The spring was sucked dry.
Shen Shi'an's first reaction was to go find Shen Xun. After thinking about it, he realized that this matter was definitely related to the great change. However, the child didn't know anything about it. His big dark green eyes were clear and clear, and he looked completely ignorant and innocent.
Too. Even he couldn't explain things. How could a little puppy who had just become a sperm for a few days know the answer?
Shen Shi'an was a little worried, but at this point he could only accept the reality. Every once in a while, he would enter the space to observe, recording the water volume of the Lingquan Pool and the condition of the spring in detail, not daring to let go of any clues.
Fortunately, except for the drying up of the spring, nothing abnormal has happened to anything else in the space for the time being. Items from the outside can still be brought in. The newly planted tomato trees bear fruit normally, and the cherry pits buried in the soil have grown to half a meter. Tall saplings.
At the same time, without Shen Shi'an's permission and guidance, Shen Xun was still unable to get even half a step closer to the spiritual spring, and was firmly blocked five meters away by the golden barrier——
At this time, Shen Shi'an finally understood the role and significance of the protective shield.
In the blink of an eye, it’s February 4th, the Lunar New Year’s Eve.
Shen Shi'an opened his eyes at six o'clock as usual. Shen Xun was about to stay in bed, sticking his buttocks out and curling himself into a ball under the quilt, but he was so greedy by the rich smell of meat coming from outside the door not long after that. Following the aroma, he walked into the kitchen. His feathers were trembling like a bird's nest, and he hugged Shen Shi'an's calf sleepily: "...meat..."
Shen Shi'an tasted the chicken soup, turned it down to a simmer and continued to cook. "Speak well and speak completely in one sentence." Probably because he was not familiar with human language, he found that children were cutting corners more and more when speaking, and those who could use one word would definitely not use two. This is not a good habit. Even if he can understand it, the flaw will be discovered sooner or later when contacting the outside world, so he is committed to correcting it as soon as possible.
Shen Xun was not fully awake yet, so he yawned and rubbed his face on his pants. The coral velvet home clothes fabric was soft and comfortable, and was filled with the fresh and delicious smell of the owner. After holding it in for a while, he said it again: "...meat...I want to eat..."
Shen Shi'an wiped his hands, lifted him up and carried him to the bathroom: "Brush your teeth and wash your face first, wash carefully. If you spit out the toothpaste foam, you can't swallow it."
"…sweet…"
"...I can't even swallow the sweetness."
Staring at him standing on the children's stool after washing up, he peeled two eggs and poured a glass of milk for the child: "The meat is not ready yet, wait a little longer and you can eat it after pasting the couplets."
Shen Shi'an posted it, and Shen Xun helped pass the transparent tape while raising his head to check whether the couplet was crooked or not. In the end, there was only one little golden pig left. Shen Shi'an thought for a moment, put it on his back while the child was not paying attention, and then calmly invited Wan Feng across from him to come over for dinner.
Now only Wan Feng is left among the two bodyguards. Fan Guoping's wife and daughter are both in City B. It's the New Year's Eve and Wan's family is reunited. It's hard to let the other body be separated from his family on New Year's Eve, so Shen Shi An asked Mr. Gu for three days' leave in advance. Before the call, he thought he would have to spend some time. Unexpectedly, Mr. Gu was unexpectedly easy to talk to and agreed after thinking about it for a moment. Fan Guoping was of course overjoyed and had already set off home last night.
According to Shen Shi'an's plan, he was originally going to ask for leave for Wan Feng. Firstly, nothing abnormal had happened around him since the car accident. Secondly, with space as a basis, it was not easy to kill him now. However, Wan Feng refused, saying that he was the only one left in the family and it would be the same wherever he celebrated the New Year.
