That morning, after Zhou Yu and Lu Cheng finished breakfast, they opened the courtyard gate and saw Ji Jing standing outside.
Lu Cheng was delighted to see his father waiting at the entrance. He immediately ran over and grabbed Ji Jing’s hand. Smiling, Ji Jing reached out and ruffled his hair.
The three of them soon arrived at Lu Cheng’s school together. However, when they reached the school gate, Lu Cheng did not go inside right away. Instead, he pulled Ji Jing aside and gestured for him to bend down.
Leaning close to Ji Jing’s ear, Lu Cheng lowered his voice and said, “Dad, when school lets out at noon, come pick me up by yourself. I have something I want to tell you privately.”
Although Ji Jing had no idea what Lu Cheng was being so secretive about, he still nodded and agreed.
At noon, Zhou Yu had originally planned to go with Ji Jing to pick up Lu Cheng from school, but Ji Jing said he could go alone.
“Well… Lu Cheng asked me to come by myself. He said he has something he wants to tell me,” Ji Jing explained honestly.
Since that morning, there had been something a little odd about the father and son. Although Zhou Yu had no idea what secret they were keeping, she had no reason to stop them from spending time alone together.
“Then go ahead.” Zhou Yu nodded. “Will you two be coming back for lunch?”
What Zhou Yu actually meant was that if they were not coming back, she could simply cook a single serving of rice for herself. However, Ji Jing completely missed the meaning behind her question and assumed she wanted to have lunch together with Lu Cheng.
“I’ll bring Lu Cheng back to eat.”
Hearing that, Zhou Yu did not say anything more. She merely nodded and headed off to prepare lunch.
By the time Ji Jing arrived at Lu Cheng’s school gate, the dismissal bell had just rung.
As usual, Lu Cheng was the first student to dash out of the school.
“Dad!” Lu Cheng ran up and grabbed Ji Jing’s hand. Then he looked around cautiously in every direction before continuing, “She didn’t come, right?”
Seeing Lu Cheng acting so sneaky, Ji Jing could not help finding it amusing. He reached out and rubbed the boy’s hair before asking, “No, she didn’t. What secret do you have to tell me?”
“That’s good.” Lu Cheng let out a sigh of relief. Then, with a solemn expression and a serious tone, he asked, “Dad, do you have another woman outside?”
For a moment, Ji Jing failed to process the question. He froze in astonishment and did not answer.
Seeing that reaction, Lu Cheng immediately became convinced that he had guessed correctly. He sighed and continued, “Sigh, I guess I can’t really blame you. You lost your memory before, so it’s normal that you might have fallen for another woman. But you have to remember that you’re a married man now…”
Since Zhou Yu was not there, Lu Cheng did not bother lowering his voice. As a result, quite a few people nearby heard what he said. The looks they directed at Ji Jing immediately became tinged with suspicion and disdain.
Hearing Lu Cheng’s words and noticing the strange stares from passersby, Ji Jing instantly understood what Lu Cheng had meant earlier with his seemingly random question. His face turned red with embarrassment. He honestly wanted to cover Lu Cheng’s mouth and stop him from saying another word.
“No! What on earth goes on inside that little head of yours all day?” Ji Jing said, both exasperated and amused.
The moment he heard the denial, Lu Cheng visibly relaxed. Then he pressed on with another question.
“Then why are you sleeping separately from Mom? And why don’t you come home at night?”
At those words, the looks directed at Ji Jing became even more disdainful.
Ji Jing felt as though he had a hundred mouths and still could not explain himself.
“I went to stay with your grandfather and grandmother last night,” he replied, deliberately changing the subject and avoiding the real issue. “Stop worrying about grown-ups’ affairs.”
Lu Cheng was not satisfied with that answer. He wanted to argue further, but before he realized it, they had almost reached home.
Afraid that Zhou Yu might overhear, he reluctantly fell silent. Puffing out his cheeks in annoyance, he turned his face away and refused to speak.
“What did you do to him? He looks so unhappy.” Seeing the sulking Lu Cheng, Zhou Yu turned to Ji Jing and asked in confusion.
Ji Jing had no idea how to answer. After a few seconds, he forced himself to come up with an excuse.
“Him? He saw some candied hawthorns on the way and insisted on having one. I figured lunch was about to start, so I didn’t buy any for him.”
The moment Ji Jing finished speaking, not only was Zhou Yu surprised, but even Lu Cheng shot him several strange looks.
Lu Cheng wanted to explain that he did not even like candied hawthorns, but he was afraid his mother would start asking more questions. In the end, he said nothing.
Instead, he became even angrier.
Crossing his arms over his chest, he let out a loud “Hmph!” and stomped back into the living room.
Ji Jing awkwardly scratched his head.
Zhou Yu, however, did not think much of his explanation. Seeing Lu Cheng’s reaction, she simply assumed he really had wanted the candied hawthorns. Smiling, she did not pursue the matter any further.
“Don’t be upset. After lunch, I’ll buy you a candied hawthorn skewer.”
When Zhou Yu carried the dishes into the living room, she saw that Lu Cheng was still sitting in his chair looking thoroughly disgruntled, so she tried to comfort him with a smile.
“I’m not upset because of the candied hawthorns…” Lu Cheng said through gritted teeth.
He had just been about to continue when he saw Ji Jing walking in from outside.
Immediately, he swallowed the rest of his words.
“Alright, alright, I know. I’ll have your dad buy you two later,” Zhou Yu said with a laugh.
Hearing his mother say that, Lu Cheng was so frustrated he nearly exploded. Yet he could not very well explain the conversation he had had with his father on the way home.
