"Brother Gu, should I go and teach them another lesson?" Ke Yi couldn't help but ask.
Gu Wei knew that Ke Yi was a man of deep feelings and loyalty, and that these words were not just empty talk.
“They’re already down on their luck. If they get beaten up again, their first reaction will be that I did it. Tomorrow is the Little New Year, so let’s wait until after the New Year to talk about it.”
Ke Yi thought about it and realized it made sense, so he didn't insist any further.
Hou Yongxian spoke up, "Anyway, we're not leaving anytime soon. Just let us know if we need any more people."
"Okay, Grandpa Hou." Gu Wei didn't want to dwell on that topic, so he simply asked about their trip to the provincial capital, "How was your trip these past few days?"
Lin Hang couldn't wait to share with Gu Wei, "We had so much fun! My grandpa took us to all the places Xiao Jie mentioned. And we shot three rolls of film, mostly by me..."
Gu Wei could sense that this trip was of great significance to Hou Yongxian and his two grandsons, and that their relationship had become even closer.
"Great job! Let's see how good your photography is when the photos are developed."
Lin Hang puffed out his chest. "Okay. We just passed by a photo studio and sent the film to be developed. We'll have the photos ready in a few days."
Lin Yu pulled a brown paper envelope from her pocket like a treasure, and took out several long yellow receipts from it. "Brother Gu, these are for you."
"What?"
Gu Wei took it with some curiosity. He saw that it was printed with red characters: Commemorative coupon for sponsoring the 1985 Spring Festival Gala, face value one yuan, and also had a serial number.
He suddenly remembered that he had seen information about the 1985 Spring Festival Gala while researching.
Due to insufficient funding for the Spring Festival Gala, CCTV and the Industrial and Commercial Bank of China jointly organized the distribution of commemorative sponsorship vouchers in major and medium-sized cities, ultimately raising 500,000 yuan for the gala's sponsorship fund.
The crowdfunding that is popular decades later is actually just something that these predecessors had already done.
Gu Wei also knew that this was the first and only time a commemorative medal had been issued for the Spring Festival Gala.
The 1985 Spring Festival Gala also had many unique moments.
For example, the only time the venue was chosen to be the Workers' Stadium, the only time the live performance was the worst and it was criticized by the people of the whole country, and the only time the Spring Festival Gala apologized to the people of the whole country on television.
In subsequent editions, no matter how rubbish or boring they were, there was no apology; they would only give the audience a piece of tape.
Gu Hongjie also leaned closer and whispered, "A Spring Festival Gala commemorative ticket?"
Hou Yongxian stroked his newly grown goatee and laughed, "That's right! We were just passing by a savings bank, and seeing all those people, we wondered what was going on. Turns out they were selling these commemorative vouchers. The first prize is a panda color TV, and the other prizes are commemorative coins in gold, silver, bronze, and aluminum. The winning numbers will be drawn during the Spring Festival Gala, with the women's volleyball team shooting hoops, so we bought some and are giving you a few as a gift. Whether you win or not, you'll get a commemorative coin, which is quite meaningful for collecting."
Upon hearing that the first prize was a Panda brand color television, and that it was a prize from the five-time consecutive champion women's volleyball team, Gu Hongjie was incredibly excited. He stared intently at Gu Wei, hoping he wouldn't refuse.
Gu Wei noticed Gu Hongjie's expectant gaze and, suppressing a smile, said, "Indeed, such an opportunity is rare. Then I'll accept it, Grandpa Hou, thank you."
"You little rascal, why are you being so polite with me?"
Hou Yongxian and his group had been traveling for a long time and hadn't had a proper rest, so they quickly got up to say goodbye and leave.
Gu Wei and Gu Hongjie escorted the person to the gate.
Lin Yu saw that there were quite a few people in the shop and wanted to stay and sell goods, but Gu Wei persuaded her to leave.
Gu Hongjie held the commemorative scrolls as if they were priceless treasures, studying them repeatedly.
Later, when there were no more customers, he excitedly showed it to Gu Jianguo and the others.
"Dad, Mom, look! This is a commemorative ticket for the Spring Festival Gala. The first prize is a Panda color TV!"
"Really? I didn't expect that this third edition would come up with something new."
"Wow, a color TV can make a lot of money. Whoever wins it is so lucky."
Gu Jianguo looked at it for a while, put down the commemorative scroll, and looked at Gu Wei to discuss, "Your Grandpa Hou's family doesn't have a TV either, so they can't watch the New Year's Eve Gala. How about we have them come over to our house on New Year's Eve and celebrate the New Year together?"
"Sure. There are only four of us anyway, it'll be more lively with more people. But let's ask around before deciding, just in case they have any taboos, we shouldn't force them."
Gu Wei had thought of these things beforehand.
Given the close relationship between him and Hou Yongxian, and considering that both families had no relatives or friends in the area, it was no big deal for them to spend the New Year together.
However, since it is the Lunar New Year, some people may have certain customs, such as not being able to visit other people's homes, so he didn't mention it for the time being.
Gu Jianguo nodded in agreement, "Yes, you're right. We mean well, let's not end up doing something wrong. I'll ask him when I have the chance, and see what he thinks."
"Alright, then I'll leave this matter to you, Grandpa." Gu Wei felt that Grandpa might have more to talk about with Hou Yongxian, so it seemed better for him to ask than for him to ask.
"Okay." Gu Jianguo changed the subject, "Gu Wei, if you don't go home for the New Year this year, your parents will miss you terribly."
Gu Wei shrugged, feigning nonchalance, "There's nothing I can do about it. My career and making money are more important. I can go back whenever I want when I'm less busy."
"That's true. We're counting on making money during this period. If you hadn't been there when that incident happened, we would have been completely lost, and we could have suffered huge losses." Gu Jianguo secretly rejoiced that he hadn't urged Gu Wei to go back to his hometown for the New Year. Otherwise, if he hadn't taken good care of the shop, he wouldn't have been able to live with himself in the end.
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