The weekend arrived.
Gong Juren rushed to dorm 408 early in the morning.
Seeing Su Yu brushing his teeth, he dashed over and hugged him tightly.
"Wuwuwu... Brother Yu, I thought I'd never see you again."
He looked as if he had lost a close relative.
Zhang Yang and Zhao De, seeing the two hugging intimately, their eyes began to fill with ambiguity.
"Holy crap, let go of me!" With his physique recovered, it wasn't difficult for Su Yu to break free from Gong Juren.
"Heh heh, Brother Yu, I just went out to participate in some activities for a few days, and when I came back, you almost scared me to death. They said you jumped off a building..."
Gong Juren patted his chest and grinned foolishly.
"I don't know who started the rumor online. Someone knocked on my door late last night, inexplicably claiming me as a father, and cursing me to jump off a building!"
"I just want to keep a low profile, what kind of things happen every day!"
Su Yu splashed water on his face, feeling extremely dejected.
Online, he had already been portrayed as a hero in the struggle between children and powerful families.
He had inexplicably gained a child with Lin Yanyu.
Some busybodies had even established a fan club for him, sending food and drinks. The most outrageous thing was that someone had actually donated money, calling it reserve funds for his struggle.
Su Yu had to thank them all one by one and warn them not to donate and to beware of scams.
"This is nothing, at least you've gained a good reputation..." Zhang Yang and the others suppressed their laughter.
Struggles between powerful families... Who on earth came up with such melodramatic plot lines.
"I'd rather not have this kind of reputation," Su Yu shot them a displeased glance.
He thought about it and realized he hadn't visited his parents in a long time. It was the weekend and there were no classes, so he asked Zhang Yang, "I need to go home for a while to avoid the spotlight. Do you want to come with me, Zhang Yang?"
"I won't be going. I'm scheduled to go karaoke with Jiang Xiao'e today." Zhang Yang shook his head.
"Jiang Xiao'e? When did you get so close to her?" Su Yu was taken aback.
"My agent quit a few days ago, and the company assigned me and her to the same agent. We got familiar with each other in the process," Zhang Yang scratched his head, looking a little embarrassed.
"Alright, then I'll go back alone." Su Yu nodded.
"Brother Yu, I'll accompany you! I've never met Uncle and Auntie. This is a good opportunity, I'd like to go and pay my respects." Gong Juren immediately said upon hearing this.
This was a good opportunity to get closer to Brother Yu.
"Okay, your car is quite comfortable. I'll check out one too after I get my driver's license."
Su Yu nodded.
He had the money to buy a car now, but he didn't have a license.
So, he hadn't bought one yet.
"Heh heh, why buy a car? Just tell me anytime you need one."
"That would be too much trouble for you."
"What are you saying? This is called making the best use of everything. You don't have a car, and I happen to have one. You can't drive, and I happen to be able to drive. Isn't this perfect... Hey, where are you guys going?"
As Gong Juren spoke, he saw Zhang Yang and Zhao De rushing to the restroom, covering their mouths.
"I can't stand it anymore, you guys continue..."
"Wait for me..."
This left Su Yu and Gong Juren staring at each other.
"Maybe they caught a cold because they got up to open the door too many times last night," Su Yu explained to Gong Juren.
The latter finally understood.
...
On the way, the little fairy finally replied.
"Doggy, I'm sorry. I was on the plane before, and then I was busy after getting off. I haven't had a chance to look at my phone."
"It's okay. Where are you going? Are you flying again?"
"Uh... I'm going to participate in a competition. I'm very busy this month, so I might not be able to reply to your messages promptly. I'll make it up to you properly when I'm done. You can ask for anything then! (〃w〃)"
"Okay, you said it. (¬◡¬)✧"
"Mhm, as long as it's not too much..."
"Heh heh, not too much."
"Doggy, I have to go be busy. Let's chat again when I'm free, ლ(°◕‵ƹ′◕ლ)"
"Go ahead. ლ(°◕‵ƹ′◕ლ)"
Putting down his phone, Su Yu smiled.
Living together wouldn't be too much, right?
Just in the literal sense.
I should buy a house when I have time!
...
The school wasn't far from Su Yu's home.
It only took about twenty minutes to drive there.
"I told you not to buy anything, but you still bought so much..."
Seeing Gong Juren with bags of things, Su Yu reached out and helped him carry some.
This guy was too polite, rushing into the supermarket to buy so much, and couldn't be stopped.
"How can I not? It's my first time meeting Uncle and Auntie, I can't be rude," Gong Juren said with a smile.
"Alright." Su Yu could only shake his head helplessly.