This point is already considered brunch. According to the Shen family's custom, noodles are served in broth. The soup base is a large bone broth that has been simmered for a few hours in advance at a set time. It has a color like milk and is rich in aroma. It bubbles in the casserole. Pour the cooked noodles through cold water and put them into a large open bowl. Sprinkle with chopped green onion, blanch two green vegetables, put a few slices of ham and a golden poached egg on top, and then pour a full spoonful of milky white noodles on top. Bone broth, and a ladleful of chicken broth dripping with golden fat. The green onions are green, the ham is pink, the poached eggs are crispy on the outside and tender on the inside, and the blanched vegetables are refreshing and refreshing. The steaming heat mixed with the aroma of bone marrow, chicken and chopped green onions hits our faces. After finishing the meal, everyone is sweating.
Wan Feng offered to wash the dishes, Shen Xun sat on the stool and ate chicken legs, and Shen Shi'an began to prepare the highlight of the night - dumplings.
Wan Feng talks little, and unlike Shen Shian, who is cold and distant towards most people, he either has no sense of existence, or his sense of existence is so strong that it can scare children into tears. He washed all the dishes and chopsticks with the caution of treating fine weapons, turned around and saw Shen Shi'an's skillful kneading movements, and was slightly surprised: "Here in H City, there seems to be more New Year's Eve dinner on New Year's Eve." Eat on New Year's Eve Dumplings are generally a custom in the north.
Shen Shi'an kept moving his hands, beating and rolling the dough back and forth, and replied: "My grandma and grandpa were originally from the north. They went to the south to study in the 1980s. After graduation, they settled in H City and lived here for several years. Ten years later, some northerners still retain the habit of eating dumplings every New Year’s Eve.”
Wan Feng understood that it was so. After looking at it for a while, he said: "Mr. Shen is very skilled."
Shen Shi'an smiled and said nothing. He learned the skill of making dumplings from his mother, who also learned from his grandfather. After his mother passed away, he practiced cooking with his grandfather. After studying for several years, he finally made dumplings that were 70-80% similar to those made by his mother.
Knead the dough thoroughly, shape it into balls, and then roll it into palm-sized dumpling wrappers. There are three kinds of fillings prepared, pork, shepherd's purse and corn filling, leek, egg and shrimp filling, and shrimp, fish and pork filling.
The stuffing was minced finely, and the juice was splashing everywhere. Although it was still half-cooked, the aroma was already very tempting. Shen Xun imitated Shen Shi'an and held up a piece of dumpling wrapper. He stuffed the stuffing inside and couldn't help but eat it secretly. Shen Xun was Shi'an caught him and stormed out of the kitchen with a cold face, not allowed to come closer.
Mr. Gu arrived at about seven o'clock in the evening.
With a chill all over his body, he apologized to Shen Shi'an after entering the door: "I didn't expect it to be so late. I was delayed by something. Have you been waiting for a long time?"
After Wan Feng said hello to his employer, he said goodbye and returned to the house opposite. Shen Shi'an stood upright at the entrance with a calm expression: "No, I just finished making dumplings." Then he got him a pair of disposable ones for guests. slippers.
Mr. Gu took off his coat and looked down to see the child beside Shen Shi'an's legs. Although I had long known about his existence from the bodyguard, I was still a little surprised when I saw him: "...is this?"
Shen Shi'an said: "My son."
Mr. Gu's handsome and elegant face seemed to be distorted for a moment, and he opened his mouth as if to say something. Shen Shi'an had already turned around and walked back with the child in hand. He stood there for a moment, suppressed his doubts for the time being, sat on the sofa and changed into his slippers.
He is no stranger to Grandpa Shen's house. He came once many years ago when he was planning to propose to Qingran. Grandma Shen and Grandpa Shen each came once after their deaths. Shen Shi'an has lived alone for the past two and a half years and has come many times. A lot more.
The decoration and furnishings had not changed much from what he remembered, it was the clean and generous style inherited from the Shen family. It's just that there is a mushroom-shaped doghouse next to the foggy blue fabric sofa, which looks a bit out of place with the overall style.
