Chapter 1607

By November, the temperature in Jin Ling remained between eight or nine degrees and seventeen or eighteen degrees above zero, which was a very suitable temperature. If it was cold, at most wear one more coat. If it was hot, just take the coat off.

On Sunday holidays, children ran and played on the street, men gathered together to play chess, cards, and chat, while women chatted about household affairs. Unlike the lazy men who gathered to smoke and blow water, women were either knitting sweaters or sewing shoe soles; most of them had some work in their hands.

At three in the afternoon, Wang Yan carried a bag and found the Qiao family according to the house number.

"Oh, who are you looking for?" A woman fiddled with chicken gizzards and asked, poking her head out.

Wang Yan recognized this woman; she was Qiao's neighbor, whom Yicheng and the others called Aunt Wu. She was a good person who was hard-mouthed but soft-hearted. When Qiao's mother went to the hospital to give birth, she enthusiastically sent her there, accompanied her while waiting, and helped look after the children. Erqiang and the others stole food from her house, and although she said unpleasant things, she didn't go too far. Later, although she was sarcastic, it was just the small-mindedness of a normal person.

She wasn't a bad person and even helped others; she just had a loose tongue.

Wang Yan smiled and responded: "Qiao Erqiang's house."

"Who are you? I haven't seen you before?" A very classic first ask, then point the way.

"I'm San Li's classmate, and I get along well with Brother Erqiang. I live in the first house at the west intersection, number 128."

"Oh, I was wondering why I hadn't seen you before." Aunt Wu nodded, then pointed to the house in front of Wang Yan, "This is the Qiao family, go ahead."

"Thanks, Auntie." Wang Yan nodded with a smile and walked into the courtyard with the things.

In fact, he had long seen the number plate on the door frame...

"First house at the west intersection... why does that sound so familiar?" Aunt Wu frowned and thought, but couldn't remember anything.

Even if she had discussed it with others, even if she knew about Wang Yan's affairs, it was really hard to associate it when he suddenly appeared in front of her...

As soon as Wang Yan stepped in, he saw Si Mei running out.

"Brother Yan~" Si Mei welcomed him very enthusiastically.

"You could have just come, why bring things?" Qiao Yicheng frowned at Wang Yan, thinking Wang Yan was too polite; at thirteen, there was no need to consider these things.

"Brother Yicheng, hello, hello. I brought some food too." Wang Yan smiled and waved his hand, "A salted duck, a piece of braised beef, two smoked fish. I have a big appetite and eat a lot, so I just wanted to eat these things and added two dishes."

"Hey, right, kid, let me tell you, if you have money, you have to spend it. Come, come, come, let me taste if the braised beef is authentic." Qiao Zuwang walked out with a slightly hunched back.

"Dad!"

Even San Li, who didn't usually look for trouble with her father, glared.

Qiao Zuwang coughed twice, smacked his lips, and wanted to turn back into the room.

Wang Yan smiled: "It's fine, what's the big deal? It's just food anyway. Come, Uncle Qiao, you drink first."

He had been Wang Yan's father-in-law after all, and although he wasn't much of a person now, eating and drinking didn't get delayed.

"Hey, look at you." Qiao Zuwang laughed as he came to take the things, turned to enter the room, and then turned back, "I heard your cooking is quite good?"

"Dad!" This time it was Qiao Yicheng looking at Qiao Zuwang; if looks could kill, Qiao Zuwang would have been torn to pieces by his own son.

"He cooks well, let me taste it, what's the big deal? You glare at me, am I the father or are you the father? You're managing me?" Qiao Zuwang was fierce in appearance but weak in reality.

Wang Yan nodded with a smile: "It's fine, Brother Yicheng, you haven't tasted it yet, let's taste it together."

"You don't have to cook, guests are guests, how can we let someone come to our house to cook?" Qiao Yicheng waved his hand, "You sit and drink water, I'll cook."

"You're too polite, Brother Yicheng. I'm very familiar with Brother Qiang, San Li, and Si Mei; we're all good friends, so there's no need for so many formalities. I'll cook two dishes, and Brother Yicheng and Uncle Qiao can taste the flavor. I'm not bragging, but my skills are good enough to make a lot of money opening a restaurant."

San Li laughed: "How can you say that about yourself?"

"Aren't you seeing it now?"

Wang Yan laughed, went directly to wash his hands, stewed a fish first, and then worked on the dishes with the Qiao siblings.

"Is that matter of yours over?" Qiao Yicheng asked.

"For me, it's over." Wang Yan picked chives, "Didn't they say there would be some compensation for understanding? They gave me a few hundred yuan more. It has nothing to do with me now; the rest of them can be executed or sent to prison as they should."

