Chapter 35 I dare not count how many zeros there are
Even though the Gu family had separated, they still spent the Lunar New Year together at Grandma Li Cuifang's house. She only had two sons: Gu Zhaodi's father, Gu Tiezhu, and her eldest uncle, Gu Gou Dan.
Inside the main hall of the Gu family's old house
"Sister-in-law, no offense, but why make Zhao Di, a girl, go to school? Wouldn't it be better if she just finished nine years of compulsory education?" Aunt Li Fen said leisurely while eating sunflower seeds.
Gu's mother blushed and paled, then said defiantly, "Zhao Di loves to study, so let her study. It would be good if she could go to high school, so she wouldn't end up like Lingling who has no education and had to go to work in a factory at a young age."
Gu's mother believed that since Gu used the fact that Lingling went to high school to annoy her, Gu would use the fact that Lingling didn't go to high school to annoy her.
No matter how much Gu's mother disapproved of Gu Zhaodi going to high school, she would never back down in front of her sister-in-law Li Fen, even if it meant fighting for her own dignity.
Hearing Gu's mother talk about her daughter, Li Fen was very unhappy. Her family actually had the money to send her to school, but Li Fen felt that it was useless for girls to study.
However, when you really compare, reading is always better than not reading.
“It’s not so bad that I didn’t go to school. I started earning money early. Just the other day, she bought me a scarf.” As she spoke, Li Fen tugged at the red cotton scarf around her neck.
To everyone's surprise, Gu's mother smiled and said, "Oh dear, I almost forgot. When Zhaodi came back a couple of days ago, she brought some very expensive pastries, which I brought over as well."
Then, Gu's mother took out two boxes of desserts from the woven bag next to her. The exquisite packaging and beautiful decorations made them look expensive.
Normally, Gu's mother would never have brought out these desserts, but she had already anticipated that she would have to compete with Li Fen today.
"You bring something like this? You're going to be laughed out of the room!" Li Fen said dismissively. How much could a piece of broken cake be worth?
"I heard from Zhao Di that it's worth about a few thousand yuan. This was given to Zhao Di by her boss." Gu's mother puffed out her chest, like a proud peacock.
Gu Zhaodi had never told her mother the price of the cake; it was all made up by her mother. Unexpectedly, it turned out to be a lucky coincidence.
Gu's mother looked at her with a face that said, "Even if my daughter is studying, the gifts she brings are more expensive than the gifts your daughter gives."
As soon as she said this, Li Fen almost lost face. In previous years, she had always been the one who had the upper hand over Gu's mother during the New Year, but this year she was afraid she would suffer a setback.
At this moment, Grandma Li Cuifang entered the main room and saw her two daughters-in-law, who were at each other's throats. Her anger flared up immediately. "Why are you two looking so grumpy during the New Year?"
"And Lin Hua, you need to hurry up and find Zhao Di to come and cook. What kind of behavior is it to stay at home all day?"
Li Cuifang appeared to criticize both daughters-in-law, but in reality, she favored her eldest daughter-in-law, Li Fen.
On the one hand, Li Fen and Li Cuifen's families are from the same clan, so they are somewhat related.
On the other hand, Gu's mother never gave birth to a son after marrying into the family. Instead, she gave birth to a daughter, whom Li Cuifen considered a financial burden. Meanwhile, Li Fen gave birth to Li Cuifang's eldest grandson, Gu Yao, as soon as she married into the family.
"Okay, Mom, I'll go right now." Lin Hua secretly pursed her lips.
Under Li Fen's smug gaze, he slunk away.
The New Year's Eve dinner was prepared quickly.
The family sat around a large round table for a meal, and the meal was relatively peaceful.
After the meal, it's time for the younger generation to pay New Year's visits and for the elders to give red envelopes.
"Happy New Year, Grandma! Wishing you good health." The first to offer his New Year's greetings was his eldest grandson, Gu Yao.
Even though he was already twenty-two years old, as long as Li Cuifang liked this grandson, he was capable of accepting red envelopes.
Hearing her eldest grandson wish her good health, Li Cuifang smiled from the bottom of her heart, saying that he was a good grandson, and gave him the thick red envelope in her hand.
Next was Gu Ling. More than twenty years ago, Li Cuifang, who had a grandson, was not too opposed to this girl. After all, it was good to have both a son and a daughter in the family, not to mention that Gu Ling had a sweet tongue.
"Grandma, Happy New Year! I wish you all the best, peace and joy in the future. Lingling is here to wish you a Happy New Year." As she spoke, Gu Ling smiled and bowed, which made the old lady's smile deepen.
"Good, good, good, you're such a good granddaughter."
Although Gu Ling's red envelope wasn't as thick as Gu Yao's, it wasn't thin either.
The old woman often talks about her eldest son and youngest grandson, which shows that she also adores her grandson Gu Bao. His chubby face and robust appearance are a sign of good fortune.
