Chapter 45 Help

Song Jing and Lin Qiao had met a few days ago, both of them were doing internships in their first year of high school. However, Lin Qiao was busy and they had not met much.

In the few times they met by chance, Song Jing was not as friendly to her as before. I don’t know if he saw through her attitude.

Hearing Ji Ze bring it up, there was some worry in her words. As the elder, she asked a question, but she didn't expect that her question would stump Ji Ze.

Ji Ze was also confused now, especially after hearing Lin Qiao's unhurried "hmm".

He is doing business, and his mother must not know about this. Otherwise, given the current scale of the business, his mother will definitely find a way to ruin it.

Luckily, his father retired and returned to the local area, and his mother followed him. He no longer had many connections in the army, so he hadn't noticed that he had taken his annual leave until now. Once Song Jing came to the army, she would ask him to take care of her every few days. Wouldn't he be exposed sooner or later?

However, in front of Ye Minshu, it is still Lu Liang'er, but in front of Lin Qiao, it is not the same?

Ji Ze never thought that he would ask his uncle for help and bring this matter to Lin Qiao's attention. "Where is my uncle?"

"He's not at home because he has something to do." Since Ji Duo didn't let Lin Qiao tell the old house, Lin Qiao naturally wouldn't tell Ji Ze, so he asked the same question again.

It's not that she likes to meddle in other people's business, but mainly because Ji Ze looked a little anxious. Ji Duo was not around, and she was the elder after all, so she could help and give some advice if she could.

But how should Ji Ze answer this?

Song Jing is here. Am I afraid that my mother will find out that I am doing business with you?

He could only answer vaguely, "No, it's nothing. I just haven't been behaving well recently and I'm afraid my mom will find out and nag me again."

Ji Duo, the uncle, is really good at what he does. When his nephew performs poorly at work and wants to keep it a secret from his family, he has to ask him for advice...

But Ye Minshu asked Ji Ze to take care of Song Jing, was she trying to bring the two of them together? After all, she was almost saying "satisfied" three times a day.

As a result, Ji Ze treated him as a surveillance device and an informant, and was on guard at all times.

As soon as Lin Qiao heard it, she knew Ji Ze was not telling the truth. She was an aunt who she was not very familiar with, so it was normal for her not to want to say anything. So she just said "Oh" and didn't ask any more questions.

But she didn't ask, Ji Ze still felt guilty, and immediately changed the subject, "Auntie, have you resolved the issue last time?"

"Last time? You mean the recipe?"

"Ah, I just heard what you and uncle said, so I just asked casually."

"There is no movement for now, so there should be no problem."

"Then there should be no problem. My uncle has always been a reliable person, and the friends he makes are definitely reliable too. Don't worry, auntie."

Is he trying to comfort her, or is he just making small talk because he really doesn't want to talk about what happened before?

Lin Qiao was a little speechless. The person on the other end probably realized that his conversation was just awkward. "If there's nothing else, I'll hang up first?" He asked in a questioning tone.

But when he said this, Lin Qiao really thought of something, "Your uncle has a friend named Su Zheng, do you know him?"

"Yes, my uncle took me to play with him when I was a kid."

Even though he cried and shouted and insisted on going with her.

"Can you get his phone number? Or even his specific workplace," Lin Qiao said. "I have something to ask him."

"Auntie, please wait for me." Ji Ze hung up the phone and called again after a while, "I found it, Auntie, please take notes."

Liu Cuiying was at home and had just found paper and pen for Lin Qiao, so Lin Qiao quickly wrote it down.

Seeing that she was very serious, Ji Ze asked for Ji Duo's number without waiting for him to come back. Thinking that the matter was a bit urgent, he asked a question.

"A student in our class ran away from home." Lin Qiao did not hide the secret from him. "He has been gone for three days and we still haven't found him."

"Do you want Uncle Su Zheng to help you find someone?"

"Let's ask him. The student took his household registration and food card with him when he left. He should not have left Yandu. If it's convenient for him, please keep an eye out for him for me."

If Su Zheng wasn't from the police department, she wouldn't have looked for him, but he was, so he must have been better informed than her, a teacher from another place who stayed in school all day.

Unexpectedly, Ji Ze was silent for a moment, "Auntie, do you have a photo of that student?"

