Forced into a romantic relationship

Chapter 473 You don’t want Gu Zheng to know about your affairs, right?

The water stains on the stone pavement in the courtyard had not yet completely dried up, reflecting the gradually clearing blue sky. Crooked smoke spread out from the chimney, drifting farther and farther away in the winter wind.

Gu Zheng originally thought that Wang Lengqiu's grandfather was a taciturn old man, but after chatting with him for a few sentences, she found that this was not the case. Perhaps this old man was just used to being alone, so he seemed to be quiet. Once he opened his mouth, he would be like most older people, with endless gossip to talk about.

The old man had a heavy accent and I couldn’t understand the zither and bells at first, but I got used to it after listening to them for a while.

Most of his topics revolved around his granddaughter Wang Lengqiu, and they were all happy and interesting things. Naturally, he also mentioned the photo that he had treasured for many years. However, although he had been helping to keep the photo, he had not seen the content of the photo. He only knew that it was a photo of his granddaughter and a boy.

The sky gradually darkened, and lights were turned on in every household. The charcoal fire in the stove became brighter and brighter, and the aroma from the kitchen continued to seep out through the crack in the door.

Gu Zheng's nose twitched, she secretly swallowed her saliva, and couldn't help asking, "So you have never seen that boy?"

Compared to eating, she wanted to figure out this problem more at the moment.

Zhong Ling on the side also looked curious. Although everyone was almost certain that the boy in the photo was Han Zhou, they still wanted to know more details. As Wang Lengqiu's grandfather, the old man might know something.

The charcoal fire in the stove was burning red, and it also reflected the rosy faces of the two girls, making them look particularly cute.

"never seen it."

The old man shook his head and smiled, "It's been many years. Even if we've met, I've probably forgotten it. I just remember that Youyou was very happy during that time. When I asked her, she just said that she met a boy she liked very much. I've never seen her so happy, so I just let her go."

"The boy I like very much..."

Gu Zheng was stunned for a moment, then said hesitantly, "Senior Wang Lengqiu should have been only in her teens at that time. She had someone she liked so early. Didn't you worry about her? I heard that she even wrote a love letter later..."

It has to be said that Wang Lengqiu is indeed a little different from ordinary people. In the domestic education environment, premature love is expressly prohibited. Therefore, many people may not dare to easily express their love for someone even when they are in high school, let alone tell their elders at home.

But Wang Lengqiu obviously didn't care about this kind of thing. Not only did he start writing love letters at such a young age, he even dared to tell his family. I don't know whether to say that he was precocious or childish.

"Eleven years old. I remember Youyou was eleven years old at that time, and she had just transferred to another school not long ago."

The old man looked up and recalled for a while, a nostalgic look appeared on his face, and then he smiled and said, "To be honest, I was a little worried at first, but then I thought this might not be a bad thing."

"Good news?" Gu Zheng looked puzzled.

She was depressed, and when she heard that Wang Lengqiu was only eleven years old at that time, she quickly thought of another thing - Wang Lengqiu was two years older than Han Zhou, which meant that Han Zhou had started flirting with other girls when he was nine years old. It turned out that he had been dishonest since he was a child.

"Yeah, that's good."

The old man smiled and fiddled with the charcoal in the stove with tongs. After a while, he said, "Youyou is always taciturn in school and rarely expresses her ideas. In the words of the teacher, she is not very sociable. Some of her behaviors are difficult for her peers to understand, and many people think she is not normal."

Guzheng and Zhongling were stunned. So Wang Lengqiu has had this kind of personality since childhood?
They always thought that this was a character trait that was formed later.

The old man took out a cigarette box from the inner pocket of his coat, but after looking at the two girls beside him, he put the cigarette box back, took a sip of the hot tea in the thermos on the stool, sipped a little tea leaves in his mouth, and continued speaking after a while.

"Youyou is very sensible, but she is too sensible. I know she is like this because she is afraid of getting into trouble. She always wants to reduce contact with others and goes everywhere alone. So when she told me that she had a boy she liked and that they often played together, I was worried, but I also felt that this might be a kind of just the right kind of 'rebellion'."

"Just the right amount of rebellion..."

"I don't know what to say, anyway, it's enough that she is happy."

The old man didn't seem to know how to explain it, he just smiled and said, "I'm not afraid that Youyou will cause trouble, I'm just afraid that she will keep everything in her heart."

