1990s: Spring Water Family

Chapter 272 Choices: The Crossroads of Life
Lin Xiyu was a little worried about her son's temperament. Whenever she saw An'an sitting alone in a daze, she couldn't help but go over and tease him.

An'an loves her mother, and her love is very obvious.

When others tease him, he might at most give them a smile, but when his mother teases him, he will stretch out his little arms and ask his mother to hug him.

-

The mats and blankets were laid out, and the babies played and laughed freely under the pomegranate tree. Their giggles and sweet little voices brought smiles and joy to the faces of the adults.

"You all rest first, I'll go check on Grandma Hu."

Lin Xiyu was preoccupied with the intangible cultural heritage and couldn't wait to share her joy with Grandma Hu and her fellow apprentices.

“I’ll go out with you.”

Gu Bin also had his own things to do.

"Where are you going?"

Lin Xiyu looked surprised.

"Banshan Street".

Gu Bin had his own plans: "I'll go to the new house first, and meet with the nanny while I'm there. I'll ask her to clean the room in advance, and then I'll take Sixth Grandpa back after dinner tonight."

"The nanny has been hired?"

Lin Xiyu looked surprised.

"I booked one with a housekeeping company in advance."

Gu Bin nodded, accompanied her to the courtyard gate, and got on the electric scooter.

"You're really fast."

Lin Xiyu was extremely impressed by his efficiency.

"Come on up, I'll take you there."

Gu Bin pointed to the back seat, intending to give her a ride.

"It's not on my way, I'll go by myself."

Lin Xiyu couldn't help but laugh when she remembered the time he gave Qu Peng a ride on his bicycle.

“You’re lighter than Qu Peng, so you can move things around.”

Gu Bin clearly thought the same thing as her, and the corners of his lips also turned up slightly.

Lin Xiyu pouted and said, "This whole road is paved with stone slabs, it's so uncomfortable, I don't want to."

"bring it on."

Gu Bin continued to tease her: "I'll ride slowly, and you can hold onto my waist so it won't feel uncomfortable."

"forget it."

Lin Xiyu wasn't going to fall for his trick: "There are so many tourists in the alley, it would be so bad if someone saw us."

Gu Bin didn't take it seriously: "We're an old married couple, what's there to be afraid of?"

"Hurry up and leave, stop dawdling."

Lin Xiyu suppressed a laugh and shoved him to chase people away.

"Really not going to sit?"

Gu Bin felt a little regretful.

It's rare for me to have a bit of fun, so I took my wife for a stroll on Qushuiting Street, but she wasn't happy about it.

Forget it, he should hurry up and go to the new house to tidy up; his sixth grandfather is waiting to move in.

It's an old courtyard house in Beijing!
It sounds wonderful!
Just for that reason alone, we have to take good care of the old man.

With him backing up the kids, let's see who dares to bully them in the future.

Xi Xi and Le Le are the apple of the old man's eye, his heart's treasure, and no one can compare to them.

-

When Lin Xiyu arrived at Grandma Hu's house, her three junior brothers and sisters had already arrived.

Grandma Hu was overjoyed when she heard the good news, wiping away her tears and smiling happily.

"Once you are recognized as an inheritor of intangible cultural heritage, you will receive subsidies."

Lin Xiyu was genuinely happy for Grandma Hu: "I heard she can earn more than two thousand yuan a month. People who rely on their skills to make a living will have something to look forward to in the future."

"Two thousand."

Li Ang smacked his lips a few times, feeling quite bitter: "He earns more than I do odd jobs. Compared to Grandma Hu, I, as her apprentice, am doing really badly. I've brought shame to her."

“We can also apply to be successors.”

Zhang Jie is still a college student. She is simple-minded and doesn't have many hidden agendas. She speaks her mind directly.

"Being a successor isn't that easy to get."

Li Ang smiled wryly: "The requirements are very strict. Usually, it requires more than 15 years of experience in the industry, mastery of the core skills of the project being applied for, recognition and influence in a specific field, active participation in inheritance activities, cultivation of successors, and involvement in public welfare promotion."

"Putting aside other things, just having 15 years of experience in the industry is enough to shut down a large number of people."

Wang Lei shook his head with difficulty: "It's hard to persist in doing one thing for ten years, let alone 15 years. Moreover, there are policies in various places that require inheritors to stay in their local area to develop and contribute to local public welfare."

"what?"

Zhang Jie was a little confused: "I have to stay in the local area, so I can't go to Shenzhen after graduation."

"No."

Li Ang bluntly poured cold water on her idea: "Don't be so optimistic. You want to have your cake and eat it too? Making money in Shenzhen and then trying to take up a spot in Jinan? How is that possible?"

"I didn't intend to take advantage of you."

