"But this is too wasteful," Li Xiulan still felt a little reluctant.
Chen Lishu simply smiled and said, "But the two children like them. Yicheng, Xiaobai, you two come out and tell Grandma if you like these two clothes!"
Hearing the summons, the two children quickly ran out. They tilted their heads and said happily, "Grandma, I like them!"
Surrounded by two such adorable children, Li Xiulan's reluctance was long gone. After all, the money was spent on the children, not outsiders.
With this thought, Li Xiulan picked up Xiaobai and said, "Alright, alright, as long as my dear grandchildren like them. Grandma will take you to buy some clothes too, okay?"
"Okay!"
"Okay."
The two children, with their round eyes and sweet smiles, agreed to the matter.
At this moment, Li Xiuli, who had just come out, saw this scene and felt very uneasy. She thought that marrying into the capital would bring her happiness, but halfway through, her good fortune dissipated. Instead, her sister, whom she didn't think highly of, had a much happier old age than her!
A wave of jealousy rose in Li Xiuli's heart. She cleared her throat and pretended to be pitiful, saying, "The styles of these clothes are really beautiful, you have such good taste. Almost half the year has passed, and I haven't even bought a piece of clothing for my grandson. He's still wearing patched clothes. The older I get, the more I regress. It's really embarrassing.
How can the destinies of people differ so much? Xiulan, why don't you tell me about your way of making money? Since we're all family, let's make money together. My future life depends on you, my good sister."
Chen Lishu handled all the company matters. What did Li Xiulan know? Not knowing what to say, she could only change the subject again: "Sister, I see Nannan's height is about the same as Yicheng's. If you don't mind, take this piece of clothing for the child to wear. Consider it a welcome gift."
Li Xiuli almost gritted her teeth at Li Xiulan's nonsensical words. Before she could speak, Li Na, who was beside her, couldn't sit still.
She took the clothes from Li Xiulan's hand and said gratefully, "Thank you, Aunt! Then we won't be polite."
Feeling the fabric in her hands, it was particularly smooth and soft. It was obvious that this was a good piece of clothing, worth quite a bit of money.
Chen Lishu watched as Yicheng's clothes were taken away. She quickly crouched down to comfort him, "Yicheng, these two clothes will be given to Nannan Gege first, okay? Mom will take you to buy new ones after school tomorrow."
She expected Yicheng to cry and make a fuss seeing his favorite things taken away, but to her surprise, the child was very obedient and just nodded obediently.
While they were chatting, Su Nian and Qin Yue had also finished their work and came out of the kitchen, calling out, "Madam, Old Madam, the food is ready, you can eat now."
"Okay!" Li Xiulan responded to Su Nian and then enthusiastically invited, "Sister, you traveled all this way and haven't had a bite to eat yet, have you? Let's hurry and sit down to eat. Don't go hungry."
Li Xiuli wanted to hold on a little longer and force Li Xiulan to reveal where she was making her fortune.
However, when the aroma of meat reached her nose, her stomach gave out first, growling loudly.
Hearing this sound, Chen Lishu also hurried to invite, "Auntie, please come to the table quickly. People are iron, and food is rice. If you don't eat for a day, you'll feel hungry. It's not too late to talk about anything after we're full."
"Yes, let's talk while we eat." After saying that, Li Xiuli stopped insisting and walked briskly to the dining table.
When they saw the table full of delicious dishes, with both pork and fish, they couldn't help but salivate.
Indeed, in this era, just being able to eat one's fill was a problem. Who could eat meat and fish like the Gu family? Seeing the sumptuous dinner, Li Xiuli became even more determined in her heart to latch onto the Gu family, this big fish!
Under Chen Lishu's arrangement, everyone sat down. Just as Li Xiuli was about to pick up her chopsticks, the door opened, and Gu Xingdong walked in wearing a green military uniform.
Looking at Gu Xingdong's attire, Li Xiuli first squinted her eyes, then her eyes lit up as she looked at him, excitedly calling out, "This must be my nephew Xingdong! Oh my, after so many years, that young boy has grown so tall and strong. Xingdong, I'm your aunt. You used to come to my house often to play with Li Chen. You ate so many meals at my house back then, don't you remember me?"
Speaking of eating, in a time when everyone was struggling to eat, allowing another child to eat at one's home was a considerable kindness.
Li Xiulan clasped Li Xiuli's hands tightly and said with a choked voice, "Sister, thanks to your great care for Xingdong during that time, I will never forget this kindness!"
"It's a small matter. We're all family, why should we be so calculative?" Li Xiuli said with a smile, then looked at Gu Xingdong with anticipation and said, "I heard you're a commander in the army now? Xingdong, can Auntie trouble you with something?"
Gu Xingdong opened his mouth with a faint expression and asked, "What?"
"Your sister and brother-in-law still don't have decent jobs, and they have to raise children. The family's life is getting more and more difficult. I was wondering if you have any way to get your brother-in-law into the army as a small captain?
You know, being a soldier is an honor for the whole family, and most importantly, it's a stable job. Just consider the many meals you've eaten at Auntie's house and help Auntie out."
As soon as these words were spoken, Chen Lishu and Li Xiulan's expressions turned grim.
This Li Xiuli was a bit too much. It wasn't like this to use connections. Abusing power in such a sacred place could have serious consequences if it got out!
The key was that Gu Xingdong was a loyal and righteous person. Chen Lishu was truly worried that he would agree to this matter and ruin his future. Just as she was thinking of an excuse to refuse, she heard Gu Xingdong sneer from the side.
"I remember, of course, I remember, Auntie. It's just that I don't quite remember what the meals at Auntie's house tasted like. I only know that in my ignorant youth, I didn't leave promptly at mealtime. It was difficult for Auntie to find excuses every day to tell my mother that I had already eaten."
Hearing this, everyone present was stunned. Didn't this mean that Gu Xingdong never ate their family's meals, and Li Xiulan was fooled like an idiot?