Chapter 123

Jian Lu was dragged into the house by Cheng Zheng. When she heard him say that her trouser legs looked like eggplants, she was extremely angry.

This man really doesn't understand fashion, what kind of taste does he have!

"Comrade Cheng Zheng, these are called bell-bottom pants!"

Cheng Zheng frowned and looked at his wife's pants. They were a pair of sky blue pants made of unknown material. They didn't look like the cotton pants she usually wore. The shape was quite nice. Of course, it was mainly because Jian Lu had long and straight legs, so she looked good in anything. But why did the legs of these pants open downwards?

"A loudspeaker?" Cheng Zheng really didn't understand. He thought of the loudspeaker used for broadcasting in the army. How could anyone make pants like this? "Who came up with this idea? They don't look like pants at all."

"Why not? This is called fashionable."

Aunt Wang was sitting in the living room watching TV. She heard her son and daughter-in-law arguing as they walked into the house and looked over curiously.

I saw that my daughter-in-law was very different today!

In the past, she usually wore a pair of blouse, which made her look quiet and pretty. But today, she wore a red ruffled shirt and a pair of slightly different pants. She couldn't tell the name of the pants, but she felt that she had seen someone wearing them on the street recently.

"Lulu, come here and let me see you. You look so beautiful in this outfit!" Aunt Wang felt that her daughter-in-law was really different today, full of energy and spirit!

"Mom, do you think these pants look good?" Cheng Zheng seriously suspected that his mother's eyesight was not good enough to see the legs of the bell-bottom pants clearly. "Look carefully, don't the legs look weird?"

"What's so strange about that?" Aunt Wang didn't understand, but she thought her daughter-in-law was dressed nicely, "If she dresses nicely, it's not strange."

"Mom, you still understand me!" Jian Lu and her mother-in-law held hands and sat on the sofa. Jian Lu enthusiastically introduced bell-bottom pants to her. "I don't know what kind of old-fashioned ideas Brother Cheng has. He even said that the legs of these pants are weird."

"Don't listen to him. What else can he do besides being a soldier? He doesn't know anything about clothes." Aunt Wang didn't spare any effort in criticizing her son, and Cheng Zheng couldn't help but hold his forehead when he heard it.

Picking up the newspaper again, Cheng Zheng glanced at the mother-in-law and daughter-in-law out of the corner of his eye. Well, he still had to stick to the revolutionary front alone.

That night, Shuangshuang rushed back home excitedly after playing outside, and saw a different mother in the living room.

"Mom?!" Shuangshuang thought that Mom was dressed very differently today.

"Now you know how to call me mom?" Jian Lu hadn't settled the score with the little girl yet. "Call me auntie again?"

Shuangshuang stuck out her tongue and said, "Oh, it was you I bumped into at the door earlier? I didn't see you clearly, I thought it was an aunt from somewhere."

"You don't even recognize your own mother, right?" Jian Lu touched the lady's itchy flesh. Cheng Zheng was thick-skinned and not afraid of being tickled, but Shuangshuang was most afraid of this. She laughed out loud like a string of silver bells and quickly tried to hide behind her father.

“Dad, save me!”

Cheng Zheng looked at his wife playing with the child, and said with a gentle look, "If you two start a fight, who would I dare to help?"

"Dad! You have to cheer up!" She put her hands around her father's neck and brainwashed him crazily, "Today, you and I will overthrow Mom's rule, and we will stand up in the future."

"Who taught you these?" Cheng Zheng didn't know where these kids heard it from.

"That's what the brothers and sisters in the yard said." This is the "war" game that Shuangshuang has played since he was a child.

"Who are you going to overthrow?" Jian Lu crossed her arms over her chest, watching the little girl's nose sweating and her face turning red from playing. She could even see the fine hairs on her face. "You dare to rebel, don't you?"

