213 – Gratitude

It was now July. To be exact, it was the time for students to have their summer vacation. Qin Mian didn’t arrange for Qin Ruiqi and Lei Ruilin to attend school. For the time being, the boys had a private tutor to teach them 5th Grade curriculum; the classes were held from 8 to 11 in the morning everyday. Qin Ruiqi and Lei Ruilin were eight years old. Normally, they should be in 3rd Grade, but both of them were very smart. Their knowledge was almost equal to that of the 5th Grade students. Qin Mian didn’t deliberately increase their learning intensity nor suppress their progress rate. The tutor would teach as much as they could learn. In short, he let nature take its course.

Qin Ruiqi and Lei Ruilin had a good relationship, so Qin Mian put them in the same bedroom with two sets of beds, writing desks and wardrobes. The other two bedrooms were made into a guest room and a study. There were a writing board and two sets of desks in the study, which made up a classroom.

When Qin Ruiqi and Lei Ruilin were in class, Qin Mian held a business card in his hand and made a phone call on the balcony.

Lei Tie was not at home. He had been learning to drive in the driving school these days.

After the call got through, a polite voice came from the other end, “Hello, who is this?”

“Are you Lin Feng?” Qin Mian said, “I’m Lei Ruilin’s father.”

The harsh sounds of the chair legs rubbing against the ground and the chair falling to the ground were heard in the phone call, followed by an excited voice, “I’m Lin Feng! Hello, Mister Lei!”

“My surname is Qin.” Qin Mian said, “Mister Lin, thank you for treating my son to a meal. I’ve heard my son talk about you and have a general understanding of your illness, but I can’t make a conclusion until I check your pulse personally. I wonder if Mister Lin is free these days?”

“Yes, yes!” Lin Feng said, “Mister Qin, I’m free any time.”

Qin Mian could understand the other person’s feelings, “So, how about we meet at 2 o’clock tomorrow afternoon at the entrance of the KFC restaurant on Fuyuan Road, S City?”

“No problem.”

Lei Tie learned to drive very quickly and didn’t go to the driving school the next day. After Qin Ruiqi and Lei Ruilin’s class, the family of four drove to the restaurant. Their car was a black SUV, which gave people a rough, stylish and heroic feeling. Qin Mian and Lei Tie liked it very much.

Qin Ruiqi and Lei Ruilin sat in the backseat. Lei Ruilin described the spicy chicken wings he ate that day to his Gege. Qin Ruilin didn’t say a word, but his gentle eyes showed that he was listening to his Didi’s words.

After parking the car in the parking lot, the family of four walked diagonally to the restaurant across the way.

Passers-by had all eyes on them, full of appreciation. The group of four was excellent both in appearance and attire. Qin Mian had sunglasses on his head, dressed in a black short sleeve T-shirt and a white capri pants, looking handsome and easy-going; Lei Tie was dressed in a white V-neck long sleeves with sunglasses hung at the collar and matched with a black slim-fit suit and jeans of the same color with a red and black plaid belt, looking coldly charming, just like a celebrity; Qin Ruilin and Lei Ruilin wore identical baseball caps and identical light blue and silver sports outfits with cartoon waist bags hung on their waist. They also got a 100% rate of turning heads.

Entering the restaurant, Lei Ruilin, just like he had been here before, took Qin Ruiqi to the ordering counter.

“Gege, this way.”

Qin Mian and Lei Tie followed, unhurriedly.

The people in the restaurant couldn’t help staring at them. Especially the young girls; their admiring eyes toured on the two men as they exchanged confidential whispers with their friends.

“Ruiqi and Ruilin, what do you want to eat?” Qin Mian put his arm around his eldest son’s shoulder and asked.

Qin Ruiqi said, “Daddy, Old Daddy¹; I want a family bucket, a pair of spicy chicken wings and a Coke.”

These two forms of address made people around a little surprised. It turns out that these two are……

No matter where they were, Qin Mian would not deny his relationship with Lei Tie and his two sons. With a smile on the corner of his lips and an indifferent face, he turned a blind eye to other people’s complex expression.

Lei Tie’s face was expressionless; there was no one except Qin Mian, Qin Ruiqi, and Lei Ruilin in his eyes.

Qin Mian looked at Lei Tie with a happy smile. Lei Tie understood and took out his wallet to pay.

Some girls looked back with disappointment, while others were excited. They peeked at Qin Mian and Lei Tie. Their eyes were more intense as they swept around the family of four.

“Ruilin boy.” After Lin Feng was sure that he didn’t recognize the wrong person, he quickly walked over.

The man who had been sitting with him also kept up.

Lei Ruilin saw Lin Feng and nodded politely.

“Daddy, Old Daddy; this is the mister who treated me to KFC.”

Qin Mian politely shook hands with Lin Feng, “Mister Lin, thank you for your help to my son.”

