Chapter 432 - 212: I’m Full from Anger! Hmph

Chapter 432: Chapter 212: I’m Full from Anger! Hmph

"Go ahead and drink," Song Wanqing said, grinning.

Song Changhe put down his cup and said thoughtfully, "Something feels off about this braised meat."

"What’s off about it?" Song Wanqing asked with a smile, looking at the braised meat in the container.

"It looks like leftovers." Song Changhe eyed her. "Did that kid give this to you? You couldn’t finish it, so you brought the rest to me?"

Song Wanqing lowered her head, shoveled a mouthful of rice, and mumbled, "No, it’s not. He asked me to bring it to you."

Song Changhe laughed. "Giving braised meat to an elder... half a pig’s ear, half a pig’s snout, and just a couple slivers of head meat? From what I see, that kid isn’t very sincere. His character is seriously flawed."

"That’s not true! He has a noble character!" Song Wanqing slammed her chopsticks down and reached for the container’s lid. "If you’re not going to eat it, then forget it! I bring you braised meat and all you do is complain. I won’t bring you any next time!"

"I’ll eat, I’ll eat!" Song Changhe quickly snatched the container of braised meat away, saying with a laugh, "In that case, I’m accepting a favor from my granddaughter. You spend my retirement pension, so it’s only right that I get to eat this."

Song Wanqing looked at this old rascal with a helpless expression. "Grandpa, why won’t you teach him the Emei Spear? He wants to carry on traditional martial arts, to save our martial heritage as much as possible. You’re one of the foremost masters of the Emei Spear; you should be helping him with his work. Didn’t you used to want to open a dojo and take on students?"

"Times have changed. What’s the point of learning the Emei Spear?" Song Changhe picked up a slice of pig ear and chewed it slowly. He took another sip from his cup and said leisurely, "For kids these days, the right path is to study hard—to build guns, cannons, airplanes, and tanks. Those are the ’heavy weapons’ that make other nations take you seriously, that make them fear you."

"Performing those martial arts routines just to get a few cheers... what’s the difference between that and the street performers of old? If that’s all it is, then let it be lost to time. At least that way we avoid bringing shame to it."

Song Wanqing froze upon hearing this, murmuring, "But..."

"What is it? Have you taken a liking to that kid?" Song Changhe looked at her.

"Of course not! I’m full!" Song Wanqing’s face flushed red as she stood up to leave.

"But you haven’t eaten yet."

"I’m full from anger! Hmph!"

Song Changhe picked up a piece of the head meat, popped it in his mouth, and savored the flavor. He shook his head with a smile. ’This kid... he’s actually pretty clever.’

...

"Zhou Yan! Package!" A mail carrier shouted, his bicycle stopped at the restaurant’s entrance.

"Coming!" Zhou Yan called out. He hurried outside and took the package from the mail carrier. It was a bit heavy, feeling like a book, but its size suggested it could be art paper. The return address was from Mountain City.

"Is it from Yaoyao?" Zhou Momo bounced out behind him, her eyes fixed on the package in Zhou Yan’s hands, full of anticipation.

"What’d she send? It’s a big one!" Mrs. Zhao chimed in, looking just as curious.

"Don’t know yet," Zhou Yan said as he carried the package inside. He carefully cut it open with a pair of scissors. Inside were a letter, two picture-story books, and a new sketchbook.

"It’s picture-story books!" Zhou Momo’s eyes lit up.

Zhou Yan set the letter aside and picked up the two picture-story books: *Great Heavenly Palace Rebellion* and *Wu Song Fights the Tiger*. Both were illustrated by Liu Jirou and were still in excellent condition.

"These picture-story books must be for you," Zhou Yan said with a smile, handing them to Zhou Momo.

Zhou Momo took them with both hands and sat down to the side, her eyes filled with delight. She opened *Great Heavenly Palace Rebellion* and began to read it intently, whispering in amazement, "Wow! The drawings are so pretty! Brother, look! This monkey is so big! He’s holding a staff... he looks like Ming Guoguo!"

