Cheng Fangping pressed Qian Lai back into her chair, finally managing a slight smile: "We're all elders, and since this is our first time meeting, we're bound to have a lot of advice to give you. This can be seen as a form of encouragement. Why are you in such a hurry? You need to calm down."
After exchanging glances with Gu Weiguo and the others, she asked Qian Lai, "Can you understand Shanghainese?"
Of course she understands!
Qian Lai, a modern-day Qian, was born in Shanghai and moved to Beijing with his family when he was in elementary school.
"Can't understand."
Cheng Fangping was very satisfied with her answer, as it was exactly what she had expected.
Immediately afterwards, the Gu family began to communicate in Shanghainese.
"Mom, she looks too restless and has a rather fiery temper. Will she be able to stay obediently by my brother's side?" Gu Yue said.
"As long as she is obedient and can relieve our worries, who cares what she looks like?"
“Those from small places may not necessarily be obedient. Fourth Sister-in-law, you must keep control of Hanchuan’s entire salary.”
"One should always be wary of others. If Han Chuan can't be touched, and if she develops disloyalty over time, her family will benefit," said Fifth Aunt Gao Zhen.
"Let's not add any more 'three turns and one sound' for their wedding. Anyway, she takes care of Hanchuan all day long, so she won't have a chance to use them," Fifth Uncle Gu Weidong chimed in.
"She's not even nineteen yet, tsk tsk, she looks like a vixen. I wonder if she'll cheat on Hanchuan in the future!"
......
"Alright! Is this how an elder should speak? An eighteen-year-old girl, leaving her hometown, is willing to take on the responsibility of caring for a paralyzed patient. That's already very commendable!"
The second uncle, Gu Weijia, who had been silent all along, interrupted the Gu family's nonsense with a solemn expression.
"She's trying to help us out, I advise you to be understanding!"
Second Uncle said to Gu Weiguo with a serious expression, "Fourth Brother, we've met her. I think this girl is quite clever and has her own opinions. Since we're entrusting Hanchuan to her care, we should trust her and not use those we don't trust."
When Gu Weijia spoke, Gu Weiguo and Gu Weidong listened respectfully, and no one dared to interrupt.
"If you don't approve of her, let her go back as soon as possible. If you want her to stay, then stop gossiping and making things difficult for her. That's my opinion. I have another meeting, so I'll be going now."
After saying that, he stood up, walked to Qian Lai, took out a red envelope and handed it to her, saying in Mandarin, "Child, it must have been tough for you to come all this way to a strange place alone. Take good care of Han Chuan. If you need anything, just tell your family."
This is a small gift for you; please accept it.
"Thank you, Uncle Gu."
Gu Wei and his daughter returned the smiles amicably and left.
Seeing that his second brother had spoken, Gu Weiguo also awkwardly chimed in, "Hanchuan's chances of recovery are extremely slim now. It's truly remarkable that Xiaoqian is willing to serve him for the rest of her life. Let's see how she behaves in the future."
"Hmph, if it weren't for my brother's paralysis, how could she, a junior high school graduate, have even entered our Gu family!" Gu Yue put away her fake smile and complained in Shanghainese.
"She's easy to control, what do you know! Don't say things like that to her face again. We still have to coax her into taking care of your brother without complaint."
While warning Gu Yue, Cheng Fangping also took out a red envelope from her pocket: "This is a small token of my appreciation from Han Chuan's father. Take it."
The smile still didn't reach his eyes.
Qian Lai quickly took out some local specialties from her bag and held them in her hands: "Thank you, uncles and aunts. I also brought some local specialties from Nancheng for you to try."
Cheng Fangping glanced at him sideways, a slight smile playing on her lips, and without even raising her hand, said, "Leave it to Aunt Zhang."
He then called out to everyone, "Let's go have dinner."
Gu Family Restaurant.
Gu Weiguo sat in the main seat, with Cheng Fangping and her two children to his left. To his right were his fifth brother's family. Qian Lai was seated at the very end, next to Gu Yue.
"Qian Lai, can you cook?" Cheng Fangping asked.
"I can do some."
"Oh? Then you can take care of breakfast tomorrow. Han Chuan hasn't had much of an appetite lately, so we can only feel at ease if you have excellent cooking skills."
"no problem."
"That's great. Then we'll look forward to tasting your cooking." Gu Yue's smile held a deeper meaning.
As they were talking, Aunt Zhang started serving the dishes.
Salad, steak and pasta, and a serving of borscht for each person.
In those days, it was truly rare for officials' families to have Western food for dinner.
"Qian Lai, get a medical check-up as soon as possible. We'll have plenty of opportunities to eat and share meals together in the future, and a health report will put everyone at ease."
Oh, so you were worried she might have an infectious disease!
Qian Lai admired him from the bottom of his heart.
"You've probably never eaten these before, do you know how to use a knife and fork?" Seeing her in a daze, Gu Yue asked with a smile that seemed to be waiting to see a good show.
LOL!
She picked up her knife and fork, cut the steak into small pieces, put them in her mouth, and chewed them slowly without making a sound.
He mixed the salad, tasted it for a moment, and said, "Aunt Cheng, if you have the chance, I can make some Caesar dressing for everyone to try. It goes very well with salad."
Taking a sip of the borscht, she said, "Aunt Zhang's cooking is really good. If you didn't know, you would think it was made by a Russian chef."
Receiving approval, Aunt Zhang smiled and silently mouthed, "Eat more."
The Gu family members exchanged glances and fell silent.
Gu Weiguo asked with a smile, "Xiao Qian, have you ever eaten Western food before?"
"Yes, that's right. When I was a child, there were often Russian engineers working at my dad's factory, and I learned some manufacturing methods from their families."
"You also understand Russian?"
Gu Weiguo was even more stunned.
"I've studied some of it."
Gu Weiguo and his wife exchanged a glance; Qian Lai's behavior was somewhat unexpected.
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