Return to the 1982 Staff Compound

Chapter 364 Return to Yangcheng

Hu Zi asked: "Tell me quickly, or I'll beat you up!"

Qiu Huoming laughed and said, "Alright, I say, Brother Huzi, you are too violent."

Hu Zi clenched his fists.

"Most warriors will overdraw their physical strength. If they don't replenish their nutrition in time and regulate their damaged meridians, they will suffer from future problems. They can still hide it when they are young, but once they reach a certain age..."

Qiu Huoming smiled bitterly and said, "Then there is no cure, no way to save the patient... the body will still be tortured by the pain."

"You bastard Huo Ming, you are trying to scare me!" Hu Zi said angrily.

A voice came from the door, "That makes sense."

Qiu Huoming and Hu Zi turned their heads to look over at the same time.

Grandpa Xu and Uncle Shi were walking slowly inside from outside the door, followed by a service staff.

Grandpa Xu hadn't been seen for a while, and his face looked a little older. Qiu Huoming quickly stood up and walked in front of him before Hu Zi.

"Grandpa Xu, Uncle Shi!" Qiu Huoming raised the corners of his mouth and called out attentively.

Grandpa Xu smiled and said, "If I didn't ask you to come, would you not remember to come and see an old man like me?"

"I was planning to come and see you today." Qiu Huoming said with a smile, "In the end, I was on the same page as Brother Huzi."

"What is synchronization?" asked Uncle Shi.

"It means doing it at the same time." Qiu Huoming explained.

He helped Grandpa Xu to the sofa and helped him sit down. Grandpa Xu smelled strongly of alcohol, and it seemed that he had drunk a lot at noon.

Uncle Shi sat beside him and glanced at him.

Qiu Huoming understood immediately. He opened his backpack, took out the medal, and handed it over with both hands.

Uncle Shi reached out to take it, brought it close to his eyes, and examined it carefully.

Grandpa Xu came over and said, "Oh, gold?"

Qiu Huoming smiled and said, "It's made of gold. I want this to be a family heirloom..."

Uncle Shi curled his lips and said, "Don't worry, I won't steal your things." After taking a few glances at it, he returned the medal to Qiu Huoming.

Qiu Huoming put the medal back and took out the camera. "Grandpa Xu, let's take a photo. I will be back to Yangcheng tomorrow. When the photos are developed, I will show them to my master. He misses you so much..."

"Okay, let's shoot it in the living room. Huoming, come and sit over here..." Grandpa Xu said, pointing to the empty seat between him and Uncle Shi.

Upon hearing this, the service personnel behind Grandpa Xu stepped forward and took the camera, "Let me take a picture of you."

Qiu Huoming squeezed in between the two of them. Uncle Shi glanced at Hu Zi and said, "Come here too."

Hu Zi glanced at Grandpa Xu, who smiled and nodded, "You come too."

Hu Zi immediately walked quickly and stood behind the sofa, looking at the camera in the service staff's hand.

"Click, click" the service staff took a few more pictures.

Qiu Huoming took back the camera with satisfaction.

Uncle Shi looked at Qiu Huoming thoughtfully. After he put away all his things, he asked, "You did a good job in the beautiful country this time."

He smiled and asked, "Do you feel bad after losing $1?"

Qiu Huoming smiled and said, "For one sum of money, I can save two people. I think it's worth it..."

"Which two people?" Uncle Shi asked knowingly.

"Of course, one is Engineer Ding and the other is Dean Zhou." Qiu Huoming said.

"If Dean Zhou doesn't need to be saved, and you only need to save Worker Ding, what would you do?" Uncle Shi asked.

Qiu Huoming was stunned. This question seemed to be deliberately difficult.

"I don't want to save him, but I will." Qiu Huoming sighed, "Although he was confused, he finally came to his senses..."

Uncle Shi finally breathed a sigh of relief, "You are a good kid."

It is not easy to get his approval. Qiu Huoming heard his tone and felt that he had passed this test.

"Don't worry, the money will be returned to you. After all, it is a foreign award. You should also be careful with your words and don't mention things that you shouldn't say..."

Qiu Huoming nodded, "I know, don't worry, I'm keeping my mouth shut."

Uncle Shi leaned on the sofa and said, "Come on, tell me about your experience studying abroad this time. Huo Ming, you are really gifted in studying. A kid from a small county town can speak English so well..."

Qiu Huoming smiled innocently and said, "That's all my talent. Give me a stage and I can give you a miracle..."

Grandpa Xu and Uncle Shi laughed together.

Qiu Huoming recounted his thoughts on studying in the United States, focusing on the laboratories and computer rooms.

