Chapter 283 Family Fortune

Sheng An prepared the meal and waited at the gate.

After waiting for about half an hour, we finally saw carriages coming this way.

Xu Jinnian was the first to get off the carriage, and then turned around to help Grandpa Sheng, Grandma Sheng, and Xu Chenglin down one after the other.

"Grandpa, Grandma, Dad!"

Sheng An shouted excitedly, his eyes uncontrollably becoming hot and moist.

"An'an!"

Grandma Sheng's eyes also reddened, and she ran forward to hug her granddaughter whom she hadn't seen for more than half a year.

As a result, he could only hold his granddaughter's two arms, but something blocked his view. Looking down, he saw his granddaughter's prominently protruding belly.

"Ouch~"

Grandma Sheng exclaimed in surprise, afraid of startling her great-grandson in her granddaughter's womb. She lowered her voice and looked at Sheng An's belly with a loving expression: "Good, good, our An'an is going to be a mother..."

Grandpa Sheng walked over and looked at his granddaughter's face. He saw that her face was fair and rosy, and she looked a little rounder than before she left home. He was immediately filled with relief, and his eyes reddened a little.

"grandfather."

Sheng An grasped the old man's rough hand and noticed that he had a lot more white hair on his head, which made her feel a pang of sadness.

"Don't cry, Grandpa and Grandma are here. They've come to the capital to keep you company!"

Grandpa Sheng stroked his granddaughter's head, and the longing he had felt for her over the past few months transformed into overwhelming joy.

The grandfather and his two grandchildren were enjoying the joy of reunion, while the others stood by and watched them, none of them daring to disturb them.

Sheng An's excitement gradually subsided. She wiped away the tears from the corners of her eyes and greeted her aunt's family of four with a smile:

"Aunt, Uncle, Zhaodi, Da Kui, thank you for coming all this way to visit us."

Xu Cuilian stepped forward first and grasped Sheng An's hand, her voice as loud as ever:

"If anyone should be thanking anyone, it's us. Without you and Jin Nian, we would never have had the chance to come to the heart of the capital and experience its grandeur and prosperity, hahaha..."

These words made everyone present laugh.

The couple led everyone into the house, while Aunt Niu stood at the door directing the guards to carry the luggage. After they finished, she invited them to go to a nearby restaurant for lunch.

In the dining room, steaming hot food was served on the table.

Upon smelling the familiar aroma, everyone's eyes lit up.

Besides An An, who else could have such good cooking skills!

Grandma Sheng said with heartache, "We have a cook at home, why do you need to cook yourself?"

Sheng An laughed and said, "I'm just using the spatula, it's not tiring."

After several months, it was a rare occasion for so many people to gather together for a meal. The atmosphere at the table was lively and warm, and everyone's face was filled with happy smiles.

After the meal, the couple showed everyone around and then escorted them to their assigned rooms.

The room was fully furnished with a table, chairs, bed, and cabinets. The mattresses and blankets were brand new, and even toiletries were provided. Everyone was extremely satisfied with their room.

After two weeks of continuous travel, even though we would go ashore to rest at night, everyone was still exhausted.

Especially since Grandpa and Grandma Sheng are getting old, they persevered all the way without complaining or showing any signs of fatigue.

Sitting in the comfortable and quiet room, fatigue and drowsiness washed over them, and they couldn't help but yawn frequently.

Sheng An felt sorry for her and said to Grandma Sheng, who was forcing herself to talk to her, "Grandma, why don't you take a bath and get some sleep first? We can talk properly when you wake up."

Grandma Sheng was reluctant to part with her granddaughter and urged Grandpa Sheng, who was standing nearby, to wash her first.

After Grandpa Sheng left, the old lady asked, "In the months since Grandpa and Grandma left, has Jin Nian been as considerate to you as before?"

An'an is filial and capable, and in her heart she is the best of everyone, but others may not think so.

