dognovel Chapter 1578 Good Child
Chapter 1578 Good Child
Chapter 1578 Good Child
"Can't I leave work early today?"
Before Gu Ning left, Li Xuewu asked again, "There's a ballet performance at the Red Star Grand Theatre. Do you want to see it?"
"I don't look at it; my eyes are only on my work."
Gu Ning offered the most sublime answer and ideal for workers of this era, leaving Li Xuewu speechless.
Er Ya found it amusing to watch the couple making fun of each other, but she didn't dare to laugh out loud. She simply helped Li Shu pack her schoolbag and quietly reminded her to drink water at school.
"Okay—" Li Shu smiled and agreed before jogging to the foyer, where her aunt Zhao Yaping was waiting for her.
"Aren't you going to say goodbye to Daddy?"
Li Xuewu stood in front of his daughter and reminded her, "Don't you miss your father?"
"Then you have to grant me one request."
Li Shu seemed to have been waiting for him there, tilting her little head up and looking at her father expectantly.
"Hmm—" Li Xuewu pretended to hesitate for a moment before looking at her and saying, "Then you tell me first."
"No—" Li Shu insisted stubbornly, "You have to promise me first!"
"This is a difficult situation," Li Xuewu said thoughtfully. "What if you cause trouble and I have to forgive you?"
"Dad, I'm going to be late for school."
Seeing that things were going badly, Li Shu turned around and bypassed him to catch up with her aunt, urging her aunt to hurry up.
Li Xuewu stood in the foyer, holding a teacup, watching his daughter run away, shaking his head and smiling bitterly.
"Dad, I want to go to school."
Li Ning held his sister's submachine gun in his hand, looking at his departing sister with hopeful eyes full of longing.
"Are you envious of your older sister going to school with her backpack?"
Li Xuewu squatted down and looked at his son, saying, "You're still young. You don't know that once you carry a schoolbag, you're no longer a child, and you'll lose the joy of running wild in your childhood."
"Then what am I?" Li Ning seemed to have transformed into a walking encyclopedia of questions, looking at his father and asking, "What is happiness?"
"How did you feel when your sister hit you?" Li Xuewu looked at his son and said bluntly, "Think about how you felt when your sister gave you a toy."
"Hello, sister—" Li Ning dared not answer the first question, afraid that his father would tell on him and his sister would beat him again when she came back.
However, the questions that followed already had standard answers, so how could they possibly stump him?
“When you shoulder your schoolbag and walk into the school, you become a successor to socialism.” Li Xuewu reached out and patted his shoulder, asking, “Do you know how heavy this responsibility is?”
"I don't know—" Li Ning shook his head blankly, then asked curiously with wide eyes, "So, does that mean the successor can beat up the younger siblings?"
"..." Li Xuewu was stumped by his son's question. He awkwardly picked up his teacup and took a sip. Seeing that Er Ya, who was tidying up the house, couldn't help but laugh and turned to go to the dining room, he coughed and said, "Your sister hitting you has nothing to do with whether she is the successor or not. She just wants to beat you up. If you have the guts, then fight back."
“Dad…” Li Ning really didn’t expect that her father, who was drinking hot tea, would speak so coldly.
"But there are still benefits to going to school."
Li Xuewu nodded, looked at his son and said, "She is studying, and you are studying too. When you have a conflict, you will be able to argue with her."
"Huh?" Li Ning didn't quite understand the point of arguing, but she grasped the crux of the matter: "What if she can't win against me and hits me?"
"Okay, that's a good question."
Li Xuewu stood up, looked at his son, and asked, "Do you like cookies? Dad brought them back for you from Liaodong."
"I like to eat—" Li Ning was easily diverted from the topic, skipping and jumping behind her father, no longer mentioning school or whether she would be beaten by her sister again.
"Are you home today?" Er Ya asked as she came out after tidying up the dining room. "I need to prepare lunch."
"You don't need to take mine; there are other arrangements."
Li Xuewu opened the box he had brought back, took out a tin box of biscuits, and handed it to his son.
Li Ning held the tin box and shook it up and down, her eyes wide open. "Dad, how come I didn't notice this yesterday?"
"Because you didn't notice it yesterday."
Li Xuewu patiently listened to his son's nonsense, reached for a screwdriver on the cabinet, and pried open the metal lid.
"Two yuan a day, or you'll get a beating."
