1990s: Spring Water Family

Chapter 138: Her drinking capacity is truly remarkable, making her a heroine among women.

Grandma liked to have a few drinks during holidays and festivals. Her grandchildren, as long as they could remember, loved to lean on the edge of the table and watch her drink.

Grandma enjoyed drinking it, and occasionally she would dip her chopsticks in a little and let them lick it.

The alcohol was spicy and made the children cough.

Grandma found it amusing, and she would laugh especially heartily whenever this happened.

Lin Xiyu has the best alcohol tolerance among her grandchildren.

Her older cousins ​​had all been deliberately gotten drunk by her uncle, but she was the only one who managed to stay drunk until the end.

That year, she was only in her third year of junior high school. She drank almost a whole bottle of Erguotou (a type of Chinese liquor), which got her uncle and aunt's husband drunk and unconscious.

Grandma had specifically told her back then not to mention that she could drink alcohol when she was out.

Having a high alcohol tolerance isn't necessarily a good thing for a girl; in fact, it might be exploited by people with ulterior motives.

At this moment, her frank admission that she could drink was indeed partly an attempt to please her grandfather.

It wasn't for any other reason than not wanting Gu Bin to be put in a difficult position, caught in the middle between the two sides.

-

When Shandong people entertain guests, they emphasize filling the wine glass to the brim and leaving the teacup shallow.

Seeing that Lin Xiyu insisted, Gu Bin had no choice but to give in to her wishes and poured her a full glass.

Grandpa was in high spirits and raised his glass to drink heartily, as if he wanted to test her alcohol tolerance.

Lin Xiyu didn't stand on ceremony; she drank whenever her grandfather raised his glass, and the two of them drank back and forth until the glass was empty.

My grandfather was the type of person whose face would turn red after drinking alcohol.

After one glass of wine, his wrinkled old face turned as red as a tomato; even a monkey would have to admit defeat in comparison.

Lin Xiyu remained calm and composed, chatting and laughing without batting an eye.

The difference in their drinking capacity is immediately apparent.

"Xiaolin is impressive! Her drinking capacity is truly remarkable; she's a heroine among women."

The redder Grandpa's face became, the more enthusiastically he drank, as if he and Lin Xiyu had become fast friends through drinking and felt like old friends who had known each other for a long time: "Now that you're here to drink with Grandpa, Grandpa won't be drinking alone in solitude anymore, feeling bored and lonely."

"If you want someone to drink with you, you'd better hurry up and settle the bride price."

At this moment, Gu Bin had a new understanding of Lin Xiyu's alcohol tolerance. Taking advantage of his grandfather's drunken state, he deliberately set a trap for him.

According to the old custom in Jinan, three gold items are given as engagement gifts: a gold ring, a gold necklace, and a gold bracelet.

Grandpa, as expected, was intoxicated and slammed his hand on the table, exuding an air of dominance: "I've made the decision. Our family will give double the amount, and your grandma will pay for it. The same style, two portions."

"Hey, you're pretty good at pretending to be a good person?"

Grandma laughed in exasperation: "If you're in charge, why should I pay for it?"

"Didn't I hand over all my money?"

Grandpa wasn't confused after drinking. He shamelessly approached his wife and said, "You're the one who holds the salary card, so your money is my money too."

"Who said my money is your money?"

Grandma pushed the person away disdainfully: "Yours is yours, and mine is mine. Let's keep our own accounts. Don't try to argue with me."

"Uh."

Grandpa choked, speechless: "We've been together all our lives, is it really necessary to be so calculating?"

"It won't do if you don't keep track of everything. I've been keeping records for you."

Grandma laughed and scolded him: "Don't you know how much pension you have? You spend money recklessly and without any restraint. If it weren't for my frugality, we would have emptied our savings long ago."

Did I spend that much?

Grandpa was a little embarrassed by his wife's scolding: "It's just having a meal with a few chess friends occasionally, there's nothing else to it!"

You don't smoke?

Grandma counted on her fingers and did the math with him: "A pack of cigarettes costs 10 yuan. You smoke two packs a day, which is 600 yuan a month. Add to that drinking, eating, and daily expenses. Don't you have any idea whether your pension is enough?"

"Ugh."

Grandpa wiped his face, still stubbornly insisting, "Actually, I didn't have enough money. It's because I'm too addicted to smoking. Don't blame me."

"Is someone forcing you to smoke?"

Grandma slapped him in anger.

Gu Bin chimed in from the side, "Grandpa does smoke a lot, which is bad for his health. He should quit."

"Listen to this, even Xiao Bin is saying the same thing, isn't he?"

