BTYFOV Chapter 23

Chapter 23: Dead

Miaomiao got slapped on the face.

─── ⋆⋅☼⋅⋆ ───

The world fell silent.

Everyone was confused.

What did he say?

Gu Xiao'er tugged at Qin Feng, “Dad!”

Qin Feng snapped back to reality and saw Xiao'er's expression, which confirmed he hadn't misheard, “With me?”

The weak and pale child nodded, “Hello!”

“I—” Qin Feng was speechless and almost laughed, “What’s so good about me?”

The child glanced at Wang Genbao and Qin Ying.

Wang Genbao couldn’t help but ask, “What’s so good about him? What do you know, kid?”

The child nodded, “He’s good to you.” He glanced at Qin Ying, then turned to her two daughters, “He’s good to you too.” Finally, his gaze settled on Wu Zheng and Xue Qing, “He’s good to us too.”

Wu Zheng immediately understood that the child really understood—Qin Feng didn’t let his sister adopt because he was worried she couldn’t bear the burden and that his nieces would suffer. He let him and Xue Qing adopt because they had no children of their own and could devote themselves wholeheartedly to these two kids.

But he would rather the child not understand.

“Engineer Qin...” Wu Zheng looked at Qin Feng, unsure what to do.

Qin Feng didn’t know what to do either.

He was human, not a god. He couldn’t erase the child’s memory or turn back time.

Although he knew the plot well, these two kids were likely the villains in the book. But when the villains appeared in the book, they were older than him.

Now, they were not only young, but had not experienced the kinds of hardships that would come later, like wandering the streets begging for food and later entering the entertainment industry. It was completely normal that their nature was the opposite of the antagonists in the book.

Gu Xiao'er couldn’t help but tug at his father again.

Qin Feng lowered his head.

Xiao'er quietly said, “They’re quite pitiful.”

The frail child immediately said, "Uncle Qin, have some compassion—"

"Stop!" Qin Feng turned to him. "I'm not a Bodhisattva. Besides, your mother is still alive."

The boy couldn't help but say, "What's the use of her being here? She doesn't want us anymore."

Qin Feng couldn't help but smile. No wonder he was able to rise from a grassroots background to become a movie emperor with no connections—at just eight years old, he had such clarity.

If it were in his past life, Qin Feng would have adopted them without hesitation, because he could just leave them with a nanny.

But now, it's the 1980s. There's no convenient gas stove to cook with, no automatic washing machines to do laundry, and his salary wouldn't even allow for a nanny. Bringing these two kids home would mean his parents would be the ones doing the hard work.

If he adopted them, it wouldn't be any different from having his parents help raise one of Qin Ying's children.

Qin Feng said, "It's not that I'm heartless, but first of all, my salary—"

"We can eat less," the child quickly said.

Qin Feng was momentarily speechless, unable to stop himself from sighing. He felt even more sympathy for them. "Let's not talk about my salary. Speaking of myself, I work late, often on night shifts. These three kids are technically mine, but they’ve always been taken care of by my parents. They've worked hard all their lives, and now they’re over fifty. They should be enjoying their old age. If I bring two more kids back, am I still human?"

Qin Ying's face turned grim, feeling that Qin Feng was indirectly criticizing her.

Madam Zhou and Old Qin's expressions were moved, deeply touched.

The child, anxious, turned to Gu Wuyi for help.

Gu Wuyi was just happy that his two younger brothers were the same as them and didn't think about it so much at all.

"Dad, we can wash our own clothes?" Gu Wuyi tentatively asked.

Qin Feng raised an eyebrow. "You like them?"

Gu Wuyi nodded without hesitation, then quickly added, "I was thinking of me and my brothers."

Qin Feng: "I sympathize with them too. Children with parents are better off than those without. But there are so many pitiful children in the world. Can I sympathize with every one of them?"

"We don't know anyone else," the child said.

Qin Feng glanced at the two children. "These are the only ones you know? Do you even know their names?"

Gu Wuyi's mouth moved but he didn’t dare to say that one was named Fu Qingyun and the other Fu Lingyun. He also knew that the names were given by their biological father, hoping that they would “rely on favorable winds to ride to the top” and that “great ambitions would echo through the nine heavens.”

Qin Feng saw him fall silent and asked again, “Can you cook for yourselves?”

