Chapter 105 (Bug Fix) Now that we have family planning...
Tang Mingli knitted a scarf for about an hour. Due to her biological clock and the fact that she had been thinking about knitting all morning, she got up very early and was exhausted by noon.
She was already thinking of taking a nap, but Madam Fu became more and more enthusiastic as she knitted.
Perhaps when she wakes up from her nap, her grandmother will already be finishing up.
Noticing that her granddaughter-in-law had stopped again, Old Madam Fu looked over and smiled, "Tired?"
While looking at Tang Mingli and talking, he didn't stop knitting the scarf.
Tang Mingli nodded.
She finally understood the meaning of "practice makes perfect" and clearly realized the gap in strength between the two of them.
Even if she didn't sleep at noon and kept knitting, she would only knit a few more rows.
Madam Fu said, "If you're tired, take a break. Anyway, we're not in a rush to use this. I just haven't knitted for several years, and my hands are itching to start. Once I start knitting, I can't stop."
Tang Mingli smiled and said, "I was just about to go upstairs to take a nap."
She said she'd sleep for a while, but who knows if she'll end up sleeping all afternoon?
"Then go quickly."
"Yes, Grandma should also take a rest if she gets tired from knitting."
"I know, don't worry."
"Then I'll go up."
Tang Mingli wound up the yarn and carefully put the needle and thread away.
Shortly after she went upstairs, the phone in the living room rang.
After answering the call, Madam Fu heard her grandson's voice and couldn't help but say, "If you had called ten minutes earlier, you could have spoken to Mingli."
"She went out?"
Madam Fu smiled and said, "No, she probably knitted a scarf all morning and got tired, so she went upstairs to sleep."
Fu Ci smiled too.
He figured she should be taking a nap around this time, and wanted to call her before she fell asleep, but he was too late.
However, he wasn't in the office today, and he couldn't just make a call whenever he wanted. It was lunchtime, so he found a restaurant to eat at and noticed a phone at the front desk, so he thought he'd call home.
Because of this action, his fellow clients remarked that he was a family man.
Since his wife was already asleep, he decided not to wake her; he figured his grandmother wouldn't even consider it.
Fu Ci asked his grandmother, "Why are you knitting a scarf?"
It was quite unexpected that someone who usually gets tired of writing for a long time would start knitting.
"Just knitting for fun." As she spoke, Madam Fu looked at the half-finished product her granddaughter-in-law had placed on the side table next to the sofa and couldn't help but tell her grandson, "Mingli chose gray yarn. I reckon this color is probably for you."
She had this suspicion when she was picking out the yarn, and she asked Mingli about it, but Mingli was too shy to admit it.
Hearing that it was from Zhi, Fu Ci on the other end of the phone was surprised, followed by a wave of joy.
"real?"
He tried to make his tone sound normal, but Madam Fu could still tell he was excited and suddenly regretted speaking out of turn.
Maybe Mingli wants to give Fu Ci a surprise.
That's it, she tipped us off in advance.
So he quickly added, "I shouldn't have said that. Just pretend you didn't know, okay?"
Fu Ci readily agreed, understanding the meaning behind his grandmother's instructions.
The thought that his wife might want to surprise him made Fu Ci want to go home.
The two chatted for a while and learned that Fu Ci had clients waiting for him to have dinner together. Madam Fu quickly told him to go and attend to his business.
Before hanging up, Fu Ci made it clear that he would call back around 8 p.m.
At this time, family members usually sit in front of the TV to watch TV.
Madam Fu understood what he meant and smiled, "Alright, Grandma understands what you mean and will definitely tell Mingli."
Fu Ci smiled when he was teased.
After ending the call, Fu Ci returned to the private room and said to the waiting client, "Sorry, I've been gone for a while."
It was only a few minutes, but leaving a client alone was still impolite. If the two hadn't already cooperated many times and gotten along very well, becoming rare friends in the business world, he would never have done that.
The other person smiled and said in very broken Mandarin, "It's okay, I understand. It's normal to miss your family after not being home for so long."
As he was speaking, the other person suddenly exclaimed, as if discovering a new continent, "Mr. Fu, you haven't even had a drink yet, why are your ears so red?"
