1990s: Spring Water Family

Chapter 290 Shining Brightly, Backstabbing a Fellow Disciple

Since Li Ang had the idea of ​​taking on apprentices, he had secretly used a lot of tricks to win people's hearts with cheap stationery he bought wholesale from the East Gate. Sure enough, he managed to get a few apprentices with decent aptitude.

However, this did not include the one he valued most among his disciples.

Lin Xiyu thought she had made it very clear to him that she had no intention of taking on any disciples, but unexpectedly, Chen Xiang's initiative to surrender created another unexpected complication.

Chen Xiang was the child Li Ang had his eye on, but couldn't recruit; he was the most talented.

-

Not long after the children's birthdays, on a Saturday at the end of September, she went to the Children's Palace for her usual class.

Chen Xiang's offer to take her as his apprentice in front of all the classmates was something she hadn't expected, and the subsequent chain reaction was even more unexpected.

With one person taking the lead, the other children in the class also became interested and followed suit.

A dozen or so children ran over from their seats and surrounded her.

This included the children who had been bribed by Li Ang and agreed to become his apprentices.

A hint of embarrassment flashed across Li Ang's face, but he tried his best to maintain a smile so as not to lose his temper on the spot.

"Ms. Lin, I'm sorry to take up a little of your time."

Just then, the person in charge of the Children's Palace opened the door and waved to Lin Xiyu warmly: "There's an opportunity to go abroad to exchange and showcase traditional folk culture. Would you like to participate?"

"when to go?"

Lin Xiyu's attention was diverted by the person in charge, and she squeezed out of the crowd and walked towards the classroom door.

"Mid to late October."

"How long are you going?"

"About half a month or so."

"What kind of exchange is it that takes so long?"

This event was organized by the SD Provincial Arts and Crafts Association.

The person in charge of the Children's Palace attached great importance to this event, explaining in detail: "Not only will folk culture inheritors from our JN city participate, but also from other cities in the province, touring and showcasing their traditions in various European countries."

"I'm not even a successor yet, am I qualified to participate?"

"Grandma Hu has passed away. You can bring her works from her lifetime and participate in the event as her disciple."

"Isn't this not good?"

Lin Xiyu hesitated, "Everyone else is a proper successor, and I'm just a slacker."

"Don't worry, you can go."

The person in charge of the Children's Palace reassured her: "We have already reported your situation, and the selection of intangible cultural heritage inheritors this year is a sure thing."

"Thank you for your recognition, boss."

Lin Xiyu was extremely grateful and did not see the fleeting look of jealousy in Li Ang's eyes in the classroom.

-

"Senior sister, since the children all want to become your disciples, please don't refuse."

Lin Xiyu returned to the classroom, and Li Ang pretended not to care, speaking up for the children in a hypocritical manner: "I think the children in our class are all very talented and qualified to be your apprentices."

"Hey hey hey."

The children were delighted by his words and swarmed around Lin Xiyu again.

"Teacher Lin has no plans to take on any apprentices at the moment."

Lin Xiyu knew in her heart that some of the children had already agreed to Li Ang's request, and his sudden move was clearly intended to make her the bad guy.

Because they shared the same teacher, she didn't dwell on it too much and made her stance clear in front of all the children.

"Ugh."

The children sighed and looked disappointed.

Teacher Lin

Chen Xiang was persistent: "How much longer do I have to wait before you take on a disciple?"

"Professor Lin has something to attend to and will be going abroad for a while."

Lin Xiyu used the exchange as an excuse to say, "There's no rush to take on apprentices. Let's talk about it when I get back."

"Okay."

Chen Xiang's eyes darkened, and he could only reluctantly agree.

The other children were just following the crowd, and without a leader, they all gave up and scattered.

Li Ang breathed a sigh of relief and leaned closer to offer his help: "Senior sister, if you go abroad at this time and don't make it back in time, you'll miss the chance to apply for the successor position. Why don't you leave your materials with me and I'll apply for you?"

"Oh right, I almost forgot about that."

Lin Xiyu slapped her forehead, feeling extremely annoyed: "Thank goodness you reminded me, I need to prepare the materials before leaving the country."

"It's not too late."

Li Ang felt conflicted and deeply regretted his loose tongue.

With limited spots for intangible cultural heritage inheritors, if Lin Xiyu doesn't have enough time to prepare and misses the application deadline, wouldn't his chances be even greater?

"I will compile all the materials as soon as possible and give them to you before I leave the country."

Lin Xiyu didn't think much of it and said with gratitude in her eyes, "I'll leave the application to you."