"I won't rebel!" Shuangshuang seized the opportunity to get off her father's back, threw herself on her mother and acted coquettishly, "I, Cheng Keying, am willing to accept your rule for the rest of my life. Mom, let me tell you, Dad just wanted to overthrow your rule! I am the best! Don't say it was me who said that~ I'm going to take a shower~"

Cheng Zheng, who has excellent hearing, said: "..."

You also know how to sow discord, right?!

=

Jian Lu's outfit received unanimous praise except from Cheng Zheng, because she is well-groomed and looks several years younger than her actual age. Wearing the most fashionable combination, she looks even more fashionable.

Of course, Comrade Cheng Zheng's opinion had no effect.

"Don't you dislike my bell-bottoms? What are you staring at?" Jian Lu was packing her luggage. A year later, in early summer, she was preparing to go on a business trip with Cai Xiujuan to meet Hong Kong businessmen.

However, during this process, there were always eyes surrounding me.

"I found that they look good after looking at them for a long time." As long as you ignore the flared shape of the trouser legs, Cheng Zheng thinks his wife looks really good in these flared trousers.

"That's how they design it. It's the most popular, you know?" Jian Lu buckled up the suitcase and turned to sit on the bed. "Do you know who is the most popular movie actress right now?"

"How would I know?" Cheng Zheng thought for a moment, "The one who played the White-Haired Girl? The one in □□Tianjin Ji?"

Jian Lu wanted to shake the revolutionary-themed movies out of his mind. "It's not revolutionary-themed, but the most popular among young people. It's from Hong Kong. There are so many movies made there, all kinds of movies are made there."

"Don't play such lascivious music again." Cheng Zheng knew about this. Many places in the society were promoting the ban of such lascivious music.

"You are just old-fashioned. Wasn't 'Nostalgia' also lifted from the ban on last year's Spring Festival Gala? What does this mean? Everyone likes to listen to it." Jian Lu looked at Cheng Zheng, "Are your revolutionary ideas and willpower firm?"

Cheng Zheng raised his eyebrows. He was confident in this. "Of course."

"If you listen to some lewd music and watch some romantic movies and your mind is corrupted, does that mean your will is not strong enough? You can't let these things kill everything else, right?"

"This is capitalism's sugar-coated bullet." Cheng Zheng has accepted this idea for more than ten years.

"Then just tell me whether you want to eat it or not?" Jian Lu peeled a piece of candy and put it to his mouth with a smile.

Cheng Zheng opened his mouth and took a bite, proving with practical action that he had to eat it.

=

Jian Lu dressed fashionably to go and meet Cai Xiujuan. This trip would delay her for half a month. She carried a suitcase, wore a long-sleeved shirt and flared jeans, let her hair down, tied two strands in the middle to make a knot, and undid the braid. Her soft black hair flowed like a waterfall, which made her fair complexion look even more striking.

When Cai Xiujuan first saw her, she almost didn't recognize her.

"Lulu, you look so pretty and energetic in this outfit."

"Sister Xiujuan, do you want to try it?"

"No, no, I'll forget it." Cai Xiujuan waved her hands repeatedly. She definitely couldn't wear something like this.

This time, the two took the green train to City S, preparing to meet the Hong Kong businessmen introduced by classmate Jian Lu.

In recent years, many businessmen from Hong Kong have come to the mainland to invest. Zong Zhaoqi got to know many of them because of his work. When he heard that some of them were interested in the mainland's pearl market, he immediately recommended Jian Lu.

That's how business works, connections are sometimes more important than anything else.

However, it is not easy to make an appointment with Hong Kong businessmen. Jian Lu and her friends were left out several times before they finally got to this day.

After arriving in S City, Jian Lu first took Cai Xiujuan to meet Zong Zhaoqi. It was a rare opportunity for the old classmates to see each other again after graduation, and Zong Zhaoqi generously invited them to dinner at a restaurant.

