Chapter 496 - 483: A Wicked Hobby

It was only after hearing what Zheng Changsheng said that Gu’er understood. These mobile phones were already in use in the more developed cities. But this was a small city, so it was unlikely anyone here had one yet. Still, she figured people in Harbin must be using them.

"You make it sound so magical. You can make calls on the road? Even while walking? I find that hard to believe. Let me try."

Lin Shuying found it incredible. She saw the numbers on the black brick and quickly began to press them, dialing the Sun Family’s home number.

"It’s not ringing. There isn’t even a sound, and I can’t hear anyone talking. It doesn’t work. Did I break it when I dropped it?"

Lin Shuying held the phone, unable to hear anything, her face etched with anxiety. This thing cost over twenty thousand yuan! If she had really broken it, the thought alone was enough to kill her.

Gu’er and Zheng Changsheng both laughed.

"Aunt, it’s not broken," Gu’er said. "You have to register it on the network. Once you pay the activation fee and it’s connected, then you can use it. Don’t worry."

Gu’er explained this to Lin Shuying. It was something she had heard before, and Zheng Changsheng had briefly mentioned it earlier too. Of course, someone unfamiliar with it wouldn’t understand.

Lin Shuying looked toward Zheng Changsheng, who nodded, confirming that Gu’er was right.

"It needs an activation fee too? What a hassle. So it’s useless for now?"

Lin Shuying set the phone down. ’No matter how I look at this thing, it doesn’t seem worth twenty thousand yuan,’ she thought. ’If it were up to me, I wouldn’t buy it even if my life depended on it.’

Zheng Changsheng understood what Lin Shuying was thinking. It was a perfectly normal reaction. Who in an ordinary family would buy something like this? You couldn’t eat it or drink it. For that kind of money, you could buy a nice house here. But for businesspeople, these things mattered. Carrying one around showed status and prestige. It made others think your business was thriving. Plus, it was convenient to be reachable when you were out and about; otherwise, it was a huge hassle to get in touch with anyone.

"I just thought that since Gu’er and Jia Ming are business owners, it would be more convenient for them to have one, so I bought it for them."

Zheng Changsheng explained to Lin Shuying.

"This is far too valuable,"

Sun Jiaming said. He hadn’t realized at first just how expensive it was. Their relationship with Zheng Changsheng wasn’t deep enough to accept such a costly gift; it just wasn’t right. If Gu’er wanted one, they could just buy it themselves.

"Jia Ming, Gu’er, I’m being sincere. This is a gift for you. Does the value of a gift really matter?"

Zheng Changsheng said, smiling at the two of them.

"In that case, thank you, Uncle Zheng."

Gu’er nodded at Sun Jiaming, signaling that they should accept it. It wasn’t that she coveted the expensive phone; she was well aware that these things would only be popular for a few years before all sorts of other mobile phones appeared on the market. She knew part of the reason Zheng Changsheng had brought it for them was, as he himself said, because they owned a department store and needed to be on the road for business. It was for their convenience. Otherwise, he surely would have bought it for her aunt and the others.

The other reason was that he was thanking her for leaving him her phone number back then.

If she hadn’t left Zheng Changsheng her number, giving him that sliver of hope, he might never have gone to the train station. He might never have taken that first step, and he wouldn’t have had the opportunities that followed. Furthermore, because he had the number, he was able to come here and find her aunt. This gift was his way of expressing his gratitude, so she accepted it.

"That’s more like it. We’ll be seeing a lot of each other in the future."

Zheng Changsheng said, glancing at Lin Shuying. His words carried a double meaning.

Lin Shuying’s face flushed red, and she lowered her head, not daring to meet anyone’s gaze.

"Uncle Zheng, Aunt, you two chat. I should go check on the baby. If he wakes up and can’t find me, he’ll probably start crying."

Gu’er realized she had been out for a while. The baby had still been asleep when Sun Jiaming went back to get clothes earlier, but she couldn’t help but worry.

