Chapter 543 | Chapter 544 | Chapter 545
Chapter 543: School Reopening Approaching
Yi Yi let out a sharp gasp at the sight of it. She immediately cradled it in her arms, refusing to let go, completely abandoning the extra piece of candy Sheng Wanyan had permitted her to eat.
Sheng Wanyan shook her head with a smile. In two more days, school would reopen, and she and her daughter would be returning to the Peking University courtyard tomorrow.
Once the celebration concluded, it was time for Mother Gu to fall into a state of deep, fretful sighing. Eldest Sister-in-law Gu was due in a little over a month, and Mother Gu couldn’t possibly leave the house.
“In-law, what’s wrong?” Mother Sheng looked at her. Why was she suddenly sighing like this out of nowhere?
“It’s nothing… I’m just worried about Wanyan.”
Mother Sheng glanced at her, suddenly remembering that she had forgotten to tell her counterpart about her and Father Sheng’s arrangements.
“Look at my memory.” Mother Sheng smacked her own forehead. Mother Gu looked at her in complete bewilderment. Why was she hitting herself out of nowhere?
“In-law, I forgot to tell you.”
“Hasn’t Old Sheng come to the Capital? With Wanyan pregnant with twins, we really aren’t at ease either.”
“So Old Sheng is thinking of staying with Wanyan and Yi Yi for a period of time to look after the mother and daughter.”
“I was just wondering how things are arranged on your end? If it’s convenient…”
Before Mother Sheng could even finish her sentence, Mother Gu excitedly slapped her own thigh.
“Convenient! It’s incredibly convenient!”
Mother Gu immediately grasped Mother Sheng’s hand, instantly becoming closer than biological sisters, her tone brimming with immense gratitude.
“That’s wonderful! In-law, you are my biological sister.”
Mother Sheng was startled by her ecstatic reaction. The group leader of the finance department in the Capital calling her a biological sister… Just thinking about it was rather terrifying!
“In-law, don’t get too excited,” Mother Sheng soothed, lest her counterpart accidentally crush her hand in her excitement.
“I’m not excited, I’m not excited…” Mother Gu took several deep breaths. She had never seen such a reliable in-law family!
“In-law, I truly cannot thank you and Brother-in-law enough.”
“You two have genuinely resolved a massive crisis for me.”
“I was just fretting over what on earth to do.”
Mother Gu and Grandma Gu had already planned it out: if left with absolutely no choice, Grandma Gu would go look after Sheng Wanyan. Once Eldest Sister-in-law Gu completed her post-partum recovery month, Mother Gu would head over to swap with Grandma Gu. They were both her daughters-in-law, after all, and she couldn’t just abandon one. Especially for the post-partum recovery month, she, as the mother-in-law, had to look after them properly without neglecting either.
As the saying went: Look to the mother-in-law for the first ten years, and look to the daughter-in-law for the next ten years. She only had these two daughters-in-law, so she had to treasure them well.
“You flatter us, In-law. Since we’ve become one family, looking out for one another is exactly as it should be.”
Mother Gu nodded repeatedly, deeply moved in her heart, instantly pondering what the Gu family could provide for the Sheng family in return. After mulling it over, wasn’t her in-law’s son currently in the military? She would have Old Gu take extra care of him, so Sheng Wanze could be transferred to the Capital to reunite with his family as soon as possible!
Furthermore, she well knew that Brother-in-law Sheng had graduated from university and had previously served as a deputy workshop director at a steel mill. She wondered if the Capital Steel Mill could secure a comfortable position for him. This was a true talent! How could they let him go to waste like this?
Mother Sheng had absolutely no idea about these calculations. If she knew, she would certainly have gone to look after Sheng Wanyan herself too! She could guarantee it! If Pan Yue found out, she would likely insist on going to care for Sheng Wanyan even while pregnant herself; she had discovered that her daughter-in-law seemed to be a bit of a romantic idealist…
Fortunately, Little Ze was deeply family-oriented and responsible, keeping the Sheng household harmonious. If Pan Yue had married anyone else, who knew how badly she might have been bullied down the line…
The next day, Sheng Wanyan and Yi Yi returned to the Peking University courtyard. Grandfather Gu explicitly had his guard escort the mother and daughter back. Mother Gu had also prepared a massive amount of food, especially fruits and nutritional supplements, packing half of the household’s stash into the car for her.
“Mom, there’s no need for so many things.”
“No, no, no. The doctor explicitly stated during your checkup that your nutrition was insufficient.” Mother Gu packed items into the trunk regardless of her protests, and Sheng Wanyan could only accept it helplessly.
