The landline phone was pulled out from under the table. Wen Ci dialed the main switchboard number for the Beijing Military Region and said in a soft voice, “Please connect me to the landline at Old Chief Huo’s residence.”
Huo Jingyuan was resting at home.
“Alright.”
The switchboard operators at the Beijing Military Region could verify the location of the landline, so there was no worry about dangerous individuals calling to provoke trouble.
After a short wait, the voice of a female operator from the main switchboard came through. “I am now connecting your call. You will be transferred after the beep.”
As soon as she finished speaking, Huo Jingyuan’s magnetic, deep voice sounded, asking in a serious tone, “Hello? May I ask what this is regarding?”
Wen Ci replied calmly, “It’s me.”
She strongly suspected that Huo Jingyuan had intentionally arranged for her to visit Grandma Wu, using her as a bridge to facilitate a reasonable meeting.
“You’re at Grandma Wu’s house now?”
Wen Ci: “…”
She knew it!
That sly man had done it on purpose.
Wen Ci took a deep breath, trying to keep her tone as even as possible. With a strained smile, she said, “Get yourself over to Tsinghua University right now, immediately.”
“Darling…”
“Hmm?”
Almost immediately, Huo Jingyuan put down the receiver. He could tell how angry his wife was. He had only recently remembered this elder.
Su Wanqing did know how to use a computer, but he didn’t want her to cause trouble between him and Wen Ci.
Wen Ci’s suggestion to hire a Qingbei professor who knew computers reminded him that his late grandfather had a close female friend who taught at Tsinghua.
He had met her when he was young. After asking around through military connections, he found out that his grandfather’s friend was among the first group of students to study abroad on government scholarships. She was also one of the few Tsinghua professors who had a computer at home.
Huo Jingyuan grabbed some money and headed out. Visiting an elder required bringing gifts.
…
Main Switchboard Room.
A few female soldiers couldn’t help but chuckle upon hearing Wen Ci’s tone, joking among themselves, “Battalion Commander Huo’s wife has quite a way of speaking.”
“Henpecked.”
“But I heard that Battalion Commander Huo from the northwest is married to Minister Jiang’s daughter?”
“Not exactly.”
The female soldiers responsible for transferring calls at the main switchboard could hear both sides of the conversation. They had all signed confidentiality agreements.
They were not allowed to disclose the content of any calls.
Anyone found leaking call details would face a military tribunal.
“What do you mean?”
As soon as the words were spoken, the chief operator in charge glanced at them, her voice icy cold. “A little gossip is one thing, but are Minister’s family affairs something you should be discussing? Your team will run three kilometers with weighted packs tonight.”
…
Half an hour later, Huo Jingyuan arrived at the faculty residential compound of Tsinghua University. Looking at the locust tree in the center of the courtyard, a trace of nostalgia flickered in his eyes.
When he was a child, the kids from the military compound, when bored, loved to run over to the Qingbei campus. Tsinghua University was like a backyard playground for the children of the compound.
Following his childhood memories, Huo Jingyuan walked to Grandma Wu’s door. It was slightly ajar. Wen Ci and Wen Yaozu were sitting on the sofa.
Huo Jingyuan, holding gift boxes in both hands, knocked on the door.
When Wen Ci saw Huo Jingyuan enter, she rolled her eyes at him. As he sat down beside her, she reached behind and pinched his waist. “Why didn’t Jingyuan come sooner to visit?”
“Uh…”
Grandma Wu smiled. “Have you discussed the computer lessons with Qianqian?”
Huo Jingyuan replied, “Yes, I have.”
After remembering Grandma Wu, he had immediately asked someone to contact Wu Qian, who was now the vice dean of the Computer Science Department at Tsinghua—the youngest vice dean at the university.
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