Chapter 4

In the half-dream, half-awake state, Liang Yuan felt an itch in his nose. He took a deep breath and let out two "hmm, hmm" sounds. A clear laugh echoed in his ears, and Liang Yuan slowly opened his eyes. The white ceiling was adorned with fluorescent light tubes and a large-diameter ceiling fan. The deep red parquet floor had some areas where the wood grain was exposed, the iron bed was painted in a gray-silver color, and the old-fashioned wooden window with its light yellow frame was spotless. Outside the window was a world of pure white.

The girl's snow-white face glowed with a delicate flush under the sunlight. Ning Wan Jia was sitting on the bed, using the tip of her hair to tickle Liang Yuan's nose. Liang Yuan reached out and grabbed Ning Wan Jia's arm. Ning Wan Jia laughed and struggled, "The sun is shining on your butt, Little Yuan is turning into a little pig."

"Brat, I'm not even awake yet," Liang Yuan said as he pulled Ning Wan Jia onto the bed. "You dare call me a brat, see if I don't teach you a lesson." Since girls mature earlier, Ning Wan Jia was not yet at a physical disadvantage. The two of them wrestled on the bed, "thump, thump, thump." "Quick, call me big sister, and I'll let you go," Ning Wan Jia temporarily gained the upper hand, pinning Liang Yuan down.

Ning Wan Jia and Ning Wan Fei are twins, born on the same day, month, and year as Liang Yuan. The adults vaguely remembered they were all born in the afternoon, but couldn't pinpoint the exact time. As a result, the three children often fought over who was the older sibling. Generally, it was the Ning sisters who fought among themselves to decide who was the older one, and then the two of them would team up against Liang Yuan. In his childhood, Liang Yuan often suffered miserably. Recently, Liang Yuan had started to grow taller. Although he still couldn't win against two, he would eventually have the upper hand in a one-on-one.

For a pervert, the most pleasant thing in the morning is to have a girl give you a morning kiss. For a middle-aged pervert, the most delightful thing is to have a super cute little girl rolling around on you. Liang Yuan's perverted soul was completely ignited, and his fighting spirit soared. A pure and good little girl, 11 years old, a flower in bloom, an angel on earth, a fairy in the human world—how many middle-aged uncles would willingly sink into and dream of such a treasure? Even at the risk of muscle strain, he had to push Jia Jia down today. Liang Yuan fought back, and indeed, Ning Wan Jia soon ran out of strength, and Liang Yuan successfully turned the tables.

Ning Wan Jia looked at Liang Yuan, who was panting on top of her, their noses almost touching, their breaths mingling, their thighs intertwined. Liang Yuan's features, inherited from Li Yuan Ling, were delicate and very pleasing to the eye. His eyebrows were long, his eyelashes thick, and his eyes were very dark, like a deep, bottomless pool that drew one in. Ning Wan Jia felt a sudden flutter in her heart, and a wave of shyness washed over her. She suddenly pushed Liang Yuan to the side and hit him a few times...

Liang Yuan saw Ning Wan Jia's cheeks turn red as she pushed him to the side. He realized the little girl was about to experience the first stirrings of love. He rubbed his fingers like a true middle-aged uncle and chuckled, "Jia Jia, where is Aunt Liang?"

Ning Wan Jia's big eyes were slightly puzzled, her face still flushed, and her white teeth bit her lip. Seeing Liang Yuan's strange smile, she hit him a few more times and said, "Aunt Liang went to the cafeteria to get breakfast."

Liang Yuan yawned and stretched on the bed. Seeing Ning Wan Jia's clear eyes still fixed on him, he asked, "What's wrong, Jia Jia?"

A small white hand reached out and touched Liang Yuan's forehead. Ning Wan Jia's eyes were a bit red. "I was so scared, I even swallowed a few mouthfuls of water, thinking I would never see Mom, Dad, Fei Fei, and you again. If it weren't for..." Liang Yuan reached out and pressed her pink lips, gazing into her clear eyes, his heart tightening. He thought of the slightly painful and innocent kiss from over a decade ago and said in his heart, "My silly girl." His finger traced the light pink lip line, and he said with a grin, "Jia Jia, why don't you call me Big Brother Little Yuan from now on?"

Liang Yuan expected a flurry of punches, but instead, Ning Wan Jia's cheeks turned red again. After a long pause, she suddenly called out clearly, "Big Brother Little Yuan." Hearing Ning Wan Jia's clear and gentle voice, Liang Yuan felt half of his body go numb, and he almost drooled. He murmured, "Jia Jia, call me 'Big Brother' again."

Ning Wan Jia's intuition made her feel extremely embarrassed, but she didn't expect Liang Yuan to respond with a strange "Big Brother." Her anger immediately overcame her shyness.

"Little Yuan, you disgusting guy." She hit him with a flurry of punches, and Liang Yuan, covering his head, ran into the bathroom.