He reminded his son, "I've already told you, there's a limit to the number of cookies here. If you don't believe me, then eat them."
Li Ning, who was about to devour the biscuits, froze, hesitated, looked at the cream biscuits in his hand, and frowned as he asked, "So many..."
"Hmm—" Li Xuewu didn't even look at it, turned around and went to the foyer, changed into cloth shoes and went out.
Li Ning watched his father leave confidently, then glanced at his aunt who hadn't noticed him, and tried to take two cookies out of the box.
"If it's two pieces..."
His big eyes darted around, he glanced at the doorway, and then reached out and took out a piece.
I quickly closed the lid and placed it on the coffee table.
But when he jogged to the door to change his shoes and catch up with his father, he hesitated.
He looked down at the third cookie in his hand, sighed helplessly, and turned around to put it back in the box.
It wasn't that he didn't want to eat, but that he was afraid to gamble.
Judging from Dad's confident look, there might really be a limit to the number of cookies in the box. What if?
If his sister comes back and counts the cookies and there's one missing, he'll get a beating for it, which isn't worth it at all.
He slammed his fist on the lid, as if trying to completely seal away the evil thing that kept tempting him, and resolutely turned around.
He took only three steps before decisively turning back, opening the lid, and taking out two cookies, stuffing them into his pocket.
"What if?" he muttered as he closed the lid. "What if my sister didn't count?"
"Let's eat first and then talk about it!"
***
The little boat drifted gently on the water, a cool breeze blowing in our faces—
The melody of this song started playing in his ears for some reason, so Li Xuewu sang it to his son.
Li Ning followed closely behind him, unlike his sister who was naughty when she was little; he was as quiet as a little adult.
puff-
Whether it was loose soil on the bank that fell into the water, or frogs performing a diving act, ripples spread across the water's surface.
The lake wasn't actually that quiet in the early morning; it was just quiet because very few people came to the lakeside to play.
The insects and birds are still the masters of this great lake, welcoming guests in a special way.
"I hadn't seen you all winter, I thought you'd passed away." Li Xuewu spotted Old Zhang from afar, walked up to him, looked at his fish basket, and greeted him, "Another day feeding the fish?"
Li Ning curiously looked at the old man sitting on the shore, and seemed to sense a sense of familiarity from his father's words.
Old Zhang had already noticed the father and son, but wanting to move them would seem too deliberate, as if he were afraid.
But if you don't avoid him, his mouth is really sharp!
"Hmph—" He didn't want to talk, and cursed inwardly: What's it to you!
"Call him Grandpa." Seeing his son looking curiously at the bamboo fish basket, Li Xuewu smiled and taught him, "When your mother gave birth to you, Grandpa gave you fish, and you drank all the fish soup."
Crucian carp soup helps with lactation, so Li Ning drank it all.
Anyway, Li Xuewu dares to swear on the readers' heads that he has never taken even a single bite from his son! Absolutely not!
"Grandpa—" Li Ning was very obedient. When he saw the old man turn to look at him, he was a little shy, but he still greeted him.
Old Zhang's expression softened instantly, and he smiled and nodded, asking, "Is the fish soup good?"
"I don't know—" Li Ning shook his head and said, "I don't think I've ever had it before."
"Hehe—" Old Zhang seemed to have figured it out; this little one wasn't as mischievous as his older sister, and was much more well-behaved.
"Your father is so lucky to have such a good son like you."
"What are you saying? How could a refined and gentle man like me give birth to a naughty boy?" Li Xuewu reached for a stool next to the fish basket, sat down, and looked at the lake. He said, "My mother says that I looked exactly like him when I was a child."
"Tsk tsk tsk—" Looking at his shameless boasting, Old Zhang couldn't help but click his tongue and say, "Then you've grown up ugly."
"You really don't know how to talk. No wonder you can't catch any fish." Seeing the float bobbing, Li Xuewu reached for a pebble from the roadside and threw it into the water, saying, "Why aren't the fish biting?"
Li Ning stared wide-eyed at his father, never expecting that he could play like this.
He wanted to do what his father did, but he was still holding cookies in his hand and was afraid of getting his hands dirty, so he was a little hesitant.
Unfortunately, Old Zhang, who was unlucky enough to run into bandits, could only glare at them helplessly and sigh, "Fine, I guess I'm just unlucky."
