1990s: Spring Water Family

Chapter 142 Gu Bin Uses a Scheme to Discover True Feelings

"It seems I guessed it right."

Wu Meng's gossipy eyes lit up.

They didn't talk.

Lin Xiyu didn't want her to make wild guesses and cause trouble for her cousin: "You absolutely must not tell anyone about this, not even your mother."

"Ok."

The little flame of gossip that Wu Meng had just lit was mercilessly extinguished.

"You should go home first."

Lin Xiyu was annoyed: "Let's talk another day."

"Row."

Seeing that she looked strange, Wu Meng didn't want to stay any longer. She pedaled hard and rode away on her bicycle.

"Ugh."

Lin Xiyu watched her walk away, pondered for a long time, and finally, still feeling uneasy, picked up the phone and sent a message to her cousin.

A moment later, my cousin's pager, which was hanging on her waist, went off. When she saw the caller ID, her expression became a little unnatural. She took an envelope from her handbag, stuffed it into the boy's hand, and without waiting for his refusal, rode off on her bicycle.

-

"Sis, did you go see that guy again?"

Lin Xiyu used this as a pretext to call her cousin back from campus, giving her no chance to argue and asking her directly.

"How do you know it?"

My cousin seemed a little guilty, her eyes darting around.

"One of my classmates saw you on the Shandong University campus."

Lin Xiyu didn't implicate Wu Meng, but made up a reason instead.

"Who is it, so obnoxious?"

My cousin grumbled irritably, "So what if you saw it? Why do you have to spread it around everywhere?"

"Sis, stop complaining."

Lin Xiyu said worriedly, "Tell me first, did you give that man money again? You work yourself to the bone every day, saving every penny, only to throw all your money into that bottomless pit. What are you trying to achieve?"

"I like him because he's successful."

My cousin muttered to herself, "He said he's confident he can pass the software engineer exam, and once he goes to Zhongguancun and makes money, he'll pay me back all the money he owes me?"

"Is that all you're after?"

Lin Xiyu didn't believe her: "No other thoughts? Don't you want to take your relationship with him to the next level?"

"Yes, I do want to."

My cousin's eyes darkened, revealing a hint of resentment: "They haven't agreed yet."

"Sister, wake up."

Lin Xiyu felt sorry for her cousin: "That guy has no sincerity at all. He treats you like an ATM. If you don't have any feelings for him and are just looking for fun to satisfy your maternal instincts, I won't say much. But look at yourself now. You're obviously caught up in it and have illusions about the relationship. I'm really worried that you won't be able to accept it if your illusions are shattered one day."

"He's focused on his studies and doesn't want to date."

My cousin made excuses for herself: "He was always alone at school, and he didn't even have a girl he could talk to. I was the only girl around him. There's a saying, 'Those who are near the water get the moon first,' so I've always been quietly caring for him and helping him, letting him see how good I am to him. When he finally realizes he wants to be in a relationship, I'll be the first person he thinks of."

"I'm truly impressed."

Lin Xiyu sighed and rubbed her forehead: "Sister, don't you understand? If that guy really cares about you, he would never act like this. I really don't want to see you keep falling into this trap and getting hurt before you finally realize it."

"I think"

My cousin muttered under her breath, a little unconvinced: "He still has some feelings for me, otherwise why would he ignore all the other girls and insist on letting me get close to him?"

That's because you gave him money.

Lin Xiyu punctured her illusions incisively: "He wants your money, but he doesn't want to invest his feelings or make any promises to you. This kind of person is a scumbag who deceives your feelings."

"Xu Rui is not that kind of person."

My cousin instinctively defended the boy: "He's just short of money and has a heavy family burden. He doesn't want to burden me, that's why he doesn't want to date me."

"If he doesn't want to date you, he shouldn't take your money."

Lin Xiyu pressed him coldly, "Tell me the truth, how much money did you give him this time?"

No, not much.

My cousin looked away guiltily, not daring to meet her gaze.

"How much is not much?"

Lin Xiyu wouldn't give up: "Hurry up and tell me, don't keep me waiting. If you don't tell me, I'll tell Auntie."

"No, no, please don't tell my mom."

My cousin couldn't resist her urging and after hesitating for a long time, she finally told the truth.

"two thousand?!"

Upon hearing the amount, Lin Xiyu exclaimed in shock, "You're really generous! You just threw away two thousand yuan like that?"

“His grandmother is sick and needs a lot of money, so we’ll help out as much as we can.”