Gu Wuyi pursed his lips, not daring to say yes, because he still had to go to school.

In his past life, he was framed and sent to prison, and people misunderstood that he deserved it, thinking he had suffered because of his lack of education. In this life, he had to get into university no matter what. It would be even better if he could go abroad for studies like Qin Feng.

The child opposite Qin Feng couldn’t help but say, “I can cook.”

“Is there a stove high enough?” Qin Feng retorted.

The child had never been to the countryside in either his past or present life, so he didn’t know how high the stove would be, and was left speechless.

Qin Feng turned to Wu Zheng and Xue Qing. “These two are my colleagues. We live in the same staff residence. If I were you, I’d—”

“Wait a moment, Engineer Qin,” Wu Zheng couldn’t help but interrupt him.

Qin Feng was puzzled.

Wu Zheng looked apologetic. “Engineer Qin, we really like these two children, and we sympathize with them. But their hearts are with you.”

Qin Feng understood.

Xue Qing couldn’t help but turn to her husband. “You—”

Wu Zheng held her hand, stopping her from speaking further.

Wang Genbao was smug. “Qin Feng, didn’t expect that, did you?”

Qin Feng nodded, indeed not expecting things to unfold like this, one wave after another. “I didn’t expect the children to explicitly say they only want to be with me, and yet you’re still not giving up.”

The smile on Wang Genbao’s face froze, and his heart suddenly moved as he turned to the two children. "You know I'm his brother-in-law, right?"

The two children didn’t understand what he was getting at.

Wang Genbao continued, “If you follow us, you’ll get to see my brother-in-law, Qin Feng, often.”

Qin Feng couldn’t help but curse, "Are you still human?"

Wang Genbao was completely unaffected. “In your eyes and heart, I’m probably already no longer human.”

Qin Feng was speechless, never expecting him to be so shameless. He didn’t even notice the two boys exchange a glance, their expressions softening.

Wang Genbao noticed, feeling both smug and ready to curse. These two little brats, just wait until he deals with them later. “Although I can't be your father, I can be your uncle.”

The two boys turned to look at Qin Feng, actually eyeing Gu Xiao'er and Gu Wuyi beside and behind him.

Gu Wuyi, who was standing at the very back with Miaomiao, slightly nodded.

—For now, this will do!

The two boys looked back at Wang Genbao.

Before they could speak, Qin Feng asked Wang Genbao, “Can you afford it?”

Wang Genbao replied, “That’s none of your business.”

Madam Zhou couldn’t help but ask, “Where will you live? Your house only has two bedrooms.”

Qin Ying, fearing her parents would compete with her, hurriedly said, “We’ll just separate the eldest girl and second girl’s room with a partition.”

Madam Zhou opened her mouth, but seeing how determined she was, she immediately felt powerless, swallowing back all the words of advice she had been about to say.

Qin Feng said, “Don’t say I didn’t warn you, a half-grown boy will drain you dry, and that’s before he even starts school. I know you’ve saved a little money, but how many years can that last?”

Qin Ying couldn’t help but hesitate.

Wang Genbao felt that Qin Feng looked down on him. “So worried about me, why don’t you lend me some money?”

Qin Feng was left speechless, struggling to catch his breath.

Gu Xiao'er noticed his strange expression and hurriedly held him up. “Dad?”

Qin Feng pushed his hand away.

Wang Genbao quickly added, “This isn’t Wuli Village, and it’s not your Northern Railway Factory staff residence. This isn’t a place for you to act wild. Try touching me!”

Wu Zheng immediately grabbed his other arm. “Engineer Qin, don’t bother with this scum.”

"Yes, Engineer Qin," Xue Qing quickly tried to persuade.

Feng Mai Miao couldn’t help but ask Wang Meijuan, "You really want to hand your two children over to this kind of person?"

Wang Meijuan asked, "Are you going to raise them?"

Feng Mai Miao was left speechless.

Qin Feng said, "He can’t afford to raise them, but he dares to sell them."

Wang Meijuan glanced at the two children. "Who told them they were unlucky and didn’t get reborn as your son? If you can’t bear it, I can sell them to you."

Madam Zhou showed a look of sympathy.

Old Qin tugged at his wife’s arm.

Qin Feng couldn’t help but clench his fists, suppressing the urge to hit someone. He looked at his sister, unwilling to give up on her so easily. "Four children, just doing laundry will take half a day."

