“Mom, shall I supervise them and record the whole process for you tomorrow?” Gu Shanshan said with her eyebrows raised to Gu Nianbin.
“You’re not much better!” Fang Yaru pointed her finger at her daughter, “You are well past twenty. Your friend Su Anqi has married and will be a mother soon. What about you? Why don’t you learn from her?”
“Fine.” Unlike Gu Nianbin, Gu Shanshan behaved more freely in front of her mother, “She got married at 30 and had a baby at 31. I will do the same. Satisfied? It’s still early cause I’m only 26 now.”
“What?!” Fang Yaru choked with anger and glared at her, “You are really my enemy from previous life!”
Gu Guangxian said to his wife with a smile, “Don’t be so harsh to her. I don’t believe you can bear the departure when she really gets married someday.”
“Are you sure?” Fang Yaru said, “I wish she would get married and move out as soon as possible. I can’t wait to get rid of this noisy girl.”
“Mom, it’s not fair. I came back only several days ago. You can’t be tired of me.” Gu Shanshan laughed, “I wonder how you would deal with my sister-in-law in future.”
“I am eager for a daughter-in-law and will never be annoyed by her. As long as your brother brings home a wife soon, I will treat her as my own daughter.”
“Yeah right, like I would believe it,” Gu Shanshan curled her lips, “The relationship between mother-in-law and daughter-in-law has been a tricky issue throughout our Chinese history. Our TV station made themed shows about it time and again. There’s much more to this topic.”
“Enough,” Gu Nianbin stopped his younger sister with a glare, “Stop bickering. Don’t hang out too much. Stay at home and accompany Mom and Dad today.”
“I see.” Gu Shanshan made a grimace at her brother. Gu Guangxian and Fang Yaru smiled at each other and couldn’t help shaking their heads. No matter how old the children are, they are still kids in their parents’ eyes.
Upon arriving at the company, Gu Nianbin asked his secretary Zhou Ting to make an appointment with Xia Xiaowan for him. Minutes later, Zhou Ting told him that Miss Xia was only available today and the day after tomorrow. She asked him which day he preferred.
Gu Nianbin stroked his forehead and asked, “What’s my schedule today?”
“Lunch with President Liu of Feiyang Group, and an appointment with President Cheng of Hezhong Group in the evening.”
“Ask President Gu to go for the lunch. Make a reservation in a quiet restaurant, and tell Miss Xia that I invite her to lunch today.”
“Yes, President.” Zhou Ting nodded and walked out.
Gu Nianbin turned his chair and looked out of the window. The sky was clear blue, the clouds were as thin as tulle, and the sunshine was dazzling. Blown by a breeze, the curtains waved with golden light spots dancing around.
This was the CBD of city G. Gu’s Company occupied the 33rd to 38th floors of Yinzuo Building. Gu’s Company once had its own office building. Twenty years ago, when the company was in the most difficult time, Gu Guangxian sold the office building for working capital and thereby got through the hard time. Although the building was sold by his father, Gu Nianbin bore it in mind all the time.
The building was only six stories high and became old and shabby over time. When he was young, the six-story building was well-known in city G. People passing by would exclaim with admiration, “Look, that’s Gu’s Company! That is Gu’s Building with a history of one hundred years!”
That building was an ancestral property, which bore the glorious history of the Gu family. Gu Nianbin felt regretful when he knew that the building had been sold out. He mentioned several times that he wanted to redeem his family legacy.
Recently he had been planning on it. For one thing, he wanted to fulfill his father’s dream. And more importantly, this was his obligation as a descendant of the Gu family. However, the building had changed hands several times and the present owner was very low-profile. He inquired about it by all means but hadn’t got a clue yet.