"This is a high-end hotel invested by Hong Kong businessmen." Zong Zhaoqi introduced it to them along the way. "Also, the hotel opposite was also invested by Hong Kong businessmen. I heard it is a four-star hotel. It's amazing."

Jian Lu and Cai Xiujuan looked in the direction of the sound and saw that there was indeed construction activity in the distance.

There are indeed not many hotels nowadays, and guesthouses are still the main type, which mainly provide a simple place to live.

City S also built only one three-star hotel invested by Hong Kong businessmen two years ago.

"It will definitely be beautiful once it's renovated." Jian Lu took a rough look and it was obviously a high-end hotel that had been carefully designed.

"Right, you guys take a seat." Zong Zhaoqi asked the two to sit down and called the waiter to take the order. "It's developing very fast now. Look how long I've been here? Only about two years, and I've seen the development here change every day."

"You've assigned the work well." Jian Lu teased him.

At the dinner table, the three of them feasted and chatted about the Hong Kong businessmen they were about to meet.

"This Hong Kong businessman is called Cai Siqiang. He started from scratch and is very capable. He is very powerful in Hong Kong. In recent years, he has been interested in the mainland and has come to S City twice. Last time he invested 3 million to build a hotel, and this time he donated another 1 million to build a library. He really spends money."

Zong Zhaoqi has worked in the Economic Development Bureau of City S for two years. Jian Lu has been influenced by him and feels that he speaks with the ease of a bureaucrat.

"Da Zong, is he here alone or with his family?" Jian Lu had to wonder if the gift was enough.

"A family of four plus an assistant, a driver and two bodyguards."

Jian Lu and Cai Xiujuan prepared some specialties as gifts for their meeting in advance, and luckily they were large in size.

"Oh, the whole family can come over to play." Cai Xiujuan felt relieved, thinking that he must be a good man who cares about his family and even brings his family with him when he does business.

However, the next second, Zong Zhaoqi's words shattered her fantasy.

"He brought his second wife and children last time, and this time he brought his third wife and children."

"What?" Cai Xiujuan's eyebrows were twisted into a "川" shape. "He has more than one wife?"

Before traveling through time, Jian Lu had watched Hong Kong dramas and movies since she was a child, and had some understanding of the culture and history of that place.

However, Cai Xiujuan basically knows nothing about the port city on the other side of the strait. Today, when she heard that the Hong Kong businessman actually had several wives, her eyes almost popped out.

After lunch, Zong Zhaoqi went back to the Development Bureau to work, and Jian Lu and Cai Xiujuan went back to the guesthouse to rest, and then she asked what was in her heart.

"Lulu, your classmate was here just now, and I didn't have the courage to ask how that Hong Kong businessman could have so many wives."

"Polygamy was allowed there before, but it was probably abolished a few years ago, or ten years ago." Jian Lu couldn't remember the exact time.

"Tsk tsk." Cai Xiujuan smacked her lips twice. "I never thought that they said they were richer than us, but they are actually not as good as us. We are really against feudalism and destroying the four olds."

"Yeah, we are all monogamous here."

"But I heard from your classmates that he has three wives in total. Can he take care of them all? Each wife has a bunch of children. My God, I think it would take a lot of effort to take care of a child and a family. How many people does he have?"

"It's because I have money. Everything becomes easier if I have money."

Cai Xiujuan: "..."

Yes, there is no way to refute it.

=

Cai Xiujuan and Jian Lu met the famous Hong Kong businessman Cai Siqiang on the third day after arriving in S City.

Cai Siqiang and his family lived in a high-end three-star hotel in S City which was completed two years ago and they directly booked an entire floor.

Cai Siqiang's room has a dedicated reception room with a spacious area, carpeted floor, exquisite suede sofas, mahogany tea tables, and a 12-inch color TV opposite.

Unlike what Cai Xiujuan had imagined, this man actually looked very easy-going. He was not very tall, with an ordinary face with a hint of smile. He was wearing a stand-up collar polo shirt, sports pants, and sneakers, and his outfit was also very casual.

