Chapter 45: Ancestor Worship in Dongshan Hometown
The heat of the day had receded. At night, especially on the rooftop terrace of the attic, one could feel a cool breeze. After washing up, Zhou Wanfeng rarely sat on the concrete platform of the terrace, watching the stars and moon shine in the night sky.
Zhou Zhiru’s abnormal behavior at the dinner table had aroused her suspicion.
From Yun Lang, she had learned that the Yun family’s business was still doing well. At the very least, they had avoided the fate of closing down. There were no signs of the Yun family’s decline, yet Zhou Zhiru was anxious?
Zhou Wanfeng frowned in thought. She still had three years of high school. In these three years, she had to let Yun Haisheng and Yang Yijun of the Yun family suppress Zhou Zhiru. Then the Yun family could not fall too quickly, and Zhou Zhiru could maintain the status quo. One question she was more concerned about was, what kind of dirt did Yang Yijun have on Zhou Zhiru? Big or small? If Zhou Zhiru went too far and angered Yang Yijun, she didn’t care what happened to Zhou Zhiru, but the goal she had been working so hard for would probably be ruined. Other schools didn’t have a family member review.
Zhou Wanfeng silently gritted her back teeth. That bastard Zhou Zhiru, to mention the Zhou family in public tonight, was simply dancing on the Yun family’s minefield.
The Zhou family are all on the thin side? He hadn’t even thought of Yun Chengbin, or the awkwardly positioned Yun Jingya.
She didn’t even have to look at Yang Yijun to guess what a terrifying look she must have had on her face at that moment.
It was definitely intentional.
Zhou Wanfeng was deep in thought about Zhou Zhiru’s abnormal purpose when she heard a series of footsteps from the staircase.
Yun Jingya walked over in a long white dress and sat down. She had just taken a shower, and her hair was loose. As she sat down, a fresh scent of shampoo wafted over.
“I always want the family to see your excellence, and I also want them to know that the more outstanding you are, it won’t affect me. On the contrary, I will be very happy. I want to prove to them that I’m not the type to be jealous of people who are more outstanding than me. I will work hard to be like the outstanding people and become just as outstanding myself,” Yun Jingya said, looking up at the night sky. She suddenly let out a soft breath, turned to look at Zhou Wanfeng, and said in a frustrated voice, “I’m sorry, Wanfeng. Grandma’s words… were a little unpleasant.” In fact, they were a little harsh.
Yun Jingya felt a sense of powerlessness. She really wanted to mediate the relationship between her grandmother and Wanfeng. She didn’t understand why two people who were so good in her eyes just couldn’t get along.
She had explained many times that she didn’t care who was more outstanding than her, even if she lived in Zhou Wanfeng’s shadow.
During the military training competition, when she had looked at the serious and focused Wanfeng, she had inexplicably known that she and Zhou Wanfeng would walk different paths.
“I won’t talk about you to them anymore,” Yun Jingya said with an apologetic smile.
Zhou Wanfeng sneered, also looking up at the sky. After a while, she slowly said, “Your grandmother knows very well what I’m like. You don’t have to deliberately talk about me to them. To be blunt, I have nothing to do with them. They don’t want to know anything about me.”
Yun Jingya grabbed the skirt on her knees and said nothing.
“You’re apologizing to me. Then weren’t you upset by his ‘Zhou family’ comment?” Zhou Wanfeng turned to look at the silent girl. Just a profile was enough to be captivating. During the military training, she was neither deaf nor blind. Not to mention her own class, many of the boys in the neighboring training classes would look over.
Young love. Yun Jingya was probably the kind of “white moonlight” that was often mentioned in books.
Yun Jingya hadn’t expected Zhou Wanfeng to care about her. She smiled faintly and said to Zhou Wanfeng with great sincerity, “To be honest, a little. But when I thought that Yun Chengbin wasn’t counted as a Zhou family member either, it wasn’t so bad.”
Zhou Wanfeng’s expression was downcast, her voice slightly cold. “Just one ‘Zhou family’ comment made you upset?” she said, her voice soft and light, as if she were talking to herself.
Her brow furrowed, and her palm suddenly clenched. Zhou Zhiru was a bastard who knew the strengths and weaknesses of human nature. If he started to raise a monster now, Yun Jingya would definitely not be able to hold on.
If Yun Jingya was affected, Yang Yijun would definitely go crazy.