Guzheng and Zhongling had heard about Wang Lengqiu's story and knew that she was often bullied when she was a child. Her grandfather went to the school to seek justice but was retaliated by the bully's parents. When she called her parents to talk, she was accused of deliberately causing trouble. She had no one to rely on, so she could only try her best to avoid the bullies, and even eat herself fat to protect herself and her grandfather.

Thinking of this, Gu Zheng became indignant and wanted to pull those people out and beat them up. Zhong Ling, on the other hand, had a complicated expression and tugged at the small cloth bag around his waist, not knowing what he was thinking.

This topic was obviously not suitable to continue. After a brief silence, Gu Zheng couldn't help but ask: "Grandpa Wang, have you read the love letter written by Senior Sister?"

"No." The old man shook his head.

"Has the love letter been sent?"

"It should have been sent out..."

The old man recalled for a moment, "One afternoon Youyou ran out of the house in a hurry with a piece of paper. When she came back, the paper was gone. I heard that the boy transferred to another school after that day. That was the last time they met."

The last meeting... a confession before parting?!

Gu Zheng's heart tightened, and she pretended to ask casually: "Then...did the boy agree with Senior Wang Lengqiu's confession?"

She picked up the water cup and seemed to be asking casually, not looking very concerned.

"I don't know about that. Youyou didn't tell me what happened that day."

The old man shook his head and laughed, "If you want to know, you can ask her yourself, but I don't think she will tell you."

Of course not, the senior sister will only say "thank you"...

Gu Zheng was mumbling in her heart, but before she could speak, she heard the old man laugh and say, "The boy who came with you is called Han Zhou, right? If I'm not mistaken, you think Han Zhou is the boy who played with Youyou when they were young, right?"

Gu Zheng and Zhong Ling were stunned, looked at each other, and asked, "Did Senior Wang Lengqiu tell you?"

"No, but I'm not senile. This is the first time that Youyou has brought a boy home in all these years. There won't be anyone else except that boy."

"But that was many years ago. How can you be sure that the senior sister won't bring other boys home?" Gu Zheng asked puzzled.

"Because I know my granddaughter."

The old man replied with a smile, "Youyou told me a long time ago that she only brings home boys she wants to marry, and she had already decided who she wanted to marry when she was eleven years old."

At the age of eleven, she had already decided who she was going to marry...

Guzheng and Zhongling were stunned and could not speak for a long time.

At this age, they are either still climbing trees to catch birds, fishing in rivers, or playing skipping rope and catching dolls. They have never thought about love at all, let alone deciding who to marry. Is Senior Sister Wang Lengqiu so precocious?
After hesitating for a moment, Gu Zheng couldn't help but say, "But those were words from childhood after all..."

"You should take what you said when you were a kid seriously. Youyou has never joked since she was a kid." The old man laughed. Guzheng wanted to refute, but when she thought about how Wang Lengqiu had persisted in this obsession for nearly ten years, so long that Han Zhou had even forgotten about it, she was completely speechless.

But... can you only bring home the boys you want to marry?

Gu Zheng was in a trance for a moment, but her eyes soon became firm, and she asked doubtfully: "Grandpa Wang, do you know why Senior Sister Wang Lengqiu has been obsessed with that boy?"

The old man shook his head and smiled bitterly: "I also want to know why."

The implication is that he doesn't know either.

It was already completely dark, and the temperature outside was getting lower and lower. The old man exhaled a breath of white air, stood up and said, "It's cold outside at night, come in and sit down."

Gu Zheng and Zhong Ling noticed the temperature was dropping, and they also stood up. The former picked up the stove and was about to go into the house when the old man behind him suddenly asked, "Is one of you Han Zhou's girlfriend?"

Guzheng was stunned, while Zhongling tugged at the small cloth bag around her waist awkwardly.

"Han Zhou doesn't have a girlfriend yet." Gu Zheng replied with a somewhat subtle tone.

“Not yet…”

The old man seemed to understand something. His eyes stayed on the two girls for a moment. He didn't know what he was thinking about. He smiled bitterly and said, "I'm sorry. I apologize to you on behalf of Youyou. This child is too stubborn. She took the promise we made when we were young seriously. I will try to persuade her to let go of this obsession."

"No, don't do this!"

Gu Zheng quickly shook her head and said, "Senior Wang Lengqiu has persisted for so long, and you are only trying to persuade her to give up now. Isn't it unfair to her?"

The old man was stunned: "But..."

He has lived for almost half of his life, how could he not see that this girl likes the boy named Han Zhou? He wanted to say, "Is this fair to you?", but he felt that it was not appropriate, so he changed his words and said, "But I don't know whether Youyou's obsession has any meaning..."

