The Gu family was silent for a few days. Zhan Aiping helped her son organize his bookshelf and said to him, "We won't have a big celebration banquet for his graduation. Let's just have a meal together."
Gu Chen expressed his understanding: "There is nothing to celebrate."
Zhan Aiping: “…” This sounds a bit Versailles.
Zhan Aiping looked at her son, who was now half a head taller than her, with a smile, remembering that this guy had become much more humble after growing up, but when he was a few years old, he was a conceited and narcissistic little kid with three tons of idol baggage.
Gu Yuan leaned against the door, eating an apple, and said, "Mom, this is to be expected. There's nothing to celebrate. We might as well celebrate my entry into the senior year of high school."
"That's right." Gu Mian popped his head out: "Mom, I haven't been admitted to high school yet."
"It is an established fact that my brother has passed the imperial examination!"
Zhan Aiping: "My dear daughters, you must have confidence. Yuanyuan was admitted to the Military Medical University, Mianmian was admitted to the high school, and we will take the entrance exam to the Military Art Academy."
Instead of holding a big graduation banquet, Zhan Aiping bought her eldest son a typewriter, a microcomputer, and two mobile phones, keeping one at home and letting Gu Chen take one away, spending nearly 50,000 yuan.
"We finally have a mobile phone at home!" Gu Yuan was very happy. She took a large black brick and pretended to dial the number on it. This thing was very novel and expensive, but most people had seen it on TV.
The big brothers in Hong Kong movies hold such a large mobile brick in their hands and can also make phone calls.
Gu Yuan held a mobile phone in one hand, crossed his legs, pretending to be a gangster in a Hong Kong movie, smoked a fake cigarette, and said in non-standard Cantonese: "Chop it off!"
Gu Mian rushed over: "Sister, sister! I want to play too, I want to play too!!"
Gu Yuan: "Shut up!"
The two sisters rolled together.
Gu Chen said: "Remember to call your brother often in the future."
Gu Yuan: "It's expensive. Very expensive."
Gu Mian: "If I sell my brother, I'll have the money to make the phone call."
Gu Yuan urged, "Brother, hurry up and touch the Golden Crow and drink your Golden Crow Brain Tonic. It's worth 100,000!"
Gu Chen said angrily: "From now on, your brother and I will have plenty of money."
After being admitted to the university, he will be an adult, and he will open a technology company in the future. Gu Chen likes the microcomputer his mother bought for him very much, and he thinks that he will sell personal computers in the future.
The personal PC market will definitely have great potential in the future.
Gu Yuan: "...Mom, where did my brother steal his confidence? He must have stolen it from my dad."
Zhan Aiping: "You guys are making our house look like a vegetable market because of all the noise."
"Get ready, we are going to send my brother to study in Beijing together."
Gu Cheng: "I'm already this old, do I still need to be sent?"
Zhan Aiping: "Of course, I will go to see your university campus, see your university dormitory, and inspire my two younger sisters."
Gu Yuan: "Mom, we still have to go eat roast duck!"
Gu Mian: "Mom, I want to buy imported dolls!"
*
In the summer of 1987, Lu Cheng came back after two years. Hearing that his biological son had returned, Lu Ming quickly bought a plane ticket to come and see his son. The whole family came to Gu's house. Lu Ming was now dressed like a successful man. He also held a mobile phone and was still talking on the phone when he entered the door.
Gao Jingmei was very unhappy to see him like this.
Unfortunately, she couldn't understand what Lu Ming was saying. She had watched a lot of Hong Kong movies, but she just couldn't understand Cantonese. It was all gibberish and she wanted to kick him.
"Stop holding on to that brick in your hand and talking nonsense. You deserve a beating."
Lu Cheng, who was behind the couple, said nothing. He was seventeen years old, had been in the army for two years, and was taller than his parents.
When Gu Yuan saw him, she almost didn’t recognize him. She was stunned. This, this, this... Is this still Lu Cheng
—After two years away, a bear returns!
Lu Cheng is no longer the tall and thin guy he used to be. No, he is taller than before, probably about 1.88 to 1.9 meters. Even though he is wearing a short-sleeved shirt that covers his sturdy body, one can feel the shocking absolute strength from the exposed upper arm muscles.
He is like a martial arts star in the movies, he can even go and film a Shaolin Temple. People like him are definitely not the protagonist, but the terrifying first villain supporting role, the mountain that the protagonist cannot overcome, the character that the protagonist has to work hard to defeat.
Lu Cheng just stood there quietly without saying anything, but it was impossible to ignore him.
Gu Yuan bit her lip, wondering what kind of devilish training he had gone through in the past two years.
Gao Jingmei said: "Can't you recognize him? Xiao Cheng has become much darker, I was shocked."
