Chapter 87: Past

The next day at noon, as soon as he got off work, Gu Yan’an went straight to the small courtyard they had previously rented to find Xu Duo, not even having time to eat.

Seeing Gu Yan’an arrive, Xu Duo quickly greeted him, “Brother An, what brings you here?”

“Xiao Duo, you came back a few days before me. How are those cotton sales going now?”

“We’ve sold over three hundred catties in small, scattered amounts. Brother Kun took two tons—he shipped one ton to the black market in Jinshi and kept the other ton for retail.”

This Zhang Kun really had some skills. He had been secretly operating in the black market for several years and had never been caught once.

Moreover, many things didn’t require his personal involvement anymore; naturally, there were people willing to run errands for him.

“So, we still have over a ton left unsold, right?”

“Brother An, don’t worry. Once the weather turns cold, there will be plenty of people wanting cotton. This cotton is of excellent quality, so selling it won’t be a problem at all.”

“Alright. If you have time this afternoon, send sixty catties to my house. My grandfather is at home.”

Xu Duo was a bit curious. Why did Brother An need so much cotton? Even for gifting, that seemed excessive.

“Brother An, Brother Kun’s payment has also been received. I’ve put the money and the account book in the bag. Come inside and check the accounts. Brother Kun bought those two tons wholesale, so we charged five cents less per catty.”

“You handled it well. Once we sell the cotton early, we can go and buy another batch of red dates to sell.”

The long journey was tough, but with an investment of seven or eight thousand yuan, making a profit of two thousand yuan on a single trip was no problem. Of course, if we sold to the cotton mill, we wouldn’t make that much.

Once all the cotton is sold, I’ll return my grandfather’s capital first. Next month, I’ll go to Xinjiang and ask Luo Jianjun to help purchase another batch of red dates, so I can make another profit wave before the New Year.

By then, my net worth should have doubled, right? That way, the wealth gap between me and Momo will keep narrowing. A man without money in his pocket really feels anxious, and it’s embarrassing for a man to have less money than his partner.

As Gu Yan’an sat in the inner room counting the money, he wondered, would he really be able to marry his wife next year?

Seeing Gu Yan’an lost in thought, Xu Duo cautiously asked, “Brother An, why do you need so much cotton?”

“My partner is from out of town. When she marries me, I can’t possibly ask her to ship several quilts from Haishi, can I? I’ll prepare six dowry quilts for her, and then we can tell everyone they were prepared by her family.”

Xu Duo didn’t know what to say. When his wife married him, she only brought three quilts. Now he had three children, and the quilts at home weren’t enough. Should he also make two more quilts for his wife?

“Brother An, I’d like to buy thirty catties of cotton.”

The extra ten catties of cotton could be used to make cotton-padded jackets for the family.

“Alright, I’ll give it to you at the wholesale price. You don’t need to pay now; I’ll deduct it from your share of the profits.”

“Thank you, Brother An!”

“Alright, I’ll take this money and the account book back with me now. Remember to have someone deliver the cotton to me this afternoon.”

Sixty catties of cotton—two quilts weighing ten catties each, two quilts weighing eight catties each, and two summer quilts weighing four catties each.

Six quilts would use forty-four catties of cotton, and the remaining ten or so catties could be used to make cotton-padded jackets for the family.

When he returned home in the evening, Gu Guozhong pointed at the pile of cotton and asked, “Yan’an, why did you have someone deliver so much cotton?”

“This winter is going to be cold. I’m making new cotton-padded jackets for everyone. The rest of the cotton will be used to make six quilts for the wedding.”

“Aren’t quilts part of the dowry? If outsiders find out you’re making the quilts yourself, they’ll laugh at your partner.”

“Grandfather, you have to keep this a secret. If Momo marries me, then everything I have will naturally be hers, right? Since my things are hers, it’s perfectly normal to prepare a dowry quilt for her in advance. Her family is so far away in Haishi—would we really make her carry a quilt all the way here when she marries from afar? Mailing it wouldn’t be cheap either…”

Gu Guozhong was dizzy from his eldest grandson’s pestering. He felt what he said made sense, yet something seemed off.

Ever since this rascal came back, he couldn’t stop talking about his girlfriend. Gu Guozhong wasn’t even sure if she was truly the fairy descending to earth as his grandson claimed.

“I won’t tell your mother, don’t worry! Once you finish fluffing the quilt, store it in my bedroom for now. Before the New Year, let’s make a trip to Haishi.

