The Adopted Cannon Fodder Made a Comeback

Li Zhi and Uncle Qi exchanged a few pleasantries, and then they found a place to have lunch. While they were eating, someone came looking for Uncle Qi and gave him several train tickets.

"Ma’am, Li Zhi, I’m really not trying to rush you all out of here, so please don’t get the wrong idea. I was originally hoping you could stay and enjoy yourselves for a few days, but I know that you, ma’am, probably aren’t in the mood right now and are surely anxious to get home. I happen to have an old army buddy who works at the station, so I had him buy a few tickets for you. This way, you don’t have to wait in line. The station is a madhouse, and you might not even get seats. The tickets are for 6:30 tonight. I’ll see you off when it’s time."

Uncle Qi said, handing the tickets to Li Zhi.

"Uncle Qi, thank you so much. You’re so thoughtful. I was just planning to go to the station after we ate, I didn’t expect you’d have already bought them for us. Here, let us raise our glasses to you."

Li Zhi raised his glass. Sun Jiaming and Dingzi raised their glasses as well. Gu’er and Lin Shuying, who didn’t drink alcohol, raised their sodas to toast Uncle Qi along with them.

Uncle Qi drank, but he refused to take the money Li Zhi offered for the tickets.

"If you try to give me money again, I’ll really lose my temper. Just look at everything you brought me! The ginseng, the deer antler, the liquor and cigarettes from back home, that woolen coat, and the scarf for your auntie... Forget how much all that costs. Can the price of a few tickets even compare? I accepted your gifts as a sign of your goodwill. If you keep being so formal with me, I’ll get genuinely angry."

Uncle Qi’s expression turned stern.

"Alright, alright. We won’t be so formal with you then, Uncle. You have to come visit the Northeast sometime! My dad, Uncle Lin, and I will treat you to some good drinks. Bring Auntie along, too, and have a good time."

Li Zhi didn’t insist, and he dropped the subject of the ticket money.

"That’s more like it. We’re all family, so why act like strangers? By the way, I heard from your dad you’re not married yet. Want your uncle here to introduce you to someone?"

Uncle Qi’s expression softened as he asked Li Zhi, half-joking and half-serious.

Gu’er and the others glanced at Li Zhi. They hadn’t expected him to be in such high demand—someone was already trying to play matchmaker for him even here.

"Thank you, Uncle Qi, but no matter how wonderful a wife from around here might be, I can’t look for one here. It wouldn’t be easy for her to visit her family in the future. I can’t just marry a woman and then not let her go back to her parents’ home. Over time, she’d surely grow resentful, and it would easily lead to conflict. I’d rather find someone near my hometown. It’s more convenient."

Li Zhi politely declined.

"Right, right, you have a point. It’s better for a wife to be from somewhere nearby. It’s easier for her to visit home and help out if anything happens. But enough of that. Let’s drink."

Uncle Qi nodded repeatedly, but he was thinking, ’Looks like I’ll have to let my wife down. The task she gave me isn’t going to work out.’

The reason Uncle Qi mentioned this to Li Zhi was because of what happened the other day when Li Zhi and Sun Jiaming visited his home. His wife had thought both young men were fine lads. She’d asked about their background and, upon learning they were the sons of her husband’s old army buddy—and thus dependable—she’d told him to see if either of them was a suitable prospect.

From their interactions over the past two days, he could tell the Li Family was doing well for themselves. Sun Jiaming was obviously off the table—he was married. Besides, that Gu’er was a force to be reckoned with; if anyone dared make a move on Sun Jiaming, she’d likely fight them to the death. However, he knew Li Zhi was still single. He himself had no daughters, just two sons. His wife, on the other hand, had a niece who was eighteen this year. She was quite pretty but had high standards, hoping to find a man from a well-to-do family with a good moral character to settle down with. For that reason, his wife had set her sights on Li Zhi and wanted him to feel out the situation.

He had been tempted by the idea himself. Li Zhi’s looks were a given—he was more than presentable. And his family’s financial situation was clearly many times better than their own. If Li Zhi had shown any interest, he would have even been willing to swallow his pride and bring it up with his old comrade. But since the young man wasn’t interested, he couldn’t press the matter. If he pushed it and things didn’t work out, it would just create awkwardness between them.