With her grandson's support, the grandmother felt even more confident: "Two years ago, during a checkup, the doctor said your heart and lungs weren't good, and told you to quit smoking, but you wouldn't listen. You just ruined your health and made yourself suffer."

"Ugh, what a meal."

Grandpa's face grew darker and darker as he listened: "I was in a rare good mood, and Xiaolin was keeping me company while I had a drink, but after what you all said, I've lost all my mood."

"Xiao Lin, you say it."

Grandma was getting really into it, and she wasn't about to give up easily: "Should he smoke? Isn't it bad for his health?"

Lin Xiyu: "."

You're sitting at the table when a pot falls from the sky.

Why do you two have to drag her into your arguments?!
-

"Grandpa's pension wasn't enough, but ultimately it had little to do with his smoking addiction. It was because he was a good person and didn't have any other ulterior motives."

Gu Bin reacted quickly and came to her rescue: "With his status and position, if he really wanted to get some benefits, it would be an easy thing. There are plenty of people who would fawn over him and bring gifts to his doorstep."

"Haha, did you hear that? Xiao Bin understands me best."

These words struck a chord with Grandpa, and the old man was so happy that his beard bristled and he laughed heartily.

"My wife has been honest and upright her whole life, it's true."

Grandma was also infected by Grandpa's laughter and gave up her plan to get to the bottom of it: "After being an official for so many years, anyone who meets him will praise Old Gu as a good person, and there is not a single fault in him."

"I believe."

Lin Xiyu quickly caught up with the rhythm: "Grandpa is obviously an honest official who does practical things for the people. Otherwise, he wouldn't have such a good reputation, and all the neighbors trust him."

"You're absolutely right about that."

Grandpa found it agreeable and laughed even more heartily: "I, Gu Changming, have never done anything wrong in my life. I have also repeatedly instructed my two children since they were young that they must not break the law or violate the rules."

“Especially Xiaobin’s mother, who has been strong-willed and ambitious since childhood, I have repeatedly told her that she must never make a mistake with money. One wrong step leads to another, and once she crosses that line, her life is over.”

-

"Your daughter is very ambitious."

Lin Xiyu's expression became somewhat unnatural when he mentioned Gu Bin's mother.

So far, apart from Gu Bin's father being away from home recently and not being able to meet her, the other family members have all been kind and friendly to her.

The only exception was his mother.

His mother looked down on her from the bottom of her heart, thinking that she was not good enough for her son.

Even though Gu Bin never explicitly said it, she could still discern the clues from the subtle changes in his expression.

The two families are about to meet; hopefully, no unexpected trouble will arise, and no one will suddenly interfere and ruin the meeting.

"Sigh, it's good that this child is ambitious, but he's a bit too competitive."

Grandpa, unaware of her inner thoughts, rubbed his temples with a headache when his daughter was mentioned: "She's just past the age of fragility, and I'm afraid she won't be able to handle setbacks. What if that day really comes?"

"Okay, stop talking."

Grandma's heart pounded as she listened, a sudden surge of panic rising within her: "Can't you think of anything good about your daughter? Do you have to make sure something happens to her before you're satisfied?"

"Why would I want anything to happen to her? I'm just worried about her."

Grandpa, emboldened by the alcohol, started arguing with his wife: "Don't you know her temper and personality? She's always been strong-willed, unwilling to admit defeat, and can't accept that others are better than her."

"She's so eager to improve herself, isn't it all because you forced her to?"

Grandma couldn't stand his complaints. She glared at him, displeased, and said, "If you hadn't been so sexist and looked down on her for being a girl, would she be so determined? Even if it meant holding a grudge, she'd still be more successful than her brother."

"What are you saying? It makes it sound like I pressured her again."

A hint of guilt flashed in the old man's eyes, and he tried to justify himself while drunk: "How did I force her? She's had everything she wanted since she was little. I've never wronged her. I treat her even better than her brother."

"You didn't say it, but it's written all over your face."

Grandma was still angry and hit him where it hurt: "Especially after Xiaobin was born, you insisted on taking him away from the Fu family. Do you think your daughter felt good after all this? Isn't this obviously telling people that you favor boys over girls?"

"Girls are too delicate."

The old man's face flushed red, and his imposing manner noticeably weakened.

"So what if girls are a little delicate?"

Grandma still wouldn't let her off the hook: "Little girls should be delicate and pampered as they grow up. I just love my daughter and I love spoiling her like a little princess."

"She's just spoiled by you."

Grandpa muttered to himself, still unconvinced: "She's so stubborn and has a bad temper. She always has a cold face, as if everyone owes her something."

"What's wrong with having a cold face?"

Grandma couldn't stand his excuses and got furious: "That's just how she is. Girls with a strong temper don't suffer losses, while those who are delicate and pretentious get bullied."

