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Su Yu extended his hand to rub Xiao Bao’s head and said, “Alright, you write your letter. I’ll go check on your mother.”
“Okay.”
When Su Yu went over, only Wang Jinhe was present. Su Yu sat in front of the stove and started a fire.
Wang Jinhe raised an eyebrow when he saw Su Yu sitting there, tending to the fire, and asked, “Why aren’t you playing with Xiao Bao?”
“Xiao Bao is writing a letter to Zhang Zhilin, and it’s making me jealous,” Su Yu said with a displeased expression.
Wang Jinhe looked at Su Yu, amused. “Are you getting jealous over a five-year-old child?”
“When I went to the capital, I didn’t see Xiao Bao write a letter to me. Zhang Zhilin has only been gone for a short time, and Xiao Bao can’t stop thinking about him,” Su Yu said, making his mood worse with each word.
Wang Jinhe couldn’t be bothered to deal with Su Yu’s jealousy. Still, he furrowed his brow when the conversation turned to Zhang Zhilin. “Do you know where they went?”
“They probably went back to the capital. Old Gu probably wants to give Zhang Zhilin some guidance, and Zhang Zhilin might not be able to return in the short term,” Su Yu shook his head.
Wang Jinhe’s brow furrowed. “If that’s the case, then Xiao Bao’s wish to play with him will remain unfulfilled.”
“It’s an unavoidable situation. Zhang Zhilin is fine now, but Old Gu will definitely give him a comprehensive education. After all, Zhang Zhilin is recognized as a child prodigy. If Old Gu wants him to take over, he must make strict demands on Zhang Zhilin. I believe it will take two to three years for him to come back, at least to lay a solid foundation. Old Gu won’t release him until then. There won’t be any opportunities in between,” Su Yu explained. He knew what kind of person Old Gu was; he didn’t want his son to waste time waiting.
Wang Jinhe remained silent, not saying a word. Seeing him like this, Su Yu continued, “Don’t worry. After Xiao Bao writes a letter to Zhang Zhilin this time, we’ll make a decision based on Zhang Zhilin’s response.”
“But what if they want to distance Xiao Bao from Xiao Zhi?”
“That doesn’t matter. Even if Xiao Bao loses a good friend for a while, it’s only temporary. In the future, Xiao Bao will have many friends,” Su Yu thought simply. If the Gu and Zhang families really want to destroy the bridge after crossing the river, he doesn’t mind taking drastic action.
Wang Jinhe sighed, expressing his hope, “I hope Xiao Bao won’t be hurt.”
“He won’t,” Su Yu reassured him. He wouldn’t let his son be harmed. If he couldn’t do that much as a father, he shouldn’t be a father at all.
“Okay.”
Not long after, Xiao Bao came to Su Yu with the letter he had written. “Daddy, I’m done.”
“Can I take a look at it?” Su Yu asked.
Xiao Bao shook his head continuously. “No, I can only show it to my brother.”
Su Yu shrugged and didn’t insist on seeing it. Instead, he ruffled Xiao Bao’s hair. “Will you be upset if your brother can’t come back right away because of his studies?”
Xiao Bao nodded. “Yes, but my brother is studying, and I can understand.”
Xiao Bao’s obedience and understanding made Su Yu frown. He lifted Xiao Bao up and held the letter in his hand. “Our Xiao Bao doesn’t need to be so understanding. Xiao Bao has Daddy and Mommy, Grandpa and Grandma, Great-Grandfathers and Great-Grandma, and Uncle to protect him.”
“Daddy, I’m not happy. Can’t my brother study here? Why does he have to go back?” Xiao Bao looked at Su Yu with a sad expression.
Seeing his son like this, Su Yu felt a pang in his heart. He ruffled Xiao Bao’s hair and explained, “It’s because his maternal grandfather is a very powerful person. He wants Zhang Zhilin to be his successor.”
“But Daddy is very powerful too.” Xiao Bao protested.
Daddy’s martial arts are excellent.
He’s also very good at studying. Uncle said that Daddy is the youngest Jinshi (successful candidate in the imperial examination) in the village. Nobody is as powerful as Daddy.
Su Yu smiled gently. “So, in Xiao Bao’s heart, Daddy is actually very powerful?”
Xiao Bao nodded repeatedly. “Yes.”
“Daddy can certainly guide Xiao Bao and Zhang Zhilin, but his maternal grandfather believes that these are far from enough,” Su Yu explained.
“Why?”
“Because he wants Zhang Zhilin to enter the officialdom in the future.” However, based on what he knows about Zhang Zhilin at the moment, this child might not be suitable for the officialdom.
Xiao Bao looked at Su Yu with a puzzled expression. “Is it fun to be an official, Daddy?”
“Well, it’s not just about having fun,” Su Yu began to explain. “Being an official means carrying many responsibilities. It’s like doing things for the people, making their lives better, and taking on various tasks. You can’t leave your designated area.”
Wang Jinhe listened to Su Yu explaining these things to Xiao Bao with a helpless expression. “Do you think Xiao Bao can really understand all this?”
Su Yu looked at Xiao Bao, who seemed quite confused, and realized that the little one didn’t understand much of what was being said.
“I’ll give Xiao Bao an analogy so that he can understand,” Su Yu decided to use Su Jiu as an example to explain it to Xiao Bao.
“Your eldest uncle is currently working at the Dali Temple and is a general. But your eldest uncle can’t leave the capital whenever he wants. He needs to ask for leave and take care of many things to be able to come here when he wants,” Su Yu tried to simplify the explanation for Xiao Bao.
Xiao Bao tilted his head and asked, “Then why can your brother’s maternal grandfather come here? If he hadn’t come, my brother wouldn’t have left.”
“That’s because he’s no longer involved in court affairs, so he doesn’t have these limitations. He can go wherever he wants because he’s not responsible for matters at the imperial court anymore,” Su Yu explained, surprised by Xiao Bao’s ability to think about Grandfather Gu.
Xiao Bao pouted and looked unhappy. Seeing his son like this, Su Yu felt a pang of sympathy. “Don’t be unhappy. If he can’t come back, we can always go to find him in the future when we return to the capital.”
“Is the capital far, Daddy?”
“It’s about half a month by carriage, but if you ride a fast horse, it can be as short as four days.”
Xiao Bao tilted his head, thinking for a moment. “That’s quite far. Will Mommy go in the future?”
“Of course, she will.”
“In that case, I’ll go too. If Mommy doesn’t go, I won’t go either,” Xiao Bao said very seriously.
Seeing his son like this, Wang Jinhe couldn’t help but smile. ” Xiao Bao, you’re quite something.”
“Daddy, you’ll send the letter for me,” Xiao Bao quickly returned to the topic of the letter.
“Alright, Daddy will take you to find Yuan Bao.”
“Uncle Yuan Bao,” Xiao Bao called out when he saw Yuan Bao.
“Young Master.”
Xiao Bao squirmed out of Su Yu’s arms and climbed up Yuan Bao’s leg. Yuan Bao looked a bit flustered, and Su Yu found this whole scene quite amusing.