Chapter 27: Chapter 27: The Get-Rich Plan—Watches and Moutai**

In her heart, Gu Qinghuan quietly estimated Lu Jianye’s financial situation. For a family like theirs, taking out three to five thousand yuan shouldn’t be a problem, right?

“Uncle, my friend’s batch has twenty watches in total, all in the same condition. You can inspect them before paying,” Gu Qinghuan said with a bright smile.

Lu Jianye frowned. Twenty watches? That would mean a cost of four thousand yuan.

That’s no small sum. He could come up with it, but if these watches didn’t sell and got stuck in his hands, it would be a total loss.

But looking at it another way, if he made fifty yuan on each watch, that would be a profit of a thousand yuan.

He knew that after years of hard saving, his family had less than five thousand yuan in the bank. Earning a thousand yuan in one go—opportunities like this didn’t come every day.

Gu Qinghuan could see his hesitation but didn’t rush him. Deals like this had to be made willingly on both sides.

After a long moment of contemplation, Lu Jianye finally made up his mind. To hell with it—only a fool would pass up easy money.

“Niece, when can you deliver the goods? I’ll go home and get the money right now.”

“Uncle Lu, you’re decisive! I’ll go get the watches from my friend now. Give me an hour at most, and I’ll come find you.”

“Great!” Lu Jianye was an impatient man and hurried home to get the money.

Gu Qinghuan returned to her space, spent two hundred yuan to order twenty watches, and packed them in a cloth bag.

There was still time, so she started thinking about how to reasonably explain all the things she’d bought for her grandparents.

She’d already given them a hundred yuan before, and now she was buying all these things. They were bound to get suspicious.

And in the future, she’d be bringing them food and supplies regularly.

Sooner or later, she’d have to come clean.

Gu Qinghuan steeled herself. She might as well tell them everything after dropping them off today, instead of letting it hang over her head like a ticking time bomb.

They’d find out eventually.

Thinking of this, she could already sense a storm brewing.

She took out the cotton-padded jackets and other supplies for her grandparents and mother, planning to bring them all back today.

As for the two thick quilts, she’d find another chance to deliver them later.

Bringing everything at once would be too conspicuous, and she couldn’t carry it all anyway. Besides, it would attract envy. Last time, her mother had been pushed and the culprit hadn’t been found. With their sensitive status, it was best not to draw attention.

Once everything was packed, it was about time.

Gu Qinghuan returned to Lu Jianye’s office. He was already waiting for her and had even made tea.

Gu Qinghuan wasn’t in a hurry. She sat down and took a careful sip.

“The tea is rich but not bitter, mellow and smooth, fresh and sweet, with a unique aftertaste.”

“Niece, you have good taste. Do you like this Liu’an Guapian? I’ll give you two boxes before you leave.”

After a bit of polite small talk, they got down to business.

“Uncle Lu, here are the goods. Please check them.”

Gu Qinghuan placed the bag in front of Lu Jianye and calmly continued sipping her tea.

Lu Jianye opened each box and inspected every watch carefully, confirming that they were all genuine.

Once he was sure, a genuine smile appeared on his face. “Niece, everything’s fine. Here’s four thousand yuan. Please count it.”

Gu Qinghuan stood up, took the money, and counted it twice before putting it away.

“Uncle Lu, you do business in a straightforward way.”

“Niece, once you walk out this door, you never gave me any watches, and I never gave you any money,” Lu Jianye reminded her quietly.

“I understand the rules, Uncle Lu. Don’t worry,” Gu Qinghuan replied, wishing more than anyone that this matter would stay between them.

“Alright, I’ll walk you out. Oh, and take these two boxes of Liu’an Guapian with you.”

Lu Jianye really did hand her the tea.

There was no real friendship between them—just mutual benefit—so Gu Qinghuan accepted the tea without fuss.

As they passed the counter on their way out, something caught Gu Qinghuan’s eye.

Moutai liquor.

During this special period in history, Moutai had changed from the Feitian label to the Sunflower label, using milky-white glass bottles with red ribbons tied around the neck. The ribbons were embroidered with “China Guizhou Moutai.”

It’s worth mentioning that the sunflower design had two versions. The rare one was called “Big Leaf Sunflower,” named for the wide leaves on the trademark.

Gu Qinghuan had once seen on Douyin that at a domestic auction, a bottle of 1976 Big Leaf Sunflower Moutai had stunned the nation, selling for 500,000 yuan.

That was because the Big Leaf Sunflower trademark was only used for a very short time, and very few bottles exist.

It was only 1975 now, so the Big Leaf Sunflower would have to wait, but she couldn’t pass up the regular Moutai either.

A bottle of 1975 Moutai could fetch fifty or sixty thousand yuan in the future!

Gu Qinghuan was delighted—she’d found another path to wealth.

Being a middleman was just too profitable.

“Uncle Lu, by the way, my elders at home love Moutai. I’d like to buy some for them. Could you help me out?” (Buying Moutai required a special permit.)

As a manager, Lu Jianye had that authority.

“No problem. Four bottles—is that enough? That’s the most I can get this month. If you need more, come back next month and I’ll save them for you.”

Having just made a tidy profit off Gu Qinghuan, Lu Jianye was more than happy to help with such a small favor.

Gu Qinghuan, of course, had no objections.

“That’s great, thank you, Uncle Lu.”

Lu Jianye had the clerk write up the slip, and then went to pay.

Gu Qinghuan quickly followed and insisted on paying herself. Four bottles at seven yuan each came to twenty-eight yuan—she couldn’t possibly let him pay.

Lu Jianye saw that she didn’t take advantage of small favors and knew how to handle things, and his opinion of her rose.

They said their goodbyes at the entrance of the grocery store.

It was already four in the afternoon.

Gu Qinghuan hurriedly rode her bike to the hospital.

On the way, she found a chance to stash the liquor and money in her space, and took out the things she’d prepared for her grandparents, hanging them on the handlebars.

No matter how hard she tried to pack, it was still a huge bundle—there was just too much stuff.

When she arrived at the hospital, Zhong Zijun and Cheng Shuying had already completed the discharge procedures and packed up, waiting for her.

After saying goodbye to the other patients in the ward, the three of them prepared to head back to the village.

“Mom, get on. Put the luggage on too. I’ll take you home first, then come back for Grandma.”

There was no other way. Without the luggage, she might have been able to take two people, but with so much stuff and a patient, it was better to be safe.

The two of them were surprised that Gu Qinghuan had borrowed a bicycle.

“Huanhuan, when did you learn to ride a bike?” Zhong Zijun remembered that when her daughter was in middle school, she’d fallen the first time she tried and never touched a bike again.

Gu Qinghuan hadn’t expected this to come up and tried to brush it off with a laugh. “Necessity is the mother of invention. People have to move forward, right?”

Zhong Zijun suddenly felt her heart clench. Being forced to learn new things—this was hardly the only one.

A deep, indescribable pain tormented this mother.

Not being able to protect her daughter from life’s hardships, forcing her to face such a harsh reality—that was her failure as a mother.

Because of this little episode, Zhong Zijun was quiet the whole way and didn’t even notice all the bags Gu Qinghuan had bought.

With her usable right hand, she clung tightly to her daughter’s clothes. Her vision blurred, as damp as her heart.

How time flies. That little girl was now strong enough to shield her from the wind and rain."