As a grandfather, he certainly wanted to fulfill all of his granddaughter's wishes, but if this wish was based on hurting others, he would feel guilty, so he would confirm in advance whether one of the two girls was Han Zhou's girlfriend.

Gu Zheng took a deep breath and said seriously: "Don't worry about whether it makes sense or not. Even if it is a meaningless thing, it is meaningful to persist for so long. What's more, this is not a meaningless thing."

The winter night wind blew in from outside the fence, blowing up the girl's hair. The charcoal fire in the stove became redder and brighter, reflecting the equally bright eyes.

"And didn't you just say that this might be just the right kind of 'rebellion'?"

In fact, Gu Zheng's mood is actually very contradictory and complicated, but in the final analysis, Wang Lengqiu's persistence over the years does not make her feel afraid. On the contrary, she admires such an opponent, and even if he is Han Zhou's real childhood sweetheart, she will win fairly.

She actually understood Wang Lengqiu. In a sense, they both had similar obsessions, and the other person seemed to have that "special" thing that she longed for.

But she won't lose.

Be it the childhood sweetheart from the past or the shameless one who came later, at least I am the one who is with Han Zhou now, and I have always been the one who has been with him the longest.

Han Zhou is mine, no one can take him away from me.

With this belief, Gu Zheng suddenly smiled and said, "If all I get from waiting for so long is simple forgetfulness, I will definitely beat up Han Zhou to help my senior sister vent her anger."

The old man was stunned.

Zhong Ling smiled faintly. Although this could be considered an act of "aiding the enemy", it didn't seem strange at all to hear such words coming from Gu Zheng's mouth.

Guzheng is such a person. Except for not being open enough in her feelings and not confident enough about her breasts, she dares to face any challenge.

For some reason, Zhong Ling's originally uneasy heart inexplicably calmed down.

The old man came back to his senses after a long while and said with a smile: "Youyou really made a group of very interesting friends."

He hesitated for a moment, but ultimately did not remind the two girls. Although Youyou was usually very sensible, once she set a goal, she would become restless... This was a nicer way of putting it. To put it bluntly, she would do whatever it takes.

Of course, the phrase "unscrupulous" needs to be put in quotation marks. Youyou would not do anything without a bottom line, but due to her special brain circuits, some of her behaviors may seem a little strange...

Now she has a goal——

That is to find a way to marry the boy you like.

Since Youyou brought the boy named Han Zhou home, she must have been fully prepared mentally and had a comprehensive plan to win him over.

Thinking of this, the old man couldn't help but feel a little worried.

There shouldn't be any trouble in the kitchen, right?

As it turned out, the old man's worries were not unfounded. At this moment in the kitchen, Wang Lengqiu was standing by the stove, staring at Han Zhou's profile like a sculpture.

All the preparations in the kitchen have been completed, and the next step is to pour the vegetables into the pot. Naturally, Han Zhou was the one who did this. He wanted Wang Lengqiu to go out and have a rest, but the other party had no intention of leaving. Instead, he stood beside him and stared at him.

Naturally, he was a little uncomfortable at first, and even asked jokingly, "Are you afraid that I will steal some food?", hoping to persuade the other party to leave. Unexpectedly, the answer he got was, "If you are hungry, you can eat a little first, and just say that I ate it, and grandpa won't say anything."

He then remembered that the girl was not very good at joking, so he explained: "I am indeed a little hungry, but I didn't mean to eat secretly. I was joking."

Unexpectedly, Wang Lengqiu seemed to have only heard the first half of the sentence. He immediately picked up a steaming chicken leg from the plate and said, "You can eat my portion first. It's okay if I eat less."

Han Zhou tried to persuade her and repeatedly said that he didn't want to eat it now. Only then did she carefully put the chicken leg back on the plate, covered it with a lid, and said, "Then you can eat my portion later."

Looking at the thin girl beside him, Han Zhou suddenly remembered the time when she insisted on treating him to steamed buns. He felt inexplicably sad and couldn't bear to let her go out to rest.

He was standing by the stove cooking, and Wang Lengqiu was watching beside him. The two of them chatted occasionally, but it didn't seem boring.

I don’t know how we got along when we were little… Han Zhou laughed in his heart and gradually got used to Wang Lengqiu’s gaze. He was about to speak, but the next second, a sentence that made his scalp tingle suddenly came out of Wang Lengqiu’s mouth -

“You should have gone hiking with Mo Yixia before, and Gu Zheng doesn’t know about it.”

"You don't want Gu Zheng to know about your affairs, do you?"

(End of this chapter)