Chapter 286

"Mother, it's all Milk Powder I bought for your grandson myself."

"Oh, is that so? Let me see."

"Here." Xu Kun also threw caution to the wind; anyway, as long as it wasn't opened, it certainly looked like a Milk Powder tin from the outside.

"Mother, Mother, Mother, there's really no need to open it and look, be careful the Milk Powder gets damp."

"Heh."

"Snap." The tin was opened, and Xu Kun's heart shattered; at the same time, a medicinal fragrance wafted out.

"Careful with the efficacy of the medicine." Xu Kun snatched it over directly and put the lid back on.

"What are you two doing? Why is there a smell of medicine?"

"Nothing, Father, I'm not feeling well, so I got some medicine."

"Hurry up and put things away and come eat, are you still making your grandfather wait?" Xu Baisheng gave his son a wink.

"Oh, oh, okay."

"Hmph." Zhong Yan naturally saw everything, but she didn't intend to argue about it now; she would wait until after the meal to talk.

The family of nine ate, and after the meal, Zhong Yan stopped her father-in-law, Xu Qianshan, who was about to get up and return to his room.

"Father, please judge this for me."

"Yan'er, that's enough. Father is fine, you go rest."

"Speak, what is it again?"

"Grandfather, let me say it. Actually, it's just that my younger sister had cousin Zhong Zhengguo bring a letter for me to pass on to Zhang Ping'an, asking for medicine."

"He said my younger sister has lost too much weight lately, and she felt much better after taking some Chinese medicine yesterday, so she thought of having Zhang Ping'an prepare some, and I just brought it back."

Xu Kun secretly gave himself a thumbs-up for his wit. In truth, before the iron tin was opened, he didn't know what was inside either. Now that he knew, combined with the situation of the younger sister that Zhong Zhengguo mentioned in the morning, he had concocted a fabrication.

"Just this?" Xu Qianshan looked at his daughter-in-law, puzzled.

He had also heard about the matter between Zhang Ping'an and the Zhong Family. It seemed that the current situation only came about because his own daughter brought it up, so he felt he was in the wrong from the start and hadn't interfered. He hadn't expected his daughter-in-law to make a mountain out of a molehill over a bit of Chinese medicine now.

"Mother, look at how much weight my younger sister has lost in these three months? Don't you feel heartache? Now that there is medicine that can alleviate my younger sister's condition, shouldn't you be happy? Why are you still..."

"Yan'er, I know this is medicine made by Zhang Ping'an, but isn't it good that it can make the younger sister feel better? You have been too sensitive lately; think more about your relationship with the younger sister. No matter what, it shouldn't come at the cost of ruining the younger sister's health."

Zhong Yan was caught between her parents and her younger sister, and she was also in pain, but there was no help for it. She would not be unfilial, and the Zhong Family was currently guarding against Zhang Ping'an strictly, just because they didn't want any mishaps before Zhong Mingzhu went abroad.

"That's right, Mother."

At night, Zhong Yan tossed and turned, unable to sleep after what the Xu Family father and son had said. Thinking back to how her parents were busy with work in previous years, her younger sister Zhong Mingzhu could be said to have been raised by her, but now her relationship with her younger sister was only a greeting more than that of a stranger.

Thinking of the scenes with her younger sister when they were small, Zhong Yan's tears slid down silently. Xu Baisheng seemed to sense his wife's abnormality, turned over, and patted her back.

"Yan'er, actually, no one is wrong in this matter; it's just that everyone is standing from a different perspective. But the health of family members is the most important and must always be placed first."

"Mm, I know."

Early the next morning, Xu Kun was scratching his head in frustration. The letter had already been stuffed into the tin by him, but he didn't know how to hand these two iron tins to his younger sister without damage.

"Give them to me, I'll take them to your younger sister."

"Mother, you..."

"You brat, you don't even trust your own mother? Could she possibly harm your younger sister? Hurry up and give the tins to her." Xu Baisheng's voice sounded at the right moment.

"Oh, oh, okay. Mother, you've changed back? That's great."

"Go, go, go, hurry off to work."

"Alright." Xu Kun even turned his head to give his father a thumbs-up on the sly.

"Old Xu, I might not come back tonight."

