Chapter 115: Sheng Wanyan’s Workplace
“We will handle all the accommodations,” Mother Gu added warmly. “When you come north, we can explore the Capital together—visit Tiananmen Square and climb the Great Wall.”
“That sounds wonderful,” Mother Sheng replied, her eyes lighting up with anticipation. “None of us have ever been.”
Even Grandpa and Grandma Sheng shared the excitement. They had lived long lives but had never once set foot in the nation’s capital. Traveling to the Capital, standing in Tiananmen Square, entering the Forbidden City, and climbing the Great Wall—it was a lifelong dream for countless citizens.
“Then it’s settled. Our family will be eagerly awaiting your arrival when the time comes.”
“Yes, yes, of course.”
As the two families finalized the arrangements, Sheng Wanyan sat in absolute bewilderment. She could hardly believe that she had suddenly become Gu Tingxiao’s fiancée—and that she was scheduled to be married in a mere four months.
She felt completely ambushed by Gu Tingxiao. Hadn’t they explicitly agreed in their letters that they would only arrange a formal engagement first? How on earth had a definitive wedding date already been locked in? Had anyone bothered to ask for her opinion?
Gu Tingxiao read her expression instantly. Beneath the heavy fabric of the tablecloth, his hand shot out to clasp hers, his eyes locking onto her face with a look of pure, anxious pleading.
He silently admitted that he had deployed a few calculated tactics to accelerate the timeline. He wanted to marry his girl and bring her home as quickly as humanly possible, keeping her securely by his side forever. That way, no outside suitors would ever have the opportunity to make a move when she wasn’t paying attention.
Wanyan shot him a lethal glare. She was absolutely going to settle this ledger with him the second they were alone.
Sensing the drop in her mood, Gu Tingxiao rubbed his nose guiltily, knowing he had genuinely pushed his luck this time. He silently vowed to himself that this would be the absolute last time he ever bypassed her consent; he would never pull such a stunt again.
He gently squeezed her hand, begging for mercy under the table, and spent the remainder of the evening meticulously refilling her tea and serving her food. Wanyan finally let him off the hook, but she maintained a perfectly serene, unreadable expression. Gu Tingxiao couldn’t fathom whether she was truly placated or still privately furious, leaving him entirely on edge.
Wanyan maintained her cold front on purpose. She couldn’t allow Gu Tingxiao to believe she was easily handled, or he would simply deploy the same high-handed methods the next time a major decision arose. If a man continued to act entirely on his own authority after marriage, the relationship would inevitably fracture down the line. Gu Tingxiao needed to understand the gravity of his overreach; he had to respect her boundaries. She refused to tolerate a husband who made executive decisions about her life without consulting her first.
Gu Tingxiao’s nerves were practically shot. The little girl’s quiet, stubborn resistance had caught him entirely off guard. Left with no other recourse, he focused entirely on pampering her—painstakingly picking the bones out of her fish, pouring her water, and doing everything in his power to coax a smile back onto her face.
“Thank you so much for the incredible hospitality today,” Mother Gu said graciously as the evening drew to a close. “Tomorrow, our side will host a dinner at the state-owned restaurant. Tingxiao will drop by early to escort the two elders, while my future in-laws and Yan’er can head straight over to meet us the moment you clock out of your shifts.”
Since the Gu parents were scheduled to remain in Chengdu for one more day, they wanted to leverage the window to treat the Sheng family and continue cultivating a deep, harmonious bond between the households.
“Perfect. We will head straight to the restaurant the moment our shift ends tomorrow,” Mother Sheng agreed without a shred of pretense. She hadn’t finished talking with Mother Gu yet, and if the night hadn’t grown so late, she wouldn’t have dreamed of letting them depart so soon.
Father and Mother Gu, accompanied by Gu Tong, finally took their leave. As Gu Tingxiao stepped through the doorway, he cast a lingering, soulful glance back at Sheng Wanyan, but she deliberately refused to grant him a single look.
He needed to be left alone with his thoughts for a night to carefully analyze precisely where he had miscalculated.
Unbeknownst to Wanyan, her cold shoulder guaranteed that Gu Tingxiao didn’t catch a single wink of sleep that night. By the time he finally untangled his thoughts and wanted to sprint back to her building to beg for forgiveness, he checked his watch only to realize it was already three o’clock in the morning. He had no choice but to bide his time until daylight to offer his formal apologies.
After seeing their distinguished guests out, the Sheng family returned to the living room to unpack the mountain of offerings the Gu family had brought over. The moment Mother Sheng cataloged the items, her eyes nearly popped out of her head.
The Gu parents had delivered an astonishing assortment of luxury goods, many of which were highly coveted, expensive imports from the state-run Overseas Chinese Store.
“This is far too extravagant. This relative of ours…” Mother Sheng stammered, staring at the treasures layout across the table.