“Little Hu, once you deliver Wanyan safely, please help her carry the items inside,” Grandfather Gu instructed his guard.
Uncle Hu quickly nodded in response, placing Sheng Wanyan and Yi Yi’s luggage into the car. “Rest assured, Old General, I will see Comrade Sheng Wanyan and Yi Yi safely inside the house before I depart.”
Grandfather Gu nodded. The trip from here back to Peking University wasn’t short; they had to set out early, as they still needed to clean up the house upon arrival.
“Alright, let’s go.”
Sheng Wanyan and Yi Yi got into the car, departing after a reluctant farewell.
Upon returning to the Peking University courtyard, Uncle Hu carried all the items inside, only leaving after ensuring the mother and daughter were properly settled.
“Thank you for your trouble, Uncle Hu.” Sheng Wanyan quickly poured a cup of water for him, which Uncle Hu took and downed in one go.
“It’s no trouble. Comrade Sheng Wanyan and Yi Yi must take good care of yourselves.”
“Thank you, Grandpa Hu~” Yi Yi thanked him with her hands pressed together, and Uncle Hu gave her little cheek an affectionate pinch with a smile.
“Don’t mention it, Yi Yi. Grandpa Hu is heading back now.”
Sheng Wanyan quickly grabbed a large handful of candies for Uncle Hu to take back. Uncle Hu was already a grandfather himself and had quite a few children at home. “Take these back for your grandsons and granddaughters to eat, Uncle Hu. There’s nothing grand to entertain you with at home, so please don’t be polite with me.”
Uncle Hu naturally didn’t stand on ceremony. Having served in the Gu household for so many years, he had long regarded the three Gu brothers as his own sons. Normally, whenever the Gu family had any delicious treats or fun items, they would always give him a portion to take back for his children. The younger generation of the Gu family respected him immensely, never using their family background to bully others.
Unlike the guards of some other old generals, who would occasionally face disrespect from the rowdy children of those households yet couldn’t bring themselves to bicker with kids. Having followed the old general for so many years, moving from a common soldier to his current position, it had been a full thirty years!
Not long after the mother and daughter saw off Guard Uncle Hu, Father and Mother Sheng arrived. They had come over to help her clean the house. Since Father Sheng was moving in to stay, Sheng Wanyan utilized the time when they headed back to eat to quickly stock the provisions in the cellar.
“Wanyan, you and Yi Yi don’t need to cook on regular days.”
“Just give your provisions to me, and your dad can bring your three daily meals back.” Mother Sheng couldn’t bear to see her carrying such a large belly while cooking; with herself anchored by her daughter’s side, she refused to let her suffer this hardship. It just so happened that Father Sheng was here too, so they had someone to run errands.
Sheng Wanyan readily agreed. With her massive belly now, let alone cooking, even putting on her own pants was becoming a bit difficult.
“Mom, go gather them from my cellar. Take more meat, eggs, and fine grains; I’ve been eating a lot. Yi Yi is also growing, so she needs to eat more fine grains.”
Mother Sheng nodded. Since she was gathering for three people, the portions were naturally substantial. Mother Gu had previously mentioned her daughter’s situation during their chat. Mother Sheng gathered five catties of fine grains, two catties of flour, fifty eggs, ten catties of fresh meat, and five catties of cured meat. The mother and daughter certainly couldn’t lack for meat, eggs, and fine grains daily; these provisions would be fully consumed in half a month.
“I’ll take this much for now, and I’ll come gather more when the time comes.”
Chapter 544: Causing a Sensation at School
Mother Sheng carried the provisions back home. Sheng Wanyan knew her mother wanted to subsidize her, worried that she would find it a struggle to raise three children down the line.
“Oh right, I’ll bring last month’s ledger and money over to you in a bit.”
“There are also letters sent from Bingcheng. I picked them up for you, so I’ll bring them along too.”
Sheng Wanyan nodded. She didn’t even know how much money they had made last month. The letters were bound to have been sent by Xu Guihua.
“And one more thing—you’re about to go back to school for classes. With such a massive belly, you must be careful.”
“Mom, I know. Rest assured, rest assured.”
Seeing that her mother was about to start nagging again, Sheng Wanyan quickly pushed her out the door to go fetch the items, lest she launch into another lengthy lecture.
“You silly girl…”
Mother Sheng muttered a few words under her breath. Sheng Wanyan just smiled and didn’t argue back; her mother simply possessed a worrying nature, and arguing would only make the lecture even more severe.
Mother Sheng went home and returned with last month’s cash and letters. Her registrations were meticulous—even how much fabric the workshop had used and how much was left over were logged with absolute clarity.
