Feeling the impermanence of life, Rong Yu wanted to see Tang Che.
The three old fellows hadn't been to the Tang family for a while either, and they all nodded in agreement.
Tang Che's health had deteriorated further. He was sitting in the courtyard watching new buds sprout from a withered tree, his cloudy eyes showing no flicker of emotion.
It wasn't until the butler announced, "Miss Rong is here," that the old man's eyes finally shifted.
He coughed and said, "I just woke up, I'm a mess. Quickly, wheel me to the mirror."
The butler pushed the wheelchair into the house.
In front of the mirror, Tang Che combed his silver hair. Looking at the deep wrinkles covering his face, he suddenly let out a bitter laugh.
He was no longer young. No matter how he tried to tidy up, he was just an old man shrouded in twilight, devoid of vitality.
"Uncle Tang!"
The voices of the three old fellows arrived first.
Tang Che's face broke into a wide smile. "You've all come together. Sit, have some tea."
Rong Yu saw how much effort it took for him to lift the teacup, and her nose suddenly stung with emotion.
She knew that all lives must eventually reach their end.
She knew that living to a hundred was already considered a long life.
She knew even more that being able to reunite and gather like this was a gift from heaven.
Yet, it was still hard to accept that she would have to watch him leave this world.
Old Master Ji said bluntly, "Uncle Tang, the relationship between Chuan and Little Jin is settled. How about picking a date for their engagement?"
Old Master Hai hurriedly chimed in, "Our Chang'an and Tang Mi's relationship is settled too. Let's have a joint engagement ceremony!"
Old Master Si widened his eyes. "You're ganging up on me!"
Old Master Hai snorted. "Blame your own descendants for not being up to par."
Old Master Si wanted to retort.
His phone vibrated. Looking at the message, his own grandson, Si Lin, had just gotten into a fight at the racetrack and suffered a minor arm injury. He had posted a photo in the "Loving Family" group chat, playing up his misery.
Seeing Si Lin's pathetic look, Old Master Si nearly spat out blood in frustration. Day in and day out, it was either horse racing or car racing, either chasing romance or picking fights. It was a headache just looking at him. The old man promptly kicked Si Lin out of the group chat and blocked him.
After doing this, his mood instantly improved.
Tang Che smiled and instructed, "Youyi, go contact a master to calculate an auspicious date. Let's settle on the day today."
Tang Youyi nodded and went to arrange it.
The master, based on the birth dates of the four individuals, calculated a favorable day: April 21st.
With two months until the engagement day, it was ample time for the Tang, Ji, and Hai families to prepare properly.
After the group left, Madam Tang frowned. "What exactly are the old master's thoughts on the matter of the successor?"
Tang Youyi said calmly, "When the time is right, Uncle will naturally make it public. There's no need for idle speculation."
"In my opinion, Jiaquan is the most suitable," Madam Tang said. "He is the eldest grandson of the eldest branch, and he has held the position of General Manager at Tang Corporation for over a decade without a single mistake. As long as the old master isn't confused by illness, he should finalize the successor's identity soon to prevent unrest among the people."
Tang Youyi lowered his eyes.
Times of unrest are the best test of character.
He hoped his descendants would hold fast to their principles and avoid causing trouble.
As soon as he returned home, Old Master Ji happily said to Ji Jingchuan, "Don't shave your head again. For the engagement banquet in two months, you'll need a proper hairstyle. Don't let that grandson Hai Chang'an outshine you."
Ji Jingchuan's ears reddened slightly. "What's the exact date for the engagement?"
Ji Zhouye couldn't resist teasing, "Hahaha, Fourth Brother is anxious. He's getting anxious!"
"Shut up, you brat," Old Master Ji glared at him, then turned back with a kindly expression. "Chuan, the date is April 21st. You just focus on your studies. You don't need to worry about the arrangements."
Ji Jingchuan gave a low hum of acknowledgment.
Then he looked at Ji Zhouye. "A'Ye, you only scored a little over a hundred on today's math quiz. Upstairs. I'll go over the problems with you."
Ji Zhouye: "..."
He hadn't forgotten. During winter break, just because he'd casually remarked that Tang Jin used to cry a lot as a child and looked a bit ugly when she cried...
Fourth Brother had tortured him for a whole day. For every wrong answer, he had to copy the problem ten times. Get it wrong again, copy it a hundred times. Wrong again... Well, there was no 'wrong again,' because copying it a hundred times had already engraved that type of problem into his bones.
He put on a woeful face. "Fourth Brother, a tutor is coming later. The tutor can explain it to me."
"No," Ji Jingchuan smiled. "Be good. Upstairs."
Ji Zhouye was on the verge of collapse.
Old Master Ji kicked him in the backside. "Chuan is helping you with your studies, and you're still reluctant? You brat just need a good lesson!"
Rong Yu said with a smile, "How about I explain the problems to you instead?"
Ji Zhouye covered his backside and ran upstairs.
Great-Grandma explaining problems was even more terrifying.
She would expand from a simple problem type to extremely complex knowledge and even recommend advanced mathematics books for him to browse in his spare time... He was just a useless slacker! What was the point of learning such profound stuff!
The next morning at school.
Right after morning self-study, Rong Yu was called over by her homeroom teacher.
Pei Yaru took a competition notification letter from her desk drawer. "The gold medal winner of last year's National Physics Finals will represent China in the International Physics Finals. It's next Wednesday in Hong Kong, a three-day event. Are you available to participate?"
She knew Rong Yu was involved in a very important, highly classified project at the Aerospace Research Institute.
The competition was important, but the project was more so.
Rong Yu looked at the notification. Over forty countries and regions were participating, including the United States, Japan, France, Germany... Seeing these country names, the painful history of the Eight-Nation Alliance's invasion of China automatically surfaced in her mind.
She nodded without hesitation. "I have time."
Pei Yaru pointed to a QR code. "Scan this to submit your personal information. The school will arrange your flight and hotel."
Right after submitting her information, Rong Yu was added as a friend by the team leader teacher and joined a group chat.
In the group, she saw two familiar faces: Song Huai and Sheng Ciyuan.
Team Leader Teacher Huang: "Hello everyone. You will soon represent China in the Global Physics Finals. I now announce that the captain of the Chinese team is Rong Yu, and the vice-captain is Su Ronghua. The captain and vice-captain must take up their responsibilities and lead the Chinese team to win the gold medal..."
Sitting in his classroom, Song Huai saw this message, and his gaze darkened for a moment.
He remembered during the domestic physics finals, he was the captain, Zhang Haoyu was the vice-captain, and Rong Yu was nothing.
And now.
Rong Yu was the captain.
To be honest, this feeling was quite unpleasant.
Just then, someone spoke in the group.
Su Ronghua: "Teacher Huang, why is Rong Yu the captain? What is the reason for appointing her?"
Song Huai knew of Su Ronghua.
He was a genius from an experimental high school in Su City, currently only a second-year high school student. He had already won various gold medals in competitions, participated in research projects, and published papers, being fought over by Tsinghua and Peking University for early admission.
But he had refused.
It was said he wanted to earn his way into the world's top-ranked university.
Teacher Huang: "Rong Yu is the project initiator for the Shi Research and Application project. This is a national-level key project. She is worthy of the team captain position."
