"Stay close to me. I’ll carry the kids, you take this," Gao Zhijun said. He hoisted all the heavy luggage onto his own back, then picked up the two children, handing only the lighter bags to Bai Jiu.
"Hold onto my clothes." There were simply too many people at the train station, and he was worried she might get lost.
"I’ll be fine. I’m not a child," she replied.
When the two of them exited the station, they saw someone holding a sign high in the air, waving it side to side.
"I didn’t hear anything about someone coming to pick you up," Bai Jiu said, looking at Gao Zhijun in surprise when she saw the words on the sign.
"My teacher arranged it. He was worried I’d have too much luggage." Because his teacher knew he was bringing his wife and children, he had specifically arranged for a car. There was no need to explain certain things too clearly. He simply kept his teacher’s kindness in his heart.
"It seems your teacher treats you very well." She had often heard him mention his teacher, but she didn’t know the exact details. She hadn’t expected the teacher to be this considerate.
Gao Zhijun nodded. "Very well. He’s like a second father to me." Indeed, in Gao Zhijun’s heart, his teacher was his second father. Without his teacher, he wouldn’t be where he was today. If his teacher hadn’t specifically asked for him back then, he feared things would have been completely different. It was enough for him to know these things; there was no need to broadcast them to the world.
Bai Jiu hadn’t expected him to use such a strong phrase. It seemed the Gao family had hurt him quite deeply. But she couldn’t understand why he had still left his wife and children behind with the Gao family.
"I am Gao Zhijun," he said, approaching the man with the sign. "Hello, comrade, I’m Gao Zhijun." He repeated his name to be sure.
The man snapped out of his surprise. "Hello, Mr. Gao. I’m Professor Mu’s driver, Chi. He said you would be arriving today and asked me to pick you up." Chi hadn’t expected Mr. Gao to be so young. Professor Mu hadn’t been here long, and everyone in the institute knew he had a student, but no one knew this student would be this young.
"Thank you for the trouble," Gao Yangjun nodded.
"Mr. Gao, give me your bags. Put the children down first." Chi was very observant and immediately stepped forward to help.
Gao Zhijun carefully set the children down, then took off the large bag on his back. "Thank you for the trouble." It was indeed quite heavy, and he still had to carry the two children. With so many people around, he didn’t dare let them walk on their own.
"It’s no trouble at all." He had interacted with quite a few high-level intellectuals in the institute, and Mr. Gao was the first one, aside from Professor Mu, who was so amiable.
"Mrs. Gao, please give me your bags as well," Chi said to Bai Jiu with a smile. "You must have had a tiring journey. The car is outside. Professor Mu has arranged a guesthouse for you, so let’s head back quickly so you can rest."
Bai Jiu’s bag wasn’t actually heavy, so she felt bad having someone else carry it. "No, no, I’ve got it. Thank you."
After exiting the train station and walking for a bit, Chi stopped in front of a Jeep.
"Mr. Gao, Mrs. Gao, please get in first," he said to the couple as he opened the car door.
The two children were extremely curious about the unfamiliar environment, and they were especially fascinated by this rare vehicle. Gao Zhijun didn’t stand on ceremony with him. Having sat on the train for so long, he was indeed a bit tired, not to mention Bai Jiu and the kids. Getting back early to rest was the sensible thing to do.
What they didn’t know was that just as they were getting into the car, two women had stopped a short distance away, staring fixatedly at Bai Jiu and Gao Zhijun.
"It seems they aren’t nobodies. Ai Ping, this is Beijing City. You need to rein in your temper from now on." Whenever she recalled what happened that day, she still felt a lingering fear. She wasn’t like Ai Ping; she had grown up seeing too many instances of those in power ruining people’s lives. One misstep could lead to the destruction of an entire family.
Ai Ping was also frightened. "I didn’t do it on purpose, and I didn’t even say anything," she retorted stubbornly.
Bao Yue shook her head and withdrew her gaze. "Let’s go. We need to head to school." Indeed, they were here to study. As Worker-Peasant-Soldier students, they could report to the school at any time.
