The Sea Queen of 1985

Chapter 293: Chapter 293: Bargaining with Uncle

The daily necessities had all been prepared.

The guest rooms, living room, and dining room were on the first floor.

The kitchen was in a side room, keeping the air in the main house fresh.

One person was responsible for cooking and cleaning, while another took care of the garden, lawn, and other outdoor chores.

Ye Feng went next door and brought back Xiaobai, the dog his aunt was raising.

Ye Zheng stood in the courtyard, looking at a crabapple tree. Although it wasn’t in bloom, he could imagine its beauty when it was.

The face and smile of his beloved were still clear in his mind.

He wasn’t a man of letters, but at this moment, only a poem by Su Shi could express how he felt.

Ten years, life and death, a boundless separation. I try not to remember, yet I can never forget.

Her lonely grave, a thousand miles distant, with nowhere to speak of my desolation.

Although Ye Zheng came to pay his respects to his beloved every year, the feeling of powerlessness from being separated by death, never to meet again, left him deeply frustrated.

But one had to go on living. He couldn’t stay immersed in sorrow forever.

Ye Feng led Xiaobai on a leash, with Pingping and An’an following, laughing and giggling. They carefully stroked the dog’s fluffy ears, finding them incredibly fun to touch.

Ye Feng threw a frisbee, and Xiaobai quickly chased after it.

Pingping and An’an threw it too, and soon Xiaobai could barely keep up. For a moment, the backyard was filled with joyful laughter, scattering Ye Zheng’s grief.

Ye Feng saw the deep sadness in his father’s eyes and handed him a frisbee. ”You throw it, too. It’s fun.”

Ye Zheng smiled. ”This is a game for children.”

”Yeah, it’s a game for children. Are you learning how to take care of kids now?” Ye Feng chuckled. ”Get some practice in. When I have kids in the future and you’re retired, maybe you can even help me look after them!”

Ye Zheng paused for a moment, then smiled. ”Alright!”

In truth, Ye Zheng knew there was no way it would be his turn to look after Ye Feng’s children. His in-laws were so obsessed with the idea of grandchildren they were practically going crazy over it. He could never compete with them.

However, Ye Feng’s attitude made Ye Zheng understand that his son truly accepted him as a father.

His future children would also be part of the Ye Family.

That was enough for him. This was so much better than the brat from before who only knew how to make him fly into a rage.

’It seems that falling in love, getting engaged, and getting married are good things after all,’ he thought. ’At least they’ve made Ye Feng grow up quickly.’

”I’m looking forward to it,” Ye Zheng said with a smile. ”Boy or girl, it doesn’t matter. As long as they’re your children, I’ll love them.”

He didn’t care for many people, but he wouldn’t mind having a few more grandsons and granddaughters.

”Alright!” Ye Feng smiled and went back to playing with Pingping and An’an.

Ye Zheng watched Ye Feng getting along so well with Pingping and An’an, and he smiled too.

’If Ye Feng becomes a father in the future, he’ll definitely be a good one.’

That evening, the family dinner was held at the Xu family’s home.

Only Old Madam Xu, Mr. Xu, Xu Yingying, and Ye Feng’s uncle, Xu Jizu, were there.

However, Ye Feng’s uncle preferred to be called Professor Xu, or Xu Mike.

”Mike, look how cute children are. You’re even more handsome than Ye Feng; your kids would definitely be even more beautiful. Why don’t you get married?” Xu Yingying coaxed, speaking on behalf of her parents.

If she didn’t bring it up, she knew her parents would, and it would just end in another argument where everyone left upset.

”Sis, I don’t have time to get married right now. No matter how cute they are, children are just a hassle to me,” Xu Mike said, shaking his head in refusal. ”I really enjoy my single life.”

Ye Feng sidled up to them and asked, ”Uncle, be honest with me. Are you into men?”

Xu Mike didn’t know whether to laugh or cry. He gave Ye Feng a light punch. ”What nonsense are you spouting? I’m single, but that doesn’t mean I don’t date. I just date without getting married.”

