Lin Qingping and Gu Juncheng

Chapter 517 Life is Full of Ups and Downs

Lin Qingping originally only wanted her own family to gather for Zhangzhu's 100-day celebration. The main reason was that Zhangzhu's full moon celebration was held on the island, and neither her aunt Gu Youlian nor her godmother Wu Tianjiao attended. Therefore, they all insisted on holding a 100-day celebration!

"Then let's do it. We can just set up a table of dishes at home," she said. But her idea was obviously unrealistic. Gu Juncheng only gave her a look when he heard it.

Sure enough, even before the banquet day arrived, everyone had already asked: "Little Pearl is turning 100 days old, are you planning to hold a 100-day banquet?"

These families included the Wu family elders, who already had Wu Tianjiao as their godmother, the Cheng family, Wei Zhonghua and his family, the Yun family, and even Zhiyuan came to ask if there were any seats for Xiaoyuanlian and his friends.

Lin Qingping laughed, "How do those kids with the round face know about these things?"

Zhiyuan shook his head and chuckled, "I just showed off a few times that I have a little sister who's my precious daughter."

That's something to be incredibly envious of; out of all of them, he's the only one with such a little sister!

The little round-faced girl added, "Isn't your sister my sister? We're going to her full moon celebration, 100-day celebration, and first birthday celebration."

The little round-faced girl has been to many such banquets with her mother, so she understands...

“We’re going to give gifts,” the round-faced girl emphasized.

Therefore, Lin Qingping had no choice but to book the banquet at an outside restaurant, reserving several tables.

As it turned out, more people came to the banquet than she had imagined. Wu Tianping also returned, along with Mei Li and their son, plus Wu Tianjiao and Expert Shen, which was enough for half a table.

Lin Qingping thought that the two elders of the Wu family wouldn't come, since it wouldn't be convenient for them to show their faces, but Elder Wu didn't come, while Aunt Xu did.

From the Yun family's side, Mr. Yun, Yun Yan, Yun Zheng, and Yun Xiaoshan arrived.

They happened to be sitting at a table, but as soon as Yun Xiaoshan sat down, Xiao Yuanlian and the others arrived, and Yun Xiaoshan slipped away to Xiao Yuanlian's side.

Who would have thought that the kids who used to fight and make a ruckus in kindergarten would be best buddies now!

At 100 days old, the little one is becoming increasingly chubby and rosy-cheeked, simply adorable. Adults keep praising her, and children especially adore her. Little Round Face and his friends even brought gifts, one for each of them.

Lin Qingping was truly moved by everyone's enthusiasm. Although they said they came to celebrate Zhangzhu's 100th day, it was actually for the couple themselves.

Mr. Yun and Aunt Xu both said, "Don't think like that. While we do want to see our little darling Zhangzhu, we also have a selfish reason. You two have been away from the island for years, and even after you've been back, you haven't had many meals with us. We'd like to take this opportunity to get together."

Lin Qingping smiled, "We will definitely come back to visit everyone often when we have time."

The guests and hosts enjoyed themselves immensely that day.

Two days later, Lin Qingping and Gu Juncheng took their two children and boarded a train heading south back to the island.

Experts Shen and his team will follow closely in a week.

During this week, Lin Qingping had to finish the preliminary work, while Zhiyuan spent two days playing wildly with the boys on the island before returning to school.

However, Zhiyuan was very listless the day he returned from school.

"What? You spent the whole summer playing and didn't finish your homework?" Lin Qingping teased him.

"No, Mom," Zhiyuan sighed. "Qingtian isn't going to school anymore."

Lin Qingping was taken aback, but did not ask why.

She was a woman who had lived a long life and had seen many families where, when poverty prevented them from sending two children to school, it was often the daughter who suffered the most.

That night, she thought about it for a long time.

Gu Juncheng had no idea what she was doing; she kept tossing and turning, unable to sleep. Just as she turned over again, he caught her and asked, "What are you doing?"

Lin Qingping looked into his eyes in the dim light and asked, "Gu Juncheng, if you knew that there was a huge hole that you could never fill no matter how much food you threw in, would you still try to fill it? Because there's a very weak rabbit in the hole, and if you don't fill it, she'll go hungry."

"You will go." Gu Juncheng reached out and stroked her cheek, running his fingers through her loose hair.

Lin Qingping sighed and buried her head in his chest.

The next day, she asked Zhiyuan to take her to Qingtian's fish stall.

Qingtian was selling fish. Despite her young age and thin body, she was very skilled at catching, weighing, and killing the fish.

