Chapter 407

Although only four people were eating, the old lady had prepared a full table of dishes—after all, she didn't have to cook herself.

"My cook is from Shunde; I'm not sure if the food suits your tastes," said Old Lady Wei.

Wei Ming: "I'm a food lover—I've tried so many cuisines, and Cantonese, especially Shunde food, really leaves an impression."

The old lady nodded: "Hebei cuisine isn't fit for a proper table—barely better than Shanxi's. I left home long ago; I've long forgotten the flavors of my hometown, except for Hengzhou liquor. I always find ways to get some Lao Bai Gan to drink, but my body's no longer strong. The doctors and nurses won't let me drink much, so I only have this one small cup—drink the rest yourselves."

"If I'd known you liked it, I'd have brought some aged brew from home—my father and the factory manager of Hengzhou Lao Bai Gan are sworn brothers."

Of course, the reason they were sworn brothers was because of Wei Ming, the famous man.

"Then it's settled—next time bring more. I drink one small cup daily; that adds up to quite a bit in a year," the old lady said happily.

Wei Lingling couldn't help speaking up: "How can you drink one cup every day? I remember it was only occasional—how can you drink it daily?"

"Don't you worry about it—I'm over seventy. Can't I enjoy myself a little?" the old lady insisted.

Seeing her aunt glare at her, Wei Ming quickly grabbed some food and pretended to be dead—I didn't know.

After eating a few bites, he resumed chatting with the old lady: "Auntie, you went to Huangpu Military Academy with Grandpa, right? That's how you got used to Cantonese food?"

"Yes, I was just a teenager when I followed my older brother south to Guangzhou to stay with relatives, then accompanied him as he got into Huangpu," Wei Lindi said, putting down her chopsticks. "If I hadn't chosen Huangpu, maybe everything would've been different."

"Back then, my grandfather was still young, right?"

"Young—my father had already passed away, and my younger brother was too small, so Mother stayed behind to care for him and the family business. But my older brother rose quickly; after the July 7 Incident, he brought them to Shanghai. By then I'd already married in Shanghai and took my brother along. Who could've guessed he was so young and already secretly involved with the Reds?"

At this, the old lady's expression grew colder; she clearly held deep hostility toward the CCP.

Wei Ming knew a little—he'd heard from Wei Lingling that there was a deep rift between Auntie and Old Ghost, causing them to barely speak—more precisely, Auntie could never forgive Old Ghost.

Wei Ming had come not just to reconnect with relatives, but also to help reconcile the two elders—but the old lady stopped here, saying no more.

At that moment, the tricolor cat wandered into the dining room on its own, and a servant immediately brought it a plate of raw meat—it ate with great relish.

The old lady set down her chopsticks and asked where it had been playing. The cat, mouth full of meat, still lifted its head and meowed twice, as if truly able to converse.

Wei Ming understood—this cat was essentially her only family here. Though this old lady possessed wealth far beyond ordinary people, she was utterly alone.

Wei Lingling had said she once had a daughter, whom she adored deeply—but she had passed away.

Wei Ming shifted the topic back to the cat: "I also have a cat at home—a black-and-white cow cat. It's especially mischievous."

"That's the prototype of 'Black Cat Detective,' isn't it?"

Wei Ming stared at Melinda in surprise: "It's already been translated and published?"

Melinda: "The first story was translated and turned into a picture book. Sales have been decent—though not as big as 'The Lion King' or 'The Brave's Game,' your personal royalty share hit a new high. They've just deposited money into your domestic account."

"You transfer money too often—I haven't paid much attention to what it's for."

After all, any foreign currency deposited into his domestic account belonged to the state; Wei Ming didn't care much—he just needed to be able to exchange it for foreign exchange coupons when needed.

Wei Lingling said: "After dinner, ask Gong Biyang to bring you a copy to look at."

"I'm genuinely curious what Black Cat Detective looks like," Wei Ming smiled.

The old lady called over her staff, and after dinner, they found Wei Ming's new English picture book displayed in the living room.

Although the original wasn't well-suited for Western readers, because he was already famous and the hottest contemporary children's author, the publisher worked hard to localize it.

In the picture book, Black Cat Detective was pure black, wearing a suit, a top hat, and holding a cane—mysterious and dangerous. The art style was completely different from Black Cat Chief, and it even had a tail.

But the stories still taught children natural science facts by having the detective solve animal cases—educational and entertaining, sparking curiosity about nature.

As Wei Ming flipped through the book, the old lady had her staff prepare two rooms for them to stay overnight.

"I take a nap every day—it's time. Lingling, you entertain them."

After Auntie left, Wei Ming chuckled: "The old lady's really open-minded—she's letting me and Melinda share a room!"

Wei Lingling: "Those two rooms are for you two. I have my own fixed room."

Wei Ming realized—his aunt had lived in San Francisco for so long that Auntie must have treated her like a daughter.

Wei Ming looked at the vast estate: "She probably really wants you to come back and keep her company."

Wei Lingling: "I'm not comfortable leaving her alone. Once the Hong Kong toy factory is stable and I find a reliable manager, I'll return to the U. . to develop my business—the American toy market is much bigger than Hong Kong and Taiwan."

Melinda smiled: "Then I'll be in Britain, you in America—we'll form an Anglo-American alliance."

Wei Lingling chuckled: "And then work for this Chinese guy and help him make money, right?"

Clearly, she didn't value the 5% stake in DreamWorks inherited from her uncle—her real focus was the toy factory she inherited from her elder brother.

"Auntie, show us around, and tell me more about Auntie's story."

Wei Lingling: "Didn't your grandfather tell you already?"

"No—he only gave me vague details. Even Auntie's married family name, I only learned when I took over Jueyuan. The character Jiang Lihua in 'The Right Path of Humanity Is Vast Change' was mostly my own imagination and fabrication."

Wei Lingling: "You fabricated it pretty accurately."

"Huh?" Accurate how?

"Nothing. Come here—I'll show you the study."

The study held not just books but also a photo wall; through these photos, Wei Lingling quickly helped Wei Ming understand Auntie's family.

First was a huge black-and-white group photo.

"Can you find Auntie in it?" Wei Lingling tested him.

This must be the Shi family's family portrait. Wei Ming and Melinda searched together—he first checked the date in the lower right corner: taken in 1950. Auntie would've been in her early forties then.

"This one?"

Wei Ming quickly spotted her—she was standing in the center of the second row, holding a middle-aged man's arm, with a teenage girl beside her.