Uncle Qi didn’t bring up the matter again, and the group finished their lunch happily. Uncle Qi invited them to his home for a while, and Li Zhi was initially going to accept. But thinking back on Uncle Qi’s matchmaking talk, he politely declined, saying they wanted to walk around and buy some local specialties to take back with them. Uncle Qi didn’t insist. He accompanied them as they bought a number of things, had dinner with them, and then saw them onto the train.

As the train started moving, Li Zhi let out a long sigh of relief. "Whew, thank goodness we’re finally on our way. If he had really insisted on setting me up, I wouldn’t have been able to take it. Marrying a wife I can’t even communicate with properly? That would be torture."

Everyone laughed at his words.

"Oh yeah, you’re a real prize. Everyone wants a piece of you."

Gu’er said with a laugh.

"What? Your big bro here *is* a prize. I’m just that desirable. You got a problem with that?"

Li Zhi bickered with Gu’er.

"Oh, I’m convinced, why wouldn’t I be? Keep being so picky, and you’ll run into a bandit queen who’ll carry you off to her mountain fortress to be her husband."

Gu’er joked with Li Zhi.

"Pfft, yeah right! You’re the one who’ll meet a bandit queen! Your bro here is a real man. If anyone’s doing the snatching, it’ll be me snatching her!"

Li Zhi glared at Gu’er.

"So what if I meet one? I could just become sisters with her. What’s the big deal? Unlike some people, who can only be the bandit’s husband."

Gu’er’s lips curled into a grin as she spoke, looking utterly delighted.

"Jia Ming, aren’t you going to rein her in? Look at your Gu’er, she’s being so unreasonable and bullying me!" 𝒻𝘳𝘦𝘦𝘸ℯ𝒷𝘯𝘰𝑣ℯ𝑙.𝘤𝑜𝘮

Li Zhi gave up on arguing with Gu’er and called out to Sun Jiaming instead.

"Is she? I didn’t see anything. Didn’t hear anything, either."

Sun Jiaming didn’t seem to think so at all.

"Didn’t see it."

Dingzi nodded as well, agreeing with Sun Jiaming. An exasperated Li Zhi threw a light punch at Dingzi. Dingzi glanced at him, and Li Zhi immediately flashed a placating smile; he knew that if things got physical, even two of him would be no match for Dingzi.

Lin Shuying watched them, her expression incredibly gentle. ’It’s so good to be young. Look at them, laughing so freely and joyfully. I hope Zhongshan and Xinghua can be just like them someday.’

They talked all the way until they got off the train in the middle of the night. After arriving in a provincial capital city, they bought another set of tickets.

Their next train was at five in the morning, so with two or three hours to kill, they could only wait in the station’s waiting hall.

The waiting hall was packed with people—some standing, some sitting, and some even lying down. Everyone was laden with bags and luggage, their faces etched with exhaustion.

Gu’er and the others found a spot to sit down. Since it was the early hours of the morning, Gu’er was getting sleepy. Leaning against Sun Jiaming’s shoulder, she drifted off to sleep without realizing it.

When it was almost time for the train to depart, Gu’er was still asleep.

"You should wake Gu’er up. The train will be here in half an hour. Look, people are already starting to line up."

Lin Shuying said to Sun Jiaming.

"These trains are never on time. It might be delayed. Just let Gu’er sleep. If she’s not awake later, I’ll just carry her onto the train."

But Sun Jiaming couldn’t bear to wake Gu’er.

"Alright. You carry Gu’er. We’ll take care of the bags."

Li Zhi also nodded.

Since they all agreed, Lin Shuying had no objection. She realized that Sun Jiaming, Li Zhi, and even Dingzi all doted on Gu’er and truly cherished her. ’My niece is so fortunate,’ she thought.

——————

Thanks to Haiyang Zhixin 2015 for the kudos, and thanks to readers 160908144235147 and Fang’er for the monthly passes.