You're my wife, don't doubt it!

Upon hearing this, Yu Bo frowned, and his attitude and tone softened: "I personally think that what Father Li did was very inappropriate. As a priest, when parishioners consult me ​​on this kind of issue, I try my best to maintain a neutral attitude and principle, and I will not give a definite answer, telling them to separate or not to separate."

“Yes,” Xiao Yao nodded, “I think that should be the case.”

“Unless one party has a particularly serious problem of principle, such as apostasy, long-term violence, gambling addiction, infidelity, or having affairs…” Yu Bo counted on his fingers.

Upon hearing the words "unfaithful, two-timing," Xiao Yao's eyes instinctively darted to the left, a glance that Yu Bo keenly noticed.

“As a clergyman I can remain neutral,” Yu Bo sighed, “but as an uncle, it’s very difficult. Kid, you know I like you, and I also treat Yingying like my own daughter, so I don’t want to see you hurt her—I don’t want to see anyone hurt her.”

"Even if I die, I would rather die than get hurt..." Xiao Yao forced himself to speak, "Father Yu, aren't you hot?"

Yu Bo lowered his legs, sat up straight, started the engine, gently pressed the accelerator, and slowly drove towards the main road.

The car's air conditioning started working normally, sending out a gentle breeze.

“I’ve come to see you today, Brother Bo,” Xiao Yao said, “because of the future of your biological daughter.”

There were only fifteen minutes left, and most of that time was spent talking about irrelevant things. Xiao Yao was inwardly annoyed.

"Speak," Yu Bo said calmly.

Xiao Yao recounted to Yu Bo in detail his "encounter" with Yu Texuan and Yu Baolu in the hotel lobby, the conversation he overheard in the public restroom, Yu Luying's attitude and reaction after learning about the incident, and his own various thoughts.

"You're done talking." Xiao Yao glanced at Yu Bo beside him, who was intently driving around in circles, and reminded him.

"Open the armrest box." Yu Bo's expression and tone remained unchanged as he gave this instruction.

"This one?" Xiao Yao lifted the armrest box.

Yu Bo glanced inside, stretched out his right hand, took out a small Bible that looked almost brand new, and handed it to Xiao Yao.

"Ah, Brother Bo, I have it." Xiao Yao didn't answer.

"Take it." Yu Bo's tone was somewhat impatient.

"Hey." Xiao Yao reached out and took it.

This little Bible is exactly the same as the one Yu Luying gave me years ago.

“Luke 12:14,” Yu Bo said.

“Luke 12…” Xiao Yao flipped through the thin pages in a flustered manner.

"I found Brother Bo," Xiao Yao said.

"Read it," Yu Bo instructed.

“One of the people said to Iesu, ‘Master, tell my brother to divide my property with me!’ Iesu said to him, ‘Who appointed me, O man, as your judge and divider?’ Then he said to them, ‘Beware of all greed, for even if a man is rich, his life does not depend on his possessions.’ Iesu told them a parable: ‘There was a rich man whose fields were very productive. He thought to himself, ‘What shall I do? I have no place to store my produce.’ So he said, ‘I will do this: I will tear down my barns and build bigger ones, so that I may store all my grain and my possessions there. Then I will say to my soul, ‘O soul, you have stored up a great wealth, enough for many years; rest! Eat and drink and be merry!’ But God says to him, ‘Foolish man! This very night he will take your soul back; to whom will your prepared possessions belong? So it is with him who hoards wealth for himself without becoming rich in God’s sight.’”

"Did you understand it?" Yu Bo asked Xiao Yao.

"I understand," Xiao Yao replied truthfully, "but I don't really understand."

“What don’t you understand?” Yu Bo frowned and said, “People, who appointed me as your judge and family member? Boy, I am a monk.”

“I understand you mean you don’t want to get involved,” Xiao Yao explained, “but I feel you can’t just ignore it.”

“Kid,” Yu Bo pulled the car over to the side of the road, but didn’t turn off the engine, “don’t you think it’s a little too hasty of you to get involved in the Yu family elders’ property matters right now?”

“I know,” Xiao Yao admitted, “but I’m concerned about this matter with the principles of fairness and justice. I also know that if it were Brother Bo, he would definitely act with the principles of fairness and justice as well.”

"Don't try to flatter me. What fairness and justice? Haven't you heard that even an upright official can't settle family disputes?" Yu Bo glared and said, "Do you think I don't know about this? One is my elder brother, and the other is my elder sister. What right do I, a monk, have to interfere?"

Xiao Yao was speechless for a moment, not knowing what to say. He just subconsciously flipped through the book in his hand, his brain working at a rapid pace.

Will this work for him? Or will it be like showing off my limited skills before an expert? Or will it backfire? For now, it seems we can only give it a try.

Based on his fragmented memories, the boy turned the pages of the book in his hand from front to back and then from back to front.

Please, come out quickly...

He took a deep breath.

"Fairness and justice, fairness and justice is pure and spotless piety before God the Father, which is looking after orphans and widows in distress and keeping oneself unstained by the world. James 1:27."

Yu Bo remained silent.