"Mm, it's good to have a talk with the younger sister."

Zhong Yan took the two iron tins directly to work, and she didn't hand the tins directly to Zhong Mingzhu, but prepared to take them back to her maiden home in the evening.

A day's work ended quickly, and the sisters returned home one after the other.

"Father, Mother, I see my younger sister has lost a lot of weight recently, so I bought two cans of Milk Powder back to help her build up her strength."

"Mm, put them in her room. You two sisters have been close since childhood; you should guide her well."

"Mm, okay, Father."

"Knock, knock, knock."

"The door isn't locked."

"Younger sister." Zhong Yan entered the room and closed the door behind her.

"Big Sister." Zhong Mingzhu greeted her and continued with her own business.

"Younger sister, I'm sorry. It was all Big Sister's fault before. Your brother-in-law and nephew have both lectured me, and it can be considered that they scolded me awake."

"Here, this is what Xiao Kun asked me to bring to you, saying it was what you asked Zhengguo to find."

Actually, during the day, she had opened both iron tins and saw the letter inside, but she didn't touch it.

When Zhong Mingzhu heard her Big Sister mention Zhong Zhengguo, she felt slightly nervous inside. She turned her head to look at her Big Sister and found her looking at her with an apologetic face.

"Take it, the things you want are inside. I didn't tell Father and Mother about them." After Zhong Yan finished saying these words, she went out to get busy.

Zhong Mingzhu looked at the iron tin her Big Sister pointed to, clicked it open lightly, and was surprised to find the envelope inside the tin. She hurriedly locked the door before taking it out to read carefully.

The content of Zhang Ping'an's letter was mostly to comfort her, such as saying no one was wrong in this matter, family members are always relatives, there was no need to torment her own body because of anyone, and she should live well, and similar words.

In the middle, he explained the usage and efficacy of these two cans of Pill, and at the end was a bit of a blessing.

"This jerk only knows how to say nice things. There isn't a single word I wanted to hear. Hmph, I'll forgive you for the sake of these two cans of Pill."

In her view, although Zhang Ping'an didn't say anything ambiguous, this Pill was genuine concern, much better than those men who only talk and don't act.

Zhong Mingzhu happily sealed the tins. Knowing Zhang Ping'an's "intentions," she actually felt a bit of anticipation for the trip to the Great Mao.

In the evening, Zhong Mingzhu's attitude toward her Big Sister Zhong Yan also improved significantly, and in the following few days, she even had the posture of restoring her previous relationship with the family.

With the foundation of Zhang Ping'an's five Pill, Zhong Mingzhu's body was able to be replenished, and added to her improved mood, she ate more every day, and her body slowly recovered.

Time flew by to December 20th, and Zhong Mingzhu and the group from the Military Division Hospital boarded the plane to the Soviet Union, beginning a five-year academic study.

"Zhang Ping'an, see you in five years," Zhong Mingzhu murmured to herself while sitting on the plane.

Zhang Ping'an, who was reading in the Library, seemed to sense something; he looked up and saw the plane in the sky, watching it until it disappeared from sight.

At the end of the year, the Procurement Section also became busy, and Zhang Ping'an turned in game almost every day, ranging from a Wild Boar to one or two wild rabbits.

On the 27th day of the twelfth lunar month, after delivering a Wild Boar to the Eastern City Branch, he was asked to stay behind by Li Baoguo.

"Uncle Li, tell me what's the matter."

"Hmm... I've heard about the business between you and the Zhong Family; since this is a private matter between a man and a woman, it's not appropriate for me to intervene."

"However, now that it's over, let it be. If—and I mean if—you are bullied, you can come to me, or your Uncle Wang, or even Li Huaide; just don't be impulsive."

Li Baoguo knew that Zhang Ping'an had been hunting since he was a child and had even killed four wanted criminals in previous years; once a person has blood on their hands, there will inevitably be some hostility in their heart.

A hunting expert like Zhang Ping'an usually wouldn't make a move, but if he did, it would likely be aimed at vital points; of course, he also believed Zhang Ping'an wouldn't act recklessly, so this was just a precautionary warning.

"Uncle Li, why does it sound like you're implying someone is looking for trouble with me?"