С нетерпением жду весеннего ветерка!

Глава 92

It's better for children to grow up close to their parents. Long-term separation between parents is detrimental to the physical and mental health of teenagers and also hinders the development of family bonds.

After he finished speaking, he gave a cold laugh.

Didn't you say you treat me like a son? I'll reluctantly treat you like my mother; it's not like we're missing out on that little bit of family affection.

Shanglin was helpless. He had tried to persuade and comfort them, but they said, "Do whatever you want. They are your parents, not mine!"

After she left, Changsheng stared at the door for a long time.

You want to get rid of me? Dream on! I'll annoy you to death, I'll annoy you for the rest of my life!

Qiu Shanglin's Little Scandal

The engagement saga finally subsided smoothly. Changsheng made four phone calls to his parents, earnestly explaining his protests and opinions, and even bringing in his maternal grandfather, a formidable figure. Although his grandfather was often away playing cards, chess, or mahjong, leaving Changsheng to his own devices, fortunately, his daughter and son-in-law lived far away and were unaware of the situation. Grateful for his father-in-law's upbringing of his son, Changsheng's father advised his wife, "Our son is still young, and his future is uncertain. We see the woman's circumstances are good now, but who knows what she'll be like in the future?"

Changsheng's mother was unwilling to give up.

She had her own ulterior motives.

Her son grew up in Zifang Town, and from what he said, he had a deep attachment to the Qiu family. To put it bluntly, his biological parents were strangers, while outsiders became his relatives. This was very unpleasant. As her son grew older, she wanted to strengthen their bond and win back his heart, but she had no good ideas. She talked to some wealthy women she knew in Shantou, and they advised her that men forget their mothers once they have wives—if they can forget their mothers, how much more so will they forget people with no blood relation?

By arranging a marriage for him, you'll lock his heart away. How can you worry that he won't want to go back to his parents?

Unexpectedly, her son strongly opposed the relationship, and even her father gave her a severe scolding. Although she felt sorry for the woman, fortunately, the two families were only discussing it verbally, and whether it would work out depended on fate.

Xia Lin secretly took out the photo, and Shang Lin looked at it. She was a typical southern beauty. He privately lamented that Li Changsheng didn't know her value and had missed out on a beautiful wife—only to be met with a cold glare from Li Changsheng.

Summer vacation wasn't easy. I had to work and study.

The textbooks from all three years of high school were stacked high on the desk, almost reaching the sky. Qiu Xialin shivered as she looked at them. "Sister, you didn't just preview all of them over the summer, did you?"

Shanglin transformed into a ruthless exploiter, prioritizing science over humanities. She studied math, physics, and chemistry all at once. Xialin and Changsheng, being intelligent and possessing clear logical thinking skills, learned effortlessly. Shanglin, however, struggled. Fortunately, she was hardworking and willing to invest time, and with the help of numerous supplementary materials, she mastered most of the high school science subjects. It wasn't until almost the very end that she suddenly remembered—high school divided students into humanities and science tracks!

She doesn't plan to study science, so why is she self-studying three years of high school science?

Overwhelmed with grief and indignation, he nearly banged his head against a wall, only to be met with further ridicule from Xia Lin and Chang Sheng.

October 11th, sunny.

As dawn broke, the lights in the stairwell of one apartment building gradually came on, and the curtains of several households were drawn back, letting in a warm, yellowish light through the glass. In those households, children were either in middle or high school, heading off to early morning study sessions.

Qiu Xialin squinted and kicked open the bedroom door, stretching lazily in the living room. Lack of sleep had put him in a bad mood, and he didn't want to talk. But he was surprised to find that Qiu Shanglin had already finished washing up and was preparing to leave. He asked hoarsely, "Are you leaving?"

Shang Lin was putting on her shoes in the entryway when she heard this. She turned around and glanced at him, saying, "Okay, I'll go first. Go wash your face; you can barely open your eyes!"

Xia Lin rubbed his eyes, trying to open them wide and focus his gaze; "Aren't you going to wait for us?"

"I'll take breakfast and head over first. You and Changsheng go to school by yourselves—don't be late and get punished again!"

After watching her sister leave and the door close, Xia Lin collapsed onto the sofa, thinking, "Just five more minutes, just five more minutes..."

Zhang Hongwei came out to use the restroom and was startled by the person lying on the sofa: "Xia Lin? Why haven't you gone to school yet?"

Xia Lin barely opened one eye: "Mom, I'm sleepy..."

Zhang Hongwei felt sorry for them: "Are you sleepy? I always said that the system at No. 5 Middle School is too strict. How can they make students have to study before dawn and then have to study until 10 or 11 pm!"

Taking advantage of the situation, Shinohara said, "I'm not going this morning. Could you call and ask for leave for me?"

Zhang Hongwei readily agreed: "Okay!"

Xia Lin was overjoyed, all sleepiness vanished, and as she watched her mother dial the phone, she happily planned to sleep until 7:30...

As Zhang Hongwei dialed the number, he muttered to himself, "Just tell your teacher that you're too young to handle it, and you shouldn't go to high school. Let's go back and repeat the third year of junior high..."

