"Hehe, I'm so sorry, I forgot about you, sir." Xia Lan stepped out of Qin Yu's arms and gave Old Du a playful smile.
Old Du looked at Xia Lan and happily waved to her, inviting her to come and sit down.
Xia Lan smiled and sat down next to Qin Yu, who affectionately ruffled her hair.
Zhang Qiu stood in the courtyard, looking at the smile on Old Du's face.
Old Du saw Zhang Qiu and waved to her, but his smile wasn't as warm as Xia Lan's.
"Xiao Qiu, come and sit down too!"
"They're here."
Zhang Qiu nodded and sat down next to Old Du.
Old Du looked at Xia Lan with kind eyes.
"You silly girl, are you settling into life in the capital? I wanted to come see you in person, but I was afraid of causing you trouble, so I didn't dare to."
Before Mr. Du came to the capital from Xia Lan, he already knew her exam scores as soon as they were released.
However, given his current status, he can no longer easily visit her, as it could easily cause her trouble.
Xia Lan patted Old Master Du's hand. She had already learned about it from Zhang Qiu, and since Old Master Du had just been exonerated and returned to Beijing, there must be many things that needed his attention.
Knowing that he was alright, Xia Lan was relieved and didn't insist that Old Master Du must see her.
"You've just returned to Beijing, so you must have a lot of things to take care of. If you want to see me, you can do so whenever you have time. We have plenty of time!"
Xia Lan's words deepened the smile on Old Du's face, and he patted her hand happily.
"Good boy."
“From now on, this will be your home. If you want to come over, feel free to do me a favor and keep this old man company. Stay here for a couple of days and let me have some fun.”
Looking at Xia Lan and Qin Yu, Old Du, having lived to such an old age, knew perfectly well that those around him who were kind to him were only after his own interests.
People like Xia Lan and Qin Yu, who don't want anything from him, are especially precious.
He wanted to pave the way for them, but he was also afraid that the dazzling world of the capital would lead them astray.
"That would be great! I'll come over and keep you company on weekends whenever I have time!"
Xia Lan looked at Old Du and smiled.
"Haha, I'll take that old man seriously."
Old Du was overjoyed to hear Xia Lan's words.
Zhang Qiu, standing to the side, looked at Old Du and Xia Lan with complicated emotions, as if they were the real grandfather and granddaughter, while she was just an outsider.
Zhang Qiu slowly stood up. "Grandpa, I just remembered, I have some things to take care of, I'll go and get back to them."
"Oh, then go ahead!"
Old Du glanced at Zhang Qiu and nodded.
Goodbye, Sister Zhang.
Xia Lan waved to Zhang Qiu.
Zhang Qiu nodded and turned to leave.
After Zhang Qiu left, Xia Lan looked at Old Du.
"Old Du, you're so naughty, keeping people at arm's length."
"You're still as clever and mischievous as ever."
Old Du tapped Xia Lan's nose and sighed softly.
“My cunning son-in-law has been watching me closely! As soon as I show them a nice attitude, he can’t wait to bring my clueless daughter over to put on a lovey-dovey show.”
“I don’t blame him for distancing himself from me, for making my daughter cut ties with me, and for watching me get arrested.”
Old Du spoke slowly, gazing at the grape trellis.
"He's just disheartened, and trying to warm him up isn't something that can be done with just a few words! His current position has reached its limit, and he could be ousted at any moment."
"So he was eager to repair his relationship with me and use my influence to climb the social ladder once again."
Xia Lan and Qin Yu listened silently to what Old Du had to say, and then exchanged a glance.
"I don't recognize him! Why should they get all the good things? I don't recognize him!"
Xia Lan said earnestly, her face full of disdain.
Qin Yu nodded.
"When you're useful, they call you 'daddy, daddy,' but when you get into trouble, they cut ties with you. It's disgusting. And they have such high-sounding words. How can there be such a shameless person who has the nerve to ask for your forgiveness and to make you understand how hard they went through back then? I spit on them."
Xia Lan got more and more carried away as she spoke, and slammed her hand on the table in anger.
Old Du nodded in gratitude, knowing that this girl understood him and had expressed his true feelings.
"Everyone had a hard time back then. He must have known when you were suffering there! But what happened? He just let you suffer while he lived a life of luxury in Beijing. Why didn't he think of you then? Now he says it wasn't easy, but he got his ten years of wealth and honor by stepping on you."
Xia Lan excitedly slammed her hand on the table. Qin Yu glanced at her and silently reached out to massage her palm.
"You can curse all you want, but don't lay a hand on me. You'll be the one who gets hurt if you slap someone."
Xia Lan glanced at Qin Yu and obediently sat down.
“I knew that guy was a bad seed. Ignore him and don’t let him bully us,” Xia Lan said earnestly, patting Old Du’s hand.
Old Du's eyes lit up with laughter, knowing that Xia Lan had deliberately helped him scold her, and he couldn't help but smile.
"Yes, listen to Xia, I'll ignore him and make him angry."
“That’s right! Why go looking for trouble?” Xia Lan nodded in satisfaction.
Old Du smiled and sighed softly. After Xia Lan looked over, he slowly said.
"It's still more fun being with you guys. Living in that little courtyard with you, even wild vegetables taste delicious. Since I came back, I haven't had a single meal that I like."
Xia Lan's eyes lit up, and the two of them silently looked at Qin Yu.
"Brother Yu..."
Before he could finish speaking, Qin Yu had already stood up and walked towards the kitchen.
Du Lao and Xia Lan exchanged a glance, their eyes both gleaming with triumphant smiles.
"You left Brother Yu here?" After Qin Yu went to the kitchen, Xia Lan sat down next to Old Master Du and poured him a cup of tea.
Old Du took the hot tea, took a small sip, and smiled with satisfaction.
"Yes, I want to keep him here, and he also wants to stay here with you. But for now, he might have to stay by my side. I'll see what he can do and then I'll try to help him."
Old Du never beat around the bush when he spoke to Xia Lan; he just said it directly.
Xia Lan nodded. "I'm so happy that Brother Yu is staying! But won't it cause you any trouble?"
"What trouble could there be? I'm actually worried about causing trouble for Qin Yu, since I have too many annoying flies around me." Old Du got angry just thinking about those people.
Xia Lan thought of the two apprentices who came to pick up Master Du back then, and looked at Master Du.
Old Du saw through Xia Lan's thoughts.
"It's those two people you're thinking of. One of them has already been dealt with, and they're almost done for."
"So they're afraid of being ousted and want to gain influence from you?" Xia Lan understood.
They were simply having the same idea as Old Du's son-in-law, wanting Old Du to save them.
"Wow, these people are truly shameless, it's quite astonishing."
Xia Lan was truly amazed; those two people were truly exceptional.
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