Chapter 928: A Son-in-Law is Half a Son

"Two years, 1 billion!" The old man laughed. "That's no small feat."

Gu Minglan also smiled. "So, do you think he can pull it off?"

The old man said earnestly, "For a man, as long as he strives and fights for Qiuqiu, whether he actually succeeds in the end isn't really the most important thing."

Gu Minglan looked at the scenery flashing past the car window and fell silent.

Da Run Fa's business was still booming. Gu Minglan helped the old man inside, while her personal secretary and security guard, dressed in casual clothes, followed closely behind.

"That over there is the non-staple food section," Gu Minglan said, pointing ahead.

"Let's go take a look." The old man walked toward it, "Where is the sugar?"

The old man was most concerned about the price of sugar right now.

Gu Minglan asked a clerk, "Comrade, where is the sugar?"

The clerk pointed, "Over there."

"Thank you!" Gu Minglan thanked her and accompanied the old man to the sugar shelf.

"Two yuan forty-five!" The old man picked up a bag of sugar, a smile appearing on his face. "It's over four jiao cheaper than at other stores."

Gu Minglan said, "Relatively speaking, all the goods here are cheaper than at other department stores."

"Let's go take a look over there." The old man no longer needed Gu Minglan's support; he wandered around the mall, paying special attention to the prices of daily necessities.

After strolling for over half an hour, they took the escalator to the second floor and spotted the Rifen heating radiators at a glance, a natural smile appearing on his face.

"Did you see the Rifen radiators?"

"I saw them when I came with Xiao Ping yesterday." Gu Minglan was quite moved. "I really didn't expect a radiator to have so many variations."

The old man asked with some surprise, "Didn't she tell you that these Rifen radiators were developed by Zhou Andong?"

Gu Minglan froze. Zhao Ping had specifically brought her to look at the Rifen radiators and kept talking about how good-looking they were and how she wanted to replace the ones at home this year, yet she hadn't mentioned Zhou Andong once.

Suddenly, she felt a bitter taste in her heart. Although she opposed that silly girl being with Zhou Andong, she was her biological mother after all; how could she feel like an outsider, kept in the dark about so many things?

Watching the large crowd of customers gathered around the Rifen radiators, with the sales staff busy to the point of exhaustion, the smile on the old man's face never faded.

"A few days ago, Xiao Fan brought a set of Rifen radiators to my place, saying it was a birthday gift for Minglang. It just so happened that Minglang was back for some business."

Jian Minglang's reaction flashed through Gu Minglan's mind like a series of film frames.

"This kid!" Gu Minglan said, unable to laugh or cry. "He's been close to Qiuqiu since he was little, but he's never gotten along with Minglang."

The old man was also helpless. He was indeed disappointed in Jian Minglang, but disappointment was one thing—he was still his grandson, so the family had to support him where they could. As for how far he could go, that was up to him.

"Let's go take a look over there." The old man quickly put Jian Minglang out of his mind and continued to tour the mall with great interest.

After shopping for over two hours, they bought two jin of sugar. When checking out, Gu Minglan explained the barcodes and scanners to the old man, who listened very carefully.

"Good, good, very good!" In the old man's eyes, this was high technology, and he was so happy he kept repeating how good it was.

Afterward, Gu Minglan took the old man to eat in the food court, then they got back in the car. The old man was still sighing with emotion.

"This kid Zhou Andong is truly remarkable. I had underestimated him before."

As the car drove smoothly, Gu Minglan was deep in thought. Could it be that I was really wrong?

They soon arrived home. The old lady came out of the room, "Minglan, Xiao Ping called and asked you to go to her place for dinner tonight."

"Alright!" Gu Minglan replied, "I know."

………………

The sound of Contra music and Jian Mingfan's mocking laughter drifted from his room.

"Brother-in-law, 30 lives, and you're already dead? Are you even capable of anything?"

Zhou Andong snorted coldly, "I haven't played in many years; I'm rusty."

"Can we stop bragging?" Jian Mingfan said unceremoniously. "Contra hasn't even been out for that many years!"

Seeing Jian Qiu and Zhao Ping were picking vegetables in the living room. Hearing the noise from the room, Zhao Ping said with a smile,

"I hope they don't start fighting."

Seeing Jian Qiu said helplessly, "At his grandmother's house, he played marbles with his few-year-old nephew and made the kid cry his eyes out."

Zhao Ping froze for a moment, then burst into laughter, "You can rest assured about that; Xiao Fan won't cry even if he loses."

"..."

Seeing Jian Qiu was speechless, "Did you call my mom?"

Zhao Ping nodded, "I called before you arrived. Your grandmother answered and said she went out with your grandfather."

Inside the room, the two men were still mocking each other, while in the living room, Seeing Jian Qiu and Zhao Ping chatted as they picked vegetables. Time passed quickly.

Past five in the evening, Zhao Ping and Seeing Jian Qiu set up the hotpot, and the dishes were laid out on the table.

Just then, there was a knock on the door. Zhao Ping said, "Your mother is here."

"I'll go open it!" Seeing Jian Qiu walked over to open the door, and sure enough, Gu Minglan was standing outside.

"Mom!" Seeing Jian Qiu hugged Gu Minglan's arm, "I missed you to death."

Gu Minglan said with a forced smile, "You look pretty carefree, living a life of luxury. You missed me?"

"Auntie!" Zhou Andong came out of the room, greeting her with extreme enthusiasm, "You're here! Did Uncle not come with you?"

That "Auntie" brought back many memories for Gu Minglan that weren't exactly pleasant.

Seeing Jian Qiu glared at Zhou Andong, while Zhao Ping looked on, completely confused—why was this kid calling her "Auntie"?

"Mom, he's got something wrong with his brain; don't mind him." Seeing Jian Qiu pulled her mother to sit at the table, "Look, cabbage hearts and spinach—all your favorites."

"Auntie!" Zhou Andong diligently placed the prepared sesame sauce in front of Gu Minglan, "I made this myself, a family secret recipe. Try it."

Gu Minglan had long since learned about Zhou Andong's thick skin. "Can you stop calling me Auntie?"

"Mom!" Zhou Andong didn't hesitate to call out, "They say a son-in-law is half a son. From now on, I'll be your own son, and I'll definitely be more filial to you than Qiuqiu."

Zhao Ping stared at Zhou Andong, dumbfounded. The thickness of this kid's skin was beyond her imagination.

Gu Minglan's face darkened instantly. Seeing Jian Qiu wanted to laugh but didn't dare, fearing her mother would fly into a rage from embarrassment.

"Mom!" Seeing Jian Qiu hurriedly changed the subject, "It's about time, I'm starving. Let's eat."

"Right, right, right!" Zhao Ping tried to smooth things over, "Let's eat, let's eat. The water is boiling, Andong, hurry up and put the meat in."