When the siblings turned 16, Xu Qing called them together in a serious manner, as if he had something important to tell them.
Jiang He was munching on his birthday cake with cream hanging from the corner of his mouth. He looked silly and did not care about what was going on outside.
Xu Jin and Xu Shi 'an were still not very interested in the cake. They only ate some of the fruits on top. They looked at Jiang He who was eating happily. When Xu Qing coughed, they immediately sat up straight.
Xu Qing rested his hands on his knees, looking like the head of the family. His gaze swept across the faces of the siblings. Xu Jin was now more than 1.6 meters tall, and Xu Shi 'an was close to 1.8 meters tall. However, Xu Jin was usually the hot-tempered one, taking after her mother.
He thought for a while and said slowly, "After today, you will be adults."
"Yes, yes." Xu Jin and Shi 'an nodded.
"You will have to bear criminal responsibility."
"…"
"Yes, if you fight with others, you will be arrested by the black fatty and sent to jail." Jiang He chimed in from the side. Xu Qing glanced at her, but she shrugged and continued eating her cake without saying a word.
"You are different from others. You should know that Wang Yihao has been practicing Taekwondo for so long. Even if there were two of him, he would not be able to defeat one of you. This is what your mother taught you."
Xu Qing tapped his fingers on his knees. He spoke slowly as he organized his words. "In the past, I told you not to cause trouble and not to be afraid of it because you are still young. When kids fight, it is only because of small things. You are sensible enough to know that it is enough to teach them a lesson. "
"Yes, yes!" Xu Jin and Shi 'an were like chicks pecking rice.
"But you are young people. I was at that age too. I know better than you. It is easy to get hot-blooded. You are not afraid of anything, and there are many things that you are not clear about … When I was your age, I thought that it was not a big deal to grow a broken arm back. It was like losing a tooth …"
"Pfft …" Xu Jin could not help but laugh. When Xu Qing glared at her, Xu Jin suppressed her laughter and sat up straight again.
"Dad, I know!" Xu Shi 'an behaved like an obedient child. He did not have the domineering attitude he had when he stood up for Xiaoxiao at school and fought against five people alone.
Xu Qing ignored him and turned to look at Jiang He, who was eating the cream cherries on the cake. He paused for a moment and said, "Actually, in the past, we were hesitant to let your mother teach you this because you might be able to avoid being bullied by others, and you won't be helpless when you encounter some things. Especially Xiao Jin, you can protect yourself. But the disadvantages are also obvious. As long as you don't hold back and injure him, even just once, it could very well affect your future life. "
"Hm, we understand" Xu Jin said.
"Clear? Last time, when Shi 'an knocked down those two redheads, you excitedly ran over and kicked them a few more times? "
"That … that …" She pursed her lips, unable to say it.
It was just two kicks to vent her anger. If Shi 'an had been a little slower, she would have been able to catch up.
Xu Qing waved his hand. "I've always told you not to cause trouble, but you don't have to be afraid of trouble. Now that you're all grown up, you should understand that some things aren't that simple. You can't just say that you won't offend others if they don't offend you. You can't just beat up those who offend you.
"Think more about the consequences of everything. After all, you're still a little different from ordinary people." Xu Qing pointed at his head.
"To be honest, most of the time, you don't dare to cause trouble, and you're even afraid of trouble. There's nothing shameful about that. On the contrary, it's because you know the value of freedom and cherish life. You don't want to lose your current life so easily. That's why you can tolerate those who try to destroy your stability, because they're not worth it. Those who don't care about anything, just want a moment of happiness, but regret it later. They are the real losers of life. "
Seeing that the siblings were listening with their heads lowered, Xu Qing did not say more. After they thought for a while, he waved his hand and said, "Go. Think more when you're free."
"That's a good speech!" Jiang He applauded and held the last piece of cake on the table. She asked him, "Do you want to eat?"
"Okay."
"Oh, then I'll eat it myself."