Gu Bao's simple "Happy New Year" made Li Cuifang happy for a long time.
The smile didn't fade until Gu Zhaodi came to offer her New Year's greetings, at which point the wrinkles on Li Cuifang's face began to smooth out. Fortunately, she remembered that it was a holiday and didn't show too much favoritism, giving Gu Zhaodi a red envelope instead.
The light red envelope weighed almost nothing in the girl's hand; if she hadn't gripped it tightly, the red envelope might have fallen to the ground without warning.
After exchanging New Year's greetings with Li Cuifang, the two families began visiting each other during the first month of the lunar calendar.
After chatting for a while, everyone dispersed and went home.
After watching her uncle's family walk away, Gu's mother immediately snatched the red envelope from Gu Zhaodi's hand, muttering, "She's so old, why does she need a red envelope? Give the red envelope to your brother."
When Gu's mother opened Gu Zhaodi's red envelope, she was furious and yelled at Gu's father, "Look at your mother! How biased she is! There's only ten yuan in the red envelope, which is less than Gu Ling's change!"
Then she turned her anger on Gu Zhaodi, "Look at you, you can't even be a little sweeter and try to coax your grandma so she'll give you more."
The girl lowered her eyes, staring at the muddy ground, her pale lips pressed tightly together, and remained silent.
Seeing that both father and daughter were taciturn, Gu's mother held her breath and angrily led Gu Bao home, with Gu's father quickly following after them.
Watching the three of them walk further and further away, the girl's dark eyes were shrouded in darkness, making it impossible to discern her true emotions.
Not long after they got home, Gu's father and the others fell asleep, but the girl lay on the creaking bed, wide awake.
Picking up my phone, I discovered that Guan Xiang and the others had sent me New Year's greetings. After replying to them one by one, my fingertips touched Uncle Dan's chat interface.
The girl sat up, thought for a moment, and then typed out a New Year's greeting.
Then, the girl quietly left the house, sat in the yard, and looked at the dark sky.
Dan Anwen leaned his elbow on the balcony, lazily scrolling through the messages on his phone, when a new message suddenly popped up in the chat box.
The man glanced at it indifferently; it was a New Year's greeting sent by a child.
The man's lips curled slightly, his beautiful eyes lowered, and his fingers rhythmically tapped the keyboard.
Uncle Dan: Little friend, why aren't you asleep yet?
Gu Zhaodi, who was admiring the stars, felt her phone vibrate. She swiped to see a message from Uncle Dan.
Is it late now?
I glanced at the time; it was eleven o'clock.
Child: I can't sleep, so I'm looking at the stars in the yard. I'll go to sleep in a bit.
Uncle Dan: Image (sky and stars).
The girl opened the picture sent by Uncle Dan. It was a bright and twinkling starry sky, with stars hanging on the horizon, sometimes bright and sometimes dim.
Uncle Dan: Is it pretty? These are the stars over here.
Kid: It looks so good, but my star is covered by clouds. I'll take a picture of it for you next time.
Uncle Dan: Okay, little one, go to sleep now, it's very late, or you'll stunt your growth.
The girl looked at the words "not tall" in surprise. 1.58 meters doesn't seem short, does it?
Kid: Okay, I'm going to sleep now. Goodnight, Uncle Dan.
Sitting outside, unable to see anything, Gu Zhaodi got up and walked into the room.
Uncle Dan: Transfer of money (Happy New Year).
Looking at the transfer red envelope lying on the chat interface of her phone, the girl felt a little hot.
Child: Uncle Dan, I can't take this.
Uncle Dan: Children who are not yet adults all need red envelopes. This is my New Year's blessing, and I can't refuse it.
The girl was slightly stunned when she saw the news about Dan Anwen. Children who are not yet adults all need to receive red envelopes.
After thinking for a moment, the girl accepted the New Year's blessing red envelope, but she didn't dare to count how many zeros were at the end of the amount.
Seeing that the girl didn't return the transfer, Dan Anwen smiled. He was really afraid that the girl would insist on not taking it, and he had already thought of what to say to persuade her next.
Before Dan Anwen could feel at ease for even a few seconds, she saw the red envelope sent back by the child.
Kid: Uncle Dan, this red envelope is too big, 100 yuan is enough.
The girl actually felt that 100 was too much, but she was afraid that Uncle Dan would throw the red envelope back at her later.
The man sighed, knowing it wouldn't be that easy to accept.
Uncle Dan: I respect the child's choice.
The girl smiled from the bottom of her heart when she saw the message.
The dim moonlight couldn't hide the girl's bright smile. Her bright eyes and white teeth shone in the dark courtyard, and her crescent-shaped eyes were filled with laughter.
Uncle Dan: Goodnight, little one.
Kid: Goodnight, Uncle Dan.
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