Electronic Nezha

Chapter 188 Comfort
Of all the people I dread receiving phone calls from, Wang Aili used to be number one, now it's Han Shiya. Even if my mom asks about Liu Zhenhua's grades, I can just lie and say they're a little better than before, and she'll believe me.

Han Shiya is the kind of person who is uncultured but thinks she is cultured and thinks she values ​​education very much. You can tell from the fact that she insisted on giving me 30,000 yuan to tutor Liu Zhenhua.

So my attempt to hang up the phone failed.

"What score did you get?"

"100."

"Really?" Han Shiya was genuinely happy. "It seems the tutoring fee wasn't wasted. The teacher you found is quite reliable."

"Okay, I'll hang up now."

"How much did you get on the Chinese exam?" He didn't give me a chance at all, still so domineering.

"He... lost three points on his essay."

“This child’s handwriting has always been messy since he was little. I’ve told him so many times. What about the other subjects? Liu Chuanfeng, why are you speaking so haltingly? Did you fail all your tests except for math?”

"Everything else... is perfect." You have no idea how much courage it takes to say that.

"what?"

I simply said, "Except for losing three points in Chinese, Liu Zhenhua got full marks in all other subjects. Now open one of those apps that can check the rankings of the whole district, and the one ranked first is Liu Zhenhua. Without a doubt, that's your son."

The other side remained silent for a long time.

I said, "You really went to check?"

Han Shiya said calmly, "I believe you." After all, she had lived with me for so many years and knew that I only spoke recklessly when I could, and that I knew what was important.

Han Shiya's second question was: "How did you do that?"

"I have a friend at the Education Bureau who stole the exam papers ahead of time." He's starting to ramble...

Han Shiya retorted angrily, "Are you crazy?"

I said, speechless, "You really believe that?"

Ma Chaoran gave me a big "you got what you deserved" eye roll.

Han Shiya said, "Liu Chuanfeng, tell me the truth!"

"Okay, I lied just now. I don't have any friends in the education bureau."

There was no sound from the other side for quite a while, and this time I was sure she was checking her grades. Education is an industry too; every time midterms and finals are released, many unofficial apps publish the district-wide rankings.

"How did Zhenhua manage that?" This time, the subject was finally changed; Han Shiya also knew I had no friends in the Education Bureau...

I composed myself and said, "This child... has grown up a lot recently and has learned to study."

Han Shiya said, "His grandfather is right. Boys are really amazing once they get it."

I said, "Yes!" The only thing I could do was try to bluff my way into something mysterious and absurd.

"Zhenhua... he must have put in a lot of hard work..." Her voice choked up a little.

Why are you crying?

We've both let our child down!

"Ok?"

"Xiaofeng, you said that back then, we each took a step back and gave the child a complete family..."

Ma Chaoran, finding the conversation unhelpful, wandered off to the space walker to swing on the swings.

Yes, before her divorce, Han Shiya officially called me "Xiao Feng," just like my parents did.

I could only change the subject: "Is Liu Zhenhua ranked first on that app you're looking at?"

"Yes, what's wrong?"

"It's okay. Judging from your tone, I thought he was ranked last."

Han Shiya smiled briefly, then her voice returned to its tearful tone, "Compared to you, I'm an even less competent mother." She suddenly added, "Is your partner nearby? Won't she overthink things?"

I said, "I really don't want to, but Lao Ma isn't that kind of person."

Han Shiya said, "Let's find some time to have a small get-together and celebrate Zhenhua's success."

I finally managed to hang up the phone this time. Ma Chaoran, swinging on the swing, asked me, "What's it like to have a son like this?"

I shook my head and said, "It's complicated. I was depressed for a long time after the Queen said, 'Your son is dead.'"

"What does she mean?"

I pointed to my head and said, "It's like there are two people living here, Liu Zhenhua."

Ma Chaoran jumped to the ground, and the two of us walked forward silently.

On the basketball court, a group of boys on holiday were having a blast. Ma Chaoran stopped and watched for a while. I asked her, "What, you can do this too?"

Ma Chaoran said, "The male soldiers can't beat me."

I wholeheartedly agree.

Ma Chaoran asked, "What's your best sport?"

"Long-distance running, haven't you already witnessed that?"

"what?"

What do you mean by "ah"?

"It's nothing, you are indeed... quite good."

I said coldly, "You are indeed quite good at comforting people."

Ma Chao smiled.

Just then, a middle-aged woman slowly pushed a wheelchair over. In the wheelchair sat a boy about the same age as the children on the court, with a thick blanket covering his legs. The woman walked forward calmly, and the boy looked up and said, "Mom, let's watch them play ball for a while."

The woman's expression showed some pain, but she eventually stopped not too far from us.

The cheers from the crowd grew louder, and the child in the wheelchair looked on with envy. The contrast between the two was somewhat cruel.

Ma Chaoran was somewhat lost in thought when she suddenly said to me, "Actually... just think of him as being sick."

"What?" This inexplicable question completely stunned me.

Ma Chaoran said, "Look at that child in the wheelchair. He was born with a disability, but what can the parents do? They still love him just the same. Some things are beyond their control."

I was momentarily dazed.

Ma Chaoran continued, "Liu Zhenhua had no choice, and neither did you. Just think of Liu Zhenhua as someone who has contracted a disease. My suggestion is: if the Queen says something like that again, spit on her, spit on her in your dreams!"

It was clear that Old Ma was a little angry because those kids on the field were running and jumping as if they were showing off.

I said, "Um..."

Ma Chaoran said, "The Queen keeps trying to hypnotize you because she knows about your mental block. Once you're free of your worries, she won't be able to do anything about it."

I nodded and said, "Yes."

Ma Chaoran walked up to the mother and son, hesitated for a long time, and finally said to the mother, "Have you thought of all the solutions? Have you tried going to big cities?"

The woman looked completely bewildered.

The child in the wheelchair said, "Sister, I'm not disabled. I just sprained my ankle playing basketball. Those guys aren't as good at basketball as me, so they're just trying to annoy me."

The woman said irritably, "I think you guys just haven't enrolled in enough tutoring classes!"

Ma Chaoran's face instantly turned bright red, and she scurried back, sticking out her tongue at me and saying, "I'm not disabled." Because she wasn't disabled, my mood improved.

I said earnestly, "But I listened to everything you said, and I think what you said was very good, but I've already figured it out."

How did you come to this conclusion?

"It's the same as what you said, but simpler. I'm his dad, and he's my son. You can see that from Hao Hao and his mom."

Ma Chaoran slapped her forehead and said, "That's right, Hao Hao is the best example."

"I must say, you are quite good at comforting people."

Only then did the mother belatedly realize Ma Chaoran's kindness, and she called out to her from afar, "Thank you!"

Ma Chaoran grabbed my arm and said regretfully, "Stop talking, run!"

(End of this chapter)