Chapter 638: A Chinese Man of Unyielding Spirit (Two chapters combined)
After Gu Yin and Chu Yan went inside, they saw the adults playing cards, a game from the south. The Chu couple watched for a while before eagerly joining in.
As soon as Gu Yin entered, Yao Jinse pulled her away.
"Ah Yin, come help me look at the cards. I still only half understand the rules!"
Li Mengxin across from her laughed: "If A-Le were here, you could ask him for help, but out of four kids in the family, only A-Yin doesn't know how to play cards! You've come to the wrong person!"
Gu Yin touched her nose, embarrassed, and said, "I really don't know how, I'm probably not as good as you!" Then, seeing Gu Hua enter, she immediately waved her over, "Hua! Come play cards!"
Upon hearing this, Gu Hua stepped forward to take a look and then began to help.
Gu Yin gave up her seat and went into the kitchen, where four elderly people were making dumplings with the aunties.
"Grandma, why don't you all go play? No one can eat many dumplings, so let Auntie make just a few."
Seeing Gu Yin come in, the old lady smiled and said, "We won't play anymore. We can't eat many dumplings, but we'll have a little bit. I still need to put the coins in later! What are you doing outside? Getting something?"
Gu Yin washed her hands, sat down next to them, looked at them, and then picked up a dumpling wrapper.
"I came here even though I don't know how to play cards. Grandma gave me some coins, and I put in a lot. When we eat later, I'll find the ones I wrapped myself. I'm sure I'll make a fortune in the new year!"
The old lady handed her the coins and said with a smile, "I'll wrap some of the other things too: tofu, for good fortune; sugar, for sweetness; and peanuts, for longevity. I'll wrap all of these for you. Your skills aren't very good, so it'll be obvious that they're yours when the time comes. That way, everyone can have some!"
Grandpa Gu muttered, "You're cheating!"
Gu Yin objected: "How is this cheating? I asked for it openly and honestly! I was just a little greedy!"
Old Master Chu laughed and said, "Not being greedy? That's not greed! That's sincerity! All you want is to get rich!"
Chu Yan went to the bathroom and came out but didn't see Gu Yin. He wandered around the house for a while and heard laughter coming from the kitchen, so he walked towards the kitchen.
"What are you all talking about? I could hear your laughter from far away!"
Everyone looked towards the door and saw Chu Yan. Old Madam Gu smiled and said, "It's a wish of Ah Yin's."
Chu Yan sat down next to Gu Yin and asked curiously, "What's your wish?"
Gu Yin held up the coins in her hand: "Make a fortune!"
Chu Yan raised an eyebrow: "Does that even need to be promised? We must make a fortune next year! My bonus and year-end bonus will all come in after the New Year, and I'll give them all to you then."
Seeing that the four old men were looking over, Gu Yin was not shy at all and snorted, "What's yours is mine. How can my own money be considered as getting rich? Money has to come from outside to be considered as getting rich."
As soon as Gu Yin finished speaking, her phone rang. She saw that it was the factory manager from the pharmaceutical company calling.
"Happy New Year, Factory Manager! I've eaten, I've eaten. I won't go to the party, you guys can watch it yourselves. I'm busy every day, just waiting for the New Year holiday to spend time with my family. Okay, okay, I'll send you my bank card number later. Your pharmaceutical factory's year-end bonus is a bit late! It's all thanks to everyone's hard work. Okay, yes!"
Gu Yin hung up the phone and explained, "He said he just got a few tickets to the gala and asked if I wanted to go. He also mentioned the profits from the vaccine, which he calculated for several years, and asked me to send him my bank account number so their finance department could transfer the money. They're really busy; the finance department is still working even during the Chinese New Year."
Chu Yan washed his hands and came over to make dumplings with him: "State-owned enterprises like this are more relaxed than private companies when there are no urgent matters. But once there is an urgent project, they will be very busy, and employees will take time off. The benefits are also very comprehensive. The vaccine you developed this year is a particularly large order. When their factory is doing well, the employee benefits will be even better."
Gu Yin thought about it and realized it made sense. Besides the three-month salary, there were all sorts of benefits and red envelopes for working overtime during the Spring Festival. In her previous life, her assistant had just graduated from university and was originally scrambling for train tickets during the Spring Festival. As soon as she heard that there would be a month's salary for working overtime, she immediately applied for it and got an extra month's salary. When the other colleagues returned, they could also take time off to go back home. They didn't have to fight for tickets and they still got money. For her, she was willing to do that. But for Gu Yin, Gu Yin was not willing. After all, in her previous life, only her uncle was at home. If she didn't go back, it wouldn't be right.
While the dumplings were cooking, Gu Le and Wang Yanzhi video-called back from across the ocean.
Everyone gathered around. As soon as the video started playing, they saw Gu Le holding up a trophy and waving it around, grinning from ear to ear: "I won third prize in today's competition! The first and second prize winners are all much older than me. How about that, am I awesome?!"
The old lady smiled and nodded: "Impressive! After the competition, can you come back tomorrow?"
