“Knock, knock…”
The waiter knocked on the door, and the group brought up the fragrant hot meal. Cui Zhiyuan personally stood up to get the white wine and wine glasses and poured wine for Han Ji and the others.
The men drank white wine, the women and children drank milk, and Cui Zhiyuan and his sister entertained everyone politely and warmly.
"Linglong, eat some food."
Cui Zhiyuan picked up some food for her and the triplets. He didn't know what they liked to eat, so he picked up some braised pork for each of them first.
"Okay, you eat, and we'll help ourselves."
Gong Linglong was polite yet distant. Seeing Cui Siwei, who was sitting on the other side of him, always looking at her, she took the initiative to talk to him: "This is the second time we meet, and I don't even know your name."
"Sister, my name is Cui Siwei, Si for thinking and Wei for doing. I'm ten years old."
Cui Siwei had been secretly watching the mother and daughter. He thought they were so beautiful, especially the half-sister, who was much prettier than Liang Siyao. Her speech and manners were also very elegant. She really looked like a rich lady from a wealthy family.
"Are you studying in Country M? Is it summer vacation now too?"
"Yes, it's summer vacation, and school starts in early September." Cui Siwei was generous and took the initiative to ask, "Is your summer vacation time the same as ours?"
"Almost. We start school on September 1st."
The two siblings were talking to each other, and Cui Zhiyuan, who was sitting in the middle, kept picking up food for them. Seeing that Han Ji was taking good care of Gong Wantang while she was eating, even picking out fish bones for her, and that he was also taking care of the child, he felt indescribable sadness in his heart.
"Wantang, are you staying at home and taking care of the children now?" Cui Zhiyuan tried to find something to say to her.
Gong Wantang nodded. "The child is still young. I stayed at home to take care of him for the first half of the year, and went to work in the second half."
"Which unit do you work for?"
Cui Zhiyuan knew that she was very skilled in medicine, especially in drug research and development. Before she could answer, he asked again, "Do you work in a hospital?"
"No, I'm hired to teach at Kyoto College of Traditional Chinese Medicine."
This is Gong Wantang's official job. In fact, the senior leader met with her last month and talked to her about drug research and development. She agreed and has also discussed it with Dean Shui Tingyi. She will not teach many professional courses in the school in the future and will reserve more time for medical research.
"Take office when school starts on September 1st?" Cui Zhiyuan asked.
"right."
Gong Wantang was now very calm in front of him, without any particular emotional fluctuations. She asked casually, "Have you met your parents?"
"Yes, I saw him this morning."
Speaking of them, Cui Zhiyuan remembered that her dowry was occupied and apologized to her: "Wantang, I heard that my eldest brother and sister-in-law occupied your house. I apologize to you on their behalf."
"It has nothing to do with you."
Gong Wantang knew his character well. He and Cui Ningyuan and his wife were not on the same page. She asked again, "Your parents tried every possible way to find out about Linglong. After they investigated, I heard from Lanzhi that they sent someone to send you a letter. What do they want you to do?"
Speaking of this, Cui Zhiyuan smiled a little coldly: "They took it all away, just wanting me to contribute money and effort to support the family and take them to Country M to make a living."
"Are you going to take them with you?" Gong Wantang asked.
"I have no such plans."
Cui Zhiyuan shook his head and smiled bitterly: "I was stupid and couldn't see through it before, but now I see through it. I don't plan to get involved with them anymore."
He didn't want to talk about the Cui family, so he asked about the Gong family instead, "Is your father in good health?"
"fine."
"I heard that your mother passed away. She was in good health before. Why did she pass away so early?" Cui Zhiyuan had asked his younger sister before, but she was not quite sure.
Talking about her mother who passed away young, Gong Wantang was a little depressed: "The fire at the Gong family home wasn't an accident. It was arson. I won't go into details. My mother died in that fire."
"I'm sorry for bringing up your sad story."
When the fire broke out, Cui Zhiyuan rushed over first. The entire Gong family was engulfed in flames, which burned for a whole day. All the houses were burned down. He felt that the fire was very strange and did not seem to be an accidental fire.
It now appears that the fire was fraught with secrets and had caused great pain to their families.
"It's okay, it's all over." Gong Wantang didn't continue the topic.
Seeing that the atmosphere was a little cold, Gong Pengze stood up and spoke, pointing at the dish next to Cui Zhiyuan, "Mom, I want to eat that shrimp ball."
"Xiao Peng, I'll pick it up for you."
Cui Zhiyuan stood up and picked one for him first, then asked the other two brothers: "Chuming, Axiao, do you want some?"
Both brothers nodded.
Cui Zhiyuan picked up some for them and also for Gong Linglong, then continued chatting with her: "Linglong, I heard you opened a candy factory? How is the performance?"
"It's only been open for ten days, it's okay."
"Is it convenient for me to visit?" Cui Zhiyuan wanted to get to know her better.
Gong Linglong didn't refuse and nodded in agreement: "Okay."
She agreed, and Cui Zhiyuan was very happy. "Then let's make an appointment?"
"It's up to you. I'll go to the factory every day."
"In the city, or in the suburbs?"
"In the suburbs."
Gong Linglong thought there was no bus going there, so she asked him, "Where do you live? I'll drive there this morning and I can take you with me."
"I'm staying at the Wenhua Hotel. Let's meet tomorrow morning. Is that okay?"
"Okay." Gong Linglong nodded. "I'll pick you up at the hotel entrance at seven o'clock."
"good."
His daughter did not dislike or reject him, and was willing to communicate with him. Cui Zhiyuan's previous worries all disappeared. He was now filled with joy and looked forward to spending time with her tomorrow.
Seeing that they got along well, Cui Lanzhi breathed a sigh of relief without leaving a trace. She let the father and daughter chat to deepen their relationship. She also chatted politely with Gong Chengjun and the others, not ignoring the guests.
The meal was more harmonious than expected. No one mentioned anything unpleasant. As Cui Zhiyuan had promised before, they just met and talked.
Han Ji and Gong Chengjun didn't talk much before, but after drinking a few glasses of wine, Cui Zhiyuan took the initiative to talk to them. For the sake of Gong Wantang and her daughter, they didn't keep the conversation awkward and talked about some topics that the men were interested in.
Cui Zhiyuan's personal abilities are beyond reproach. He is knowledgeable, has extensive experience, and has a high IQ. If we ignore his past disputes, he is a very charismatic person worth making friends with.
After dinner, we chatted in the box for nearly an hour, mainly Cui Zhiyuan talking about some developments abroad, covering military, political and business aspects.
It was not until eight o'clock that the hotel waiter knocked on the door to remind them that the hotel was about to close, and then they got up and left.
Watching the two cars leave, Cui Zhiyuan looked up at the horizon, looked at the bright stars in the sky, and raised the most comfortable and relaxed smile in the past twenty years.
"Lanzhi, I'll take you and your two children back first."
It was already night, and although there were people walking on the street, Cui Zhiyuan was worried about the three of them, mother and son, walking at night, so he planned to send them home before returning to the hotel.
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