"If your skills aren't good, just blame bad luck—"
Li Xuewu stood up, broke off a branch of moderate length and thickness from a large willow tree by the roadside, cleaned it, and then took fishing line and hooks from Lao Zhang's toolbox to make a fishing rod that couldn't be simpler. Under Lao Zhang's disdainful gaze, he baited the hook, put his arm around his son, and taught him how to fish.
Li Ning is no novice; he's fished with his sister a lot at home, right by the big fish pond in front of their house.
My older sister told me that she used to bathe and swim in the fishpond when she was little, but her aunt kept a close eye on her and wouldn't let her run wild.
How can a small pond train an experienced angler? Today is only the first day he's embarking on his journey of overcoming challenges and setting sail.
It was almost as if his father was holding his hand as he swung the club, just like his grandfather was doing next to him.
"Watch closely, we're only going to teach you this once."
Li Xuewu's mouth is like it's been laced with arsenic; he uses someone else's line to mock them.
Old Zhang was immune to his sharp tongue; he just snorted and turned to look at the lake, not wanting to pay him any attention.
"dad……"
"Shh-"
Li Ning's patience was limited; he couldn't even stay in his father's lap for three minutes before he gave up.
He wanted to eat the cookies in his pocket and also wanted to see the insects in the grass; he couldn't just keep staring at the empty lake.
Even if there's a loach in the fish basket next to him, he can still get distracted.
"Be patient, this is a contest." Li Xuewu put his arm around his son and said gently, "The water separates you from the fish. It hides underwater, wanting to eat the bait you cast, while you hide on the shore, wanting the whole fish."
"Dad, will the fish take the bait?"
When Li Ning heard his father say that, he nodded as if he understood but didn't quite, and asked, "How do you get it to take the bait?"
"Although you can't see it, the fishing rod is in your hand, and the bait you pull is the key to luring it."
Li Xuewu gently instructed his son, "It's useless to leave the bait in front of them without moving it. You have to make them feel more natural, more like a normal hunting activity."
Old Zhang's ears were already perked up, and as he listened to what the man was saying to the child, he couldn't help but twitch the corner of his mouth.
He's such a young child and he's already teaching him all this. No wonder his son says he's cunning and shouldn't be underestimated.
Look at that little blonde girl, Li Shu. She's as clever as a little adult. You can tell at a glance that she's not his daughter, but you can't help but feel that she is. Otherwise, where would she get so many tricks up her sleeve?
"See with your eyes, feel with your heart."
Li Xuewu ignored what Old Zhang thought beside him, took his son's hand, and gently tugged at the fishing rod, saying, "You're not just holding the fishing rod, you're holding the key to this contest."
"As long as you have patience, perseverance, and determination, you will definitely win this contest..."
"Dad!" Li Ning suddenly shouted, because the buoy on the water surface suddenly moved and then sank.
This is what his dad just taught him: when the float moves, it means a fish is taking the bait, and when the float sinks, it means a fish has taken the bait.
Li Ning was extremely nervous when fishing by the lake for the first time. There was even a fine sweat on his forehead, and his little hands were clenched into fists. Just as the fish took the bait, his father had already raised the fishing rod.
"Hey—" Li Xuewu's arms were strong enough that even with a simple fishing rod, a willow branch stripped of its leaves was not something a fish could easily break. They won this contest.
Old Zhang was utterly shocked. Wasn't it this bastard who brought Li Shu to the lakeside last time to teach him how to fish?
Are you coming again?!
Are you using me as a stepping stone to appease your child?
"Cough cough—" He was also extremely vengeful. He took out scissors from the toolbox and wanted to cut the fishing line.
I've been sitting here all morning, why should he catch a fish as soon as he arrives? That's not fair.
Before he could even stand up, he saw a pair of large, dark eyes staring at him, calm and focused.
"..."
We were careless; this child is smarter than Li Shu!
Old Zhang gave an awkward laugh, looked at the fish Li Xuewu pulled out of the lake, and said, "I shouldn't have come—"
Wow! It really is a fish!
Li Ning's reaction was quite surprising. Looking at the still defiant fish at his feet, he exclaimed in astonishment, "It's really big."
"Hehe—" Li Xuewu looked at his son with amusement. Is something the size of a palm considered big? He was just too excited.
"Let's give the fish to Grandpa, okay?"