"With her personality, she'll suffer sooner or later."

Grandpa knew perfectly well that if it weren't for his protection, his daughter, with her sharp tongue that could offend people, would never have had such a smooth career.

Now that he's old and has heart disease, he might pass away any day.

If he really leaves, she'll have no one to protect her, and her hard times are about to begin.

-

"You just can't stand to see your daughter doing well."

Grandma had a grudge, and the more she talked, the angrier she became: "To put it bluntly, it's still about favoring boys over girls, thinking that women are inferior to men. Just by looking at how single-mindedly you've been raising Xiaobin, I can see that you've never considered that your daughter could go far in her career and carry on your legacy."

"Pah, pah, pah, old woman, I'm not dead yet!"

Grandpa couldn't stand it anymore and, fueled by alcohol, started rambling again: "Why are you bringing up your last wishes now? Are you trying to drive me crazy?"

"Listen to what that old man is saying!"

Grandma felt a surge of resentment and lost her temper.

"Stop, stop talking."

Seeing that the two elders were getting more and more argumentative, Gu Bin had no choice but to step in as a peacemaker: "You two should each say less, there's no need to take it so seriously."

Was I arguing with him?

Grandma's eyes reddened with grievance: "He's just sexist and dislikes your aunt for having three granddaughters. He doesn't give her a good look, so your uncle moved to Guangdong in a fit of anger and hasn't come back for many years."

"My eldest uncle went to Guangdong to do business."

Gu Bin gently persuaded him, "The economy in the north is not as developed as in the south. He saw a business opportunity, which is why he moved his whole family there."

"He's from Shandong, and he was unfamiliar with the area in the south."

Grandma became increasingly saddened as she thought about it, her voice trembling with tears: "If it weren't for being forced to, who would want to leave their hometown and go to such a far place to do business?"

"Isn't my uncle successful in his career?"

Gu Bin handed a tissue to his grandmother: "Through your own hard work, you've made a living doing import and export of clothing and bought a villa. Before the New Year, you even called to invite your grandfather and me to come to Guangdong and stay with them for a while."

"I'm not going to Guangdong."

Grandma wiped her eyes with a tissue, crumpled it into a ball, and threw it at Grandpa with a huff: "I can't understand the Southern dialect. If we go there, there won't be anyone to talk to. It's better to stay at home."

"I'm not going to Guangdong either."

When Grandpa saw Grandma crying, he sobered up. He took the tissue and wiped his nose to hide his frustration: "Fallen leaves return to their roots. We old bones will be buried here when we die, and that will end it all."

"He's drunk in broad daylight and talking nonsense."

Grandma couldn't stand the word "death" and started arguing with him again: "Why are you talking about death and life all the time? Don't you know that when people get old, these are the kinds of things they can't stand?"

"Okay, okay, I was wrong, alright?"

Grandpa sobered up and became timid, losing the fierceness he had shown when arguing with his wife.

Grandma persisted, "It's too late to realize your mistake now."

"Sigh, it's all my fault for having this mouth."

Grandpa, ever flexible, slapped himself in the face: "You're so careless, you start talking nonsense when you're drunk."

"Press harder."

Grandma couldn't stand his pretentious act and snorted disdainfully, "That little bit of effort, it's like swatting a mosquito, there's no sincerity at all."

"Cough cough."

Grandpa coughed awkwardly twice, and sure enough, he slapped himself twice.

"OK OK."

Gu Bin stood up from his chair, went to his grandmother's side, and gently rubbed her shoulders to soothe her emotions: "It's good that you've talked things out. For the sake of your future granddaughter-in-law, Grandma will forgive Grandpa this time and save him some face."

"Xiao Lin, you've made a fool of yourself."

Grandma's mood improved slightly, and she looked at Lin Xiyu with a hint of apology: "That's just my personality; I can't keep things to myself, I just say what's on my mind."

Lin Xiyu was thoroughly enjoying the show when she saw her grandmother looking over. She quickly suppressed her smile and forcibly hid the slightly upturned corners of her lips.

"Did you see that?"

Gu Bin blinked, pretending not to see, and covered for her, saying, "In our family, who has the higher status, right?"

"I see it."

Lin Xiyu nodded in agreement.

"Grandma's word is law."

Gu Bin deliberately tried to make his grandmother happy: "Even if the King of Heaven himself came, he would still have to listen to Grandma."

"That monkey."

Grandma was amused by him and poked his forehead: "You're talking about yourself, aren't you? You're the most lawless one in this family."

"Nothing."

Gu Bin flattered, "I'll listen to Grandma too. Even if I were Sun Wukong, I couldn't escape Grandma's palm."