"He's right. He wouldn't understand what I read."
Chen Zhuo looked at Chen Jianqiang, his tone unwavering. He was simply stating a fact.
"I don't have a special study method, nor do I know how to teach a middle schooler."
Chen Zhuo pointed at the two cartons of milk.
"Take your things back. I can't tutor him."
Hearing Chen Zhuo's blunt refusal, Chen Jianqiang's expression immediately soured.
His smile faltered, replaced by a mixture of embarrassment and anger.
"Chen Zhuo, you're treating me like a stranger. We're family, after all. Blood is thicker than water. Now that you've been accepted to university and have a bright future, what's wrong with giving your own cousin a hand?"
Chen Jianqiang resorted to emotional blackmail.
"I'm not asking you to teach him anything profound. Just let him follow you around, see how you study, how you solve problems. That should be fine, shouldn't it?"
"No."
Chen Zhuo's reply was curt.
He didn't bother explaining why.
'Explaining the gap in intelligence and comprehension to someone like him would be a complete waste of time.'
Chen Jianqiang looked like he was about to say something else.
Just then,
The door was pushed open.
Chen Jianguo walked in, dressed in a blue work uniform and carrying a black plastic bag. The factory equipment was under maintenance today, so he was home early.
When Chen Jianguo entered, he saw the three people standing in the living room and froze.
Then, he saw Chen Jianqiang standing to one side.
Chen Jianguo's brow furrowed slightly.
He knew exactly what kind of person his distant cousin was.
The man never visited unless he wanted something. Showing up with gifts right after Chen Zhuo's name appeared in the paper... you didn't need to be a genius to figure out why he was here.
"Jianqiang? What are you doing here?"
Chen Jianguo slipped on his house slippers and placed the plastic bag on the shoe cabinet by the door.
When Chen Jianqiang saw Chen Jianguo, it was as if he'd seen his savior.
He hurried over to him.
"Oh, Jianguo, you're finally back!"
Chen Jianqiang grabbed Chen Jianguo's arm.
"Well, I saw in the paper yesterday that our Chen Zhuo has made it big, so I brought Taozi over today to get familiar with the place and see his younger cousin."
Chen Jianqiang gestured to the gifts on the coffee table, then to Chen Zhuo.
"I was just talking it over with Chen Zhuo. I was hoping Taozi could stay with you for a few days so Chen Zhuo could tutor him."
Chen Jianqiang looked at Chen Jianguo and lowered his voice, a hint of complaint in his tone.
"But this kid, Chen Zhuo, he's got quite an attitude. He refused flat out and even told us to leave. Jianguo, you tell me, we're all family, so..."
Chen Jianguo didn't take the bait.
He walked to the coffee table.
He glanced at the two cartons of milk and a bag of apples.
He then glanced at Taozi, who was standing to the side with his head down, looking thoroughly uncomfortable.
Finally, Chen Jianguo's gaze fell upon Chen Zhuo.
Chen Zhuo met his gaze without a word.
Chen Jianguo turned back to Chen Jianqiang.
The calm, authoritative air he usually had when training apprentices in the workshop surfaced.
"Jianqiang."
Chen Jianguo spoke.
"Chen Zhuo was right."
Chen Jianqiang was taken aback.
"Jianguo, what do you mean by that...?"
Chen Jianguo walked over to the sofa but didn't sit.
He picked up the two cartons of milk and the bag of apples from the coffee table and shoved them back into Chen Jianqiang's hands.
"The boy is leaving for Huizhou in a few days."
Chen Jianguo looked at Chen Jianqiang, his tone leaving no room for negotiation.
"He barely has time to get through his own studies. How could he possibly have time to tutor someone else?"
Chen Jianguo gestured to Chen Zhuo.
"Besides, Chen Zhuo is only ten years old. He's just a kid himself. Taozi is already fourteen and in his second year of middle school."
"You want a ten-year-old to teach a fourteen-year-old? Does that sound right to you?"
Chen Jianguo mercilessly shattered Chen Jianqiang's fantasy.
"If Taozi's grades are bad, that's a matter for his teachers and for you, his father. You should be going to his school more often, keeping a closer eye on him. What do you think you're doing, just dumping him on my doorstep?"
Chen Jianguo's words were harsh, showing no regard for his distant cousin's pride.
Clutching the gifts that had been shoved back at him, Chen Jianqiang's face flushed with anger and embarrassment.
Working in the factory, he was used to putting on an act and the usual back-and-forth excuses between relatives. He thought that if he just begged shamelessly enough, Chen Jianguo would be too concerned about appearances to refuse and would surely agree.
But he never expected Chen Jianguo to be so unyielding today, completely shutting him down.
"Jianguo... you... You're looking down on us because we're poor relatives, aren't you?"
Chen Jianqiang squeezed out the words through clenched teeth.
"Don't try that line on me."
Chen Jianguo wasn't falling for it.
He gestured toward the door.
"My Chen Zhuo is no Wenqu Star. His brain just works a little better than most. He can't help your Taozi."
"Take your things and go. We're busy, so we won't ask you to stay for dinner."
It was a blatant dismissal.
Chen Jianqiang stood rooted to the spot and took two deep breaths.
He turned his head and glared fiercely at Taozi.
"You useless thing! Let's go!"
Clutching the two cartons of cheap milk and the bag of apples, Chen Jianqiang walked toward the door without a backward glance.
Looking as if he'd been granted a pardon, Taozi quickly followed his father out the security door.
Chen Jianguo walked over and closed the security door, then the inner wooden door as well.
And bolted them shut.
Quiet returned to the living room.
On the TV, *My Fair Princess* had finished at some point. A laundry detergent commercial was now playing.
Chen Jianguo walked to the coffee table, picked up the glass of water Chen Zhuo had poured earlier, and downed it in one gulp.
He let out a long sigh.
Turning his head, he looked at Chen Zhuo, who had sat back down on the sofa and picked up his game console.
"Are you okay?" Chen Jianguo asked.
"I'm fine."
Chen Zhuo stared at the blocks on the screen, his thumbs moving rapidly over the buttons.
"These people... they just love drama. They really think getting first place is some kind of cure-all."
Chen Jianguo shook his head and sat down on a small stool nearby.
He took a cigarette out of his pocket and lit it.
He took a drag.
"If people like that come knocking again," Chen Jianguo said, looking at Chen Zhuo.
"Don't bother with them. Don't even open the door."
"Got it."
Chen Zhuo replied.
Chen Jianguo smoked his cigarette, watching the TV.
The cool breeze from the electric fan washed over him, dissipating much of the sweltering heat he'd brought back from the workshop.

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