"You've basically gotten rich from fighting twice." Qiao Zuwang said at the door of the main hall, "I work hard for a year and don't earn as much as you do from one fight."

"You shouldn't have reconciled! You should have let them all be executed!" Qiao Yicheng didn't even look at his father and said to Wang Yan, "Otherwise, these people will be trouble when they come out later."

"I'm not afraid of trouble; I'm never afraid of them. But it wasn't up to me to reconcile; I'm only thirteen after all."

Qiao Yicheng was stunned for a moment, then laughed and patted his own forehead: "Look at me, I forgot you're still young."

Only then did Qiao Yicheng realize that Wang Yan didn't seem to have the childishness of his age. There was no way around that; even if Wang Yan tried his best to relax, he couldn't change the fact that he was an old soul.

"Then who is your guardian now?" Qiao Yicheng asked curiously.

"No one. If you have to say, the neighborhood committee, the street office, and my father's factory can all be considered my guardians. Anyway, my own words don't count. This incident was handled by the street office and the neighborhood committee. But at this stage, it's best for me to take the money.

And the ones I can get money from are those who don't need to be executed. You know the current environment; my understanding doesn't actually have much effect. For those who should be executed, my understanding is useless, and for those who shouldn't be executed, they won't die anyway."

What is the environment now? It's steady, accurate, and ruthless, fast and efficient, and crimes are punished more severely. So when those brainless social figures brought weapons to find Wang Yan, their fate was already sealed.

Qiao Erqiang nodded: "Wang Yan is right, Brother, it's better to get money. He can eat better; look at how tall he is at thirteen, he'll definitely be taller in the future."

Wang Yan chatted with the four siblings, mainly with Qiao Yicheng, occasionally Si Mei would make some noise to make everyone happy, and occasionally, Qiao Zuwang, who had already started drinking, would interject a few words to argue with Qiao Yicheng.

Qiao Yicheng really didn't indulge his father's bad habits; Qiao Zuwang was right about one thing, which was that Qiao Yicheng's wings had indeed hardened after going to university.

He had state subsidies for school and didn't need to spend money, and at the same time, he could do part-time jobs to earn money. By now, he didn't need anything from his father, Qiao Zuwang, at all.

However, Qiao Yicheng didn't go too far, just bickering with his father and annoying each other. After Qiao Yicheng got older, it was obvious that he used cold violence against Qiao Zuwang, which was what made Qiao Zuwang uncomfortable.

Erqiang and San Li mostly just dealt with their father and had nothing else to say. Only Si Mei, the child who was almost sent away, didn't use cold violence against the old man and could still communicate. However, in the later stages, because Qiao Zuwang wanted to be with the nanny and Si Mei moved out, she didn't care about the old man anymore, and the old man died in the lonely night; what was he thinking that night...

Wang Yan said he would cook two dishes, but in the end, he cooked all of them.

"Mmm..."

Qiao Zuwang smacked his lips and nodded repeatedly, "Don't say, your cooking is really good; opening a restaurant yourself would really make money. You're at this age, how much have you cooked? How can you cook so well?"

"Maybe this is talent." Wang Yan laughed, "If you like it, eat more, Uncle Qiao."

"You come to the house often in the future, treat it like your own home." Qiao Zuwang waved his hand generously; these words really sounded like something a person would say.

"Otherwise I wouldn't have been polite."

Si Mei held a chicken leg, her mouth full of food, muttering: "These dishes were all cooked by you, Brother Yan. My eldest brother said that there's no reason to let guests cook, which means you're not a guest, you're family."

"Oh my!" Qiao Yicheng looked at Si Mei, as if he had discovered a new continent, "Si Mei, I'm really impressed by you."

"I really didn't expect Si Mei to say such nice things." Erqiang nodded repeatedly.

San Li laughed: "Brother, look at her, does our Si Mei usually speak very unpleasantly?"

"Exactly, stinky Second Brother!" Si Mei muttered unhappily.

Everyone laughed, and even Qiao Zuwang laughed like a father. It was a kind of gratification that his child was growing up and being sensible, a kind of satisfaction with a happy life.

It was just that this was only a feeling; for Qiao Zuwang, this feeling was not long-lasting...

Wang Yan ate, drank, chatted, and laughed with the Qiao family, which was quite good. Eating with many people was indeed lively, but only Qiao Zuwang, Qiao Si Mei, and Wang Yan were snatching food, while the remaining Yicheng, Erqiang, and San Li ate very reservedly. However, with the three of them eating so deliciously, the reserve of the other three was only relative. After the meal, not a single bit of food was left; it was all eaten up.

However, only Wang Yan felt it was lively; if he were really a child of this age and had such an experience, he definitely wouldn't feel it was lively...