Wang Genbao sneered. "Just bring your washing machine over."

Qin Feng turned to his sister. "Is this what you think too?"

Qin Ying instinctively replied, "I don’t."

Qin Feng couldn’t help but think back to the last time they went home asking for money. This couple was like one wearing a white face and the other a red face. "Whether you think so or not, I don’t want to say it again to avoid causing trouble. But if you really want to raise them, you don’t need to pay this woman any money."

At these words, everyone couldn’t help but turn to look at Qin Feng, including the two children.

Qin Feng remained unaffected. "Wang Meijuan is eager to get rid of them and doesn’t have time to waste with you. She came to you several times because no one wants to raise these two children, and now she can only hope you’ll take them—"

"Shut up!" Wang Meijuan hurriedly interrupted him.

If Qin Feng were that easily interrupted, he would have softened and taken in the two children already. "You could also turn around and ask Wang Meijuan for child support."

Wang Meijuan stormed toward him, her hand already outstretched before she even reached him, looking as though she wanted to tear him apart.

With a loud bang, Wang Meijuan was knocked backward by a small cannonball.

Qin Feng looked closely. It wasn’t a small cannonball at all, but Miaomiao, who had been quietly standing behind them. He hurriedly picked him up. "Are you out of your mind?"

"Big bad guy!" The little one, fearless and ignorant, sat in his dad's arms, shaking his tiny fist at Wang Meijuan, as if to say, Come at me if you dare!

When Wang Meijuan saw a three or four-year-old child daring to bully her, she immediately became furious, unable to contain her rage.

Qin Feng handed the child over to his father and quickly rushed over, afraid that Wang Meijuan might hurt the children.

However, before he could act, Wang Meijuan stumbled a few steps.

Qin Feng saw that the eldest and second son had circled behind her, raising their feet and kicking at her legs.

"Come back!" Qin Feng rushed forward to pull Wang Meijuan away.

Wang Meijuan raised her claws like Mei Chaofeng and swiped at Qin Feng’s face.

Qin Feng twisted her arms.

Wang Meijuan lifted her leg to kick.

But before she could lift it, her legs were kicked several times, causing her to lose balance and fall to the ground.

Qin Feng let go of her, and Wang Meijuan landed on the ground with a thud.

Gu Xiao'er couldn’t help but burst out laughing.

Qin Feng grabbed his little arm and threw him toward Wu Zheng. "Please help keep an eye on them."

"Be careful!" Wu Zheng shouted.

Qin Feng felt a rush of wind and instinctively dodged, avoiding Wang Meijuan’s slap.

Wang Meijuan missed, her body unsteady, and Qin Feng raised his leg to lightly hook her, causing Wang Meijuan to fall flat on her face.

Qin Feng retreated to a safe distance. "Are you coming again?"

Wang Meijuan got up, gritting her teeth. "I’ll fight you to the end!"

Qin Feng dodged. "If you keep coming, it’ll be dark soon. Another day passed. Aren’t you in a hurry to go to the provincial city to find your husband?"

Wang Meijuan stopped, pointing at him. "Don’t let me see you again."

Qin Feng looked at his sister and Wang Genbao. "Do you know why she didn’t want me to keep talking? Because everything I said is true."

Wang Meijuan suddenly turned toward Qin Feng, wishing she could kill him with her gaze.

Qin Feng ignored her and continued, "From now on, the family will not give you another penny. Take care of yourself."

Wang Genbao scoffed, "I don’t need it!"

Qin Feng nodded. "I’ll remember that. I hope in three to five years, you’ll still be able to say that."

Wang Genbao’s expression was full of arrogance. "I hope in three to five years, you won’t regret it."

Qin Feng laughed lightly. "I could handle three of you for three months. Regret? Me?" He then raised an eyebrow, "Are you planning to quit your job too?"

"What's that to you?"

Qin Feng shook his head. "Nothing to me."

Madam Zhou couldn't help but ask, "You really want to go south to buy goods?"

Wang Genbao thought for a moment, then said, "Are you afraid I don’t have enough capital? Then give me some."

Madam Zhou regretted saying that.

Old Qin said, "Xiao Feng, let’s go."

Qin Feng nodded, but as he thought about his brother-in-law’s behavior and remembered how pitiful the two villain teenage characters in the book were, his heart softened. "Children, if Wang Genbao dares to treat you badly, go to the public security bureau and report him for child abuse."

