The old man walked into the house with a beaming smile.
"It's okay. I just came out for a stroll after dinner. My son brought me two big fish from outside today for me to try. The taste is quite good. But the taste is secondary. The most important thing is the rare filial piety."
These words left Sheng Li silent.
This was an implication that he was not as filial as the old man's son.
But his own life was already stretched thin. If he forced himself to act like a generous person, would his father look better in front of others...
Hearing the old man's sarcasm, Sheng Juekai let out a cold snort, and his tone turned completely cold. "I don't need them to do such things. As parents, we are capable enough to live a good life on our own. Their small families are all struggling. There's no need to suck the blood of our children in the name of filial piety."
Li Chuchu sighed silently to herself. Her grandpa was truly a cultured man. He could scold people without using a single dirty word.
The old man was not offended by this retort at all. He only thought that Sheng Juekai was jealous of him, and his smile grew even wider. "Being capable ourselves is one thing, and having capable descendants is another. Which parent doesn't want to see their children succeed?"
Finally, he added in a self - assured tone, "In the end, everything is about fate."
Everyone at the dinner table looked unhappy.
Sheng Juekai and Qiu Hua were both well - educated and cultured people when they were young. They had never seen such a shameless person before.
The old man refused to leave and insisted on being a nuisance.
He glanced at Li Chuchu. "Your granddaughter and grandson - in - law seem to be doing well outside. I wonder what nice New Year gifts they brought back for you? Don't hide them. Let us have a look."
He had just taken a quick look around. There were no fancy things on the living - room table, and there were no gift boxes by the door.
He guessed they probably didn't bring anything.
Otherwise, with how much Old Sheng doted on his granddaughter, he would surely put the gifts in the most prominent place and show them off to everyone.
He was elated, determined to outshine Old Sheng in terms of his children. So what if Sheng Juekai had been so outstanding in his early years? In his old age, wasn't he still not as well - off as Xu Dazhi?
Sheng Juekai finally couldn't bear it anymore. "Xu Dazhi! Have you said enough!"
Li Chuchu suddenly slapped her forehead. "Oh, you've reminded me. Grandpa, the gifts I brought for you are still in the luggage bag and I haven't taken them out yet."
As soon as she said this, not only Xu Dazhi but also everyone at the dinner table looked at Li Chuchu in unison.
Li Chuchu gave Shen Yanshan a look.
Shen Yanshan immediately got up to get the luggage bag.
Sheng Juekai looked at Sheng Li curiously, wanting to know what Li Chuchu and the others had brought. Wasn't Sheng Li carrying that bag when they came in?
Sheng Li looked dazed and shook his head at his father. They hadn't said these were gifts on the way here. He thought they were just clothes and daily necessities.
Xu Dazhi stared straight at the bag. He was determined to see what would come out of it.
"Don't tell me you're just taking some random things to make up for it? You've come all the way from Ningcheng. You should at least bring something to amaze us."
Qiu Hua retorted, "What's it to you?"
She also couldn't help but glance at the bag. What had Chuchu and the others brought?
Shen Yanshan took out the first gift from the bag and placed it on the table - two bottles of malted milk extract.
Seeing this, Xu Dazhi looked relaxed. These two bottles probably cost only seven or eight yuan. Coming back after several years, this was hardly anything special. "Malted milk extract. My son also brought some for me to try. People outside make a big deal out of it, but it's just so - so..."
He smacked his lips, as if he looked down on it.
Shen Yanshan took out a delicate box from the bag.
Li Chuchu opened the box. Inside were two bottles of milky honey. "Grandma, this is royal jelly. I remember Mom said that your throat gets dry and you tend to cough in autumn and winter. Drinking royal jelly is good for your throat."
Hearing Chuchu mention Xiaolan, Qiu Hua's eyes welled up with tears.
Royal jelly was a rare thing, and these two bottles were almost half a kilogram. She said lovingly, "Oh, why did you buy this? It must be expensive, right?"
Li Chuchu smiled. "It's not expensive. It's only about a dozen yuan."
Xu Dazhi smacked his lips. Suddenly, he felt his mouth go dry.
What did royal jelly taste like?
Qiu Hua complained that Chuchu was wasting money, but she also knew that Chuchu was doing this to save face for her in front of Xu Dazhi. She couldn't help but be touched. "Good child. I'm glad you remembered."
She glanced at Xu Dazhi. "Well? Are you satisfied with the things my granddaughter brought back?"
Xu Dazhi stubbornly said, "Just two bottles of honey. It's what younger generations should do to show filial piety."
At this moment,
Shen Yanshan suddenly placed two bottles of liquor on the table.
Xu Dazhi took a closer look. The red, white, and gold labels. Although he couldn't read, he recognized the bottle of "Moutai"!
"Moutai?!"
Li Chuchu moved the liquor in front of her grandpa. "It's Chinese New Year. I'm giving these two bottles of liquor for you to try, Grandpa."
As soon as Shen Yanshan took out the liquor, Grandpa's eyes hadn't left it. Now that the liquor was in front of him, he swallowed hard and pretended to be reserved. "Why spend so much money? It doesn't matter what I drink, Grandpa."
But if you looked closely, the corners of his mouth were almost splitting with a smile.
Xu Dazhi couldn't help but lean forward to take a closer look. "This is really Moutai! It can't be fake, right?"
"Get out of here. You're the one who drinks fake liquor!" Sheng Juekai moved the liquor away from his sight, driving him away like a fly. "We're about to have dinner now. Go back and eat your big fish."
He carefully put the liquor on the most prominent shelf near the entrance,
so that anyone who came in could see it at a glance.
The rest of the things were taken out all at once. The nutritional supplements were a brand that Xu Dazhi had only heard of on a broken radio.
But at this moment, all he could see were those two bottles of Moutai. He said shamelessly, "Old Sheng, Old Sheng, call me over for a couple of sips when you open the liquor. I also want to taste what Moutai is like."
Sheng Juekai waved his hand impatiently. "Go drink your Erguotou."
Sheng Li was sitting there watching the show when suddenly two packs of Hongtashan cigarettes and a bag of gold - coin chocolates were stuffed into his arms.
He was surprised. "Ah? There's something for me too?"
Li Chuchu said, "Yes. I don't know if Uncle smokes. If you do, keep them for yourself. If not, you can give them away as gifts during the New Year. The gold - coin chocolates are for my little nephew. They're popular in Ningcheng."
She just didn't like gold - coin chocolates. They were made of cocoa butter substitutes and didn't taste good.
But kids these days liked them.
Sheng Li looked at the things in his hands.
Two packs of Hongtashan cigarettes cost almost sixteen or seventeen yuan.
This imported snack wasn't cheap either.
He had not only received so many valuable gifts from his niece without preparing anything for her but also had a lot to eat.
He really felt bad about it.
He was just about to decline.
Sheng Juekai knew his son's prideful nature and glanced at him. "Your niece gave them to you. Just take them. We'll go to your place for dinner during the New Year."
Sheng Li scratched the back of his head shyly. "Even if you didn't bring anything, Chuchu doesn't come back often. As her uncle, I should still treat her to a good meal."
Sheng Juekai scoffed.
A good meal?
He might agree, but what about his wife?