Chapter 309: Living Up to the Original Intention

He Yuzhu fell fast asleep leaning against the back of the chair; the dim light flowed over his sharp-featured face, outlining a steadfastness and composure that belied his age.

Liu Rusi paused to gaze for a moment before turning to say to Pingping, who was cracking melon seeds, "Go call Xiao Tian over; let's move him to the guest room to sleep together."

After settling He Yuzhu in, Pingping returned to the living room rubbing her sore arms and couldn't help but mutter in a low voice, "How did this kid get so heavy! How did he get so much sturdier just from going to the battlefield?"

The corners of Liu Rusi's lips lifted slightly, and she said softly, "It's not because of the battlefield; it's that he has grown up."

Pingping leaned in closer and lowered her voice: "Miss, if you ask me, that Chief Engineer Yuan from the Bicycle Factory cares about you so much, why don't you say yes to him? You're already 27 this year."

Liu Rusi frowned and interrupted: "Don't make random arrangements. I have no interest in him; the more attentive he is, the more I feel he has ulterior motives."

Pingping gave a sly smile and nudged her chin toward the guest room: "Miss, could it be that you... have taken a fancy to that kid? But he's ten years younger than you!"

"You dead girl! If you talk nonsense again, see if I don't tear your mouth apart!"

The next day before dawn, He Yuzhu was woken up in a daze by a feeling of suffocation; someone was pinching his nose.

When He Yuzhu saw it was Pingping, he threatened: "I 'kill' people when I sleep, you'd better be careful!"

"Who are you trying to scare! This lady has also had training!" Pingping said with her hands on her hips.

"If you have something to say, spit it out!" He Yuzhu said irritably.

"Hey, He Yuzhu! You better confess honestly, do you like our Miss?"

"From the moment I saw her, I liked her, and I still do!"

"Shameless! You were only ten-something when you first saw her!" Pingping blurted out.

"Who says you can't like a woman when you're young?" He Yuzhu said.

"But, but Miss is ten years older than you, how is that possible?"

He Yuzhu put on his socks unhurriedly: "Like is like, what does it have to do with age?"

Pingping's eyes rolled, and she immediately changed her tone: "If you really like Miss, then you'd better hurry. There's a Chief Engineer surnamed Yuan at our Bicycle Factory who is so good to Miss!"

He Yuzhu's heart tightened, and he said offhandedly: "What? A toad lusting after swan meat!"

"He studied abroad in the United States! Compared to him, you're the toad!" Pingping pouted.

"Pingping, you, your mouth really stinks! Go rinse it out quickly!" He Yuzhu scolded, suddenly feeling nervous, his heart pounding, "I'm going to tell her right now that I like her!"

He Yuzhu put on his clothes and walked out.

"Don't! Don't go!" Pingping hurriedly stopped him, "She hasn't woken up yet! If you like Miss, I'll go test the waters for you, otherwise, if Miss rejects you directly, wouldn't that be bad?"

He Yuzhu took out a pair of jade bracelets: "Sister Pingping, I'm counting on you!"

"You kid are such a snob; I've seen you so many times, and this is the first time you've given me something." Pingping rolled her eyes.

"You've always been against me, why should I give you anything!" He Yuzhu said.

"I've always been against you because I felt you weren't good enough for our Miss!" Pingping said.

"And now you think I'm good enough?" He Yuzhu asked.

"Aren't you a hero now!"

"You're the snob!"

"I don't have time to bicker with you; Zhao Ying brought you some materials a few days ago. Take these things and go home quickly."

He Yuzhu took the stack of materials about the Computer, smiled knowingly, and went straight to find Liu Xiaohua.

Liu Xiaohua had grown even fatter, looking more and more like a Maitreya Buddha.

He Yuzhu joked: "You've been living well lately, huh? How come you've gained weight again?"

"That's because I'm married, and there's someone to take care of me at home, so naturally I got fat. You didn't attend my wedding, so you can't skimp on the gift."

"Fine." He Yuzhu said as he took a Rolex out of his pocket and handed it to him, "Is this gift okay!"

Liu Xiaohua looked at it and said: "Good things come in pairs."

"Shameless, you'll have to give me a double portion when I get married later!" He Yuzhu pulled out an identical one as if performing a magic trick.

Liu Xiaohua said: "You kid are really generous; I won't be able to afford such a valuable gift for you when the time comes."

