Chapter 219: Please Ask
Translator: Dragon Boat Translation Editor: Dragon Boat Translation
“Hey, a rare guest! You remembered to come back, huh? 1 thought you’d run off and never plan on returning!” Jiang Youdao was sitting on the living room sofa, reading the newspaper. As soon as he heard Jiang Li’s voice, he couldn’t help but tease her.
“Hehe, Dad, I didn’t forget to buy you a gift!” Jiang Li said, showing her father the bags in her hands.
“You bought them? Was it not Xiao Chao who bought them?”
“…Humph, I did a kind deed but was not rewarded. I bought your favorite Fu Ling mooncakes and candied chestnuts, and here you are, rejecting them. Well, 1 guess I’ll have to enjoy them myself, hahaha!”
Zhou Chao looked at Jiang Li, who was clearly showing her adolescent side and couldn’t help but smirk. He had never noticed this side of Jiang Li before.
Jiang Youdao simply ignored Jiang Li, turned his gaze to Zhou Chao, and, seeing the things in his hands, got up from the sofa and walked over to Zhou Chao.
“Young man, you remember to bring gifts when you visit. Give them to me!” Jiang Youdao took the two bags from Zhou Chao’s hands, which contained the snacks Jiang Li had mentioned earlier.
“Hahaha, the older the wiser. Little girl, look at this, the snacks are already in hand!” Jiang Youdao happily returned to the sofa and started unwrapping the snacks.
“Xiao Chao, you’re here. You don’t have to buy so many things in the future!” Jiang Li’s mother, Liya, heard the commotion and came downstairs.
“I understand, Auntie!”
“Mom, I’m back. Can’t you welcome me a little?” Jiang Li, who was standing nearby, felt a bit sour when Liya didn’t acknowledge her.
“Why should we roll out the red carpet for you when you come to your own home? Xiao Chao, have a seat and don’t stand there! Old man, too, instead of calling him Xiao Chao to sit, you only care about eating!” Liya took the remaining bags from Zhou Chao’s hands and couldn’t help but tease Jiang Youdao, who was snacking on the sofa.
“He’s not an outsider; there’s no need to be so polite. Xiao Chao, come sit here, and let’s have a good chat! Jiang Li, you go help your mom in the kitchen and learn howto cook!”
Jiang Li glared at Zhou Chao, who was smirking on the side. She looked exactly like an angry pufferfish, giving him a warning glance, and then went into the kitchen with a huff to assist Liya.
“Young man, you’ve been having a good time lately! You’re entrusting all your matters to others and feeling so at ease. Aren’t you worried?” Jiang Youdao put down the newspaper and calmly looked at Zhou Chao.
“Yeah, I’m quite at ease with the steel mill. As for the rest, they are just trivial matters.”
“Trivial matters? Hmph, don’t think I don’t know. Your recent activities in Peng City, if it weren’t for my foresight, I wouldn’t even know how fast you’ve been developing. I just hope you won’t forget your original intentions in the future!” Jiang Youdao thought about Zhou Chao’s current development, and perhaps in the not-so-distant future, he would have a significant place in the entire country.
Zhou Chao, feeling a bit embarrassed, scratched his head and said, “Uncle, you know about the Peng City matters?”
“Who would have time to notice so many things in a day? A few days ago, when 1 was chatting with Ye Zhengfeng, I suddenly asked him about it. If it weren’t for the fact that my daughter is your future wife, he probably wouldn’t have told me. I didn’t expect you, young man, to have such great capabilities, even Ye Zhengfeng is on your side! Well done!”
Seeing Jiang Youdao’s pleased expression, Zhou Chao couldn’t help but feel a bit awkward.
“Uncle Jiang, the old master isn’t at home today, and I wanted to discuss something with him.”
“The old master is busy in the courtyard and may not be back until evening. What do you need to talk to him about?”
“Well, I wanted to ask him for a lithography machine.” After some contemplation, Zhou Chao decided to speak up about the matter. After all, he was sure that Jiang Youdao would eventually find out.
“A lithography machine? It’s not easy to get your hands on that thing. Right now, who knows how many military departments are keeping an eye on it? Don’t think that my father is so busy for no reason. He’s there to supervise and oversee the progress of the people below!”
Upon hearing this, Zhou Chao pondered for a moment and then asked, “Uncle Jiang, do you think it’s possible to find some reliable researchers from the Chinese Academy of Sciences to help me?”
Jiang Youdao also fell into deep thought in response to Zhou Chao’s question. Zhou Chao didn’t interrupt him but patiently awaited Jiang Youdao’s further explanation.
“You can forget about the Chinese Academy of Sciences, but you can try other places, like the Harbin Institute of Technology or other research institutes. You’re not short on money, so you can directly recruit people. Besides, what you lack right now is top talent, and everyone is in need of such talent. It depends on how you handle it!”
Zhou Chao pondered for a moment, then shared some of his thoughts with Jiang Youdao. The two of them sat on the sofa discussing it, with Zhou Chao nodding in agreement at times and falling into contemplation at others. Time passed without them realizing, and over an hour went by.
“You two seem to be having a great time chatting. I didn’t even notice, and you didn’t come to help me get ready for dinner!” Jiang Li came out of the kitchen with dishes in hand, looking at how engrossed Zhou Chao and her father were in their conversation. She couldn’t help but tease them.
“I’ll do it!” Zhou Chao stood up from the sofa and headed towards the kitchen.
“You should take a rest first. I’ll go get the food.” Zhou Chao wiped Jiang Li’s cheek with a tissue and then turned to enter the kitchen.
“This boy gets to do all the good deeds while he left me to get scolded!” Jiang Youdao saw Zhou Chao going into the kitchen and quickly got up to follow him.
Jiang Li watched their interactions with a smile on her face.
“Oh, so you actually know how to come into the kitchen and help out. I thought you only knew how to chat outside!” Jiang Youdao was scolded by Liya as soon as he entered the kitchen. He had originally wanted to have a good time in the kitchen, but instead, he got scolded.
Jiang Youdao came out of the kitchen with a resigned look, and Jiang Li continued to smile by the side.
“Let’s eat!” Jiang Youdao picked up his chopsticks, signaling that everyone could start eating.
No one spoke at the dining table; only the sound of eating could be heard.
The meal wasn’t rushed, and it took about 20 minutes for everyone to finish.
Jiang Li gave Zhou Chao a meaningful look, and he immediately understood. He stood up and said, “Uncle Jiang, Aunt, why don’t you take a break? I’ll take care of the dishes.”
“How can we let you do the dishes? Old man, you go wash!” Initially, Jiang Youdao thought Zhou Chao was being thoughtful. However, when Liya told him to go wash, it left him looking surprised.
“It’s okay, Auntie. I’ll do it.” Zhou Chao started gathering the dishes, and under the sharp gaze of Liya, Jiang Youdao reluctantly got up to help.
“Young man, are you deliberately setting me up? Do you still want the household registration?”
“Uncle, I really didn’t know! I just wanted to help out earlier. Who knew it would get you into trouble? How about you go outside, Uncle? I’ll take care of it!” Zhou Chao said earnestly. Jiang Youdao didn’t say anything more and just continued washing the dishes.
Soon, the two of them finished cleaning up, and when they came out of the kitchen, they saw Jiang Li and Liya lying on the sofa, happily watching TV.
“Young man, come with me to the study upstairs!” Jiang Youdao said and walked upstairs. Zhou Chao followed him with a happy expression on his face..