Li Xuewu was really ruthless. He took the crucian carp off the hook, looked at his son, and said, "Grandpa hasn't caught a fish in a long time."
“Murder…” Old Zhang gritted his teeth as he looked at Li Xuewu, “and you’re even going to attack his spirit?”
"Okay—" Li Ning looked reluctantly at the fish in his father's hand; this was the first time he had ever caught a fish.
But from what Dad said, it seems that Grandpa hasn't eaten for ten years and is only relying on this fish to keep him alive. How pitiful.
He kindly helped his father put the fish into his grandfather's fish basket, squatted down beside him and watched it, feeling sorry for his grandfather.
"..." Old Zhang's breathing became a little heavier.
"Let's go, son." Li Xuewu didn't care at all, and reminded his son, "Fishing is too easy, it's not interesting."
Creak—creak—Old Zhang gritted his teeth, looking at the fishing rod in his hand. He took several deep breaths to comfort himself, saying, "How old are you? Don't stoop to his level. Don't get angry, don't get angry. Getting sick from anger will only make you sick, and no one can take your place..."
-
"Don't you have classes?"
Li Xuewu met Zhou Xiaobai, a vibrant young woman, at the club; she was like a blooming rose.
To Zhou Xiaobai, however, he was like a towering mountain, but not unreachable; he could reach it with a simple stretch of his hand.
"Do you think I'm the kind of student who would skip class?" She rolled her eyes, squatted down in front of Li Ning, and said with a smile, "Call me Auntie."
"dad--"
Li Ning looked up at her father, unsure whether the woman who had suddenly walked over was a good person or a bad person.
Only after seeing his father nod did he look at the woman in front of him, nod and greet her, saying, "Hello, Auntie."
"Wow, he can even say nice things to you!"
Zhou Xiaobai is oblivious and doesn't care at all whether Li Ning calls her "little aunt" or "auntie".
It was precisely because of her loud voice that Li Ning felt she was somewhat unreliable, and at least she shouldn't be called "aunt."
If we were to set a standard for the title "aunt," it would at least have to be something like Aunt Zhao Yaping's.
"Tell your aunt how old you are."
Zhou Xiaobai doesn't know how to coax or amuse children; she just imitates how others amuse them.
Li Ning, however, was already familiar with their tactics and answered generously, "I'm three and a half years old."
"Oh, you're three and a half years old now—"
Zhou Xiaobai took out a milk candy from his pocket, shook it, and asked with a smile, "Do you want some?"
"Mom said I can't take things that don't belong to me."
Li Ning's answer was impeccable, but his eyes couldn't help but drift towards the milk candy in her hand, which was his favorite White Rabbit candy.
"Answer me one more question and I'll give it to you," Zhou Xiaobai said with a smile. "What's your name?"
Li Ning hadn't expected to get the candy, and thought she would ask some difficult questions, since it was White Rabbit candy. He didn't expect the questions to be so simple.
But he wasn't stupid. He first looked at the candy in the other person's hand, then looked up at his father, before answering, "My name is Li Shu."
"Heh—" Zhou Xiaobai's smile faltered for a moment, then he raised an eyebrow, looking even more amused, and asked, "Are you sure?"
"Mom won't let me eat candy—"
Li Ning nodded and said, "If she asks you, just say you gave the candy to Li Shu."
"..." Zhou Xiaobai's expression was strange yet amusing. He looked up at Li Xuewu, but in his heart he was thinking that like father, like son, without any difference.
"Aren't you afraid Li Shu will beat you up if you pretend to be your sister?"
Li Xuewu stretched out his son's little hand and said, "If she asks you who ate the milk candy, I won't help you."
“Then I don’t want it,” Li Ning said decisively. “My sister is very fierce.”
"Really—" Hearing his childish voice, Zhou Xiaobai's heart almost melted. If it were her, would she also be able to give birth to such a smart and cute child?
"Then your auntie will secretly give you the candy, but don't tell your mom or sister, okay?"
"That's not a good idea—" Li Ning glanced at the White Rabbit candy in his pocket and hesitated before saying, "What if you tell on me?"
"Brother, is the atmosphere in your family this tense?" Zhou Xiaobai asked, amused. "Do we have to be on guard against being reported even for eating candy?"
“He’s almost getting cavities,” Li Xuewu explained helplessly. “The whole family is watching him closely.”