Wang Genbao immediately became furious. "Qin Feng, do you really think I won’t hit you?"

Qin Feng glanced at him with disdain and turned to leave.

When he noticed Gu Wuyi looking back, seemingly reluctant to leave, he grabbed his arm. "If you’re worried, you can come back to check on them later. But adopting them? Absolutely not."

Gu Wuyi nodded and waved at the two boys.

Wang Genbao moved in front of the two boys. "What are you looking at now that they’re far away?"

The two boys withdrew their gazes.

The older one, Fu Qingyun, asked, "Was what you said about us staying with you just in anger?"

It was indeed said in anger.

However, Wang Genbao decided to save face. "I lied to you because I had nothing better to do."

Fu Qingyun looked at Wang Meijuan, "Not giving her money?"

Wang Genbao’s money must be saved to raise a son, because raising a son can provide for old age. A married daughter is like being thrown away. Like Qin Ying and Qin Feng.

These two children looked smart, but without saying they were as capable as Qin Feng, if they could get into college, they would be living a good life.

To be fair, Wang Genbao even calculated his father-in-law’s money, so how could he let outsiders benefit?

Wang Genbao looked at Wang Meijuan, “Do you think I’m a fool?”

“What do you mean?” Wang Meijuan panicked.

Wang Genbao: “I can help you buy a train ticket to the provincial city.”

“You... you’re treating me like a beggar?”

The two little boys couldn’t help but tighten their fists, and she also knew what a beggar was.

Wang Genbao had a rascal look, “Then you take them away. I’ll see where you’ll find someone to take them in the short term.”

Wang Meijuan was furious, “You... you’ve got guts!”

Wang Genbao nodded, “Now I do.”

Qin Ying gave him a look, signaling him to say less.

Wang Genbao: “When will you handle the formalities? Don’t think about running. My brother-in-law said that if you don't go through the formalities, you’ll be considered abandoning them.”

Wang Meijuan almost bit her teeth in anger.

Wang Genbao sneered, “You’re still not happy? I haven’t even asked you for child support, be content.”

Wang Meijuan pointed at him, angrily turned around, and walked away.

The two little boys instinctively followed.

Wang Genbao grabbed them.

Qin Ying couldn’t help but ask, “What are you doing?”

“Tomorrow, they’ll be ours, where else would they go?”

Qin Ying couldn’t help but ask, “Where will they stay?”

Wang Genbao thought for a moment: "At night, sleep with me, and you go to the girl’s room. Tomorrow, we’ll separate the rooms."

Qin Ying couldn’t help but frown, “These two kids will grow up in a few years.”

“Do you look down on me too?” Wang Genbao glared.

Qin Ying didn’t dare say anything.

Fu Qingyun’s eyes shifted, a plan forming in his mind, “You’re going to the south to buy goods, right?”

Wang Genbao: “Do you dare look down on me too?”

“No, no.” Fu Qingyun shook his head, “My neighbor said there are a lot of good things in the south. If you go there, you’ll definitely make a lot of money.”

Wang Genbao was pleased: “You’ve got an eye for things.” He then thought of something, “So, do you still want to follow Qin Feng?”

“He looks richer than you.” The child said without thinking.

Wang Genbao was stunned, gritted his teeth, “Wait for it, I’ll be richer than him sooner or later.”

Fu Qingyun sneered inwardly. Having money was one thing, but being a nouveau riche was another. On the surface, he pretended to be happy and said, “That’s great!”

Wang Genbao was even more pleased, unable to resist patting the child’s little head: “Good boy.” He turned to Qin Ying, “You go to the public security bureau and ask what formalities are needed to adopt them.”

“Now?” Qin Ying shook her head, “Later. Wang Meijuan should still be waiting for the bus. I don’t want to run into her.”

Indeed, Wang Meijuan had not yet left.

As she left the alley and saw Qin Feng and the others waiting for the bus, she deliberately bypassed them to the next platform.

Qin Feng saw her by chance, sneering dismissively.

Wu Zheng, curious, followed his gaze: “How can there be such a woman in this world?”

Feng Mai Miao also saw her, agreeing completely: “Pity those two kids.”

Xue Qing thought of something, “Engineer Qin, if those two kids are going to be with you, your brother-in-law doesn’t get along with you. He won’t hurt them, will he?”