Xia Lin jumped up, terrified: "Mom, stop hitting me! I'm not sleepy anymore, I'm going to school!"

I grabbed my schoolbag and ran to the entryway to put on my shoes. Waaah, my mom's gone bad...she's starting to look more and more like my sister...

Behind him, Zhang Hongwei feigned concern: "Really, it's alright?"

Expressing my determination: "No problem!"

Zhang Hongwei said with regret, "Oh, never mind then. I was originally thinking of having you go to the third year of junior high... Why don't you wash your face!" Before he could finish the first half of his sentence, Qiu Xialin sped up and fled like the wind. He didn't even close the door, and Zhang Hongwei chased after him, shouting.

Xia Lin had already rushed downstairs, kicked the security door of Li Changsheng's house with a bang, and looked up to answer, "I'm going to school, to wash my face after self-study!"

Changsheng, his face still wet with sweat, opened the door: "Finished cleaning?"

Xia Lin said anxiously, "Brother, hurry up, we're going to be late!"

He was taken aback: "Late? That can't be, I just checked the time..." He grabbed Lin's wrist to check his watch and cursed, "Damn it, the clock's late again!"

Without even wiping his face or applying lotion, he grabbed his schoolbag and shouted upstairs, "Qiu Shanglin, Qiu Shanglin!"

Xia Lin's voice came from downstairs: "Brother, my sister left a long time ago! Hurry, hurry!"

Halfway through morning self-study, Shanglin went to the restroom. The corridor was empty except for the scattered, noisy sounds of reading aloud and reciting. He went to the back of the building and took a picture with the head teacher. She smiled politely and said, "Hello, Teacher Xu."

The head of academic affairs smiled and said, "Good. How's your studies going lately?"

"fine."

The head of the teaching department said with satisfaction, "Hmm, you're a model student, after all. Study hard, and you'll get into Tsinghua or Peking University in the future, bringing honor to your parents."

His sister-in-law works at Xinglong Company and has a long-standing relationship with the Qiu family.

Shang Lin smiled and headed towards the restroom. He hadn't gone far when he heard Shang Lin's scolding voice behind him: "Stand still! Who gave you permission to whisper to each other! Qiu Xia Lin, if you try to wink again, I'll see what you're up to!"

Shang Lin turned around and saw the head teacher reprimanding the students standing in a row behind the building, his back to her. Qiu Xia Lin winked at her and mouthed, "Did we bring breakfast?"

Shang Lin made a gesture that said "You deserve it," and then drifted away.

Wang Wei arrived even later and stood next to Xia Lin. He barely managed to get into the high school with his bottom-ranked grades, and unfortunately, he wasn't in the same class as his good friend Xia Lin. Instead, he was assigned to the same class as Shang Lin.

After reprimanding the students, the head of student affairs turned to inspect the classrooms, leaving the latecomers to stand as punishment behind the building. As soon as he left, the late students began to whisper among themselves in small groups.

Wang Wei lowered his voice and asked, "You overslept too?"

Xia Lin replied listlessly, "Hmm."

"How come your sister is alright?"

"She left us early."

Wang Wei responded with an "oh," paused for a moment, and hesitated before asking, "There's something I need to know."

Xia Lin asked impatiently, "What is it?"

Wang Wei hesitated, stammering, until Xia Lin impatiently urged him several times before finally whispering, "I don't know if it's true or not. Don't tell your sister I told you—everyone's saying your sister and Ji Yunwen are dating..."

Xia Lin almost jumped up: "What!"

His eyes widened: "Who said that? Who the hell is spreading rumors? I'll tear him to pieces!"

Wang Wei held him down: "Don't get agitated. It's not just one person, many people say so. Almost everyone in our class knows... There are quite a few people who like your sister."

Hearing the second half of the sentence, Xia Lin was very proud. "Of course, my sister gets more and more beautiful and elegant as she grows up."

Qiu Shanglin is sixteen years old, developing well, her height increasing rapidly like bamboo shoots after a spring rain, now surpassing her petite stature and heading towards 1.6 meters. She has a slender, curvaceous figure, and her secondary sexual characteristics have already developed; her slightly chubby face is framed by a pair of bright, clear eyes, sparkling like stars. Her smile is as refreshing as a clear stream, and when still, she stands gracefully, her demeanor elegant and poised. She has taken good care of her skin since childhood; her fair and tender face has a natural pinkish hue, free of unsightly acne.

Her meticulously trimmed, ear-length bob, poised demeanor, and unique experiences set her apart from other high school girls. Her confident and poised speech representing the new students at the entrance ceremony catapulted her to fame.

"Chi Shuai is going to break off his friendship with Ji Yunwen over this..."

Xia Lin interrupted, puzzled: "What does this have to do with Commander Chi?"

"Chi Shuai and Ouyang Linhao are good friends!"

He was even more confused: "What does this have to do with Ouyang Linhao?"

Wang Wei exclaimed in surprise: "You didn't know? Ouyang Linhao wrote a love letter to your sister!"