"Oh, I see." Zhou Xiaobai reached out and tapped Li Ning's little hand, saying, "If you eat too much sugar, you'll get worms in your teeth. If you eat all your teeth, you'll never be able to eat White Rabbit candy again."
"I know—" Li Ning sighed, mimicking her sister's expression, and said, "Everyone says so—"
"Hahaha--"
"Oh! Who is this? So cute!" Zhou Yamei walked over from the direction of the office after hearing the noise, and asked Li Ning with a smile, "Do you still recognize me?"
Li Ning recognized her and nodded, saying, "Auntie."
"Hehe—" Li Xuewu was certain that his son didn't remember who Zhou Yamei was, and he seemed a little guilty for calling her "auntie."
Zhou Yamei didn't pay any attention. She walked up to them, picked up Li Ning, and bounced him around, coaxing him, "Tell your aunt, what did you come here for?"
"Going out to play with Dad—"
Li Ning replied in a childish voice, but his hand reached into his pocket and pinched the White Rabbit candy, as if afraid it would be snatched away.
"Oh, you're out playing with your dad."
Zhou Yamei raised her eyes and gestured towards the flower hall, inviting them to go inside and talk, while she coaxed Li Ning to walk ahead.
In early May, the capital city was already in full bloom and lush with greenery. The flowers and plants in the flower hall had been almost completely removed, leaving only the potted plants on the small table. A cool breeze blew by, making people feel a little lazy.
"Did you come back yesterday?" Zhou Yamei hugged Li Ning in her arms, coaxing him while asking Li Xuewu.
Seeing Li Xuewu nod, Zhou Xiaobai gestured to the thermos on the tea cabinet in the corner and offered it to Li Xuewu to make tea.
Li Xuewu sat behind the tea table, picked up the teapot and tea leaves and fiddled with them, briefly introducing his itinerary.
"You didn't come back in April?" Zhou Yamei asked in surprise. "Wouldn't that mean you missed your classes?"
"I called to ask for leave; my classes have been rescheduled until May." Li Xuewu tidied up the tea set, took the thermos Zhou Xiaobai handed him, poured in hot water, and explained, "I have classes tomorrow and the day after."
"How much do you earn as a professor?" Zhou Xiaobai asked curiously. "Is it higher or lower than your salary as a department head?"
She is no longer a high school student. The experiences and lessons she has learned over the years have taught her much more than just how to navigate social situations.
However, in his presence, she was still willing to play the role of an innocent and naive little sister.
"Why are you asking me about my salary?" Li Xuewu glanced at her and said, "I'm not giving it to you."
“Cowardly—” Zhou Xiaobai curled his lip and said, “So what if I don’t have my own allowance?”
She raised an eyebrow and said, "I'm just very curious; I've never had a relationship like this with a professor before."
"Not much, a level 4 senior teaching staff member, salary 207 yuan." Li Xuewu brewed tea, gave each person a cup, and casually introduced, "More than a level 14 department head."
"This isn't just a lot, it's a lot!"
Zhou Xiaobai raised his chin and said, "Okay, they didn't treat you badly, so this is compensation, right?"
"What are you thinking about all day long?" Li Xuewu glanced at her and said, "What do you mean by being treated unfairly? This is work."
“I didn’t say anything else about you—” Zhou Xiaobai winked mischievously and said, “You should be secretly happy.”
"Otherwise, would I be openly crying?"
Li Xuewu chuckled, picked up his teacup, took a sip, shook his head slightly, and poured his son a glass of water to cool.
His salary wasn't low before; it was about the same as what he earned at the Third Regiment and the Red Star Factory, totaling less than 300 yuan.
The salary standard for level 14 is 138 yuan. Now, including the associate professor's salary of 207 yuan, he receives 345 yuan a month.
High-income earners are definitely considered to be among the highest-income groups in China at this time.
Of course, he was doing two jobs.
"Almost 350 a month."
Zhou Xiaobai calculated for him, saying, "You'll save up so much money this month, you should be secretly happy."
"Don't I have a family to support?" Li Xuewu glanced at her and said indifferently, "A nanny only costs 25 a month, not counting food and clothing. Li Shu is in school, and this little one will be starting kindergarten in the second half of the year. I'm in Gangcheng, money is everywhere."
"You're still trying to play the poor card with us—"
Zhou Xiaobai chuckled, "How much do you need to earn to make ends meet? And you still can't support a family? I'm so jealous."