Seeing Ning Wan Jia about to follow him into the bathroom, Liang Yuan quickly shouted, "I'm going to take off my pants and go to the bathroom." Ning Wan Jia kicked the bathroom door from outside and said, "Don't come out. When Aunt Liang buys breakfast, I'll throw it in for you."

Liang Yuan chuckled, thinking to himself, "Jia Jia is so kind, she even thinks of throwing it in for me. If it were Fei Fei, she would probably say, 'Don't come out, I'll throw away your breakfast.'"

The sound of high heels approached, and the old door creaked. "Aunt Liang, you're back." "Jia Jia, where is Little Yuan?"

Not hearing Ning Wan Jia's response, she probably pointed to the bathroom.

After Liang Yuan finished washing up, he saw the breakfast already set on the table. His mother and Jia Jia were sitting at the table, not touching their food. Seeing Liang Yuan come out, Ning Wan Jia wrinkled her nose and glared at him. Liang Yuan rolled his eyes discreetly. Li Yuan Ling smiled at the two children and said, "Let's eat. After breakfast, Little Yuan will get an X-ray. If there's nothing wrong, we'll go home today."

After breakfast, Li Yuan Ling took Liang Yuan directly to the X-ray room, and at Dr. Wang's suggestion, he also had a chest X-ray. Dr. Wang in the X-ray room talked to Li Yuan Ling for a long time, and it wasn't until 9:30 AM that Liang Yuan was finally allowed to leave the hospital.

Stepping out of the hospital gate, Liang Yuan took a long breath. Li Yuan Ling declined the hospital's offer to send a car, as her husband was not yet the section chief and she didn't want to give the impression of being ostentatious.

Just as they stepped out of the gate, Ning Wan Jia shouted, "It's Uncle Xiao Zhang." Following Ning Wan Jia's gaze, they saw a military green Beijing 212 jeep with the license plate "Kong 05-11544" parked on the opposite side of the road.

Ning Wan Jia skipped to the car, and Ning Lei's driver, Zhang Zhi, opened the door and said to Li Yuan Ling, "Hello, Teacher Li. Colonel Ning asked me to wait here."

Li Yuan Ling, a graduate of Shengjing Aviation Industry College with a major in aviation engine design, had been sent to the countryside for re-education during a special period. She met Liang Jiangping, who was leading a training exercise there, and was captivated by him, a man who had fought for the country and been injured in battle. After Liang Jiangping was transferred, Li Yuan Ling followed him to Benxi and currently taught junior high school physics at the Railway Middle School in Xihu District.

Li Yuan Ling smiled at Zhang Zhi and said, "Thank you, Xiao Zhang."

Ning Wan Jia opened the rear door of the 212 and said to Li Yuan Ling, "Aunt Liang, I want to sit in the back with you." She glared at Liang Yuan and said in a coquettish voice, "Little Yuan, you sit in the front, don't sit with me." Liang Yuan chuckled and said, "Jia Jia, if you call me Big Brother Little Yuan, I'll let you. Otherwise, I'll sit between you and Aunt Liang." Ning Wan Jia tried to kick Liang Yuan, but he laughed and circled around the front of the 212, opened the passenger door, and climbed into the car.

Zhang Zhi started the car and turned onto the main road. Liang Yuan and Ning Wan Jia bickered, but the innocent little girl was no match for the perverted middle-aged man. Soon, Ning Wan Jia was overwhelmed and clung to Li Yuan Ling's arm, pouting, "Aunt Liang, look, Little Yuan is just bullying me." Li Yuan Ling pinched Ning Wan Jia's smooth cheek and said, "When you two start junior high, I'll put you both in my class. Then I'll support you, and you can do whatever you want to this boy."

Ning Wan Jia, feeling she had found an ally, looked at Liang Yuan triumphantly. Liang Yuan chuckled but didn't dare to speak, knowing that with his recovery and the favoritism Ning Wan Jia received, provoking her could easily lead to his mother's intervention.

Moreover, based on his past memories, his mother's mentor, Professor Wu Zhonghua, an engineering thermophysicist, would soon write to his mother, inviting her to Shengjing 909 Institute to work on the project of converting the Spey aero engine core, imported from the UK in the early 1980s, into a high-power marine gas turbine and a power generation gas turbine. Ning Wan Jia's plan to rely on her mother for support in junior high was impossible.

This little girl is destined to be bullied by me, Liang Yuan thought, imagining the days ahead when he would tease Ning Wan Jia.

The car turned onto Dongshan Road, and the railway family compound came into view. Liang Yuan, looking at the familiar environment, felt a surge of emotion. Zhang Zhi slowed down, honked a few times at the gate, and then slowly turned the car into the compound, passing the familiar artificial hill and fountain in the center, and stopped at the northeast corner of the compound. Compared to the four-unit buildings in the compound, this building was unique, one story shorter than the typical seven-story buildings, and had only two units, with only two households per floor.

Liang Yuan stood at the entrance of the building, gazing up at the light gray building, filled with emotion. This place