I was forced to start the second round because I was raised in poverty

Chapter 253 Old Deng Can't Take It Anymore
seven in the morning.

The two arrived at a newly completed residential area in the county town.

The security guard at the entrance stopped them.

"Hey, hey, what are you guys doing?"

Su Tianyan smiled and explained to the security guard that they were there for renovations.

The security guard looked impatient: "Oh, come and register."

Su Tianyan gave Su Cheng a look, signaling him to go and register.

Su Cheng got out of the car and wrote down her name and phone number in the security guard's notebook.

Which building are you going to renovate in?

Su Cheng looked at Su Tianyan, who couldn't remember for a moment: "Wait a minute, let me check."

Su Tianyan took out her phone and looked at her notes: "Building 7, Unit 1, Room 201".

The security guard asked again, "What's the owner's last name?"

The homeowner's surname is Xie.

The security guard checked their resident list before letting the two men's tricycle into the community.

"Hey Dad."

"what happened?"

"You're so good at using a mobile phone now?"

Su Cheng pointed out the problem without any attempt to conceal it.

Su Cheng had to call Zheng Jiawei to help her set up the new phone, as it was an old-fashioned phone.

Now I'm very proficient at unlocking my phone, making calls, receiving red envelopes, receiving transfers, and using apps like Notes.

Such a big improvement?
"Huh?" Su Tianyan's eyes darted around. "You'll get the hang of it after using it a lot... Hey, we're here, this is it."

Su Tianyan parked the tricycle downstairs at the apartment building and directed Su Cheng to unload things from the vehicle.

This early in the morning.

Just moving things around made Su Cheng break out in a sweat.

The sweat from my body made the lining of my clothes sticky, but my cheeks, chin, ears, and feet were still icy cold.

Only after entering the new house did Su Cheng realize that the old man was serious.

Su Cheng thought the old man just wanted him to get up early, help move his things, and then let him go home, which made Su Cheng feel a sense of guilt, like "Dad is working hard, and I'm going home to rest."

Who knew that the old man would change his tactics today and actually make him work!

"Dad, I really don't know how to do this!"

"It's very simple, I'll teach you how to do it."

Su Tianyan taught Su Cheng how to do the work in detail, and he spent half an hour just explaining.

Su Cheng's task was to spell out the words "厚德载物" (Hou De Zai Wu) on the wall in the corridor.

These four characters have quite a few strokes, making them rather difficult to write.

"Dad, what are you doing?"

"No, look."

Su Tianyan pointed to the blueprints.

"What's this? A horse?"

"You don't recognize this painting? This is the Eight Horses painting."

Su Cheng: ???
Eight Horses?
"That's a huge workload! How many days will it take us to complete it?"

"It will take at least four or five days."

Four or five days?
"That's pretty fast," Su Tianyan instructed. "When you're working on that character later, make sure to use a level. Don't make it crooked. Just follow the instructions in the manual."

Su Cheng was a little overwhelmed: "Dad, such a big job, and it's just the two of us?"

"Well, everyone else is busy, so I have to do it myself."

How much money can we make after we finish this job?

Su Tianyan thought for a moment and said, "Your calligraphy and painting together should cost about eight thousand yuan. The material cost is one thousand yuan, and the rest is for labor."

"Oh, so that means our profit is seven thousand?"

"Okay, enough with the nonsense, let's get to work."

Su Cheng was urged by the old man, and then she started to get back to her work.

Su Cheng worked intermittently throughout the morning, secretly taking several breaks.

This is pure heavy physical labor.

Su Cheng had to hold up that arm the whole time and carefully spell out each word until her arm was so sore she could barely lift it.

Why take a break secretly?

Because Lao Deng hadn't rested at all, he was always working, at most stopping to gulp down a few mouthfuls of water from his cup.

No matter how good Old Deng's physical condition was, he was getting old and his physical strength was far inferior to Su Cheng's, but he still gritted his teeth and persevered.

Su Cheng really wanted to complain.

This isn't about working hard to earn money; it's about putting on a show for him!

Your father is working hard, sweating buckets, and you just ignore it? That would be so embarrassing!
They just had to pull this stunt.

He had to let Su Cheng see how difficult things were for him.

Should Su Cheng cry and say, "Dad, you've worked so hard. Let me wash your feet tonight..."?

Are you finally satisfied, you old codger?
Does it really have to be this way?

This system has been used for many years and is still in use today.

Su Cheng might have been genuinely moved, realizing the hardships and difficulties her father had endured, which inspired her to work hard and strive for improvement.