Zhou Wanfeng suddenly knew what Zhou Zhiru was trying to do. She stood up, her tone sharp and serious. “Yun Jingya, why are you studying so hard? Your family is rich. Even if you do nothing, your future will be better than many people’s. You don’t have to live so hard and so tired. You have a grandfather, a grandmother, a mother, and a brother who love you. Why do you care about one sentence from him?”
Yun Jingya looked up, her face filled with surprise. When she saw Zhou Wanfeng’s icy gaze, a flash of panic even appeared in her eyes. She didn’t understand why Wanfeng was suddenly so strict.
She pressed down on her skirt and slowly stood up. “I… I don’t have any memory of my biological father. I’ve only seen him a few times since I grew up. He, Dad… is just… always been Dad.”
Zhou Wanfeng understood. In Yun Jingya’s heart, Zhou Zhiru was her father.
“Go back to sleep,” Zhou Wanfeng said, her head aching a little.
Meanwhile, in the study on the first floor,
Yun Haisheng and Yang Yijun, Yun Lan and Zhou Zhiru, the four of them were sitting on the sofa, the atmosphere a little heavy.
Yun Lan looked at her parents, then at Zhou Zhiru. She knew in her heart that it was because of what had happened at the dinner table. She steeled herself and said, “Dad, Mom, maybe Zhiru just spoke too quickly. It was… it was just a careless remark. Jingya won’t mind.”
Yun Lan was met with a cold glare from Yang Yijun and immediately shut up.
Yun Haisheng glanced at Yang Yijun, telling her to speak.
“Although Jingya is not your biological daughter, she has called you ‘Dad’ for so many years, and she has always respected and liked you as if you were her biological father. What you said at dinner today was a little thoughtless,” Yang Yijun said. She still remembered Jingya’s stunned look. Her heart had ached for her at that moment.
Zhou Zhiru lowered his head and pursed his lips, as if thinking about how to say it.
His looks were a great advantage. When he smiled and spoke, he gave off the impression of being very good-tempered. “Dad, Mom, since we’re on this topic, I have something to say too. Wanfeng came over in junior high, and it’s been three years. At dinner, Mom, you only served Jingya and Chengbin. And Dad, you came back specifically to cook. Even if that lion’s head was really made because Jingya likes to eat it, is it appropriate to say that in front of Wanfeng? She’s been much quieter these past three years, and her temper is not as fierce as when she first came. I thought you would try to accept her, but tonight’s dinner made me realize that it’s impossible.”
Yun Lan’s big eyes were wide, and she was at a loss. She didn’t understand why they were suddenly talking about this.
Yang Yijun was very surprised, or rather, shocked.
She had never expected Zhou Zhiru to say such a thing. Only Yun Lan would listen to such superficial words.
Yun Haisheng frowned, glanced at Yang Yijun, and took the lead in expressing his opinion. “Indeed, the child is older now. We should try to be more careful about such things in the future.”
Zhou Zhiru smiled and suddenly dropped a bombshell. “Dad, Mom, I want to tell you something. The next time there’s a holiday, I want to take Chengbin and Wanfeng back to our hometown in Dongshan to worship our ancestors.”
Yun Lan subconsciously lowered her head, not daring to look at Yang Yijun’s eyes.
Yang Yijun knew at a glance that Zhou Zhiru had already talked to Yun Lan about this.
The next morning, at around five o’clock, Zhou Wanfeng left South Lake Mansion with her backpack and started to jog back to the rented house. Running was a good way to test one’s patience and perseverance.
Zhou Wanfeng was intentionally training herself in this aspect. She felt that she could still improve her physical fitness. And after fighting with Wu Zihe, she knew very well that she had to strengthen her arm and palm strength.
She decided to buy some weight rings to wear daily when the weather got colder and she had to wear long sleeves. That should increase her arm strength.
Zhou Wanfeng planned the things she needed to do in the next three years as she ran.
Studying. First and foremost was studying. She had learned from Sun Mulan that her total score in the college entrance exam had to be over 680.
Zhou Wanfeng admitted that she had no talent for studying. It was all the result of accumulated time.
She planned to spend high school in the same way.
As for the mess with the Yun family and Zhou Zhiru, she could only keep an eye on it for now.
The plan Zhou Wanfeng had set for her three years of high school was: 1. Study hard. 2. Exercise and improve her physical fitness and explosive power.