"Senior sister, you're too kind. It's what I should do."

Li Ang spoke eloquently, but a complex and unreadable light flashed in his eyes.

-

Lin Xiyu never expected that her junior brother, who was also from the same sect, would betray his senior sister for a single spot.

Li Ang was unable to clear his mind of distractions. On the eve of the application, he inadvertently learned from the person in charge of the Children's Palace that there was only one spot available for selection this year. Extreme selfishness caused him to lose his rationality.

On the day he submitted the materials, he went against his conscience and only filled in his own name on the application form.

Lin Xiyu was completely unaware of this matter; at that moment, she was shining brightly at an exchange exhibition abroad.

A foreign journalist who came to the exhibition to cover the event, knowing that she was not an inheritor of the craft, questioned her identity and clearly wanted to make things difficult for her.

Those with genuine talent and ability have nothing to fear from provocation.

The image of the greatest female talent of all time was already deeply imprinted in her mind, and she could skillfully cut it out without needing to draw a picture.

The scissors moved nimbly in her hands. Yi'an Jushi, a representative figure of spring water culture, presented her unique charm to paper-cutting enthusiasts abroad.

The moment she put down the scissors, thunderous applause erupted in the exhibition hall.

All the exhibitors were impressed by her skills, and even the foreign journalist had to curb his arrogance and pretend to be very impressed, giving her a thumbs up.

Lin Xiyu smiled as she faced the camera and explained to the audience in English.

His authentic British accent earned him unanimous praise from foreign friends.

This exhibition of traditional culture from the ancient Eastern country has attracted a lot of attention due to its outstanding performance. Local people who were not originally interested in Chinese traditional culture came after seeing the news reports, causing quite a stir in the area.

-

Early November, Jinan.

The touring exhibition came to a perfect end, and Lin Xiyu returned to China with the exchange group. The head of the Children's Palace personally came to the airport to pick her up.

When the two met, the other person immediately delivered a blow to her: "Xiyu, there's something I want to confirm with you. Didn't you submit the application materials for intangible cultural heritage inheritor? Why is it that, according to a source I heard, your name isn't on the candidate list this time?"

"Ah?!" Lin Xiyu exclaimed in surprise. Her first instinct was that it was impossible. Seeing the person in charge's solemn expression, which did not seem to be a lie, her heart sank to the bottom.

The person in charge noticed her unusual expression and looked worried: "Is it because you left in a hurry for your exchange program abroad and didn't have time?"

“I told my husband to submit the documents for me, but he might have been delayed by something.”

Lin Xiyu, mindful of Grandma Hu's reputation, did not want to speculate wildly before understanding the truth of the matter, and therefore did not reveal Li Ang's name.

"Ugh."

The person in charge sighed regretfully: "I thought so too. How could you forget something so important? When I first heard that you weren't on the list of candidates, I was also incredulous. I was thinking of calling you, but considering that the application deadline had passed and you were abroad, I didn't want to upset you, so I kept putting it off and didn't ask you."

"There's something fishy about this."

Lin Xiyu was upset and lost the mood to continue the conversation: "Let me go home and find out more before we talk about it."

"alright."

The person in charge patted her on the shoulder reassuringly and didn't ask any further questions.

-

Lin Xiyu was more cautious and didn't go to find Li Ang herself. Instead, she contacted her two other senior brothers and sisters first, explained the situation, and the three of them went to his door together.

When confronted, Li Ang initially denied that it was intentional, shifting the blame onto his mother.

The old lady hadn't noticed that she had slipped the brown paper bag containing the materials into an old newspaper and sold it to the recycling center. By the time she realized it and went to look for it, it was too late; the forms and artwork were all contaminated by dirty water and had become completely worthless.

Do you think everyone else is a fool?

Wang Lei didn't believe it, so he punched him, knocking him to the ground.

"How could you do something like this? How can you face Grandma Hu for raising you?"

Zhang Jie was also furious and pointed her finger at him, cursing.

"How have I wronged Grandma Hu?"

Seeing that he couldn't hide it any longer, Li Ang steeled his heart and decided to stop pretending altogether, asking sharply, "We're all Grandma Hu's apprentices, so why can she apply but I can't?"

"No one is stopping you from applying; it's all about your own abilities."

Lin Xiyu was very disappointed in him, and a hint of pain flashed in her eyes.

I'm not heartbroken for myself, but for Grandma Hu.

She herself did not want that, not long after her death, one of her few remaining disciples would betray her fellow disciples for fame and fortune, committing such a morally reprehensible act.

"You're being nice."

