Chapter 47 The Bottom Line of Being Human

  Pang Da Hu was sweating profusely. No one had ever told him such things before, but he didn't want to change what had already been decided. Relying on his keen intuition from years of working in the police force, he recognized a principle: Lin Jun Yun was destined to be the bane of Pang Guang's life, and only she could control Pang Guang's bad temper and completely transform him.

  Pang Datou thought this way because of the huge storm before New Year's Day. In Dongcheng Middle School, Pang Datou saw Lin Junyun for the second time, and when he saw Lin Junyun fearlessly scolding him while pointing at his nose to defend his reputation, he felt that Lin Junyun was straightforward and dared to take responsibility. Later, in the principal's office, when her mother knelt down with tears in her eyes and begged the principal not to expel her, she showed great courage in defending her mother, which touched Pang Datou even more.

  After a period of contact, he also learned that Lin Junyun not only respected his mother but was also the class monitor and top student in the class. In order to supplement the family income, she gave up all her entertainment time at this age to do tutoring, be an au pair, and work as a part-time worker.

  In sharp contrast, Lin Junyun has exactly what Pang Guang lacks. If Pang Guang can learn 30% of Lin Junyun's strengths, he will be satisfied, so he doesn't mind selling his old house and using his savings to buy a big house in the East City District. He is making such a big fuss just to take advantage of this good opportunity to make Lin Junyun become Pang Guang's "family teacher", teaching him through words and deeds, and for free.

  Unexpectedly, everything went smoothly until the final moment when Luo Lijiang, who usually understood reason, suddenly blew up, leaving Pang Datou at a loss. He was tall and strong, with a robust build that made him look like an iron-made hero to outsiders, but only he himself knew that he had three fears: fear of injections, fear of taking medicine, and fear of his wife's tears.

  Pang Datou found a spacious place to park his car and decided to first work on his wife's mindset before heading to the furniture mall.

  "Wife, what have we been struggling for all our lives?" Pang Datou asked, opening the car window and lighting a cigarette.

  Luo Lianqing tilted her head to one side, her lips moving without speaking.

  "We have only one precious son, and all our hopes are pinned on him. What we're after is for the son to make something of himself in the future. I believe Pang Guang will definitely be able to do it. It's just that he has been carefree since childhood, and during his adolescence, I was at the peak of my career, busy with work every day, neglecting his education. Now things have gotten out of hand.

  Pang Dahu looked deeply out the window, not daring to say that back then Luo Lijuan spent all day playing mahjong. He shook his head secretly and continued: "I've worked hard for so long, finally climbing up to this position as a bureau chief, which is considered a successful career. But my son has also grown up. Every time I encounter him getting into trouble and needing me to bail him out, I feel an inexplicable pang of heartache. How can I bear to hit him? We have only one precious son, and it's really hard for us to bring ourselves to do that. Moreover, the current situation is largely our responsibility as parents. How can we shift all the blame onto our son? If anyone should be hit, it should be ourselves first."

  "What are you talking about?" Luo Lijiang finally couldn't bear it, her eyes shining with tears, like the moon hidden in the flowing clouds: "Now people are saying how to bring nightclub girls home, it's all spread out, what do you want us to do to hold our heads up as human beings in the future?"

  Pang Da Hu gently patted Luo Li Qing's hand: "Kong Yue Mei has already decided to quit her job at the nightclub, and is now looking for work everywhere."

  "The mountains and rivers may change, but one's nature is hard to alter. All in all, I don't feel at ease with Pang Guang spending the whole day with this kind of person. Moreover, our household expenses are already so high, we're barely scraping by as it is, and now you want to add two more mouths to feed? No way!"

  "Liqing, although we can't be considered wealthy or noble, at least we're on the imperial payroll. Let's just say we're hiring a cheap tutor for Pang Guang, and you can make up for the food expenses by losing a few rounds of mahjong." Pang Datou made a double-edged comment.

  Luo Lijiang snorted in disdain and said, "Eating imperial rations? Sounds very glorious, but what's the use of being glorious if you can't even exchange it for food or clothes? Who doesn't know that the department heads in your bureau are living better than you? I really don't know what you're after, always putting on a stern face like Black-Faced Bao Gong, as if money is your enemy. Who was it that kept saying they wanted to let our mother and son live a good life? I think you're just all talk and no action, a hypocrite...

  "Shut up!" Luo Lijiang's words had struck a nerve with Pang Datou, who suddenly had his eyes bulging and his mouth twitching uncontrollably: "I, Pang Datou, may not have read many books, but I know that as an official, one must be upright and honest, serve the people, do things in a down-to-earth manner, and only then can one gain others' trust and respect. Let me say it again, for as long as I live, I will never engage in corrupt or greedy behavior - this is my bottom line!"

  Luoli Qing's lips trembled, and tears fell like broken pearls: "Pang Datou, you're bullying me? For the sake of a nightclub woman, you're bullying me? Fine, since you look down on me so much, I'll leave." After Luoli Qing finished speaking with a torn heart, she opened the car door and walked out.

  "Hey... wait!" Pang Da Hu chased out of the car, but Luo Li Qing had already run off without a trace.