The pile included a premium fountain pen Mother Gu had personally selected, three cartons of high-grade cigarettes, five bottles of top-tier liquor, five bags of White Rabbit creamy candies, three tins of malted milk extract, and two tins of specialized nutritional milk powder formulated for senior citizens.
Yet, these weren’t even the most startling items. The true shock came when Mother Sheng reached into a separate canvas bag and extracted three heavy, unlabeled bottles of liquor.
The moment Grandpa Sheng’s eyes locked onto the bottles, he lunged forward, gathering them into his arms and refusing to cede his grip. These were exclusive, specialized military region rations—highly restricted state supplies reserved strictly for top-tier commanders! Decades ago, during his deployment on the battlefields, his commanding officers had treated the troops to a rare taste of this exact vintage.
He hadn’t expected the Gu family to hand over such a restricted luxury so casually. Grandpa Sheng’s heart soared; he had been fantasizing about this specific flavor for years. Flooded with old wartime memories, he clutched the bottles tightly and scurried back to his quarters to hide his treasure safely in his wardrobe.
“Our new in-laws are exceptionally generous,” Grandma Sheng mused, her voice full of quiet approval. “This display proves precisely how much the Gu family values our Yan’er.”
“Yes, my future mother-in-law is a remarkably sensible woman,” Mother Sheng agreed. “As long as Yan’er builds a stable, peaceful life with the boy, I am entirely content.”
Grandma Sheng hadn’t spoken much during the dinner, preferring to quietly observe the words and actions of the Gu parents. Father Gu was a boisterous, cheerful, and unpolished man who clearly ceded all domestic and marital planning to his wife, while Mother Gu was highly principled, broad-minded, and profoundly wise. As long as Yan’er maintained her integrity and treated the Gu family with basic respect after the wedding, the relationship between mother-in-law and daughter-in-law would be flawless.
“Absolutely,” Mother Sheng sighed in relief. Securing a reasonable, compassionate mother-in-law was arguably infinitely more critical for a woman’s lifelong happiness than securing an ordinary husband.
“Mom,” Mother Sheng pivoted, her brow furrowed as she considered their immediate logistics. “Once Yan’er marries, she will definitely be relocating to live on the military base with Tingxiao. How should we handle her current position at the cotton mill?”
In her estimation, the wisest course of action would be to liquidate the job for cash, though they needed to think carefully about who would purchase the slot. They absolutely could not offer it to any of the extended relatives on either side of the family; if they accepted money from their rural kin for the job, the relatives would inevitably act as though the city branch had committed an ungrateful sin against them. They had originally invested three hundred yuan in cold cash, along with a massive allocation of fine grain, to secure that Propaganda Department post for Wanyan.
Grandma Sheng turned the problem over in her mind before finally landing on the perfect candidate. The Sheng family didn’t lack savings, but there were plenty of households desperately starved for secure employment slots.
“Why don’t you quietly consult Gu Tong to see if her household has a need for it?” Grandma Sheng suggested.
“Gu Tong?” Mother Sheng blinked, confused. “Her entire family is already embedded in state-owned enterprises. Why would they require a textile mill post?”
“I caught her discussing her domestic layout during her last visit,” Grandma Sheng explained. “It seems her daughter-in-law is currently unemployed. The girl has been reluctant to leverage the Ning family’s high-level military connections to secure a post, terrified of triggering gossip or leaving a political weapon for their rivals to use against her husband. She’s currently marooned at home managing the chores and cooking for the elders. Apparently, she holds a high school diploma, so she should be more than qualified to manage Wanyan’s clerical duties.”
“That’s a fantastic idea. I’ll discreetly bring it up to Gu Tong during our dinner tomorrow,” Mother Sheng beamed. Selling the slot to Gu Tong was the absolute ideal layout. Gu Tong and the Ning family had provided immense logistical and medical assistance when Grandpa Sheng was hospitalized, so the relationship was rock-solid. Furthermore, she knew the Ning clan consisted entirely of honorable, disciplined military personnel, so the daughter-in-law was bound to be a sensible, hard-working girl.
“Make sure you draft a letter to Xiaoze tomorrow morning as well,” Grandma Sheng added, patting her daughter’s arm. “Have him keep a sharp eye out for any administrative or civilian openings within the military district, so we can purchase a reliable post for Yan’er up north.”
Mother Sheng slapped her own forehead, gasping. She had nearly overlooked that vital component. There was absolutely zero chance she would allow her precious daughter to be marooned at home managing housework and cooking every single day after the wedding. A woman of the new era was infinitely better off holding an independent career of her own! While securing a post inside the regiment itself might be difficult due to strict military quotas, there were bound to be vacancies within the adjacent supply and marketing cooperatives, local municipal offices, or nearby factories.