Gu Yuan looked at the silent Lu Cheng and thought that he had indeed become much darker, with his skin tanned into a bronze color, which made his facial features stand out. His face used to be like his father Lu Ming, with that effeminate and pretty boyish handsomeness. Now everything has changed. His dark skin made his face angular, and his high nose bridge had a shadow. His aura has also changed greatly. Although he doesn't speak, he has an uncomfortable sense of aggression, which is a vigorous masculine aura.
Gu Yuan: "Darker and stronger!"
Lu Cheng looked at Gu Yuan. She was wearing an overalls skirt, with half of her long hair combed into a bun and the other half hanging in front of her chest and behind her. After not seeing her for two years, she was still the same as before. From his perspective, she seemed to have even grown shorter
Gu Yuan walked up to him, feeling very angry that she wasn't growing taller. She had stagnated after growing to 1.72 meters. She was taller than her brother when she was a child, but now standing next to Lu Cheng, she, who was not short, had become petite and exquisite.
Zhan Aiping's eyes lit up when she saw Lu Cheng, "Come on, come in and sit down."
Gu Yuan ran over and whispered to her mother: "Mom, look, Lu Cheng seems like a different person."
Zhan Aiping smiled and said, "Of course there are changes when you grow up."
The two families sat and drank tea and chatted. Zhan Aiping said, "It's rare for Xiaocheng to come back. I will make him something delicious myself."
Lu Cheng said: "Godmother, I'll come to the kitchen to help."
Lu Cheng has been her little fan since he was young, and he often lives in her house. Zhan Aiping has long regarded him as half a son and simply adopted him as her godson.
"Come on, talk to godmother."
Seeing this, Gu Yuan complained to Gu Chen: "You try to please my mom as soon as you come back, huh."
"I am my mother's favorite little dumpling. He will never be as good as me."
Gu Chen: “…”
At noon, the two families had lunch. Lu Ming and Hu Tianhai talked about the changes in Pengcheng over the years. Soon, it will be ten years since the reform and opening up. "These ten years have really been earth-shaking changes."
“We’ve all become rich.”
Gao Jingmei said, "Stop panting and barking. Pingping said that you are a pig standing on the cusp of the times. If you stand on the cusp of the times, even pigs can fly. Look at the newspapers over the years. Are there any people who have become rich? Yes, many. Are there any people who have gone bankrupt? Many, too."
"Someone who made a lot of money last year may end up in jail this year. Just look at how many people were arrested for illegal fund-raising. They have thousands or even millions of dollars piled up at home and can't even put them away."
Zhan Aiping said: "You, please praise him. Look at the way your husband is begging for praise."
Gao Jingmei snorted and looked down on him.
Lu Ming laughed happily and said proudly, "My wife is shy, she just likes to praise me at home."
Gu Sheng chimed in: "Isn't this the same as my wife?"
Zhan Aiping: “?”
Gu Sheng: "My wife likes to praise me in the room, but she doesn't want the children to hear it. Only my wife and I know it."
Lu Ming: "Now that you've said it, everyone will know it."
Gu Sheng: "They don't know the details."
Zhan Aiping said to Gao Jingmei: "This man deserves to be punished. I support you in striking the target with precision fire."
As they chatted and joked, they talked about another thing. Lu Ming was going to acquire a piece of land in Pengcheng to build a building. Gao Jingmei said a little embarrassedly, "Didn't you say you wanted to build a building there? Now there's an opportunity. Do you want to get involved?"
Lu Ming has made some money in the past few years. Gao Jingmei feels uneasy looking at so much money because there are too many people who suddenly become rich and then poor. The situation has changed a lot in the past ten years. Two years ago, he was a role model in the newspaper, and this year he is a fugitive criminal... All kinds of changes make people feel unreal.
Wealth comes quickly and goes quickly.
Gao Jingmei began to feel that Zhan Aiping's previous remarks were correct. Compared to money, it would be more reassuring to build a few more buildings and leave them there.
When Zhan Aiping bought the land, it was only a few dollars. But now the land price in Pengcheng is over a hundred yuan per square meter. The government is even going to publicly auction a large piece of land of more than 8,000 square meters for the first time.
Now there is an opportunity, Lu Ming plans to follow Zhan Aiping's example and get a few hundred square meters to build a building.
Zhan Aiping's eyes lit up: "Build it!"
Even building a few small buildings for the future urban villages will be fine.
Gao Jingmei said: "This piece of land costs more than 300 per square meter. A few hundred square meters, probably more than 100,000 or nearly 200,000."
"Not expensive." Zhan Aiping shook her head. "Didn't Old Lu say that a large amount of land will be auctioned off soon? The price of this land will definitely increase. If you buy it this year, it will double next year. If you wait a few more years, you don't know how many times it will increase. If you can get it, hurry up and complete the formalities."
Lu Ming asked, "Do you really want to get involved?"