She was worried that now that her grandson-in-law's status was different, someone might try to sow discord between the young couple.

Over time, the grandson-in-law's feelings towards An'an changed. He looked down on An'an for not having a good background and being inferior to those pampered young ladies.

Sheng An understood her grandmother's concerns and said earnestly:

“Jin Nian has treated me the same as before. He hasn’t done any of the things you’re worried about. Besides, your granddaughter is capable and has plenty of money. If he dares to do anything to betray me, I will definitely kick him to the curb and send him back to Qingzhou to live with his grandparents.”

Grandma Sheng breathed a sigh of relief upon hearing the first part, but her heart jumped again upon hearing the second part. She gently patted her granddaughter and scolded her, "You're talking nonsense again."

What woman in the world doesn't want her husband? If word got out, she'd be drowned in spit.

Sheng An leaned on the old lady's shoulder and rubbed against her affectionately, saying, "You and Grandpa can stay here without worry. If Jin Nian dares to bully me, you two can stand up for me."

Grandma Sheng's eyes welled up with tears as she spoke, and she gripped her granddaughter's hand tightly, her voice choked with emotion: "Alright, alright, we two old folks will stay and help An'an take good care of this home."

Before deciding to come to Beijing, the two elders were prepared to stay for a long time and brought everything they could.

Thinking about what she had brought, Grandma Sheng, under Sheng An's questioning gaze, walked to a pile of luggage in the corner, took out a set of keys, and opened one of the locked suitcases.

Pushing aside the pile of clothes on top, the old lady pulled out a small box, no bigger than the palm of her hand, and handed it to her granddaughter with a smile:

“The three of us old folks brought all the banknotes from home. This is the one Grandma hid, and your grandpa and your father-in-law each hid one as well.”

These silver notes contain most of Sheng An's savings from his time in Qingzhou, as well as the profits from Shengyuan and Shengshi Restaurant during the six months he was away from the capital.

All the silver notes added up to a total of forty-two thousand taels.

As long as they didn't squander it, the 42,000 taels of silver allowed the whole family to live a very comfortable life.

Besides a box of silver notes, there was also a letter and account book written by Shuqi Baolan to Sheng'an.

Sheng An opened the letter and read it carefully. Besides greetings to the couple, the letter mainly described the operation of Shengyuan Restaurant and its surrounding businesses over the past six months, as well as the problems encountered and their solutions.

Judging from the letter, after Sheng An left, Sheng Yuan and the restaurant operated normally and were doing well, which was also reflected in their profits.

Sheng An was fairly at ease with Shu Qi and Bao Lan, and wasn't too worried that they would betray them.

She still had the indenture, and besides, the monthly wages she gave them were three times that of other restaurants.

Anyone who isn't an idiot knows what to do.

Grandpa and Grandma Sheng went to bed after taking a hot bath, as did Xu Chenglin and Xu Cuilian.

Zhang Zhaodi and Zhang Daikui, being young, were full of energy. One of them chatted enthusiastically with Sheng An, while the other asked Xu Jinnian all sorts of questions.

Zhang Zhaodi thought of something, subconsciously glanced at Xu Jinnian opposite her, and whispered in Sheng An's ear:

"Last winter, Ma Dahua was robbed in her home and stoned to death. All the money in her house was taken. The authorities have not caught the murderer to this day. Are you aware of this incident?"

Sheng An was startled, glanced at the man, and shook her head with a complicated expression: "I don't know."

It can be said that Ma Dahua's fate was exactly what she expected.

With no man to support her at home, this half-crippled old woman carrying a hundred taels of silver is no different from a child carrying gold in the bustling city.

Sheng An had no sympathy for Ma Dahua; based on what she did to Xu Jinnian back then, she didn't deserve any sympathy at all.

However, regarding the burglary and murder of Ma Dahua, one can boldly speculate whether it was an inside job.

One hundred taels of silver is enough to make some greedy people lose their humanity and become ruthless, even to their own family.