Marrying My Bestie's Ferocious Brother - He Calls Me His Baby!-Chapter 170: You Call That a London Accent?

The old professor’s hand, like a pair of red-hot iron tongs, firmly grasped Jiang Zhou’s arm.

His eyes, however, were like two searchlights, fixed directly on Gu Lan.

"Her sister-in-law?"

"Are you talking about Comrade Lin Wan Yi?!"

Gu Lan’s mind buzzed, blank.

It’s over.

Everything is over!

Sister-in-law repeatedly warned to stay low-key! To keep it secret!

This Jiang Zhou, this blockhead, this Rubbish King!

One sentence, and he spilled everything about his sister-in-law!

"That’s right! It’s her!" Jiang Zhou was still oblivious, pointing at Gu Lan, his tone filled with unstoppable excitement and admiration. "It’s that living Bodhisattva! Immortal!"

The old professor’s breathing became heavy.

He released Jiang Zhou, like a tiger that spotted its prey, and rushed to Gu Lan.

"Student! Where’s your sister-in-law? Where is she now?!"

"Quick! Take me to see her! No! I must see her immediately!"

Gu Lan was so frightened she kept retreating, almost pressing herself against the wall.

She looked at this bright-eyed, seemingly insane old professor before her, feeling like Little Red Riding Hood being eyed by the big bad wolf.

"I... my sister-in-law... she’s not home!"

"When will she return?!"

"I don’t know!"

After saying that, Gu Lan used all her strength to push him away and turned to run.

She had never run so fast in her life!

Behind her, the old professor yelled with desperation, tinged with endless hope.

"Student! Don’t run! This is for science! This is the future of our country’s semiconductors!"

Without looking back, Gu Lan grabbed the empty cart and rushed out of Beijing City University of Technology’s gate.

In the small courtyard.

Lin Wan Yi was feeding two children with milk porridge diluted with spiritual spring water.

An An and Ning Ning were eating with their little mouths making sounds.

Gu Lan dashed in like the wind, plopped down on a chair, and started gulping down the cold water from the table.

"Sister-in-law! Something big happened!"

Lin Wan Yi lifted her eyelids, glanced at her, and continued her actions at the same steady pace.

"What’s wrong? Is it urgent?"

"It’s more serious than urgent!"

Gu Lan spilled out everything that happened in the warehouse, like pouring beans from a bamboo tube.

"That Jiang Zhou! He spilled everything about you! That old professor went crazy! Grabbed me wanting to find you! Talking about... the prototype of integrated circuits! For the country!"

After hearing this, Lin Wan Yi’s hand didn’t pause for a moment.

"Hmm, got it."

Gu Lan was so anxious she almost jumped out of her seat.

"Sister-in-law! Why aren’t you worried at all! If that professor comes to the door, how do you plan to explain those drawings?"

"When soldiers come, I’ll block; when water comes, I’ll dam."

Lin Wan Yi put down the bowl, wiped the children’s mouths with a warm towel.

"Don’t worry, he won’t find this place."

Her tone was calm, carrying a reassuring strength.

Seeing her sister-in-law display composure akin to being unruffled by a collapsing mountain, Gu Lan’s anxiety inexplicably dissipated a bit.

She sat down again, starting to sigh.

"That Jiang Zhou is a bottomless pit! Today he asked for a whole cart of parts! Said he’s making some... focus coil! I don’t even understand!"

"My five thousand yuan bonus might not last a few days."

Lin Wan Yi seemed to mention casually.

Gu Lan was stunned.

"What? How could it go so fast? That’s five thousand yuan!" 𝙛𝓻𝒆𝒆𝒘𝙚𝓫𝙣𝙤𝒗𝙚𝓵.𝙘𝙤𝙢

That’s a huge amount! Ordinary workers might not save this amount even after ten years without spending or eating!

Lin Wan Yi remained silent, just took out a small ledger from a drawer and handed it to her.

"See for yourself."

Gu Lan, half doubting, leaned over.

She saw the ledger filled with delicate writing, densely packed:

"High-purity oxygen-free copper wire, thirty kilograms, one hundred and twenty yuan."

"West Germany-imported oscilloscope tube, one unit, three hundred yuan."

"Rare metal solder (containing silver), twenty grams, eighty yuan."

"High-precision stabilizer, two units, one hundred and fifty-six yuan."

...

Every expenditure felt like a knife stabbing into Gu Lan’s heart.

That five thousand yuan bonus looked pitifully meager under the frightening list.

On the last page of the ledger, the balance was clearly marked in red pen.

Less than three hundred yuan remained.

Gu Lan gasped, feeling her heart twitching.

"Is he making a color TV or burning money!"

"Research inherently burns money."

Lin Wan Yi closed the ledger, her tone calm.

"Then... what do we do?" Gu Lan worried, "Once the money’s gone, his color TV project stops? Should I write to my brother for some help?"

"No need."

Lin Wan Yi stood up, ruffled Gu Lan’s hair.

"I’ll figure out the money issue."

The night was silent.

Once everyone was asleep.

Lin Wan Yi moved with her mind, entering the Spiritual Spring Space.