"Hehe—" Li Xuewu chuckled.
When it comes to feigning poverty, he can't compare to that pickled cucumber; he was just joking, while that person was serious.
"Any plans for tonight?" Zhou Yamei took out a toy that Fu Zhidong had left there from the drawer to coax Li Ning, and said to him, "If you don't have anything else, I'll have the restaurant prepare some food."
"Forget it, I'm afraid I'll get cravings."
Li Xuewu waved his hand and said, "If I'm homesick, I can't find this kind of food in Steel City."
"Look at what you're saying, are you trying to play the victim?"
Zhou Yamei glanced at him and said, "I don't believe you're living a life of hardship in Steel City."
It's possible that his meals were inconsistent in the past, since she had tasted Banggeng's canned food and stir-fried canned food before.
But now that Yu Li is gone, how can he be let down?
"It's not about eating coarse food, it's about the familiar taste."
Li Xuewu took a sip of hot tea, looked out the window, and asked, "Is it this quiet even on holidays?"
“You know that perfectly well,” Zhou Yamei sighed helplessly, “who would dare to go out for a party these days?”
As she said this, Li Ning wanted to get down and play, so she picked him up and put him on the ground, telling him not to leave the flower hall.
"I get banquet invitations from time to time, but it depends on the timing." She shook her head slightly and said, "Sometimes I wonder what will happen to these employees? They can't just stay idle forever."
"They're just sitting around doing nothing, and they can be laid off anyway."
Li Xuewu put down his teacup and said, "Keep them here. Find them something to do, whether it's studying or training. Just don't expel them. As long as they're willing to stay, we'll support them."
He doesn't care about money. Whether it's the recycling system, Oriental Shipping, or other miscellaneous channels, there's always income. Supporting twenty or thirty people isn't a problem.
If you don't care about money, then you truly care about people.
Those who stayed with the club after that turmoil definitely have a strong sense of unity.
During this period, which organization wasn't living a cautious life? Li Xuewu knew that winter was almost over.
"You make it sound so simple—"
Zhou Yamei looked at him and said, "The club is heavily in debt. We can't keep borrowing money to make ends meet, can we?"
"It will be profitable." Li Xuewu didn't pay much attention and replied somewhat perfunctorily.
"Profit?" Zhou Yamei knew that he had never started this club for profit.
Tens of thousands of yuan are poured in every year, and not a single drop is made.
However, the network of relationships he initially built is gradually expanding and spreading.
The annual new member recruitment activities continue as before, and this year she was the one distributing the equipment and certificates to the new members.
What appears to be a stagnant pool is actually not dry; with Li Xuewu supporting this vast network, countless others continue to weave it.
Putting everything else aside, in recent years, the winds have blown from all directions, and snow has fallen countless times, but the club has remained peacefully here, and no one has ever come to cause trouble.
The signs at the entrance are effective, but the subtle influence they spread is even more effective; everyone knows the benefits of this vast network.
However, the threshold for this network is quite high; one shouldn't even think about it unless you're at the deputy director level, which makes some people hesitate.
However, Zhou Yamei's complaints were just to let him know the club's current situation, not that she was really in a hurry.
What's the rush?
He's not in a hurry; he'll always find a way.
That's perfect. There's less work at the club, but the service quality is better, and she can also free up time to handle office matters.
In fact, the club had been like this even before Yu Li took over. Fewer and fewer members came, and it only got lively in the evenings, but it was always quiet and few people made a fuss about it.
Perhaps, as he said, these winds will eventually blow away, and one day the dust will settle.
-
"I haven't started school yet—"
Li Ning looked at his grandfather with some difficulty and emphasized earnestly, "I can't read."
"It's okay. First, learn the rhymes from Grandpa. Grandpa will say a sentence, and you will remember it. You have to memorize it."
Ignoring Li Ning's explanation, Li Shun reached out and tapped Li Tang's small hand sitting next to him, signaling him to listen carefully.
"The Four Gentlemen Decoction embodies harmony and righteousness..."
"Four……"
"Let me finish." Li Shun had just finished speaking when Li Tang and Li Ning, the two little brothers, were about to recite it, but their grandfather interrupted them, reminding them that he hadn't finished yet.
"The Four Gentlemen Decoction is harmonious and righteous, with ginseng, atractylodes, poria, and licorice in equal measure."