When Lin Qingping and Zhiyuan appeared in front of the fish stall, Qingtian dropped all the fish in her hands and stood there dumbfounded.

Zhiyuan quickly helped her catch the fish and said to her, "Qingtian, my mom said you must go back to school."

Qingtian silently lowered her head.

"Sunny day, come on, stop selling fish and take us to your house." Zhiyuan helped her pack up her fish stall.

Only Qingtian's mother was at home on a sunny day.

Since being discharged from the hospital after her injury, Qingtian's mother's health has deteriorated significantly, which is why Qingtian cannot attend school.

“I also want my children to go to school! But look at my family’s situation…” Sunny’s mother sighed, “I can’t shoulder the burden of selling fish, and I really can’t afford to support two children.”

Lin Qingping looked at the wine bottles scattered on the boat and shook her head inwardly. Even so, Qingtian's father never said he would support the family. He still only knew how to drink. Qingtian's mother, on the other hand, had already gotten used to this and never thought that Qingtian's father would have to support the family.

This is the unfillable black hole that Lin Qingping fears.

Qingtian's father won't change, and Qingtian's mother is hardworking, honest, and resilient; she won't change her mind in a short time. She can't persuade her to get a divorce either. Besides, there are Qingtian's two uncles, both of whom are greedy, lazy, and good-for-nothing. It will be difficult to change this family, but Lin Qingping doesn't want to change anything. She only wants to change Qingtian's life.

Lin Qingping proposed to sponsor Qingtian's schooling.

"How can this be?" Sunny's mother was both touched and incredulous, and couldn't help but cry. "I still owe your family for medical expenses..." She had no money to pay back. Her family bought fish from fishermen to sell; she couldn't afford to go out to sea to fish herself...

Those thugs who beat people up haven't been caught yet, but even if they are, it's uncertain whether we can get medical expenses from them. If they keep denying it and saying they have no money, we'll have to keep dragging this out!

"I want to start a seafood farm. You can come and work there. I'll arrange a slightly easier job for you, but I have two conditions you must agree to," Lin Qingping said.

Sunny's eyes lit up. "What are your conditions? Don't even mention two conditions! You are our family's greatest benefactor. No matter what I ask of you, I can never repay your kindness!"

"First, Qingtian's studies must never be interrupted, not even in the future; second, the salary I give you cannot be used to subsidize your two younger brothers or for your husband to buy alcohol. It is their education fund! Apart from your family's normal daily expenses, you must save it all for their schooling!" Lin Qingping didn't know if these two conditions could really be met with Qingtian's mother, but she had to make them.

At first, Sunny's mother felt embarrassed about the mess in her family, but she immediately nodded vigorously and made a promise to Lin Qingping.

When Qingtian returned to school, Lin Qingping devoted herself fully to her seafood farming business.

On the occasion of Zhangzhu's first birthday, her seafood company officially began operations. Wu Tianjiao and Mei Li sent congratulatory telegrams from the capital and invited her to visit the capital.

Lin Qingping didn't go until summer vacation because her second sister and Yunqi had returned from abroad and were preparing to get married.

At that time, Zhangzhu could already walk and say simple words, and her sentences were always two words long. She was truly worthy of the title "Island Flower". Her appearance combined the advantages of Lin Qingping and Gu Juncheng, with delicate and lively features, and was as lovely as jade.

"Auntie, the bride, Zhuzhu, let's go." On the day of departure, Zhangzhu waved to everyone she met on the island, telling them that she was going to attend her second aunt's wedding.

Gu Juncheng held Zhangzhu in his arms and listened patiently to her conversation with the island's neighbors. Even though Zhangzhu spoke slowly and her pronunciation was not standard, he was not in a hurry at all and did not interrupt her. Instead, he looked at his precious daughter with a proud and appreciative gaze.

Lin Qingping followed behind, really wanting to say: You have so much patience, but don't you think about whether other people have the time and patience to listen to your daughter's baby talk?

Of course, even when she was complaining, she was complaining about Gu Juncheng's behavior as an old father. No one on the island didn't love Zhangzhu, except for Fang Tuan's wife next door.

The sun was quite strong, and although Zhangzhu was wearing a small sun hat, sweat was still beading on her nose.

Lin Qingping urged Gu Juncheng, "Stop dawdling, or Zhangzhu's skin will get tanned."

Upon hearing this, Gu Juncheng immediately quickened his pace and opened an umbrella.

Lin Qingping: ...

Gu Juncheng holding an umbrella—that's practically a rarity on the island...

Finally arriving at the port and boarding the ship, the moment Lin Qingping stepped onto the deck, she felt dizzy and instinctively reached out to grab something, but Zhiyuan steadied her. "Mom, are you dizzy again?"