Wang Yan strolled home, and San Li said to Qiao Yicheng: "Brother, Wang Yan is a pretty good person, right?"

Yicheng nodded, and just as he was about to speak, Qiao Zuwang, who was drinking tea on the side, took over: "I think he's pretty good. If I didn't know he had broken people's bones and tendons, I wouldn't be able to tell that this kid is so ruthless. The cooking is also really delicious.

It just so happens he has money and cooks well. Look at how generous he was when he came; salted duck, braised beef, I wouldn't dare eat like that. You guys let him come to the house more often and cook more, so that I, your father, can also eat something good."

"Dad..." Qiao Erqiang was helpless.

Qiao Yicheng glared at his father: "He's only thirteen! You're such an old person, are you really embarrassed to say these things, embarrassed to take advantage of him?"

"He's just a child, holding over a thousand yuan in his hands! Over a thousand yuan! Isn't he spending it too? Si Mei said he eats and drinks well every day; how can he eat and drink like that? With so much money, he'll squander it sooner or later. At this time, we should just take advantage of it..."

Qiao Yicheng was truly furious looking at his father's shameless face, but what could he say? After all, if it could be explained clearly, his father would have changed long ago after all these years.

He took a deep breath, calmed his mood, and looked at Qiao Si Mei: "From now on, you are not allowed to go to Wang Yan's house to sponge off food and drink. If I find out, see how I deal with you."

"What does it have to do with me? Brother Yan clearly didn't say anything..." Si Mei said with tears in her eyes.

Qiao Yicheng didn't care what Si Mei thought, nor did he care if Wang Yan was truly generous; he was just determined not to let Si Mei go to Wang Yan's to sponge off food and drink...

"Is that it?"

Opposite Wang Yan, Si Mei gave a tearful "Mmm."

She was crying with tears and snot, but it didn't delay her from eating the rice deliciously, as if she had treated this as her last farewell meal here.

Wang Yan said with a smile: "Can't you just not say anything?"

"Then I can't eat at home, and my second brother, my sister, and my dad can all tell."

"If you refuse to admit it, they won't tell your eldest brother."

"I can't be sure about my dad; he's still thinking about your money." Si Mei even started complaining about her father, spilling out everything her father had said.

"Your dad is right, I'm indeed a squanderer; this money is only enough to eat for a year." Wang Yan shook his head, "This money is too hard to keep."

"If only I could earn money, earn ten thousand yuan, then I could eat meat every day, every meal, and drink soda..."

Qiao Si Mei ate until her face was dirty, imagining a beautiful life while eating, which even helped her appetite, and she ate even more deliciously.

Finally, she looked at Wang Yan, "Brother Yan, I believe you will definitely be able to earn a lot of money in the future!"

Wang Yan smiled: "You imagined so much, was it for me? I thought you were going to earn ten thousand yuan and take me to eat and drink well."

"Brother Yan, don't worry, if I can get rich, I definitely won't forget you. When the time comes, we'll eat whatever we want, however we want."

"Then you have to get rich quickly."

"I have to grow up first. Brother Yan, my eldest brother won't let me sponge off food and drink at your place, so the meat I ate at your place will count as me borrowing from you, and I'll pay you back double in the future."

After saying this, she was stunned for a moment, her eyes shining, "Hey, that's it, that's it, Brother Yan, I'll pay back the debt I owe myself in the future, my eldest brother won't have anything to say then."

"Absolutely nothing to say!" Wang Yan played along.

And so Qiao Si Mei's tears stopped, she ate deliciously, and she didn't have any worries at all...

As for the consequences, Erqiang and San Li took care of Si Mei, they didn't restrain her, and they couldn't restrain her anyway. Qiao Zuwang, the father, only cared when he was unhappy, and it wasn't even caring, but scolding, venting his emotions; he didn't do the proper job of managing the children. As for Si Mei's affairs, let alone managing them, if it weren't for the sake of face, he would have wanted to come to Wang Yan's house to sponge off food and drink himself.

Only Qiao Yicheng would manage it, and of course, the matter couldn't be hidden. Just as Si Mei said, she ate at Wang Yan's and couldn't eat at home, feeling uncomfortable for a day and having a headache for two; she couldn't come every few days, there had to be a place to eat.

So, unsurprisingly, Si Mei was beaten by Yicheng. Before being beaten, Si Mei was very afraid; after being beaten, Si Mei didn't care anymore...

After all, Yicheng couldn't really beat her to death or beat her badly, just a few hits with moderate force. Si Mei's little head weighed the options: a few hits with moderate force versus eating until her mouth was full of grease—this wasn't even a multiple-choice question...

It really made Qiao Yicheng laugh in anger...

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