"These things were all given to me by my sister, don't go showing them off, so as not to invite trouble." He Yuzhu said.

"I know better than you!"

Liu Xiaohua handed over a large enamel mug with flower tea steeped inside.

He Yuzhu took a sip and then recounted one by one the problems that had occurred with the equipment during this time on the battlefield.

Liu Xiaohua listened carefully and occasionally raised some questions, which He Yuzhu answered one by one.

Then, He Yuzhu handed over the materials that Zhao Ying had spent a high price to get from the United States to Liu Xiaohua.

As soon as Liu Xiaohua saw these materials, his eyes lit up instantly, and he began to flip through them impatiently, his breathing even quickening a bit.

"Zhuzi, these things came just in time! The research path you described to me last time was good, but I encountered quite a few problems in practice; these materials are like rain after a long drought. Moreover, the United States seems to be following your line of thinking, which gives me even more confidence." Liu Xiaohua looked up, his tone excited.

"I want to try to build a small Computer... by then, as soon as the enemy's planes take off, our Radar will be able to detect them, and we can use the Computer to lock onto them and calculate their flight paths; no matter how the planes try to escape, they won't be able to escape the palm of the Buddha." He Yuzhu said.

Upon hearing this, Liu Xiaohua pondered for a moment: "Your idea is not impossible from a technical standpoint, but it requires a large amount of factory support, and the requirements for basic industry are also very harsh. I personally feel that even if we could make it now, the size would be quite large; it would be difficult to use on land, perhaps it could be used for the Navy."

Hearing this, He Yuzhu couldn't help but secretly admire Liu Xiaohua's foresight.

He Yuzhu knew that the "Aegis" system researched by the United States was initially placed on a Warship.

Liu Xiaohua, relying on limited information and keen engineering intuition, was actually able to predict the future; he was definitely a talent.

When He Yuzhu came out of the arsenal, the sun had already shifted to the west.

He pushed open the door and saw He Daqing pacing anxiously in the courtyard. As soon as he saw him, he shouted at the top of his lungs: "Zhuzi! You're finally back! We agreed to treat everyone to a meal, but the vegetables aren't bought and the noodles aren't prepared; how are we supposed to manage this?"

He Yuzhu slapped his forehead—he had truly forgotten about this completely.

He gave a silly grin, with no trace of panic on his face: "Dad, don't worry, everything was prepared long ago; it's sitting in the Jeep! I was just looking for someone to help me move it in." Upon hearing this, He Daqing followed him out without a word.

Walking to the back of the vehicle, He Yuzhu used the cover of opening the trunk to shift his focus, silently moving two bags of flour and half a side of pork with a mix of fat and lean meat out of his space.

He Daqing was stunned for a moment, then laughed from ear to ear: "Good kid, you prepared quite substantially!"

Before long, the courtyard became lively. Neighbors from all around came to help—chopping fillings, kneading dough, washing cabbage—and the sound of laughter and chatter was endless.

Just then, Xu Damao walked over to He Yuzhu, carrying quite a bit of cooked braised pig head meat and garlic sausage.

He gave a thumbs-up and praised, "Zhuzi! I've heard it all—taking down so many planes all by yourself! Amazing, truly amazing!"

He Yuzhu glanced at him sideways, a faint, elusive smile hanging on the corner of his mouth: "In your heart... is that really what you think?"

The muscles on Xu Damao's face twitched slightly, then he piled on an even more enthusiastic smile: "Look at what you're saying! We grew up together in our birthday suits, after all. When I was little, I was ignorant and prone to jealousy, and I offended you in many ways... Now that we're grown, I truly feel that you're a stand-up guy with real ability!"

He Yuzhu knew clearly in his heart—a person like Xu Damao admired strength above all else. If you are stronger than him, he will say anything; if you were to fall behind, he would trample you harder than anyone. He calmly shifted the topic: "Where have you been making your fortune lately?"

"My Siqiang took over an antique shop in Qianmen, specializing in antiques, calligraphy, and paintings." Xu Damao lowered his voice, "In the current situation... one has to have a way to make a living, right?"

He Yuzhu thought to himself that Hu Yunbin was certainly quick to pivot—now that tomb raiding was strictly controlled, he had switched to reselling handed-down antiques.

He took the opportunity to continue the conversation: "If my sister comes across good ancient jade or jadeite, she is willing to spend a high price to collect them."

"I'll go hunt some down for you!" Xu Damao patted his chest and agreed.