indianbanksassociation Chapter 139 Long-Distance Flight
Chapter 139 Long-Distance Flight
"Go to America?"
As the final exam bell rang, the chill of winter completely enveloped the entire city, and the long-awaited winter vacation officially began.
Su Hao returned home and was sitting with his family eating freshly roasted chestnuts.
He casually held the glistening, freshly peeled fruit in his palm, the residual heat from the oven turning into rising steam that seeped through his fingers.
"Well, an American university sent me an invitation to attend some kind of academic forum."
It's MIT, a pretty famous university.
As Su Hao spoke, he expertly fed chestnuts to his younger sister Su Hui, whose mouth was already wide open.
The little girl looked like a fledgling bird eagerly awaiting its mother's feeding, tilting her head back and eating with great relish.
The chestnuts were probably too hot to handle, as she kept slurping them up while pouting and blowing out white steam, but she couldn't bear to spit them out.
Her cheeks were chubby, and she wore a blissful, simple smile.
"Wait, where did you say? MIT?!"
Su Zhe, the father, who was walking in from the yard with a grilling net, keenly caught the familiar phrase and became excited as if he had been electrocuted.
He casually tossed the grill rack onto the sink with a clatter, rushed into the living room, squeezed onto the sofa next to Su Hao, and sat down with his eyes wide open.
"Yes, they said they're organizing a youth forum and sent me an invitation email..."
Before Su Hao could finish his casual remark, Su Zhe forcefully waved his hand in mid-air, decisively interrupting the spellcasting:
"Go! We absolutely have to go! It's a top university! MIT!!!"
Lin Wan, who was sitting to the side, was startled by her husband's sudden loud voice. The half-peeled chestnut fell into the plate, and she turned to look at her husband with a worried expression.
"Honey, don't go joining in this nonsense! Do you think you can just go to America like that?"
There's not even anyone at home who can go with him. Do you really want to let a student who's not even an adult yet travel all alone across the ocean?
Lin Wan's heart was in turmoil.
How could she not know the significance of that top-tier university?
As a mother, she actually longed for her son to see the world more than anyone else.
But reality is that her husband's workplace is busy at the end of the year, and she can't find the time to accompany him abroad.
Not to mention the huge pile of chores that need to be done at the end of the year, the question of who to entrust Su Hui with, who is still so young, is a major headache.
"Actually, there's no need to worry about the cost; it's specifically marked in red on this invitation:"
To ensure my trip, the organizers provided a full-price round-trip first-class ticket, including one accompanying person, and even covered accommodation and travel expenses…”
Su Hao was extremely perceptive and could tell that his parents actually supported his decision to go, but were hindered by practical conditions.
So he unzipped his backpack and handed the invitation, which radiated the brilliance of a top academic institution, to his parents.
"Why don't you, as his mother, go with him?" Su Zhe's eyes lit up, and he immediately suggested to his wife.
"You make it sound so easy, but what about Huihui!"
You often work overtime and are so busy you barely have time to rest, so you don't have time to take care of her at all.
Lin Wan glared at her husband, annoyed.
Su Hui, who was happily munching on chestnuts, finally understood what her parents meant.
She looked up blankly, glanced at her father, then at her mother, and the chestnut in her little hand fell onto the table with a "thud".
"Mom... are you leaving me all alone at home when you go to America?"
The little girl's eyes instantly welled up with red, aggrieved tears.
She bit her lower lip hard, clenched her small hands into fists, and desperately tried to hold back her tears.
But seeing that her brother and mother seemed to be really going on a long journey, the fear of being abandoned instantly broke down her psychological defenses, and she finally couldn't hold back and burst into tears.
"Waaaaaah—I don't want to be home alone! I don't want to!"
One second the fledglings were enjoying delicious food, the next they turned into an air raid siren.
Su Hao was flustered by his sister's shout.
MIT and academic forums were all reduced to dust by this crying.
He quickly scooped his sister into his arms and held her tightly.
