Chapter 153

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Protagonist:

Lin Xiyu

"Grandfather, don't be angry."

Guben glanced at the two siblings as if he didn't care, smiling to smooth things over: "Gu Lan and Gu Hui are biological siblings, they've been roughhousing since childhood, no malice intended. Hearing them mention pork and cabbage reminded me of a home-style dish from old Jinan: braised pork and cabbage with vermicelli."

"Braised pork and cabbage with vermicelli is delicious, I like eating it too......"

Lin Xiyu cooperated with him seamlessly, enthusiastically backing him up: "My grandmother is from Shanxi, she likes to add some vinegar and chili, making the broth hot and sour, and adding radish balls when it comes out of the pot. That taste, needless to say, is delicious."

"You're talking about hot and sour soup, right?"

Grandfather was well-read and had tasted similar delicacies before.

"Right."

Lin Xiyu nodded with a smile: "That's what my grandmother said, this soup is called hot and sour soup."

"Hot and sour soup is a flavor from the Sichuan-Chongqing area, right?"

Grandfather laughed heartily, deliberately backing up his granddaughter-in-law.

"Not just Sichuan-Chongqing......"

Grandfather and he played off each other: "I've also drunk it in the Henan area."

"I want to drink hot and sour soup too."

Grandfather laughed again: "Another day, Xiyu will come to our house and make us an authentic hot and sour soup to try."

"Deal."

Lin Xiyu readily agreed: "Grandfather wants to drink it, anytime is fine."

"Aren't you going to Shanghai tomorrow?"

Grandfather had his cravings stirred up by her words, urgently wanting to try it: "Better to choose a day than to hit the day, let's do it tonight."

"Okay......"

Lin Xiyu had just said one "okay" when she was interrupted by a discordant voice.

"Don't rush to agree yet, the wine hasn't been drunk yet."

Gu Lan's eyes showed provocation: "After drinking wine, whether you can go back sober to make hot and sour soup is uncertain."

"Hearing your tone, you seem displeased, want to provoke?"

Guben was dissatisfied with his attitude, backing up his wife, deliberately provoking him: "Want to make a bet? At today's noon drinking session, the one who gets drunk will definitely be you."

"Tsk, bet then."

Gu Lan indeed took the bait, looking down on it: "I don't believe it, our three brothers' drinking capacity can't match her alone."

"Don't be displeased."

Guben continued black-belliedly: "I think your physiognomy isn't good today, you're offending the Grand Duke of Jupiter, no need to calculate, one can predict you'll lose miserably."

"Gu Lan, I think we should forget it."

Gu Feng's most taboo person was Guben; seeing him deliberately set a trap for Gu Lan, he felt a bit scared in his heart.

"Bet, must bet."

Gu Lan didn't believe in evil, slapped the table with overbearing flair.

"Brother Peng, persuade him."

Gu Feng anxiously kept making eyes at Gu Peng: "He's asking for trouble himself, don't drag us down."

"Do you think he's someone who listens to advice?"

Gu Peng watched coldly from beginning to end, as if it had nothing to do with him.

"Sigh."

Gu Feng helplessly retorted: "Coming to Jinan with this guy, damn unlucky."

"Bet on what?"

Guben pretended not to see the two brothers' secret little moves, a cold smile curling at the corner of his mouth.

"Bet on this watch."

Gu Lan took off his diamond-encrusted Rolex watch from his wrist and tossed it onto the table quite nonchalantly.

"How much is this watch?"

Wang Fan's eyes lit up, he cheerfully came over and reached out to pick up the watch.

"Not expensive."

Gu Lan deliberately showed off: "Just twenty-some thousand yuan."

"Hiss......"

Wang Fan pretended not to recognize it, sucking in a breath: "So expensive, and someone actually takes it out to bet, really damn extravagant."

"Hmph."

Gu Lan sneered: "What's twenty thousand? Only you country bumpkins who haven't seen the world would make such a fuss."

"Study Committee Member, he looks down on us."

Wang Fan smiled instead of getting angry, deliberately stirring things up: "If we win him, this watch is mine."

Li Liang couldn't bear to watch: "People are betting, why should the watch be yours?"

"You don't understand this."

Wang Fan chuckled, deliberately goading Gu Lan: "Guben is such a proud person, how could he wear a watch someone else has worn? The Study Committee Member is female, doesn't wear men's styles, throwing it away would be such a pity. Better to let me take it to give as a gift, I can earn a favor too."

Gu Lan was furious: "You're so sure she'll win?"

"You're definitely going to lose."

Wang Fan rudely stuffed the bill into his own pocket, then stabbed him in the heart: "Fortunately you're not that stupid, you didn't bet with clothes, otherwise you'd definitely lose even your underpants."

"Pfft."

Gu Hui couldn't hold back, spraying out a mouthful of tea.

—

Lin Xiyu's drinking capacity was beyond question; though not exactly able to drink a thousand cups without getting drunk, downing a bottle or two of 52-proof baijiu was still fine.

