Xu Mengyao, who was not at all aware of her mother and sister's sorrow, was sitting at the dining table with Shaozi, enjoying a sumptuous dinner.
The two people praised Datou's cooking skills. Whistle praised while eating:
"Big Head Brother, your cooking is so delicious! You don't know, I've been in Hai City these days and everything is good, but I'm not used to eating."
Xu Mengyao also agreed: "Yeah, Big Head Brother, I didn't expect you to be such a good cook, but these dishes are all northern flavors, right? Does the restaurant you work at serve northern cuisine?"
Datou smiled and said shyly, "No, these are just my own random thoughts. Xu Li is a girl from Hunan, and her family has a strong taste for food, so she gave me a lot of ideas.
I'm no longer working in the restaurant business. I'm thinking about developing a few more signature dishes and opening my own small restaurant. I've looked at the tenants, and most of them are migrant workers from other places, with a lot of people from the north. I think if we can just sell dumplings and noodles, with some stir-fries, business should be good.
Hearing this, Xu Mengyao nodded in agreement: "That's good, at least we all think your cooking is delicious."
The aunt-in-law beside her also joined the conversation. She said to Xu Mengyao, "Wenjuan, I'm planning to open a small shop to sell cigarettes, alcohol, fruits and so on. What do you think?"
Xu Mengyao thought for a moment and answered seriously, "I think it's okay. The last time I was there, I saw there were quite a lot of buildings. A large population means more business. Having a business is always better than working part-time. I support you."
When my aunt heard this, she looked at my uncle proudly and said, "Did you hear that? Wenjuan said it's OK, so just listen to me."
My uncle smiled and drank a sip of wine, then said lightly:
"I'll do whatever you say. I can only use my brute strength."
Everyone burst into laughter when they heard this.
It was confirmed that Huang Shao would drive them back the day after tomorrow. After dinner, Xu Mengyao requisitioned Chen Chen's car and whistle and started shopping without restraint. She bought a Montblanc shirt for Huang's father and mother, and a pair of Bosny sneakers and Apple jeans for each of the four girls in the family.
She went shopping in all the big shopping malls on Nanjing Road and bought all the skin care products, cosmetics, bags, accessories and snacks she liked. Before she ran out of money in her bag, she even bought three boxes of Zheng Guanghe juice, which made Chen Chen and Shaozi very tired.
"Women are so scary. Wenjuan doesn't seem to be very capable, but she has been walking around for five hours!" Shaozi whispered to Chen Chen from behind.
Chen Chen nodded in agreement and sighed, "Yeah, it's more tiring than playing a football game."
Arriving at the hotel entrance, Chen Chen asked the doorman to move his things onto the luggage cart, and left a message: "Have a good rest." Then he hurried away.
Xu Mengyao's excitement wore off after everything was moved into the room. She and Shaozi quickly finished dinner and then went back to their rooms to rest. She soaked in the hot tub to cool off, thinking about how to withdraw the money tomorrow.
The next morning, Xu Mengyao and Shaozi headed to the bank, carrying the suitcase they'd bought the day before. While waiting in the bank's VIP room, Xu Mengyao called Huang Shao. "Fourth Uncle, are you done with your work?" her voice tinged with anxiety.
Huang Shao's voice came from the other end of the phone: "Okay, I'm just about to go back and take you guys to dinner."
"Okay, come to HSBC to pick me up, I'll wait for you inside." After saying that, he hung up the phone.
Not long after, the bank staff completed the preparation of the cash. Xu Mengyao and Shaozi carefully packed the four million cash into two suitcases, and the excess was put into a cowhide bag and placed in a backpack. Everything was ready, waiting for Huang Shao's arrival.
In the bank lobby, as soon as Huang Shao walked in, he saw two children looking at him eagerly.
"What's wrong? Why do you want me to pick it up?" he asked curiously.
"Uncle, please hold on and get in the car quickly. I've withdrawn four million." Xu Mengyao whispered mysteriously into Huang Shao's ear.
"you…"
Huang Shao was speechless for a moment. He reached out to take the suitcase and stared at his little niece. He really wanted to pry open her head to see how many other things could make him dumbfounded.
After Xu Mengyao got in the car, she said directly to Huang Shao:
"Fourth Uncle, let's go to Wuxing Road first."
Huang Shao started the car and drove steadily towards the destination.
After arriving at the Qi family, Xu Mengyao took out the money that had been counted from the cowhide bag and handed it to Grandpa Qi, saying:
"Grandpa Qi, this money is what's left after buying the house. You can go back and deposit it in the bank. Last time you said you were going to retire at the end of this year. During this time, why don't you inquire about buying out the public housing at your workplace? If possible, try to buy it."
Hearing this, Grandma Qi was a little confused: "Why buy a public housing unit? It seems that no one is buying it now. Didn't we buy this one?"
Xu Mengyao patiently explained, "If you don't buy it, it will always belong to the company and you can't buy or sell it in the future. Public housing is definitely cheaper than private housing. Just think of it as leaving Maomao with an extra property. It never hurts."
Grandpa Qi nodded after hearing this and said, "Okay, I'll go ask around and try to buy it for you."
"Yeah, my brother will be discharged from the army at the end of the year. Then Grandpa Qi will retire and you can come to Huanshi during the New Year." Xu Mengyao said with anticipation.
After saying goodbye to the Qi family, Xu Mengyao returned to the car. Huang Shao looked at her and said jokingly:
"Auntie, do you have any other instructions?"
Xu Mengyao replied with a smile: "Hehe, no, if you're okay, Fourth Uncle, we can go back to Huan City now."
Huang Shao shook his head and said helplessly, "I'm fine, but if we leave now, I'm afraid something will happen after dark. Who told you to withdraw so much money? It's not safe to walk at night. We should leave tomorrow morning. You should go back and watch over your suitcase."
So, the group returned to the hotel. Xu Mengyao, confined to her room, spent a boring afternoon. Dinner consisted of simple sandwiches delivered to her room. Seeing the girl's irritated expression, Huang Shao felt a sense of satisfaction, as if he had succeeded in his prank.
At five in the morning the next day, Huang Shao woke Xu Mengyao up from bed and urged her to pack her luggage. Because they had so much stuff, the trunk couldn't hold it all, so the suitcase with the money had to be squeezed in with Xu Mengyao in the back seat.
Along the way, the three of them didn't stop much except for necessary stops. Huang Shao drove almost straight to Huanshi in order to hurry. They only survived on snacks bought from the International Hotel.
It was already around 5 or 6 p.m. when the white car slowly pulled into the Huanshi Railway Bureau's residential compound. Huang's father happened to be home. He heard the car horn and stepped out to see his cousin Huang Shao stepping out of the car, looking exhausted, one hand on his waist, a pained expression on his face.
"Fourth brother, what's wrong with you?" Father Huang hurried forward to support him.
Huang Shao smiled bitterly and said, "It's okay, it's just that your daughter is a little troublesome. Brother Weimin, get me something to eat and find a room for me to have a good sleep. My waist is almost broken."
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