Back To The 80s-Chapter 449 - 459: Forgive_1

Zhao Honghe accepted the hundred yuan from Yang Tianhua and promptly resolved the matter. He called Ou Tiannan directly, asked when Ou Ruoshui would be back, and mentioned that he had found some leads on the matter Ou Ruoshui was interested in. When Ou Tiannan asked for specifics, he pretended he couldn’t tell him and played coy.

Zhao Honghe took this approach because Ou Tiannan had instructed him before to keep a close eye on Ou Ruoshui and not let her leave the provincial capital. Upon hearing this, Zhao Honghe realized that something was up.

Ou Tiannan was a suspicious person. After hearing Zhao Honghe’s call and considering his words, he decided to stop Ou Ruoshui, advising her to delay her trip to the provincial capital.

A puzzled Ou Ruoshui asked Ou Tiannan, "Why should I delay my trip to the provincial capital?"

Fearing that Oo Ruoshui would get angry, Ou Tiannan smiled and replied, "I thought we could go together after the Mid-Autumn Festival when I’m less occupied with work."

"There are a lot of matters waiting for me over there. The tea factory has been completed too. I need to go over and start the recruitment process," Ou Ruoshui retorted reluctantly.

Hardened resolve flashed in Ou Tiannan’s eyes. This woman’s heart was harder than a rock, yet he couldn’t bring himself to be harsh with her. Wearing a pitiful expression, he said, "Ruoshui, it’s almost the Mid-Autumn Festival. As you know, I have no relatives in this world. Could you stay and celebrate the festival with me?"

Ou Ruoshui frowned slightly but eventually agreed. After all, Ou Tiannan had genuinely taken good care of her over the years.

...

By late August, when Doudou turned one month old, Ji Xiangdong still hadn’t returned. He only sent a large package of items.

Almost everything was for the baby: tiny felt caps and boots, spinning tops, sheepskin vests... there were even sling shots and lamb bone toys. For Bai Xiaolan, he gave a piece of jade, on which he had someone carve the image of a girl wearing a flower cap.

Zhou Siping sighed as he examined the pile of gifts, "Such is a father’s love, sending items that are not practical at all. How is a child so young supposed to play with slingshots and lamb bones?"

Bai Xiaolan, delighted, caressed the jade piece. The girl carved into it was very lifelike; she thought it closely resembled her. Holding the jade, she ran over to show Gu Xiaobei, who was cooking, "Look, doesn’t this girl look like me?"

Gu Xiaobei ceased his chopping to lean over and look. He chuckled and said, "Does she look like you? She is you. It seems like Ji Xiangdong had someone carve this based on your photo." 𝗳𝗿𝐞𝕖𝘄𝗲𝕓𝗻𝚘𝚟𝕖𝐥.𝚌𝕠𝕞

Bai Xiaolan’s delight doubled when she heard this. After studying the carving a bit more carefully, she sighed, pinched her own belly, and lamented, "I used to have a pointed chin. Now look at me, I’ve eaten myself into this shape. What should I do?"

Wen Xiuqing, who was sorting out vegetables, chimed in, "I think you look quite well. A bit of plumpness brings good luck. Did Ji Xiangdong say when he would return?"

"He said he would be back by the Mid-Autumn Festival," Bai Xiaolan replied while putting the jade piece away.

"Okay, after we have lunch, let’s take Doudou and head to the residential area. You and Doudou should both take a bath," Wen Xiuqing suggested.

Bai Xiaolan agreed, feeling like she smelled. She hadn’t bathed or washed her hair in a month. She couldn’t stand it any longer. Zhou Siping cleaned her a bit with a hot towel.

After Doudou’s one-month celebration, the thirty thousand boxes of mooncakes Gu Xiaobei had ordered from Lu Aiguo arrived. Lu Aiguo had advanced the payment for her, which she promised to repay after the Mid-Autumn Festival.