His eyes passed over the kennel, and then went straight to the direction of the storage room. There was a faint tidal wave in his eyes, and he said to Shen Shi'an: "I'll go and burn incense for your mother first."
The storage room is clean and elegant. In front of Shen Qingran's photos are the sacrifices that were changed in the morning. The scent of sandalwood is mixed with the aroma of fruits and flowers. It is quiet and soft, making people feel clear.
Mr. Gu looked at the photo, his eyes were red, and he smiled and shouted: "Qingran, I'm here to see you."
Shen Shi'an did not follow, and sat on the sofa with Shen Xun for about half an hour, until he heard the child's stomach growling. He walked over and knocked on the door: "Mr. Gu, it's time to eat."
The dumplings are cooked very quickly, and the water is boiled in the pot. After a while, the fat dumplings like gold ingots will turn white. Shen Shi'an first gave Wan Feng two basins, then scooped up the rest and brought them to the table. He set out the dishes, cups, chopsticks, soy sauce and vinegar, and opened a bottle of red wine. The main seat was empty, Mr. Gu sat on one side, and Shen Shi'an and Shen Xun sat on the other side.
It is forbidden to set off fireworks and firecrackers in the city, but you can still hear a few explosions and the cheerful laughter of children. The Spring Festival Gala started playing on the TV in the living room. The sound was neither too loud nor too quiet. With the room full of lights and steaming dumplings, it also showed a bit of a New Year atmosphere.
Mr. Gu raised his wine glass, with nothing unusual around his eyes, and smiled gently and elegantly: "Thank you for your hard work, An'an. I wish you success in your studies in the new year and all the best, and live up to your youthful years."
Shen Shi'an also raised his wine glass, reached over and touched it lightly: "I also wish Mr. Gu that all his wishes will come true and he will prosper smoothly."
Shen Xunren's short arms could not reach him even if he was sitting on a specially raised chair. He could only pull Shen Shi'an's hand down to clink glasses with him. Seeing the attractive color of the red wine in his glass, he smacked his lips to indicate Want to have a taste.
"This is wine, children cannot drink it." Shen Shi'an pulled his hand back and rubbed his furry head twice: "Drink your tomato juice."
Mr. Gu observed his expression and looked back and forth between him and the child twice. After thinking for a long time, he finally asked: "An'an, is this really your child?"
Shen Shi'an put a few dumplings filled with shrimp and fish paste into Shen Xun's bowl and nodded, "His surname is Shen, his name is Shen Xun. He is three years old. His mother doesn't want him, so I will raise him from now on."
He didn't expect Gu Jingchen to believe this rhetoric, but whether the other party believed it or not, it didn't make much difference to him. He raised his head and looked at Mr. Gu: "His mother and I had an ugly quarrel and have completely cut off contact. I don't have his birth certificate and can't let him register, so he is now equivalent to a black household. I can't solve this problem for the time being. There is a solution, I wonder if you can trouble Mr. Gu for help?"
Mr. Gu felt sour because of the obvious unfamiliarity in his words, but also felt a little relieved because it was rare for him to ask for help. He immediately agreed: "Don't worry, I will leave this matter to me."
After saying this, there was a brief silence at the dinner table. Shen Xun was the only one who stuffed dumplings into his mouth without any distractions. Before he could finish the dumplings in his mouth, he put several more on his fork.
Mr. Gu is a powerful figure in the shopping mall, and he is also very good at dancing in the officialdom. However, he has never found it so difficult to chat with his son who is very similar to Shen Qingran.
He picked up the glass and took several sips, and finally found a topic: "I talked with your counselor. Your grades this semester are very good. Although you missed more than a month of classes, your professional course grades are still among the best. As long as you keep it up, there will definitely be no problem in getting direct admission to graduate school. Have you considered whether you want to study in this school for graduate school? Which direction do you want to study? "
"Well, I'm going to choose pediatrics."