The four Gu siblings joined forces to drink with her, and after a few cups they were all stunned with their mouths agape by her domineering way of downing drinks in one gulp.

"Xiyu truly deserves to be the great sister-in-law from Shandong, a heroine among women—I won't compete anymore, I admit defeat..."

Gu Hui admitted defeat first and withdrew from the bet.

"I can't do it anymore, my stomach feels uncomfortable, I'm going to the toilet."

Gu Peng didn't want to participate in this boring game anyway, and when he reached the fifth cup he used the excuse of urinating to leave the table.

"This time you really killed me, Brother did his best, I can't drink anymore, if I drink again I'll vomit."

Gu Feng was the most tactful; out of brotherly loyalty he drank with Gu Lan until the eighth cup, then pretended to vomit and sneaked into the restroom, never coming back.

"Still want to continue?"

Seeing Gu Lan's fair face turn bright red, Lin Xiyu didn't want to provoke him anymore and put down her cup.

"Brother isn't drunk, keep drinking."

Gu Lan cared too much about face, gritting his teeth and refusing to admit defeat.

Lin Xiyu raised the eleventh cup and downed it in one breath, draining it completely.

"Good!"

The bet between the two sides attracted many onlookers, and the crowd of melon-eating spectators cheered loudly, shouting their approval.

"Hehe, this granddaughter-in-law of mine is not bad."

Fu Yeye enjoyed the spectacle immensely, pushing his wheelchair himself to the in-laws' table to cheer for his granddaughter-in-law: "This drinking capacity, this boldness—it has a bit of my style from when I was young."

"It's our Gu family's business, what are you meddling in?"

Grandfather Gu saw it was him and snorted from his nose, showing some displeasure."

"Xiao Lin, Grandfather supports you."

Fu Yeye ignored him, rolled up his sleeves with domineering flair: "Today's drinks, Grandfather will cover them all, and get everyone from the Gu family drunk under the table."

Grandfather Gu's mouth twitched; not wanting to be laughed at by outsiders, he endured and didn't chase them away.

"Grandfather supports me, I must win."

Lin Xiyu gave Fu Yeye a sweet smile, then raised another cup and downed it in one breath.

"Good."

The banquet hall erupted in cheers, more and more people drawn by the bet, gathering from all directions.

Gu Lan was caught in a dilemma, gritting his teeth to drink a few more cups before collapsing face-first onto the table.

—

With this little drinking-bet interlude, the wedding feast was especially lively.

The guests who came to congratulate watched with great interest, and even after the banquet ended they were still unsatisfied, surrounding both families' relatives to chat and laugh, unwilling to leave for a long time.

Beautiful gatherings are always short; the engagement banquet ended, and relatives from all over the country had to part ways again.

Guben and Lin Xiyu stood at the doorway to see them off, waving goodbye.

Qu Peng couldn't leave; the other two childhood friends forcibly dragged him to a secluded corner.

"Brother, I'll give you a piece of advice: you and Gu Hui aren't suitable."

Wang Fan was unusually serious, frowning: "I've already looked into it. Leaving aside her family's conditions, just consider her herself—national biology Olympiad champion, admitted to Tsinghua University's Young Students Class at 13 through special recruitment, graduated with a bachelor's degree at 15, pursuing a master's and doctorate consecutively at 16. With such a glorious record, the Gu family's carefully cultivated genius girl—do you think you can catch up to her?"

"And from what I see, her attitude toward you is take it or leave it. Her brother mocked you so much; if it were someone else, they'd have turned against their siblings long ago. She only said someone was 'arched by a pig,' with no intention of standing up for you at all. Such coldness shows only one thing: she doesn't care about you, or in her heart she thinks she's excellent, while you're just a brainless pig."

"What Wang Fan said, though a bit crude, is still reasonable."

Li Liang also advised earnestly: "I also think Gu Hui isn't a good match for you. Don't put too much energy into her—don't pin all your hopes on one tree."

"I'm telling you, you two have really had enough."

Qu Peng nearly vomited blood from retching: "I said I have nothing to do with her, but you insist I admit it, and after I admit it you insist I give up. Is there anyone who thinks of their brother like you do?"

"We weren't..."

Li Liang felt a bit embarrassed: "We didn't know beforehand that Gu Hui's IQ was so high. She and you are not on the same level at all. Even if you really got together, she'd crush you, and you'd never recover in your lifetime."

"Actually, she's just good at studying..."

Qu Peng had more contact with Gu Hui and had his own views: "She's still quite simple. There's an essential difference between her and Guben, whose IQ is terrifyingly high and who can manipulate people's hearts."

"They both have the surname Gu..."

Wang Fan kindly reminded: "Don't underestimate blood relationship. Their IQs both inherited the Gu family's genes. Look at the older generation of the Gu family—each one more impressive than the last. Their descendants aren't far behind either."

"That's reasonable."