The Library stood quietly in the night.

The black soil had become even more fertile than before, shining with a glossy blackness.

She walked over to the soil.

The few tomato and strawberry plants she had casually planted earlier were now laden with heavy fruit.

Each tomato was the size of a woman’s fist, as red as agate, with a skin so smooth it could reflect a person’s silhouette, resembling a work of art.

And those strawberries, each one perfectly heart-shaped, with vibrant colors that seemed to drip, emanated a sweet fragrance that was so rich it filled the entire space.

This quality, not to mention the 1970s, would still be considered the top-tier special supply in fruit shops even forty years later.

Lin Wan Yi picked a strawberry.

She took a bite.

The clear, sweet juice instantly exploded in her mouth.

The taste, tinged with the unique crispness and sweetness of Spiritual Spring, was far beyond any ordinary fruit.

A thought became crystal clear in her mind.

Early the next morning.

Lin Wan Yi didn’t go to school. Instead, she put on a clean, simple white shirt and a pair of neatly ironed blue pants.

She picked a basket of the most beautiful and plump strawberries and tomatoes from the space, carefully covering them with a clean white cloth.

Gu Lan looked at her and curiously asked, "Sister-in-law, where are you going with the basket?"

"To earn some money."

Lin Wan Yi smiled and left with the basket.

She didn’t head to the noisy, chaotic vegetable market.

Instead, she took a bus all the way to the vicinity of East Jiaomin Lane.

This area was the famous embassy district of Beijing.

Around it were friendship stores specifically serving foreigners.

The pedestrians on the road were evidently different from those elsewhere.

One could see many foreigners with blond hair and blue eyes, dressed finely, and appearing calm.

Lin Wan Yi found a spot not far from the friendship store, but not too conspicuous either, and stopped.

She placed the basket steadily on the ground and gently lifted the white cloth.

In an instant.

A basket of vividly red, incredibly beautiful fruit was exposed to the early autumn sunlight.

The rich sweet fragrance seemed to grow legs, sneaking into the nostrils of every passerby.

Soon.

Two elegantly dressed foreign women strolling together halted.

They looked at the strawberries in the basket, their blue eyes filled with wonder.

One blonde lady, speaking with a French-accented English, conversed with her companion.

"Oh, Anna, look at these strawberries! I’ve never seen anything so beautiful even in Paris!"

"It’s unbelievable! They smell... so fragrant! Like perfume!"

The blonde lady couldn’t resist, walked up to Lin Wan Yi, pointed at the basket, and asked in very broken Chinese, word by word.

"This... how much?"

Before Lin Wan Yi could speak.

A slick voice butted in from the side.

"Hey! Beautiful ladies! Want to buy some fruit?"

A man wearing bell-bottom pants, hair greased slick, looking both shrewd and wily, rubbed his hands and came over.

He was known around here as "Li San," specializing in buying low and selling high, making money off foreigners.

He glanced at Lin Wan Yi’s basket, a flash of undisguised greed in his eyes.

Then, he immediately turned and said to the two foreign ladies in clumsy pidgin English:

"This... country bumpkin, doesn’t understand! Cheap, I’ll give you a good price!"

As he spoke, he made eyes at Lin Wan Yi, lowered his voice, and harshly scolded in Chinese:

"Hey! I tell you, young girl, don’t you understand the rules? This is my Li San’s territory!"

"You look decent; I’ll give you five yuan for this basket of fruit, and you scram! Don’t waste my time doing business!"

He assumed that a quiet, young girl like Lin Wan Yi would definitely be frightened by his presence.

The two foreign ladies were bewildered by what they heard, but seeing the man’s demeanour, they also warily frowned.

Lin Wan Yi didn’t even spare the man a glance.

She merely turned, slightly bowing to the blonde lady.

A standard, impeccable lady’s courtesy.

Then she spoke.

Her voice was clear, soft, imbued with an innate elegance and calmness.

("Madam, please forgive my interruption.")

She spoke in a pure, unblemished, elegant London accent.

("These strawberries are meticulously cultivated, extraordinarily fragrant and fresh.")

("Would you like to try one?")

The entire street corner went silent.

The pride and arrogance on Li San’s face froze, his mouth agape as if it could fit a whole egg.

The two foreign ladies were completely taken aback.

They looked at the simply dressed young Oriental girl in front of them, whose air of elegance matched her flawless English, and their faces were filled with disbelief.

The blonde lady snapped back to reality, smiling with delight.

("Oh! Certainly!")

Lin Wan Yi picked up the most beautiful strawberry, holding it with a clean handkerchief she carried with her, and gracefully offered it.

The blonde lady received it and put it in her mouth.

In the next second.

Her eyes widened suddenly.

An indescribable ecstasy flooded her face.

She almost shouted.

("Oh my God! This... this is the best strawberry I’ve ever tasted! Even better than in Paris! So much better!")

Excitedly, she grabbed Lin Wan Yi’s arm as if she’d found an extraordinary treasure.

("Miss! These! I’ll take them all!")

She finished speaking and without hesitation, pulled out a stack of brand new... US Dollar bills from her handbag.

("How much? Name your price!")