Zhan Aiping plans to support Lu Ming with more than 100,000 yuan to build a building. Once the building is built, she can make money without doing anything, and becoming a landlady in the future is just around the corner.
Zhan Aiping discussed with the couple about buying land and building a building. The children were chatting in the corner. Gu Chen and his sister were very curious about Lu Cheng's experience in the past two years.
Gu Yuan asked: "Which unit did you go to?"
Lu Cheng said calmly: "Keep it secret."
Gu Yuan was incredulous: "You still have to keep it a secret from us!"
Lu Cheng still said: "Keep it secret."
*
Lu Ming and his wife took more than 100,000 yuan from their family. Gu Sheng sighed. Once his wife became obsessed with building a building, the Santana he had planned would be gone.
Zhan Aiping hugged him excitedly: "Be obedient, let's build the building first!"
"The old car at home can still be driven."
Gu Sheng propped his chin up with his hand, "Next year, when your daughter is admitted to your alma mater, I suspect you will go to Shanghai to build a building."
"Not necessarily." Zhan Aiping comforted him: "There are other things."
Next year is 1988, which will also be an extraordinary year. If her daughter can really get admitted to her alma mater, she will go into securities and sell stocks. It would be a good opportunity for her to collect a bunch of treasury bonds and sell them in Shanghai.
The shareholding reform will be launched soon. Many future technology companies, real estate companies and insurance companies will be listed. The original shares are priced very low, one dollar per share. You will make a profit if you buy them.
Zhan Aiping didn't want to make too much money at first, but when she thought about it, she thought, if she didn't buy something at such a low price, she would lose money! If she bought it and put it aside, she would win without doing anything.
Gu Chen's school term was approaching, and Zhan Aiping had already decided to send him to college with her daughter. It was a pity that Gu Sheng couldn't leave, so she took Gu Yuan and her sister and Lu Cheng with her.
Gu Chen: "Why such a big fuss?"
Gu Yuan: "We are small porters, and we are helping you carry your bedding."
The day before departure, Zhan Aiping had a nightmare. In the dream, the destination of the flight was to return to the children's childhood, and Comrade Zhan was immediately awakened by the fright.
Gu Sheng asked her: "What nightmare did you have?"
Zhan Aiping: "I dreamed that time went back and I was back to when my child was breastfeeding. I was scared to death. It's so tiring to think that I have to raise my child for another ten years, Lao Gu."
Gu Sheng smiled: "Are you so afraid of hardship and fatigue? I actually want to go back."
"Will you continue to be your Captain Gu?"
Gu Sheng: "This time I plan to get married as soon as I graduate."
Zhan Aiping: “…”
"You just graduated... You are not eligible for your family to accompany the army."
Gu Sheng: "It won't delay me from getting married."
"You graduated but I haven't yet!"
Gu Sheng insisted: "Don't delay me from getting married. I'll go and please my godfather first."
Zhan Aiping: “…”
Gu Sheng didn't have time to accompany them to Beijing. He just sent them to the airport and watched them get on the plane. As the best porter, Lu Cheng hung a lot of luggage on his body. They were all hung by Gu Yuan with bad intentions, under the pretext of "Look at the results of your two years of training."
Gu Yuan said: "You have to send me to college next year! No one can be left out!"
Gu Mian: "Sister, you have to pass the exam first, otherwise you have to review."
Gu Yuan: "Sister, don't say such discouraging words."
Gu Chen: "How could my sister fail to get into college? You have a brother who is the top scholar!"
Gu Mian: "What if I don't pass the exam?"
Zhan Aiping: "Mianmian, you need confidence!"
Gu Mian: “…Mom, I can’t do math.”
They boarded the plane, and it was already late when they got off. They went to their own courtyard to rest for the night before sending Gu Chen to school the next day. By then, many people had already arrived early.
First report, arrive at the dormitory building, there are four-person rooms and six-person rooms. Gu Chen lives in a four-person room. As soon as he enters, the other three people in the dormitory have arrived, leaving only the upper bunk unoccupied.
At that time, there were two bunk beds in the dormitory, which were quite wide, a large table and a wardrobe.
The other three boys looked at them in amazement, especially at the Gu Yuan sister. The sisters were so beautiful. For people like them, it was rare to see such beautiful girls, let alone talk to them.
The three boys have different hairstyles. Although they are all academic masters, their hair is very thick and as black as ink. Some have a middle part, some have a 3:7 part, and some have a Chow Chow style.
The little Chow Chow wore glasses and looked very smart. He said to Zhan Aiping enthusiastically, "Auntie, please sit down! Auntie, you are so beautiful and have such a good temperament!"
"Brother, this must be Brother Gu, right? We are going to be good roommates for the next three years. There is one upper bunk left. If you don't like it, I'll trade with you for the lower bunk."
