Chapter 587 - 506: Cowardly Son
Chapter 587: Chapter 506: Cowardly Son
Lu Jian Country walked into the room and, with a CLICK, turned off the TV.
Weiwei, who had been waving his arms and legs, completely engrossed, let out a howl the moment the screen went black and shot up like an indignant little firecracker.
Lu Jian Country subdued his son, pulling him onto his lap in a chair. "You haven’t even started your homework, and you’re watching TV?"
"Aunt Yang said I could! She said weekends are an exception, and I can do my homework after I finish watching!" Weiwei usually loved to squirm around in his father’s arms, but right now, *Nezha’s Sea Rebellion* on TV was far more captivating. He struggled and yelled.
Lu Jian Country gave his son a light pat on the bottom. "Tomorrow is Sunday. They’ll rebroadcast it at noon, so it won’t be too late to watch it then. Right now, you and I are going to have a talk."
"It won’t be too late to talk tomorrow either—okay, fine, I’ll talk to you after the show is over!"
"No."
"WAAAHH... I want Aunt Yang! I want Mommy! WAAAHH!" Weiwei opened his mouth and let out a dry howl, shamelessly throwing a tantrum in his father’s arms.
Lu Jian Country was amused. "If you want Aunt Yang to be your mommy, you have to do your best to help Dad. Otherwise, she’ll run off and become someone else’s mommy, and then it’ll be too late for tears!"
Weiwei’s little face scrunched up. "How can I do my best? I’m too little and not strong enough. Today, that bad woman hit Aunt Yang, and I couldn’t even help. I felt really bad about it."
The moment he heard this, Lu Jian Country’s thick, dark brows shot together, his frown so deep it could kill a fly. He stared sternly at his son. "What happened? Who hit your Aunt Yang? Something like this happens when you’re out, and you come home and don’t tell me, but instead get busy watching TV? Lu Jiawei, a spineless, heartless son like you still wants a mother? I think you can just forget it!"
"I-I’m not spineless! I just wanted to watch a little TV... I was going to tell you!" A film of tears welled up in Weiwei’s eyes, and his little face flushed bright red.
Lu Jian Country said in a low voice, "In a few more months, you’ll be seven years old. You’ll be a big kid, and you should know how to tell the difference between priorities. We can talk about that some other day. Right now, no crying. Just explain to me clearly what happened today!"
Weiwei raised his sleeve to wipe his tears, but then he thought for a moment and lowered his arm. He took out the handkerchief Aunt Yang had prepared for him from his left pocket, unfolded it, dabbed his eyes, and then folded it neatly before putting it back.
The tension in Lu Jian Country’s face eased slightly. The corner of his mouth twitched, and he reached out to pat his son’s little head reassuringly.
Weiwei sat up straight on his father’s lap and recounted the entire incident in detail. He finished by saying, "In the car, Aunt Xiao Man gave Aunt Yang a bottle of medicine. She put some on the wound, and it was okay."
"What did that bad woman use to hit your Aunt Yang? She left a wound? Did you see any blood?" Lu Jian Country’s heart sank. ’I didn’t notice anything wrong with Liu’er just now,’ he thought.
"There was no blood, but it must have hurt a lot. Aunt Xiao Man is a doctor, so she knew and gave her medicine. That bad woman was so mean! Her fingernails... they were long and sharp, just like a monster’s!"
With no compunctions, Weiwei described Wu Qin as a monster straight out of a TV show. He even gave Lu Jian Country a demonstration, spreading his hands like claws and pouncing into his father’s arms, scratching wildly. "She was just like this! She let out a yell and lunged at Aunt Yang, grabbing and pinching her hard! I heard Auntie cry out in pain, and then the bad woman used ’Chain Legs’ to kick her in the stomach!"
A pang of pain shot through Lu Jian Country’s heart, and his face turned as black as the bottom of a pot. "She kicked your Aunt Yang in the stomach? How many times?"
’When I find that woman, I’ll cripple her claws and chop off her hooves!’
Weiwei let out a breath and shook his head, his eyes sparkling. "She didn’t land the kick! Aunt Xiao Man was holding me, and she flew over like Nezha with a SWOOSH, and she just grabbed Aunt Yang by the collar and pulled her back with one hand!"