Lin Qiao understood it immediately, "Do you want to help look for it?" She remembered that Ji Ze was born and raised here and seemed to have a wide network of contacts.

Sure enough, Ji Ze said "hmm", "I have a few..." He wanted to say salesman, but changed it to "friends" when he said it. "I usually walk around the streets and meet a lot of people. If you have photos and know the general direction, I can help you ask around."

Having one more way out is always better than looking for a needle in a haystack. Lin Qiao thought for a moment and said, "Let's focus on finding a place where I can get a part-time job."

Qi Huaiwen went back to get his things, obviously planning to stay outside for a long time. He didn't have much money, so he had to find a job to eat and live.

The two chatted for a few more sentences and agreed on a time to pick up the photos before Lin Qiao hung up the phone.

"Has Junzi's deskmate not been found yet?" Liu Cuiying couldn't help asking, "He's been sighing these past two days, talking about this every day when he comes home."

"Not yet, but it shouldn't have gone far." Lin Qiao told the truth.

Liu Cuiying couldn't help but sigh, "What a kid! Why is he angry with his dad? There are no parents in the world who don't love their children. How can his dad hurt him?"

This is what most people think, because they don't understand, they just think that the child is rebellious and disobedient. This matter is too complicated, and Lin Qiao can't explain it to her. She just smiled and thanked her, and then asked embarrassedly: "Can I make another call?"

"You can hit me if you want, but it's more important to find the child."

Hearing that they were looking for someone, Su Zheng did not hesitate. He not only asked for Qi Huaiwen's photo, but also asked for the phone numbers of Liang's home and Lin Qiao's school. "I'll keep an eye out for you."

But she didn't expect that the first person to give her the news was Ji Ze.

"You said the person was found? At the construction site?" Even someone as calm as Lin Qiao couldn't help but confirm again with the person on the phone.

"I found one. He said he had just arrived a few days ago. He doesn't talk much, and judging by his clothes, he doesn't look like his family is poor. But he didn't ask for much, and he's capable. The contractor looked like an adult, so we kept him because he was cheap."

When it comes to walking the streets and asking where temporary workers are being recruited, Su Zheng is really not as good as Ji Ze's men who carry liquid soap everywhere to sell it.

After all, these people were temporary workers themselves. Before being recruited by Ji Ze, they relied on these private information and connections to make a living in Quan Yandu.

"Then I'll go over and take a look. Give me the address." Without seeing anyone, Lin Qiao was not sure and planned not to notify Vice President Qi first.

When Ji Ze heard that he was going there, he said, "Get off at North City. I'll pick you up."

When Lin Qiao got off the bus at the bus stop, Ji Ze was already waiting there.

He was not wearing a military uniform, and his hat was pulled down a little, covering half of his face. If he hadn't stepped on the ground and called her on the bicycle, Lin Qiao would have almost failed to recognize her.

"Have you been waiting for a long time?" Lin Qiao walked over. "There's a section of road under construction, so it's a bit congested."

"It won't be long, let's talk while we walk." Ji Zechun handed her a bottle of soda.

It is packaged in a glass bottle, has an orange-yellow orange flavor, and has a few orange grains on the top. It is a fresh thing that is not available in my hometown.

Lin Qiao thanked him and took it, and couldn't help but think of Ji Duo.

If Ji Duo went out with others, he probably wouldn't even think that he could buy soda for others. In this regard, his eldest nephew was much better than him.

Lin Qiao sat firmly on the back seat of the bicycle, and Ji Ze rode out with a kick of his feet. "A building is being built over there, and it's quite crowded. It's hard to find the place without someone to guide you." He explained why he came to pick someone up.

But rather than being hard to find, he probably thought there were too many people around and was worried that she would be unsafe alone, right?

However, Lin Qiao was not from Yandu, so it was not easy to find some places without someone to guide her, especially in the shantytowns that had just been renovated. She looked at the buildings that had not been completely demolished and the dirty and messy environment around her, "You must have a lot of friends, so you can find places like this."

Ji Ze choked and the bicycle turned a corner as it bumped on the ground.

But he quickly regained his composure, "It was just a coincidence. My friend happened to know there was a construction project nearby, so he helped me check it out."