In the car, Chi quickly became friends with the two children. It had to be said that people with such great social skills were rare; Chi was bound to be successful in the future. Once they arrived at the guesthouse, Chi helped the couple with their paperwork and booked their room, running up and down until sweat poured from his forehead like rain. Yet, he didn’t complain once, nor did he show the slightest hint of impatience.
"Drink some water." Seeing that he was about to get busy again, Bai Jiu immediately stopped him and handed him a cup of water. It was warm water; after sweating so much, drinking cold water wouldn’t be good for him.
Chi didn’t stand on ceremony. "Thank you, Mrs. Gao."
"We should be the ones thanking you," Bai Jiu said. "Chi, will you be free in a bit? Could you show us around the area?" This wasn’t inside Gao Zhijun’s work unit, but rather on the outside. Let alone Bai Jiu, even Gao Zhijun was unfamiliar with the surroundings.
"Of course. I’ll take you and Mr. Gao around shortly."
"I’m really troubling you. Will this delay your work?" Bai Jiu started to feel a bit embarrassed.
"Not at all. Professor Mu told me to follow Mr. Gao around for the whole day." Otherwise, he would have nothing to do at the institute, and he would just be forced by Professor Mu to read books. Being outside was much better.
Hearing this, Bai Jiu breathed a sigh of relief. "That’s good. I was worried about holding up your work." She had genuinely been concerned about that.
With Chi leading the way, the couple familiarized themselves with the area in just one afternoon. They were in the Jing Suburbs, a region uniformly planned by the state. Aside from essential facilities, there were practically no villages, estates, or shops nearby. If they wanted to go to the city center, they had to take the institute’s car. Naturally, the housing assigned to them was also located here, not in the inner districts of Beijing City.
Bai Jiu was a bit disappointed, but fortunately, it wasn’t too far from the city; it only took about an hour by car. However, getting to the main urban area would take some time. It was also a bit far from the school she wanted to attend in the future. But that was a year away, so it was still early. There was no need to rush.
That evening, Gao Zhijun followed Chi into the Academy of Sciences. He was only allowed inside after passing through multiple layers of security checks, and even then, they had to call Professor Mu before finally letting him through. However, Gao Zhijun seemed entirely accustomed to this. He was incredibly familiar with the routine.
"You kid, you’re finally back! But there are still a few days left in your vacation. What are your plans?" Professor Mu’s eyes were filled with joy at the sight of his beloved student returning.
Gao Zhijun never hid anything from his teacher. "I want to get the housing sorted out first. Once my wife and kids are settled, I’ll start working." He knew his teacher had a rather urgent project on hand and had always hoped he would join. However, he had turned it down due to personal matters. Seeing his teacher’s gray hair made Gao Zhijun feel quite guilty.
"There’s no rush. Settling your wife and kids is the main priority. There isn’t much progress on this end right now anyway, so it won’t make a big difference whether you come or not." Professor Mu was a very gentle man who was excellent at guiding others. Otherwise, he wouldn’t have been able to mold Gao Zhijun into such a talent.
"Mhm." Gao Zhijun agreed with his teacher on this point.
"Teacher, have you been neglecting your rest again?" Looking at the nourishing soup placed in front of his teacher, Gao Zhijun knew he had definitely ignored the doctor’s orders and stayed up late once more.
"Don’t give me that, kid. In our line of work, who hasn’t pushed through by pulling all-nighters? If you want a nine-to-five job, you’re dreaming." He knew Gao Zhijun cared about him, but he still had to lecture him when necessary.
"However, considering your current special circumstances, I’ll let you off the hook for now. But once things are on track, don’t you dare embarrass me." He had been willing to come here just to pave the way for Zhijun. He knew his own health condition well, which was why he had abandoned his research over there and rushed over here. He would teach him as much as he could; fortunately, Zhijun was a willing learner.
"Endure the hardship for a few years, and things will be easier later on," Professor Mu said with a smile, patting Gao Zhijun on the shoulder.