Jiang He regretfully stuffed the cake into his mouth, as if he did not hear Xu Qing say yes.
Nearly two-thirds of the whole cake went into Jiang He's stomach. Xu Qing was very worried that she would become like the landlady in Kung Fu in the future. He was so thin that he looked like the landlady, and the real-life version of Kung Fu would appear.
He touched Jiang He's stomach. Fortunately, it was not bulging, and it was still so smooth.
"Did you think that your arm could grow back after it was broken?" Jiang He felt that Xu Qing was stupid when he was young.
"I don't want to talk to you."
Xu Qing sat back and picked up his phone. He could tell at a glance that Jiang He was eager to laugh at him.
He did not give her the chance.
Zhou Suzhi shared in the group again, "Shocking, these six carcinogenic foods actually …"
The small group of loving members expanded from a family of three to six. This seemed to make Zhou Suzhi very happy. The frequency of sharing food carcinogens and nutrition, as well as various high school learning methods, became more frequent.
Xu Qing and Xu Wenbin pretended not to see it. Anyway, the group messages were muted. As a good daughter-in-law, Jiang He sent two "claps/" as a perfunctory reply. Xu Jin was at the peak of his thirst for knowledge. He wanted to help his grandmother eliminate her illiteracy. In less than ten minutes, a screenshot of the refutation of the rumor was sent to the group.
Zhou Suzhi did not speak.
Xu Jin was very considerate and Zhou Suzhi replied with an "Oh."
"You used to fight a lot in the past." Jiang He picked up Xu Qing's chin, like a female gangster.
Xu Qing had already turned into a Buddha. He was like an enlightened monk, holding his phone without even lifting his head.
"It's only after fighting a lot that I know how dangerous it was in the past."
"When did you find out?"
"After the last fight."
"…"
Jiang He couldn't remember when it was the last time he'd done it.
However, Xu Qing remembered that it was after he learned martial arts with Jiang He. Qin Hao was stabbed once. For a long time after that, whenever he thought about it, he would feel a trace of fear, afraid that the slap would kill him.
Often reflecting was a good habit. People grew up through reflection. Xu Qing reflected for half of his life. He felt that the life he had now was inseparable from this.
At night, Wang Zijun came out in a wheelchair and asked him to go out for a drink. Now that the wheelchair was equipped with a virtual touch screen, there were so many functions that Xu Qing did not know how to use it. It gave off a cyberpunk feeling.
In the past, he never thought that Wang Zijun would be able to tinker with the wheelchair like this after the development of technology. He heard that the pattern on the back of the chair was designed by Song Hui.
"Your hair is still so thick," Wang Zijun said, envious of Xu Qing's crew cut.
He had become a real middle-aged man and had long begun to worry about his hair.
"In fact, humans have been shedding their hair since they evolved from apes. From this point of view, your baldness is probably a new breakthrough in human evolution." Xu Qing tried to comfort him with scientific theories, but all he got was a sideways glance from Wang Zijun.
"If your theory was useful, I would still be a virgin." Wang Zijun snorted. He stopped the wheelchair and took a sip from the thermos flask on the side.
"Why?" Xu Qing was curious.
"Haven't you heard of the Ship of Theseus?"
"…"
The Ship of Theseus was a classic paradox. It originated from a warship — the Ship of Theseus. The ship had been constantly replacing its parts over the centuries, such as rotten planks and torn sails. Therefore, someone raised a question: When it replaced all its original parts, would it still be the Ship of Theseus?
"More than 90% of human cells will be replaced in a year. If that's the case …" Wang Zijun pointed out. If Jiang He was here, he would definitely sigh. Even scholars were asking for a beating when they argued.
"Wait, you didn't have a nightlife this year?" Xu Qing found a blind spot and interrupted.
"…"
"…"
An awkward silence descended.
The night wind blew, and the lights on the street flickered.
Wang Zijun turned the wheelchair around with a dark face, and it drove away along the road.
"Goodbye, the wheelchair is out of oil."
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