"mom."
At about five o'clock, Lu Nanzheng pushed open the gate and came in, carrying a lot of things in his hands.
Mrs. Lu was mopping the floor. Seeing him coming, she smiled and said, "Why are you here so early?"
"I took two hours off."
When Lu Nanzheng entered the house carrying something, Lu Jingchuan and the others came out of the kitchen. He called out first, "Dad."
Lu Nanzheng nodded and his eyes fell on his daughter-in-law.
Gong Linglong had seen his photos at her grandparents' place a long time ago. Lu Jingchuan looked a bit like him, but Lu Jingyang looked even more like him. Perhaps because of his job, he had a more refined temperament.
When they first met, she smiled faintly and politely called him, "Dad."
"Why."
Lu Nanzheng smiled at her, walked towards them carrying something, and said, "Linglong, I don't know what you like, so I just bought some food."
He bought a lot, and both his hands were heavy. There were milk powder, malted milk, canned red dates, and some dried fruits. They were all high-quality goods bought from overseas Chinese stores.
It was a heartfelt gift, and Gong Linglong accepted it graciously, smiling and thanking him, "Thank you, Dad. I'm sorry for the expense."
"As long as you like it."
Lu Nanzheng handed everything to his son. Seeing that he looked darker and thinner than the last time he came back, he asked with concern, "You've lost so much weight, are you not sick?"
"I'm not sick." Lu Jingchuan didn't say much to him.
Lu Nanzheng nodded and said nothing more.
The father and son didn't say anything, but Zhou Lanqin said to her ex-husband: "Jingyang has fallen in love with a girl. Jingchuan introduced her to her through Jiang Yun, the apprentice of Chief Han J. He invited her to dinner tonight. You should make some preparations."
"Okay." Lu Nanzheng nodded and asked, "When did you confirm your relationship? Why didn't you tell me before?"
"We only met during the disaster relief effort. Jingchuan and Linglong helped push it along last night. I invited them here today to pave the way. What happens next is up to them. Once they're completely sure, I'll tell you what's next."
Although they divorced a long time ago, they did not have much grudge against each other because of what happened back then. They have two sons and they often contact each other to discuss their studies, work and marriage.
After Lu Nanzheng came over, he was not idle either. He first set up the tables, chairs, benches, and dishes, and also helped his mother mop the floor and clean the house.
"Grandma, Dad, the braised pork and egg rolls are steamed, you can try them."
Gong Linglong came over with a small bowl and handed them chopsticks. She said to her father-in-law, "Dad, there are some dried chilies in the braised pork, so it's a little spicy. Can you handle spicy food?"
"OK."
Lu Nanzheng curled his lips, looking very happy. He took the chopsticks, picked up a piece of meat, and fed it to his mother first, "Mom, you try it first."
"tasty."
Madam Lu's eyes lit up as soon as she tasted it. "Linglong's cooking skills are quite good. This braised pork is delicious, steamed to the perfect softness."
Lu Jingchuan also took a piece and ate it, his eyes smiling, "Grandma, your granddaughter-in-law's cooking skills are amazing, especially this braised pork with pickled vegetables. No one else's is as delicious as hers."
"You are lucky, kid." Old Madam Lu looked at him with a smile.
Zhou Lanqin also came out with a bowl, smiling broadly as she said, "Before, I said five bowls would be enough, but Linglong said ten. It's such a delicious dish, luckily they made ten bowls, otherwise there wouldn't be enough to share."
Seeing that they were all eating braised pork belly, Gong Linglong smiled and recommended egg rolls, "Try the egg rolls, they're fresh out of the pan, they're also delicious."
“It tastes good.”
Lu Nanzheng tried it first. It was his first time eating egg rolls and he liked the taste very much.
"Well, it is indeed delicious, but it takes too much time to make. I have to boil the egg skin, chop the meat and prepare the stuffing. I can't do this kind of delicate work." Zhou Lanqin said with a smile.
Gong Linglong actually enjoyed making it. Seeing that they all liked it, she said, "I'll make it for my parents when we return to Beijing."
"This dish is hard to make. It would be nice to try it during festivals." Zhou Lanqin didn't want to tire her out.
After finishing their meal, the three of them returned to the kitchen to busy themselves. Madam Lu said to her son, "The young couple bought you a lot of gifts and brought them here yesterday. There are clothes and shoes, as well as the medicinal wine and tonic pills prepared by Linglong's mother. Remember to take them with you when you go back."
"Mom, keep the medicinal wine and pills for you and Dad." Lu Nanzheng said.
"We have some too. Linglong prepared a lot, and your brother and sister-in-law and your younger brother and sister-in-law all have them. They are all here for now, and they can come over tonight and take them away."
Madam Lu put down the broom and asked something else: "Did you educate Qiu He last time you went back?"
"She's been educated. Her temperament is set and there's no cure for it."
Lu Nanzheng has been educating them since they were young. They were fine when they were young, but after they entered adolescence, they were more influenced by their mother and the Ruan family, and were guided by their classmates and friends, and became more and more ignorant.
"He'll get into trouble sooner or later." Mrs. Lu sighed.
"I've already gotten into trouble."
Being criticized by the newspaper this time not only brought shame upon herself, but also upon the Lu family.
Seeing that he was frowning when talking about his daughter, Madam Lu frowned and said, "Last year, I suggested sending her to the countryside as an educated youth to hone her character for a while and let her suffer a little. Maybe she would change her temper. You didn't listen to me, and now she's like this. It's all because of you who spoiled her."
"Mom, I wanted to arrange for her to go to the countryside at the end of the year before last. I only mentioned it to them at home, but they firmly disagreed. Qiu He took a pair of scissors and tried to commit suicide at home. She cut her wrists until they bled."
Old Madam Lu didn't know about this. She said with a dark face, "What a jerk! She's so young and yet she's trying to threaten you like this. With such a bad character, she'll do it again. Sooner or later, she'll cause trouble for you and force you. The two little ones will follow her example too. You've got a lot of hard times ahead of you."
Lu Nanzheng himself knew this clearly, and said with a tired face: "I won't let them affect Jingchuan and Jingyang."
"You, one misstep will lead to eternal regret."
Seeing him like this, Mrs. Lu felt distressed, but more disappointed.
Lu Nanzheng twitched his lips, exhausted and helpless. "Mom, there's no point in saying this. I'll teach them what they need to. If they listen, I'll arrange for them to do things according to their abilities in the future. If they don't listen, then let them be. They'll choose their own path in the future, and no matter how hard it is, no matter how much they regret, they'll have to walk it on their knees."
Just like him, if he did something wrong or took the wrong path, even if he regretted it deeply, he had to bear the consequences himself.
"You should pay more attention to their education."
"They didn't listen to what we said. It went in one ear and out the other. But they listened to everything their mother and the Ruan family said to encourage them."
"Don't blame us two elders for going too far. We are not biased towards boys over girls, nor are we favoring the Jingchuan brothers over the three sisters. It's their personalities and conduct that are disappointing."
"You're going to be a grandfather, so we won't interfere in your family affairs. I don't have high expectations for the three sisters. I don't expect them to be successful. I just hope they don't harm society or bring shame to the Lu family."
Lu Nanzheng took his mother's words to heart, nodded, and said nothing more.
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