Sheng Wanyan audited the figures once. Even though it was summer vacation, the two shops hadn’t earned a single bit less than before. Looking at the thick stacks of cash, she couldn’t close her mouth from laughing.
Last month, the net profit of the two shops combined reached a total of 98,000 yuan. The clothing store accounted for 57,000 yuan of that, and with Sheng Wanyan’s 80% share, she pulled in 45,600 yuan.
Coupled with the revenue from the two clothing stores back in Bingcheng, she was practically raking in money just by sitting around this month.
Sheng Wanyan opened the letter sent by Xu Guihua. The letter mentioned that business over the past two months hadn’t been as stellar; they hadn’t rolled out any new arrivals during this period, and since Bingcheng was only so large, the store was bound to gradually lose a bit of foot traffic.
There was another reason too! Someone else had opened a clothing store nearby, selling styles that were identical to theirs but at a much cheaper price.
Xu Guihua didn’t know what to do. One couldn’t exactly march to their doorstep and make a scene over this type of thing; in business, no one could guarantee that they would be the only ones making money.
Sheng Wanyan understood the situation perfectly upon reading the contents. After all, with the clothing store doing so well, others would naturally want a piece of the pie upon seeing the profits.
It was just that while people currently chased after low prices, in a few years, they would pursue brand equity. She only needed to keep a strict handle on the quality of the garments.
Sheng Wanyan penned a reply to Xu Guihua, laying out her plans and the future trajectory of the clothing store, and enclosed the new design sketches to mail over together.
Sheng Wanyan thought about how inconvenient it was to write letters every single time. If they could install a telephone at home… things would be much faster.
However, installing a telephone required a quota and an application process, which had to be approved by the higher-ups before proceeding.
But with the Gu family around, applying for a telephone shouldn’t be much of an issue. Sheng Wanyan went ahead and fired off a telegram back to the military compound, asking Mother Gu to look into it for her.
The day for Sheng Wanyan to return to school arrived in no time. When Aunt Hu came to pick Yi Yi up, she was thoroughly startled by the size of her belly.
Upon learning that she was carrying twins, Aunt Hu patted her own chest repeatedly to steady her nerves.
“How are you going to attend classes like this?”
“I can manage. My dad will pick me up every day, and I’ll just eat at the school cafeteria at noon instead of heading back.”
“Oh right, my dad will be picking Yi Yi up from her classes during this period.”
Sheng Wanyan introduced Father Sheng to Aunt Hu so they could familiarize themselves with each face, preventing any issues when picking the child up.
“Hello, I’m Yi Yi’s grandfather.”
“Hello.”
The two introduced themselves. Aunt Hu shared a decent relationship with Mother Sheng, so she quickly grew familiar with Father Sheng as well.
“Then you must pay extra attention. If anything happens, just ask your classmates for help.”
“Don’t worry, Aunt Hu, I know what to do.”
Aunt Hu also knew she was a sensible person, so she offered a few brief words of advice before taking Yi Yi’s hand to head to the Beijing Dance Academy for class.
As Sheng Wanyan walked onto the university campus, her belly drew the gaze of students all along the way. The news of her pregnancy spread like wildfire through the entire Foreign Languages Department.
When Professor Zhao saw her during class, he was completely stunned. How long has it been since I accepted this disciple, and now I’m already about to have grand-disciples??
Professor Zhao thought of his rather scarce pocket money. Once the babies came out… he would have to prepare red envelopes again.
“Wanyan, you, you, you…”
Wei Lili pointed at her belly, completely speechless. The entire dormitory crew and the rest of the classmates were so stunned they couldn’t utter a word.
“Yes, I’m pregnant.”
Before they could even form the questions, Sheng Wanyan directly delivered the answer they wanted.
“How… how long have you been pregnant?”
“Why is your belly so massive?”
Liang Fanghua was shocked out of her mind. This belly looked almost ready for delivery?!
“Twins, five and a half months.”
The moment the crowd heard “twins,” their eyeballs nearly popped out. Wei Lili straight up dropped the book in her hand, rushing forward with a trembling finger pointed at her stomach.
“Two?!”
“Two babies!!!”
The dormitory crew was struck with wave after wave of shock, their gazes turning far more intense than moments ago. Wei Lili’s eyes, in particular, were practically shooting beams of light.
“When the time comes… you’re going to have two children who look exactly the same.”
Wei Lili swallowed hard. Two children who looked identical—how incredibly fun would that be!
When it came time to play guessing games down the line, wouldn’t it be pure entertainment!
She hadn’t ever seen twins in her entire life; she truly wanted to study two identical individuals to see where exactly the differences lay!