"I think we can quickly evaluate the differences in technology, but concepts are difficult. Take homework for example. They require you to complete it independently, not memorize it by rote. You can consult all the information and give full play to your hands-on and thinking abilities. The main goal is to make the best use of everything..."

“It’s an open-ended learning model…”

Qiu Huoming spoke a lot in an eloquent manner, but Uncle Shi did not interrupt him. Instead, he listened with great interest.

When he finally finished speaking, Uncle Shi suddenly asked, "Huo Ming, after you graduate, do you have any ideas about your future career direction?"

Qiu Huoming thought for a while and said, "I might want to study abroad for a few years and learn more about their new technologies... Of course, this idea may change after I graduate."

"If you don't go abroad, what are your wishes?" Uncle Shi continued to ask.

"I'm not cut out for scientific research, and I don't want to be a manager either..." Qiu Huoming already had a lot of things planned out in his mind, and he really couldn't sit still if he was only in one corner, unless...

However, when working in the public sector, one's subjective initiative will be greatly reduced.

His qualifications only allow him to start as a small soldier, and he can accept being below the more capable ones. However, if the other party is not as good as himself, he would be in a very difficult situation.

He thought for a moment, "I might be better at diplomacy..." In his heart, he actually wanted to say something like 'attracting investment', but this was policy, and as a student, it would be better for him to say less.

Uncle Shi laughed and said, "I also think you are suitable for diplomacy..."

That's the end of this topic.

Grandpa Xu stood up by the armrest of the sofa and said, "Let's go to the martial arts arena. It's been a long time since I saw you guys fighting..."

He glanced at Hu Zi and said, "Go for a physical examination in a few days. If you feel any discomfort, go get treatment in advance..."

Hu Zi rubbed the back of his head and said, "I'm fine. Don't listen to what Huo Ming says."

Qiu Huoming smiled as he picked up his backpack and slapped him on the shoulder, "It's just a physical examination, are you scared?"

Hu Zi snorted, "I'm afraid? What a joke."

The two men hadn't even started fighting yet, but the tension was already building.

Grandpa Xu was probably in a good mood, and his steps became lighter, and several people walked to the martial arts field.

Qiu Huoming hadn't practiced with anyone for a long time, and he was very excited. After warming up on the spot, he started fighting with Hu Zi.

After not seeing him for a few days, Hu Zi's moves have become more and more fierce.

Both of them wanted to see if the other had improved, so they didn't attack at the beginning, but instead tested each other...

Grandpa Xu smiled and said to Uncle Shi beside him: "Look, Hu Zi has also started to play tricks..."

Uncle Shi nodded and said, "This is a good thing. It means he has met his match."

Ten minutes later, the two retreated together. Qiu Huoming was sweating profusely, and Hu Zi said breathlessly: "That's enough, we won't fight anymore..."

Uncle Shi smiled and said, "Oh, you understand each other. Go down and change your clothes. The general and I are going out for a while. You can arrange your own schedule later..."

Hu Zi nodded, turned around and pulled Qiu Huoming and said, "Come on, I'll take you to change clothes."

The two said goodbye to Grandpa Xu and Uncle Shi and walked inside.

By the time Qiu Huoming finished taking a shower and changed into clean clothes, Grandpa Xu and the others had already left.

"I probably don't have time to see you today. I'll take you back to the guesthouse. What time is your flight tomorrow?" Hu Zi asked.

Qiu Huoming said: "It's very early, before dawn, we have to be at the airport before 6 o'clock..."

Hu Zi reached out and patted his shoulder, "I'll pick you up tomorrow."

Qiu Huoming was delighted, "That's great, I was just thinking about booking a taxi."

"Wait downstairs at 5 o'clock." Hu Zi said after calculating the time.

"Okay, I'll be down on time."

After getting in the car, Qiu Huoming was the one who rushed to drive again. This time he also bought some snacks from a time-honored store along the way. The snacks were packaged and were perfect as gifts.

As he was about to return, he was thinking about Zhao Jiamin and would soon be able to see her.

The smile on Qiu Huoming's lips never faded.

The next morning, the street lights were dim at the entrance of the guesthouse. A car was already waiting there, and the headlights cast a rough and mottled light on the ground.

Qiu Huoming came out carrying two boxes.

The air in the early morning was fresh and the wind blew over. Qiu Huoming walked to the door and turned his head to look at the guesthouse where he had stayed several times.

"What are you looking at? Hurry up, or you'll miss it." Hu Zi opened the car door and said while standing by the door.

"Coming, coming." Qiu Huoming went down the stairs and put his box directly on the back seat.

