When Chen Hansheng asked the military training instructor for leave, he did so in a very formal manner. He wrote a leave request, then approached the instructor and said, "Instructor, I have a relative visiting Jianye this afternoon, so I need to take some time off. I've already informed the advisor, and now I'd like to ask for your approval."
The instructor took the leave request, which detailed the reason, time, and involved parties in a very standard format.
"Leave early and return early. Be sure to be careful," the instructor said.
"Yes, sir!" Chen Hansheng replied, pretending to salute.
Actually, even if Chen Hansheng hadn't requested leave, the instructor might not have noticed since he was quite lax. However, he didn't want to take any chances. This was a crucial moment for building rapport with the advisor, and he didn't want any small issues to interfere.
As for the instructor, everything was in order with the leave request, and since Chen Hansheng had informed the advisor, there was no problem. Moreover, despite his rebellious nature and sharp words, Chen Hansheng wasn't really a troublemaker. In fact, when other boys in the class misbehaved during military training, he would step in to maintain order, so the instructor had a good impression of him.
Chen Hansheng left the school and took an hour and a half to get to Gulou Kindergarten, where he met the instructor's daughter, Guo Jiahui. However, the kindergarten teacher was suspicious of Chen Hansheng's identity and kept a watchful eye on him.
"You can call Jiahui's father to verify," Chen Hansheng suggested to the cute, big-eyed teacher.
"I will verify it," the teacher said, then dialed the advisor's number. However, since the phone was in Chen Hansheng's hand, she had to switch to a landline to get through.
After confirming with the advisor, the teacher then asked Chen Hansheng for his student ID number.
"020901254813," Chen Hansheng recited it, and after the final verification, the teacher was reassured. She led Guo Jiahui over and said, "Jiahui, this is your father's student, and he is here to pick you up."
Guo Jiahui, a chubby little girl in her final year of kindergarten, had no sense of caution and simply followed the teacher's instructions. She obediently took Chen Hansheng's hand.
"I'm sorry for the misunderstanding earlier," the teacher apologized, realizing her earlier suspicion was unwarranted.
"It's no problem; it's good to be cautious," Chen Hansheng responded kindly. "Jiahui, say goodbye to the teacher."
"Goodbye, Little Rain Teacher!" Jiahui called out, giving the teacher a kiss on the cheek.
"Goodbye, Jiahui," the teacher said, kissing her cheek in return.
Chen Hansheng patiently waited and then picked up the chubby girl, heading out the door. He suspected that the teacher would contact the advisor again, which could only improve his image with the advisor.
Thankfully, although Jiahui was a bit heavy, the weight seemed to mostly be in her face. As she clung to his neck, she asked, "Brother, where are we going now?"
"How about we go to KFC?" Chen Hansheng suggested.
"Yay, I love KFC!" Jiahui clapped her hands happily.
To show her excitement, she even kissed him on the cheek. This made Chen Hansheng think back to the kindergarten teacher, so he decided to ask, "Jiahui, let me quiz you."
"Go ahead," Jiahui responded in her childish voice.
"What is the full name of the teacher from just now?"
"Little Rain Teacher," Jiahui replied, confused.
"No, I mean her full name," Chen Hansheng corrected.
"Her full name? What do you mean?"
Seeing that Jiahui didn't understand, he changed the question. "Okay, let me ask you another question. Do you know Little Rain Teacher's phone number?"
"I don't know," Jiahui shook her head.
"What about her QQ number?" Chen Hansheng asked.
"What's QQ?" Jiahui asked, puzzled.
After a while, Jiahui suddenly noticed, "Brother, why aren't you carrying me anymore?"
"I'm tired, I don't want to carry you now," Chen Hansheng replied.
At a nearby KFC, Chen Hansheng bought Jiahui a burger, fries, and chicken wings for herself while he got a cup of coffee and sat reading a newspaper. Jiahui finished eating and then played on the slide for a while, making friends with other kids and sweating all over. Around 7 p.m., Chen Hansheng's phone rang.
"Hansheng, I'm done with my meeting. Where are you now?"
"Guo Laoshi, I'm at the KFC near Gulou Square with Jiahui."
"I know where that is. I'll be there in about an hour. Thank you for your trouble."
After hanging up, Chen Hansheng smiled to himself. In Guo Zhongyun's words, he had finally moved from being just "Chen Hansheng" to "Hansheng."
Around 7:30 p.m., Chen Hansheng called Jiahui over, wiped the sweat from her face, and asked, "Jiahui, are you sleepy?"
"No," she replied, trying to break free and play some more.
"I think you're tired," Chen Hansheng said, not letting her go. Since every movie has a climax, tonight needed a perfect conclusion too.
He stopped reading the newspaper, picked her up again, and began telling her a children's story. Despite her fatigue from playing earlier, Jiahui didn't want to sleep, but soon her eyelids grew heavy, and she fell asleep in his arms before Guo Zhongyun and his wife arrived.
When they did arrive, they saw the scene through the transparent windows of the KFC. Chen Hansheng was holding Guo Jiahui gently in his arms, his eyes peaceful and kind, swaying her lightly to make her more comfortable. The couple exchanged a glance, and his wife said, "I didn't expect Jiahui to get along so well with your student."
"His name is Chen Hansheng. He's quite capable and has a good character. I owe him one tonight," Guo Zhongyun said.
When Chen Hansheng saw them approaching, he gently spoke, "Jiahui is very well-behaved; it was no trouble at all to bring her."
Guo Zhongyun's wife, seeing her daughter so healthy and peacefully asleep, took out a bag of fruit and said, "Thank you, Xiao Chen, for bringing our child all the way here."
"You're too kind, Shi Mu. I was just out for a walk, the military training is really tiring," Chen Hansheng smiled, refusing the offer.
"Since you already called me 'Shi Mu,' then take the fruit. Also, please come to our house for dinner this weekend, remember that, Guo."
Guo Zhongyun nodded in agreement, "Take the fruit, and I'll take you to the bus station. You need to set an example for the class."
Chen Hansheng quietly agreed.
After another long journey, Chen Hansheng finally returned to Jiangling University City. He originally planned to take the fruit back to his dorm, but upon arriving at the entrance, he changed his mind. He went to the public phone booth and dialed a number.
"Xiao Xiao, I'm outside your school. Military training's been tough, so I bought some fruit for you. Come pick it up."