Wei Lili was filled with immense curiosity, and not a single classmate in the room was an exception.
Professor Zhao: “……” Two red envelopes.
The look Professor Zhao directed at Sheng Wanyan was filled with absolute regret. Why on earth had he been in such a desperate hurry to accept a close-door disciple?
If he had known earlier, he would have just waited a few more months.
Professor Zhao’s eyes were clouded with the agony of regret, appearing rather out of it the entire day. The other professors at the school all threw bewildered looks at him.
Could it be that some major disaster has occurred? Is the university going to be shut down again?
Why did his expression look more ready for martyrdom than back when the state was about to shut down the universities?
The university professors were instantly thrown into a state of panic, heading to the principal’s office one after another to ask whether the universities were truly going to be canceled again!
The Principal of Peking University: “……” What on earth are they all doing?
Sheng Wanyan ate and rested at school during the noon hour, drawing the curious stares of the crowd once again in the cafeteria.
Very good… She was the latest hot topic of gossip in the school.
Sheng Wanyan had brought a lunchbox, ordering one meat dish and one vegetable dish to take back to the dormitory to eat. On her way back, she found an empty spot with no one around to secretly add two more meat dishes and rice from her space.
There was no helping it; the two in her belly possessed a massive appetite, and the household’s monthly ration coupons simply weren’t enough to sustain her.
Thank goodness she possessed her space, otherwise the children would be going hungry right now.
When she returned to the dormitory, Li Jiahua was also eating. The moment Li Jiahua saw her, she recalled how she had been rejected when asking to stay at her house.
But everyone knew that Wei Lili and Sheng Wanyan possessed the best family backgrounds in the dorm, with their food and daily necessities all being rare, premium goods.
This was especially true for Sheng Wanyan—just speaking of wristwatches alone, she had swapped out several new ones in a single semester, and the jewelry and clothing on her body matched beautifully every single day.
Sheng Wanyan sat in her own seat, opening her lunchbox to begin eating. Seeing the three meat dishes and one vegetable dish inside, Li Jiahua’s eyes widened to the size of saucers.
Chapter 545: Installing a Telephone
She… she was actually eating so much meat all by herself!
Li Jiahua looked at the vegetable bun in her own hand, and it instantly lost its appeal.
During the summer vacation, she had stayed in the dormitory, scrambling to the state-run restaurant or the little stalls outside for every single meal. Although she didn’t eat much, eating out for two entire months meant she had barely any money or coupons left.
The school’s living stipend hadn’t been distributed yet, so she could only make do with whatever she had for the past few days. If Sheng Wanyan hadn’t refused to let her stay over, she wouldn’t be in this miserable state right now.
“Wanyan, you have so much food. Can you even finish it all?”
Li Jiahua couldn’t help but lick her lips. Sheng Wanyan looked up at her.
“I’m eating for three people right now, so this might not even be enough.”
Hearing this, Li Jiahua let out an awkward laugh, her grip tightening on her chopsticks. She couldn’t bring herself to say anything else.
“Right…”
Just as Li Jiahua was trying to think of something to say, Wei Lili and the others returned from lunch. One by one, they collapsed onto their beds the moment they stepped into the dorm. The weather was so sweltering that they didn’t want to move a single muscle.
“Wanyan, how about I swap beds with you?”
Wei Lili looked at her massive belly and found the sight of her climbing up and down the bunk bed terrifying. In fact, it wasn’t just Wei Lili; everyone in the dorm was anxious. If anything went wrong, they would all have to bear the responsibility.
“Let’s swap! We’ll help you move your things.”
Liang Fanghua and Lin Meili immediately stepped up to carry her belongings down, while Gu Shumin and Liu Na started making her bed. Zheng Lingling moved Wei Lili’s things to the top bunk and began tidying up.
In less than two minutes, the beds were completely sorted, leaving Sheng Wanyan without even a chance to decline.
“Lili, thank you.”
“Once this semester is over, I’ll swap back with you.”
Hearing this, Wei Lili gave a bright wave of her hand. “Don’t mention it. I actually wanted to see what the top bunk feels like.”
Sheng Wanyan smiled at her words. In this era, almost no one liked the top bunk; who would willingly climb up and down every single day?
In the afternoon, the moment Sheng Wanyan stepped out of the school gates after classes, she saw Father Sheng, who had come to pick her up.
“I already picked up Yi Yi. She’s over at the general store.”
Sheng Wanyan nodded with a smile. Yi Yi was still small, so her classes were naturally short, and it was normal for her to finish early.
“Oh right, your mother-in-law sent a telegram saying that the arrangements for installing your telephone are all set.”