Gong Juren was truly a good friend, driving him, buying gifts for his parents, he was such a warm-hearted good person.
Su Yu's home was in an old residential area without an elevator. Although it was on the tenth floor, Chongqing's geographical location was special, earning it the nickname "8D Magical City." You think you're on the first floor, but looking down, you're actually on the rooftop.
So after the two parked the car, they only needed to climb three floors to reach home.
Normally, after climbing the stairs, Su Yu would be exhausted, but now, even carrying things, he only panted slightly.
"Xiao Yu is back!"
As soon as the two reached the door, Zhang Guizhi opened it.
"Yes, yes, Mom, this is my friend Gong Juren." Su Yu introduced him with a smile.
"Hello, Auntie." Gong Juren was very well-behaved.
"Come in, come in and talk. Xiao Yu, you're something else, bringing friends over and making them buy so many things?" Zhang Guizhi chided Su Yu.
"Auntie, please don't say that. It's my first time visiting you, it wouldn't be right not to bring anything," Gong Juren quickly interjected.
"You're not allowed to buy anything next time," Zhang Guizhi's face bloomed with a smile.
She took the gifts and led them into the house.
After inviting Gong Juren to sit down, she began cutting a watermelon.
"Is Dad cooking today?" Su Yu asked, hearing the sounds from the kitchen.
"That's right. Your dad knew you were coming back today, so he took a day off specifically," Zhang Guizhi said as she cut the watermelon in half.
Then she found two spoons and gave one to Su Yu and one to Gong Juren.
"Xiao Gong, please try this. We picked it from a relative's field a few days ago when we went back to our hometown. It's pesticide-free."
"Thank you, Auntie."
After receiving it, Gong Juren glanced at Su Yu, who was already eating.
Seeing him frowning, picking out the watermelon seeds one by one and discarding them into the trash can, then taking a large bite, he silently made a mental note.
In the future, when buying watermelon for Brother Yu, I should buy seedless ones.
"Mom, what did you go to your hometown for?" Su Yu grabbed a tissue, wiped his hands, and asked.
"Didn't you transfer money earlier? Our eldest aunt and the others lent us tens of thousands of yuan before. She can't use WeChat, so I withdrew cash to return it," Zhang Guizhi said with pride in her voice.
For many years, due to Su Yu's illness, the family had lived a difficult life. Fortunately, their relatives had always been good to them, offering help when they needed to borrow money.
In fact, she had another purpose for going back this time: to show off to her relatives back home.
Her son was successful, and that brought them honor too.
However, Zhang Guizhi felt too embarrassed to say such things.
Su Yu didn't point it out and just nodded with a smile.
"Let's eat. I made braised pork today." At this moment, Su Zhengguo came out of the room carrying a large pot of meat.
Then he went back into the kitchen and brought out a few small dishes.
He also sat down at the table.
Su Zhengguo seemed a bit happy today; he had specially opened a bottle of Erguotou.
"Xiao Gong, do you drink?" he asked Gong Juren, looking up.
Gong Juren waved his hands repeatedly: "Uncle, I'm driving, so I won't drink."
Only then did Su Zhengguo nod.
"Eat quickly, braised pork is my dad's signature dish," Su Yu handed Gong Juren a pair of chopsticks.
"Mmm, it's indeed good. Much better than what I eat in restaurants!"
Gong Juren wasn't flattering; it was genuinely delicious. Moreover, Su Yu had actually taken the initiative to hand him chopsticks, which moved him to tears.
"Heh heh, this is the only dish I know how to make," Su Zhengguo said, sipping his wine and shaking his head.
"Uncle, you call this 'one skill to conquer the world'!" Gong Juren complimented him appropriately.
Although the seasoning in the home-cooked food was less than in restaurants, it was more fragrant than outside.
In a short while, Su Yu and Gong Juren had finished two large bowls of rice.
"By the way, Su Yu, was that female classmate you were with last time your girlfriend?" Zhang Guizhi suddenly asked.
Su Yu asked confusedly, "Which one?"
"The one you were eating noodles with last time," Zhang Guizhi said with a smile.
"No, she's my friend." Su Yu's head ached at the thought of the rumors at school about him and Lin Yanyu having a child.
"Oh, since that day, she's come to our shop to eat noodles almost every day," Zhang Guizhi said meaningfully.
Su Yu was stunned and couldn't help but recall that incredibly beautiful silhouette.
The look and expression on her face when she left flashed through his mind like a slideshow.
Suddenly, his heart felt a pang.
He quickly shook his head, tossing these emotions out of his mind.
...
"Um, Mom, have you considered my resignation that I told you about?" Su Yu asked his mother while picking up food.