Hearing this, Ye Feng gave him a scornful look. ”Player.”

”No, we both get what we want. It’s a fair trade,” Xu Mike said with a shrug. He was wearing gold-rimmed glasses and had a stylish haircut.

Seeing his uncle’s appearance and style, Ye Feng decisively branded him: ”A wolf in sheep’s clothing!”

Xu Mike shook his head. ”You people from a socialist country just don’t understand the joys of a capitalist country.”

”Then go on and keep corrupting your capitalist country,” Ye Feng retorted, done with trying to persuade him. ”We’ll see how long your decadent capitalism can run rampant.”

Xu Mike wasn’t the least bit angry. Instead, he chuckled, ”I’d also like to see the potential of your so-called socialism, which is supposed to be more advanced than capitalism.”

”Then we’ll just have to wait and see. If you can’t make it in the United States, you can always come back. After all, even though you’re not a great person, Professor Xu, you’re still a brilliant academic.”

Xu Mike said smugly, ”But of course. I have my own dedicated lab at MIT. My research topic has a very promising future.”

At that moment, Ye Feng grinned and asked, ”Uncle, how about you take on an extra student for Hua Country?”

”Huh?” Xu Mike narrowed his eyes at his nephew. ”Why would you ask that? Didn’t you quit your job to go into business? Why are you still getting involved in these things?”

Ye Feng smiled. ”So what if I quit? Does that mean I’m not from China anymore? People from Hua Country are seen as outsiders abroad. So many brilliant Hua Country people can’t get ahead.”

”Foreign countries will never fully trust you. Your glass ceiling might be even lower than that of people from India, Mexico, or even Japan. The stronger our Hua Country becomes, the more America will be on guard against you.”

”Never put all your eggs in one basket, Uncle. You should leave yourself a way out. Do you think Grandpa came back to Hua Country to invest just out of patriotism? Or to make money? It’s neither. It’s because these are our roots as people of Hua Country. Here, you won’t be discriminated against. You’re a first-class citizen.”

Hearing this, Xu Mike thought for a moment. ”Alright. I’m taking on fifteen students next year. I’ll reserve five spots for Hua Country.”

”Ten!” Ye Feng demanded, making an outrageous opening bid.

Xu Mike rolled his eyes. ”Get lost! This is America we’re talking about! You think it’s a school your family owns? My lab gets two hundred million US Dollars in funding every year, and you want me to train students from back home? Are you trying to get me caught by the FBI?”

Ye Feng just smiled. ”As the saying goes, ask for the sky and you can settle for a lower price. If you can’t make it over there, you can come to Hua Country.”

Xu Mike shook his head. ”No way. My experiments burn through too much money. If I come to Hua Country, there’s no funding. My research budget is a tenth of Hua Country’s entire foreign exchange reserve. How could they possibly give me that much funding here?”

Ye Feng knew he was putting his uncle in a tough spot. ”Uncle, just try to think of something.”

”Six. That’s the most I can do. If that’s not good enough, then don’t bring it up again,” Xu Mike replied. Although he wanted to help his home country, he couldn’t just throw his own career away!

Ye Feng put his arm around his uncle’s shoulder and patted it. ”Thanks, Uncle.”

”Ye Feng, with your current assets, you have no need to work so hard on these thankless tasks,” Xu Mike countered. He had already been old enough to remember things when he left Hua Country.

In truth, his childhood memories weren’t pleasant, so his feelings for Hua Country were complicated.

Ye Feng looked up at Xu Mike. ”Uncle, a son doesn’t find his mother ugly, nor does a child despise his family for being poor. Our country has its share of problems, but in the face of our nation’s greater cause, they’re all insignificant.”

”We may be poor, but we are independent and self-reliant! We’re undergoing reforms, opening up, and developing our economy, fumbling our way towards our own path. Whether you look at our social system or the cycles of history, I believe that our Hua Country will inevitably achieve its great rejuvenation.”