My cousin laughed awkwardly: "Besides, I'm about to be promoted to assistant store manager, and my salary will increase. Two thousand is nothing; I'll earn it back in a month or two."

"What do you mean by saying two thousand is nothing?"

Lin Xiyu was speechless: "Didn't you want to buy a shop? You borrowed money from the company, used your salary to pay off the debt, and after deductions, there's hardly anything left."

"You'll get a raise if you're promoted to assistant store manager."

My cousin sounded a little guilty: "After paying back the money for the shop, we should still have some left."

Did you tell him about the promotion?

Lin Xiyu's feelings at this moment can no longer be described as speechless.

"I earned this through my own hard work, of course I should tell him."

My cousin's thinking was clearly on a different wavelength: "I also need to let him know that although I'm not good at studying, I also have my strengths. At the very least, my ability to make money is definitely not inferior to anyone else's."

"Just wait."

Lin Xiyu gave her cousin a hopeless look: "He knows that now that you're the assistant store manager, your appetite will only grow bigger, and you'll have to shoulder all the expenses for his family."

"Hey, hey."

My cousin touched her nose and chuckled awkwardly, which was taken as tacit agreement.

"Besides medical expenses, what other money have you paid for him?"

Lin Xiyu's heart skipped a beat, and a bad premonition welled up inside her again.

"It's not easy to pass the software engineer exam."

My cousin rubbed her hands together and stammered, "The necessary textbooks, computer training fees, and everything else are quite expensive."

"Oh my God!"

Lin Xiyu slapped her forehead, too angry to speak.

"Xi Yu, my dear sister."

My cousin gave a wry smile: "Please, please don't tell my mom about this."

"It's okay if you don't tell your aunt."

Lin Xiyu changed the subject, saying, "But this time, I can't stand idly by and watch you fall into this trap and be deceived."

"What do you want to do?"

My cousin's heart skipped a beat; she felt a little nervous.

I won't do anything to him.

Lin Xiyu didn't want to confront her cousin directly, so she came up with a compromise: "Didn't you say he wanted to take the software engineer exam? Gu Bin and Wang Fan run an internet cafe with computers readily available. He can use them anytime he wants. I'll talk to Gu Bin, and it should be fine."

"That would be great."

My cousin's eyes lit up, a look of delight on her face: "That way he won't have to beg to borrow other classmates' computers anymore." "You talk to him," she said.

Lin Xiyu had her own plans: "Whenever we go to the internet cafe, I'll have Gu Bin wait for him there."

"Okay, I'll go tell him right away."

Without a second thought, my cousin rushed out the door.

Lin Xiyu watched her head towards the new campus of Shandong University, a glint of light flashing in her eyes, and smiled meaningfully.

-

No. 1 Middle School, Internet cafe.

Gu Bin received a call from Lin Xiyu and rushed over from home, waiting for her at the internet cafe.

My cousin was single-mindedly thinking about that boy, and sure enough, she brought him over before dark that afternoon.

After his cousin left, Gu Bin began to implement his plan.

The boy's name is Xu Rui, and he is one year ahead of him, studying in the Computer Science Department of Shandong University.

Gu Bin was also interested in computer applications, and under the guise of asking for advice, he deliberately tried to get close to him.

Xu Rui was unaware of the scheme. With a junior student who was both academically excellent and well-behaved deliberately flattering him, he couldn't help but feel a little smug.

Taking advantage of their pleasant conversation, Gu Bin invited him to dinner.

Wang Fan was a shrewd person; he saw through Gu Bin's deliberate actions and happily joined in.

The two of them sang in unison and got Xu Rui drunk.

After drinking, Xu Rui revealed his true intentions for wanting to go to Beijing.

He had a girl he liked for a long time. She moved to Beijing with her parents when she was in junior high school and was admitted to Beijing National University in the same year as him.

The two corresponded privately.

The girl encouraged him to take the software engineer exam and then go to Beijing to work after graduation.

Xu Rui's family was in dire straits and couldn't afford a computer, so he came up with the idea of ​​asking his cousin to sponsor his exams.

He got drunk and cried at the dinner table, venting the resentment that had been building up in his heart.

His cousin always made him feel humiliated whenever she gave him money.

Every time his cousin visited him at home, seeing the dire state of his home made him feel ashamed.

He believed that deliberately flattering his cousin was a betrayal of his self-respect, and that deep down he harbored an unspeakable resentment towards her.

