Chapter 24 Is He Single Because He Is Too Foolish?

Wang Lianjun’s mocking laughter only made Jiang Jing’s face grow darker.

Jiang Xiaxia tilted her head, looking at the laughing Wang Lianjun with a face full of confusion: "What are you laughing at?"

Wang Lianjun’s laughter came to an abrupt halt: "Just—just laughing that your uncle can’t find a wife!"

Jiang Xiaxia shot him a side-eye and snorted twice: "Do you have one?"

The two simple words were thick with sarcasm.

Wang Lianjun looked as if someone had grabbed him by the throat; he stopped laughing instantly and sat to the side, looking disgruntled.

Jiang Hua watched the two with amusement. Remembering that Wang Lianjun was also a child from a struggling family, she couldn't help but ask: "What kind of girl are you looking for? Why don't you tell Auntie?"

Unlike Jiang Jing, who was entirely devoted to his missions, Wang Lianjun was very eager to find a wife. Encouraged by Jiang Hua’s words, he excitedly began to describe his preferences. The older folks sitting nearby heard them discussing marriage and joined in the conversation.

Jiang Jing felt bored, and Jiang Xiaxia found the noise annoying. The uncle and niece sat quietly in the innermost corner, their eyes silently fixed on the window.

I don’t know how much time passed, but Jiang Xiaxia’s bottom grew numb. Feeling like they hadn't traveled very far, she couldn't help but reach out and poke the train window: "Slow!"

Wang Lianjun, tired from the discussion, heard this and let out a laugh: "The only thing faster than a train is a plane!"

"Why don't we take one?"

Hearing this, Jiang Xiaxia shifted her numb little bottom and looked up at Jiang Jing to ask. In the past, even her grandfather’s old jalopy drove faster than this train.

"You want to ride in a plane, do you?" Jiang Jing looked at the little girl gazing at him with hopeful eyes, amused. "To fly, you need an airport to land at. Where would we find an airport in our hometown? Besides, planes these days aren't very safe."

As Jiang Jing spoke, his expression dimmed. Wang Lianjun, sitting beside him, seemed to recall something as well, and his earlier desire to chat vanished.

Seeing that his mood had worsened, Jiang Xiaxia tugged on his sleeve: "Tell me?"

Jiang Jing patted her head: "A few years ago, a Mr. Wang from our country was traveling abroad on official business. Those evildoers, wanting to prevent us from building ties with other nations, planted explosives on the plane he was supposed to take. Because Mr. Wang was invited to visit another country at the last minute, he changed his flight route and took a different plane. The assassination failed! But all sixteen people on the original flight sacrificed their lives."

Normally, such things wouldn't be told to a child. However, Jiang Xiaxia had been exposed to spies since she was young and had a certain sensitivity toward them. Jiang Jing didn't know what impulse drove him to lower his voice and tell her about the events that occurred just after the founding of the People's Republic.

Wang Lianjun frowned nearby, though he didn't think the matter was off-limits; after all, it had been reported in the newspapers. He just wondered if such a young child could understand.

Just as he was thinking this, Jiang Xiaxia furrowed her small brows, looking completely puzzled: "Didn't they investigate?"

"Investigate what? Inspect the plane?"

Seeing Jiang Xiaxia nod, Jiang Jing sneered: "You can investigate domestically, but how do you investigate abroad? Those people are easily bought off!"

He paused, then murmured to himself in a low voice: "The plane belonged to a third country, not our own. If only we could use our own planes to travel, if only we could have caught those people together—"

But no amount of "if onlys" could bring back the lives of those who had sacrificed themselves.

Jiang Xiaxia saw a flash of moisture in Jiang Jing’s eyes. Thoughtfully, she reached into her pocket.

A plane, huh?

It felt like her system—the "Tong Tong" system—might have something like that! It was just that she didn't seem able to take it out right now.

However, if she could save her uncle a few more times, would it be like when her grandfather used to play "trash games" behind her grandmother's back—grinding for experience to drop new equipment?

At the thought of this, Jiang Xiaxia’s motion sickness vanished. She turned her little body, straightened her back, and poked her uncle’s chest: "Chat, chat?"

Jiang Jing was amused by her gesture but deliberately kept a straight face: "No chatting! I haven't rested well these past few days because of you! I'm a patient now! I need to rest!"

Jiang Xiaxia wanted to say more, but someone grabbed her little arms and moved her directly off Jiang Jing’s lap.

"Come on, chat with Uncle Wang! Uncle Wang is very happy to chat with you!"

Wang Lianjun hadn't forgotten the task the regiment commander gave him: to interact more with the little girl and see if he could gather more information. The child was young, and perhaps she wouldn't be sensitive to certain things; maybe she would inadvertently reveal something in casual conversation.

Jiang Xiaxia pursed her little lips, sized up Wang Lianjun from head to toe, and then retracted her gaze in disdain. He looked like a monster that wouldn't drop any loot, so she didn't want to talk to him.

"Grandma, sleepy! Sleep!"

She turned her head and reached out toward Jiang Hua.

Wang Lianjun had been clearly rejected, but he wasn't angry. He reached out and tapped the back of the little girl’s head: "So disdainful of me! But I even brought you a gift!"

A gift?

Jiang Xiaxia’s hand paused. She looked back at Wang Lianjun, who was raising his eyebrows at her. She thought for a moment, then shook her head and refused: "Poor, own people!"

Gifts cost money, and making money was hard these days. Since Wang Lianjun was "her own people" and didn't look wealthy, how could she let him spend money on gifts? If her system wanted gifts, she’d rather hunt down human traffickers and spies, trade them for money, and then buy things. It was profitable and convenient. She really was a thrifty and industrious system.

Wang Lianjun understood what she meant and felt a mix of laughter and tears: "It's a small gift, it didn't cost much!"

Once the little girl was tucked into Jiang Hua’s arms, he took a book out of his small green bag.

"This is a Xinhua Dictionary!" Wang Lianjun handed the dictionary to the little girl. "Your uncle told me you’ve learned to read. But you still don't speak very fluently!"

He spoke in a low voice. Against the background roar of the train, almost no one besides those in their immediate vicinity could hear him. Those sitting nearby were all older folks who had seen many children; they had certainly seen children who didn't speak clearly before, so they wouldn't look down on her for that.

Wang Lianjun had considered this when he decided to give it to her: "But how many words can be on a single newspaper? You’re better off using a dictionary! A dictionary has more words and is more complete! Whatever you want to say, you can just point it out to us!"

Jiang Xiaxia held the thick dictionary, silent for a moment, before looking at Jiang Jing—who had also fixed his gaze on her—and asking in a small voice: "He, stupid?"

The gift was nice, but the intention—

A single sentence had so many characters, and they weren't all on one page. How many pages would she have to flip through to find all the words in one sentence?