Wang Guang Ping returned home particularly late today.

There wasn’t much to be busy with at work; he just didn’t want to go home.

When he couldn’t hold out any longer, he finally cycled home. Upon arriving, he found Wang Jian Hua was indeed home tonight, but Xia Zi Yu wasn’t there. Wang Guang Ping was now irritated by anyone with the surname Xia – it was better that she didn’t come to the Wang house.

Ran Shu Yu was making dumplings at home, and both mother and son were waiting for Wang Guang Ping to eat:

“Why so late? Did you work overtime today? The dumplings would’ve gone cold if you’d been any later.”

Since it was that English competition today, Ran Shu Yu thought about how Xia Xiao Lan had embarrassed herself, which meant the Zhou family lost face, and she was overjoyed. Though the Wang family maintained a frugal image publicly, Ran Shu Yu didn’t care about thrift today. She bought two jin of meat, half-fatty, and half-lean, chopped it into filling, and made meat dumplings.

Pure meat filling without vegetables was what qualified as “rich meat” dumplings.

Wang Guang Ping’s monthly salary was just over 200 yuan, though the Wang family wasn’t quite that poor. Ran Shu Yu had been frightened by her time at the farm and now liked to save money.

This aligned with Wang Guang Ping’s desire to maintain a modest lifestyle, and the Wang family truly lived simply. Poor Wang Jian Hua, a high-ranking cadre’s son, lived such a modest life. Previously he had Xia Zi Yu’s support, but after Wang Guang Ping’s reinstatement, Xia Zi Yu’s tutoring business suffered heavy losses. She became more careful with money and stopped supporting Wang Jian Hua.

The aroma of flour and meat filling stimulated their senses. Wang Jian Hua could see his father didn’t look too happy.

Well, asking his father to do such things was beneath him – how could he be happy?

“Dad, you must be tired, please sit.”

Wang Guang Ping dropped into a chair, and Ran Shu Yu brought the reheated dumplings to the table.

“Let’s eat first, then talk!”

“You want to ask about today’s English competition, right? Xia Xiao Lan… won the special prize, she came in first.”

Ran Shu Yu’s hand trembled, and half the dumplings fell to the floor: “Guang Ping, what did you say?”

“I said Xia Xiao Lan won the special prize, first place!”

“How is that possible, didn’t you—”

The house walls weren’t very soundproof, and Ran Shu Yu abruptly stopped mid-sentence. No one cared about the dumplings anymore as she dropped the plate on the table and lowered her voice:

“Didn’t you say you wouldn’t let her win any prize? How did she get first place!”

“Man proposes, God disposes. How could I guarantee complete control over such things?”

Wang Guang Ping didn’t want to repeat Xiao Gao’s solo performance, telling how brilliantly Xia Xiao Lan had performed – it would only make him angrier.

Thinking of this, Wang Guang Ping couldn’t help glaring at his son: “What kind of judgment do you have!”

If he had just chosen Xia Xiao Lan, there wouldn’t be so much trouble. His eyes must have been covered in shit to choose Xia Zi Yu instead. Girls like Xia Zi Yu were a dime a dozen in Beijing. Not to mention finding someone from Hua Qing or Beijing University – even at Beijing Normal University, there were many female students with better conditions than Xia Zi Yu!

Wang Jian Hua was speechless.

With so many excellent people participating in the competition, Xia Xiao Lan taking first prize meant she was outstanding, didn’t it?

How much more had Xia Xiao Lan hidden from him?

If she had shown these qualities back then, how could he have given her up so easily?

Wang Jian Hua’s expression darkened. From the beginning, Xia Xiao Lan hadn’t sincerely wanted to be with him. His understanding of her was limited to what she had chosen to show him – the shallow and superficial flower vase was all an act by Xia Xiao Lan.

Wang Jian Hua felt both ashamed and angry. Did Xia Xiao Lan act like a flower vase because she thought he was shallow and superficial too?

Ran Shu Yu worried:

“Will this matter cause you trouble?”

This was exactly what was troubling Wang Guang Ping.

If things had gone smoothly, he should have been starting the second step by now.

With the first link broken, how could he proceed with the second step?

Wang Guang Ping didn’t know that his intentions had all been analyzed. People and events are most vulnerable when studied by a group. As long as everyone is honest and doesn’t hide their information, when they gather and lay everything out, schemes and plots have nowhere to hide.

Having spent several years at the farm, Wang Guang Ping assumed people who had survived the Cultural Revolution would be especially cautious. Yet he hadn’t expected that Professor Xu Guo Zhang, who had survived those years, feared nothing and insisted on getting to the bottom of right and wrong. Thus, Wang Guang Ping’s small tricks had failed!

“It’s fine. If anyone asks, showing concern for Xia Xiao Lan is reasonable – however distant the relationship, we’re still relatives, and there’s still Xia Zi Yu standing there.”

When it came to taking the blame, Ran Shu Yu thought of Xia Zi Yu first.

Xia Zi Yu loved Jian Hua so much and had sacrificed a lot – surely she wouldn’t mind sacrificing a bit more?

Unusually, Wang Jian Hua opened his mouth but didn’t object.

Human nature can’t withstand too many tests. The first sacrifice for him would move him, but the second sacrifice wouldn’t move him as much… After several such instances, Wang Jian Hua would start to take it for granted.

He would make up for Xia Zi Yu’s current grievances later.

“Dad, you don’t need to worry too much. It would be better if the Zhou family inquires – once they know about Xia Xiao Lan’s past, they definitely won’t protect her.”

What man would want to be made a cuckold?

Wang Jian Hua felt that since he had rejected Xia Xiao Lan, someone even a village good-for-nothing could take advantage of, how could Zhou Cheng keep face if he knew? If Xia Xiao Lan tried to stir up trouble with the Zhou family, she couldn’t blame him for being ruthless.

Wang Guang Ping snorted coldly:

“If you had been this decisive in handling matters earlier, we wouldn’t be in such trouble now.”

…

Wang Guang Ping thought someone would confront him.

But there was no confrontation at all.

Deputy Director Tang wouldn’t argue with him, and Grandmother Zhou, who went home suppressing her anger, wouldn’t confront someone junior to her.

Liked to bully those beneath him, did he?

Grandmother Zhou went home and told Old Master Zhou about the competition events, embellishing the details and repeatedly emphasizing how despicable Wang Guang Ping was. The old master also frowned: “How can such a person be arranged to work in the education system?”

Was the Ministry of Education a clean government office?

Just in terms of salary and benefits, it wasn’t as good as ministries like the Post and Telecommunications, nor as prestigious as the Foreign Ministry.

But education was the cornerstone of the nation. It takes ten years to grow trees but a hundred years to cultivate people. Without decades of educational investment, the nation’s talent pipeline would be broken! Old Master Zhou considered education very important. Why did the Zhou family like Xia Xiao Lan? Because her academic excellence naturally aligned with the Zhou family’s expectations.

It wasn’t that Old Master Zhou would fixate on Wang Guang Ping’s attempt to frame Xia Xiao Lan. After Grandmother Zhou related several incidents – the tutoring school, harassing the Hong Kong merchant who wanted to donate scholarships, using the English competition to attack colleagues… having such a person in the position of Deputy Director of Higher Education for less than half a year, Wang Guang Ping’s style of conduct made Old Master Zhou’s brow furrow.

Though he was retired, he still cared about national affairs.

If there were deviations in organizational appointments, Old Master Zhou, as an old revolutionary comrade, felt it was his responsibility to remind those above about such deviations and correct them in time!

This had nothing to do with personal grudges – it was the old master’s sense of social responsibility.