The middle three pages are creased, and the notes are neatly filled with them.
"This is everything I left for Xiaoxi: the password to the family bankbook, my salary card and password, where the spare key to the house is kept, the property certificate for this apartment. Years ago in Changping, I also bought her a small shop there; at current market prices, it should be worth seven or eight times more." Zhao Wenchun's eyes shone with undisguised joy as he spoke. As a father, being able to leave his daughter these things to rely on was one of his few sources of pride.
Zhou Qishen turned to the second page.
"Oh, there are also some cash amounts on it, including my retirement allowances, bonuses, and subsidies, which will be paid on time every month. Xiaoxi will also have something to check and refer to. I have written down where I keep my medical book and household registration book."
Page 3.
“This is the money Xiaoxi has given me over the years since she came of age. There are amounts ranging from one thousand to three thousand to five thousand.” After a pause, Zhao Wenchun said with a hint of pride, “My Xiaoxi is great, isn’t she? Everyone says she doesn’t have a proper job, but so what? She runs a Taobao shop with Li Ran and earns just as much as they do.”
Zhou Qishen curled the corners of his mouth, a faint smile also appearing on his face.
Finally, Zhao Wenchun took out a tin box from the glass shelf under the coffee table. It was the kind of candy box that was used many years ago, and the red and green patterns on it had faded several times.
Opening it revealed a stack of old photos.
The photos of Zhao Xiyin when she was just born are yellowed with age. Her mother was still alive then; Ding Yahe was holding her, and Zhao Wenchun had his arm around his wife's shoulder—a happy family of three. At two years old, Zhao Xiyin had her hair in a topknot and a very chubby face. At six, the little girl, just beginning to show her face, was doing leg stretches. At twelve, sixteen, and twenty, a photo remains of Zhao Xiyin at each stage of her life.
When Zhao Wenchun handed the tin box to Zhou Qishen, he was entrusting him with more than just photos; it was like presenting him with the most precious rose in his life.
Zhou Qishen instinctively caught the hand, but Teacher Zhao suddenly gripped it tightly. The old man's hands were thin and bony; with a sudden pull, the muscles and bones became even more pronounced. The old man and the young man clasped hands together, locked in a tense standoff for several seconds.
Zhao Wenchun, who had been trying his best to keep his emotions in check, couldn't hold back for long. His voice began to choke as he said, "Be good to my daughter, because I love her more than you do."
After saying that, Zhao Wenchun let go of his hand and wiped away his tears with the back of his hand.
Zhou Qishen was a man who lacked paternal love and family warmth, and was not easily swayed by familial bonds. But at this moment, he felt a deep empathy and a touch of melancholy and regret. He regretted that in the past, he had been a bad person who had received but did not cherish what he had. He had let down not only the woman he loved, but also the family members who truly wanted the best for them.
"Dad, I will." Zhou Qishen replied steadily, like a timeless and solemn promise.
It was an hour later when I left home and arrived at Lao Cheng's Teahouse.
Gu Heping turned to look at him, stubbed out his cigarette, and said helplessly, "Are you really not worried, or are you just pretending to be calm? Such a big thing has happened, and you don't have any thoughts at all?"
Zhou Qishen lay down on the sofa, placing his left hand over his eyes to block out the light.
"Everyone in the industry knows about the mess you and Zhuang Qiu made in Qinghai. I'm fucking speechless. Your own buddy was the main character, and we only found out about it from other people. Boss Zhou, you're doing so well now, you can handle everything on your own, so you don't need us anymore, huh?"
Zhou Qishen moved his hand down from his eyes, revealing a slit in his gaze, and looked at Gu Heping with a smile.
Gu Heping was speechless. "Get the hell out of here and stop flirting with me. I'm not interested in men."
Old Cheng frowned as well. "Brother Zhou, you should have told us."
Zhou Qishen sat up, propped his elbows on his knees, and picked up Lao Cheng's cigarette and lit it. After a few puffs, he said, "It's a family matter, whether you talk about it or not, the result is the same."
