Chapter 26: A Twisted Melon Can Still Be Sweet

The next stretch of time passed smoothly, with teacher and student working together in harmony.

Knowing how sly she was—fond of crafting misleading questions—Zhou Xingduan didn’t dare let his guard down. He threw himself into his studies with a focus that bore an uncanny resemblance to a certain senior official.

Before they knew it, forty minutes had flown by.

Gu Yao stopped there, resisting the urge to ramp up the difficulty. As the saying goes, too much is as bad as too little. Even the most gifted physics student needed time to digest and absorb.

According to the schedule sent by Secretary Xu, they still had thirty minutes left before the morning session ended—just enough time for one free practice match for the young master.

She was true to her word.

Without a fuss, she picked up the game controller, sat cross-legged on the carpet in front of the sofa.

Zhou Xingduan set down his pen and leaned forward, studying his new tutor for a moment before casually asking, “Do you have a boyfriend?”

…?!

Gu Yao was immensely grateful she wasn’t drinking anything at the time—otherwise, she would’ve spat it all over the place.

You could accuse him of being rude, yet he’d used formal language.

She decided not to stoop to the level of a teenager.

“It’s our first meeting,” she said coolly. “Better not to ask personal questions.”

She shut him down without ceremony.

Zhou Xingduan nodded seriously. “You’re right. I’ll ask next time, then.”

“……”

Two top students battling it out—neither lacking in skill.

Especially Miss Gu, who looked mild and harmless on the surface but pulled no punches when she got serious.

During their one-on-one match, Zhou Xingduan had never felt such thrilling gameplay. He got so caught up, he completely forgot the rules his father had laid down before leaving.

Until Auntie Liu’s voice reminded him.

Like a bucket of cold water, the mood was doused instantly.

At first, Gu Yao had assumed the elder Zhou’s strict control over electronics was meant to prevent gaming addiction.

But once Auntie Liu explained, she learned the truth: the young master’s daily screen time was strictly scheduled and limited.

Zhou Xingduan aspired to work in chip development, but his father was determined to send him into the military instead.

Gu Yao was confused.

Even if the boy were expected to follow in his father’s footsteps, shouldn’t that mean going into politics? Why leap straight into the military?

In their conversation, Zhou Xingduan shared many thoughts about chip design and hardware innovation. It was clear his knowledge and insight far exceeded what was typical for someone his age.

He wasn’t just smart—he was genuinely passionate about this field.

For a fourteen-year-old to know what he wanted and to stick to that path with such conviction was rare and admirable.

That the senior Zhou opposed it… truly puzzling.

If it were me, she thought, and my child had something they loved, I’d support them completely.

Ahem. She was getting carried away.

The two of them were still deep in conversation and didn’t notice the noise coming from outside.

At 11:30 a.m., a black Audi sedan slowly pulled through the wrought-iron gates and came to a quiet stop.

The rear door opened. Zhou Zhengliang, tall and imposing, stepped out while holding a phone to his ear.

The call was from his older brother, Zhou Zhongxun.

This year’s naval ground-force joint drills in the southwest coincided with the summer break—making it the perfect opportunity to bring the boy along for a firsthand glimpse into military life.

Yet as soon as the plane landed, Zhou Xingduan said he wanted to stop by Qionghai to visit his second uncle.

The so-called physics tutoring was clearly just an excuse to stay at the Yufeng Clubhouse.

With his insight, Zhou Zhengliang had seen through his nephew’s motives immediately—but he didn’t call him out.

Instead, he gently reminded his older brother:

“What he wants to do in the future won’t change just because of a single word from you. You know it’s pointless, so why let it strain your relationship?”

A subtle hint to ease up and let the boy follow his own path.

Meanwhile, in the tense command tent stationed at the southwestern border, where red and blue teams clashed in a high-stakes drill…

Zhou Zhongxun set aside his topographic map and casually picked up a high-precision telescope. A faint smile tugged at his lips.

“In that regard, the boy takes after you.”

“Me?” Zhou Zhengliang raised an eyebrow.

Of course.

“Back in the day, the way you defied our father—that was a hundred times more intense.”

Old family stories. His brother never tired of bringing them up.

Though many years had passed, there was truth to it.

Zhou Zhengliang didn’t respond much. He took long strides into the entryway of the villa—and paused, his gaze caught by the scene in the living room.

On the floor in front of the sofa, the “tutor and student” sat side by side, chatting over a tricky physics problem while casually playing a game. The atmosphere was relaxed and easy—surprisingly harmonious.

He stood there for a while.

Auntie Liu came over, eyes full of helplessness.

In this house, aside from the master, no one could control the little prince.

It was just that age—restless and rebellious.

At that moment, Zhou Zhongxun’s steady voice came through the phone again, snapping Zhou Zhengliang out of his thoughts.

“If you’re busy, go ahead. When things settle down here, I’ll stop by your place.”

Stop by for what?

Even during military exercises, he hadn’t forgotten a certain Comrade Xiao Chen’s reminder: as the older brother, he should help keep an eye on Zhou Zhengliang’s marital prospects.