Fortunately, Lin Qiao didn't really want to find out anything, his mind was completely on the students, and soon the two of them arrived at the construction site.

The construction sites of that era were not as standardized as later ones. There were no fences outside and no safety warnings.

The workers passing by did not take any protective measures. Lin Qiao frowned and searched, and soon found a boy who was not so dark from the sun among the dark-faced men and women.

He looked thinner than when he left, and from a distance he looked like an unbendable bamboo pole. He seemed out of place among the temporary workers who were chatting and laughing.

He didn't seem to care, he just lowered his head to load the bricks into the wheelbarrow, pushed it under the half-built building, unloaded the wheelbarrow, and went back to load it. The early autumn sun was shining, and sweat was dripping from his brows, but he just shook it off, silently and stubbornly, as if silently resisting.

"Is that the student you are looking for?" Ji Ze stopped the car on the side of the road, turned around and asked Lin Qiao in a low voice.

"It's him." Lin Qiao got out of the car and handed the soda to Ji Ze. "Wait for me, I'll go talk to him."

Ji Ze nodded, and Lin Qiao walked around the debris on the ground in front of him and called out, "Qi Huaiwen."

It was a very familiar name, a very familiar clear voice, and the boy's back froze almost instantly.

But he did not respond, nor did he turn around. He quickly continued with the work at hand, as if he had not heard it.

Judging from his attitude, he would probably pretend not to know him even if he went up to grab him. Lin Qiao didn't say anything else and simply went up to help him.

Lin Qiao's hands were naturally beautiful. She hadn't done any rough work in the past few months, so the rashes on her palms had disappeared, and even her nails were glowing with a healthy sheen. But because they were well-maintained, when the fine white flesh came into contact with the roughness of the brick surface, it was particularly glaring.

Qi Huaiwen's brows immediately furrowed, and he glanced at her, as if he wanted to say something.

Lin Qiao didn't look at the boy, but quickly filled the wheelbarrow and reached out to push it.

Those hands that had worked in batches, those hands that had led them through countless miraculous experiments, were now helping him move bricks here...

The young man pursed his lips and rushed to grab it, but someone was faster than him, "Auntie, leave it alone, I'll do it."

Ji Ze didn't have such a good attitude towards Qi Huaiwen, "Don't worry, I'll do it for you, it won't hinder you from making money. Just go and talk to her, she has been looking for you for several days." After saying that, without waiting for his reaction, he pushed the wheelbarrow and left.

In their family, women are not allowed to do heavy labor. If the uncle knew that the aunt was working here and he was watching, he would definitely chop him off.

Not to mention that Ji Ze's nephew's push was quite realistic. Lin Qiao patted the dust off his hands and said, "Can you talk to me now?"

The look in her eyes was the same as that day in the corridor, no anger, no blame, but he didn't listen to her and ran so far...

Qi Huaiwen lowered his head and took the lead to walk a few steps to a deserted place to the side.

Lin Qiao followed him and just as she stood still, she heard the boy say stiffly, "I won't go back, teacher, please stop trying to persuade me."

"Who said I wanted to persuade you?" Lin Qiao actually raised his eyebrows.

Qi Huaiwen was stunned.

Lin Qiao had already glanced at the construction site and quickly changed the subject, "How much do you get paid a day for working here?"

It was a completely irrelevant sentence, but Qi Huaiwen still answered subconsciously, "1 yuan and 57 cents."

"That's less than being a teacher. Being a teacher is more stable. If it rains or snows in winter, there will be no work."

Lin Qiao commented and suddenly looked directly at him, "If you do this for your whole life, and your family members get sick, can you treat them and give them medicine?"

The boy was stunned again.

Lin Qiao didn't give him any time to react. "If you do this for the rest of your life, working yourself to death every day, can you rush back in time when your family needs you?"

This sentence touched the other person's most painful point. The boy's eyes turned red in an instant and he turned around and left.

Lin Qiao did not pursue him, and did not even raise her voice. "Since you hate him and cannot forgive him, then be more determined and do not let yourself become like him."

Qi Huaiwen was a very smart child. He might understand those great principles, but he just felt aggrieved and couldn't express it.

Vice Principal Qi attached great importance to students' grades, but he didn't study hard; Vice Principal Qi taught a college student, but he dropped out of school...