Xiao Yao continued flipping through the small book in his hands: "Second Samuel, Chapter Twelve: In a city there were two men, one rich and one poor. The poor man had nothing but a little ewe. This little ewe was bought and raised by him; she grew up beside him and his children, ate his own food, drank from his own cup, slept in his arms, and was treated like his own daughter. A guest came to the rich man, and he would not give his own cattle or sheep to entertain the traveler who came to him, but instead took the poor man's ewe to entertain the traveler..."

"Enough, shut up!" Yu Bo slapped the steering wheel lightly, and the car emitted a loud "beep," startling Xiao Yao.

Yu Bo snatched the sutra from Xiao Yao's hand, threw it into the armrest box, and slammed the box shut: "So you're going to chant sutras for me, huh?"

Xiao Yao could tell that Yu Bo was genuinely angry, but he didn't know that Yu Bo wasn't actually angry at him. Nevertheless, he mustered his courage and answered loudly, "Yes!"

The car suddenly started moving, and Xiao Yao leaned back in his seat and then slumped against the right door.

"I have to go back to Shanghai, it's getting late," Yu Bo said. "I'll take you back to your hotel."

Yu Bo's expression was not good throughout the journey, and Xiao Yao wisely kept quiet.

“Your reputation isn’t very good, not just at school, you know that?” Yu Bo finally spoke.

“I…I know a little bit.” Xiao Yao’s heart skipped a beat.

Xiao Yao didn't actually know much about it.

Are you referring to what happened on Tieba (Baidu's online forum)? That's just an extension of what happened at school, isn't it?

Besides, how would Brother Bo know about those things on the internet?

Ah, right, he also goes online a lot and plays games often.

Then he must have also heard about those things...

“I know that you can’t take everything on the internet seriously, and I’ve just read it all and let it go,” Yu Bo said. “But when you have enemies, all of this can become the basis for them to target you.”

"I...I know."

“No matter what my older brother says about you, the final decision and signature still rests with the old man,” Yu Bo told Xiao Yao.

"Understood," Xiao Yao replied.

"What I know now is that, at least during this summer camp, the old man will be watching you closely to see what kind of person you are: a good Christian or someone like my brother-in-law. He will care about what you and Yingying are doing every day—and he may not even be watching you."

"You mean..." Xiao Yao asked hesitantly, "He'll plant spies and informants around me? That's why you wanted the two of us in the car..."

“What are you thinking?” Yu Bo gently turned the steering wheel. “But everyone around you—the campers, the priest, the mentors, the logistics volunteers, the hotel security guards… none of them are blind. I mean, what they see and hear could become evidence for the old man to judge you, understand? Someone will always see what kind of person you are.” Yu Bo explained.

"So you don't know who the secret agents are, or who they are," Xiao Yao said.

“No one is a spy or secret agent. Even if there were, I couldn’t tell you even if I knew,” Yu Bo shook his head and said, “I’ve already said too much.”

Xiao Yao: "..."

"Someone like you, snoring loudly in Taize, not returning to your room until 2 AM, dozing off during mass, and still being all lovey-dovey with Yingying in public—"

"Sweet nothings?" Xiao Yao said.

"Do you think you're the only couple among the campers? Who else is as high-profile as you two?" Yu Bo said, "Even college students don't—no one cares if you're dating, but shouldn't you maintain your elegance in public?"

Xiao Yao: "..."

The boy really started to have a headache.

“I couldn’t have made it clearer: be a model student, lead her to be a devout couple—that’s the greatest help you can offer Yingying right now.” Yu Bo drove into the parking lot of the Saint Love Hotel and slowly stopped. “God sees it, and everyone sees it.”

“Brother Bo,” Xiao Yao looked up and asked, “If I and her grandfather prove myself, can you help me talk to Yu Luying about it?”

"Don't worry, she'll listen to me," Yu Bo said in a deep voice.

Xiao Yao got out of the car and watched Yu Bo's black sedan drive away.

Suddenly I feel a little hungry.

Oh right, I haven't eaten a single bite of breakfast yet.

Xiao Yao wandered toward the dining room, hoping to find some leftovers.

Although Yu Luying had eaten and wasn't particularly hungry, she still felt uneasy because her stomach was empty.

Halfway there, he was stopped by a particularly cute little girl: "You're Xiao Yao, right?"

"Ah, it's me."

"The classroom is that way, you're already late," the little girl said.

"Oh, I'm sorry, I had a brief conversation with Father Yu..."

"Sign your name," the little girl said, handing over a form on a plastic sheet and a ballpoint pen. "Then choose a group."

While signing the document, Xiao Yao secretly sized her up, wondering if this person was Old Master Yu's "spy".

“Praise Iesu,” Xiao Yao said.

The little girl gave him a strange look: "And here, choose a group."

Grouping...

Church history, church architecture, new believer training, basic Latin… Oh, so these are electives? What is this? Color psychology, vocal basics, and beach volleyball?! What is all this…?

"Excuse me, Shen...Xu, uh, which group did Yu Luying choose?" Xiao Yao asked eagerly.

Chapter 294 Be a Good Child

2023-08-14