Li Shun looked expectantly at his two grandsons, indicating that they could now recite along.
Li Tang and Li Ning were both confused and didn't know what their grandfather was teaching them, but they still obediently followed along and memorized it.
"The Four Gentlemen Decoction is harmonious and righteous, with ginseng, atractylodes, poria, and licorice in equal measure."
"Yi Yi Xia Chen Ming Liu Jun, a medicine for relieving phlegm, replenishing qi and yang deficiency."
……
Li Xuewu glanced at the three people—a grandfather, a grandfather, and his grandson—around the eight-immortal table, and childhood memories flooded his mind.
Actually, he should have been the one to study traditional Chinese medicine. His father originally hoped that he would inherit the mantle, because he was more skilled in it.
These words weren't something he heard from his father, nor were they something he heard back then; they came later when he went through his rebellious phase.
The old lady once told him that when he was a child, his father taught his older brother to memorize the recipe for soup. His older brother would memorize one line and then forget two, but he, who was playing nearby, could memorize it before his older brother.
Even though his father didn't teach him, and he didn't learn it either, he just played around and could memorize it just by listening.
So his father had high hopes for him back then, and even the birth of the third child did not change that fact.
However, from the time he could remember, these complicated rhymes became his nightmare. He didn't want to memorize them, but his father forced him to.
The more his father pressured him, the less he liked it, to the point that his father, who wanted his son to succeed, resorted to violence every time.
The more anxious Li Shun became, the more he resisted. Eventually, his spirituality disappeared, and he wished he could burn the medical book.
Look at the father sitting in front of his grandsons, patiently teaching them. His tone is gentle and patient. If they can't keep up, he stops and repeats it until the two children can read it clearly.
He was taught word by word, guided sentence by sentence, and Li Xuewu was certain that he had never received this kind of treatment when he was a child.
Even the older brother and sister-in-law, who had just returned from grocery shopping, were somewhat surprised to see this scene.
It's nothing else, my older brother was beaten too.
"What if I can't remember it?"
Li Xuewen didn't dare question his father's decision to teach his grandson traditional Chinese medicine; it was his eldest daughter-in-law, Zhao Yafang, who did it.
However, Zhao Yafang did not question her father-in-law's intentions, but only doubted the children's patience and ability.
Li Shun shook his head slightly and looked at Li Tang and Li Ning, saying, "It doesn't matter if you can't remember it. Just memorize it every day, and you'll eventually remember it."
"Okay—" Li Tang was eager to run over when he saw his parents return, but it was Li Ning who took the initiative to respond to his grandfather.
This made Li Shun raise his eyebrows, but thinking of how regrettable his second son was back then, he didn't dare to be too obviously happy.
"Ahem—" He cleared his throat, reached out and patted his two grandsons' heads, and said with a smile, "From now on, you'll learn to recite songs with Grandpa, and Grandpa will buy you delicious treats."
"Delicious—" When Li Tang heard about this, he turned to look at his grandfather, his expression seeming to say: Why didn't you tell me about this good thing sooner!
"All you ever think about is eating—" Zhao Yafang walked over, smiling as she tapped her son's chubby cheek, and asked, "Where's your little sister?"
"My wife and I are in the backyard—" Li Tang replied, "My sister is sleeping."
"Really?" Zhao Yafang looked at Li Xuewu and asked, "Are you having lunch here? I'll cook noodles."
"Add extra sauce, otherwise it won't taste good," Li Xuewu said with a smile. "I came here specifically for lunch."
"Gu Ning doesn't even take a break on Labor Day?" Zhao Yafang raised an eyebrow and asked, "Is he on duty or does he have surgery?"
"On duty, the schedule is fixed, and it can't be changed."
Li Xuewu walked to the cabinet, took out a thermos, and poured hot water into his father's teacup, but did not pour any for himself.
He had already drunk some at the club, and when he got home he only poured himself a glass of water, which was for Li Ning.
"What time do you get off work tonight?" Zhao Yafang asked as she tied on her apron. "Can you come over for dinner?"
"I don't know what time we get off work," Li Xuewu waved his hand and said, "Don't bother bringing our share, we're not coming over tonight."
He explained, "If it's early, I'll take her to see ballet; if it's late, we'll just stay home and rest."
