Chapter 537: Am I Worthy?

Chapter 537: Chapter 353: Am I Worthy?

Guo Ziyang snapped back to reality. He turned to look at Xue Rui. “Yeah, I’m curious about that too.”

Gu Qingshan calmly took a sip of tea. He was also very interested in this question.

Xue Rui had already prepared his story. He let out a soft sigh.

“Sigh… I suppose it was fate. In high school, I found out Xiaolin was planning to drop out and work. Seeing her good grades, I decided to sponsor her tuition so she could finish university.”

“Who would have thought she would end up coming to Chang’an for university, just like me. When I was starting my business and was short-staffed, I had her drive for me temporarily.”

The corners of Lin Ruoxi’s eyes crinkled with a smile. Xue Rui was telling the story of their past.

And she was very fond of this story.

Lin Ruoxi looked at Xue Rui and said, “Mhm, I have to work for my boss to pay him back.”

Gu Qingshan remembered seeing men’s shampoo at Gu Muxue’s place yesterday. He had taken it out and asked about it, trying to find out if Xue Rui had been secretly visiting his daughter.

But Lin Ruoxi had claimed it was hers, explaining that “men’s shampoo is cheaper.”

In fact, for Gu Muxue’s safety, Gu Qingshan had of course investigated her roommate, Lin Ruoxi.

An orphan from a very poor family…

Her college entrance exam scores were very high, yet she came to Chang’an for university. Now it all made sense.

Guo Wei gave Lin Ruoxi a thumbs-up and praised her sincerely, “To know how to repay a kindness… that’s rare.”

Lin Ruoxi shook her head repeatedly. “No, Xue Rui is the one who’s truly rare.”

Xue Rui had changed her life. In Lin Ruoxi’s heart, there was no one better than Xue Rui.

Xue Rui nodded. He was afraid Lin Ruoxi would confess her feelings—that would be a disaster. He quickly blurted out, “Xiaolin, you need to focus on your studies. Sharpening the axe doesn’t delay chopping the wood. Finish your master’s degree before you worry about working.”

Lin Ruoxi blinked blankly. ‘Is Xue Rui telling me to go to grad school?’

Gu Muxue pouted. She realized that what Xue Rui just said seemed to be the truth. As for Lin Ruoxi’s way of repaying his kindness… it was to give her everything to Xue Rui…

But she didn’t want everyone discussing Xue Rui and Lin Ruoxi right now. She was afraid their cover would be blown, so she changed the subject.

“Uncle Guo, were you, my dad, and my mom all classmates?”

A nostalgic look appeared on Guo Wei’s face. “I was a year ahead of them, but Old Gu and I met on a train…”

Xue Rui almost spat out his tea. ‘Were college students back then all this wild?’

“Uncle Guo, you… married quite early,” Xue Rui said with a smile.

Hearing this, everyone couldn’t help but cover their mouths and chuckle.

The corner of Guo Wei’s mouth twitched. He knew someone would react like this.

“You kids nowadays probably haven’t heard of child betrothals, have you?” Guo Wei sighed.

‘This was the simplest explanation. I couldn’t very well say that all my peers in the village were married back then, and my parents had forced me to get married too, could I?’

‘I didn’t even dare speak to female classmates in college… because I had a child at home who was still nursing.’

Until one day on the train, he was habitually showing off photos of his son when he learned that a green-looking Gu Qingshan was also a “father-to-be.” With so much in common, the two became close friends.

Shortly after Guo Wei finished speaking, the quiet woman beside him spoke up. “I’m not very educated, and I’m two years older than Guo Wei. I’m not good enough for him. All I know is how to do laundry, cook, and look after the kids…”

Zhao Lizhen said softly, “Sister-in-law, Old Guo used to praise you in front of us all the time.”

“Is that so? He’s never told me that…”

…

Xue Rui suddenly felt a pang of envy. ‘Guo Wei is a winner in life, too.’

Guo Wei said, “Anyway, that’s why Old Gu and I are such good friends. And back then, wuxia novels were all the rage. I told Old Gu that if we both had sons, they would become sworn brothers. If we had daughters…”

Gu Qingshan cut him off. “Stop right there. I already knew you had a son, so of course I wouldn’t agree.”

“Haha, Uncle Guo, you were really playing the long game,” Xue Rui laughed.

Guo Ziyang’s eyes widened in disbelief. He’d read Jin Yong, too!

‘The sentence he cut off must have been “they would be wed.”‘

‘What a pity. My dad didn’t pull through back then!’

“Dad, why didn’t you ever take me to visit Uncle Gu’s family before?” Guo Ziyang asked.

Guo Wei waved his hand. “I took you several times when you were little. But then you threw a fit, crying that Hedong was too far and insisting I buy you some Ultraman something-or-other. I haven’t taken you since.”

Guo Ziyang: “…”

‘I really wish I could go back in time and give my younger self a couple of hard slaps!’

