Chapter 74 Chapter 74 Haste
"Ji Rong?"
Zhao Zimo nodded: "Yes, Aunt Lu still remembers it."
Lu Qinghe: "I remember that the little girl was very talented. I also heard from others later that she also had to take care of her mother. She was very sensible and down-to-earth. What happened to her?"
Zhao Zimo was clearly feeling down. "Aunt Lu, after meeting her last year, I played table tennis with her twice. She's really good, and I lost twice in a row, but I was convinced. But when I saw Ji Rong yesterday, she actually said she didn't want to go to the sports school anymore."
"Not going? With her talent, after professional training, I think she could have made the provincial team. When she graduates from the sports school, if she doesn't want to join the provincial team, she can go to a factory or community. Why didn't she go?"
Zhao Zimo nodded. "Ji Rong is really talented. I told her she should go to a sports school, but she said she was going to give up her qualifications. I wondered if something happened to her family."
Lu Qinghe exchanged glances with Zhao Zhanming next to him.
Zhao Zhanming said, "I did hear that Captain Ji's wife was in poor health. But generally speaking, families of martyrs receive special care, especially when they live directly in the military family compound. If they encounter any difficulties, they should report them to the Military Family Association, and someone will come and handle it."
Lu Qinghe recalled, "That child is introverted and young. Maybe he's encountered something and doesn't know how to deal with it. How about this, Zimo, don't worry too much. I'll go take a look tomorrow."
Zhao Zimo nodded: "Thank you, Aunt Lu."
Lu Qinghe: "It's our duty to take care of the widows of martyrs. I'm glad you noticed this."
"Really?"
"Of course, the fact that you thought of helping Ji Rong first proves that you are kind and enthusiastic."
Zhao Zimo scratched his head embarrassedly after being praised, and then went back to the bedroom.
The next day, after Lu Qinghe inquired about the Ji family's address, he thought about it and decided to go find Ying Lu first.
"After all, you're the director of the Military Families Association, so it's perfectly legitimate for you to ask about this. I'm bringing some things with me, and it would be bad if you refuse to accept them or think I'm taking pity on her. After all, that little girl is in adolescence, so she's a bit overthinking."
Ying Lu laughed after hearing this: "You're right, this was also my negligence."
Lu Qinghe: "I can't blame you. There are a lot of people in our military family compound, and there are many cases like the Ji family. It would take several days to visit every household."
"Oh, it would be great if everyone could understand us like you do. Let's go and take a look. Don't let anything really happen. If it gets out of hand, I'll be the one who will be held responsible."
Today is the weekend and the children don't have school.
When we arrived at Ji's house, the door opened by itself.
This is the room at the innermost side of the building, with two bedrooms and a small living room. Ji Rong is cleaning.
After explaining her purpose, Ji Rong lowered her head and hesitated for a long time before speaking.
"I'm fine, I just don't want to go to school."
"Is it a financial problem? If the pension is not enough, I can also help you apply for your child's schooling."
"That's not it."
After thinking for a while, Ji Rong slowly said, "My mother has a weak heart and can't do heavy work. She has to go to the first floor to eat and go to the toilet. She feels uncomfortable and gasps for breath every time. If I go to sports school, feeding her will be a problem. She has to cook and fetch water by herself, and her body can't handle it."
If you go to a sports school, you will have to take boarding management, which is equivalent to a full-time university environment.
At most, I can only go out on weekends.
Ying Lu understood. "So that's how it is. Don't worry, I'll help you solve this problem. Is your mother here now?"
Ji Rong shook her head: "She went to the hospital to get medicine today. I wanted to follow her, but I wanted to tell the teacher from the sports school that I didn't want to go anymore, so I didn't go with her. I...my mom doesn't know that I'm not going to the sports school yet."
"If you want to attend this sports school, we can overcome all our problems. Leave it to me, son. I'll ask the leadership for housing. There's a small courtyard in the back. Although it's a single room, you don't have to go up and down stairs. As for meals, after you leave, if your mother is unable to move, she can eat in the cafeteria."
Ji Rong was surprised and found it unbelievable: "Really?"
"Of course, you should have come to us earlier if you had any problems."
Ji Rong shook her head: "My mother said that she doesn't want to trouble you anymore. The house here is already a hundred times better than what we live in our hometown."
Ying Lu sighed: "When we first arranged for you to stay here, we should have taken your mother's heart disease into consideration. Don't blame us."
"No, my mother's condition wasn't particularly serious at the time. She just told the people who came that she was weak. Auntie, I don't blame you."
After talking things out, Ying Lu quickly came up with a solution in her mind.
Before leaving, Ji Rong looked at Lu Qinghe.
"You are... Zhao Zimo's mother, right?"
Lu Qinghe thought about it, didn't nod, just smiled faintly and said: "You can call me Aunt Lu."
"Aunt Lu." Ji Rong smiled, still a little shy: "Aunt Lu, it was Zhao Zimo who told you about me, right?"
"Um."
"I understand. Thank you, Aunt Lu."
Turning around, it was Monday.
Before the flag-raising ceremony, Zhao Zimo had just come downstairs when he was stopped by Ji Rong who was waiting downstairs.
"Hello."
"Ji Rong? What's wrong?"
Ji Rong smiled and said, "After the flag-raising ceremony, I'll practice two more games with you."