“You’re welcome, Mister Qin. It’s just a little help.” Lin Feng eagerly said, “Mister Qin, I heard Ruilin say……”

Lei Tie gave him a cold glance and frowned.

The man beside Lin Feng noticed it; he pulled Lin Feng’s arm and said, “A-Feng, why are you anxious? Mister Qin’s family hasn’t had lunch yet.”

Only then Lin Feng saw Lei Tie’s displeasure. It was obvious that Qin Mian specially brought his family to KFC restaurant for lunch, so that was why the appointment was set at 2 o’clock. It was he who came early. He said apologetically, “Sorry, I was in a moment of desperation. Mister Qin, I won’t delay you. We’ll talk later.”

Qin Mian said with a smile, “Do as you wish.”

Lin Feng and his friend went back to their original seats and ordered two sets of meals. It was just that, they didn’t have appetite.

Smelling the smell of Coke, Lei Tie looked away uninterested.

Qin Ruiqi didn’t notice it. There were four Cokes, one for each.

Qin Mian put his hand on Lei Tie’s thigh and winked at him with gloat.

Lei Tie gave him a doting look. He still took a sip and frowned, feeling unaccustomed. He watched his two sons drink it with relish and could not understand their taste at all. He pushed the Coke to his wife and said, “Wife, help me drink it.”

Qin Mian put his cup into Lei Tie’s hand and said straightforwardly, “I don’t like it either.”

Lei Tie had no choice but to drink up the two cups. His brows were creasing all the time, as if he was drinking bitter herbs.

Qin Mian simmered in laughter and put a spicy chicken wing into Lei Tie’s mouth.

Qin Ruiqi and Lei Ruilin couldn’t stop laughing.

Lin Feng and his friend were absent-minded. They saw the family over there had finished their meals before they went over.

“Let’s talk about it somewhere else?” Qin Mian asked.

The restaurant was not really a place to talk about things. Lin Feng said, “Okay. There’s a coffee shop not far away.”

They sat down in the coffee shop and introduced themselves.

Together with Lin Feng was his good friend, Liu Yingchu. Qin Mian looked so young that Liu Yingchu didn’t hold much hope for his medical skills, so he only looked at him lightly.

Qin Mian said directly, “I’ll check your pulse first.”

Lin Feng put his hand on the table without hesitation.

After checking the pulse, Qin Mian nodded, “Can cure.”

Liu Yingchu straightened up and stared at him.

Lin Feng grasped the edge of the table in both hands, surprised and pleased, “Really?”

Qin Mian didn’t mind him bearing suspicions. He reached out to Qin Ruiqi, “Son, pen and paper.”

Qin Ruiqi took out a ballpoint pen and a notepad and handed them to him.

Qin Mian wrote a prescription, tore it off, and handed it to Lin Feng, “Here is the prescription. Also, there is a supplementary medicine that I made myself but didn’t bring with me. You decide for yourself whether you want it or not.” The implication was that this prescription was free of charge, but there was a charge for the supplementary medicine.

Lin Feng read the prescription and Liu Yingchu took it. Liu Yingchu looked at Qin Mian in surprise. There was a so-called “prolonged illness makes a doctor of a patient”. He and Lin Feng were childhood friends. He also knew some medical knowledge by the influence of what he saw and heard. This prescription basically had no problem and very likely to be an ancient prescription.

He nodded slightly to Lin Feng.

Lin Feng said, “Thank you, Mister Qin. However, I have to discuss this with my family. I’ll contact you later.” In fact, he needed to ask the experts to take a look at this prescription.

Qin Mian knew better, “Sure, you know my phone number.”

Lin Feng couldn’t wait to find out if the prescription could be used. After a few polite exchanges, he and Liu Yingchu left in a hurry.

Two days later, Lin Feng called and offered to spend 1 million yuan on the supplementary medicine. Qin Mian gave him a jar of spiritual spring water and dyed it brown with mild herbal juice. On the ground that Lin Feng had helped his son, he gave him a 20% discount and only accepted 800,000 yuan.

Qin Mian and his family went out to have a sumptuous meal. Chinese cuisine, Italian cuisine, and French cuisine came in turns in the morning, afternoon, and evening.

At dinner, Lei Tie’s mood was quite subtle.

“A-Tie, what are you thinking about?” Qin Mian ate a delicious fried foie gras and squinted.

Lei Tie’s answer was concise, “How to make money to support the family.”

Qin Ruiqi and Lei Ruilin completely understood their Old Daddy’s uncomfortable mood. They smiled and looked at each other. They did not participate in the dialogue between the two fathers and enjoyed the delicious food wholeheartedly.

“Er…” Qin Mian supported his chin with one hand as his brain spurned. Every man wanted to have a career, but he couldn’t figure out what his family’s poker face was suitable for.

When Lei Tie saw Qin Mian looking like that, he calmed down, “Not urgent, eat first.”

Footnotes