He did not have the arrogance and pride of a wealthy boss at all, and was very polite to his own family and the two persons in charge of the pearl farm, who should be insignificant in his eyes.

"Hello, Mr. Cai." Jian Lu greeted Cai Xiujuan, "We are the person in charge of Haizhu Pearl Farm. My name is Jian Lu."

"My name is Cai Xiujuan."

Cai Siqiang greeted the two of them and said warmly, "What a coincidence, we were relatives three hundred years ago."

Cai Xiujuan smiled and said, "That's right."

Cai Siqiang speaks Mandarin which sounds a bit plastic and has a Hong Kong accent, but it does not affect his communication with others.

After a few polite words, Jian Lu got down to business. She brought detailed information, all of which were introductions to professional pearl farms. Cai Xiujuan also brought the best quality pearls from the farm as samples to show Mr. Cai.

Cai Siqiang casually flipped through the information in the exquisite booklet and took a look at the pearl samples. "Your work is very meticulous. I have been to many places and factories in the mainland, and you are well prepared."

"Of course, we need to let you know more about our pearls."

"Okay, I've looked at the stuff, but I have something else to do later, so I won't keep you here. If we need to cooperate later, I'll arrange for someone to contact you."

Cai Xiujuan's heart sank when she heard this. She was being chased away after only talking for ten minutes?

She glanced at Jian Lu out of the corner of her eye, wanting to try again.

Cai Xiujuan is no longer the person who was afraid to speak in the business world. She has developed her courage a long time ago.

"Mr. Cai, if there is a chance, we would like to invite you to visit our pearl farm. Our current cultivation process is very professional and the pearl quality is also good."

Cai Siqiang did not comment, "Okay, if there is a chance."

"Okay, Mr. Cai, we won't bother you anymore. We hope we can have a chance to cooperate." Jian Lu gently tugged at Cai Xiujuan's clothes under the table and confirmed the idea with her.

"Okay, see you later."

Jian Lu and Cai Xiujuan stood up and prepared to leave. As soon as they walked out of the living room, they heard a babyish voice saying, "Daddy, I'm hungry."

"Are you hungry again?" Cai Siqiang smiled, picking up the boy, who was about five or six years old, and walked out. "I'll take you to eat something delicious."

Jian Lu and Cai Xiujuan looked at each other. This should be the one that Zong Zhaoqi mentioned, the youngest born to the third wife, the precious son that Cai Siqi had in his middle age.

Since they had something to do, the two of them had no choice but to leave.

After the two of them left the guesthouse where Cai Siqiang was staying, Cai Xiujuan finally couldn't help it.

"Lulu, are we just leaving like this? We've only been talking for a while. We came here by train."

"Don't worry, let's see if there is a chance later."

A few days later, Cai Xiujuan was dragged by Jian Lu to a department store to buy a set of sportswear for each of them. She originally thought that she was there to discuss business, but unexpectedly, she was dragged by Jian Lu to go jogging!

On Phoenix Mountain in S City, the figures of two lesbians jogging along were clearly visible.

Cai Xiujuan was forced by Jian Lu to exercise for several days, and she was puzzled.

"Lulu, what are we doing here? If we really can't come to an end, let's go back. Otherwise, it's just a waste of time to stay here."

"Wait a little longer."

Jian Lu recalled that in the Hong Kong dramas she watched before, didn't the rich love to climb mountains? If you don't exercise every day, you will probably feel uncomfortable. In addition, Cai Siqiang, who she met that day, was indeed dressed in sportswear.

Phoenix Mountain is the best place for morning jogging in S City.

"Daddy, I feel dizzy." A little boy's clear voice came from not far away.

"Let's go down slowly. Henry, be good and hold on."

"Mr. Cai." Jian Lu didn't expect to actually run into Cai Siqiang here who came for a run. However, she didn't expect to run into Cai Siqiang's son who was feeling unwell due to his morning run.

