I also remembered to take the sandwich from the refrigerator today.
"I also remembered to take the sandwich from the refrigerator today."
75.
Chongming called back at 10:30 p.m. He was eating his second meal of the day—instant noodles. Lanjian felt heartbroken by his deliberate attempt to play the victim.
"How could Xue Xiang be so difficult! If he weren't my mentor, I would have sent someone to beat him up long ago!"
“The Institute of Nuclear Energy Research does have a lot of work to hand over to the college. Handling miscellaneous matters such as students going abroad is just a side job. He hasn’t found a new research assistant yet, so it’s only right that I help him.”
"But why are there suddenly so many more students from the Nuclear Research Institute going abroad?" Lan Jian asked, puzzled. "Why does it sound like all these people who decided to apply for exchange programs at the last minute are from our group on the twelfth floor?"
"Yes, what Zhong said is that other research institutes have too many remaining spots, and the university can't meet the quotas set by the Ministry of Education. As a result, the annual budget will be reduced, so the institute negotiated with the university to secure all the exchange spots. Apart from foreign students, the twelfth floor is basically empty."
"Who will mentor the students on that special project?"
"The seniors have all gone out for internships, and the juniors have a special internship program this year, so they will be assigned to the Nuclear Engineering Department 4."
Lan Jian always felt that there was something strange about the nuclear research institute.
But she couldn't explain why.
"I want to play some games to relax. Do you want to join me?" Chongming hadn't opened the game in a long time. He knew that Lanjian rarely played either, so he invited her to play.
"I don't want to play anymore, I'm too tired to go home today."
"Okay, then I'll chat with you while I play games? Until you fall asleep?"
"No need, you play. I don't really want to talk about it."
Chongming picked up the phone from the shelf, solemnly leaned close to the screen, and carefully examined Meng Lanjian. "Aren't you happy to be home?"
"Yeah, I want to find someone to have a good fight with."
“Then I definitely can’t win an argument with you.” Chongming chuckled. “I can’t even speak as fast as you.”
Lan Jian was amused by him, but her smile was forced. "I miss Ms. Ming a little. I really like her as a mother. Although I don't know if it's a sin to hate the way my mother acts as a mother, I still want to say that my mother really doesn't know how to be a mother at all! She always puts her own feelings first."
"From the perspective of an independent woman, there is nothing wrong with prioritizing one's own feelings. It's just that as a daughter, you may feel a little wronged."
“Yes! Our family…” Lan Jian sighed helplessly, “I don’t like our housekeeper at all, I even hate her. Every time I see her, I’m reminded of my aunt’s last moments. I know she’s trying her best to avoid meeting me directly, even when her own son is at the table, she won’t come out of the kitchen to eat with us. But I just really, really hate her, even living under the same roof with her…”
I felt terrible—let alone that she took it upon herself to change the scented candles and the color scheme of my curtains! She even picked out clothes I wouldn't even glance at in the walk-in closet… Yet, she's so impeccable, you can't find a single flaw in what she does. How can someone be so perfect?! She's so flawless that my mom feels she can't live without her. It's really outrageous. My mom even said, to avoid firing her, that even if I didn't go home, she'd be perfectly content with the housekeeper!
Meng Lanjian became more and more agitated as she spoke, and Chongming found it increasingly shocking. He couldn't help but ask, "What about your father? Didn't he stand by his little darling?"
“I can buy any star I want and name it after me, but in the conflicts between my mom and me, he plays the role of a biased arbitrator. He will blame my mom on my behalf, but he will never make my mom apologize to me, nor will he really ‘go against’ my mom’s ideas. My mom is a person who is very difficult to change her mind, so I often compromise after failing to communicate with her.”
"Is that housekeeper also one of the reasons why you don't want to go home for the Chinese New Year?"
"I guess so. My second uncle and I are surprisingly in agreement on this matter, but my second uncle is even more ruthless; he won't even see my aunt anymore."
Meng Lanjian briefly explained to Chongming the relationship between their family and the housekeeper.
“Your family situation sounds really complicated.” Chongming shook his head after listening. “Unlike my family, where Mama takes care of Meimei and Dad takes care of me. The division of labor and responsibility for education is very clear.”
"If I marry into your family, who will take care of me?"
"Who else can take you under their wing?" Chongming couldn't help but raise the corners of his lips. "For the rest of your life, whether you're in the lab or at home, you'll be under my wing."
"Huh?" Lan Jian's ears actually felt hot when she heard this. "How dare you take advantage of me?"
"You're going around claiming fathers everywhere, can't I even get a verbal advantage?"
"You're talking like 'SugarDaddy'!"
"Then hurry up and call me 'Daddy'!" Chongming said, then felt a chill run down his spine. "Sorry, I take it back. Forget I said anything!"
"If you hadn't retracted it any later, I would have already changed the note!"
"I was wrong. Please don't send someone to assassinate me, Father-in-law."
"..."
As Lan Jian bantered with Chongming, her initial unease upon returning home subsided considerably. She softly called Chongming's name, but he didn't respond, silently watching Lan Jian on the screen, patiently awaiting her next words.
"I also remembered to take good care of myself today!" Lan Jian said with a hint of pride.
“Okay,” Chongming nodded approvingly, “I also remembered to take the sandwiches out of the refrigerator today.”
Lan Jian understood Chongming's meaning almost instantly.
The two smiled at each other across the screen.
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