Chapter 159: Chapter 125 Sister’s Love Words Chapter 159: Chapter 125 Sister’s Love Words Ring ring!
The phone ringing woke Zhou Wang from his sleep.
He always put his phone on “Do Not Disturb” while sleeping. It was impossible otherwise with the countless daily calls and WeChat messages; it was the only way to get a decent sleep…
However, he had set up a whitelist, so a few people could still call him anytime.
Glancing at the caller ID, Zhou Wang was a bit surprised, but he quickly answered the call.
“Hello, Dad?”
“Son, are you busy?”
Zhou’s father’s voice came from the other end.
“No, Dad, go ahead.”
“Your mom will send you a WeChat contact later, please add it.”
“Who is it?”
A sense of unease crept into Zhou Wang’s mind, as incidents like this had happened before.
“Your Sister Qingkui, remember?”
“Which Sister Qingkui?”
Zhou Wang was a bit confused.
“The Jiang Qingkui from upstairs when we lived in the old apartment! Which other Jiang Qingkui could it be?”
Unable to stand it, his mother, Zhao Guihua, grabbed the phone and said in an exasperated tone, “You used to go to her house to do homework as a kid, don’t you remember?”
With Zhao Guihua’s reminder, some vague memory fragments finally surfaced in Zhou Wang’s mind.
He finally remembered who this “Sister Qingkui” his parents referred to was.
It wasn’t exactly a childhood sweetheart thing, as Jiang Qingkui was six or seven years older than him, more like a sister who grew up in the same neighborhood.
But Jiang Qingkui was no ordinary girl.
Her name was not only famous in that state-owned enterprise’s old neighborhood but was also well-known across the whole of Jing City. She had appeared on TV and in the newspapers. Even though some years had passed, many citizens probably still remembered her.
The reason was simple: she was the 2015 Yunan Province top liberal arts student in the college entrance exams.
Zhou Wang still remembered the scene of her family being swamped by admission officers from major universities because Zhou Wang’s father had a good relationship with Jiang Qingkui’s dad. At that time, Zhou Wang’s parents even helped with welcoming guests, serving tea and water.
Of course, her excellence wasn’t just evident back then. She had already won awards in various national competitions, and as long as she studied at Jing City First Middle School, which was considered prestigious even nationwide, she had held the top rank in her grade for as long as she attended.
In some sense, she was another “child of someone else” in the eyes of Zhou Wang’s parents, a childhood shadow for Zhou Wang.
“You see, Jiang Qingkui…”
Zhou Wang had heard this starting phrase of parental education so many times that his ears had grown callouses.
Even though his own grades were not bad, compared to such a gifted girl, it was not in the same league. From a young age, he had felt thoroughly overshadowed.
In fact, the reason why Zhou Wang chose to study law in college was also influenced by his father being swayed by Jiang Qingkui’s path and setting law as his first choice.
Thinking that if the top student chose it, it must have a promising future, right?
At that time, Zhou Wang himself didn’t have much of an opinion, so he just went along with it.
Zhou Wang and Jiang Qingkui weren’t really familiar, given the age gap. Jiang Qingkui never played with other kids in the yard, always preferring to go solo with a few books, leaving an impression on Zhou Wang as a cold and distant top student.
If it weren’t for the times his father took him to her house to do homework during middle school, she probably wouldn’t remember Zhou Wang either.
Even then, they had hardly spoken to each other.
If there were any lingering impressions, perhaps it was that…
She was also the first person, during that phase of enlightenment a normal boy goes through after a certain age, who frequently appeared in Zhou Wang’s mind.
This jumbled fantasy continued until he entered high school, and when Zhou Wang discovered new horizons at a classmate’s house, she was quickly replaced by more vibrant images of older sisters on screens.
After all, she wore clothes, while Yamakasi, Erika, Yua, Ayaka, and others didn’t…
So now, hearing that his mom went to great lengths to get Jiang Qingkui’s WeChat, Zhou Wang found it quite baffling.
After being admitted to Beijing University for her undergraduate and master’s degrees, followed by a full scholarship at Harvard to pursue a doctorate abroad, she had long become part of another world. What connection could she possibly have with someone like him?
“Didn’t Jiang Qingkui go abroad ages ago?” Zhou Wang asked puzzled.
“She came back. We ran into your Uncle Jiang while shopping yesterday. He said your Sister Qingkui earned her Ph.D. in law abroad and recently returned to the country. She’s in Ming City now!” Zhao Guihua said earnestly, “Your mom had to thicken her skin to ask your Uncle Jiang for the WeChat. Quickly add her!”
“Mom, why should I add her? She’s practically a stranger now!”
Zhou Wang replied, exasperated.
“You grew up together, how is she a stranger? Besides, there’s your dad’s and your Uncle Jiang’s longstanding friendship!”
Seeing Zhou Wang uninterested, Zhao Guihua said angrily, “Mom wants you to contact her and seek some guidance. Your dad believes you should still get your bar qualification, or what will you do in the future?”
Zhou Wang was taken aback realizing his mom’s intention.
“So you’re not trying to set me up with Jiang Qingkui?”
Zhou Wang realized he might have misunderstood.
Mainly because his mom had previously introduced a distant niece from back home when he was still in college, asking him to treat her to a meal in Ming City…
Anyway, parents from the older generation were like this, hoping you would get married right after graduation. The notion of establishing a career before starting a family didn’t exist for them.