No one understands rebirth better than me

Chapter 191 Where did my sister and son go?
It's almost the end of the year.

The streets and alleys of Jiangzhou County are filled with the festive atmosphere of the Lunar New Year.

Shops large and small, roadside trees, old alleys, new residential areas—everywhere is decorated with lanterns and colorful decorations.

Moreover, since it's a small county town, there are many people setting off firecrackers.

Children, and even older children, play with firecrackers on the street.

But it's unlikely to be a firecracker.

Those games are mostly played in rural towns, where there's plenty of space and it's less likely to cause injury.

Especially in the fields and ponds.

And latrines.

These are all the best places to play with firecrackers.

However, there are techniques involved in blasting these places.

If you fire it too early, the cannon will go silent.

After striking a stick, you must wait until a wisp of white smoke has just finished rising before throwing it in.

In addition, there are various other creative ways to play.

For example, a chain reaction.

Insert it into a pine cone to use as a hand grenade.

They blew up all sorts of tubes, basins, and holes.

Fried cow dung.

In contrast, there aren't as many ways to play with firecrackers.

However, it is safer than firecrackers. In densely populated areas, it is not like a time bomb, so it is mostly played in county towns.

……

The firecrackers at this time were different from those later on.

Not those tiny, onion-shaped noses.

It's also long, but thicker. Although it's less powerful than a firecracker, it's more powerful than a future small firecracker, and it makes a particularly loud noise when it hits the ground.

Snapped!
Snapped!
As Guan Ren walked along the road, he would occasionally encounter one or two rascals who would pretend to know the Thunder Palm technique and slap their companions' feet with it, which was quite impressive.

"What? You want to play too?"

Guan Qiaoyun joked.

"How old am I?"

"Yes, yes, you are very big."

Even if it gets bigger, it's still Mom's baby... um... Mom's precious son.

Guan Qiaoyun thought to herself that it was too disgusting, but she couldn't say it out loud because it was too nauseating and she felt a little embarrassed. Guan Qiaoyun was a single mother, so she needed to maintain a certain level of authority.

She simply tightened her grip on his strong arm.

……

The mother and son went out to buy New Year's goods today.

With the real New Year approaching, the Dehua supermarket has reopened, and the supermarket is packed with people amidst cheerful background music.

“In the past, the New Year’s goods were real products, mainly grains and oils. Now, people buy all kinds of snacks.”

"Yes, it's only been twenty or thirty years, the development is really too fast."

In the supermarket, elderly women were reminiscing about the past, while their grandchildren were either choosing candy or playing with various grains in a winnowing basket.

Interestingly, the child who was shoveling mung beans attracted criticism from a young woman.

"This kid has no manners at all; he'll definitely grow up to be a bad person..."

The child's grandmother's rebuttal was even more interesting.

"The child didn't spill anything or do anything wrong, and you're trying to morally blackmail them during the New Year? Are you trying to be a saint?"

The young woman was stunned:

"Me...I'm morally blackmailing you? Am I a saint?"

"What else are you but a saint? The child hasn't caused any trouble for anyone, and you're the only one making a fuss. By your standards, how many good people are there in the world? You think you're so high-class? Then swear that if you ever threw a piece of paper on the street when you were a child, may your whole family die, okay?"

"Holy crap! How dare you speak like that, old lady, during the New Year!"

"Hey, listen to this! Young people swearing like that, so rude! They're no better than old people!"

"What the hell..."

……

Although it was just a chance argument, Guan Ren really enjoyed watching it.

Around 2012, the term "moral kidnapping" first appeared online and was among the earliest "popular online tags," which were very popular among young people.

As it turns out, this old lady chose to criticize young people from the angle that young people love most.

Guan Ren no longer cared about the reason for their argument; anyway, the woman's flushed face was really funny.

But some people didn't find it funny.

For example, on the outskirts of the crowd, there was a slender figure pushing a cart with her eyebrows furrowed, squeezing through a group of elderly women who were watching the show.

Gu Wancheng?
Guan Ren was caught off guard.

But it's not entirely unexpected.

Jiangzhou County is only so big, and there are only one or two large supermarkets in each area.

So a long time ago, he also met Gu Wancheng at the supermarket.

Guan Ren looked back again, but Guan Qiaoyun had disappeared sometime earlier, probably having gone shopping in another district.

It's normal for her to be very selective when buying things and to get easily absorbed in them.

But this is not the point.

The key point is that before Guan Ren could even greet Gu Wancheng, whether it was due to too many people or some kind of collision, several boxes of breakfast biscuits on the top shelf directly above Gu Wancheng were knocked out of the display case by more than half.

"No..."

Guan Ren muttered in astonishment, his pupils shrinking rapidly, before rushing forward.

"Teacher Gu!"

"?!"

Gu Wancheng was still wondering if she had misheard. Her high heels stopped, and she turned around to see that guy rushing straight towards her like a bull, his beautiful eyes full of confusion and helplessness.

Is this kid... driven mad after coveting his sister for so long without success?

"careful!"