Looking at Zhou Yu, he suddenly felt a deep sense of frustration, like seeing iron that refused to become steel.
“Come on, eat.” Zhou Yu handed him a bowl of rice.
Lu Cheng felt utterly miserable at that moment, but he did not say another word. Instead, he buried his head in his meal and shoveled down mouthful after mouthful as though the food had personally offended him.
“Slow down. Don’t choke. No one’s going to steal it from you.”
Seeing Lu Cheng’s expression of someone suffering in silence, Ji Jing’s lips curled upward slightly. He picked up a piece of meat and placed it in Lu Cheng’s bowl as he spoke.
“Hmph.”
Lu Cheng glared at Ji Jing before lowering his head and continuing to eat without another word.
Lunch was over quickly.
Ji Jing suggested that only one person needed to take Lu Cheng back to school. Zhou Yu was more than happy to save herself the trip.
Before they left, however, she called out one final reminder to Ji Jing.
“Don’t forget to buy Lu Cheng two candied hawthorn skewers.”
“Alright,” Ji Jing replied with a smile.
The entire way there, Lu Cheng refused to acknowledge him.
He was genuinely a little angry. His father had actually made up such an excuse and framed him. He clearly did not like candied hawthorns.
Puffing out his cheeks, Lu Cheng walked ahead on his own. He did not even hold Ji Jing’s hand anymore, choosing instead to sulk in silence.
“Cheng’er,” Ji Jing called from a short distance behind him.
Lu Cheng heard him and initially did not want to respond. But after hesitating for 0.1 seconds, he still stopped, turned around, and looked back. He wondered what his father wanted.
“Here, take this. Don’t be angry anymore.”
“I just came up with an excuse on the spot. You didn’t want her finding out what we talked about either, did you?” Ji Jing said as he handed over the two candied hawthorn skewers he had just bought.
“Fine. But I really don’t like candied hawthorns,” Lu Cheng said as he accepted them and immediately took a bite.
If Lu Cheng had not been taking bite after bite of the candied hawthorn while saying he did not like it, his claim might have sounded a little more convincing.
“Alright, I know. You don’t like them,” Ji Jing replied with a smile.
He did not bother pointing out the contradiction. This child really was the type to say one thing and mean another.
When they arrived at the school gate, Lu Cheng handed one of the skewers, the untouched one, back to Ji Jing.
“Take this home for my mom. The two of you need to get along properly, understand?”
Hearing such grown-up words spoken in such a serious tone by a child who did not even reach Ji Jing’s waist made the whole thing seem rather amusing.
Still, Ji Jing found it quite adorable.
Taking the candied hawthorn skewer, he smiled and said, “Alright. Now hurry back to your classroom and get to class.”
This child might be small, but he certainly worried about a lot of things.
Ji Jing could not help feeling that the Lu Cheng of this life was far more lively and cheerful than before.
And that was a good thing.
By the time Ji Jing returned to Zhou Yu’s courtyard, he figured it should already be her afternoon rest and study time. It would not be appropriate to disturb her, so he simply went into the kitchen, found a plate, placed the candied hawthorn skewer on it, and then left the courtyard.
It was only March. The National college entrance exam would not take place until July, and after that there would still be the wait for the admission notice.
All things considered, they would not be leaving for the capital until at least August.
Since they still had to stay in town for another half year or so, continuing to live in a hotel seemed impractical. It was also inconvenient for Ji Jing’s mother to see Lu Cheng every day. As a result, Ji Jing decided to buy a courtyard house near the one Zhou Yu was renting.
He offered a very generous price, and the courtyard next door to Zhou Yu’s happened to be vacant, so the purchase went through smoothly.
At the same time, Ji Jing had someone locate the elderly couple who owned the house Zhou Yu was renting and bought that property as well at a high price.
Zhou Yu knew nothing about any of this.
She followed her study schedule as usual, studying until around five o’clock before finally leaving her room.
The first thing she noticed was a plate sitting on the table in the living room, with a candied hawthorn skewer resting on it.
Puzzled, Zhou Yu picked it up.
Just then, Ji Jing walked in from outside. Seeing her staring at the skewer, he explained, “Cheng’er asked me to bring it back for you.”
Hearing that, Zhou Yu immediately remembered Lu Cheng’s sulky expression at lunchtime and smiled.
“He’s not angry anymore, is he?”
“Mm. I managed to coax him out of it,” Ji Jing replied with a smile.
“Let’s go pick him up from school.”
Zhou Yu took a bite of the candied hawthorn skewer.
It tasted quite sour, though the sweet sugar coating around the hawthorns balanced it enough to make it barely acceptable.
After all, it was a gift from her son.
Even though Zhou Yu did not particularly enjoy sour foods, she still finished the entire skewer.
Seeing that Zhou Yu seemed to be in a good mood, Ji Jing seized the opportunity to bring up something else.
“I bought a courtyard near yours. I thought it would be more convenient for picking up and dropping off Cheng’er after we move in. It will also make it easier for my mother to see her precious grandson more often.”
“Oh. Madam Chu’s condition really does require her to maintain a positive state of mind. Seeing her grandson more often should be beneficial to her recovery as well.”
Upon hearing Ji Jing’s explanation, Zhou Yu did not think much of it and responded casually.
Ji Jing had actually been somewhat worried that Zhou Yu might object to him moving so close without discussing it with her first. He had even prepared several arguments to persuade her.
Now, seeing that she did not mind in the slightest, he finally let out a huge sigh of relief.