In fact, it is too early to say this now. He was only halfway through the five-year clinical medicine undergraduate program at University H. After being promoted to graduate school, in addition to continuing to learn theoretical knowledge, you also have to rotate in various clinical departments of affiliated hospitals, receive two-year regular training, and obtain the two certificates necessary for medical practice. After that, you can specialize and in-depth study in a specific direction. theoretical and practical research.
Starting from the third year of junior high school, we start to collect statistics on whether the school is willing to take the postgraduate entrance examination and research direction. This is a new teaching plan that the Medical University has only tried to implement in the past two years. The full name is "Point-to-Point, Standardized Early Training for Future Elites Foundation Project", which mainly targets the top two students in terms of performance points. Become a top student.
Take Shen Shi'an himself as an example. The direction he plans to submit for postgraduate study is pediatrics. From the next semester, the place where he goes to the hospital affiliated to the school to do odd jobs will gradually be in the pediatric department. It does not require him to learn it right away. What, the main thing is to increase familiarity and basic understanding of department procedures, and to be mentally prepared.
At the same time, the school will also provide various resources such as lectures, reports, exchange meetings with famous schools, and practical observation opportunities related to pediatrics for him to sign up, which can add extra credits.
If Shen Shian can maintain his current performance, then when he goes to graduate school, his tutor will definitely be a master of pediatrics;
If it is found in these early contacts that the direction of pediatrics is not suitable, adjustments can be made in time before going to graduate school.
This method of targeted training and concentrated resources is used to fully develop the potential of top students, and at the same time to retain outstanding students and prevent brain drain.
Mr. Gu had already understood this thoroughly, and was a little surprised at this time: "Pediatrics? Didn't you originally want to go to cardiac surgery?"
Shen Shi'an's expression remained unchanged, and he put a few more dumplings into the child's bowl, "Well, I changed my mind."
Mr. Gu was silent, and then nodded: "Whether you want to study pediatrics or not, as long as you like it, it doesn't matter. Your grades are very good, and you can study in this school as a graduate student. After you graduate, whether you want to stay in the medical university If you want to go to a research institute, you should go to work in a provincial hospital first, or go abroad to continue your studies, I will make arrangements for you in advance."
Shen Shi'an took the initiative to respect him: "Thank you for your trouble, Mr. Gu."
Mr. Gu felt a pain in his heart, "You don't have to be so polite to me." He drank all the red wine in the glass, poured another glass himself, and said warmly: "In addition to wanting to spend the New Year with you, I also have a friend who comes here this time. Good news for you: There were some changes in the Gu family a few years ago, and I am now the official head of the Gu family. If you are willing, I plan to take you back after the New Year and record it in the Gu family tree. From now on, you will be an upright member of the Gu family. Your eldest grandson should be yours, and I will get it back for you no matter what. Of course, you are still studying, so if you want to continue living in H City, that’s totally fine..."
"Mr. Gu," Shen Shi'an interrupted him, looked into his eyes and said word by word: "As for whether you would like to review your family, join the family tree, and become the eldest grandson of the Gu family, you asked your mother when she passed away. You asked me once, when my grandpa passed away, and today is the third time you asked me, my answer is still the same: I don’t want to. My mother is not interested in being your family caregiver, and I am not interested either. If Gu If you can convey my wishes clearly to the Gu family, I'm afraid there won't always be people thinking about taking my life."
Shen Shi'an's voice was very soft, but it made Gu Jingchen feel as if he had been stabbed several times, and his face turned pale inch by inch.
After a while, he smiled somewhat self-deprecatingly: "...An'an, do you hate me to death?"
There was no answer, and the original silence became more obscure and stagnant.
Shen Shi'an noticed that his sleeves were being pulled. He lowered his head and saw a pair of dark green eyes full of concern.
Shen Xunguang was eating dumplings. He didn't listen carefully to what the two talked about, but he could still feel that Shen Shi'an was obviously in a bad mood. He immediately slammed the fist holding the fork on the table and pointed at Gu The gentleman growled fiercely: "Ouch..."
