Chapter 284 No, You Can't
Lin Xiangxi has little motivation in studying, but is very motivated in making money.
In the evening, she secretly went to sell the hairbands she brought back from the south. The next morning, she spent the money she earned and bought a pig's head, pig's trotters, and pig's tail.
"We're having braised meat for lunch today. I'll make it myself." Lin Xiangxi rubbed his hands, "I haven't braised anything for a long time. I don't know if my cooking skills have deteriorated."
"But I want to eat fried fish today, and I've already bought the fish." Lin Xiangnan ordered unceremoniously: "Just cook it together."
Hu Meili’s cooking skills are average, but Lin Xiangxi’s are very good. With his help in improving the food, Lin Xiangnan feels relaxed.
"Okay. Leave it to me."
Lin Xiangxi agreed straightforwardly and said happily: "I am happy to follow you, my second sister. You can always find a way to make whatever delicious food I want."
Because he loves to eat, he also loves to cook.
He was not willing to lose anything, so his wallet was often in short supply and he had to find ways to make extra money.
With Lin Xiangnan at home, the food could never be bad, and there was always chicken, duck, fish and meat on the table.
Hu Meili is a mother, and it is normal for her to eat and drink with Lin Xiangnan every day, but Lin Xiangdong and his friends feel embarrassed to take advantage of her.
Sometimes they would buy some delicious food, sometimes they would bring gifts for the two children...it was always a thoughtful gesture.
Ever since Lin Xiangxi came, Lin Xiangnan provided the ingredients and he provided the technology, the family lived a life of luxury.
But this life could not last long. After the exam, Lin Xiangnan rested for two days and prepared to pack up and return home.
The whole family is in Beijing, but Gu Zhenhua is alone in an empty house. It’s not easy to think about it.
"Mom, please come with me." Lin Xiangnan pulled Hu Meili's sleeve tightly.
"I'm going with your elder brother and younger brothers." Hu Meili said, "I haven't been back to my hometown for a long time. I want to go back and see your grandma and her family."
"Mom~~Mom~~~" Lin Xiangnan said pitifully, "I can accompany you back to your hometown first, and then go back to the family compound. Dabao and Xiaobao can't bear to leave you."
"Don't talk to me in such a weird tone. It makes me want to beat you up."
Hu Meili pulled Lin Xiangnan's hand away in disdain and said, "It's not a big deal to send them to the nursery during the day. You and Lao Liu are both on summer vacation. Can't the two of you take care of two little ones?"
If it was just Lin Xiangnan, Hu Meili would not feel at ease to leave, but with Gu Zhenjun, an old hand at taking care of children, Hu Meili felt very relieved. The child was grown up, so she could let go.
But when they arrived at the train station and the two sides parted, Hu Meili's eyes suddenly turned red, and she seemed a little reluctant.
Dabao held onto Hu Meili's thighs and refused to let go, "Wow, wow, wow~ Grandma~ Please don't leave Dabao behind."
"Grandma, please take Xiaobao away too~ woooo~" Xiaobao wiped his tears with his chubby little hands.
The three of them said goodbye reluctantly, and Lin Xiangxi also looked melancholy, "Second sister, I can't bear to leave you either!!!"
"Then come with me to the family compound?" Lin Xiangnan invited enthusiastically. Although he likes to play, he is a good cook and loves to study. With him around, he can eat all kinds of delicious food without having to cook by himself.
Lin Xiangxi took a step back and said, "Forget about going to the family compound. I have to accompany my eldest brother and mother back to my hometown."
Following Lin Xiangnan, the food was good, but he had no money in his pocket, and he was embarrassed to eat and drink for free. He was grown up now, and had worked before, not like a child anymore.
He is not like Gu Zhenjun, who has a part-time job as a babysitter and does not have his own family, so it is natural for him to hang out with his brother and sister-in-law.
If Lin Xiangxi had the nerve to run away with Lin Xiangnan, Lin Xiangnan would welcome him, but Hu Meili would deal with him.