He felt that she disregarded his feelings, repeatedly reopening his wounds, forcing him to humble himself before a woman he didn't like.

Gu Bin came prepared, recording his entire story, capturing every word of his sobbing.

-

"Damn, there are actually people like this? They're even worse than me."

Wang Fan was disgusted by his behavior and complained indignantly: "Young Master is a scumbag on the surface, he'll be with you if we get along, and break up if we don't. He's a scumbag in the flesh, he looks respectable on the surface, but he's actually full of bad intentions."

"My cousin should wake up now."

Gu Bin tossed the tape recorder to him and gave him his task: "It's more appropriate for you to tell her about this. She's your employee, and as the boss, you have an obligation to care about your employees and do a good job of their thinking."

"Wow, you're really something else!"

Wang Fan was utterly speechless: "You're not going to take care of your own sister-in-law, and you're just dumping her on me?"

"I have other things to do."

Gu Bin pointed to the person slumped on the table, completely drunk and unconscious: "This guy may be a scumbag, but he's still somewhat useful."

"he?"

Wang Fan scoffed: "What use is someone who lives off women and can't even support himself?"

“We’re going to Shanghai soon. The internet cafe can’t function without Uncle Ping’s help.”

Gu Bin, with his meticulous mind, came up with a solution in an instant: "I had already planned to poach a computer science student from Shandong University. Since we already have one, there's no need to bother with that."

"You want to use him?"

Wang Fan glanced at Xu Rui suspiciously: "Is this guy any good? I don't like men with bad character."

"Uncle Ping is in charge of the accounts. Just ask him to run errands, like fixing a computer at the cultural market. There's nothing he can't do."

Gu Bin tapped his fingers lightly on the table, as if tapping on one's heart: "As for his character, without his cousin's financial support and with us holding leverage over him, he wouldn't dare disobey."

"You can do it."

Wang Fan gave a thumbs up, expressing his sincere admiration.

When it comes to being cunning and shameless, he admires no one but the man in front of him.

The skill in controlling people's hearts and the depth of their scheming are terrifying to even think about.

-

My cousin took someone to an internet cafe, hoping to improve their relationship, but instead she received terrible news.

The recording of Xu Rui while he was drunk was like a heavy blow to her heart.

She couldn't understand why some people would be two-faced, having two different personalities.

He could be so cold and heartless to someone who treated him with genuine sincerity.

-

The next morning, by the moat, my cousin cried her eyes out, recounting her grievances and heartache.

“When I first started working at the soy sauce factory, I began helping him in my first month of receiving my salary. I didn’t want to eat or spend money on myself; I was wholeheartedly devoted to doing what was best for him.”

“You can develop feelings for a dog after raising it for a year, but I never expected it to be so heartless. Not only does it not remember the good things I did for it, it also thinks I was arrogant and that I humiliated it.”

"You might as well raise a dog; he's an ungrateful wretch who can't be tamed."

Wang Fan had no choice but to be forced by Gu Bin to accompany her and listen to her nagging.

He became increasingly annoyed and gradually lost patience.

"I also want to have a dog, but my mom won't let me."

Upon hearing this, my cousin cried even harder.

"What's wrong with having a dog?"

Wang Fan rubbed his ears, speechless: "Why won't your mom let you raise it?"

My mom said she has no money.

My cousin burst into tears, feeling wronged: "You said you'd support me, but you can't even support me, let alone a dog!"

"It's just a dog, how much money could it cost?"

Wang Fan seized the opportunity to pull the person up from the ground: "Alright, stop crying. If you want to keep a dog, then keep one. I'll take you to the pet market right now and buy you a dog."

"Are you really going to buy it?"

My cousin was so surprised by how quickly he moved that she forgot to cry.

"Absolutely."

Eager to escape, Wang Fan kept urging, "A dog can heal your heartbreak and restore the energy of our company's core business. It's such a damn good deal!"

What kinds of dogs can you buy at the pet market?

His words moved his cousin, and she hastily wiped away her tears and stopped crying.

"I don't know either, we'll see when we get there."

Wang Fan pulled the person onto the motorcycle and handed her a helmet.

"I want to raise a Pekingese."

My cousin put on her helmet, her expectant whispers drowned out by the roar of the motorcycle.

-

Wang Fan took his cousin to the pet market and indeed bought a Pekingese puppy.

The puppy is only three months old and has just been weaned. It came to its new environment and wasn't shy at all. It toddled around the office with its short legs, and it was incredibly cute.