But now, Su Cheng could only manage a bitter smile.

Isn't this just acting?
Row.

Then I'll play along with you.

You chose that old man.

Even if you can keep working, can you outlast a grown man like me?
Four or five more days.

Su Cheng watched the old man work all morning, gritting his teeth and enduring it all.

Su Cheng estimated that the old man would back down within three days.

It was a little after noon.

Su Tianyan called Su Cheng over; they were going home to cook and eat.

You like playing the role of a hard-working, elderly father, right?
Row.

Su Cheng also stars in it.

He's going to play a very filial son.

"Dad, let's grab a bowl of noodles outside and then go back for a nap. You look tired after a long morning."

"Eating out is too expensive, let's just cook at home, it's not far."

Su Cheng: ???
Damn it.

Is it hard to endure without suffering?

How much does it cost to eat out?

In this small county town, a large bowl of pork rib noodles costs 9 yuan, and it only costs 18 yuan for two people.

"When we get back, we'll have to clean up, eat, and wash the dishes. That's so tiring. Can our bodies handle it?"

“Oh dear, I’ve been doing this all these years while you’ve been away from home.”

"It's okay, just go home and rest. Dad will make it for you."

Su Cheng: ???
Old man, do you want to listen to yourself and see if you're even speaking human language?

Oh, I, as the son, am going home to rest and let my dad, who's been doing heavy physical labor all morning, cook for me.

So what kind of person did he become?

If this were Ye Li's mother, she would immediately post it in the family group chat, complaining to a few relatives about how she worked all morning and no one even bothered to cook for her when she got home, and that she had to cook for others instead.

This will allow you to learn the essence of it.

"Dad, let's not force ourselves to suffer. Eat something outside and then go back and rest. You've spent an hour on this. Wouldn't it be better if we used that time to rest more?"

"It's not that I'm worried about the money, the key is that we still have so much food at home, it'll spoil if we don't eat it soon," Su Tianyan responded logically.

Su Cheng asked another question mark.

It's not summer, so there's no way to store food properly. Besides, their vegetables are all in the refrigerator, how could they spoil in a day or two?
back home.

Su Cheng immediately rushed into the kitchen.

Seeing this, Su Tianyan immediately pretended to follow him over: "Hey, you don't need to bother anymore, go lie down for a while, Dad's not tired, Dad will take care of it for you." Oh.

"Alright, then I won't bother with it, Dad."

Su Cheng slammed the pot on the stove and immediately lay down on the sofa to smoke and scroll through her phone.

Su Tianyan: ???
I'm just being polite with you. You're really not going to cook?
He said he would cook for himself at home, and even made up an excuse that he was afraid the food would spoil, just so Su Cheng would cook for him.

So Su Cheng really didn't do it?

Su Tianyan complained incessantly.

I should have kept quiet and just eaten a bowl of noodles outside.

It's just a matter of ten or twenty yuan.

It's better now.

He worked all morning and still had to cook for himself when he got home.

His lower back is getting worse and worse, and his arms are also very sore.

Su Tianyan was holding back his anger, but didn't know where to vent it, so he could only vent all his emotions in the kitchen, merging his anger with the gas on the stove.

Su Tianyan served the meal and placed it on the dining table before calling to Su Cheng, who was resting on the sofa, "It's ready, come and eat."

"coming."

Su Cheng jumped up from the sofa, and the two sat at the dining table and began slurping noodles from their bowls.

Su Tianyan, still feeling a bit annoyed, seized the opportunity to vent: "I noticed you only managed to finish one character this morning? And it wasn't even done properly, it's all crooked, did you not use a level?"

"Yes, I used a level."

"Then why is it still crooked?"

"It's not crooked, is it? It's perfectly horizontal, Dad, why do you say it's crooked?"

"I think it's a bit crooked. I guess you didn't set the level properly," Su Tianyan explained. "If it's crooked, you'll have to redo it this afternoon."

"It definitely won't be crooked!"

Su Cheng defended herself.

Although he had basically never done this kind of work before, it wasn't difficult; it was something you could learn at a glance.

It's just a matter of technique and skill that makes Su Cheng work slowly, definitely not as fast as those veterans.

But the work itself is definitely not a problem.

A level is such a simple thing, it's not like a lithography machine, anyone who isn't an idiot can use it.

Su Cheng is confident that it is at a perfect level.

"We'll see this afternoon."

"Row."

Had a meal.