Lu Jian Country looked down and glared at his son. "Speak properly! You need to be honest—don’t hide things, and don’t exaggerate! Aunt Xiao Man isn’t Nezha. How could she possibly fly? Especially while holding you!"
Weiwei twiddled his fingers pitifully. ’I *am* being honest! I promise I’m not lying! It really was... it was like Aunt Xiao Man flew! Otherwise, how could she have grabbed Aunt Yang’s collar from so far away?’
’Oh, whatever! Dad doesn’t know that Aunt Xiao Man knows Martial Arts anyway. Aunt Xiao Man promised to teach me Martial Arts during the school holiday. When the time comes, I’ll learn this move first and show Dad. Then he’ll see if I was exaggerating! Hmph, hmph!’
Weiwei couldn’t figure out the relationship between those three women and Aunt Xiao Man and Aunt Yang, or why they had started fighting. He didn’t even know the "bad woman’s" name. Since Lu Jian Country couldn’t get a clear story, he figured he would just have to find a chance to ask Liu’er herself and let Weiwei off the hook.
By this time, the TV show was over anyway. Weiwei had no choice but to take out his textbook and focus on his homework. Aunt Yang didn’t allow him to play until his homework was done, and that was non-negotiable.
’Once I’m done with my homework, Fatty from next door should be over to play with paper cards. Fatty has a few really cool cigarette packs, and I have to win them from him before dinner! And after dinner, there’s an even bigger event: my friends in the alley and I are playing war this weekend. Since Aunt Xiao Man gave me a really awesome toy plane, everyone agrees it’s the most advanced plane, which makes me the amazing air force! Tonight, we’re facing off against the kids from two other alleys. A huge battle! I’m so excited! As for *Nezha’s Sea Rebellion*, which I missed... I’ll just have to wait until noon tomorrow to watch it. Sigh! Who says kids have nothing to do? We’re super busy, okay?’
Lu Jian Country watched with satisfaction as his son automatically started his homework. He thought for a moment, then, imitating what Yang Liu’er usually did, he poured a cup of hot water and placed it on the round table, telling Weiwei to drink it once it cooled down.
Then he went to the kitchen to stoke the stove and boil water in a large copper kettle, while also starting to wash rice and put it in the rice cooker to steam.
From the outside, the Lu Family Courtyard looked like an ordinary, humble home. But once inside, an observant person would discover that this was actually the hidden wealthy household of Shunji Alley—the home was fully equipped with all kinds of home appliances that were still considered luxury goods at the time.
Lu Jianling and Yang Liu’er’s clothing company was very profitable, but Lu Jian Country kept a low profile; no one knew just how much wealth he had accumulated abroad over the past decade or so. Moreover, the network of connections he had built back when he was navigating the social circles of Beijing was still active. While other families were racking their brains and pulling every string just to get an appliance purchase voucher, all he had to do was make a single phone call. Sometimes, he didn’t even need to ask before someone would deliver it right to his door.
Lu Jianling and Yang Liu’er had no idea what kind of backgrounds the security guards Lu Jian Country had helped them recruit for the company actually came from.
By the time Lu Jian Country had boiled several kettles of water and filled the large wooden bathtub—which Yang Liu’er had bought from who-knows-where—he heard the courtyard gate open. He went out to look and saw that it was, indeed, Yang Liu’er returning.
Lu Jian Country took the cloth bag from Yang Liu’er’s hands and said, "The rice is already steaming. You already prepped the vegetables for tonight and left them over there, so I’ll just stir-fry and cook them in a bit. Go take a bath. I’ve prepared hot water for you, so don’t let it get cold."
Yang Liu’er could still feel a dull pain in her chest and was just thinking she needed to bathe and apply medicine. She nodded, turned, and went back to her room to get a change of clothes. It wasn’t until she was soaking comfortably in the tub with her eyes closed that she slowly began to wonder how Lu Jian Country knew to prepare a bath for her at just the right time. Then she thought of Weiwei’s big mouth... Yang Liu’er covered her face with both hands, turning as red as a boiled shrimp from head to toe.