Cai Siqiang had a son in his middle age and he loved him very much. Today, the father and son went up the mountain for a morning run, but they forgot to bring a supply bag. Cai Siqiang was used to living like a rich man, so how could he bring things himself?

"I didn't bring any chocolates, wait a moment." Just as Chase Qiang was about to carry his son down the mountain, he saw two familiar faces approaching.

"Hello, Mr. Cai. What a coincidence that we meet here." Jian Lu took out the chocolate and orange candy from her backpack and handed them over. "Give these to your child to replenish his energy."

Cai Xiujuan also opened a military water bottle filled with warm water and passed it over.

"Thank you." Cai Siqiang still didn't remember who these two people were.

It was only when Jian Lu mentioned it casually that he remembered that the two of them were raising pearls.

Although the situation was not critical, the appearance of Jian Lu and Cai Xiujuan did help him. Cai Siqiang returned to the hotel and looked at the two comrades carefully again. He finally took a good look at the information they had sent him before.

Cai Siqiang discussed the development of pearl farms with the two for half an hour, during which he repeatedly asked sharp questions. Cai Xiujuan was still a little nervous when she came out.

She whispered, "I didn't expect Mr. Cai, who looks so easygoing, to be so scary when talking about work."

"Yeah, like a different person."

"Yes, but it's really amazing. Just a few words made me nervous."

Not only that, Cai Siqiang's third wife Liang Jiayi also invited the two of them to have dinner together.

"Thank you so much for this. Henry gets dizzy easily when he's hungry. He went for a morning run with his dad and forgot to carry the supply bag I prepared for him, so he got upset."

"Mommy, I just forgot about this time." Henry is a pretty little boy, wearing a white shirt with a brown vest on the outside and navy blue overalls. His hair is slightly curly, which makes his face look fair. He looks very stylish.

"Okay, just once." Liang Jiayi looked at the two guests again, "Did you say thank you to the two aunts?"

"I've said that." Henry turned around and said politely to Jian Lu and Cai Xiujuan, "Thank you, aunt."

"You are welcome."

"It's all right."

Cai Siqiang finally decided to give Jian Lu and Cai Xiujuan a chance to visit their pearl farm. Of course, there was another important reason. Jian Lu mentioned at the dinner table that day that lotus seeds could be picked in the pond outside the pearl farm. Henry couldn't eat after hearing that and clamored to go and play.

Two days later, the group took a train to H City and headed straight to the pearl farm.

Jian Lu found some time to use the landline in the field to call home and inform her family that she had returned, but she would not be able to go home for the next two days.

A landline phone was installed at home at the beginning of the year, and now it is much more convenient to communicate than before.

Cai Siqiang is an easy-going person, without any airs of a wealthy man, and is generous. He has invested or donated a lot of money during his two visits to the mainland. However, when it comes to serious business discussions, he is extremely strict.

Jian Lu and Cai Xiujuan welcomed him with great enthusiasm and took him to experience the entire process from clams cultivation to pearl extraction, because they usually require standardized and professional operations, and the workers performed well in this process.

"Although your place is small, it is well-organized." Cai Siqiang actually thought little of such a small place, and the output was not good enough.

However, after hearing about the step-by-step development history of this place, he was very interested. "You are quite similar to me in the beginning. You started from scratch. It's not easy."

When it comes to starting from scratch, Cai Xiujuan has a lot to say and she has a good chat with people.

Cai Siqiang did not mention the cooperation again after visiting the pearl farm on the first day. Jian Lu and Cai Xiujuan also understood that they should not be too impatient and just tried their best to be good tour guides.

Third wife Liang Jiayi and Henry were having a good time here.

In particular, Shuangshuang heard that her mother had returned to the site, so she clamored to come over while the data was being stored. Her father was busy with work and couldn't leave, so in the end it was her grandmother who brought her over.