"Really?" Fu Ci subconsciously touched his right ear, realizing that he was probably too excited when he learned on the phone that his wife was going to give him a surprise.
Fu Ci didn't make up any excuses; he told the truth.
Hearing the other person laugh out loud, "President Fu, I never knew you had such a tender side. Luckily, your family on the other end of the phone can't see you like this, or they would definitely laugh at you."
Fu Ci smiled and honestly replied, "I don't know how to laugh."
But joking around is definitely in order.
Fortunately, the phone could only hear the voice and not see the person's image.
"Hey, do you think there will ever be a day when you can both hear a voice and see a person on a phone?"
"Can you hear sounds and see people?" Fu Ci thought about it seriously and found it very unbelievable.
Clearly, the other person thought the same way, so after asking the question, they chuckled to themselves, "I didn't expect that even though I'm almost forty, I still have such a vivid imagination."
To people at that time, the idea of seeing someone through a telephone seemed utterly unbelievable. Little did they know that decades later, it would actually become a reality.
-
On the other end, not long after Madam Fu hung up on Fu Ci, and before she had even returned to her seat, the phone rang again.
She muttered to herself, "Did I forget to tell this child something?"
Thinking of this, he answered the phone with a smile: "Hello..."
"Hey, sister-in-law."
"Oh, it's Caiping." Upon hearing her sister-in-law's voice, Madam Fu's tone changed.
Fu Caiping joked with her, "Is your sister-in-law waiting for someone's call? Why do you seem so disappointed when you hear it's me?"
Madam Fu explained, "No, just a few seconds ago, Fu Ci called back. I thought it was him."
"I see. How is Fu Ci's business in Shenzhen going?"
"It's alright, I'm pretty busy anyway, but I don't know the specifics."
"Being busy is good; being busy means there's business." With that, Fu Caiping sighed, "Do you remember last year during the Spring Festival, when I brought a few people to visit you and wish you a Happy New Year?"
"I'm not senile yet, how could I not remember?" Old Madam Fu laughed.
Because there were so many people, she almost didn't know what to eat for lunch. Luckily, Mingli was clever and suggested that they simply have hot pot.
“Those people, some because the factory wasn’t doing well, some because they were envious of others making money outside, all had the idea of quitting and starting their own businesses, but none of them had the courage to make a decision. As a result, they are still hesitating today. I’ve come to understand that these indecisive guys will never amount to anything. Only someone like Fu Ci can make a difference.”
Madam Fu agreed in her heart, but she couldn't really agree with her sister-in-law's in-laws, so she could only smile.
"There's nothing wrong with having a stable, secure job; at least you can eat your fill and stay warm."
It was just a perfunctory remark, but Fu Caiping took it seriously and said to her, "No, you may not know, but many factories are doing worse and worse now, and it's hard to say whether they will be able to eat and dress well in the future."
Old Mrs. Fu was somewhat aware of the situation; her grandson and granddaughter-in-law had mentioned the plight of state-owned enterprises during their conversations. But she couldn't possibly encourage them to resign, could she?
She asked her sister-in-law, "You didn't come to see me today just to say these things, did you?"
These words reminded Fu Caiping, who quickly replied, "Oh, no, it's just that we were talking about Fu Ci and it made me think of these things. I actually had something else to discuss with you today."
"What's up?"
When asked about serious matters, Fu Caiping sighed before she could even speak.
Before she could explain in detail, Madam Fu sensed that this reaction was not a good thing.
Why are there so few families as harmonious and happy as theirs?
Madam Fu also sighed and said, "Alright, phone calls aren't cheap, so stop sighing."
When you say phone bills are expensive, you've hit the nail on the head.
Fu Caiping quickly got down to business: "Actually, I just wanted to tell you about Gu Lin. Her child had a serious illness, and her mother-in-law started nagging, saying that the child's health is so poor, and she doesn't know if the child can grow up safely."
"Is this something a grandmother should say?" Old Madam Fu was also angry. When children are young, it is usually taboo to say such unlucky things.
