After chatting about everything from north to south, Wen Zhong'en reluctantly hung up the phone as they reached home.
With the "beep" of the line, Wen Tingxue felt a brief sense of emptiness.
But thinking they would see each other again soon, the little girl cheered up, took Yu Wenli's hand, and asked:
"Brother Yu, what are we having for lunch today?"
Her sweet tone showed no trace of her previous sadness.
Yu Wenli suddenly realized the little girl was quite resilient. No matter what happened, given a little time, she could quickly adjust her mood.
She was incredibly patient.
Yu Wenli gently pinched the little cutie's face with a mix of heartache and helplessness, his voice soft, "What does Yiyi want to eat? Shall we go to Grandpa's and have lotus crisp?"
Since she didn't want to say more, he decided to take her for something sweet.
At least it might make her feel better.
"Okay!" The little girl's eyes lit up. "Then I'll go put on medicine first. You eat some fruit and wait for me."
She pointed to the fruit platter Aunt Fang had just brought up, then dashed upstairs.
Although the wound no longer hurt, she still needed to apply medicine for two more days.
Otherwise, it would leave a scar.
Yu Wenli watched the little girl's hurried back, smiling indulgently, and then walked towards the sofa.
Just then, the landline in the living room rang.
Out of habit, Yu Wenli subconsciously picked up the receiver. By the time he realized he wasn't at home, the voice on the other end had already started cursing.
"Wen Zhong'en, you ungrateful wretch! I raised you, and you won't even give me fifty thousand! If I had known it would be like this, I should have suffocated you all when you were born!"
Yu Wenli listened silently for a moment, then took out his phone and started recording.
Wu Shangrong had finally gotten hold of the Wen family's phone number and unleashed the rage she had been holding back for days.
After she had vented enough, she remembered the other person hadn't spoken for a while and said unhappily:
"What? You picked up the phone and are pretending to be dead? I'm telling you, you'll give me this money whether you want to or not! Otherwise, I'll go to your company and make a scene!
"Anyway, I'm old, I don't care about face or dignity, but you guys..."
Wu Shangrong snorted mockingly, "You wouldn't be shameless, would you?"
As long as they had any sense of shame, they had to give her the money!
She had figured out her children's weaknesses over the years and wasn't afraid they wouldn't pay.
Yu Wenli had never met such an unreasonable elder and couldn't help but let out a cold laugh.
On his way back to the teaching building to find Yiyi, he ran into his former physics teacher.
Since they were acquainted, they chatted for a while.
He coincidentally learned about Yiyi's grandmother.
At that time, he felt something was wrong. He knew the Wen family well.
They were by no means unreasonable or unfilial people.
Hearing it today, he was proven right.
A voice as clear and cold as falling snow suddenly rang out. Wu Shangrong was stunned for a moment, then jumped up and shouted:
"Who are you?! Where's my son? Where's my granddaughter? Who told you to answer the phone?!"
Yu Wenli's voice was calm, "Who I am is not important. If you truly want money, you shouldn't ruin your children's livelihoods."
"If they don't give me money, I can't make a scene?!"
Yu Wenli smiled, "Do you think by making a scene and completely falling out, you'll get the money?"
Wu Shangrong fell silent.
If it weren't for the dire circumstances, she wouldn't want to reach this point with her children.
But she couldn't ignore her younger son's gambling debts, and the deadline was fast approaching...
"Who exactly are you?" Wu Shangrong asked defensively. "Why are you helping me?"
"Helping you?"
Yu Wenli seemed to hear a joke, his thin lips curving upwards.
The careers of both the Wen parents were on the rise, with many competitors. If scandals broke out rashly, it would undoubtedly be a significant blow.
He wasn't helping her; he was helping the Wen family.
Wu Shangrong didn't think of this, only finding his words somewhat reasonable.
"Aren't you helping me? Then why are you telling me so much?"
Yu Wenli didn't answer, only saying, "Fifty thousand is not a small sum. If you truly want it, why don't you go ask at the bank?"
With that, he hung up directly.
Aunt Fang, who had overheard the entire conversation, sighed deeply and said,
"Xiuxiu and Mr. have such difficult lives. They've paid so much money to that gambler over the years, and yet the grandmother is so biased.
"No matter how good Xiuxiu and Mr. are to her, she never sees it. Her eyes are only for her younger son's family, and now she's demanding fifty thousand!"
Aunt Fang was angry just thinking about it. "Fifty thousand! Does she think it's that easy to earn?"
She had been with the Wen family for years and knew clearly how much hardship and detours Xiuxiu and Mr. had endured.
To achieve their current status and wealth, she knew it all.
Even an outsider like her felt heartache; how could a mother be so indifferent?
Yu Wenli frowned, "Don't let Yiyi know about this. In the future, if she calls, tell her to have Uncle and Aunt handle it."
Aunt Fang nodded, "Okay, I'll call Xiuxiu later."
"Mm," Yu Wenli thought for a moment, then added, "Please trouble you to tell Auntie that Yiyi's homeroom teacher already knows about this matter."
Ultimately, it was an adult's issue and shouldn't be borne by her.
Aunt Fang was furious, "She even caused trouble at school?!"
Yu Wenli nodded. Aunt Fang, seething with anger, went to make the call.
-
After lunch, Old Mr. Yu presented Wen Tingxue with a set of calligraphy supplies.
He said that now that her injuries had healed, she could start practicing calligraphy, and he asked Yu Wenli to make sure she practiced at least one page each day.
Yu Wenli looked down, playing with the wolf-hair brush, and casually responded.
His voice was lazy, "Don't worry, the disciplinary ruler is already prepared."
The little girl: "???"
Sensing the child's terrified gaze, Yu Wenli looked up with a smile, holding the pen holder between two fingers, and gently tapped the soft tip of the brush on the little girl's nose.
"Just scaring you. How could Brother bear to hit you?"
Wen Tingxue breathed a sigh of relief and walked towards the car, hugging the calligraphy set.
Despite Yu Wenli's repeated reminders, the little girl still didn't take it to heart.
In her eyes, Yu Wenli was noble and virtuous; how could he possibly hit someone?
It wasn't until after evening self-study that she followed him up to the study on the third floor.
This was Yu Wenli's private domain, and it was her first time setting foot in it.
The study was very spacious, about twice the size of the studies on the first and second floors. Its pure gray, ascetic style matched his own aloof demeanor.
Three walls were covered with books, most of them related to programming and astronomy. The little girl was so amazed she couldn't speak, and didn't even notice when Yu Wenli left.
By the time she had explored the entire study, Yu Wenli happened to push the door open.
It was still the same face, but his demeanor had changed drastically.
A white shirt and black trousers made him look exceptionally tall and straight, while his slightly rolled-up sleeves added a touch of casual laziness.
This suppressed the ascetic coolness brought by the classic attire, especially the pair of gold-rimmed glasses on his nose, which made him look extremely refined.
Occasionally, when he moved, light would refract, making his eyes appear even deeper.
A sense of pressure instantly filled the air.
He looked exactly like a teacher coming to give a lecture.
Wen Tingxue stood there stunned. It wasn't until he approached that she noticed what he was holding—
A mahogany disciplinary ruler, neither too thick nor too thin, looking quite old.
He was tapping it against his left palm, not too fast, not too slow.
His naturally noble aura made even his movements elegant.