Chickens and dogs fly in chaos and rebirth

Chapter 113

A hand grabbed Li Changsheng's wrist, saying, "Don't die, don't die... I'll give you anything you want..."

Tears blurred my vision, but I still felt uneasy.

Why is Changsheng trembling all over from the pain? It's not like he's having a spasm.

The knife was stuck in his chest, but no blood came out?

She followed the hilt of the knife to the spot where the tip had pierced her chest, pressed it—it was hard. She pressed it again; it was still hard, and there wasn't even a trace of blood.

With a tug, the knife and clothes were pulled up. Qiu Shanglin changed from a sitting to a kneeling position, forcefully pulling out the knife, tearing open his shirt in the process. The sketchbook, half-pierced by the knife, fell to the ground with a clatter. The mountain wind blew, turning the pages incessantly.

Qiu Shanglin bit her lip and released him. She sat down weakly again: "Hey."

There was no sign of immortality.

She said irritably, "Hey, get up."

There was still no sign of immortality.

She was even more annoyed and shoved him, saying, "Stop pretending to be dead, get up!"

Li Changsheng lay half-reclined in her arms, opening one eye to peek at her expression, his voice hoarse: "You said you'd agree to anything I wanted."

Shang Lin said irritably, "I said if you die, I'll grant you anything you want!"

He shoved him to the ground and went to check on Yin Yeyao's injuries.

Xia Lin kicked Chang Sheng and mocked, "Brother, your coquettish act isn't working, is it?"

An Lan was dragged along by him and saw Yin Yeyao lying on the rocks, her body mangled and bloody. She murmured, "It's impossible. Fifth Brother clearly said he wouldn't kill anyone, just scare them..."

Yin Yeyao was rushed to the hospital. He wasn't a god, able to fight five people single-handedly and emerge unscathed. He suffered fourteen stab wounds, three of which penetrated to the bone, the rest being superficial and minor injuries. He was wrapped up like a dumpling and carried back to his villa in Hangzhou—even the hospital wasn't safe.

The matter was quickly investigated and resolved.

Yin Wu, the cousin who had previously made a fool of himself at the board meeting, colluded with An Lan to try and scare them. Yin Wu's plan went awry; he failed to send anyone, but someone overheard their conversation and, after learning their whereabouts, hired professional thugs to deal with him, with the aim of killing him.

The patriarch of the Yin family was furious and ordered a thorough investigation and severe punishment.

Faced with his grandson's suspicions, the old man was both amused and exasperated: "She's still your mother, she wouldn't really hire someone to kill you..." Even though he had seen too many heartless dramas and infighting in wealthy families, and had spent most of his life in scheming and deceit, the old man couldn't help but sigh and hesitate. What had he taught his grandson all these years? When something happened, the first person he suspected was his own mother...

Changsheng also needed more than a dozen stitches. He had many injuries, both major and minor, but fortunately they were all superficial wounds, and the young man would recover after some rest.

However, this unexpected turn of events meant that the plan to travel to Jiangnan could no longer proceed. Once Li Changsheng recovered slightly and the people who were supposed to pick him up arrived, Qiu Jianguo led his children back to the north in a hurry.

People say that we northerners are fierce and belligerent—but even if we are belligerent, we wouldn't go so far as to hire someone to kill someone in public!

When Zhang Hongwei found out later, he was so frightened that his legs cramped, and he kept saying that he would never have anything to do with Yin Yeyao again... He was no good son-in-law, but a powder keg!

Northern summers are long, dry, and sweltering. The summer break for the second year of high school passed quickly, and the start of the new semester brought a flurry of activity. At the beginning of the semester, there were diagnostic tests, weekly and monthly quizzes, and countless supplementary materials and practice problems piled up on the desk, quickly capturing the attention of the two siblings as they focused entirely on preparing for the college entrance examination.

The changes that occurred in the south were like fleeting clouds; once they passed, they were over.