Li Ang's long-simmering resentment finally erupted at this moment: "What do you mean by 'each according to their own ability'? What right does a pre-selected candidate have to say that? You know best in your heart that someone has already pulled strings for you. As long as you sign up, it's yours. What kind of fairness is that?"

Even if you don't get selected, you can wait for the next time, right?

Wang Lei glared at him with exasperation: "There's more than one inheritor of intangible cultural heritage. Why do you have to be so extreme and do something so despicable?"

"I can't wait for the next time."

Li Ang roared hoarsely, his voice choked with sobs as he spoke: "You have no idea how I've survived all these years. I work myself to the bone every month, doing several odd jobs, but I can't save much money. When I date a girlfriend, I have to be mindful of her family's attitude. I don't have a proper job, and even their dog looks down on me."

"You can tell us if you have any difficulties."

Zhang Jie felt uncomfortable hearing this, and her tone softened: "We are not unreasonable people either."

"Senior Sister Lin"

Li Ang shamelessly pleaded, "I'm begging you, please consider this a good deed and let me have it. Your family is well-off and doesn't care about this little bit of money, but it's different for me. A monthly subsidy of two thousand yuan is really important to me. Only with the identity of the successor can I hold my head high in front of outsiders and stop them from calling me a coward and useless."

Do you think this is about money?

Lin Xiyu's feelings were complicated, her eyes filled with heartache: "You only see that my life is better than yours, but have you ever thought about what I have been through all these years? What have I given up in order not to let Grandma Hu down?"

"Senior Sister Lin, I know I was wrong. I'll accept whatever you do, whether you hit me or scold me."

To achieve his goal, Li Ang slapped himself several times: "As long as you don't expose me and spare me this time, I'll kneel down and kowtow to you, and serve you like a slave."

What's the use of kneeling down?

Wang Lei sneered, "Even if you break your head, you can't undo the mistakes you've already made."

Why should I spare you?

Lin Xiyu's expression was cold and stern: "A person with such a wicked heart as you is not worthy to be Grandma Hu's apprentice, nor is he worthy to carry on her legacy."

"Senior sister, please."

Seeing that he remained unmoved, Li Ang shamelessly knelt down.

"Hey, hey."

Zhang Jie's eyes showed pity: "How could you actually kneel down?"

Are you trying to force your senior sister to forgive you?

Wang Lei saw through his intentions and wished he could kick him.

"Senior sister, please."

Ignoring Wang Lei, Li Ang bent down as if he really wanted to kowtow.

Lin Xiyu dodged aside, speechless at his shameless behavior.

Whichever way she hid, Li Ang would kneel down and turn around in that direction.

Lin Xiyu was furious and put one foot on his shoulder.

Now, Li Ang couldn't even kowtow anymore; he was frozen in place, unable to move.

-

"From today onwards, you are no longer my junior brother, and there is no need for us to meet again."

Lin Xiyu was grateful for Grandma Hu's kindness, but she didn't want the old lady to be restless even in her grave, so she ultimately couldn't bring herself to expose Li Ang.

Li Ang escaped a calamity, and although he achieved his goal, he completely lost the hearts of the people.

Fearing they would be implicated, Wang Lei and Zhang Jie included him in their senior sister's list of people she wouldn't associate with, and resolutely severed ties with him.

Lin Xiyu didn't want her bad mood to affect her family, so she forced a smile when she got home, trying to hide it from everyone. However, her unusual behavior still didn't escape Gu Bin's notice.

"You've been away from home for over half a month, and you're finally back, but you don't even have a smile on your face. What happened? Who upset you? Tell me, and I'll get revenge for you."

That evening, after Gu Bin saw that the babies were asleep, he pestered and coaxed his wife until she finally gave in and told him the truth.

"You're just going to let him go like that?"

A cold glint flashed in Gu Bin's eyes.

"if not?"

Lin Xiyu smiled bitterly: "What else can I do? If I really beat him up to vent my anger, I'm afraid he can't take a beating. I'll end up hurting or crippling him and getting myself in the process."

"Letting him off like this is too lenient on him."

Gu Bin, determined to avenge his wife, said, "In my opinion, we should throw him into the cemetery and make him kneel before Grandma Hu's tombstone for three days and three nights to repent."

"In this freezing weather, do you want him to die?"

Lin Xiyu was both amused and exasperated: "It's November, and the cemetery is cold and creepy. Staying there for one night could kill you."

Whether he survives or not is up to him.

Gu Bin rubbed his fists together, eager to put his idea into practice immediately.

(End of this chapter)