"It's alright, I'm fine." Lin Qingping regained her balance after a while.

Perhaps it's because she's been working too hard this year, but she occasionally feels dizzy and her vision goes black, and it's been happening more frequently lately.

She thought she was just too tired, and that she might as well take a good rest during this trip to the capital, and that she would feel better.

Gu Juncheng freed one hand to help her up, "Since you're going to the capital this time, you might as well get a thorough checkup!"

"Okay," Lin Qingping readily agreed. Regular checkups are something everyone is aware of many years later; they really should be done.

The little girl, unaware of what was happening, was overjoyed to see her parents so close together and called out in her sweet, childish voice, "Mommy!"

“Baby, Mommy’s here!” Lin Qingping smiled and leaned close to her daughter.

The chubby little girl leaned over and said, "Mommy, kiss me." She hugged Lin Qingping's neck and gave her a quick kiss.

The warm, damp feeling on Lin Qingping's face seeped into her heart.

Having such a precious daughter is a gift from fate to her in this life. She must take good care of herself for the sake of such a lovely daughter!

This wasn't the first time Zhangzhu had traveled far from home, but she had no memory of last year's trip.

Now she can see and talk. From the sea to the train and then to the capital, she is full of energy. She is a curious baby, pointing with her little finger at everything she doesn't understand or hasn't seen before, asking her dad to tell her.

Gu Juncheng, the old father, was incredibly patient, asking and answering questions with Zhangzhu. Sometimes, when Zhiyuan saw his father working so hard, he wanted to teach his sister in his father's place, but Gu Juncheng would refuse.

Just like when they came back last time, the house had already been cleaned before they arrived in the capital. The blankets and clothes had all been washed and dried. They could simply move in when they returned.

Lin Qingyun and Yun Qi's new house is not here. The Yun family has naturally prepared a new house. The house that Lin Qingping bought for the second sister before her marriage is the second sister's private property.

The Yun family was quite decent in this matter.

My second sister isn't officially married yet, but she lives in her own house, a whole apartment all by herself.

Lin Qingping hadn't seen her younger sister for two years. The sisters had so much to talk about when they reunited. What impressed Lin Qingping the most was that her younger sister was even more beautiful and elegant than she had been two years ago. This beauty came from her radiant confidence.

Lin Zhaodi from Linjia Village has truly vanished with the wind.

The second sister and Yunqi are both trendy people. They have already registered their marriage and originally did not plan to hold a wedding, but the Yun family did not agree.

"Actually, Yunqi didn't agree!" the second sister said helplessly as she spoke privately with her older sister.

Yunqi refused because he had pursued her for so long, and finally, she had agreed to his proposal. He desperately wanted a grand wedding! He had been longing for a wedding for a very, very long time…

Lin Qingping chuckled inwardly. Isn't it the girls who look forward to their weddings more?

However, this also proves that Yunqi really cares about his second sister. The second sister finally changed her fate, not only achieving academic success but also finding a good husband.

The Yun family is a good in-law family, except for Liu Yan. However, since my second sister and her husband don't live with Liu Yan, it's not a big problem.

Although the second sister and Yunqi had already registered their marriage, the Yun family, being particular about etiquette, still went through all the formalities and sent betrothal gifts.

Nearly nine years have passed since Lin Qingping got married, and since it was in the capital, the bride price was not just a few hundred yuan.

Lin Qingping gave all the money to her second sister.

"Sister, here you go!" The second sister said, remembering how kind her older sister had been to her. Her sister had given her so much.

"Here! This is your secret stash of money, kept for you." Not only will the bride price be returned to her younger sister, but she will also give her second sister a dowry.

Her beloved little sister has grown up!

That evening, she shared her feelings with Gu Juncheng, recalling her first time home after her rebirth and the sight of her younger sister returning from the fields, feeling both moved and wistful.

Then she started talking about her wedding.

"Gu Juncheng, how about we treat your Gu Family Village to a meal?" She lay on Gu Juncheng's shoulder and gently pinched the muscles in his waist.

He wasn't ticklish and let her pinch him, but he felt a little guilty when the topic came up.

Conditions were poor back then, and besides, neither he nor his parents were worldly-wise; when someone in the village got married, the whole village would feast.

Their family had tried their best to make the banquet decent, and it could be said to be the best in Gujia Village, but compared to the second sister's wedding, it really couldn't compare.

"Gu Juncheng..." Lin Qingping called his name softly, "Next year will mark our tenth wedding anniversary. Let's celebrate properly, okay?"

“Okay!” he said without hesitation.