Zhang Jie blushed and felt very embarrassed after his retort: ​​"It was just a casual remark. Even if I was wrong, there was no need to say it so harshly."

"Stop, stop talking."

Fearing that he would disturb Grandma Hu's rest, Wang Lei made a stop gesture, indicating that the two should stop arguing.

"Xiyu, come here, Grandma has something to tell you."

Grandma Hu, lying in bed, heard this and tremblingly reached out her hand to Lin Xiyu.

"coming."

Lin Xiyu quickly went over and took her hand.

"Xi Yu."

Grandma Hu's eyes reddened: "Grandma knows she doesn't have much time left. It's already a blessing from God that she's managed to hold on until now."

"Grandma Hu, please don't say that."

Seeing that Grandma Hu seemed to be giving her last words, Lin Xiyu felt a lump in her throat and tears streamed down her face uncontrollably.

"Don't interrupt, listen to me."

Grandma Hu took a weak breath and, with almost all her strength, gripped her hand tightly: "Grandma has no other worries now, only one wish: that our paper-cutting art must be passed down."

"Uh-huh."

Lin Xiyu nodded forcefully, her voice choked with emotion.

"You are Grandma's favorite apprentice."

Grandma Hu looked on with anticipation: "You, Xiao Ang, Xiao Lei, and Xiao Jie are all good children. After Grandma passes away, the inheritance of this art will depend on you."

"We will definitely persevere and will not let you down."

Lin Xiyu couldn't bear to disappoint Grandma Hu, so she made a promise with tears in her eyes.

"With your words, Grandma can rest assured."

Grandma Hu smiled with relief, but the hand she was holding tightly lost its support and fell limply to the side.

"Grandma Hu?!"

Lin Xiyu was so frightened that her face changed drastically.

"Grandma is fine, she's just a little tired."

Grandma Hu was so weak that she could barely open her eyes.

"Grandma, you should rest well. I'll come see you again tomorrow."

Not wanting to disturb Grandma Hu's rest, Lin Xiyu got up to say goodbye with her fellow students. Just before leaving the room, she inexplicably turned back for one last look.

"Let's go."

Grandma Hu gently waved her hand, gave them one last loving look, and then closed her eyes wearily.

Lin Xiyu stopped in her tracks, momentarily stunned.

For some reason, I suddenly felt empty inside, my eyes stung, and I wanted to cry.

At that moment, she had no idea that this would be the last time she saw Grandma Hu.

That very night, the kind old man fell into a deep sleep and passed away peacefully.

-

Grandma Hu passed away, and Lin Xiyu was truly saddened for a long time. Whenever she saw the painting of Jinan's charm, which Grandma Hu had painstakingly created before her death, her eyes would sting and she would want to cry.

At Gu Bin's suggestion, she donated the painting to the Mass Art Museum, so that more folk culture enthusiasts could appreciate the masterpiece and remember the elderly woman who dedicated her life to the art of paper-cutting. Time passed quietly in healing and recovery, and in mid-April, just as she had finally accepted the fact that Grandma Hu was no longer there and was trying to cheer up and prepare for applying to become an intangible cultural heritage inheritor, a phone call from Shanghai broke the peace of her life and stirred up quite a ripple in her heart.

-

Wangfu Pond, an old residence.

The family took advantage of the good weather and sat in the yard, basking in the sun and chatting.

Lin Xiyu sat under the pomegranate tree cutting paper, while Xixi climbed over from the mat and clung to her mother, wanting her to play with her.

"Xixi, be good, stop making a fuss."

Fearing she might hurt her daughter, Lin Xiyu quickly put the scissors down.

The nanny, Sister Liu, chased after them, trying to take Xixi away. Xixi was unwilling and kept crying and struggling in Sister Liu's arms.

Lin Xiyu softened and reached out to take her daughter.

Xixi immediately stopped crying and happily jumped high, stepping on her mother's legs.

Lin Xiyu was both amused and exasperated, and could only hold her steady, letting her frolic on her body.

"Xixi is still closer to her mother."

Sister Liu pretended to be jealous and said sourly, "I watched her grow up since she was a baby, and now she won't even let me hug her."

"If my daughter isn't close to her mother, who will she be close to?"

Grandma Gu found it amusing and joked to herself, "Compared to my own mother, even I, her great-grandmother, have to take a backseat, let alone an outsider."

“Lele is different; she’s closest to her dad.”

Gu Bin held his beloved little daughter and took the opportunity to show her off.

"whee."

Lele understood and grinned from ear to ear.

"Come here, Lele, give me a kiss."

Gu Bin got excited and pointed to his cheek, asking his daughter to kiss him.

Lele understood what he meant and indeed gave him a kiss on the cheek, leaving his face covered in drool bubbles.

"did you see?"

Gu Bin became even more smug: "This is proof, and no rebuttal is allowed."