If you dare to bully An An, you will die!
Shen Shi'an felt warm, pinched his cheek, and then shook his head at Mr. Gu: "No, I don't hate you."
My mother loved this man all her life. Even before her death, she tried to persuade herself not to live burdened with resentment, but to be open-minded and do good deeds every day. Loving someone is always easier and happier than hating someone.
His mother wanted to make her life easier, so Shen Shian didn't hate him.
But it is undeniable that, looking at him like this, I guess he may have experienced one ten thousandth of the pain he has suffered, and an almost vicious pleasure quietly gushes out from the bottom of his heart.
Shen Shi'an took a deep breath and pushed a plate of dumplings towards his hand: "Eat, it will cool down later."
Mr. Gu drank another glass of red wine, and the color on his face returned a lot. After eating several in silence, he adjusted his mind and smiled at Shen Shi'an: "It's delicious. It tastes exactly like what your mother makes."
"Eat more if you like. I packed more in the afternoon and there is still a lot left uncooked."
Probably because of the conversation about topics related to Shen Qingran, the atmosphere at the dinner table gradually warmed up. After eating a whole plate of dumplings, Gu Jingchen felt a little full, so she put down her chopsticks to take a breath.
He accidentally discovered that there were three empty plates on Shen Xun's hand, and he couldn't help but was surprised: "An'an, has this child eaten too much? There won't be any problems with eating." After saying that, he leaned forward slightly and wanted to stand in front of Shen Xun. took the plate away to stop him from eating any more.
Before his fingers touched the edge of the plate, the child's eyes suddenly turned sinister, and he bared two rows of small fangs. He rushed to the chair and bit him with a "ouch".
The sharp and crisp sound of teeth clashing echoed for a long time. Mr. Gu took his hand back dangerously, and his face, which was about to regain its color, immediately turned two points whiter.
Shen Shi'an pushed the child back into his seat and calmly explained: "It's okay, he's growing taller."
After dinner, the three of them sat on the sofa and watched the Spring Festival Gala. Shen Shi'an poured a glass of tomato juice for Mr. Gu, "Freshly squeezed, sober up."
Shen Xun was also holding a glass of tomato juice, and while he was drinking, he suddenly staggered around like a tumbler. Shen Shi'an noticed something was wrong, took a sip from his cup, and immediately raised his eyebrows and sneered: Okay, this little thing is too I don't know when he was not paying attention, but he mixed more than half of the red wine with the tomato juice, and made himself drunk.
Fortunately, he didn't go crazy when he was drunk. He rested on Shen Shi'an's lap and refused to get up. His dark green eyes were wet and glistening. He held Shen Shi'an's hand and muttered softly: "... An'an... delicious... mine..."
Shen Shi'an didn't understand this confusing sentence. He just thought he was drunk and still thinking about food. He was angry and funny, so he slapped him on the butt: How can you be a bitch? It's obvious that you are. The reincarnation of the pig spirit.
Gu Jingchen sat next to him, looking at the smile on Shen Shian's face and couldn't help but feel confused: he looked so much like Qingran, especially his eyes, they were exactly the same when he smiled.
Shen Shi'an noticed his gaze and looked up: "Do you want more tomato juice?"
"...Ah, okay, thank you An An."
Shen Shi'an picked up the glass jug and poured him another glass. The sleeves of his sweater shrank up with the movement, revealing a dark blue lotus tattoo on his wrist.
Mr. Gu paused and leaned forward: "Where are your beads?" That string of beads was Qingran's relic, and An An had never taken them off in his memory.
Shen Shi'an pulled back his sleeves: "I disappeared when I woke up from the hospital. The rope should have been broken during the car accident." After thinking about it, he asked: "Did mother tell you anything about this string of beads?" If If you know the specific origin of the beads, you may be able to get clues about space.
