Su Yun shot Xia Ying a look, signaling her to step outside with her.
The two went into Su Yun's small side room. Su Yun opened her desk drawer and took out the three watches she had prepared earlier, handing them to Xia Ying.
Xia Ying slipped them into her shoulder bag, then wiggled her eyebrows mischievously. "So, you and Comrade Gu Hai have already met each other's parents? When do I get to attend your wedding banquet?"
Su Yun bared her teeth at her. "Give it a rest! There's no wedding banquet! We're both aiming for university, we're not going to get caught up in trivial romance. We have bigger ambitions!"
Her ambition was to serve the country!
Xia Ying nearly burst out laughing. "Hahaha… right, you're absolutely right! I'll remember that. Since there's no wedding banquet, I won't need to prepare a red envelope either. Thanks for saving me money! Hahaha…"
Su Yun retorted, "Laugh all you want—you'll lose your teeth!"
In the Su family's main room, Chen Xiue was busy showing off the watch to Aunt Xia.
Smelling the aroma of the chicken-stuffed pig stomach wafting in from outside, Xia Xingguo stood up and called to his wife, "Sujuan, go call Yingzi and Huzi. Let's head back."
Huzi was currently in the courtyard playing with Su Baoguo's tin airplane.
Still not satisfied, Chen Xiue stopped Aunt Xia from leaving. "Brother Xia, it's almost dinner time. How can you leave now? Stay and eat with us! My son-in-law is a great cook—you should try his dishes!"
Xia Xingguo waved his hand. "That won't do. We have guests at home—it's inconvenient."
At the mention of "guests," Aunt Xia's expression darkened. She said coldly, "What guests? I've never seen people so shameless. I was about to lock the door, and they still refused to leave, even saying they'd help guard the house."
"Do I need them to guard my house?"
Hearing this, Chen Xiue immediately asked, "What, your sister and her son still haven't left?"
Aunt Xia rolled her eyes. "She's got some nerve! After what she did back then, she still dares to come back, insisting Xingguo find her son a job—as if he's that capable! Even our Yingzi's job was arranged with help from her uncle!"
Once the topic opened up, Chen Xiue became even more unwilling to let them leave.
In the kitchen, while stewing the chicken-stuffed pig stomach, Gu Hai also cooked a pot of rice, stir-fried pork liver with scallions, scrambled eggs with chives, stir-fried lettuce, and made a spinach and blood curd soup.
When Su Baoguo helped carry the dishes to the table, Xia Xingguo froze the moment he saw Gu Hai.
"You… Comrade Gu?"
Su Wenshan said proudly, "Old Xia, didn't expect that, did you? Gu Hai is Xiao Yun's boyfriend."
Xia Xingguo was stunned!
By the time Su Yun and Xia Ying came in to eat, Xia Xingguo and his wife had already praised Gu Hai thoroughly.
Xia Xingguo sighed emotionally, "No wonder such a good opportunity came my way. Turns out I've been benefiting from Su Yun all along!"
He picked up a bottle of liquor and poured a glass for Gu Hai.
Gu Hai immediately declined. "Uncle Xia, Xiao Yun doesn't allow me to drink."
Xia Xingguo paused, originally intending to lecture him—after all, how could a man listen to his girlfriend about drinking?
But remembering he still needed Gu Hai's help, he handed the glass to Su Wenshan instead.
Su Wenshan's eyes widened. He glanced secretly at Chen Xiue and was about to accept the drink when she cleared her throat.
He stiffened immediately, withdrew his hand, and said, "Old Xia, Xiue doesn't allow me to drink either."
Xia Xingguo was speechless. "…Since when do you listen to my sister-in-law so much?"
Chen Xiue chimed in, "He doesn't dare not listen now! The doctor said he must quit smoking and drinking!"
Su Wenshan wanted to protest.
The doctor hadn't said to quit entirely—just to avoid it for now!
But with others present, he obediently turned his head away, trying hard not to look at the alcohol.
Aunt Xia laughed. "Old Xia, I think you should quit drinking too. I've told you before that alcohol harms the body, but you never listen. Look at Brother Su—so obedient!"
Xia Xingguo sat down gloomily.
Chen Xiue served Su Wenshan his meal on the kang.
Taking his chopsticks, Su Wenshan said, "Xiue, save some of the chicken-stuffed pig stomach for Yonghe. He's probably awake by now and needs nourishment too."
Chen Xiue snorted. "You're in this condition and still thinking about your brother… Fine, I've already set some aside. After dinner, Xiao Yun can deliver it to him."
Despite her sharp tongue, she had a soft heart.
Aunt Xia took a bite of the chive and egg dish, her eyes lighting up. "Oh! Xiao Yun's boyfriend really can cook. Even something as simple as scrambled eggs with chives tastes amazing!"
Xia Ying laughed. "Mom, you're so uneducated. You should say it's 'fragrant and leaves a lasting aftertaste'!"
Xia Xingguo pointed at the chicken-stuffed pig stomach. "I think this dish is the best. You wouldn't believe it—I once ate at a private restaurant supposedly run by an imperial chef, and they served this dish. But it wasn't nearly as good as Gu Hai's!"
Gu Hai remained modest under the praise.
Chen Xiue, however, was anything but modest. "See? I told you—Gu Hai could open a restaurant! If private businesses were allowed, he'd definitely outcompete the state-run restaurants!"
Su Baoguo eagerly chimed in, "Mom's right! My brother-in-law's cooking is better than my second sister's!"
Su Yun lowered her head awkwardly, while Gu Hai looked extremely proud.
Aunt Xia sighed. "My Yingzi is the same age as Xiao Yun. Now Xiao Yun has found a partner, but Yingzi still hasn't—it really worries me…"
Xia Ying quickly protested, "Mom, don't worry about me—worry about my brother first!"
"If your brother were here, I'd have already settled his marriage. Would I let him drag it out like this?"
After saying that, Aunt Xia turned to Chen Xiue. "Xiao Yun's mom, you're really fortunate. Your children are either married or in relationships. Unlike my eldest—still single at his age!"
At this, Chen Xiue had plenty to say. "Fortunate? Aside from Xiao Yun, I haven't even met the partners of my other children. I have seven or eight grandchildren and don't even know what they look like…"
---
While they were chatting, Xia Xingguo turned to Gu Hai. "Comrade Gu, there's something I'd like to discuss with you…"
Gu Hai immediately put down his chopsticks and listened attentively.
"It's about those supplies from last time. Could you get another batch for me?"
"Our steel factory has thousands of workers, and the daily food consumption is huge. The last batch is almost gone. I've gone out over ten times in the past few days, but I haven't found satisfactory grain. If you could help us again…"
Before he finished, Su Yun kicked Gu Hai lightly under the table and gave him a look.
Money was practically being delivered to her door—of course she wanted it!
Gu Hai instantly understood and replied, "Sure, Uncle Xia. How much do you need? I'll prepare it for you right away."
Xia Xingguo beamed with joy. "Good, good, good! I'll write you a list immediately…"
He was so eager that he didn't even finish his meal before writing the list and handing it to Gu Hai.
Throughout the entire dinner, only Su Baoguo and Huzi ate in complete peace.