"That's right, but it's also because the child's health has been poor since birth, and with the one-child policy in place, they can only have one grandson, which is why her mother-in-law has such concerns."
"You can't say things like that."
It's as if they wish the child were not doing well.
"That's what I said too, but..."
For every rebuttal Madam Fu made, Fu Caiping could find a reason to support Gu Lin's in-laws.
After a few exchanges, Old Madam Fu got even angrier. "Are you on Gu Lin's side or her in-laws' side?"
"Of course I'm on the side of my own granddaughter."
"Then why do you keep making excuses for her mother-in-law?"
"Isn't this just putting yourself in someone else's shoes?"
Madam Fu spat and blurted out a joke that Tang Mingli often said: "When dealing with outsiders, relatives should help each other regardless of who is right."
"Well... I can't say that her mother-in-law's concerns are wrong; a child is indeed not safe."
"Is the throne going to be lost because they're worried about it being passed down?"
Madam Fu was furious and gave Fu Caiping a good scolding, forcing her to swallow back the plea she had originally intended to make.
After hanging up the phone, Mrs. Fu was still very angry and couldn't concentrate on knitting the scarf, so she simply went out for a walk.
I hadn't gone far from home when I saw Aunt Li sitting on a lounge chair, clutching her lower back.
Madam Fu thought she was feeling unwell and quickly went over to ask her what was wrong.
Aunt Li sighed, "My two great-grandsons are so naughty. I tried to catch them but couldn't, and I almost hurt my back."
"Could he have really strained his back?"
"No, if it were really flashing, I wouldn't be sitting here."
The two elderly people sat side by side and chatted for a while, but it was more like Aunt Li was venting her frustrations.
He talked about how difficult things had been for him all these years.
She had finally managed to raise one son and three daughters on her own, thinking she could finally rest, but then her son had several grandsons in quick succession. She had finally raised those grandsons to adulthood, thinking she could finally relax, but then her eldest grandson had two great-grandsons.
"Everyone says that having many children brings good fortune, but now I'm really scared."
Old Mrs. Fu felt quite tired listening to this. She only had one son, and her son only had one grandson. Moreover, they had been hiring a nanny since the grandson was born, so she had never experienced the exhaustion that Aunt Li was going through.
She couldn't exactly suggest that if all else fails, you could hire a housekeeper to help.
Every family has its own difficulties. Li Da Niang's family has always had more children than other families, and their living conditions are not as good as those of many people in the compound.
She could only comfort him by saying, "The child will be able to go to school in two years, and things will be better then."
"But in two more years, my second grandson will be of marriageable age..." Thinking of this, Aunt Li's lips trembled involuntarily.
She also had a hard life. When she was a young daughter-in-law, she suffered because of her mother-in-law, but when she became a mother-in-law herself, she never expected to have such a blessing.
Her ill-fated and short-lived daughter-in-law... sigh!
Madam Fu comforted him, "It's alright. Now that we have the one-child policy, even if your second grandson gets married, he can only have one child."
But raising a child takes more than a day or two.
Madam Fu also understood how ineffective her words of comfort were.
With her back pain lessened, Aunt Li quickly got up to go find her two mischievous grandsons.
As she watched her figure, leaning to one side but still trying to move forward, Old Madam Fu couldn't quite describe her feelings.
-
Madam Fu took a stroll in a nearby park before returning home in the evening.
Tang Mingli had already taken a nap and came downstairs, looking refreshed and energetic.
Upon seeing Madam Fu, she quickly said, "Grandma, it's so cold today, why didn't you wear a thicker coat when you went out?"
Madam Fu said, "Oh, don't mention it. I got a call from Caiping, which affected my mood, so I went out for a walk. But I'm dressed warmly, so I'm not cold."
"Really? What did Aunt Caiping say that upset you?"
Madam Fu briefly recounted the contents of the call.
Although it's been a long time, I still get quite angry when I bring it up again.
"Do you think she made that call on purpose to annoy me?"
Tang Mingli thought for a moment and then shook her head.
"I think she might have other motives, but your reaction was too strong and made her afraid to speak."
"Oh, what do you think their purpose might be?"
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