‘If I had known the Gu Family had such a beautiful daughter, I would have crawled across the Yellow River just for a look!’

‘Ultraman Seven? Who’s that? Never heard of him, okay?’

‘A pity, but time can’t be turned back, and Gu Muxue is already taken.’

But it wasn’t that hard for him to accept, because there was another young woman right next to him.

‘Lin Ruoxi isn’t just as beautiful as Gu Muxue, she’s also a good girl who knows how to repay a kindness…’

‘She gave me a pack of cigarettes just now. Does that mean she’s interested in me?’

‘If I just pay off her debt and make her my secretary, that’ll create plenty of opportunities…’

After everyone had chatted for a while, the door to the private room was opened by a server.

“Thank you for waiting. This is our restaurant’s signature dish, Gourd Chicken…”

Once all the dishes had been served, everyone ate and chatted.

Xue Rui was sitting between Gu Muxue and Gu Qingshan, which made him a little unhappy. His dream of having a beauty on each arm had yet to be realized…

At first, Xue Rui thought Gu Qingshan was trying to keep an eye on him, but before long, he realized Gu Qingshan was actually doing it for his own good…

“Old Guo, Xue Rui is the son of a childhood friend of mine. He’s quite the go-getter. In high school, he made a game behind his family’s back. Then he went to Shencheng over the summer to set up an electronics factory. Now, who knows what he’s up to in Chang’an…” Gu Qingshan said by way of introduction.

Guo Wei gave a meaningful smile. ‘Gu Qingshan’s daughter is right here, yet he’s letting an outsider like Xue Rui get this close?’

‘Even though it’s just a family dinner, we’re all people within the system. How could I not understand that this is a sign Gu Qingshan wants to give Xue Rui a leg up?’

‘After all, I do have resources here in Chang’an.’

Guo Wei hesitated for a moment, then handed a business card to both Xue Rui and Gu Muxue, saying with a smile, “You really didn’t ask your family for money? Impressive.”

He was very satisfied with how Xue Rui conducted himself. From the way his subordinate had unwrapped the cigarette pack to how Xue Rui himself had smoothed things over earlier, people like him were easy to get along with. This must be why Gu Qingshan had introduced them.

You can have support, but you still need to have the ability to back it up.

Xue Rui clearly had what it took. His character wasn’t bad either, which you could tell from the grateful girl by his side.

Xue Rui quickly stood up and accepted it with both hands. ‘This is a business card with the national emblem on it…’

After handing one to Gu Muxue, Xue Rui took out his wallet, placed Guo Wei’s card in the most prominent spot, and put it away carefully before saying, “Uncle Guo, you praise me too much. It’s really just small stuff.”

‘It’s not that I didn’t want to ask my family for startup capital, but that would have required Xie Jianfeng to actually give it to me!’

‘Of course, how could I have made a game without money?’

‘My startup capital came from Gu Muxue’s lucky money…’

‘I just wonder if Gu Qingshan knows about it.’

‘I ate their food, took their money, and in the end, even ran off with their daughter…’

Thinking about it now, Xue Rui felt that if he had a daughter someday and some scoundrel like himself tried to steal her away, he would want to grab a stool and jump up to break all three of the guy’s legs!

But today, Gu Qingshan had introduced him to his old classmate, giving him access to certain resources…

Xue Rui had to admit he wasn’t as magnanimous as Gu Qingshan.

Now, thinking about how he was two-timing, his heart trembled…

In all these years, not only had Gu Qingshan not tried to sabotage his relationship with Gu Muxue, he had even helped him with his career. If his thing with Lin Ruoxi was ever discovered one day…

Setting aside his own guilty conscience, wouldn’t Old Gu beat him to death?

At this thought, Xue Rui’s back was soaked in sweat.

Gu Qingshan gently turned the lazy Susan, rolled up the sleeve of his white shirt, and tore a leg off the Gourd Chicken. Seeing this, Xue Rui quickly made some space, assuming Gu Qingshan was surely getting the drumstick for his own daughter.

However, to Xue Rui’s surprise, the drumstick landed on his plate!

Gu Qingshan said in a gentle tone, “Xiaorui, go on, try it.”

GULP.

Xue Rui swallowed nervously. ‘This isn’t right, is it?’

‘For me?’

‘Am I worthy?’

Xue Rui grew more and more unnerved. For a moment, he even thought the drumstick was poisoned!

Gu Muxue secretly exchanged a look with her mother. She saw the amusement in her mother’s eyes; both of them knew what Gu Qingshan was up to.

‘Old Gu wants to recruit Xue Rui as a live-in son-in-law, but he’s too embarrassed to say it out loud, and it’s not like I listen to his orders anyway.’

‘So, Old Gu can only slowly show his goodwill toward Xue Rui, hoping that one day he can recruit him as a live-in son-in-law.’