After the military training, classes officially began. The seats in First Year, Class Three were changed. Zhou Wanfeng’s deskmate was actually the class president, Wu Junfeng. And it should be mentioned that Wu Junfeng’s term as class president had been renewed.
In one evening self-study session, all the class officers of First Year, Class Three were selected.
Yun Jingya became the cultural and sports publicity committee member. For major holidays like New Year’s Day, Labor Day, and National Day, when the school needed to organize programs, she would have to organize them. And the blackboard in the back of the classroom was also under her jurisdiction.
It was unknown if Kong Xiaoxu had gotten his Taekwondo fees, but he was the sports committee member. He had to maintain order during the morning exercises, physical education class, and outdoor activities.
Unexpectedly, Jiang Chen was the math class representative.
“I’m not as good at math as Jiang Yi, but in the eyes of others, I’m not bad either,” Jiang Chen said, seeing Zhou Wanfeng’s surprised look. He immediately understood what she was thinking.
Zhou Wanfeng’s eyes held a smile. “Whether you’re bad or not, I’ll know when I ask you math questions in the future.”
“Ask away,” Jiang Chen said, patting his shoulder and readily agreeing.
Wang Feili and another girl sat in front of Zhou Wanfeng. According to Wang Feili, her deskmate was named Li Lihua. Her hair was very long, and most of the time, her face was covered by her hair.
The Chinese teacher was very formidable. She was well-versed in both ancient and modern knowledge, and could spend a whole class just talking about the derivatives of an idiom, without even using the textbook. Her knowledge was so vast that it seemed she knew everything. Zhou Wanfeng loved her classes and would unconsciously become immersed in them.
The math teacher was very strict. His brow was never relaxed in class. He was very detailed in his lectures, and at the same time, he extremely disliked students who did not listen attentively in class.
A few days after the official start of school, Zhou Wanfeng could already feel the pressure of the intense learning in high school.
It really was worthy of being the No. 1 High School.
Everyone seemed to have their own learning methods, and they all looked relaxed.
No. 1 High School had three cafeterias. She liked the third one because it was the closest.
Not long after she sat down, three people came.
“Zhou Wanfeng, Jiang Chen said you beat up the instructor during the military training. Is that true?” Lu Qing’s tray had no vegetables, not even a single leaf.
Jiang Yi sat down next to Zhou Wanfeng with his tray and asked, “How do you feel about the classes?”
The last one, Jiang Chen, sat next to Lu Qing and explained for himself, “I clearly said it was a match. And you turned it into a fight? How can you be so divisive?”
Lu Qing didn’t care. He looked at Zhou Wanfeng with a smile. “It’s a pity that Jiang Yi and I are in Class Six. It would be great if we could be in the same class.”
Jiang Yi took a couple of bites of his rice and remembered something. “By the way, Wanfeng, did your family come to pick you up in a car after the military training?”
Jiang Chen very naturally extended his chopsticks to Jiang Yi’s tray to get some food, then turned and extended them to Lu Qing’s tray.
Lu Qing was tired of eating meat and naturally went to get some from Jiang Yi’s tray. He also ate from Jiang Chen’s.
Jiang Yi looked at the chopsticks coming and going in his tray. He was used to it. It had been like this throughout the entire military training. No matter what he said, these two would just shamelessly do as they pleased.
Jiang Chen swallowed a mouthful of meat. “It was a black imported Crown. Everyone in my class knows about it. Someone asked as soon as we got back from the holiday. What’s wrong?” It had made the people in his class extremely curious. Now everyone knew that Yun Jingya’s family was super rich. In fact, you didn’t even have to look. The clothes Yun Jingya wore, the things she used, the exquisite air about her, you could tell just by comparing her to the other girls.
“There’s a boy in my class who likes Yun Jingya. He said he saw her once during the military training and fell for her. But a girl in the class said that this person is very good at pleasing girls. He had rumors of puppy love in junior high and was even called to the principal’s office,” Lu Qing said, looking at Zhou Wanfeng with a smile. “That person is not bad-looking, but he’s a light bulb.”
“A light bulb?” Zhou Wanfeng frowned, not understanding.
“It means he’s always shining his light everywhere, casting a wide net,” Jiang Chen explained.
“Yun Jingya has her own judgment. She doesn’t need anyone to remind her. If she gets tricked, it’s because she’s not a good judge of character,” Zhou Wanfeng said, her expression calm, her tone very cold, as if she didn’t care at all.