Gu Chen: "... I'll sleep on the upper bunk."
The little Chow Chow asked: "These are all your sisters. Your brother is so strong. Is he the older brother or the younger brother?"
Lu Cheng: "It's his brother."
"Oh." The little Chow Chow said, "So you are the big brother. Please sit down. I'll go get some hot water."
Compared to the enthusiastic little Chow Chow, the other two boys looked indifferent. One of them particularly disliked the little Chow Chow. The little Chow Chow's surname was Du, and his name was Du Ziyue.
There were several boxes of "Golden Crow Brain Tonic Liquid" piled on Du Ziyue's bed.
Gu Mian saw the brain tonic and blinked. She suddenly remembered: "Sister, no wonder I said this person looked familiar."
Gu Yuan: "What?"
Gu Mian pointed and said, "Brain tonic fluid."
Du Ziyue came back with some hot water. "You guys also read the newspaper. Yes, I did put an ad in it. It cost tens of thousands of dollars. It's a waste. Do you want to drink a bottle? I don't know if it can nourish your brain, but it tastes okay."
Du Ziyue filmed a commercial for brain tonic and it was reported in the newspaper. The other two boys in the dormitory couldn't stand him.
The scores of those who can get in here are all similar, but they make tens of thousands of dollars by making those kinds of advertisements, which makes people feel uncomfortable.
"We don't hire every top scholar to star in commercials. They also have to have a good image."
Gu Yuan asked: "How much is it?"
Du Ziyue: "Fifty thousand."
Gu Mian was surprised: "Only fifty thousand."
"He offered my brother 150,000 yuan. You didn't negotiate the price?"
Du Ziyue: “Fuck!!!”
Now it was Du Ziyue's turn to be unhappy. He cursed and felt that he had lost one hundred thousand.
"I'm so pissed off."
Another boy with a middle-parted hair said seriously, "Don't talk about money every day in the dormitory. It's impetuous and vulgar. Money, money, money. We are here to study. We should focus on studying. Why talk about money?"
Zhan Aiping: “That’s right.”
She took the children around the school and found that the atmosphere at that time was very good, with a strong learning spirit. Many people were taking pictures at the school gate, so she also took the children to take a few pictures.
"Now we're just waiting for you, Yuanyuan, to get into college!"
Gu Yuan sighed: "Mom, don't put too much pressure on me."
Gu Mian encouraged her sister: "If you don't pass the exam, you can still review."
Gu Yuan: “…”
After sending Gu Chen to college, they went back home. Zhan Aiping started to work on opening a hot pot restaurant. In addition to the hot pot restaurant, she also opened a small teahouse, a real teahouse that sold tea cakes.
Mrs. Luo and Luo Xiangxiang were very proud for a while, and they opened a branch. Business was booming in the first two months and they made a lot of money. Mrs. Luo was very happy and started preparing to open a new store.
Luo Xiangxiang also works as the store manager. She has recruited many relatives from her hometown. Every day when the store opens, it is lively and happy. As time goes by, the business becomes more and more casual. When there are no customers, a group of relatives and friends eat melon seeds and drink tea in the store, and they have a deep affection for each other.
They all praised Mrs. Luo to the skies.
"You are the God of Wealth of our Luo family!"
Mrs. Luo was praised by them every day and was extremely happy. Even without Zhan Aiping, the store still made a lot of money. Old Luo was right, it was all thanks to her that this store could be opened.
Mrs. Luo was very proud of herself and relaxed her management of the store.
When Zhan Aiping was around, she emphasized hygiene. Luo’s wife also emphasized it. But they were relatives and friends. If you said a few more words, they would talk back: “Do you look down on country people? You are rich now and you are more particular. When we were in the village, we didn’t care about these things.”
The kitchen also started to become messy. Mrs. Luo was very generous. She thought that the leftovers in the kitchen could be taken away by others. It would not be a waste if thrown away, and she would not feel bad if relatives took them. She would do them a favor. It happened that the store used fresh ones every day, so the customers would enjoy the food.
Unfortunately, it didn’t take long for her to discover that something was wrong with the store’s accounts, as these people were putting things into their own pockets.
"What's a little bit of food? How can a family member be so stingy? They are worse than the cooks in the state-owned factories. Being a cook in a state-owned factory is a lucrative job. Forget about taking some sticky rice and taro. People put meat in their bowls."
"That's right. How much can we take? These are all leftovers from every day. They will go bad if we don't eat them."
"That's right. These bad cakes are not good to serve on the table. We can take them back and feed them to the children. We are family members and they won't mind. It doesn't matter if they are burnt or not."
"This one is burnt because the cooking time is not right. It is a bit ugly, but people in the city are particular about it. It tastes good. My children like it very much. They want to eat this burnt one..."
(End of this chapter)