"Absolutely! Do you know how much that bicycle he wanted to buy cost?" Old Mrs. Hu stretched out her hand, spreading her five fingers. "Fifty thousand! Are the wheels made of gold, or is the seat made of gold? Hongying gave him a good scolding, and do you know what he said?"
Shang Yechu had already vaguely guessed what was going on, but still pretended to be curious and asked, "He's not going to drop out of school to work, is he?"
"That's even more outrageous!" Old Mrs. Hu shouted. "He said that since Hongying and I know you, a big star, fifty thousand yuan is just a sneeze to you, and we have to ask you for money—is that even human language?"
Qiao Chuan's muffled voice came from inside the house: "Grandma..."
"Now you know shame?" Old Mrs. Hu spat. "Go do your homework!"
Qiao Chuan fell silent again. Old Mrs. Hu, her face contorted with anger, jabbed at the melon seeds in her hand and said, “I, Hu Shuizhi, have always been strong and independent, earning my own living. My son and daughter-in-law also make a living through their own abilities. How could my grandson be so useless! I was so angry I almost died. You were filming then, so I didn’t dare tell you…”
Shang Yechu was taken aback. She quickly hugged Grandma Hu and questioned her for a while. Then she took out her own phone and rechecked Grandma Hu's medical examination report. Although she was busy, she still left an assistant in Hengshi to supervise Grandma Hu's monthly medical examinations and then remotely send the report results to her phone.
"I'm fine," Grandma Hu comforted Shang Yechu for a while. Then she whispered, "Little Ji is the one who has the best ideas."
What kind of crazy idea has Ji Juntao come up with this time? Qiao Chuan was still inside, and although Shang Yechu was extremely curious, she could only convey her questions with her eyes.
Grandma Hu stood up, closed Qiao Chuan's door tightly, and then returned to the sofa. She said to Shang Yechu, "After Xiao Ji found out about this, she told me to just let Qiao Chuan ask her for the money. As long as Qiao Chuan asks her for it, she will give it to him."
Shang Yechu frowned. Ji Juntao usually used this method to get rid of her dumped lovers. Although she didn't particularly like Qiao Chuan, this chubby little boy, he was, after all, Grandma Hu's grandson…
Grandma Hu sighed and said, "I was so angry that I fell ill. Hongying was busy with the bookstore business, and Hongtu had to drive a taxi and cook and clean for the family. There was really no one to take care of Qiaochuan. I thought I'd try anything, and since Xiaoji is your sister, she definitely wouldn't hurt me, so I agreed."
Through Grandma Hu's detailed narration, Shang Yechu pieced together the truth.
Ji Juntao, that utterly despicable fellow—or perhaps unparalleled in her wisdom and courage—did indeed give Qiao Chuan a sum of money. But what was unusual was that she made Qiao Chuan go to the Qingping Entertainment building alone. Qiao Chuan was subjected to a series of harassments and ridicule from the company security guards, receptionists, and others before finally meeting Ji Juntao. A teenager, easily embarrassed, was utterly ashamed and indignant after experiencing all this.
Upon arriving at Ji Juntao's office, the boss unleashed his sharp tongue once more, making Qiao Chuan so ashamed he wished he could disappear into the ground. Qiao Chuan stammered for a long time, his face turning as red as a tomato and then as purple as an eggplant, almost as if he were about to die from a stroke, but he couldn't bring himself to say, "Mr. Ji, could you give me 50,000 yuan?" He then realized how shameful it was to beg from someone.
Finally, Ji Juntao threw a stack of hundred-yuan bills on the ground and told Qiao Chuan to pick them up himself. Qiao Chuan couldn't take it anymore and ran home crying.
Qiao Chuan considered this incident a lifelong disgrace. Even his mother, Hong Ying, and father, Hong Tu, were unaware of it; only Old Mrs. Hu knew a little about it. Although she felt sorry for her grandson, Old Mrs. Hu valued her own dignity and self-respect, which she had maintained for most of her life, even more. Rather than letting Qiao Chuan maintain his shameless behavior from a few days ago and further embarrass Hu Shuizhi, Old Mrs. Hu would rather he be taught a lesson by Ji Juntao.
Shang Yechu was stunned, speechless and shocked. She envied Ji Juntao's ruthlessness and unconventional approach. If this matter were handled by her, she would probably soften her heart and give Qiao Chuan some money instead.
Things went much more smoothly after that. During summer vacation, Grandma Hu got Qiao Chuan a job at the bookstore, giving her grandson a good hard time—Gu Yue Bookstore has now become a mixed-use commercial complex and tourist attraction, combining a bookstore, milk tea shop, dessert shop, cultural and creative store, and study room. Qiao Chuan even developed biceps from shaking milk tea all summer. Since then, the chubby little boy has finally experienced the hardships of life and has become much more sensible than before. At least, he no longer yells about going to ask someone for money.
Speaking of Qiao Chuan, Shang Yechu couldn't help but think of another person who lingered in Guyue Bookstore.
Gu Wenhua is currently writing the second script in the "Happiness Street" series. The framework for the second part of the script is now complete, only the specific content remains. Gu Wenhua doesn't have much talent for writing, and scriptwriting is proving quite difficult for him. He frequently contacts Shang Yechu to discuss purchasing the rights to other scripts.
It is widely known that he has many pseudonyms and has created many strange and bizarre stories. In order to maintain the consistent style of the "Happiness Street" series, Gu Wenhua naturally prefers his works.
Unfortunately, no matter how much Qingping Entertainment tried to persuade him, Sheng Wenzhi remained unmoved. The matter reached another stalemate.
Besides, putting aside interests, Shang Yechu himself was also very curious about what had happened to Sheng Wenzhi.
Has he truly matured, or remains stuck in the same old pattern? Has he created anything new? Has he broken free from his shell?
"Grandma," Shang Yechu hesitated for a moment, "how is Sheng Wenzhi?"
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