Gu Xiaobei instructed the workers not to unload the goods in the warehouse courtyard. Instead, they piled it up in the yard where Lu Songyuan’s family lived, between the western room and the neighbors’ yard wall. They covered it with plastic sheets and canvas to protect it. There were poplar trees at the back of the house and grapevines at the front, so there was no need to worry about sunlight exposure.

The reason she didn’t unload the goods in the warehouse courtyard was that she had other plans for this lot. The thirty-first of this month was the delivery deadline. Whether she succeeded or not, she wanted to leave herself a way out.

Seeing the huge pile of mooncakes, Wen Xiuqing expressed her worry, "Will we be able to sell all of these?"

Gu Xiaobei reassured her with a smile, "Don’t worry, we’ll definitely sell out before the tenth of September."

Lu Songyuan carefully sprinkled rat poison around the boxes of mooncakes in order to deter rats from gnawing through the cardboard.

Thankfully, their dog didn’t eat anything that wasn’t given by its owners, so they didn’t have to worry about him accidentally ingesting the rat poison.

Gu Xiaobei went to the store and to the courtyard warehouse as if nothing unusual was happening. However, as the delivery date drew near, she felt unsettled.

During a lull in the store, Gu Xiaobei took out the contract from her drawer and went through it word by word. She was fearful of leaving any loopholes for the other party to exploit.

Just as she locked the contract back in the drawer, Li Juan came in with Xiangmin.

Looking at the two of them, Gu Xiaobei’s brow slightly furrowed.

Li Juan felt a bit embarrassed and managed an awkward smile. "Sister-in-law, we were just passing by and thought we’d drop in to see you."

Surprisingly, Xiangmin also managed a rare smile towards Gu Xiaobei.

Gu Xiaobei merely responded with a faint "Oh", without uttering another word. She felt annoyed at Li Juan’s presumption. Knowing that she and Xiangmin were not on good terms, why did she bring her here?

Li Juan was also at a loss. Xiangmin had wept and apologized profusely, insisting that Guo Huaqiang had said that if she didn’t apologize to Gu Xiaobei and Li Fengmei, she would never see her child again.

Li Juan was unaware of what had transpired between them. However, seeing Xiangmin’s despair at not being able to see her child, she finally mustered the courage to escort her to see Gu Xiaobei.

Noticing Gu Xiaobei’s icy demeanor, a sheepish Xiangmin twiddled her thumbs and said with a forced smile, "Xiaobei, I was wrong before. I don’t expect you to forgive me, but I want to apologize."

Gu Xiaobei remained silent, only watching Xiangmin. When Xiangmin’s smile had almost faded from her forced effort, Gu Xiaobei finally spoke. "Actually, you don’t need to apologize. It’s better for us to remain strangers. There’s no question of anybody forgiving anybody."

Xiangmin quickly waved her hands in denial, "No, Xiaobei, that’s not it. I really made many mistakes in the past. At that time, I was as if possessed. It’s only these past two years, after having had a really hard time, that I understood that the life I led was all my doing."

Gu Xiaobei had always held grudges. So now, hearing Xiangmin say all this, she didn’t feel one bit of pity for her. All she felt was that Xiangmin deserved it. After Xiangmin finished speaking, Gu Xiaobei calmly said, "You don’t need to say anything. I do not wish to hear it. The life we live is our own." Her disapproving look became even more evident.

Realizing Gu Xiaobei’s firm stance, Xiangmin sensed that there was no point in saying anything further. If it weren’t for Guo Huaqiang using her child to manipulate her, she would never have come to apologize to Gu Xiaobei. As Gu Xiaobei had pointed out, remaining strangers was the best option.

With renewed determination, Xiangmin said, "Xiaobei, you’re busy, I’ll leave first." Without waiting for Li Juan’s reaction, she hurriedly left.

Watching Xiangmin walk away, Li Juan turned to Gu Xiaobei and said with an apologetic tone, "Sister-in-law, I’m sorry. I didn’t want to bring her, but she was crying so pitifully at my stall, I didn’t have the heart to refuse."

Gu Xiaobei invited Li Juan to sit down, then asked, "What exactly did she tell you? Why did she insist on apologizing to me?"