Chapter 270: Chapter 182: Wherever Mom and Dad Are, That’s Home! Helping Mom Pays Off! [Seeking Monthly Ticket]
First place on the Yanjing Region’s hot search list? Does it think that highly of me? Last time, breaking into the top ten was already quite difficult. The day after making it to the top ten, I was overtaken again. Now I’m firmly in thirteenth place on the Yanjing Region’s overall hot search list, several million popularity points behind first place. Catching up will be much harder than it was to squeeze into the top ten last time. The system really knows how to torment people, doesn’t it? It’s only been a few days of rest, and here comes a task like this. If I’d known, I wouldn’t have brought up the hot search with Mom. Luckily, this task has a three-month timeframe, so there’s no rush to complete it.
"Why did you bring Dundun? With so many people here, what if he gets scared?"
Chen Meijuan took two steps forward and reached out to Dundun. The little fellow immediately straightened up, frantically stretching his front paws toward her. Clearly, he wanted Grandma to hold him.
Standing nearby, Lin Hongqi remarked in surprise, "Hey, this cat is just like a little kid!"
Lin Xu had also come back to his senses by now. He hurriedly handed Dundun over while taking the suitcase from his mom’s hand. This isn’t the place to chat, he thought, leading his parents toward the parking lot.
On their way to the parking lot, Lin Xu and his dad, Lin Hongqi, discussed recent events. Lin Xu also mentioned investing in a pan-fried bun shop. Lin Hongqi listened intently, occasionally asking a few business-related questions. Before founding the Longqi Mountain Scenic Area, he had been a minor official in the Commerce Bureau, so he had some understanding of business. If he hadn’t, he wouldn’t have resigned to start a scenic area. Listening to his son’s explanations, he felt that investing in the pan-fried bun shop was a good idea. An investment of tens of thousands of yuan wasn’t much to lose. However, the potential earnings were boundless, as such small shops are easy to manage, whether directly operated or franchised.
Lin Xu hadn’t thought that far ahead; he just wanted to complete the task and, incidentally, help out Wang Ziqiang, since his skills in making pan-fried buns were learned from him.
The father and son walked and chatted. Chen Meijuan walked behind, holding Dundun. Looking at Lin Xu, who was now a few centimeters taller than Lin Hongqi, she suddenly felt a surge of emotion. My son has finally grown up. That little boy from the past, that somewhat shy little guy... In the blink of an eye, he’s become an adult running a restaurant in Beijing.
When they arrived at the car, Lin Hongqi looked at the robust lines of the Mercedes G63, his eyes full of doubt. "Is this your car?" he asked. Did we come to the wrong place? This car must cost several million. Is it really his son’s?
"Yueyue’s dad was worried people might look down on me working at the Fishing Platform, so he specifically loaned it to me. I’ll return it once I stop working there."
Although driving my father-in-law’s car is thrilling, especially the strong sense of acceleration, the fuel consumption is too high, Lin Xu thought. Even though I’m not short on money now, I still feel that filling it up with 98-octane fuel would break the bank. In the future, I’ll have to consider the economic cost when buying a car. After all, I haven’t bought a house or anything yet. I need to save money wherever possible.
After Chen Meijuan’s last visit, Lin Hongqi already knew that his son’s in-laws were very pleased with him and frequently visited the restaurant. But he never imagined that these in-laws, whom he had never met, would be so good to his son. It’s as if he were their own son, isn’t it?
"Get in the car. I’ll put your luggage in the trunk."
Lin Xu placed his mom’s suitcase in the trunk, then also stored his dad’s carry-on bag and both of their backpacks. Once everything was stowed, the family got into the car. Chen Meijuan sat in the back seat, holding Dundun. Lin Hongqi sat in the passenger seat, and Lin Xu drove out of the parking lot. He first turned onto the West Third Ring Road, then headed straight for Yingchun Street on the North Fourth Ring Road.
"You haven’t eaten yet, have you?" Lin Xu asked. "We have beef and other things prepared at home. I’ll cook something for you when we get there. Yueyue gets off work at 4:30 PM; she’ll come over to see you both then."
Upon hearing this, Lin Hongqi immediately turned to Chen Meijuan and asked, "Should we withdraw some cash? When we meet our daughter-in-law for the first time, we should at least give her a red envelope. Even though this is Beijing, we can’t abandon our hometown’s customs."
In the Central Plains, it’s customary for parents-in-law to give a red envelope when they meet their daughter-in-law for the first time. Now that their daughter-in-law was coming over after work, it was only appropriate to give her one.
"The red envelope is ready," Chen Meijuan said. "Just make sure you don’t drink too much this time in Beijing. I’ll take care of everything else."
After her response, she continued playing with Dundun. Meanwhile, Lin Xu kept driving. Let Dad give Yueyue the red envelope if he wants to, he thought. After all, my father-in-law gave me one too. Though my father-in-law didn’t give cash, but rather a stack of property deeds for shops.
When they arrived at Yingchun Street, Lin Xu pointed to Lin Ji’s Food, which was under renovation. "This is the new restaurant," he said. "It will probably take some more time before it’s fully renovated."
Lin Hongqi took a look. My son is becoming more and more impressive, he thought. The small diner he started only a month ago has already expanded into a three-story restaurant. In the future, as it develops, the business will probably reach even greater heights, won’t it?
The car turned into the residential complex and stopped in a parking spot downstairs. Lin Xu got out, and together with Lin Hongqi, they carried the luggage from the trunk and took the elevator upstairs. The air conditioning in the apartment hadn’t been turned off, so the cool air inside was refreshing as they entered. After Chen Meijuan came in with Dundun, she put her handbag in her room, changed into comfortable clothes, and immediately began tidying up the apartment. My daughter-in-law will be here this afternoon; the apartment can’t be messy!
While she was busy, Lin Hongqi picked up a cat toy from the coffee table, trying to bond with the little fellow. He was just like those grandfathers meeting their grandsons for the first time.