Mr. Gu recalled for a moment, then shook his head: "I didn't say much. I remember only mentioning it once, saying it was an heirloom passed down from the Shen family's ancestors." Every jade stone used to carve the Buddha lotus is very old and has a transparent texture. It's worth a lot of money, so it's a pity to lose it like this, not to mention it's Aoran's relic. This kid probably couldn't let it go, so he got a tattoo as a replacement.
Thinking of that mysterious car accident, a cold light suddenly flashed in his eyes.
Suddenly I thought of another thing and said, "Your car was totaled in a car accident, right? How about I buy you a new one?"
"Don't bother, I can buy it myself." His car was insured. Because the damage in the car accident was too complete, the insurance company paid half of the purchase price of the new car. Coupled with the savings left by his mother and grandparents, paying for an ordinary car is not a problem.
"It's only natural for me to buy you a car, so there's no trouble." On this issue, Gu Jingchen didn't intend to give in: "Your birthday is coming soon, even if it's my birthday gift to you."
In order to prevent Shen Shi'an from continuing to refuse, he added: "Not only am I giving you a birthday gift, I also want to give Shen Xun a meeting gift. Xun Xun, is there anything you want, no matter what."
Shen Xun was half drunk and half awake, and opened his eyes in a daze: "...Anything is fine..."
"Yes, everything is fine." Gu Jingchen repeated patiently, "As long as it is what you want, I can give it to you."
This time Shen Xun understood, his eyes suddenly lit up, and he uttered the longest sentence since becoming a human: "...meat...I want meat...I want to fill a whole house with meat..."
Shen Shi'an: "..."
Mr. Gu was stunned, obviously not expecting such an answer, but he immediately agreed: "Okay, then it's settled."
If Shen Shi'an wanted to say anything more, the New Year's Eve countdown had already sounded on the TV: "...five, four, three, two, one!!"
Mr. Gu smiled and raised his glass: "An'an, Happy New Year."
Shen Shi'an pursed his lips, raised his cup and touched it: "Happy New Year."
The New Year's pendulum began to turn, and the sound of a series of fireworks was faintly heard from far away outside the window. Shen Shian turned off the TV and prepared to sleep.
The guest room has been arranged long ago, the pillows and quilts have just been dried, and the sheets and quilts have been replaced with new ones. Mr. Gu looked at it and said to Shen Shi'an: "I want to sleep in the storage room with your mother, is that okay?"
Shen Shi settled down and said, "There is no bed in the storage room, so we need to make a bed on the floor."
"I have no problem."
Working together, they carried the quilts and pillows into the storage room and tidied them up. Gu Jingchen stood at the door, looking at the young man in his prime, who had a natural and inseparable connection with himself and Qingran. Infinite pride and love welled up in his heart: " Can I hug you?"
When Shen Shi'an didn't move, Gu Jingchen reached out and took him into her arms. After a moment, he loosened his grip and gently touched his forehead like a father to his son: "Good night, have a good sleep."
Shen Xun was still drunk because he couldn't find Shen Shi'an rolling back and forth on the sofa. Shen Shi'an caught him in time before he fell, wiped his palms and cheeks with a hot towel, and then put him under the quilt in the master bedroom.
I got into bed and lay down, leaving only a night light on. Shen Xun followed the smell and moved into his arms, his face flushed, and his eyes shining brightly as he stared at him: "...An'an..."
"What's wrong?"
"…good evening…"
"Good night, go to sleep."
However, the child did not close his eyes, raised his arms and put his arms around his neck, and said again: "...Good night..."
Shen Shian was helpless: Just say good night and you go to sleep.
Shen Xun walked closer to him and emphasized again: "...Good night..."
An idea flashed in his mind. Shen Shi'an stared at the stubborn little thing and suddenly understood what he meant. There was a hint of smile in her obsidian eyes, and she lowered her head and kissed him on the forehead: "Good night."
Satisfied, Shen Xun curled up in his arms and closed his eyes happily.