This time he took the initiative to sit in the passenger seat as he was not familiar with the way to the airport.

Hu Zi sat down and glanced at him, "There's breakfast on top."

Only then did Qiu Huoming notice an oil paper bag under the passenger window glass. He reached out and took it, and it was still hot.

"Hey, thanks." Qiu Huoming opened it happily. There was a glutinous rice ball inside. He took a bite and found it was full of ingredients.

He took out a thermos from his backpack, which he bought from the small supermarket at Stanford University. After taking a sip of water, he continued to work on the next glutinous rice ball.

"Huo Ming, are you really not planning to join the army?" Hu Zi asked when he saw that he had almost finished eating.

Qiu Huoming responded firmly: "It's not that I don't like it, it's that my personality is not suitable. I'm too picky. Sooner or later, it's over..."

Hu Zi thought about it and realized that it was true. He sighed and said, "That's all I can do. I'll come to see you next time I go to South China on business."

"Okay, I'll take you for a ride..." Qiu Huoming said with a smile, "Use my 28-bar."

The car sped northward on the empty streets.

Qiu Huoming originally planned to visit Sister Hong and her husband when he had time, but the time for the return trip was too tight this time, so he decided to go another day. Anyway, Sister Hong traveled to Guangzhou all year round, so it was easy for her to visit her.

"I have a brother in South China who is stationed in your Yangcheng. I will give you his contact information later. If you have any troubles in the future, you can ask him to help you to the best of his ability..." Hu Zi said.

Qiu Huoming smiled and said, "Thank you, Brother Huzi. Don't worry, I am not alone in Yangcheng. My master is still there."

Hu Zi laughed, "It's not the same system. You can keep it. Maybe you can use it."

"Okay, when I get there, I'll invite your brother out for a drink."

"No, he's usually very busy. If you have anything, just look for him. Just listen to me."

"Okay, it's up to you."

Qiu Huoming looked at Hu Zi's profile in the dim light inside the car, "Brother Hu Zi, I have a friend who also came from an orphanage and was adopted by a family, but the person who adopted her disappeared..."

Qiu Huoming briefly explained Tang Xiaotang's situation and asked, "If you have connections in the north, can you help her think of a solution?"

"No problem. Give me her contact information and I'll go find her when I'm free." Hu Zi agreed without hesitation. He is also an orphan and can empathize with Tang Xiaotang, who is also an orphan.

"okay."

With Hu Zi's protection, Tang Xiaotang and Gu Xiaoran's summer vacation trip will be more secure.

These days, traveling across provinces, especially to less developed areas, is still too dangerous for two single girls.

Long-distance buses are not always safe.

After arriving at the airport and saying goodbye to Hu Zi, Qiu Huoming went to check in his boarding pass as if he was familiar with the place, planning to check in his luggage and travel light.

He was with the group before, and many things were handled by Dean Zhou.

This time it was his turn alone, and he realized how complicated the procedures were.

The letter of introduction given by Chang Gong played a big role. Qiu Huoming finally checked in his luggage and entered the waiting room with his boarding pass.

He walked to the window with his backpack. Compared with the floor-to-ceiling windows in foreign countries, the airport windows here were much smaller.

He stood at the window, looking at the faintly white sky, with all kinds of sounds gathering in his ears.

Qiu Huoming put his hands in his pockets, feeling very high-spirited. At the age of 19, the situation was already good. As long as he didn't do anything stupid, everything would be basically safe.

Just as he was thinking about it, someone suddenly grabbed his trouser leg, which scared him.

A little girl, not even as tall as his legs, was hugging his legs, looking up at him, and mumbling, "Daddy, hold me..."

Qiu Huoming didn't know whether to laugh or cry. He reached out and touched her hair. "Little girl, where are your family members? I'm not your father."

As he was talking, someone ran over quickly and said, "I'm sorry, I let her run away without paying attention..."

The man spoke in a loud voice. When he turned around and picked up the little girl, Qiu Huoming shouted in astonishment, "Director Jiang!"

Director Jiang was startled and looked at Qiu Huoming, "Why is it you?"

Director Jiang is the director of studies at Wucheng Middle School in Wucheng County. During this winter vacation, Qiu Huoming specially brought his elder sister to visit him.

"Director Jiang, I'm going back to Yangcheng. Aren't you in Wucheng? Why are you here?"

Qiu Huoming looked at the little girl, then at Director Jiang who looked like charcoal, and they didn't look like a family at all.

Director Jiang was still wearing his army green uniform, standing straight while holding the little girl in his arms.

Qiu Huoming turned around and looked at the passengers around him, but didn't see anyone who looked like the little girl's family members.