Li Mu's eldest aunt, Xiao Yunzhi, and youngest aunt, Xiao Yunlan, arrived together. The moment the eldest aunt entered, she first congratulated Li Mu's family of three, then apologized, saying that Li Mu's eldest uncle and eldest cousin had gone back to their hometown last week, so she came alone today.
Youngest aunt's family of three was all here, her husband, Ceng Jiwei, and her eight-year-old daughter, Ceng Jing.
After entering, youngest aunt only greeted Li Mu's mother, then skipped Papa Lee and went straight to Li Mu's maternal grandparents. Li Mu had been observing youngest aunt from afar, and saw a hint of disdain between her brows.
Papa Lee was a little embarrassed, and youngest uncle hurriedly took out a cigarette and handed one to Papa Lee. "Brother-in-law, have a cigarette."
At this moment, eldest uncle and aunt pushed the door open and walked in.
As soon as they pushed the door open, the two of them were shocked by the size of the private room in front of them. The two of them exchanged a look and suppressed the surprise in their hearts.
"Brother and sister-in-law, you're here." Li Mu's mother saw the two of them enter the private room and hurriedly greeted them with a smile.
Li Daoping also nodded slightly and greeted them. "Brother and sister-in-law, you're here."
Eldest uncle, Xiao Yunjian, nodded calmly, then glanced at the two bottles of Maotai on the table, turned to look at Li Daoping, and said with a bit of seriousness, "Daoping, it's indeed gratifying that Little Mu did well in his exams, but since when did you like these formalism? Won't this meal cost Little Mu's tuition for the next six months? "
Li Daoping was a little embarrassed, and he wanted to blurt out that the money was earned by Li Mu, but he didn't expect that Li Mu would say before him. "Uncle, my father said that today's main purpose is not to celebrate my scores, but to take this opportunity to get together as a family. We haven't had a meal together for several years. The last time was when Sister Yuanyuan went to college."
Li Daoping glanced at Li Mu, then suddenly nodded and said with a smile, "Yes, eldest brother, we're just having a meal together as a family. We don't know if Little Mu will be admitted or not, so there's no need to celebrate at this time."
"Well, which school did Little Mu apply for?" Eldest uncle said, then walked to the table, picked up an opened bottle of Maotai and sniffed it.
The national liquor's flavor was so unique! It cost a few hundred yuan a bottle, and even he himself could only drink it two or three times a year.
Nanny Li said, "Xiaomu enrolled in Renmin University."
"Renmin University?" Eldest uncle frowned and put the bottle back on the table. "636 points is indeed not low, but isn't it a little risky for him to go to Renmin University?"
Papa Lee chuckled. "The child decided it himself."
Eldest aunt asked, "Which school did you apply for as a second choice?"
Li Mu answered, "I didn't apply for a second choice."
"You didn't apply?" Eldest aunt was stunned for a moment, then said with a rich expression, "Oh, if he can't get into Renmin University, will he have to repeat for another year?"
As soon as she said that, everyone in the room looked over.
The first choice had such a high threshold, but he didn't apply for a second choice. Li Mu's approach was too shocking.
However, Li Mu didn't care. Anyway, he knew the situation, and he could definitely get out of the National People's Congress, so he didn't want to continue this topic. He said to his father, "Dad, we're all here. Let's quickly greet them and take a seat."
Only then did Papa Lee react. He hurriedly smiled and invited his grandparents and the others to take a seat.
Eldest uncle was suspicious. Just as he sat down with his wife, Xiao Yunlan took the initiative to sit beside him.
At the huge table, they sat opposite Li Mu's family of three. Youngest aunt covered her mouth and whispered in Eldest uncle's ear, "Eldest brother, today's meal must have cost a lot, right?"
Eldest uncle smacked his lips and said in a low voice, "Two bottles of Maotai, eight cold dishes, Li Daoping is going all out. Although the hot dishes haven't been served yet, looking at this, it's at least three to five thousand yuan."
"Oh my!" Youngest aunt was extremely shocked. "You said he's a stingy old man, what's wrong with him today? Why is he so willing to spend money? "
Eldest uncle said, "I don't know, did he make a fortune?"
"Him?" Youngest aunt pouted. "Don't you know what Xiling Coal Mine is like? I think he and my second sister only make 1,700 yuan a month. "
Eldest uncle nodded and asked, "How's the business of your children's clothing store recently?"
"It's alright." Youngest aunt was a little melancholic. "It's not too good this year. There are a lot of children's clothing stores, and they're all getting their goods from the south. They're competing with each other and suppressing the prices. It's already more than half this year, and we've only made 10,000 yuan."
As they spoke, a few waiters served six hot dishes. Eldest uncle took a look and sighed to Youngest aunt. "Li Daoping's meal is almost the same as your income for the whole season."
Youngest aunt laughed awkwardly. "I guess Li Daoping feels that he can't lift his head in front of us, so he's going all out and trying to gain some face while his son scored high."
At that moment, under Li Mu's urging, Papa Lee stood up nervously. He held a glass of wine and said a few opening remarks with a slight stutter. After that, he invited everyone to clink their glasses and start eating.
