"..." Shen Wuqiu's lips twitched. She no longer doubted that Gu Lingyu was an adopted child, after all, their whole family was the same.
****
downstairs.
Mr. Shen and the others had already finished dinner. Now that he was feeling better, he couldn't stay idle at home, so he took Gu Junshan for a stroll along the country roads to digest their food. As for Song Jue, he had gone back to the city because of some business there.
As for the women, Daiying also wanted to go out for some fresh air, but Zhao Jiujiu, who was worried about her daughter, kept nagging her, so she didn't go. With two important figures in the house, Su Yunzhi, as the mistress of the house, naturally couldn't leave them behind.
So when Shen Wuqiu brought Gu Lingyu downstairs, she saw them sitting on opposite sides of the coffee table watching TV.
"Aunt, here, I've called the person down for you."
"Auntie, I'm sorry to have worried you." After being coaxed, Gu Lingyu became a sweet little kitten again and spontaneously sat down next to Zhao Jiujiu.
"I heard from Qiuqiu that you're in a bad mood?" In front of Daiying, Zhao Jiujiu didn't show any particular enthusiasm, her tone was neither warm nor cold.
Gu Lingyu was very honest: "I was a little bit before, but my sister has coaxed me out of it now."
"Is something bothering you?" Zhao Jiujiu said, glancing at Dai Ying who still seemed indifferent. She sighed, "Some people, I don't know how they act as mothers. Their daughters are in a bad mood and hide in their rooms all day, and the mothers just ignore it and don't worry at all."
Daiying ate sunflower seeds and watched TV, ignoring Su Yunzhi's veiled criticism. She turned to Su Yunzhi and started discussing, "That mother-in-law is so mean-spirited. Look at such a good daughter-in-law."
"Sigh, I haven't seen many good mothers-in-law on TV. This one is considered good." Su Yunzhi likes to watch these kinds of family dramas. She's always been bored and no one has ever discussed these things with her.
Zhao Jiujiu listened from the side, and she was extremely angry. "Some people don't care about their own daughters, but they are probably even worse to their daughters-in-law than the evil mothers-in-law on TV."
Daiying immediately replied, "Aunt Wuqiu, you can rest assured about that. I'm not saddened by my daughter's situation, but I will definitely grant my daughter-in-law's every request."
After saying that, she glanced in Shen Wuqiu's direction.
Zhao Jiujiu didn't want to rub salt in her wounds, but when she saw her gaze fall on Shen Wuqiu, she immediately became protective: "It's a pity you don't have the chance to be a mother-in-law."
Dai Ying shrugged. "That's not necessarily true."
Zhao Jiujiu thought for a moment and decided not to argue with her. She then turned to Gu Lingyu and asked, "Your mother doesn't care about you. Tell your aunt what troubles you've been having lately?"
“It’s not a big problem…” Gu Lingyu glanced at Shen Wuqiu.
Shen Wuqiu was afraid that she would speak recklessly again, so she quickly spoke up for her: "It's just some girlish thoughts that she can't figure out if she keeps them to herself. I'll talk to her about it."
Zhao Jiujiu nodded knowingly: "Which girl doesn't have feelings for someone? You must have someone you like, right?"
Gu Lingyu nodded: "Yes, there is."
"Tsk tsk, such a plump and healthy cabbage, I wonder which pig got it?"
"..." Shen Wuqiu felt inexplicably uncomfortable after hearing these words.
After a few seconds, Gu Lingyu realized what was happening and looked at Shen Wuqiu, "Aunt, my sister isn't a pig."
Now it was Zhao Jiujiu's turn to be stunned. She blinked and asked, "What does this have to do with Qiuqiu?"
Shen Wuqiu quickly handed the water chestnuts she had just peeled to Zhao Jiujiu, "Aunt, try these. They're grown by people in our village, and they're even sweeter than the ones you buy outside."
Zhao Jiujiu quite likes eating this stuff raw, but she's too lazy to peel it. Now that there's some ready-made, she doesn't stand on ceremony, takes it, and throws it into her mouth. "It's really sweet. Peel two more for me."