No sooner said than done, Guan Ren shouted and pounced on her, hugging her tightly. His tall body and strong arms completely enveloped her.

Clang—

slam-la-

Meanwhile, amidst the gasps of those nearby, the boxes of biscuits on the top floor tumbled down one after another.

Even though Gu Wancheng was being carefully protected in Guan Ren's arms, her delicate hand, which instinctively rested on Guan Ren's chest, could still feel a few tremors coming from his back. "Hiss... Huff..."

Then, Guan Ren grimaced, slowly got up, and released the soft, fragrant body.

Gu Wancheng stared blankly, her eyes wide. After a long while, as helpful onlookers gathered around to assist her, she suddenly snapped out of her daze and tightly gripped Guan Ren's arm and shoulder.

"Guan...Guan Ren, are you...are you alright?"

"I'm strong, no problem."

Guan Ren forced a smile, then looked Gu Wancheng up and down:
"And you, Teacher Gu?"

"I...I'm fine..."

"Wait! Why is there blood?"

"Uh... the corner of the box is a bit sharp, it scratched the skin a little, it's nothing."

"What's the big deal!"

Gu Wancheng felt instinctively angry for some reason.

That's right, she's his teacher. How could she not be anxious when she saw her student bleeding from his arm?
The wounds weren't actually that big, but there were more than one – two or three on both arms combined, and it's still unknown if there were any on the back or head.

Where's the Band-Aid?

Gu Wancheng suddenly remembered that he had a habit of carrying band-aids with him.

"I didn't bring it."

"you!…"

Gu Wancheng gritted her teeth:

Why didn't you bring it?!

So a problem student is still a problem student after all. His thought process is weird. When we were doing morning runs, he could easily put a handful of stickers on her heels, but now that he's injured, he just happened to not have any.
Does anyone have a Band-Aid?

Gu Wancheng asked those around her:
Does the supermarket have a medical room?

Ironically, in the end, it was the same old lady and the young woman who had been arguing who each took out two Band-Aids from their bags.

Soon, the employees began to clean up the mess.

A person in charge came to apologize, bringing alcohol and gauze.

Guan Ren didn't care about these things.

Seeing that another person had also been hit, I was relieved that I didn't see Guan Qiaoyun in the crowd.

This means that Guan Qiaoyun is quite far away and not in the vicinity, so the shelf accident definitely wouldn't affect her.

……

A few minutes later.

How are you elsewhere? Did you hurt your head?

"No."

In a break room at the supermarket, Guan Ren looked at the coldness and worry coexisting in Gu Wancheng's eyes and couldn't help but smile:

"Teacher Gu, I've already told you I'm quite sturdy, don't worry."

"..."

Gu Wancheng fell silent, sitting in the chair opposite Guan Ren, her eyes fixed on his wound. She remained silent for a long time, her face showing no emotion, just as usual.

"that…"

Guan Ren had no idea what Gu Wancheng was thinking at that moment. Just as he was about to say something, Gu Wancheng finally moved.

wow-

She unzipped her bag, took out five hundred yuan, and held it out to Guan Ren.

"what?"

Guan Ren waved his hands repeatedly:

"Teacher Gu, what are you doing? I..."

"Take it."

Gu Wancheng gave a light rebuke, then paused and said:

"Medical expenses."

Guan Ren was at a loss whether to laugh or cry:

"Even medical expenses shouldn't cost five hundred, right?"

"Then...then it'll be New Year's money!"

Gu Wancheng looked a little impatient and forced the ball into Guan Ren's hand.

"..."

Guan Ren knew this man's temperament all too well, so he had no choice but to accept the money.

Then, looking at the glimpse of her shapely, fleshy calves beneath the hem of her trench coat and her beige high heels, I inappropriately recalled the soft, fragrant, and alluring figure I had just held in my arms…

"you alone?"

After a moment of silence, Gu Wancheng parted her red lips slightly.

"No, Sister Qiaoyun...my mom is there too, she should be in the daily necessities section."

"Oh."

"Teacher Gu, are you alone?"

“I came with Youli. She went upstairs to buy shampoo.”

"Ok."

After a while.

"Let me see your arm."

"Oh, it's nothing serious. Once it's disinfected, a band-aid is enough. I feel like gauze is unnecessary."

"..."

Gu Wancheng remained silent, ignoring Guan Ren's nonsense. She sat closer, raised her delicate hand, grasped his wrist with one hand, and lifted his arm with the other, examining him closely.

At this moment, Gu Wancheng's almost flawless face, her soft eyelashes, her rosy lips, and even her full chest that bulged out of her clothes, were all closer to Guan Ren than ever before.

The quiet air began to fill with the unique fragrance of a mature woman, or rather, the distinctive scent emanating from Gu Wancheng.

Guan Ren felt a mix of embarrassment and ambiguity, and he couldn't help but hold his breath.

……

Meanwhile, right outside this lounge.

A beautiful woman and a young girl passed each other by, glancing left and right.

"...Where did that little rascal run off to...?"

"...Strange, isn't my sister on the first floor anymore..."

(End of this chapter)