You’ll turn twenty-five on New Year’s Eve, and after the New Year, you’ll be twenty-six. Whether this marriage works out or not, we need to settle it first!”

“Grandfather, this marriage must work out. Otherwise, why would I work so hard? With the savings I have, I could live comfortably alone for the rest of my life. Tomorrow, I’ll write to Momo to sound her out and see if we can go to her family to propose marriage before the New Year.”

Gu Guozhong could ignore the marriages of his other grandsons, but not this eldest one. He and his wife had raised him until he was five, so he couldn’t just stand by.

Pan Huijuan gave birth to Gu Yan’an and took care of him for over half a year before handing him over to her mother-in-law. When Gu Yan’an was seven or eight months old, Pan Huijuan became pregnant again, and Gu Yannan was born just a year and a half younger than him.

His second uncle’s son, Gu Yandong, was only half a year younger than him. His second aunt often liked to compare her son to him.

Back then, Zheng Yanhong saw her mother-in-law raising the eldest grandson, and when Gu Yandong was about to start walking, she also wanted to leave her son with the elderly couple. In the end, her father-in-law, Gu Guozhong, stopped her.

If they took on Gu Yandong, wouldn’t they also have to care for the newborn Gu Yannan? They weren’t professional babysitters.

Gu Guozhong made it clear in front of his three sons that raising grandchildren wasn’t their obligation. Each should raise their own children, and they would only ever raise Gu Yan’an as their grandson.

Everyone in the Gu family knew the elderly couple doted on Gu Yan’an. He stayed with them until he was five, only returning to the compound to live because he needed to attend school.

Having not been raised by his own mother from a young age, Gu Yan’an felt closer to his grandmother. His feelings toward his mother, Pan Huijuan, were more rational, lacking the same dependency.

Pan Huijuan felt more guilt than anything toward her eldest son. By the time she wanted to be good to him, he had already grown up and understood things.

Seeing the two younger brothers added to the family, Gu Yan’an had no desire to compete for favor.

Gu Yannan liked to cling to him, and naturally, he was fond of this second brother. As for the youngest, Gu Yanbei, who was as delicate as a girl when he was little, Gu Yan’an didn’t often play with him.

Gu Guozhong seemed lost in thought, reminiscing about something. Thinking of Gu Yan’an’s marriage, he recalled his late wife’s final wish.

If only Yan’an had gotten married two years earlier, how wonderful that would have been. His wife wouldn’t have passed away with such regret.

Gu Guozhong lowered his eyes, dejected, and said, “Yan’an, I’m already over seventy. Who knows when I might pass away? So, you should marry sooner rather than later. Don’t let me end up like your grandmother, dying with eyes wide open.”

His gaze was empty, his thoughts drifting far away, and he seemed utterly lifeless.

“Grandfather, you’re in such good health, you’ll live to a hundred. You haven’t even had tea from your grandson’s wife yet. Why talk about dying with eyes wide open?”

Once Momo and I get married, we will definitely take good care of you. I’m still counting on you to help us with the children. You know my mother has to work…”

Gu Guozhong chuckled and gave Gu Yan’an a firm pat on the shoulder. “Then it’s settled!”

Had he just been tricked by Grandfather?

…

One week later

Lan Mo received a gift box sent by the “Flower Fairy of the Immortal Realm.” Inside, besides the mulberry fruit brew she was owed, there were also two catties of Pear Blossom White and three catties of Peach Blossom Brew.

【Little sister, I specially asked the Brewing Immortal Elder for this Pear Blossom White and Peach Blossom Brew. Pretty generous of me, right?】

【Thank you!】

Lan Mo examined the small wine bottles. Were the wine bottles of Immortals always this beautiful?

【If you need anything, you can come to me. I’ll help if I can.】

Wow, that’s amazing!

【Really? Your wine pots are so beautiful. Could you give me a matching set of wine cups?】

【I don’t have extra wine cups, but I can give you a nice tea set.】

【Thank you!】

The “Flower Fairy of the Immortal Realm” truly lived up to her reputation of granting requests, generously sending Lan Mo an exquisite tea set.

Lan Mo didn’t have time to chat idly. She stored everything from the gift box in the Millennium Profound Ice Box for safekeeping.

Her Heavenly Silkworms were starting to spin silk tonight, and she needed to quickly move them all onto the silkworm beds. She was counting on this batch of Heavenly Silkworm Cocoons to unlock the Ranch.