather was so happy to see the traps he directed that he got drunk at my house."
Zhou Jiao smiled at this. Both Zhang Guoqing's childhoods were marked by their precocious intelligence and similar temperaments. This guy was used to using his brain to get things done.
Zhang Guoqing came in with two plates of noodles. "What are you talking about so happily? These two bowls are for Mom and Jiaojiao. Eat them while they're hot. This is for Second Sister. Big Sister will bring it over right away."
Lin Lishan stood up and took a bowl. "Let's talk about your childhood. Let's see if our family will be the same as yours in the future."
Zhang Guoqing handed Jiaojiao a bowl, took out a small table, and placed it on the kang. "Mom, my son is definitely smarter than me. Don't worry about that. Look at how smart Jiaojiao is. The average IQ of the two of them combined is still high."
"Haha, you can calculate it that way. Okay, if you say so, then so be it."
"Grandpa just asked if you wanted to leave with us, early or later? I think it would be best if you stayed there for one night. We can have dinner and rest before leaving. If we leave later, we can drive ourselves and not worry about any delays. It would be too late to wait for you now, and we wouldn't trust you to drive."
Lin Lishan looked at the time on her watch. "It's already past two o'clock, and it will be almost dark at five o'clock. Let's take a break and then go. Let's get to the guesthouse early so that the old man can rest early. He will start working on things tomorrow, and he won't be able to rest if he's busy."
"Okay, I'll go and see grandpa for his opinion. You stay here with Jiaojiao, I'll come to you if there's anything. Second sister, I'll go and urge eldest sister, you do it and she'll be here soon." Zhang Guoqing said to his second sister.
Zhang Meihao stood up and walked out with Zhang Guoqing. "No need. I'm going out to eat. Auntie, I'm going out first. You can eat slowly."
Zhang Guoqing and his partner walked towards the kitchen. Seeing his mother, he walked over and asked her, "Mom, do you have any buns at home? If we leave later, we can eat them on the way."
Mother Zhang walked over to the stove and took a look. "Not many left. Twenty or so won't be enough. How about we make some pancakes? We can't just eat and leave. I'm still making dinner, so we can leave after eating. The guests and relatives have all left, except for your eldest sister and your second sister's two families. It's past two o'clock now, I'll prepare some hot dishes, let them drink first, and I'll make some scallion pancakes for the main course. How do you think it is? Otherwise, who would let the guests go hungry?"
"Okay, listen to Mom. You guys get ready. Serve the hot dishes and drinks first. I'll go tell Grandpa. He just asked me to ask Mom whether she wants to leave early or later, and now I'm telling her to leave after eating. Haha, Mom, don't prepare too much. I just ate noodles."
"Okay, go ahead, let's get ready."
Zhang Guoqing came out of the kitchen and saw the old man walking towards their west wing, so he hurried over there. When the two of them entered the outer room of the west wing, Zhang Guoqing shouted, "Mom, Jiaojiao, grandpa is here."
Grandpa Lin looked at the layout of the outer room and then went inside. "Jiaojiao, just rest and don't get off the kang. Grandpa is leaving soon. I'll let Xiaowu come back by himself. I'll go back to Beijing directly from the provincial capital. You wait until the full moon to see if you can take the train back to Beijing to stay with your grandma for a while. I don't think it's possible. The child is still too young. Waiting for a hundred days is enough."
Zhou Jiao looked at the old man, feeling reluctant to let him go. She missed Grandpa Zhang, and Grandpa Lin's kindness towards her softened her heart. "Grandpa, we haven't even had a good chat since you came, and you're gone. I'll ask my mother to ask the hospital when she returns to Beijing what age a child can be taken out. I'll cook for you myself when I get back."
Old Master Lin looked at her and smiled. "I was worried when Grandpa didn't come. I'm still worried after seeing him. If there's nothing else, you should go back to the capital. Even if you won't live in the capital forever, you should go visit Grandpa from time to time. Our family is not short of money, and Grandpa will reimburse you."
"I will go to see grandpa. I have money. Grandpa, you must take good care of yourself. Please say hello to grandma for me and tell her to take good care of herself. I also wrote a few prescriptions for you to see if they are good for my grandma. My grandma taught me, and I have no place to practice. I heard about grandma's condition and I guess she didn't take good care of herself before." Zhou Jiao took out the two prescriptions she had written during the day and gave them to him.
"I don't know how this prescription works, but the handwriting is beautiful. Show it to your grandma and make her happy. If there's anything you need at home, write to us and we'll mail it to you when the time comes."
Zhou Jiao hurriedly shook her head. "No, I have everything. Don't send it. It's too much trouble. You and grandma should take care of yourselves. When my uncle comes back, you can slowly retire. You don't have to be so busy every day that you don't have time to accompany grandma."
Mr. Lin laughed when he heard this. "Okay, I'll do as you say."
"Grandpa, they are talking about serious matters, we must be serious."
Old Master Lin suppressed his laughter and said, "Okay, Grandpa knows. When your uncle comes back, Grandpa will slowly retire and stay at home to enjoy the good life with your grandma."
Zhou Jiao pouted and said to Zhang Guoqing, "Brother, go out and see if there is anyone approaching. I want to talk to grandpa."
Zhang Guoqing nodded and turned to leave.
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