"Gu’er has a child already? So soon? I had no idea! Should I go over? I should greet the elders and see the baby, too."

Zheng Changsheng genuinely didn’t know Gu’er had already had a baby. Looking at her figure, she didn’t seem any different than before.

"Yes, we should go! Let’s go. Both of the grandmas are there, you should go say hello to them. And you have no idea how cute Jiji is! He’s always smiling. I just adore him to pieces."

As she spoke, Lin Shuying stood up, ready to lead Zheng Changsheng over.

Zheng Changsheng picked up his bag, which was still full of things. He knew there were elders in the Sun Family, and since he was visiting, he had to prepare gifts. He also couldn’t show up empty-handed at Lin Shuying’s parents’ home.

And so, the group went over to the Sun Family’s home. Zheng Changsheng went to speak with Grandma Sun and Grandma Dingzi. When he saw the pregnant Marina, he was taken aback again. ’A foreign woman?’ he thought. However, he didn’t let his surprise show. He had seen a lot over the past year and had learned to keep his composure.

Gu’er went to check on Jiji, who had just woken up. After Gu’er fed him, the little guy didn’t go back to sleep. He just lay there with his eyes open, playing. He would smile at anyone who teased him, and he was so adorable it was hard to describe. Zheng Changsheng was completely smitten with him as well.

"Go give Li Zhi a call," Gu’er said. "Tell him we’ve got something really cool over here, but don’t tell him what it is. Make him guess. Just watch, he’ll come running over in no time."

Gu’er had nothing to do at the moment. Everyone was taking turns holding the baby, so it wasn’t her turn. Her gaze fell on the mobile phone, and she thought of Li Zhi. ’He would definitely be interested in this,’ she mused.

"Alright, let’s mess with him a little."

Sun Jiaming, getting into the spirit of it, immediately dialed the Li Family’s number.

On the other end of the line, Li Zhi knew they had something good, but he couldn’t for the life of him guess what it was. He was dying of curiosity. He knew Sun Jiaming and Gu’er were just messing with him, but he was genuinely intrigued.

After hanging up, Gu’er and Sun Jiaming pictured Li Zhi’s frantic expression and chuckled. Grandma Dingzi’s eyes were also filled with amusement. Li Zhi probably wouldn’t get any sleep tonight.

Less than half an hour later, there was a knock on the door. Gu’er and Sun Jiaming exchanged a look. ’Could that be Li Zhi? He didn’t say he was coming.’

The door opened, and Li Zhi burst in like a gust of wind, shouting, "Let me see! Let me see! What is this amazing thing you have? You wouldn’t tell me, and it’s driving me crazy! You’re doing this on purpose!"

It turned out that as soon as Li Zhi had hung up, he’d started wracking his brain but couldn’t figure it out. Curiosity got the better of him, so he threw on some clothes and ran out the door, leaving his mother muttering in annoyance behind him.

Sun Jiaming and Gu’er had planned to tease Li Zhi a bit more, but seeing him look like he was about to pounce on Sun Jiaming, they quickly brought out the mobile phone to show him.

"Holy shit, a mobile phone! Holy shit, it really is! Where the hell did you get this thing?"

Li Zhi blurted out, his eyes wide as he snatched the phone away.

"Oh? You recognize it?"

Gu’er was surprised. She hadn’t expected Li Zhi to know what it was.

"I went to Harbin last month to see one of my dad’s old army buddies. While I was there, I ran into this guy who was a big-shot businessman. He had one and was showing it off to us. I asked about it, and he said they don’t sell them around here, that you couldn’t buy one even if you wanted to. Otherwise, I would’ve bought one already! So where did you get yours? Spit it out!"

Li Zhi had been incredibly envious of that man at the time. He never imagined that Sun Jiaming and Gu’er would actually manage to get one.

Gu’er and Sun Jiaming told him the whole story about Zheng Changsheng.

"Holy shit, your luck is way too good."

Li Zhi exclaimed after hearing the story.

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Thank you to Dingdingdangdang3 for the peace charm, and thank you all for your support.