"Alright, alright."

Lin Xiyu couldn't stand his smugness and bluntly retorted, "If you're so capable, try getting An'an to kiss you too. If you can convince your son, then you win."

"Uh."

Gu Bin was embarrassed and subconsciously glanced at An An.

At that moment, An An also lifted her eyelids and looked at him.

The father and son stared at each other for a few seconds.

He was just about to try to communicate with his beloved son when he saw An'an look away in disgust.

"Hahaha."

Lin Xiyu had anticipated this outcome and smiled happily.

-

"Buzz."

Just as she was laughing happily, her phone vibrated slightly, and the caller ID showed a familiar number she hadn't heard from in a long time.

"The principal? What does he want with me?"

When she recognized the person as the former principal of the vocational school where she used to work, she was stunned and hesitated for a long time before answering the phone.

"Xi Yu, I have good news to tell you."

Two years later, the principal was still speaking to her with the same enthusiasm as she remembered, seemingly unchanged, yet somehow familiar yet strange.

"Is that so? Okay, okay, I'll think about it and get back to you as soon as possible."

Lin Xiyu understood his purpose and hung up the phone with mixed feelings.

"Why did your principal want to see you?"

Grandma Gu noticed that her expression was off and looked over with some concern.

"The principal said..."

Lin Xiyu did not hide anything: "The Civil Aviation Secondary Vocational School in Shanghai has been upgraded to a vocational college and a branch school has been built in Pudong. They urgently need English teachers with professional qualifications and asked me if I would be willing to go back to teach there."

"Vocational college?"

Grandma Gu's eyes lit up with surprise: "That's a junior college degree! You've become a university teacher."

"Yes."

Lin Xiyu sighed softly, "This is truly unexpected good news."

"Do you want to go back?"

Gu Bin noticed her hesitation and tentatively asked.

"I do not know."

Lin Xiyu's thoughts were somewhat disordered.

If Grandma Hu hadn't passed away, she probably would have agreed without hesitation.

However, there are no "what ifs" in life.
"This is a once-in-a-lifetime event, you need to think it through carefully."

Grandma Gu genuinely cared for her: "University teachers are very different from vocational school teachers. Not only are the benefits better, but their status is also a level higher. It would be such a pity to miss this opportunity."

"I see."

Lin Xiyu gave a wry smile: "That's why I didn't refuse directly. I told her frankly that I would consider it."

"What's there to consider?"

Grandma Gu spoke her mind: "If you ask me, being a university professor is much better than running a training course. The benefits are good and the job is secure. In the past, that was a coveted job."

Let her make her own decision.

Gu Bin dotes on his wife, stating his position: "Our family doesn't need the money she earns. Even if she doesn't work, it's okay. I can support them."

"That's true."

After saying that, Grandma Gu regretted it a little and tried to make amends: "Of course, whether you go back or not depends on your own wishes. I was just saying it casually, so don't take it too seriously."

I hadn't thought about it.

Lin Xiyu chuckled self-deprecatingly: "I'll be a university teacher one day too."

"This is a difficult decision."

Grandma Gu was worried for her: "You should think it over carefully. You have to think it through so you won't regret it later."

"Ah."

Lin Xiyu hugged her sweet and soft daughter tightly and fell into deep thought.

-

That afternoon, Qinglong Back Street.

"Grandma, I'm not leaving anymore. I'll stay in Jinan and keep you company, okay?"

Lin Xiyu went to her maternal grandmother's house alone under the pretext of going out for a stroll to digest her food.

"Grandma is getting old, how many more years can she live?"

Grandma noticed that she was preoccupied and tentatively advised, "Don't do anything foolish and ruin your future."

"I didn't do anything stupid."

Lin Xiyu leaned on her grandmother's shoulder and said coquettishly, "I just don't want to be so far away from Grandma. I want to be able to see you anytime."

"Is something wrong at work again?"

Grandma, though old, was not senile and could easily see through her little scheme: "Counting the days, two years should be almost up, right? You can't keep taking unpaid leave like this. There has to be an explanation. If you keep not going back, the boss won't agree."

"I'm really not going back to the marketing department. I've had enough."

Lin Xiyu felt upset whenever she thought about that terrible environment, and she still couldn't let it go even after two years.

"If you don't go back, where do you want to go?"

Grandma looked at her with a furrowed brow, very worried about her.

I don't want to go anywhere.

Lin Xiyu snuggled against her grandmother's shoulder and said sweetly, "I just want to stay in Jinan with you."

"If you have anything to say, just say it."

Grandma laughed and scolded, "Don't make Grandma anxious. Grandma is not the same as when she was young. She can't take any shocks."

"Grandma."

Lin Xiyu stopped acting cute and put on a pitiful face, saying, "You also think that running a training class isn't a proper job?"