If Xia Xiaolan knew Little Wang’s thoughts, she would have been both touched and amused.
Little Wang was worried about her “falling out of favor,” which showed he cared about her.
On the other hand, Xia Xiaolan had never thought about “competing for attention.” She was very clear about her position – at most, she could be a caring junior in Tang Hong’en’s eyes. What right did she have to compete with his son?
It was perfectly natural for Tang Hong’en to be good to Ji Jiangyuan!
Though uncertain what Tang Hong’en and Ji Jiangyuan had discussed, Tang Hong’en still decided to take the afternoon flight back to Yangcheng, and then transfer to Pengcheng. In 1984, Pengcheng was being developed everywhere and didn’t have an airport, but fortunately, it was only an hour’s drive from Yangcheng.
Tang Hong’en chose to fly only because of his poor health – having just been discharged from the hospital, he couldn’t spend dozens of hours on a train.
He wouldn’t let Xia Xiaolan see him off either, telling her to hurry back once they got to the car.
Xia Xiaolan knew he was still concerned about Ji Jiangyuan.
When she went to the bicycle shelter, sure enough, Ji Jiangyuan was still waiting there for her.
Xia Xiaolan didn’t know what to say; she’d never encountered such a situation. Ji Jiangyuan looked up with a smile: “You knew early on, didn’t you?”
“Not that early, just that night.”
If they hadn’t run into Ji Jiangyuan at the West Campus field that night, Tang Hong’en wouldn’t have told Xia Xiaolan due to his emotional state. At least not so early!
Ji Jiangyuan nodded: “Anyway, thank you for not lying to me.”
Although she hadn’t actively told him the truth, at least she hadn’t deceived him. Xia Xiaolan had mysteriously given him so many dried shrimp, not because he was particularly handsome or cute, but because she knew about his relationship with Tang Hong’en.
Today, Xia Xiaolan could have firmly prevented him from following along, and even if he had pursued them, the discharge procedures were already completed.
Ji Jiangyuan didn’t want to be kept in the dark, even if it was done with good intentions – such behavior was most disrespectful.
“Let’s go, we can talk while walking… You’ve met with Uncle Tang now, but how you two get along from here on, that’s not something I can control.”
Xia Xiaolan spoke honestly, and Ji Jiangyuan thought to himself, how else could they get along? Fortunately, Tang Hong’en said he was returning to Pengcheng in the afternoon, otherwise it would have been difficult for Ji Jiangyuan.
How to put it? His relationship with Ji Ya wasn’t incredibly close, but she had raised him all these years, provided him with good material conditions, and sent him to good schools. According to Tang Hong’en, he had tried to fulfill his fatherly duties over the years, but the Ji family had always blocked him – even so, Ji Jiangyuan couldn’t go back and question his family about it.
When Tang Hong’en said he was leaving, Ji Jiangyuan felt relieved.
He wouldn’t have to face this issue for now.
Ji Jiangyuan wasn’t even 20 years old yet; no matter how mature he usually was, he would struggle with such situations.
To say he hadn’t yearned for a “father”?
Of course, he had.
But when he yearned for one the most, Tang Hong’en hadn’t appeared, and now that he showed up, Ji Jiangyuan felt at a loss. He also had to consider his mother’s feelings and the entire Ji family’s thoughts – Ji Jiangyuan suddenly faced many problems today.
They spoke little along the way, and only when they reached the school gate did Xia Xiaolan thank Ji Jiangyuan:
“Thank you for mentioning my troubles to Uncle Tang.”
Ji Jiangyuan shrugged: “You know, classmate solidarity!”
The “classmate solidarity” joke made them both smile knowingly, and half of Ji Jiangyuan’s negative emotions disappeared.
Not far away, Ning Xue was walking with her roommate when she suddenly paused.
“Xue, what’s wrong?”
Ning Xue hugged her books tighter, “Nothing, let’s go.”
She shouldn’t pay attention to these people, whether Ji Jiangyuan or Xia Xiaolan, who both possessed natural intelligence yet wastefully squandered it. When they were just one step away from rising above ordinary people, why did they always waste time on trivial matters?