Whether he did this out of pure revenge or to get his father to pay more attention to him, perhaps even he himself could not tell.

So Lin Qiao didn't try to persuade him, but instead said something harsh right away.

As expected, as soon as the words “Don’t let yourself become like him” came out, the boy’s feet seemed to be rooted to the ground and could no longer move.

Lin Qiao saw that he clenched his fists and the words came out of his throat, "I'm not him, don't compare me with him!"

"But you are following in his footsteps."

Lin Qiao stepped forward and said in a very calm voice, "He neglected his family, his wife and children for someone else, and you gave up yourself for him, and also gave up the family you would have in the future. In terms of the results, there is no difference."

In terms of results, there is no difference?

Qi Huaiwen wanted to refute, but he couldn't refute Lin Qiao's words.

Seeing that he was silent, Lin Qiao raised her hand and patted his shoulder. "In your seventeen years of life, your mother has been with you for ten years, and he has been with you for seven years. You should live for yourself. If you can study, then study. If you can't, I will find a way to help you transfer to another class. Qi Huaiwen, don't let your mother down for giving you a good brain."

Whether it is love or hatred, when a person's life is completely controlled by another person, that is the beginning of tragedy.

Lin Qiao hopes that every decision he makes is for himself, not to spite someone, so that he won't regret it in the future.

Feeling the slight tremor in her hands' shoulders, she deliberately softened her tone, "To be honest, I scolded the soldiers because of you. If you don't go back, I will be criticized as a teacher. I just became the official class teacher and I let the students run away. How unpopular I am."

She said this just to let Qi Huaiwen know that there is not only that one person in life, but also countless people around him who care about him.

Unexpectedly, the boy whispered, "I'm sorry."

His voice was hoarse and he could hear some choking, but at least he no longer looked like he was covered in spikes as he had just seen.

"Then go back and write me a 3,000-word self-criticism." Lin Qiao pretended to be stern.

The boy was silent for a while, "Teacher Lin, can I hug you?"

This request was very abrupt, but thinking about the fact that he had not had a mother since he was ten years old, Lin Qiao softened his heart and said, "Just don't say I look like my mother like Li Xiaoqiu did."

Qi Huaiwen choked, but still turned around and put his arms around her.

To be honest, he was very polite and restrained, and didn't even get close to her, but Lin Qiao could clearly hear the suppressed sniffing sound beside her.

She didn't move. Seeing her nephew's eyes widened in surprise, she gently waved her hand to indicate that she was fine and told him to keep quiet.

This time, Ji Ze was even more displeased with Qi Huaiwen. He was helping him with work here, but he was hugging his aunt over there. If his uncle knew about this...

His uncle is such a calm and serious person, he probably wouldn't mind if he knew the whole story.

But Ji Ze still felt uneasy. He looked at it for a while, then looked at it again, and finally he could see them apart.

"Where have you been staying these two days? Go pack your things." Lin Qiao said as he walked back.

“It’s at the construction site.”

The corners of Qi Huaiwen's eyes were still a little red, but his expression had calmed down. He went to tell the contractor that he quit, and went to the simple house next door to get a package.

He had worked for a long time in vain, and the contractor didn't say anything. Moreover, it was obvious that he had run away from home, and his family came to look for him.

Seeing Qi Huaiwen picking up something, Lin Qiao and Ji Ze thanked him and said, "Thanks for your help this time."

"It's okay. As long as I can help." Ji Ze didn't seem to be troubled at all, and there was a kind of ease that was hard to understand.

Ji Ze himself couldn't explain it, but at least he could help Lin Qiao a little. It would make him feel less uncomfortable when facing Lin Qiao.

They came alone and left together. Qi Huaiwen sat next to Lin Qiao and would glance at Lin Qiao's hand from time to time.

"It just got a little red, but it doesn't hurt."

Lin Qiao moved his fingers, and the boy turned back and looked out the window, looking a little uncomfortable.

Bringing the person back to school was like Lin Qiao bringing back a giant panda. Everyone who saw him would take a second look. Empress Bi was the most exaggerated. "You can even find this? You are wasting your talent as a teacher. You should be a police officer, specializing in finding people and things."

Why didn't he say she should be a police dog...

Lin Qiao was speechless, but still sent him back to the classroom. "There are self-study classes in the afternoon. Check out the classes you missed before."