"Ballet?" Zhao Yafang asked curiously, "Where? Does your workplace have that?"
"What? Want to go see it?" Li Xuewu raised an eyebrow with a smile and said, "Say something nice."
"Ah~~~" Zhao Yafang understood, nudged him, and said, "You're here to deliver tickets to us, right?"
"That's not necessarily true." Li Xuewu didn't shy away from joking with his sister-in-law in front of his father and elder brother.
The eldest sister-in-law is like a mother. Although they are close in age, Li Xuewu respects her, and she respects Li Xuewu in return.
The two of them, one inside and one outside the home, are both capable of taking charge and have a perfect understanding of each other.
"What kind of good music do you want to hear?"
Zhao Yafang said with a smile, "Do I need to call you Second Brother? Or should I beg you?"
"You're really going all out—"
Li Xuewu chuckled, took out a performance ticket from his pocket, handed it over, and said, "Is it really necessary?"
“Of course!” Zhao Yafang snatched it away, laughing as she said, “It’s been so long since I’ve seen a performance.”
She glanced at Li Xuewen, who was comforting his son, and said reproachfully, "Your older brother is the one who wouldn't remember this."
“I can’t get tickets either.” Li Xuewen was neither romantic nor hypocritical, and said very bluntly, “Even if I knew, there was nothing I could do, let alone that I didn’t know.”
"You only care about your own little corner of the world!"
Zhao Yafang waved the tickets in her hand, turned around to knead the dough and roll out noodles, saying, "Go check on the old lady and the others in the backyard, they must be hungry."
"When are Mom and the others coming back?" Li Xuewu asked, feeding Li Ning a cup of water and then asking, "Where did they go shopping?"
"I don't know, they said it was Wangfujing."
Zhao Yafang explained, "Li Xue wants to buy sandals, and Mom wants to buy a quilt cover because the old lady's quilt cover is too old."
"Didn't you ask Guodong for it?" Li Xuewu turned to look at the pile of quilts, then looked at his sister-in-law and asked, "How are Grandma's luggage?"
"Why would you need to worry about it?" Zhao Yafang replied, "If it weren't for the old lady's insistence, I would have changed it for her long ago."
"It was Li Shu who caused all this trouble. She lifted the quilt and stepped on it to play with it. Even if it's not broken, we can't replace it."
"It wasn't me—" When Li Xuewu's gaze fell on his son's face, Li Ning quickly distanced himself, saying, "It was my sister who wanted to play with it."
"I only played because my brother wanted to play too."
"I didn't!" Li Tang broke free from his father's embrace and shouted to his younger brother, "My sister wanted to play with it first."
"Alright, it's all Li Shu's fault."
Li Xuewu raised his eyebrows and looked at the two of them, saying, "Then when Li Shu comes back from school, repeat what you just said, and I'll teach my sister a lesson."
"..." The two little ones fell silent and exchanged a glance, as if they both knew what the problem was.
"Don't talk like that, understand?"
Li Xuewen patted his son's head and said, "You play with your sister, so you should share the responsibility instead of blaming her."
"Also, you are the older brother, so you have to take care of your younger brother. You can't yell at him, and you definitely can't scare him."
"Oh—" Li Tang glanced at his younger brother, then lowered his head in his father's arms, no longer daring to argue.
Listening to the old man's words, Li Ning looked up at his father again and realized where he had gone wrong.
"Dad, I was wrong—"
His attitude in admitting his mistake was sincere and proactive, which made Li Shun, who was sitting on the side watching, even more satisfied.
Regardless of the future of the two grandsons, or whether they are intelligent or not, their sensitivity and temperament are already quite remarkable.
What's even more remarkable is the maturity of the sons; their harmony isn't something they boast about or act out, it's something they experience in real life.
He never really taught his sons to be harmonious. When his eldest daughter-in-law came into the family, the two younger ones were still in school, and his second son wasn't home, there were no arguments for the first six months.
When the second son, Li Xuewu, returned, he thought the eldest son's wife was going to turn against him because of what she did. But to his surprise, the conflict and turmoil were resolved without him and Liu Yin even having to say a word.
The second son's actions made him look at his troublesome son in a new light, and it was from that moment that he realized his son had truly grown up.
Looking at his grandchildren today, even if they don't follow in his footsteps, they are still good children.
A good child is one who doesn't pee in the wine jar, and a good child is one who does pee in it.