Ning Xue didn’t want to pay attention and had already turned away, but her roommate exclaimed softly:
“Oh, isn’t that Xia Xiaolan? When did she become so close with Ji Jiangyuan? I saw them at the school gate yesterday too, and today they’re returning together again. I heard Ji Jiangyuan actively sought out Xia Xiaolan on the opening ceremony day. Ning Xue, do you think they…”
“Watch your words!”
Ning Xue’s tone was cold, “This is others’ private business. The more we care and discuss, the more rumors will spread like wildfire.”
Her roommate blushed: “I’m sorry, you’re right to remind me.”
Rumors about Xia Xiaolan had spread widely in the female dormitory. They had all trained together, and while Xia Xiaolan was charming, she never complained about fatigue during training.
Her conduct was also graceful, and most people’s opinions of her had improved greatly.
What was wrong with talking to male classmates? Even if she were to date Ji Jiangyuan, that was Xia Xiaolan’s business! Though apologizing verbally, her roommate remained curious. Living in the next room, everyone on the floor knew Xia Xiaolan had claimed to have a boyfriend.
The boyfriend was too mysterious, never showing his face.
And now she was getting close to Ji Jiangyuan.
Ah, she couldn’t understand Xia Xiaolan’s world, and with her looks, she probably never would.
Ning Xue walked away quickly, and her roommate hurried to catch up.
At the Wang residence.
Wang Guangping brought Xia Ziyu home for dinner.
As soon as she arrived, Xia Ziyu volunteered to help in the kitchen. The Wang family hadn’t hired a housekeeper; Wang Guangping followed a modest lifestyle, and Ran Shuyu personally handled household chores. When Xia Ziyu came, she thoughtfully took over Ran Shuyu’s tasks.
Father and son Wang talked in the living room, and Ran Shuyu simply handed the kitchen over to Xia Ziyu, wiping her hands clean before coming out.
“Do you have everything under control for Jianhua’s school transfer?”
Ran Shuyu was anxious too.
After her chance encounter with Guan Hui’e on the street, although she wanted to associate more with the Zhou family, Guan Hui’e’s attitude toward her was lukewarm. Several times when Ran Shuyu wanted to visit the Zhou family, she was politely declined by Guan Hui’e. Ran Shuyu was very annoyed, believing Guan Hui’e looked down on her – yes, the Wang family was still in recovery, but how could Guan Hui’e be so certain the Wang family wouldn’t catch up to the Zhou family in the future?
Women compared husbands and children.
Ran Shuyu couldn’t compete in either category.
She couldn’t interfere with Wang Guangping’s position, so she focused all her energy on comparing children.
Hearing that Zhou Cheng was doing well at work, Ran Shuyu thought about Wang Jianhua’s future political career – who knew who would be more successful!
But the prerequisite was that Wang Jianhua must have a higher starting point, following the path laid out by the family step by step.
Wang Guangping’s newspaper work was also going well; after arranging two advanced awards for Wang Jianhua and some private operations, the school transfer was almost certain.
The family of three was all looking forward to the future, while Xia Ziyu listened anxiously in the kitchen – really going to Huaqing?
She brought out the freshly made pancakes, and Wang Guangping pleasantly asked her to sit down:
“How could we let Ziyu cook?”
“Uncle, it’s fine, I used to cook often at home.”
Xia Ziyu wasn’t lying; her pancakes looked good, and she knew how to cook, which was how she had taught Zhang Cui to make some snacks.
After being busy in the kitchen for a while, she had just sat down to rest when someone knocked on the door.
Ran Shuyu stood up to open it, and someone shouted asking if this was Wang Jianhua’s home.
“Is this the home of Wang Jianhua from Beijing Normal College?”
“Yes, who are you looking for?”
The woman at the front pushed past Ran Shuyu, and a group of threatening people squeezed in.
“If this is Wang Jianhua’s home, that’s good enough. Smash it! Destroy everything in this house!”