After both parties separated with tears in their eyes, Lin Xiangxi said with emotion: "When can I be like my second sister, with a refrigerator at home and be able to buy whatever vegetables I want to eat?"
"What's wrong with you two siblings? Why do you love eating and playing so much?" Hu Meili was very confused. "That's not what I taught you. Why is your sister like this and you like this too?"
Hu Meili is used to a hard and simple life because that is how everyone around her lived in the past.
Lin Xiangxi saw that people lived in a simple and frugal way, so he might be an honest child. But he had been with Lin Xiangnan for a long time, so he unconsciously followed Lin Xiangnan's way.
"Who doesn't want to live a good life?" Lin Xiangxi muttered, "Before, I didn't have the conditions. Now that I have the conditions, of course I have to treat myself better."
There is already a Lin Xiangnan in the family, so it doesn’t seem strange to have another one like Lin Xiangxi.
Hu Meili thought for two seconds and said, "I think there must be something wrong with the feng shui of our ancestral tomb."
Lin Xiangxi did not comment on this. He thought it was okay to nag the ancestors, but not to nag him. Anyway, he felt there was nothing wrong with him.
After returning to his hometown, he had to continue to work to earn more pocket money so that he could have money to buy meat.
"The food in my hometown is definitely not as good as my second sister's. Fortunately, I have eaten a lot these days. The spicy chicken cubes I made the day before yesterday were really delicious, and the beef in sour soup was also delicious, but beef is hard to buy..."
Seeing him read the menu, Hu Meili reached out and pinched his mouth, "Annoying."
If it weren't for the desire to spend more time with her two sons, Hu Meili would have followed Lin Xiangnan long ago.
In Hu Meili's heart, her son is still her responsibility to support her in her old age. No matter how good Lin Xiangnan's conditions are, she cannot ignore Lin Xiangdong and the others.
Ever since Lin Xiangnan became pregnant and gave birth, Hu Meili has spent most of her time with Lin Xiangnan. Now that Dabao and Xiaobao have finally grown up, Hu Meili also wants to spend more time with the other two.
"Mom, let go. I won't say anything." Lin Xiangxi begged for mercy pitifully to Hu Meili.
But as soon as Hu Meili let go, he started talking again.
"Mom, we have nothing to do when we get home anyway. Can you help me sell hair bands and hairpins? I brought back a big bag, and I've been selling them secretly these past few days, and they're doing really well. The braised pig's head I made last time is delicious, right? I exchanged it for a small box of hair bands."
"You look like a pighead to me! How can you, a college student, engage in this kind of speculative business like those street urchins? Your family is not starving..." Hu Meili twisted his ear directly.
Lin Xiangdong quickly rescued his brother's ears, "Mom, my ears are red. This year is different from previous years. Maybe it won't be long before private enterprises are allowed. I must have studied hard and researched economic issues to have such an idea. He is one step ahead of others!"
"Yes, yes, brother is right. What's wrong with being a college student? Even if I earn 50 yuan a month after graduation, I will have to save for ten years without eating or drinking to live in a house like my second sister's now. Mom, do you know how much money this little hairband can make?!"
Lin Xiangnan is Lin Xiangxi's goal in life, so he is destined to be restless. It is difficult to enjoy the quality of life like Lin Xiangnan just by relying on salary.
Hu Meili looked at him suspiciously, "How much do you earn?"
"I spent thirty dollars on this hair tie and hairpin. But I've already made back my money after selling only a small portion of them. I can make more than two hundred dollars after I sell them all!" Lin Xiangxi's voice was low, but he looked very excited. "I imported this from Hong Kong. Department stores don't have it, so it sells really well."
When Hu Meili heard about the profit, she was tempted, but she still insisted: "No, you are a college student, you can't do bad things."
"Mom!" Lin Xiangxi regretted it. If he had known earlier, he would not have told her and would have sold it secretly.
"You are a college student, but I am not." Hu Meili said confidently: "Give the hairband to mom. I will help you sell it, and I will give you half of the profit."
Lin Xiangxi's eyes widened, "Mom, I can sell it myself."
“No, you can’t sell it.”