Upon hearing this, Su Yunzhi, who was watching TV nearby, suddenly interjected: "By the way, Lingyu, are you hungry? What would you like to eat? Should I prepare some more food for you?"
When the topic of food came up, Gu Lingyu frowned and said, "I'm hungry, but my teeth hurt."
Zhao Jiujiu: "Why does your tooth hurt all of a sudden?"
"I don't know either." Gu Lingyu touched her cheek. "Today, whenever I bite into something, it feels like my teeth have gone soft."
Shen Wuqiu: "I guess it's because I ate too many bayberries yesterday."
No wonder the cat didn't eat the dried fish I fed it today.
Gu Lingyu asked in confusion, "Will eating too many bayberries cause toothache?"
Su Yunzhi: "Eating too many bayberries can indeed make your teeth sensitive. How many bayberries did you eat yesterday?"
Gu Lingyu was a little embarrassed: "I ate all the dishes I washed yesterday, and I also ate the leftovers from the kitchen..."
Zhao Jiujiu: "Are you eating bayberries like they're your main meal?"
Su Yunzhi: "No wonder, it's no wonder my teeth feel sore after eating so many bayberries."
Shen Wuqiu glanced at her. "I told you to eat less yesterday, but you didn't listen."
Gu Lingyu: "But you didn't tell me that eating too many bayberries would make my teeth sensitive."
Shen Wuqiu: "This is common sense."
Daiying spoke up for her daughter at the right moment: "Ayu has never eaten bayberries before."
Zhao Jiujiu: "Look how hungry the child is."
Daiying didn't argue with her and continued eating sunflower seeds and watching TV.
Zhao Jiujiu couldn't keep up the verbal sparring by herself, so she went back to talking to Gu Lingyu.
When it was time to go to bed that night, Gu Lingyu, whose teeth ached and who hadn't eaten anything, couldn't fall asleep. She stayed in Shen Wuqiu's room and refused to leave, saying, "Sister, my teeth hurt."
"Serves you right for not listening to advice."
Gu Lingyu pouted and secretly licked the dried fish off her pillow.
"Alright, it should be fine by tomorrow, just bear with it today..." Halfway through her sentence, Shen Wuqiu noticed her little action and quickly pulled her up, "You're not allowed to eat on my bed."
"I didn't eat it, I just licked it to satisfy my craving."
Shen Wuqiu said speechlessly, "Where did you get this dried fish?"
“I took it from the kitchen when I went upstairs. I didn’t want to drink the porridge that the auntie cooked. I wanted to eat dried fish.”
"Your teeth are so sensitive you can't bite, how can you eat dried fish?"
Gu Lingyu handed the dried fish to her, saying, "Sister, you can feed me."
"..."
Shen Wuqiu pushed him directly out the door.
Gu Lingyu clung to the door frame, refusing to leave. "Mother said that if she doesn't turn me back into my original form tonight, I can't come in through the window tonight."
It's as if she wishes a cat would climb through her window.
"Yes, tomorrow is the Dragon Boat Festival. I have a lot to do, so I need a good night's sleep."
The cat, feeling rejected, reluctantly let go, licked the dried fish off her hand, and said, "Alright then, sister, get some rest."
Seeing her pitiful state as she licked the dried fish, Shen Wuqiu couldn't help but ask, "Are you really that hungry?"
"Hmm..." Afraid of worrying her, he added, "Actually, it's okay. I'm not hungry once I fall asleep."
Shen Wuqiu nodded. "Then you should go back to sleep."
Gu Lingyu then went to her room, turning back every few steps.
Shen Wuqiu tossed and turned in bed for a while, but in the end, she couldn't bring herself to do it, so she got up and went downstairs.
There's not much nightlife in the countryside; everyone's asleep.
Shen Wuqiu didn't turn on the lights in the living room. Instead, she used a flashlight to carefully walk to the kitchen, supporting her pregnant belly. She then carefully closed the door before turning on the light and finding ingredients from the refrigerator to cook fish paste.
