Back To The 80s-Chapter 227 - 237: Needle Sharp_1

Gu Xiaobei didn’t make a sound, feeling some anger towards his shortsighted mother-in-law in his heart but not showing it on his face.

Lu Zhanguo, who was beside him with a grim face, was pulling Gu Xiaobei’s hand, ready to go upstairs. Gu Xiaobei however, gently pushed away his hand. If this issue wasn’t resolved today, they couldn’t hope to live peacefully in the future.

Gu Xiaobei calmly looked at Wen Xiuqing, then glanced at Qin Ximei. Seeing Qin Ximei looking at him with a triumphant face, he gave a faint smile and gently said, "Mom, I am willing to apologize to Aunt Yuan, but I am a principled person. Today, Aunt Yuan was the first to make a mistake. If anyone should apologize, it should be her first. Even you, mom, shouldn’t be going through my things without my consent, let alone a stranger like her." Gu Xiaobei paused, looking at Wen Xiuqing whose face seemed a little stiff.

When Qin Ximei wanted to interrupt, Gu Xiaobei didn’t give her a chance to speak and immediately said, "Aunt Yuan, you must apologize to me first. And if you can clarify why you were going through my bag, I may apologize to you in front of my mother-in-law for your sake."

Qin Ximei knew Gu Xiaobei was sharp-tongued. She was originally in the wrong and wanted to take advantage of Wen Xiuqing’s anger at Gu Xiaobei and create a scene to liven up the house.

But to her surprise, Gu Xiaobei didn’t fall into her trap and maintained his pleasant demeanor.

"Alright, Ximei, go back with Qingqing," said Wen Xiuqing, her face grim.

Qin Ximei knew she wouldn’t gain anything more from staying. She glared resentfully at Gu Xiaobei, then took Yuan Qing and left without looking back.

Wen Xiuqing slowly sat down on the sofa, looking at Gu Xiaobei with frigid eyes. She said word by word, "Why must you be so aggressive? Even if Aunt Yuan went through your bag, you shouldn’t have set such a mean trap for her."

"Additionally, I bet you weren’t sure that it was Aunt Yuan who searched your bag when you released the turtle, right? I suspect you even thought I might be involved." When Wen Xiuqing finished speaking, her gaze didn’t move away from Gu Xiaobei.

Lu Zhanguo frowned unhappily and said, "Mom, you don’t need to interrogate Xiaobei like this. I know about this matter and I support her."

Wen Xiuqing sneered, "You don’t need to defend her. She’s quite tough, probably never suffered a disadvantage."

Before Lu Zhanguo could speak, Gu Xiaobei cut him off, "Mom, how could I ever suspect you? Besides, these people have even gone as far as harassing us at home. If we still ignore it, it’ll clearly seem like we don’t value you and dad."

"Alright, you’re both right." Unable to continue the discussion, Wen Xiuqing got up and went into the bedroom.

Gu Xiaobei shrugged helplessly, afraid that the coming mother-and-daughter-in-law relationship would be very challenging.

Lu Zhanguo took Gu Xiaobei upstairs, and as he was closing the door, he pushed her against the door saying, "Why won’t you let me stand up for you? Your direct confrontation with mom could lead to grievances if we end up living together in the future."

"You’re wrong. I didn’t confront mom today. You don’t need to worry, my mom is as clear-sighted as a mirror. She’s just trying to save face in front of Aunt Yuan. Even if mom doesn’t like me, I don’t care. The important thing is that you like me. But if you and mom have a falling out, that’s a different situation entirely," Gu Xiaobei said with a laugh.

The first big hurdle in a marriage is usually the relationship between the mother and daughter-in-law. After all, they’re two strangers suddenly living together who need time to adapt to each other.

Lu Zhanguo raised his eyebrows, impressed by her insightful views. He leaned in so their foreheads were touching and said, "You’re quite young but you see things so clearly, huh?"

The sight of his charming face made Gu Xiaobei swallow nervously. "Don’t stand so close to me, you’re seducing me," she warned.

"Alright. I want to ask you, did you know that Aunt Yuan entered our room and searched our bags yesterday?" asked Lu Zhanguo, his lips lightly brushing against hers as he spoke.

All Gu Xiaobei could picture were romantic scenes, and to Lu Zhanguo’s question, she involuntarily nodded her head.

"And did you know they were coming today? So you came up with this plan last night? You deliberately left me behind at the pet market today so you could go buy the turtle on your own?" He further added, lightly licking the corner of her lips.

"No, I actually wanted to buy eels or loaches to scare her with today. I did not know they were not for sale. Since they were selling turtles, I bought one," Gu Xiaobei responded obediently with a nod.

Lu Zhanguo suddenly stood up, his face serious as he said, "Gu Xiaobei, you’re too bold. Why didn’t you tell me about this?"

Gu Xiaobei stared at this man whose expression changed faster than flipping through a book, shocked. Could it be, she thought, was he using his attractiveness to get her to confess? Unsatisfied, she pouted.

"You’re pregnant now. Why are you still so impulsive? What if the turtle bit you? What if you bumped into something?" Seeing Gu Xiaobei pouting, Lu Zhanguo immediately lost his temper and said helplessly.

"Don’t worry, I was careful. Also, I promise I won’t hide anything from you in the future." Seeing that Lu Zhanguo had softened, Gu Xiaobei immediately assured him with a grin.

"You, oh you! You admit your mistakes but are absolutely unwilling to change," Lu Zhanguo pinched her nose.

Gu Xiaobei huffed, "Come on, seduce me again. Let’s see if I can resist the temptation."

Because of the commotion, they didn’t sit down to lunch until nearly two. The housekeeper Mrs. Li came over to call them for lunch.

There was an extra dish on the table, turtle soup. Gu Xiaobei sighed secretly, amazed that Mrs. Li knew how to butcher a turtle. Truly extraordinary.

Wen Xiuqing’s face was very calm, making it hard to tell whether she was still angry.

Lu Zhanguo served Gu Xiaobei a bowl of turtle soup. Just as he was passing it over, he heard Wen Xiuqing say coolly, "You can’t drink this while you’re pregnant."

Gu Xiaobei was stunned and quickly handed the soup back to Lu Zhanguo. Why did caring words always have to be said so coldly? It’s best not to try to guess a mother-in-law’s thoughts.

Early the next morning, Lu Zhanguo and Gu Xiaobei went into the city. Only then did Gu Xiaobei discover that the subway was already open. They rode their bikes to the subway station and left them at the bike shed. 𝗳𝗿𝐞𝕖𝘄𝗲𝕓𝗻𝚘𝚟𝕖𝐥.𝚌𝕠𝕞

The subway line going from West Mountain to downtown had been under construction since 1965, initially created as a war preparation tunnel. It was to allow the West Mountain stationed troops to secretly infiltrate downtown during a war. It was said that in one day, they could transport the forces of five divisions.

This complied with the guiding ideology at the time: prioritize war preparation while accommodating urban transportation.

The subway took them straight to downtown where multi-story department stores, semi-state-owned, were around five to six stories high.

Although they carried more variety of clothes than the provincial city, they also sold red down jackets with moderate styles but excellent quality. Gu Xiaobei bought two. One for herself and one as a gift for Qin Li.

She also bought clothes for Fang Jing and Wen Xiuqing since she hadn’t brought any gifts for them when she returned home.

After buying clothes, Gu Xiaobei also grabbed some baby items like bottles, small thermoses. She also bought a few sets of baby clothes - whenever she discovered something adorable, she couldn’t resist buying it. She bought some beautiful cloth, too, to make small quilts and cushions for the baby back home.