Eldest uncle ate a few mouthfuls of food and said to Papa Lee with ulterior motives, "Daoping, I heard that Xiling Coal Mine has two batches of layoffs this year. The first batch has been announced, right?"
Li Mu thought to himself, Eldest uncle and Youngest aunt always talk about Xiling Coal Mine every time they meet. As long as this topic is brought up, nothing good will come out.
Li Daoping nodded. "It's announced. The first batch will be laid off at the end of this month, and the second batch will only be announced in November."
"You and Yunfang aren't in the first batch, right?"
Li Daoping took a sip of wine and said, "Not the two of us."
"That's good." Eldest uncle chuckled. "We're a big family, and we worry about you all the time. The efficiency of your Xiling Coal Mine is getting worse and worse. You can lay people off and close down just like that. Little Mu is going to university this year, and his tuition and living expenses are not small. What are you going to do when the time comes? Even if you want to borrow money, you can only borrow money once or twice. If you borrow money too many times, who will still lend money to you? "
Papa Lee's expression was a little awkward, but he still nodded repeatedly as if he was being taught a lesson. Eldest uncle was the boss of this generation in the Xiao Family, and he always used such a high and mighty tone to lecture everyone.
Li Mu couldn't stand it anymore. In his eyes, Eldest uncle's words were hypocritical and unpleasant, as if he was afraid that his parents would borrow money from him in the future.
Thus, Li Mu said lightly, "Eldest uncle is right. These days, my parents have been thinking that Xiling Coal Mine won't be able to hold on for long, and they want to take the initiative to lay off and start a business."
Papa Lee and Li Ma looked at Li Mu in surprise. At this time, Li Mu gently patted their legs under the table, and before they said anything, he said, "I also think it's good to start a business now, much better than going to work."
Everyone at the table was a little surprised. In their opinion, Li Daoping wouldn't go to the sea even if all the people in the country went to work. He was that kind of cautious person, and if he left the iron bowl, he probably wouldn't even be able to sleep well!
At this time, Little Aunt said with a smile, "Oh, second brother-in-law also wants to go to the sea? That's really rare! I wonder what kind of business you and my second sister are discussing? "
Li Mu rushed to answer again, "My parents want to do some clothing business."
Little Aunt's face instantly turned cold, and her tone was a little unfriendly. "Not everyone can do the clothing business if they want to. I have made some money from the children's clothing store these few years, but you can't just look at the money I make and ignore the risks and hard work I put in. The monthly rent for my store is 800 yuan, and if you include the utilities and sanitation fees, it will be less than 1,000 yuan a month. Moreover, I have to store goods that are worth 20,000 to 30,000 yuan all year round, so it's very difficult to make money."
Little Aunt's fierce reaction made everyone a little surprised, but Li Mu reacted quickly. Little Aunt had made some money from the children's clothing store these two years, and when he said that his parents wanted to do the clothing business, she probably thought that his parents wanted to follow in her footsteps and would compete with her, so she was a little too aggressive.
Li Mu smiled helplessly in his heart. He remembered Little Aunt's children's clothing store opened in a relatively remote place on the old street, and he estimated that the total investment would be less than 20,000 to 30,000 yuan. In his memory, that store was closed after a few years, so how could he let his parents take this route?
So, Li Mu said with a smile, "Little Aunt, don't be nervous, my parents don't want to do children's clothing business, and they won't compete with you."
Little Aunt suddenly let out a sigh of relief, and then realized that her reaction was a little too aggressive, so she quickly covered up. "I'm not afraid of your family competing with me, but the children's clothing business is really not so easy to do. Don't think too much, if you really want to do children's clothing, I can introduce my purchase channel to you."
Li Mu smiled slightly, "No, Little Aunt, my parents are still planning to open a store, and it will take more than a month at the earliest to make a decision."
Li Mu's parents looked at each other. They had never thought about doing business at all, let alone a clothing business. At this time, Li Mu talked irresponsibly in front of all the relatives. Both of them wanted to explain in their hearts, but when they thought of what Li Mu had said before, Papa Lee and Li Ma had to suppress their doubts in their hearts.
At this time, grandpa asked Li Ma, "Yunfang, Mu is going to college this year, and you are also going to open a clothing store. It will cost a lot of money, right? If you need help from me and your mother, you can tell us. We can help you more or less. "
First Aunt also said, "Yes, Yunfang, if you need money, just tell me, I will think of a way to help you."
At this time, First Aunt hurriedly said, "Our family is not very good this year, but if you really want to open a clothing store, we will think of a way to get a few thousand yuan. The main thing is that girl Yuanyuan, she needs money to go to school in Jinling, and she spends money all day. She doesn't know how to be thrifty at all."
Li Mu found it funny that First Aunt's words seemed to be helping, but in fact, she basically blocked all possibilities. Under normal circumstances, when First Aunt said this, no one would ask to borrow money again. Even if they did, it would be a few thousand yuan at most.
First Aunt's sudden move, in Li Mu's eyes, was also interesting.
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