Speaking of this, Gu Le became unhappy and said dejectedly, "It's not working yet. There are competitions tomorrow, the day after, and the day after that, followed by banquets and so on. I'll try to go back around the Lantern Festival! What did you all eat today?"
At this point, Gu Shu squeezed in and began listing the dishes: "Braised pork hock, chicken, duck, fish, seafood, all of these are available. The chicken, duck, and pork are all raised at home, as are the fish. We also have roasted lamb from the Northwest, and we're cooking dumplings right now!!"
Gu Le: "...Drag that conspicuous bag away! Grandma, send me some sausages and cured meat! I'm craving them!!!"
Gu Shu was slapped a few times by Li Xiang: "You're so pretentious! Get down, get down!"
Gu Shu burst into laughter: "If you don't come back, you won't get to eat anything!!"
Gu Hua: "...at most three years old, no more than that."
The old lady, doting on her grandson, immediately nodded: "Send it! Send it to you at dawn! Is there anything else you want to eat? Grandma will prepare it for you!"
Gu Le shook her head: "I won't eat anything else. I'll eat when I get back. I just miss you guys!"
Gu Le had just finished speaking when Wang Yanzhi's voice came from behind: "Le, your classmate is looking for you. He says the teacher has something to tell you!"
Judging from the environment in Gu Le's video, they were still in the auditorium. Upon hearing this, the old lady immediately said, "Your grandma is calling you, so go ahead and get busy! Call back later when you have time!"
Gu Le nodded upon hearing this, glanced at his family, then handed the phone to his grandmother before going to find the teacher.
Wang Yanzhi looked at everyone and saw the worry in their eyes. She smiled and said, "Don't worry, apart from missing home, we haven't missed out on food or clothing. I had someone bring a batch of food from China, and I also brought the housekeeper with me. They're preparing things at home right now. We've also prepared what A-Shu just mentioned, but A-Le doesn't know yet! I've noticed that this kid really loves to eat, but he doesn't like foreign food. Luckily, I brought the housekeeper with me, otherwise he would have starved. He's almost 1.7 meters tall now! He's taller than me!"
Gu Yin quietly said, "It's on my forehead!!"
Gu Hua: "...He's taller than me, so I'm the shortest in the whole family!"
Gu Shu breathed a sigh of relief: "I'm the tallest! 185!"
I'm 189cm tall.
Gu Shu looked at Chu Yan: "You're wearing height-increasing shoes!"
"Who knows who's wearing height-increasing shoes!"
Gu Shu silently shifted her feet: "I, these are sneakers, not height-increasing shoes!"
"I wear flat cloth shoes."
Gu Shu: "...You're not family yet, you don't count!"
"Ayin and I are a couple! We're practically like half a son to our aunt and uncle! Half a grandson to our grandparents! Who says I'm not! By the way, I'm 189.8 cm tall."
Gu Shu wanted to say something, but Li Xiang slapped her away, saying, "You talk too much! I'll change all your shoes to flats later!"
"That's all money! We can't exchange it!"
A Chinese person who strives for excellence throughout their life.
After Wang Yanzhi finished her video call, Grandpa Zhou also called back. They were also celebrating the New Year there, but due to confidentiality reasons, the video didn't show the surrounding area; it only showed Zhou Wansheng.
Then I received a New Year's greeting call from the old village chief's family.
Li Sen appeared on the other end of the video call and said with a smile, "My dad said that tomorrow is the first day of the Lunar New Year, and there will probably be a lot of people coming to visit you. You won't have time to check your phones then, so we're sending our New Year's greetings to you in advance! We were originally thinking of sending you a pig, but Xiaoming came back and said that you raise a lot of pigs yourselves. How's the meat? Is it as delicious as the ones in our village?"
Gu Jianguo smiled and nodded: "They're delicious! We raised them ourselves, how could they not be delicious! Did you receive the New Year's gifts we sent back?"
Li Sen made way for the old village chief, who appeared in front of the camera, spun around, and laughed, "Received it! See? I'm wearing it! My granddaughter said it's a down jacket! It's lighter and warmer than our cotton-padded jackets! It really is quite warm! You guys really went to a lot of trouble! You bought so many things at once, and those prawns as thick as a child's arm! We've never seen anything like them before! They're so delicious! I never thought I'd be able to enjoy this kind of blessing in my old age!"
Grandma Gu rolled her eyes: "Look at what you're saying, the good fortune is yet to come!"
Afterwards, Li Xiaohua's family came to the village chief's house to wish the Gu family a Happy New Year. While they were chatting, the dumplings were cooked.
After the video call ended, the dumplings were served.
Gu Yin coughed lightly and said, "Just a heads up, those wrinkled ones, I wrapped them! I won't say more, those who know, know!"
Gu Shu, noticing the conspicuous bag, immediately asked in confusion, "What's wrong? Is there something inedible in it? Or does it taste bad?"
You can give it a try!
Upon hearing Gu Yin's words, Gu Shu hesitated, sensing that something was amiss.
"Let me try Grandma's first!" she said, then started working on the perfect dumplings.
Chu Yan quickly picked up two of the dishes made by Gu Yin and eagerly took a bite.