"That’s Sun Wukong, and he’s holding the Golden Cudgel," Zhou Yan said with a laugh. "If your brother Ming heard you say that, he’d probably be very happy."

Tell a man he looks like a macaque, and he definitely won’t be happy.

But if that monkey’s name is Sun Wukong...

...that’s a different story entirely.

"Xia Yao is so sweet, always thinking of Momo. Her gifts are always perfect for her. She never gets tired of drawing with those crayons," Mrs. Zhao remarked with a smile.

"She is," Zhou Yan agreed. He took the letter outside, leaned back in his recliner, and carefully tore open the envelope.

Three sheets of letter paper were folded neatly inside. When he unfolded them, Xia Yao’s elegant handwriting seemed to leap off the page:

"Zhou Yan:

I hope this letter finds you well.

I’m writing because I couldn’t wait to share some exciting news with you. In class, I saw that your Kneeling Beef was featured in *Sichuan Cuisine* magazine! It got a round of applause from my teacher and classmates.

Teacher Su even used you as a case study to give the class a vivid lesson.

In that moment, I was so happy and proud of you.

Funnily enough, the magazine was actually Deng Hong’s subscription. She was slacking off and reading it during class, and it only got confiscated by the teacher after the student next to her realized it was you in the article and couldn’t help but gasp...

..."

The corners of Zhou Yan’s mouth lifted into a small smile. He’d never imagined he’d cause such a stir in a classroom at the Sichuan Fine Arts Institute, hundreds of kilometers away in Mountain City.

’So those two meals weren’t a waste after all.’

’Though, the magazine I sent should be arriving in Mountain City any day now, right?’

’I wonder how Xia Yao will react when she gets it.’

’I guess you could call it a kind of unspoken connection.’

’Both of us sharing the same news with the other.’

He read on, and Xia Yao shared some other amusing stories from her recent school life.

She also mentioned that they were about to start internships. Most of her classmates chose to work at factories in Mountain City, while some were heading to Rongcheng and Chang’an.

"I picked up two picture-story books for Momo at a bookstall. They’re both by Grandmaster Liu Jirou, who is my favorite picture-story book artist. Every single panel is a masterpiece. Perhaps they can give the little one a bit of artistic inspiration. I hope she likes them."

Zhou Yan glanced back at the little girl, who was engrossed in the picture-story book, her eyes wide with surprise, joy, and a budding eagerness.

’It’s obvious she loves it!’

’And it seems she actually understands it. She’s been staring at the first page for a while now, studying it intently.’

’Not like him when he was a kid. When he read *Journey to the West*, he only wanted to see the monkey fight demons. Only after growing up did he realize how many beautiful maidens he’d overlooked.’

"The sketchbook is for Momo, but there’s a drawing tucked inside for you. The thunderous applause my classmates gave you that day left a deep impression on me. I thought it was a shame you couldn’t see it, so I drew it for you to share in the moment.

With best wishes for the season,

Xia Yao

11/23/1984"

Zhou Yan stuffed the letter back into its envelope. He couldn’t wait. He got up, went back into the restaurant, and opened the sketchbook. The first page immediately caught his eye.

It depicted a classroom where everyone was applauding. On the stage, a smiling Teacher Su, wearing glasses, held up a magazine. The words *Sichuan Cuisine* on its cover were particularly striking.

And in the crowd, a girl in a blouse, her long hair cascading over her shoulders, was looking back, a splash of brilliance in the painting.

It was Xia Yao. The smile on her face was exceptionally radiant.

For a dazed moment, Zhou Yan felt as if he, too, could feel the enthusiastic atmosphere of that classroom.

’University students, not yet beaten down by the real world, were just more passionate and sincere.’

"Oh my, your fame has even spread to Sichuan University? What a beautiful drawing." Mrs. Zhao had been watching from the side and nodded repeatedly. "This girl is truly talented. A university student like her, she’ll probably head to the big cities like the Capital to make her mark, won’t she?"