Gu Wuyi and Gu Qingkuang were extremely anxious.

Qin Feng shook his head: “Wang Genbao’s goal is to raise a son to provide for old age, he’ll only treat them well.”

Wu Zheng often heard this phrase and couldn’t help but ask, “Can raising children really provide old age?”

Qin Feng: “Raising someone like me can. But them, probably not.” He glanced at the three children.

Gu Wuyi widened his eyes.

—What did he say?

Qin Feng: “When you guys go to college, start your own families, will you still have time to care about your old father?”

Gu Wuyi thought he didn’t trust them. Hearing this, he rolled his eyes, “When you get old, I’ll tie you up with a rope—”

The others’ expressions suddenly changed.

Gu Wuyi sighed: “Take you wherever I go.”

Wu Zheng let out a sigh of relief, “You child, why do you still sigh when you talk?”

Gu Wuyi glanced helplessly at his father, saw the bus coming, and immediately headed toward it.

Xue Qing couldn’t help but ask, “Are we going to the orphanage?”

Feng Maimiao went around to the front and looked, “Yes. Hurry up and get in.”

Once in the bus, Xue Qing became more concerned, fearing the orphanage didn’t have many healthy children.

Madam Zhou noticed and grabbed her hand, reassuring her.

As they got closer to the orphanage, Xue Qing’s worries grew.

When they reached the entrance of the orphanage, Wu Zheng didn’t dare go in, afraid of being disappointed.

Qin Feng had Gu Wuyi hold the little one’s hand while he went ahead to find the gatekeeper.

As soon as the gatekeeper heard they wanted to adopt a girl, he immediately ran to find the director.

Seeing this, Xue Qing couldn’t help but ask Wu Zheng, “Are there really any?”

Qin Feng turned back and asked, “How old do you want?”

Wu Zheng: “Both of us have to work, so it would be best if she could be sent to a kindergarten.”

Qin Feng understood.

Afterward, when they met the director, Qin Feng directly asked for children between four to ten years old.

Family planning became strictly enforced starting from 1979, and it was around that time that the number of baby girls in orphanages began to gradually increase. As a result, orphanages were most abundant with children around five or six years old.

When the director heard that Xue Qing had no sons or daughters, he assumed she was infertile. When he took Xue Qing to see the children, he took the opportunity to hint that a child could be lonely.

The couple really wanted two children, and they could tell that the orphanage’s conditions were not great. They immediately expressed a preference for two children of the same age.

However, they were unable to take the children home.

The director, being responsible, told them to go back and prepare the necessary documentation.

Wu Zheng, fearing delays, immediately decided to return with Qin Feng and the others.

Once at the staff residence, they found the factory director to get the required documents, then helped Qin Feng take a half-day leave.

Qin Feng knew more than him, and with Qin Feng by his side, even if he said nothing, Wu Zheng felt reassured.

Help others to the end.

After breakfast, Qin Feng took Miaomiao over.

Wu Zheng was puzzled, “Why not leave him at home?”

Qin Feng: “Since we’ve had him, my mom doesn’t even have time to chat with the neighbors in the village anymore.”

Wu Zheng admired him, “If your sister were half as good as you, that would be great.”

Qin Feng shook his head: “Don’t mention it. I get a headache just thinking about her.”

Xue Qing, seeing the familiar scenery outside the car, said, “Engineer Qin, the orphanage seems to be in the same area as your sister’s house. We won’t run into her, will we?”

Qin Feng’s heart sank, and he had a bad premonition. “It shouldn’t be that coincidental.”

But it was that coincidental.

As Qin Feng went in, Wang Meijuan and her group came out.

When passing by Qin Feng, Wang Meijuan reached out and slapped Miaomiao’s face.

Qin Feng was caught off guard and saw Miaomiao get slapped across the face.

The child let out a loud cry of "Wah!"

Qin Feng snapped back to his senses and immediately handed the child over to Xue Qing who was beside him.

Wang Meijuan, frightened, turned and ran.

Wu Zheng blocked Qin Feng, “Engineer Qing, Engineer Qing, don’t stoop to her level.”

Bang!

The sound of a heavy object hitting the ground was heard.

Everyone instinctively looked in the direction of the sound.

“A car accident!”

“Someone’s dead!”

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