Zhang Guizhi smiled and said, "Forget it... Your dad and I are used to it. We feel uncomfortable if we don't work."
Su Yu continued, "Mom, are you still worried about money? I'm telling you, there's no need to worry, because we're not short of money anymore. Take a look at your phone."
Hearing this, Zhang Guizhi curiously took out her phone.
There was a text message.
"Five hundred thousand??" she exclaimed.
Su Zhengguo, standing nearby, trembled his wine glass and spilled some on his hand.
"That's right, I got paid again. It's almost this much every month, so you really don't need to keep working." Su Yu said with a smile.
He had only transferred five hundred thousand to his mother because too much might be difficult for her to accept all at once.
She might even worry that he had done something bad.
Last time he transferred thirty thousand to her, she almost dragged him to surrender...
"But..."
Zhang Guizhi opened her mouth, wanting to say something more, but Su Zhengguo interrupted, "The child's filial piety is good, just agree to him. You'll go and resign tomorrow. After marrying me, you've worked hard for most of your life. I promised to give you a good life back then, but I didn't expect my son to achieve it."
Su Zhengguo's face was already a little red after drinking a couple of glasses of baijiu.
"Why are you saying that? We have a guest, aren't you afraid of being laughed at?" Zhang Guizhi's face turned slightly red, and she chided him lightly.
"I'm telling the truth," Su Zhengguo smiled, a look of great satisfaction on his face.
"Then what about you?" Zhang Guizhi looked at him and said softly.
Su Zhengguo just shook his head, not answering.
Gong Juren, sitting beside them, opened his mouth, realizing the atmosphere was a bit delicate, so he swallowed his words and continued to focus on his meal.
...
After the meal.
Gong Juren enthusiastically offered to help wash the dishes.
Zhang Guizhi couldn't stop him and could only let him help in the kitchen.
On the sofa, Su Zhengguo's face was flushed from drinking.
"You haven't taken your medicine for a while. How have you been feeling?" His voice was a little slurred.
Su Yu nodded upon hearing this and said with a smile, "I've been feeling much better recently."
Su Zhengguo nodded and fell silent.
Actually, Su Yu and his father Su Zhengguo didn't have much conversation usually; it was mostly simple dialogue.
After a moment of silence, Su Zhengguo continued, "Don't just focus on making money; your health is most important."
"I know, Dad. You should resign too. You've worked the hardest all these years."
As a sanitation worker, Su Zhengguo had to get up at three in the morning for the early shift, working until five in the morning before resting, and then working again in the afternoon.
He couldn't help it before, but now that they had money, Su Yu didn't want him to continue working so hard.
"Forget it, I'm used to it..." Su Zhengguo stared blankly at Su Yu and shook his head after a long while.
Su Yu wanted to persuade him further, but Su Zhengguo waved his hand.
"I think it's better to resign. That way, you'll have more time to accompany Mom for strolls."
Su Yu continued to persuade.
Hearing this, a flicker of pain crossed Su Zhengguo's face.
After a while, he sighed and leaned back on the sofa.
He glanced at Zhang Guizhi, busy in the kitchen, and said, "Xiao Yu, your dad hasn't achieved much in his life. When I pursued your mom, I promised to give her a good life. However, so many years have passed, and I'm still in this mess."
He rubbed his hair vigorously, a bitter smile appearing at the corner of his mouth.
"I couldn't even afford the money to take you to the hospital, and your mom had to borrow from relatives."
"Back then, your mom held the borrowed twenty thousand yuan and said to me, 'Zhengguo, we have money to take our son to see a doctor.' Seeing her happy face, my heart ached terribly."
Su Zhengguo lowered his eyelids and shook his head.
"Dad..." Su Yu's voice was a little choked.
"Fortunately, my son is successful, very successful. I'm very happy... But please don't ask me to resign, okay?"
"Dad, why?" Su Yu was confused. He now had the ability to support the family, so why did his father still have to work so hard?
"Because this way... I'll feel like I'm still useful..." Su Zhengguo lay on the sofa, his eyes half-closed. The alcohol was kicking in, and his head felt a bit fuzzy.
Vaguely, he saw his wife standing in front of him, her eyes filled with tears.
"Guizhi, I... I'm sorry, I haven't been able to give you a good life." This was the first time he had said these three words to his wife, and they were also the words he had most wanted to say all along.
He had kept his guilt towards his wife buried deep in his heart for all these years.
Now, with the help of alcohol, he finally spoke them.
Zhang Guizhi's eyes turned red, and she slowly knelt down, reaching out to stroke his hot cheek, and said softly, "You silly, why are you apologizing? Having you and our son is the best life. The moment I gave birth to our son, you had already done it..."