After fiddling around for half an hour, I finally carried a large bowl of fish paste upstairs.
When Gu Lingyu was on the mountain, she wasn't this greedy, but during her time at the Shen family, her stomach had become accustomed to being pampered. If she suddenly didn't eat for a day, her mouth would itch terribly, and she wouldn't fall asleep so easily. She would lie in bed and lick the dried fish.
So, as soon as Shen Wuqiu knocked on the door, she heard it. When she opened the door and saw the fish paste in Shen Wuqiu's hand, she was overjoyed: "Did you cook this for me, sister?"
“I was a little hungry too, so I went downstairs and cooked some. I cooked too much, so I'll share some with you.”
Gu Lingyu leaned over and kissed her on the cheek: "Sister is lying, she clearly cooked it especially for me."
"...Think what you want, I'm going back to my room."
After saying that, he turned around and went back to his room.
Gu Lingyu stood at the door and watched her enter the room before carefully taking a sip of the fish paste.
So sweet.
Thankfully, she finally realized her mistake today and chose to keep pestering me until the very last moment, otherwise she definitely wouldn't have gotten to drink the fish and meat porridge her sister cooked today.
Her mother was right; even a strong woman can be swayed by persistent suitors.
As long as she persists and works hard, she will definitely gradually win over her sister's heart.
****
The next day was the Dragon Boat Festival.
As dawn broke, Uncle Zheng had already led his men to West Mountain to pick bayberries.
When Shen Wuqiu got up, several women from the same village had already picked and sorted the bayberries, waiting for Shen Wuqiu to take a look.
The bayberries picked early in the morning were still covered in dew, looking very appetizing. Shen Wuqiu checked all eighteen baskets of bayberries and asked, "Are they all here?"
"There are still more than a dozen trees that haven't been picked. I'm afraid that all the ones we've picked will be used up at the dragon boat race, and we won't have any good ones to offer when people come to pick them."
"You're so thoughtful. Have the gift boxes and everything been prepared?"
Uncle Zheng nodded: "My previous estimate was too low. I guess the bayberries were juicier in the morning and weighed more. There should be more than 1,200 jin here."
Shen Wuqiu picked out two baskets from them. "These will be packaged in high-end gift boxes and given as gifts to the village committee. The rest will be taken to the Dragon Boat Festival. Remember, our bayberries can only be eaten on-site and cannot be taken away. If any guests want to buy them, we will not sell them for the time being."
Su Yunzhi, standing to the side, was somewhat puzzled: "Wuqiu, these more than a thousand catties of bayberries, at market price, would be worth at least ten or twenty thousand yuan. Wouldn't it be better if someone bought them?"
Before Shen Wuqiu could reply, Gu Lingyu, who was resting her chin on her hand and craving bayberries, blurted out, "Auntie, my sister is playing the long game."
Shen Wuqiu raised an eyebrow, somewhat surprised.
Su Yunzhi was still somewhat puzzled: "How does this count as casting a long line to catch a big fish?"
"That's not entirely true. Firstly, I've already informed the town government that the main purpose of this trip is to promote our bayberries at the dragon boat race. If we were to sell bayberries there, it would inevitably lead to misunderstandings."
Secondly, the most important thing right now isn't selling bayberries, but finding the market first, and then opening it up. If we sell the bayberries today and make a real profit, the amount of free samples we offer will definitely decrease, which would defeat the purpose of our promotion.
Uncle Zheng agreed with her statement: "The yield of bayberries in Xishan is also good. If we promote them properly, we can make them a premium product. Besides, our town holds a dragon boat race every year. If people have an unforgettable experience this year because of our bayberries, they will probably remember us. Then we won't have to worry about customers."
Shen Wuqiu thought so too.
As one cat said, she's playing the long game. These small, immediate gains are insignificant compared to her long-term benefits.
After arranging these things, Uncle Zheng sent someone to deliver the bayberries to the town.