Occasionally, Qiu Shanglin would look up from the sea of exercises, and the thrilling moment would flash through his mind. While feeling fortunate, he would also gain a clearer understanding of the complex environment in which Yin Yeyao, or rather the Yin family, was situated.

College Entrance Examination and Love History

The National College Entrance Examination (Gaokao) was held during the three hottest days of July. Zhang Hongwei packed his two children's luggage, complaining incessantly and blaming God for being blind, asking why the heavens couldn't cool off a bit at this crucial moment when his children's futures were being decided.

Qiu Jianguo sat on the sofa, seemingly calm, but his palms were sweating with nervousness, and he was uncertain about the outcome. After all, this was a major event for the family. Shanglin's grades had always been stable, and her homeroom teacher had said that as long as she performed well, getting into a top university wouldn't be a problem.

As for the son, that's another story.

This kid's grades are all over the place, fluctuating wildly. His homeroom teacher said that if he performs well, he should have no problem getting into a top-tier university. But if he performs abnormally like in the previous mock exams, he'll only get into a vocational college—listen to that, a vocational college! What kind of talk is that!

My daughter was sitting in the study, reading an advanced financial management book. Even though she was going to the city to take the college entrance examination the next day, she wasn't nervous at all. She was very calm and reassuring—this child has never caused us any worry since she was little.

Then look at the son. He was about to touch the game console when his sister scolded him. He then grinned and sidled up to his sister, asking her to guess the test questions. This is too ridiculous. Just because his sister guessed the test questions correctly a few times doesn't mean he can be so audacious as to think he can guess the college entrance exam questions!

Qiu Jianguo took a deep drag of his cigarette and exhaled heavily. He was at his wits' end with his son and had a bit of a headache.

He wouldn't listen to reason, and I couldn't discipline him. In previous years, my wife and I were busy with our careers and neglected our son's education, which resulted in our son being neither afraid of his father nor his mother—he was only afraid of his sister and Changsheng. Changsheng had even left. This year, Shanglin's studies were busy, and although I kept a closer eye on Xialin's studies, they weren't in the same class, so he inevitably took advantage of the loopholes.

The exam is tomorrow. Other kids are either studying harder or taking breaks, but Qiu Xialin is eager to try and even wants to go out and play soccer!

Qiu Xialin circled around his sister, but she completely ignored him. He sat down and studied for a while longer before the exam, but couldn't stand it anymore. He pulled back the curtains and peeked downstairs. Taking advantage of Shanglin's concentration, he slipped out of the study and sneaked towards the entrance.

"Stop!" Qiu Jianguo had sharp eyes, staring at him intently!

"Where are you going?" Look at his restless monkey-like appearance. If it weren't for the college entrance exam tomorrow, I would have grabbed a stool and given him a good beating right now!

Qiu Jianguo hardened his heart, ignoring the fact that there were no stools in the house.

You don't know until you compare, and the difference is startling. I'm always so proud when I talk about my son and daughter, but I've never really paid attention to their lives. Fathers are usually quite carefree, their minds filled with the world, their careers, their families, but rarely with the details of their children's lives. They have their wives, and if all else fails, they have their sensible daughters.

This time, I specially set aside five days to spend with them for their college entrance exams. Only after seeing them did I realize that my son was just pretending to be well-behaved, sensible, and mature in public, but at home he was still a child who hadn't grown up.

Xia Lin was already younger than his peers, and with a capable older sister and brother protecting him, he was used to being unruly and carefree. He never worried about anything, always asking for things without any sense of responsibility as a young man. Boys naturally mature later than girls, and with Qiu Shanglin standing in his shoes, Qiu Jianguo couldn't stand his own son no matter what.

Xia Lin chuckled, not taking his father's anger seriously: "I'm going out for a walk to clear my head..."

Qiu Jianguo glared at him: "What are you trying to do to relax! The exam is tomorrow, you better get back to your room and study—learn from your sister!"

Xia Lin pouted: "My sister doesn't read books seriously either, she reads leisure books."

Qiu Jianguo glared: "What business is it of yours what books your sister reads? She's a good student. If you're so capable, you should also get consistently good grades like your sister!"

