Electronic Nezha

Chapter 113 is better

Li Ping hired a new person, and within two hours I was trapped in a dream. How could I not suspect Hu Chunyan?
Like any middle-aged woman trying to get close to a child, Hu Chunyan grabbed Liu Zhenhua's arm and pulled him closer to examine him, saying, "This child is really handsome, he must look like his mother, right?" This woman was still so good with words…

Liu Zhenhua politely said, "Thank you, Auntie."

The polite exchanges between the two ended there, and I pulled Liu Zhenhua over again and asked, "So, is he a man or a ghost?"

Liu Zhenhua said helplessly, "Dad, you used to treat me like a fortune teller, and now you treat me like a Taoist priest. Without any equipment, I'm no different from an ordinary middle school student."

I handed him my phone and said, "Then look her up, her name is—"

“Hu Chunyan is a local and has worked in the spice market for 10 years,” Liu Zhenhua said. “Based on the available information, there’s nothing wrong with her.”

What does "can be found" mean?

"Information registration, cameras, big data and these things are actually only a few years old."

Old Wang said, "If you're not studying properly and let your dad call you to play on your phone at the stall, how can you not go blind?"

Liu Zhenhua suddenly shoved his phone at me and said, "It's Wang Aili on the phone!"

I was startled at first, then I immediately guessed why Teacher Wang was calling—I was so focused on getting Liu Zhenhua to come over that I forgot to ask for leave for him.

"What should I do? What should I do?" I started pacing around in circles again.

Li Ping couldn't help but say, "Anyone who didn't know better would think you owed Wang Aili a high-interest loan."

"Hello, Teacher Wang!" Liu Chuanfeng's clear and articulate voice is now online.

"I heard from the class monitor that Liu Zhenhua didn't go to school?"

"Uh yes, Liu Zhenhua... has a stomachache."

Wang Aili said unhappily, "From now on, please ask for leave in advance if you have anything to do."

"Okay, Teacher Wang."

After I hung up the phone, Lao Wang and Li Ping looked at me strangely. Lao Wang asked in confusion, "Weren't you checking my eyes? Why did you lie to the teacher?" as if he had never lied to a teacher before.

I have a reason for saying this. The lie about "checking eyes" can only fool Lao Wang and Li Ping. Wang Aili has handled so many children's vision tests. Checking eyesight only takes ten minutes at most, and there is absolutely no need to take up class time. The opticians around their school are open very late. This is what Wang Aili told me.

I patted Liu Zhenhua on the shoulder and said, "Let's go home and talk."

On the way back to the neighborhood, Liu Zhenhua said, "Dad, the most important thing right now is that you can contact me anytime. You can't keep taking leave."

"Don't you guys not allow cell phones?"

"Therefore, we need some special equipment."

Hearing this, I perked up: "What do you think I need?"

"I haven't decided yet, let's go shopping at the mall."

We drove our car directly to the most famous shopping mall in the area.

Liu Zhenhua and I haven't been to a shopping mall in a long time. The last time we were in a similar place, I think Han Shiya was there too, though I might not remember exactly.

Since I hadn't been here for a long time, everything was new and exciting to me. From the shoes and hats at the entrance to the sporting goods, I couldn't help but take a second look at the cosmetics counter as I passed by. There was a sales assistant standing behind the counter, and she would spray perfume in her hand every time a customer passed by.

"Mmm, smells good." Since she seemed to be on my radar, I gave her a positive response.

Liu Zhenhua suddenly stopped and said, "Buy one bottle!"

"Stop joking around, who are you going to give this to?" I said in a low voice. "Giving this to Chen Zihan is not appropriate."

“I need it,” Liu Zhenhua said. “The cheapest one will do.”

Since he said that, I didn't ask any more questions and said, "Since it's useful, let's buy a better bottle." "No need."

In the end, I paid for a bottle, and although it was cheap, the sales assistant still gave it a nice package.

Leaving the cosmetics section, Liu Zhenhua interrupted me before I could ask, saying, "I'll explain later." Then he started wandering around aimlessly.

It was a weekday, and there were only a few people scattered around the mall. Liu Zhenhua, wearing his school uniform and tall, stood out. As we passed a brand-name clothing store, I grabbed him and said, "Come on, let's go in and take a look."

Liu Zhenhua said, "I don't need this."

"You don't need anything, but you can wear it for the New Year."

We used to have no interest in shopping malls, and after divorcing Han Shiya, we hadn't been there for many years. Liu Zhenhua's new clothes for the New Year were all bought by me online. It's okay if they don't fit, I can exchange them. What I hate most is clothes that fit perfectly, but just don't match my style. In the end, I spent a lot of money but the effect is like I picked them up off the street.

Since we're already here, we might as well get things sorted out. Ever since Liu Zhenhua's mother "lost," his grandparents have been very sensitive about what we wear. My mother would burst into tears if we looked even slightly sloppy.

You know what, after trying on two jackets, Liu Zhenhua looked incredibly dashing in a light gray one, so he decided to buy a pair of pants to go with it.

"Just wear it for now, then wash it when you get back and put it down."

Liu Zhenhua said, "Dad, you should wear one too, then you don't need to come again."

I had the same idea, but the place that suits him is definitely not the same place for me. I had to go to those old Zhongdeng stores. We went to a row of stores and finally I got a set too.

The father and son were strolling through the mall carrying large and small bags when I suddenly asked in confusion, "You don't really mean shopping when you say 'going to the mall,' do you?"

"Didn't you start the shopping spree first?"

What exactly do you need?

"Don't worry, I'm thinking about it."

It was hot in the mall and I was sweating a lot, so I just bought two ice creams from an ice cream shop.

We were each eating an ice cream as we walked along a row of shops when a woman suddenly came out of one of them. I only glanced at her before exclaiming, "Damn it!"

This woman was none other than Wang Aili, their teacher Wang!

Two groups of people met head-on in the deserted mall. Wang Aili was also taken aback when she saw us. She looked down at the various packaging bags in our hands, and her first reaction was not anger but confusion.

"Teacher Wang, Teacher Wang—" the father and son stammered as they greeted him.

"Oh, it's you guys." Wang Aili was also carrying a bunch of bags. Although she didn't show any emotion, it was the most amiable expression I had ever seen.

Well, what can I say about this situation? The father called in sick for his son but ended up wandering around the mall, while the teacher was also wandering around during class time. They even bumped into each other! Of course, it wasn't just wandering around; they actually bought things…

"Xiaoli, what color do you think goes well with that scarf?" A middle-aged man appeared behind Wang Aili, carrying a bunch of things in his hands, probably having just gone to pay the bill.

Seeing the three of us looking at each other, the man asked Wang Aili, "Who are you?"

“Student,” Wang Aili replied softly.

Even more awkward...

The man chuckled, "You even run into students here! You've got so many students!" He asked Liu Zhenhua, "When did you become her student?"

Liu Zhenhua stammered, "The students these days..." The man probably thought he had only been taught by Wang Aili.

The man instinctively asked, "Then why didn't you go to class?"

Wang Aili glanced at the ice cream in our hands and asked Liu Zhenhua, "How's your stomach?"

"I felt better after eating ice cream," Liu Zhenhua said, gently kicking the mall floor with his foot and looking down.

(End of this chapter)