Sheng Wanyan hadn’t expected Mother Gu to be this fast. She had gotten it sorted out in just a single day.
“That’s wonderful.”
“A telephone costs several thousand yuan. I really don’t know why you’re installing one.”
“It’s convenient. If anything comes up in the future, we can just call directly instead of waiting a month for a letter.”
Father Sheng shook his head with a smile. Once his daughter set her mind to something, she would absolutely see it through. Back in Rongcheng, he hadn’t witnessed his daughter’s capabilities firsthand and had only caught glimpses through Mother Sheng’s letters. But after staying in the Capital for a while and seeing her innovative ideas and store management, he knew his daughter was someone with grand ambitions.
“Then you might as well install it in the general store. That way, it could bring in an extra stream of income.”
Sheng Wanyan had actually considered this point. The villagers could come over to make calls, which would indeed generate a decent amount of revenue. However, there was already a public telephone in the village, so there was no need for her to compete for that market. Moreover, she was installing it for her own convenience; if it became a public utility, it would be troublesome to reclaim it later.
“No, putting it in the general store would draw too much unwanted attention.”
Father Sheng thought about it and agreed. It was a luxury item worth several thousand yuan, after all; what if someone stole it?
Installing a telephone in this era cost nearly 5,000 yuan when adding up all the miscellaneous fees, and the Post and Telecommunications Bureau had to come to the house to run the lines. The telephone set itself and the wiring procedures all required hefty payments. It wasn’t nearly as convenient as it would be in the future, where one could just call a service provider, buy nothing, pay nothing, and have someone install it effortlessly.
In this day and age, installing a telephone required running around to pull strings just to secure a quota.
When Father Sheng and Sheng Wanyan returned home, Mother Sheng brought over the cooked dinner and immediately asked about the telephone.
“You silly girl, a telephone costs thousands of yuan. You really have too much money and time on your hands.”
Mother Sheng chided her testily. One had to know that the entire life savings of a wealthy family these days might not even amount to 5,000 yuan. Yet her daughter was spending such a massive sum just to install a telephone, completely unbothered by the risk of drawing thieves.
However, Mother Sheng knew speaking further was futile. The next evening before dinner, workers from the bureau arrived to run the lines, and Father Gu also had someone deliver the telephone set.
The total cost came out to around 4,700 yuan, with the Bureau portion alone taking up over 1,000 yuan. Sheng Wanyan settled the bill in full. With the Gu family’s connections, no one worried about her defaulting on the payment. Soon, Father and Mother Sheng were huddled around the telephone, inspecting it.
“Oh my goodness, I never thought we’d get to use such a precious gadget ourselves.”
Mother Sheng completely forgot how she had scolded Sheng Wanyan the day before, sitting on the side and staring at the telephone, more excited than anyone.
“Mom, why don’t you try calling my brother’s military unit?”
“Your brother and Little Gu are out on a mission, aren’t they? No one will pick up even if you call.”
Sheng Wanyan had almost forgotten. Once school started and she became busy, she had nearly forgotten that her own brother and her husband were still out on their mission.
“I’ll call your mother-in-law then, just to catch up.”
“You two go ahead and eat dinner, don’t mind me.”
Mother Sheng naturally knew the Gu family’s number. She cranked the handle a few times, and the call went through to the Gu residence in no time.
When Mother Gu heard Mother Sheng on the other end, she grinned from ear to ear. After chatting for a good while, Mother Gu noted down Sheng Wanyan’s new number.
From then on, Sheng Wanyan received a phone call from Mother Gu almost every night before bed. Yi Yi was also filled with immense curiosity toward this novel gadget.
“Yi Yi, come speak to Grandma.”
Sheng Wanyan placed the receiver against Yi Yi’s ear. Hearing Mother Gu’s voice on the other end, Yi Yi was incredibly delighted.
“Grandma~”
Yi Yi’s sweet, milky voice traveled through the line, completely melting Mother Gu’s heart.
“My darling, have you been listening to Mama?”
“Yup!”
“I miss Grandma~”
Mother Gu grinned from ear to ear upon hearing this, wishing nothing more than to fly over to see her little granddaughter immediately. This little mouth was simply too sweet.
“Grandma misses you too. Make sure to listen to Mama, okay?”
“Okay~”
Yi Yi blinked her eyes, her fan-like eyelashes fluttering. Dressed in her milky-white pajamas, she looked exactly like a porcelain doll.
The two chatted for a long time before wrapping up. Listening to Yi Yi’s sweet words, Sheng Wanyan knew this little girl was working her charm again. Who could possibly resist a child telling them ‘I miss you,’ ‘I love you,’ and ‘You’re the best’ every single day?
