Chapter 16: Arriving at Su’s House

“Mom, these cigarettes were a gift from Uncle Su to Dad. Let him keep them,” Tang Feng said with a smile.

“Little Feng, do you know how much these two packs of cigarettes cost?” his mother was somewhat surprised.

“For Zhonghua, it seems to be six hundred yuan a pack. So, two packs are twelve hundred yuan,” Tang Feng replied.

“Your annual tuition is only fourteen hundred yuan, almost the same as the cost of these two packs of cigarettes. Your dad can just smoke the Hademen that costs two yuan and fifty cents a pack,” his mother decided.

“No!” Tang Feng shook his head, “Mom, Dad has already done so much for this family. Those cheap cigarettes are even more harmful to the body. Let him smoke these.”

“What’s gotten into you today? You don’t have a fever, do you?” his mother asked, reaching out to touch Tang Feng’s forehead.

“Mom, I’m fine. I know you’re concerned about the money. But don’t worry, after I finish the college entrance exams, I plan to earn money during the summer vacation. From now on, I want to provide better for you and Dad,” Tang Feng said, his eyes shining with excitement.

“What can you do? Tutoring?” his mother guessed.

“Tutoring is a good option. But I’m thinking of doing something else,” Tang Feng answered.

“I really can’t imagine what else you could do,” his mother said, shaking her head.

“You’ll see in time. By the way, I won’t be home for breakfast tomorrow,” Tang Feng changed the subject.

“Are you and Xiaoli planning to eat out?” his mother asked.

“No,” Tang Feng shook his head, “Xiaoli invited me to have breakfast at her house.”

“Going to her house?” his mother suddenly became anxious.

After all, Tang Feng and Su Xiaoli were both in their adolescence; if anything happened, it could lead to trouble.

“What? You don’t agree?” Tang Feng asked with a smile.

“So, you’re planning to spend the whole day at Su’s house?” his mother speculated.

“Pretty much. I’m tutoring her, so it doesn’t matter where we are,” Tang Feng replied.

“Then you must be careful,” his mother cautioned her son.

“I know,” Tang Feng nodded.

Then, Tang Feng said goodbye to his parents and returned to his room.

“Wife, maybe we should just sell these cigarettes in the supermarket,” Tang Long placed the two packs of Zhonghua in front of his wife.

“Your son pleaded on your behalf, so you might as well keep them for yourself. But don’t smoke too much all at once; save them,” Tang Feng’s mother responded.

“Wife, have you noticed? Our son seems to have changed a lot compared to before. I wonder what happened,” Tang Long’s face was filled with confusion.

“Maybe he’s just grown up. Anyway, I’m relieved to see how he’s behaving now,” Tang Feng’s mother’s eyes brimmed with happiness.

“I feel like everything is like a dream. I’m afraid to wake up,” Tang Long said, grasping his wife’s hand.

“What nonsense are you talking about? We’re facing real life right now,” Tang Feng’s mother placed her other hand over his.

They looked into each other’s eyes for a long time.

Tang Feng saw this scene through the crack of the door.

A smile appeared on his lips.

He silently vowed to improve his parents’ lives as soon as possible.

He turned and lay down on the bed.

But he didn’t fall asleep immediately.

The image of Su Xiaoli lingered in his mind.

He tossed and turned, wishing he could spend every moment with her.

But he knew it wasn’t possible for now.

After all, Su Xiaoli was a very conservative girl.

They had a long way to go before they could truly be together.

But he had already decided on her, no matter what happened or what difficulties they faced, he would always be by her side.

Eventually, he drifted off to sleep.

At 6:30 a.m., the alarm clock went off on time.

He grabbed the clothes next to him and dressed quickly.

Then, he eagerly left the house.

Downstairs, he opened the basement door, pulled out his bicycle, and rode towards Su Xiaoli’s house.

When he arrived at Su Xiaoli’s building, he ran into Su Gang.

“Little Feng, how come you’re here so early?” Su Gang greeted him.

“I arranged with Xiaoli to study at your house today,” Tang Feng said as he locked his bicycle.

“Then you better go up,” Su Gang said before driving away in his Buick Regal.

Tang Feng didn’t delay and went straight to the Su family’s door.

He knocked lightly.

“Who is it?” Su Xiaoli’s voice came from inside.

“It’s me.”

The door opened quickly.

Su Xiaoli appeared in front of him, still in her pajamas.

“Did you run into my dad when you came up?” she asked as she let him in.

“I did. He greeted me and then hurried off in his car,” Tang Feng replied as he sat down on the sofa.

In his memory, since the Su family moved here, he hadn’t visited.

A calligraphy hanging on the wall read “Quietness leads to far-reaching thoughts,” clearly the work of a master.

“Tang Feng, sit here for a bit. There are sunflower seeds and fruit on the table. I’ll go change,” Su Xiaoli said before returning to her bedroom.

Tang Feng casually started cracking sunflower seeds.

A while later, Su Xiaoli came out of the bedroom.

She had changed into a light purple dress.

Tang Feng couldn’t help but take a few extra looks.

It had to be said, as the beauty queen of Binjiang No.1 Middle School, whether it was her appearance or her temperament, Su Xiaoli was flawless.

Given a second chance at life, he was determined to seize this opportunity firmly!

He didn’t want to have any regrets, neither for himself nor for Su Xiaoli.

“Tang Feng, what are you staring at?” Su Xiaoli, noticing his distracted look, couldn’t help but ask.

“Nothing.” Caught by her call, Tang Feng quickly shook his head.

“You haven’t had breakfast yet, right? Come on, let’s eat together!” Su Xiaoli invited him.

They sat down at the dining table.

Deep-fried dough sticks, rice porridge, tea eggs, and two kinds of pickles were served.

Su Xiaoli broke a dough stick in half and handed one part to Tang Feng.

He took it from her.

After eating the dough stick and drinking a small bowl of porridge, Su Xiaoli stood up.

“Are you done eating?” Tang Feng was clearly surprised.

“Yes! I don’t eat much, especially in the morning. I can’t eat much,” she explained.

“That’s not good. You should eat more in the morning.”

“I know! You finish up. I’ll wait for you in the study.”

Tang Feng watched her leave, lost in thought for a long time.

After finishing his meal and cleaning up the table, Su Xiaoli had already reviewed the previous day’s knowledge points.

Tang Feng continued to help her organize the remaining points.

Su Xiaoli focused intently, afraid to miss anything.

Before they knew it, the morning had passed.

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