Qi Huaiwen hesitated, but finally nodded. As soon as he entered through the back door, the soldier rushed over with a cry, "Qi Huaiwen, you're back!"

"What? Qi Huaiwen is back!"

When the other students heard this, they swarmed over him, "Qi Huaiwen, where have you been these past two days? Did you know that Principal Qi is in the hospital?"

When talking about Vice Principal Qi, Qi Huaiwen's eyes were warmed by his friend's concern.

God became cold again.

The soldier sensed something was wrong and quickly pulled the man away. The man quickly changed the subject, "Did Teacher Lin find you? Teacher Lin is amazing!"

Just at this moment, Team Leader Gao hurried over and asked, "I heard that Huaiwen was found?" He looked into the classroom while saying this.

"I just found it and haven't had time to tell Principal Qi." Lin Qiao lowered his voice.

"Then you should take him to the Military Headquarters. Lao Qi's condition has not been good. The hospital here is small, so I suggest you transfer him to the Military Headquarters. He was just transferred this morning."

"I'm not going." Unexpectedly, the boy heard it and stood coldly at the back door.

"This..." Knowing what was bothering him, Team Leader Gao also felt that it would be difficult to find him back, so he subconsciously looked at Lin Qiao. It seemed that Lin Qiao had some extraordinary ability that could bring him back, and could also persuade Qi Huaiwen, so that the father and son could resolve their problems.

Lin Qiao said to the boy, "Then don't go. I'll go over and tell them you're back."

The young man was slightly stunned, and Team Leader Gao had never expected this.

Lin Qiao patted the boy on the shoulder just like he did at the construction site, "Go back. No one in this world can ask you to forgive him except yourself."

Everyone else asked him to be understanding and told him that his father had a hard time too. Only Lin Qiao said that no one could ask him to forgive...

Qi Huaiwen pursed his lips and suddenly changed his tone, "I'll go." He looked at Lin Qiao with his clear peach blossom eyes and gradually became firm, "I'll go and talk to him in person."

The group rushed to the Military General Hospital. The sun was setting. As soon as Lin Qiao entered the inpatient department, he heard a deep voice that couldn't be more familiar.

"How is it going?"

"I'm not very optimistic. It's mainly because my mood has been very up and down, and I've been stimulated."

She took two quick steps and looked over there. A man was talking to the doctor with his back to her. He had broad shoulders, long legs, excellent bone structure, and perfect body proportions under his military uniform.

She raised her eyebrows at that moment.

Hey, isn’t this her husband who has been away from home for several days and is her husband in name as well as in body?

He said he was going on a long journey, so he came here?

Noticing that Lin Qiao had stopped, Qi Huaiwen called out softly, "Teacher Lin?"

The voice was really low, but the man's hearing was well-trained. He looked over immediately and met Lin Qiao's interested eyes.

Ji Duo was stunned at the time, but Lin Qiao raised his hand and greeted him generously, "What a coincidence, Captain Ji."

Receiving his wife's greeting, Captain Ji said: "..."

Before he could say anything, Lin Qiao pointed to the stairwell and said, "I'll go up first." Then she left with the boy.

As soon as the man left, Su Zheng hurried over from behind and asked, "How is Mr. Gu?"

“The situation is not optimistic.”

Ji Duo repeated what the doctor said, but looking at his expression, Su Zheng always felt that the actual situation might be more serious than he said.

Su straightened his expression and said, "Tell me the truth. I can bear it."

Then Ji Duo gave him a strange look.

Su Zheng wanted to ask more questions when Ji Duo, who was walking up the stairs beside him, suddenly stopped. And he was not stopping at the ward for senior cadres that they were going to.

Just as he was wondering, he heard a familiar female voice in the corridor. His expression became strange unconsciously, "Your wife?"

"Um."

"Did I just bump into you?"

"Um."

"You didn't come here without going home or telling her, did you?" Su Zheng felt that he understood why Ji Duo looked strange.

Sure enough, after hearing what was said, Ji Duo's steps on the way upstairs paused again imperceptibly.

"Does she know what you are doing this time?"

Su Zheng looked at his good friend with an increasingly strange look in his eyes, and even a hint of sympathy, "Ji Duo, you're done."