Li Liang agreed wholeheartedly: "Dragons beget dragons, phoenixes beget phoenixes, and a mouse's son knows how to dig holes. Some people's behavior is instinctive. They are cousins, so there must be similarities."

"I think you two are overthinking it."

Qu Peng helplessly rubbed his forehead: "A genius girl is still human. From my observation, she's not only not arrogant because of her talent, but her personality is also a bit reclusive. She always likes to stay alone quietly and doesn't like interacting with outsiders. That's why Grandfather Liu cares for her especially, often letting her come to his place to play chess and chat with him. It's also because of this that I had the chance to interact with her, causing Gu Lan to misunderstand."

"It's not just a simple misunderstanding, is it?"

Wang Fan asked pointedly: "Her parents both know and have let word out that unless it's a master's-doctorate continuous program, it's not acceptable. Isn't that targeting you?"

"Targeting me, so be it."

Qu Peng didn't care: "I'm not insisting on marrying her daughter. After going to university, there are plenty of female classmates with good family backgrounds, good temperaments, gentle and virtuous. With my charm, I can still find a girlfriend."

"Tsk..."

Wang Fan couldn't stand his boasting, smiling as he poked fun at him: "Go ahead and boast, how many gentle and virtuous women can there be at Public Security University? They're all violent-tempered female maniacs."

"There's that possibility..."

Li Liang agreed wholeheartedly.

"I'm going..."

Qu Peng laughed in anger: "You two just can't stand to see me doing well, right?"

"We're kindly reminding you."

Wang Fan smiled black-belliedly and dealt him another critical hit: "Once you go to BJ, don't show off so much, don't forget your roots—don't you even know your own weight? You talk as if the girls at Public Security University are yours for the picking, you think everyone is as foolish as Wu Meng? Letting you boss them around and play with them?"

"Cough, cough."

Mentioning Wu Meng, Qu Peng and Li Liang's expressions changed simultaneously.

"It's been so long, I've forgotten all about it, why bring this up again?"

Qu Peng, fearing Li Liang would hold a grudge, hurriedly distanced himself: "Besides, I just treat her as my younger sister, no other thoughts."

"Hey, you're quite good at gilding your own face?"

How would Wang Fan let him off easily, continuing black-belliedly: "You treat Wu Meng as your younger sister, wouldn't Li Liang have to call you elder brother-in-law? You want to rope in relatives, have you asked if anyone agrees?"

"Disagree."

Li Liang hadn't even spoken yet when a clear female voice came from behind, interrupting the three men's conversation.

"Yo..."

Wang Fan turned to look, amused: "What a coincidence, speak of Cao Cao and Cao Cao arrives, the main person is here."

"Cough, cough."

Qu Peng saw Wu Meng glaring at him displeasedly, and coughed awkwardly twice.

"You and Li Liang are childhood friends..."

Wu Meng glanced at the troublemaker Wang Fan, saying something astonishing: "He's older than you, you should call me sister-in-law."

"Pfft."

Wang Fan couldn't hold back and sprayed with laughter.

The corner of Li Liang's mouth curved slightly, and he also revealed a comfortable smile.

"Cough, cough."

Qu Peng's handsome face turned red, and he coughed even more severely.

"What are you laughing at? So happy..."

Guben and Lin Xiyu had sent off the guests and returned, just catching the excitement.

"Wu Meng told Qu Peng to call her sister-in-law."

Wang Fan enjoyed the show and didn't mind a big fuss, making a ruckus nonstop.

Guben didn't think there was anything wrong: "Li Liang's birthday is three months earlier than Qu Peng's, so he should call her sister-in-law."

"Younger sister becomes sister-in-law..."

Wang Fan kept chuckling to himself: "Qu Peng has suffered a big loss."

"Who is his younger sister?"

Wu Meng glared at Wang Fan displeasedly.

"Why are you glaring at me?"

Wang Fan was addicted to harming others, continuing to cause trouble for Qu Peng: "It's not like I want to recognize you as my younger sister, things like 'emotional brother, emotional younger sister' are the most likely to cause trouble, I don't have that kind of courage, getting entangled with someone else's fiancée."

"You can shut up."

Qu Peng really couldn't listen anymore, taking advantage of his carelessness, he grabbed his neck.

Wang Fan was choked until his face and neck were red, unable to move.

"Qu Peng, you're being no fun."

Guben, for once, stood on the same side as Wang Fan, speaking up for him: "We're all brothers, it's just a joke, you take it seriously?"

"This kid is too good at stirring up trouble."

Qu Peng, constrained by Guben's presence, didn't really want to argue with Wang Fan, and embarrassedly let go of his hand.

"Cough, cough, cough, cough..."

Wang Fan's breathing was disordered, complaining in a bad mood: "You kid are playing dirty, do you really want to choke me to death?"

"Who made you have a cheap mouth."

Qu Peng's handsome face was black as the bottom of a pot.

"No, this matter can't just be let go like that."

Wang Fan refused to give in: "Unless you treat us tonight, treat us all to a big meal, otherwise this matter isn't over."