The children immediately started playing together and picked Cai Xiujuan's lotus seeds every day.

The lotus in the pond has met its rival.

"Henry, you can't pick lotus seeds like this." Shuangshuang always thought that this younger brother's surname was Cai and his given name was Henry.

"Yeah, you don't want to learn from us." Duoduo is the oldest of the three and is very much like an older sister.

"Ok." Henry mainly spoke a mixture of Chinese and English in Hong Kong, so at this moment he could only shrug and say, "I'll learn from you guys."

"If you want to say it, okay." Shuangshuang taught him seriously. Why does this younger brother always say strange things?

Henry: "..."

"Shuangshuang, my brother speaks English." Jian Lu patiently explained to Shuangshuang.

"Mom, what is English?"

"It's just that the language spoken by people in some other countries is different from ours."

"Oh~" Shuangshuang seemed to understand, but she still felt it sounded weird.

"Henry, you picked so many lotus seeds? You're so capable!" Liang Jiayi praised the child excitedly.

"Mommy, there are so many lotus seeds, we can eat them all! Where's Daddy? I want to show them to him right now."

"There it is. Go ahead."

Shuangshuang was confused again after listening to what Cai Hengrui said, "Sister Duoduo, what is he talking about? What is mommy? What is daddy?"

Duoduo didn't know either, and later they asked Jianlu and found out that it was their mom and dad's idea.

"Henry, why do you call daddy 'Daddy' and mommy 'Mommy'?" Shuangshuang couldn't suppress her curiosity and couldn't help asking him.

Henry was puzzled, "I have always called them like this. Don't you call them daddy and mommy?"

Shuangshuang shook her head, "I always call them dad and mom."

The two children looked at each other and thought the other was weird.

At lunch time, Cai Xiujuan cooked three dishes herself with the lotus seeds picked by the children: fried sugar lotus seeds, lotus seed soup with white fungus and red dates, and the last dish was three fresh dishes made with lotus seeds, lotus roots and water chestnuts.

Cai Siqiang's family had a very happy meal, especially Cai Siqiang. He started from scratch and suffered a lot, but now he gets along well with many workers here. Sometimes they talk about building a house and laying the foundation, and sometimes they talk about the hardships of working to earn money. He actually likes the life here very much.

The well-known Hong Kong businessman visited, and the commune leaders also heard the news and rushed to invite him to dinner at the commune's best restaurant.

"Mr. Cai, I am Wei Debiao, the secretary of Qingshui Commune. Please do me the honor of having a meal."

When Cai Xiujuan saw the commune secretary coming to recruit people, she probably guessed that he wanted to promote the sale of pearls.

But she couldn't stop the person, so she and Jian Lu sent him away and closed the door to mutter to herself.

"Secretary Wei must have heard that we invited Hong Kong businessmen back and wanted to come over to grab the order." Cai Xiujuan couldn't tell what she felt in her heart, but this was also fair competition. "Lulu, tell me, is it possible that Secretary Wei and his friends got along well with Mr. Cai and his brother over the wine table and signed the order over one glass of white wine after another?"

The more Cai Xiujuan thought about it, the more she felt something was wrong. It was very possible!

"Not really. As far as I know, Mr. Cai hates it most when people force him to drink."

"How do you know that?"

"I heard it from Ms. Liang yesterday when I was chatting with her." Besides, Jian Lu is confident in the pearls produced in her own farm.

"Yes, it's mainly because our former field was completely destroyed by the commune. You have no idea what has happened to it! It's only been a few years. After we withdrew, the leaders of the commune became even more reckless in shoveling people into the pearl field. To raise a batch of pearls, eight leaders had to sign their consent, and everyone had different opinions. Everyone wanted to take the benefits for themselves. Now, all the orders we signed at the beginning have been destroyed by them, and most of the workers have left. It's really a waste of our hard work."