Three years in Yufeng, and still no news on that front…

A man abstaining for too long—it’s not always a good thing.

After hanging up the call,
he glanced back toward the living room, which had already been quickly tidied up.

Zhou Xingduan stood properly and called out toward the entrance, “Second Uncle!”

Gu Yao was slightly stunned.

Only then did she realize she had misunderstood the relationship between the older and younger man.
They were uncle and nephew—not father and son.

Feeling his gaze land on her, she politely greeted, “Secretary Zhou.”

He gave a small nod in return and signaled for Aunt Liu to prepare the meal.

Seeing this, Gu Yao was just about to excuse herself, but the young master reacted swiftly and stopped her.
His reason? There was still one extremely difficult physics problem, and he hoped to ask her during lunch.

In truth, he could have just emailed it to her and had it answered later.

Zhou Zhengliang casually undid two buttons of his shirt as he walked toward the living room, expression unchanged.
His nephew kept glancing at him for approval.

When he was only a few steps away, he looked at the girl and spoke in a calm, warm tone,
“It’s noon, and it’s hard to hail a cab nearby. It’s just a simple meal—no need to stand on ceremony.”

“Second Uncle is right,” Zhou Xingduan chimed in, quickly stepping up to her side and lowering his voice with a grin,
“Ms. Gu, when you’re out, you have to listen to leadership.”

This boy had clearly done his homework on her background.

Since that was the case, Gu Yao no longer insisted.
Facing the man’s calm gaze, she gave a slight nod. “Thank you for having me.”

During the meal, her cousin messaged her on WeChat, asking to meet for lunch.
Gu Yao replied and turned off her phone.

But within ten seconds, five more messages popped up in a row.
The notification chime echoed repeatedly in the quiet dining room like little explosions.

Her cousin was clearly overreacting.

【What kind of leader is this thoughtful?】
【Not only paying a high tutoring fee, but even inviting you to eat?】

Seeing Gu Yao hadn’t responded, Wen Jing’s imagination ran wild:
【Don’t tell me your leader… has a thing for you?】

Glancing at the messages, Gu Yao was suddenly choked. She turned her head and coughed lightly, her cheeks flushed.

Just then, a slender hand entered her field of vision.

She looked up in surprise, only to see the big boss across from her calmly ladling a bowl of soup—for her.

Her mind went blank for a second.

Then she heard his warm voice say,
“Focus on eating. Don’t play with your phone.”

“…”

The second uncle’s natural gesture of serving soup shocked Zhou Xingduan so much he nearly choked.
Even Aunt Liu, standing nearby, couldn’t hide her expression.

Probably, the only one in the room who didn’t overthink it was little Ms. Gu herself.
She naively assumed that the extra bowl of soup was just a casual act from a polite elder.

After all, she wasn’t his subordinate today—she was his nephew’s tutor, right?

After the meal, Zhou Xingduan proactively asked to add Gu Yao on WeChat—so he could consult her on physics questions anytime.

He pulled up his QR code and handed it over.
The profile picture was a pink cartoon avatar, fitting her personality perfectly.

Zhou Zhengliang’s gaze swept over the screen briefly, then quietly landed on the girl’s downcast face.
The resemblance between her features and the cartoon avatar was about 70 percent—clearly, it was a self-portrait.

His lips lifted in a subtle smile. Just then, a temporary work document hit his inbox, so Zhou Zhengliang checked his phone and went upstairs.

After finishing his official duties,
he called his nephew into the study once Gu Yao had left and asked if he was satisfied with the tutor.

Zhou Xingduan deliberately acted mysterious and replied, dragging out his words,
“What do you think, Second Uncle? I’m still inexperienced—I wouldn’t dare draw conclusions.”

Wouldn’t dare?

“I think you don’t put anyone in your eyes these days,” Zhou Zhengliang said flatly,
as he set his teacup down with a firm clink, startling the usually fearless young master into anxiety.

Zhou Xingduan understood—his second uncle was indirectly referring to how he’d used tutoring as a cover to stay at Yufeng Pavilion.

Silence fell in the study.

After a beat, Zhou Xingduan was the first to speak again, returning to the original topic.

“She’s knowledgeable, and her teaching style is innovative and fun. So far, I doubt there’s anyone in Qionghai more suited for the job.”

Zhou Zhengliang didn’t comment, but his expression clearly softened.

Seeing that there was no further lecture, Zhou Xingduan secretly breathed a sigh of relief.

In his heart, he thought: Not only is Ms. Gu a great teacher, she’s also the perfect gaming partner. A tutor like this is one in a million.

As for whether she had a boyfriend—he’d definitely ask again next time.
If not, then it’d be the perfect opportunity to play matchmaker for his second uncle.

At thirty-five, still single, his uncle’s love life had become the entire family’s concern.

If he could make this happen, he’d be the Zhou family’s biggest hero—and finally have some leverage with his grandma and dad.

The young master was a bit too naïve.

Little did he know—when his second uncle liked someone, it had nothing to do with whether the other person was single.

Even if the melon was forcibly picked—it would still taste sweet.