Zhang Hongmei knew she couldn't refuse, and she felt somewhat resentful towards Zhang Shouyi.

Zhang Shouyi: I'm innocent! I didn't know this would happen.

Now, everyone in the hall came over to congratulate Gu Chuanming.

"You have such good taste, she's our top female scholar."

"Yes, yes, he looks so smart and clever. I am Shan Mianzhi's grandfather, Shan Dehong. Here, this is a gift from your grandfather."

Zhang Hongmei stood up and bowed respectfully to everyone. "Thank you for your kindness and blessings. We appreciate them, but please, Grandpa, we won't accept any gifts."

Gu Chuanming also stood up. "Thank you everyone. This girl is right. We don't need any gifts or anything. The thought is what counts. Chengzi, tell the kitchen to serve dinner."

Gu Chuanming was genuinely happy and wouldn't let go of Zhang Hongmei. That old woman still wasn't as capable as him; he'd make her furious.

Zhang Hongmei sat to Gu Chuanming's left, watching the old man laugh heartily, and suddenly spoke just as he picked up his wine glass.

"Grandpa, how old are you this year?"

Gu Chuanming stopped drinking. "I'm seventy-six years old this year, my birthday is August 16th."

“You’re seventy-six years old, and you can still drink like this? If you really care about me, you can’t drink more. You’ve already had one glass, so you can have one last glass with this meal.” Zhang Hongmei said very seriously.

"Okay. Listen to my granddaughter, just this one cup." Gu Chuanming felt that having someone to take care of him was a blessing.

Everyone present was dumbfounded. Could this really work? Chengzi was even more grateful. The doctor had forbidden Old Gu from drinking, but he wouldn't listen. Now, someone could keep him in check.

Zhang Hongmei's stomach ached during the meal. Everyone was congratulating her, but she didn't feel joy; instead, she felt like a great calamity was about to befall her.

Knowing that Zhang Hongmei wouldn't be able to eat in this situation, Zhang Shouyi quietly instructed Xiao Li to prepare something.

Because Old Gu drank little, Zhang Hongmei made sure he ate a bowl of porridge. Seeing that even the eldest son had eaten, the others felt embarrassed to drink any more. Today's gathering was the shortest ever.

After dinner, it was time for a tea party. Zhang Hongmei was getting restless and whispered in Zhang Shouyi's ear, "I'm going back now."

Zhang Shouyi nodded with a smile.

Zhang Hongmei whispered something in Gu Chuanming's ear again, and after receiving his consent, she stood up and said, "Everyone, please continue with your work. I'll go back to my room first." Actually, this wasn't a good idea, but she couldn't make things difficult for herself just for the sake of appearances.

"Chengzi, go and take Hongmei back."

"No need, I know the way."

"It's alright, I'm just worried about some clueless people. Go ahead."

After Zhang Hongmei left the hall, Gu Chuanming suddenly stood up, his expression fierce. "This is my granddaughter, my own flesh and blood. If anyone has any improper thoughts about her, I'll beat them to a pulp. You all better behave yourselves. I don't care about your messy affairs, but you can't involve her."

After saying that, he walked away. Following Zhang Shouyi's signal, Xiao Li followed Gu Chuanming.

Everyone was stunned by what had just happened. They only breathed a sigh of relief after Gu Chuanming left. He really meant it; they couldn't afford to mess with him.

The gloomy middle-aged man gripped the armrests of the chair so tightly that the veins on his hands bulged.

Zhang Shouyi didn't care; even without Old Gu's intervention, he wouldn't let Zhang Hongmei be affected or harmed. He was still somewhat uneasy. His woman didn't need anyone else's protection.

What followed was mostly meaningless chatter, because of what happened with Old Gu earlier. No one talked about Zhang Hongmei.

Xiao Li stood silently beside Zhang Shouyi. Zhang Shouyi checked the time and stood up.

"Everyone, please continue. I have to leave now."

Because of their positions, everyone stood up to see Zhang Shouyi off. Although they were resentful, there was nothing they could do; his official rank was higher than theirs, so they had to swallow their resentment.

Zhang Shouyi returned to his room, took a shower, changed his clothes, and most importantly, put on cloth shoes. How could he not know that the girl had mocked him that morning?

Arriving at Zhang Hongmei's door, he gently knocked a few times. "Hongmei, it's me, open the door."

Zhang Hongmei is eating noodles inside. Seafood stewed noodles, it's so delicious! I must ask her how to make it tomorrow, so I can make it myself when I get home.

Hearing the knock on the door, I thought, "How annoying! Eating is the most sacred and solemn thing, and someone has to come and disturb me."

Hearing the sound, he reluctantly stood up and went to open the door.

"Brother Zhang, you guys finished so early?"

"No? What are you going to eat? It smells delicious, I'm still hungry too."

Xiao Li immediately turned around and went to order noodles.

The two entered the room, and Zhang Shouyi snatched the chopsticks from Zhang Hongmei's hand, sat down in a chair, and began to eat heartily.

"This is mine, didn't Xiao Li go and call it for you?" He hadn't even eaten a few bites yet, was this a robber?

Zhang Shouyi finished the noodles in a few bites. "Don't rush. Little Li will definitely bring two bowls of noodles. Look how stingy you are."

Zhang Hongmei stared wide-eyed, momentarily at a loss for words to refute Zhang Shouyi.

Looking at Zhang Hongmei's puffed-up face, Zhang Shouyi couldn't help but laugh; she was just too adorable.

Xiao Li came in carrying two bowls of noodles. Zhang Hongmei gave him a strange look, which made Xiao Li feel uneasy.

Having just eaten half a bowl, I can't eat the whole bowl now.

"Brother Zhang, I'll share half with you. So you won't be envious of others."

Zhang Shouyi found it amusing; this girl still harbored resentment.

"My bowl is full, you eat first, and I'll eat what's left."

"You don't mind?" Come to think of it, she just ate her own.

"How could you complain? Eat up, or the noodles will get soggy."

Zhang Hongmei ate a few bites and was full. She pushed the bowl to Zhang Shouyi and went to the bathroom to wash her hands.

By the time Zhang Hongmei came out, the noodles were all gone.

"Hongmei, shall we go to the beach? Look, I've changed my shoes."

Zhang Hongmei pursed her lips, suppressing a smile. "Okay, let's bring flashlights. I heard there are small crabs crawling on the beach at night. Let's bring bags; maybe we'll catch something. I wonder if the chef here can make spicy crab? Just thinking about it makes my mouth water."

Zhang Shouyi casually asked, "You've eaten it before?"

"Ah!" Zhang Hongmei suddenly realized, "How could that be? I just imagined it would taste good. How could seafood stir-fried with chili peppers and Sichuan peppercorns not taste good? You have no common sense."

"Yes, I've learned a lot."

Xiao Li, carrying the bags behind, watched the two chatting and laughing in front of him and smiled genuinely. This was the kind of leader he thought was more like someone from his generation.

"There really are crabs! Hurry up, Xiao Li, hurry up!" Zhang Hongmei shouted excitedly. Now she could catch crabs herself, and it felt so different.

Zhang Shouyi was also influenced by the girl. "Hongmei, you hold the flashlight, I'll grab it, so you don't get hurt."

"Alright, the spicy crab for tomorrow is yours."