Jian Lu looked at the slightly dilapidated old field in the distance and sighed, "What a good hand played so badly."

Sure enough, that afternoon, when Mr. Cai and his family came back, they didn't look very happy. Jian Lu and the others didn't ask any questions, but who knew that Cai Siqiang would speak directly.

"What is your current annual production volume? I can sign an order with you."

Jian Lu and Cai Xiujuan looked at each other and spoke slowly, "Of course we base our decision on the needs of our customers. We have whatever you want."

Cai Siqiang smiled and said, "You guys are quite arrogant."

Cai Xiujuan is very confident about this. "We will definitely try our best to meet customers' orders. Even if there are no conditions, we will create them."

Cai Siqiang felt that the two were honest after all and smiled again.

The three of them went to Cai Xiujuan's office to discuss the details of the order. On the way, Cai Xiujuan couldn't help but ask.

"Mr. Cai, excuse me, why did you suddenly decide to sign a contract with us after being out all morning?"

Cai Siqiang got a headache when he thought about being invited to another pearl farm in the morning.

"The other pearl farm here is terrible, a complete mess, and can't be compared with the standardized production here. And there are too many people there, and everyone wants to talk to me. How many ears do I have? It's better here."

Cai Siqiang originally came to the mainland to invest, and he was generous, wanting to see if there were any potential stocks to try his luck. Although the pearl farms here were relatively small, what he valued were the people, the bosses above him.

If the people above are leading well, why worry about scale?

Finally, Jian Lu and Cai Xiujuan won a two-year order worth $800,000 from Hong Kong businessman Cai Siqiang, successfully breaking their own order record.

After sending Cai Siqiang and his family onto the train, Cai Xiujuan finally let out the emotion that had been pent up for a long time. She grabbed Jian Lu and danced excitedly.

"Lulu, eight hundred thousand in two years!" Cai Xiujuan had never made such a loud noise before, so how could she not be excited.

"There will be more in the future. Maybe you can do business worth tens of millions or even hundreds of millions."

The green train rumbled on, and Cai Siqiang and his family prepared to return to City S and then take a ship back to the port.

On the train, Henry still missed the two friends he had met recently, "Dad, Mom, when can we see Shuangshuang and Duoduo again?"

"I'll bring you to play with them next time." Chase looked at his son lovingly and suddenly felt something was wrong.

What did the child just yell?

——

Jian Lu had been away from home for more than half a month. After finishing this big order, she finally took Shuangshuang away from Cai Xiujuan and went home.

Aunt Wang felt sorry for her daughter-in-law and cooked a pot of chicken soup for her. "Drink it while it's hot. Eat some meat, chicken wings and chicken legs. It's good for your health."

At the dinner table, Jian Lu happily announced to her mother-in-law and Cheng Zheng that the pearl farm had signed another big contract. "Let's go to the newly opened private restaurant in the county tomorrow to eat! I heard the food is delicious! I'll treat you."

In the past two years, various self-employed businesses have sprung up like bamboo shoots after a spring rain. Many private restaurants have delicious food and affordable prices, and have become very popular.

"Okay, go ahead! I'll pay for it." Aunt Wang is getting older and is gradually willing to spend money. She patted her pocket and said, "Mom has money too."

"Wow, grandma, let me see how much there is." Shuangshuang pretended to look into grandma's pocket, which made her smile.

Cheng Zheng put down his chopsticks and looked at the energetic Jian Lu, who also showed his support. "Then Director Jian will have to pay for it."

Jian Lu didn't bother him, "Deputy Brigade Commander Cheng, please come back next time, but don't eat for free."

Shuangshuang watched her parents bickering, her head shaking from side to side, almost like a toss-up. Suddenly she remembered something, looked at her parents, and spoke in a sweet voice, "Daddy, Mommy, when are we going to eat?"

Cheng Zheng's eyebrows almost knitted together when he heard this title: "...What the hell?"

Jian Lu: "...How did you learn this?"