Old Cheng and the others instantly understood that Zhou Qishen was protecting Zhao Xiyin. Once this matter spread, it would inevitably lead to gossip about her. In the past, it wouldn't have mattered, but Zhao Xiyin was still in the group, making her a rather sensitive figure. Old Cheng knew Zhou Qishen too well; otherwise, Zhuang Qiu wouldn't have only injured one hand.
"After Zhuang Qiu returned to Beijing, he was hospitalized in the eastern part of the city. His right hand was badly injured, and he kept spreading rumors that you had severed his tendons, leaving him crippled." Gu Heping wasn't joking; he said seriously, "Zhuang Qiu isn't a very decent person, but he does have some real connections in Beijing. Although the Zhuang family isn't what it used to be, and the old man has stepped down, the people who succeeded him are still his own people whom he personally trained. No matter how unpopular Zhuang Qiu is, his own family won't sit idly by if they lose face."
Zhou Qishen smoked, his expression obscured by the swirling smoke.
"That kid said he's just waiting for revenge." Gu Heping hesitated for a moment before stopping, weighing his words carefully before daring not to utter a sound.
Zhou Qishen's gaze was fearless and calm as he said, "You want me to go to jail, don't you?"
After a long silence, Lao Cheng reassured him, "It's nothing serious, just a little tidying up won't make a fuss."
Zhou Qishen smiled. "Zhuang Qiu isn't that stupid. I know his background, and he should know mine too. If he really wanted to get me, he wouldn't have released the information so early. Have you thought about why?"
Gu Heping was stunned.
Zhou Qishen said, “It’s easy to protect me, but once he does, he’ll have another excuse to stir up trouble. Heping, your second uncle’s resume in the public security system is pretty much complete. Once the meeting in March starts, he’ll basically be set in his ways. At this critical juncture, I don’t want him to take that risk.”
The situation is complex, and open and covert struggles are unavoidable in every industry. You might see a towering edifice rise, but a single ant can destroy a thousand-mile dike. Zhou Qishen had foresight and was cautious in everything he did. If it only involved himself, nothing else mattered.
Gu Heping simply couldn't refute it.
From both a legal and public perspective, Zhou Qishen was at fault first. To put it bluntly, it was intentional assault, and who knows how Zhuang Qiu will react.
Zhou Qishen seemed to have expected this, and his reaction was particularly calm. "I guess it will be either today or tomorrow."
Gu Heping exclaimed, "Brother Zhou, you're too calm."
Zhou Qishen finished the remaining half of his cigarette, stubbed it out, and looked at him with a much more serious expression. "Don't tell Xiaoxi."
Old Cheng immediately retorted, "That won't do, we can't afford that responsibility."
Gu Heping agreed: "It was none of our business before, but it's different now. She's married to you, so she's your legal partner. What does it mean to not tell her? It's well-intentioned, but actually selfish. Even if something really happens to you, and Xiaoxi finds out passively, wouldn't she be even more upset?"
Zhou Qishen insisted, "She's filming in Qinghai for the next few days. What's the use of knowing? It will only delay things on both sides. Let her finish filming in peace."
Lao Cheng and Gu Heping: "No way."
Two against one, they're locked in a battle.
After a few seconds of standoff, Zhou Qishen lowered his gaze, his expression turning helpless. He said in a deep voice, "Xiao west's father may be ill."
Old Cheng and Gu Heping were immediately astonished, "What illness?"
“Alzheimer’s. Although not diagnosed, he’s suspected of being in a high-risk group. He went to the clinic himself, but he’s become forgetful, his memory is getting worse, and he missed his bus. He just called me back, and wrote down all my assets in a notebook.” Zhou Qishen raised his head, his face solemn. “He entrusted my life to me.”
The air flow was slow, and the restless atmosphere of the previous second drifted away like dust and settled steadily.
Lao Cheng and Gu Heping both fell silent, understanding the situation.
One problem after another, all involving the people closest to him, would be unbearable for anyone. Zhou Qishen kept it from Zhao Xiyin, partly out of a deep sense of unease, and partly out of a reluctance to let it go.