Chapter 98: Taking Off Your Wheel
Teacher Zhou hadn’t expected many people to sign up. After all, most of the students were small-time cadres in their factories. But when he took the list, there were eighteen performances.
Solo singing, dancing, rhythmic talk, comic skits, small choir, full choir…
Anyone who knew it was a night school might think it was lively, but anyone who didn’t might think it was a county-level theater troupe!
The students were really enthusiastic!
Zhou was quite pleased, and his impression of Su He improved.
“What’s your name?”
“Teacher, my name is Su He — Su as in Gusu, He as in seedling.”
Zhou froze for a second. Su He? Why did that name sound familiar?
Oh, right — the county broadcast station had aired several of her feature reports recently. And she’d even gotten into a fight at the school gate a couple of days ago.
Zhou wasn’t really into gossip, so after a brief pause, he simply said, “Since you have a knack for writing, you’ll be fine scripting transitions. Why don’t you host the performance?”
“Sure!”
…
When Su He returned home that night, the two old ladies were still up.
After she finished washing up, Old Madam Su pulled out a few already-braided five-colored strings: “Tomorrow’s Dragon Boat Festival. Come here, Su He, Granny will tie these on for you.”
In An County, five-colored strings were usually just for children.
But Old Madam Su gave them to Su He for a simple reason: to show her love as a grandmother.
Truth be told, this grandmother and granddaughter were really in sync — both saw five-colored strings as little messengers of love.
Su He smiled as she let Granny Su tie them for her.
“Oh right, Granny. My second aunt invited us over for dinner tomorrow night. I’ll bring Old Man Ge along too!”
Old Madam Su nodded. “Sure. Let him give your second uncle’s family a check-up too. That way he’s not eating for free.”
Su He: “…”
Granny Su then turned to Old Madam Zhao and said sternly, “Let’s make this clear. Tomorrow we’re all getting together to celebrate the holiday. If you so much as start crying or sobbing, I’ll take the wheels off your wheelchair and make you crawl back!”
Old Madam Zhao: “…”
Su He: “…”
Old Madam Su kept threatening her, nearly making Old Madam Zhao swear a blood oath.
*
The next morning, when Old Man Ge came to do acupuncture, Granny Su warmly invited him to dinner at Su Yongshi’s house.
Old Man Ge hesitated for a moment but eventually agreed.
In the past, he would never have accepted. But now that Su He was his granddaughter, it made sense to get closer to the Su family.
Su He also went to Teacher Yuan’s home to invite him.
Teacher Yuan waved her off. “I don’t like crowds—too noisy! Don’t worry about me. I’ve got more food than I can eat!”
She wasn’t exaggerating either. Since she often tutored kids from the residential compound, lots of families had brought her zongzi and tea eggs.
So Su He didn’t insist.
That evening, Granny Su and Cao Hongmei made a whole table full of dishes. There weren’t any exotic delicacies, but for this era, the meal was plentiful and rich.
Most of the ingredients had come from Su He.
Su Jinbao was practically bubbling over with joy!
Even New Year’s dinner had never been this good. Big Sis He was amazing!
Tie Zhu’s eyes were red. In the past, during holidays, Liu Qiujü and her husband never even let him sit at the table — let alone eat anything tasty.
He vowed to repay Big Sis He someday!
Old Man Ge also felt emotional. He had been alone for so many years, and it had been a long time since he’d felt such a festive, warm atmosphere.
Old Madam Su, meanwhile, stared at the glistening braised pork, thinking, Just a few pieces won’t hurt, right?
Old Madam Zhao, seeing the Su family so happy and close, couldn’t help but think of her own family.
Her son and daughter-in-law had divorced. She wondered if anyone had made zongzi for the old man or tied five-colored strings on Gouzi.
Her nose began to sting…
Just as her tears were about to fall, Granny Su pinched her hard.
Old Madam Zhao flinched from the pain — and remembered the threat about the wheelchair wheels. The tears instantly retreated.
*
Meanwhile, back in the Gu family estate in the capital, they were also having dinner.
Old Master Gu was the undisputed authority in the family and ran a tight ship.
There were strict rules about where everyone sat, and no one spoke while eating or before sleeping.
Despite there being over a dozen people at the table — even small children — the room was dead silent.
But tonight, the atmosphere was a little strange. Many eyes were on Gu Chiyan.
Because the grandson that Old Master Gu favored the most… was wearing a five-colored string on his wrist.
Gu Chiyan was the most similar to the old man in temperament: meticulous, disciplined, even a bit harsh. That string looked completely out of place on him.
Especially in the capital, where only children usually wore those. Adults rarely did.
Old Master Gu glanced at it several times.
But Gu Chiyan remained perfectly composed, eating slowly and steadily.
After dinner, Old Master Gu said sternly, “Chiyan, come to my study.”
Everyone’s expression shifted.
Some looked gleeful, others worried, some just curious to see what would happen.
Gu Chiyan followed him into the study.
Old Master Gu pointed at the five-colored string. “Where did that come from?”
“Someone gave it to me.”
“Who?”
“A female comrade I like.”
Old Master Gu frowned. “From which family?”
“She’s not from the capital. Not on your list either.”
The old man’s brow furrowed deeper.
“Chiyan, I’ve told you before — your wife must be someone from the approved list. End it with her immediately.”
Gu Chiyan’s voice was calm and frosty. “Grandfather, I only have feelings for her now. It’s not at the ‘must marry her’ stage. But if you interfere, it might become that serious. I’ve still got work at the institute — I’ll visit another time.”
With that, he turned and left.
Old Master Gu was so furious he raised his teacup… then hesitated and put it back down.
That brat did it on purpose!
If he wanted to keep it secret, he wouldn’t have worn the string out in the open.
This was a warning.
He must have found out that Old Master Gu had people investigating the girl he wrote letters to.
The old man paced back and forth in his study, then picked up the phone. “No need to keep checking.”
Forget it. Just some girl from a small place — how extraordinary can she be? The brat’s just in a honeymoon phase. He’ll cool off in a few days.
*
Su He, of course, had no idea any of this was happening at the Gu family. She hadn’t even thought of Gu Chiyan in days.
Right now, her entire brain was focused on one thing — how to make money.