"It's candy! Oh my, both of them are candy! What's the meaning of candy?" Chu Yan looked at Gu Yin with surprise.
"Life is sweet and wonderful."
Chu Yan chuckled: "The meaning is wonderful! I like it!"
Gu Yin ignored them, picked one up herself, and bit into it: "It's tofu! What a blessing! I'll eat another one, and it's still tofu!"
Gu Yin was dumbfounded. Her fortune was in the making! No way!
"I'll have two more!"
Everyone looked at her expectantly.
Gu Yin picked it up and took a big bite. A sweet taste filled her mouth. She smiled wryly and said, "It's candy. Am I too greedy? The God of Wealth isn't looking for me."
Chu Yan quickly pointed to the plate: "It's okay! The next one will definitely be next! If it doesn't work, we'll eat them all!"
Gu Yin looked at the last one in the bowl, muttered a few words about getting rich, and then quickly picked it up and bit into it.
Gu Hua asked cautiously, "What is it?"
Gu Yin breathed a sigh of relief and took the coin out of her mouth: "It's a windfall! Hehe!"
Everyone smiled helplessly upon hearing this.
Chu Xiong laughed and said, "It's okay if you can't tell the difference between the coins! I'll have Ayan go and get a few more projects later!"
Chu Yan put his hand on Gu Yin's shoulder and smiled at his father, "That doesn't count. Gu Yin said that what's mine is hers, and what I earn is also hers. It's not about making a fortune until your own money goes into your own pocket. It's about other people's money going into your own pocket!"
Everyone burst into laughter again.
Gu Shu looked at the dumplings in her bowl, then at Gu Shu and Gu Yin, her eyes lit up, and she immediately grabbed two and eagerly took a bite.
"Peanuts? What does that symbolize?"
Gu Shu looked at Gu Yin with a puzzled expression.
"longevity."
Gu Shu smiled and nodded upon hearing this: "This is good! I'll take another bite!"
"Hehe, it's candy! So sweet and lovely, will I finally find someone this year?!"
Gu Qingming patted him on the shoulder: "Then we'll look forward to seeing our daughter-in-law this year!"
Hearing this, Gu Hua's eyes lit up, and she eagerly picked up her chopsticks. When everyone started eating, she quickly grabbed two.
After biting into them, both were peanuts! Does this mean I'm not suited for dating this year? Maybe I should wait and see?
"Why have you been spacing out all night? What's wrong?" Gu Shu asked, puzzled, when he saw Gu Hua staring blankly at the bowl and chopsticks.
Gu Hua snapped out of her reverie and shook her head: "It's nothing, I was just thinking about my studies."
Gu Shu: "...I was too talkative."
Chu Yan, who was standing next to him, laughed when he heard this: "Ah Shu, after the end of the third year of junior high school, I will go abroad for a trip. You can come with me."
Gu Shu, who had already made plans to go ice skating with her classmates, hesitated and said, "We're going out before the New Year is even over? How about we go after the Lantern Festival?"
Chu Yan sneered: "They don't have the concept of celebrating the New Year abroad. It's settled then, you'll come with me."
Everyone seemed to be very busy this year, and there wasn't much to visit for the New Year. So after the third day of the Lunar New Year, the Chu family couple and Chu Yan took Gu Shu abroad, and the others were busy with their own things.
Gu Yin, on the other hand, had some free time.
"Ah Hua, it's just us at home today, do you have any ideas on where to go?"
Gu Hua, who had just put on her shoes and was about to leave, asked, "...I'm going shopping with my classmates, do you want to come along?"
On a freezing cold day, Gu Yin waved her hand and said, "Never mind, you guys go ahead."
Gu Hua breathed a sigh of relief: "Then I'll go first. If there's anything you want to eat, just tell me on your phone and I'll bring it back for you!"
The house was quiet, and Gu Yin started to feel bored.
"001, does your system celebrate the Lunar New Year?"
001 flew out and hesitated, saying, "It seems not."
Gu Yin raised an eyebrow: "Looks like it?"
001 flew out and explained, "My data seems to contain traces of the New Year, but I don't think I participated in it, so I'm not sure."
Gu Yin lowered her eyes: "Traces? What traces?"
001 turned around and said, "Fireworks, parties, red envelopes, dumplings, that's all. But I really didn't participate in any of these, so I guess it might have been saved by accident when I was doing missions with my master in your worlds."
Gu Yin looked up at 001: "Can you eat dumplings? Do you mean, are they real?"
001 shook her head: "No, my master used to give me skins, but they're useless now that I'm in the God Space. It's okay, my master is already experimenting with making the system transform into a human. Once it's successful, I can taste all these delicacies!"
"Your master is amazing! After transforming into a human, he can exist in the host's world in human form, right?"
001 took flight: "That must be amazing! That's right! It just doesn't have human emotions and desires. After eating, it has to return to the system space to process the food. It's a bit like an intelligent robot, but more human-like."
So that's how it is. Gu Yin was about to ask something when her phone rang with a special email notification. Gu Yin looked at it and saw that the physics lab application had been approved.
Gu Yin stood up and stretched: "Alright, let's get to work!"
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