The father and son started arguing back and forth, and Zhang Hongwei hurriedly came out of the bedroom: "What's going on? What are you arguing about?"

Frowning, she said, "The child has an exam tomorrow, so don't upset him. What if he does poorly? Are you going to take responsibility?"

The mother favored her son.

Qiu Jianguo angrily stubbed out his cigarette and stood up: "I upset him? Why don't you ask him what he's planning to do!"

Zhang Hongwei turned to Xia Lin: "Where to?"

Xia Lin said in a spoiled tone, "Mom, I'm feeling cooped up at home, I want to go out for a walk."

Zhang Hongwei rolled her eyes at her husband: "The child is under a lot of psychological pressure, what's the big deal about going out for a walk?"

Seeing that someone was backing him up, Xia Lin got emboldened: "That's right, that's right, I'm under a lot of psychological pressure, my mood is like the tide, I can't calm down, going out for a walk will make me feel better." As he spoke, he was about to put on his shoes and go out.

It cannot be said that Qiu Xialin was ignorant.

Compared to children his age, he was quite mature in his thinking and manner. However, his family was different from others, and Qiu Shanglin's usual sitting posture made him seem like an immature child. The school gave students a five-day holiday to relax, and when he called his classmates, they said that none of their parents cared, letting their children play freely for five days so that they could have a happy mood for the exams.

He was different.

From the first day of the holiday, my sister confined me to the study, making me take a set of past college entrance exam questions every day. It wasn't a lot, but it wasn't a little either.

Not only that, but the time spent playing each day is also limited to less than three hours.

This triggered Qiu Xialin's rebellious streak. The more he was forbidden to play, the more he wanted to sneak out and play. Things he wouldn't normally be particularly interested in now seemed like tempting poison, beckoning him relentlessly in his mind, making it impossible for him to concentrate.

Seeing that he was about to escape from the cage, Qiu Jianguo glared angrily, but he couldn't do anything about it. He shouted, "Shanglin, Shanglin, do something about your brother!"

Shanglin was in the study, calm and composed. His voice, neither too loud nor too soft, reached Xialin's ears just as he was about to leave: "Dad, don't worry about him. Mom can't bear to send him off to university. It's okay if he doesn't do well on the college entrance exam. I've already decided that if he doesn't get into a top-tier university, I'll let him repeat a year." He added casually at the end, "Let him play. He's still young anyway."

Xia Lin leaned against the security door and shivered. "The most poisonous heart is a woman's," the ancients were right.

Repeating a grade?

Thinking back on these three years, especially the last year when I was up early and working late, lacking sleep, and struggling in a sea of questions, Qiu Xialin quickly closed the door and slipped on her slippers: "I said I heard some noise in the hallway, and it turned out to be a cat—hey sis, um, I got a few questions wrong yesterday?"

Qiu Jianguo and Zhang Hongwei watched helplessly as their son changed his shoes and clothes and returned to the study. They looked at each other, not knowing whether to laugh or cry.

Qiu Shanglin had been tyrannical for a long time, and Xia Lin's petty tricks were no match for her.

Xia Lin's mind was in turmoil, so he naturally couldn't concentrate on his work.

Shang Lin glanced at him, got up, spread out Xuan paper, and ground ink: "Come here, practice calligraphy."

Xia Lin was taken aback. At this critical juncture, when everything was in dire need of his attention, practicing calligraphy?

Early the next morning, a convoy of cars gathered at the entrance of No. 5 Middle School to take the senior high school teachers and students to Huaiqiao City for the college entrance examination. The examination venue was Huaiqiao No. 2 Middle School. Because the journey was a bit far, the school specially rented a hotel in Huaiqiao City. Before leaving, firecrackers were set off and red paper was scattered to pray for good luck and for many students to pass the exam and be admitted to top-tier universities.

Xia Lin was resting with his eyes closed in his seat when his friend nudged his elbow: "Hey, what did you do yesterday? Couldn't you sleep?"