Old Deng didn't wash the dishes; he went back to his room and fell asleep as soon as his head hit the pillow.

Although Su Cheng was also very tired, the thought that Lao Deng must be even more tired than him made him feel much more relaxed.

He knew that Old Deng was trying to educate him in this way, but only Old Deng could do something like killing a thousand enemies while losing eight hundred of his own.

Because Old Deng would include all his sweat and effort in the scope of his contributions to Su Cheng.

pity.

Su Cheng is no longer the fool he was in his previous life; he now knows what's going on.

The old man's actions can only move himself; they can't move anyone else.

If you like him to suffer, then let's all suffer together.

Let's see who gives up first.

Su Cheng was thinking that he would quickly finish spelling out the remaining two characters in the afternoon and tomorrow, and then spend the rest of the time focusing on the old man's attempt to assemble the painting of eight horses.

He definitely won't help you if you ask him for help.

Su Cheng had even come up with a reason.

He said that if something was too complicated and he didn't do it well, he would have to start all over again. So he learned how to do it first and helped his father.

When Su Cheng arrived at the client's house in the afternoon, she immediately sensed that something was wrong.

His handwriting has been altered!
A bad feeling suddenly arose in Su Cheng's heart.

When the old man checked Su Cheng's handwriting, he immediately pointed out the problem: "Look, this character is crooked."

Next, the old man began to inspect the ground and the level.

"The ground is probably not very flat, and you didn't set up the level properly either. Your strokes are crooked from the very first one."

Su Cheng: ???
"What should we do now?"

"What else can we do but erase it and put it back together?"

He noticed that Old Deng even seemed a little smug.

"Dad, this character looked fine this morning, how come it's crooked this afternoon?"

"Because you've been staring at this word all morning without proofreading it, it's easy to make visual errors. Dad has made this kind of mistake before when he was working."

"Huh? Does that mean I worked for nothing all morning?"

To cheer up Su Cheng, Su Tianyan comforted her, saying, "If it weren't so crooked, we could let it go. But the problem is that yours is quite crooked, and the client will notice it immediately."

"It's okay, let's redo it."

Su Cheng was 100% certain that the character had been tampered with.

Uneven ground, improperly set level, visual error—these are all just excuses.

Wasn't it the old man who sent people over specifically to erase his writing and then create a crooked version?

Is it all so that Su Cheng can do more work?

That old man is really wicked!

The key point is that the reasons they gave were reasonable and well-founded.

Visual error.

Even experienced players make this mistake.

Su Cheng couldn't even muster the slightest temper.

Are you sure you're not just getting revenge for me not cooking lunch for you?
OK OK.

Is this how you play me?

Row.

Su Cheng gritted her teeth and erased the words "Houde" (meaning "great virtue"), starting from scratch.

All afternoon.

Su Chengdu kept an eye on the old man, watching his hand movements and facial expressions.

Su Tianyan hadn't done this kind of heavy physical work in a long time. His stamina had been failing since two or three in the afternoon. He was extremely tired and had difficulty concentrating.

Su Tianyan also felt a little regretful.

I should have made something simpler.

His expert team originally prepared poems for him, which is relatively simple to do. You just need to use a mold to press it against the wall and then paste it word by word.

However, Su Tianyan at the time thought that creating this poem was too simple and could probably be finished in a day.

Su Cheng couldn't see his exhaustion and weakness, so he couldn't achieve his goal of educating Su Cheng, and Su Cheng wouldn't understand how hard he worked.

Su Cheng must see the effort he put in firsthand and personally experience how difficult this kind of work is.

So he chose the most difficult painting, the Eight Horses.

This diagram turned out to be a bit too difficult.

It was almost evening, and Su Tianyan had only managed to get one horse.

Finally, Su Tianyan couldn't take it anymore and had to call a halt.

"That's enough for today. Let's go out for a bowl of noodles later, and then go back to sleep."

Su Cheng: Oh?

Su Cheng originally estimated that the old man wouldn't be able to take it for more than three days.

Now it won't even last a day.

The old man's physical condition was worse than Su Cheng had imagined.

Wouldn't that be Su Cheng's chance?
"Dad, let's work a little longer, it's not dark yet."

"It's okay, let's do it tomorrow. You're tired too."

"Dad, I'm not tired." Su Cheng appeared serious, but was actually grinning inside. "Let's do more today and less tomorrow, right, Dad?"

Su Tianyan: ???
Why can't this kid understand good and bad advice?
You're not tired, but I am.

(End of this chapter)