"Don't cry, don't cry, how could we possibly leave our Huihui all alone?"
My brother isn't going anywhere!
Seeing her son turn down MIT's offer without hesitation to take care of his sister's feelings, Lin Wan felt a mix of emotions and a strong sense of guilt welled up inside her.
"Haohao..." Lin Wan sighed softly.
"Mom and Dad really don't want you to give up this rare opportunity because of these trivial matters at home."
"Mom, it's really okay. There are plenty of academic forums out there, and there will be plenty of opportunities to go in the future. It's alright."
While wiping away his sister's tears, Su Hao calmly comforted her.
Looking at Su Hao's mature appearance, which seemed to have "accepted his fate" and compromised for the sake of his family, Su Zhe felt a tightness in his chest, as if he had been punched hard.
As a father, he absolutely could not accept it!
Her own exceptionally talented son actually gave up a golden opportunity to attend a world-class academic forum simply because of the ridiculous and trivial family reason of having no one to take care of his younger sister!
"Stop arguing, I've made up my mind!" Su Zhe slapped his thigh suddenly.
"Why don't you take Huihui and Haohao with you? I'm too busy with work at the end of the year to go."
But Huihui is also on winter break, isn't she?
The other party has booked two tickets, so it's not difficult for us to pay for another ticket for a child ourselves.
Once we get there, we can squeeze in to sleep, and the accommodation fee probably won't be much more expensive.
Upon hearing the words "Let's go together," Su Hui, who had been sobbing just a second ago, stopped crying instantly, as if a pause button had been pressed.
The gloom on her tear-streaked face vanished instantly, replaced by a beaming smile.
"Really, Dad?! Can I really go to America with my brother and Mom and ride on that big airplane?!"
"Haha, of course it's true. When has Dad ever lied to you?"
Watching my younger sister, who was crying her heart out just a second ago, now raising her hands and shouting "Hooray!" and jumping around the room excitedly like a little rabbit...
The tense atmosphere instantly dissipated, and the roasted chestnuts in my hand tasted even better!
......
"Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to Boston Logan International Airport."
(Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to Boston Logan International Airport...)
As the clear and articulate English announcement of the landing came over the cabin loudspeaker, and the slight vibrations from the friction between the wheels and the runway caused Su Hao, who was taking a nap by the porthole, slowly opened his eyes.
After a long flight of more than ten hours, the family of three finally set foot on American soil.
At this moment, recalling the time from finalizing the itinerary to landing today, Su Hao couldn't help but pinch the bridge of his nose.
The preparation process along the way could hardly be described as "chaotic and chaotic."
Just the thought of going to the immigration office to take passport photos was like facing a major crisis for the mother and daughter.
She frantically tried on clothes in front of the mirror all morning before finally agreeing to go to the photo studio.
"Mom, my face looks so round in this photo, I don't like it. Can't you tell the photographer to take another one?"
"What do you know? This picture looks much better, full of energy and spirit!"
Also, stop wearing that Barbie pink coat; it's the same color from head to toe!
It looks just like a pink glow stick that has come to life!
And so, from choosing clothes and getting visas to finally packing two huge suitcases, the protracted tug-of-war between the mother and daughter never stopped for a second.
The night before leaving, Su Hui felt like she was moving house, wanting to stuff all the plush toys she liked to hug before bed and the whole set of heavy fairy tale books into her already overflowing suitcase.
"My goodness, are you even bringing this gold medal along? It's heavy and takes up so much space, what are you going to do with it in America?!"
Su Hui was afraid that her mother would snatch the medal away, so she quickly protected it behind her back and argued with her head held high.
"This is the gold medal my brother won after so much hard work! It's my precious treasure!"
Faced with her daughter's stubbornness, Lin Wan practically knelt on the suitcase, using all her strength to pull and tug until she could barely zip it up.
She wiped the sweat from her forehead and sighed helplessly.
"My suitcase is packed like a bomb. If it gets overweight and I get a fine at the airport, don't blame me!"