Zhao Zimo's eyes widened. "Really? You usually ignore me when I ask you to practice, but why are you so easy to talk to today?"
"Then don't worry about it. It's today anyway. By the way, thank you."
After saying that, Ji Rong turned around and prepared to leave.
Zhao Zimo looked puzzled, but when he turned around and thought about what Lu Qinghe had said to him last night that the matter was resolved, he also smiled sincerely.
"Hmph, when I get to the sports school, I will definitely train hard and surpass them."
Ji Rong, who had just taken two steps out, heard it and turned back and said with a smile: "Okay, I'll wait for you to play the finals with me."
But this final cannot be played for a while.
The two of them had been admitted to the sports school in advance, and they received admission letters directly after the high school entrance examination results came out.
On the day of sending Zhao Zimo to the sports school, Zhao Zhanming specially set aside half a day and the whole family went out together.
Lu Qinghe: "I've prepared a quilt and mattress for you, as well as two sheets. Remember to change them when you get here. Although you only have a holiday every two weeks, you still have six classes a day. The rest of the time you can move freely around the school. If you have nothing to do, read more. You don't have to be a cultural student, but you must know a lot of cultural knowledge. I've also checked the cafeteria in advance. I'll give you an extra week's worth of food coupons and change each time. You train a lot, so don't starve yourself."
At the school gate, Lu Qinghe repeated everything he could think of and what instructions he could give.
"Also, try to be friendly with your classmates first. But if you're bullied, don't be afraid. Tell your teacher first, then tell your parents. If you're struggling with your training, tell your teacher right away. I know your personality, so don't try to be stubborn. Your body is yours, and any damage will be a lifelong problem. You still have a long way to go."
"I know."
"Yes, I understand."
After Lu Qinghe realized that she had said too much, she saw that Zhao Zimo was not impatient at all.
He stood there quietly for a rare moment, listening to Lu Qinghe talk for more than ten minutes, nodding in agreement from time to time.
After Lu Qinghe realized this, he stopped talking and turned to look at Zhao Zhanming. "What about you? Do you have anything to say?"
Zhao Zhanming looked over and said seriously, "Take care of yourself and work hard."
Lu Qinghe: “…”
He saves a lot of effort.
"Brother Zimo, we will miss you." Zhao Zirui raised his head and pulled Zhao Zimo's hand.
"I don't miss him." Lu Yao said, and then snorted, "But if you don't go back for a long time, you can still force yourself to think about him."
Lu Yang smiled and said nothing.
Zhao Zimo: "I'll be back in half a month, don't worry too much. And Lu Yao, don't go out and cause trouble while I'm away. If you mess with the seniors, there'll be no one to vent your anger on you."
"……oh."
After watching Lu Qinghe and Zhao Zhanming leave, Zhao Zimo turned around and walked towards the dormitory.
Only then did he realize that there was a familiar figure standing next to him.
Ji Rong came over and looked at Zhao Zimo with amusement, "Aunt Lu is so nice, she cares about you so much, and you still say she's not your mother?"
Zhao Zimo's body stiffened a little, and he looked to the side awkwardly, "Who said she wasn't?"
"That's the first time I heard you call me Aunt Lu when we met."
“…It’s just a name.”
What you think in your heart is what you think in your heart.
He...the person he was most reluctant to part with this time was Aunt Lu.
Although he didn't leave home for several months, he had met and talked with Aunt Lu every day for more than two years, and he was almost used to it.
He is used to having someone who cares about him and understands him better than his father.
"I won't talk to you anymore. I'm going back." Zhao Zimo said in a muffled voice and returned to the dormitory.
"Besides, you're a coward."
Zhao Zimo did not refute, but when he lay on the warm and thick mattress in the dormitory, he suddenly agreed with what Ji Rong said.
He seemed to be a little timid. He thought Aunt Lu was a very nice person, but he didn't dare to open his mouth.
Wait... wait until he grows up a little bit.
But he is sixteen now.
During the past sixteen years, he thought that the most painful time he would never forget was the two years when his parents passed away. But now, they have faded a little in his memory.
Even during the years when he followed Zhao Zhanming alone, he still felt a little strange.
On the contrary, this family of six, including Aunt Lu, Lu Yao, Lu Yang, and Zhao Zimo, now makes him feel warmer and more comfortable.
Even time seemed to him to have passed extremely quickly in the past two years.
I don’t know what will happen in the next four years of the sports school?
Amid Zhao Zimo's worries, his life in the sports school officially began. As time passed like flowing water, his life in the boarding school also passed by quickly.
When Zhao Zimo received his diploma, he was even a little dazed.
But looking at Zhao Zhanming and Lu Qinghe applauding him from the audience, he subconsciously revealed a happy and satisfied smile.
"Dad, Aunt Lu! I thought you wouldn't come over today."
Lu Qinghe: "Of course we have to come to your graduation ceremony. It's such an important day. Let's treat your dad to a meal at a state-owned restaurant later."
The three little kids in the family who have already graduated from elementary school are now almost as tall as Lu Qinghe's shoulders.
Lu Yao grew up the fastest. Her doll-like hair was now tied into a ponytail, and she became a graceful young lady.
"Nineteen seventy-one."
Lu Yao leaned over and read the words on Zhao Zimo's diploma, "Congratulations, big brother! You are now the first college student in our family!"
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