"From a career planning perspective, that would be the best choice," Zhou Yan nodded.

Advertising design is a fairly new profession. In this day and age, moving to a big city to pursue a career is the best option.

This was the advice Zhou Yan had given her as well.

From hand-drawn illustrations to computer-aided design, the industry changes incredibly fast. Only in the big cities could you keep up with the times and stay on the cutting edge.

From their recent correspondence, Zhou Yan could tell that she was ambitious and driven, someone who wanted to make a name for herself in the advertising design industry.

The painting had been tucked into the sketchbook, so it had no creases and didn’t need to be flattened.

"Lemme see!" Zhou Momo put down her picture-story book and came closer. She studied the drawing for a moment, then asked, puzzled, "Brother, what is this a painting of?"

"Look," Zhou Yan explained to the little girl with a smile. "This is a classroom. The person standing at the front is the teacher, and she’s holding a magazine and explaining it to the students. The students thought her lecture was excellent, so they all applauded enthusiastically."

"Oh! So that’s what a classroom looks like! Is that what ’going to class’ is?" Zhou Momo’s eyes lit up, and she looked at him with longing. "Momo wants to go to class, too. I want to clap with lots of other kids."

Zhou Yan saw the hopeful light in her eyes and nodded with a smile. "Alright. After the New Year, I’ll send you to kindergarten."

"Yay! I knew Brother was the best!" Zhou Momo bounced with joy, her little ponytail bobbing up and down.

Zhou Yan smiled and patted her head. ’I just hope she won’t be crying for her mom when the time comes,’ he thought.

He put the drawing in a frame and stored it carefully in a box.

Xia Yao’s art always made him feel a powerful vitality, as dazzling and fiery as the sun.

He framed them, and looking at them from time to time always lifted his spirits.

After closing the box, he glanced at a picture frame standing on another box by his bed. It was her autumn self-portrait. The girl’s brilliant smile made the face in his memory come alive.

That evening, after closing the restaurant, Zhou Yan was about to head out for a run when he bumped into Zhou Ming.

"Zhou Yan, I was just looking for you! Where are you headed?" asked Zhou Ming.

"I was planning to go for a run. Ming, did you just get off work? Have you eaten dinner yet?" Zhou Yan asked with a smile.

"I already ate with the martial arts team. I had them do an extra hour of training, so I’m back a little late." Zhou Ming parked his bicycle and pulled Zhou Yan aside. He quickly recounted what had happened that afternoon and then asked, "So, what do you make of all this? What should I do next so I don’t mess up?"

"This Teacher Song is really something else," Zhou Yan couldn’t help but exclaim after hearing the story. ’So clear-headed and perceptive.’

He looked at Zhou Ming with a helpless expression. "Ming, you really need to be more mindful. From now on, just listen to Teacher Song at school. It would be great if you could get transferred to her school to teach."

"You’re right. I’ll listen to whatever she says from now on," Zhou Ming nodded repeatedly. Thinking back on what happened, he felt a lingering sense of fear.

Zhou Yan almost burst out laughing. ’So this is how a henpecked husband is made, huh?’ he thought.

"She took the braised meat home, so old Master Song Changhe definitely ate it," Zhou Yan said with a laugh. "Let’s press our advantage. Tomorrow, we’ll bring him a portion of braised beef. Get him hooked, and he’ll have no choice but to acknowledge you."

"Tomorrow’s no good," Zhou Ming said, scratching his head in frustration. "I have to lead morning exercises, so I need to be at the school by seven."

"I see..." Zhou Yan thought for a moment. "Okay, how about this: I’ll have a friend bring it over and leave it at the school’s gatehouse for you with a note. You can grab it after your morning classes and give it to Teacher Song when you walk her home in the evening."

"Deal!" Zhou Ming nodded with a smile, then hesitated. "But won’t that be too much trouble for you and your friend?"

"We’re brothers. Don’t mention it," Zhou Yan laughed.