Gu Wan looked at Li Fugui with a faint, mocking smile.
“That’s an interesting thing to say. If she were my mother and she took care of me, I’d be grateful. That would be perfectly normal. But she’s only a nanny. You pay her a salary to take care of me, so that settles things between you. Yet you still expect me to be grateful to her on top of that. That’s like doing one job and insisting on getting paid twice. Why should I?”
“If we’re discussing something, then let’s discuss that thing. One thing is one thing; don’t drag everything else into it. This is the price for the job. If you want it, pay this amount. If you don’t, I’ll keep the position. Once I give birth, I’ll go back to work. I’m full now, so take your time eating.”
With that, Gu Wan went upstairs without looking back.
Whether they agreed or not, she didn’t care in the slightest. Li Mingyue, however, would definitely agree. After all, the Youth League Office wouldn’t wait forever.
Sure enough, before bedtime, there was a knock on her door.
It was Li Mingyue. She stood there looking aggrieved, clutching a wad of banknotes, as though she still wanted to say something.
Before she could open her mouth, Gu Wan reached out and took the money. Then she turned around, slammed the door shut, and slid the bolt into place.
Gu Wan placed the money on the table and sat in the chair, pondering.
For Li Fugui to be willing to take out so much money all at once, he must have another plan up his sleeve.
He was probably thinking that even if she managed to get the money, she wouldn’t live long enough to spend it. What could his next move be?
And how had he managed to come up with so much money at once? This wasn’t like later generations, when the economy had developed and incomes had risen enough that taking out several thousand yuan wasn’t particularly difficult.
This was the 1960s. Several thousand yuan at this time was truly a huge fortune. Most ordinary people wouldn’t even dare keep that much money at home.
Li Fugui must have more than this hidden somewhere. Where would he keep it? And what was he planning to do?
There was too little information. Since Gu Wan couldn’t figure it out, she decided not to waste any more thought on it. She casually put the banknotes into her space.
Tomorrow, she needed to pay a visit to Butler Chen.
After the original owner had finished handling her grandfather’s funeral, she had been egged on by Li Mingyue to make a scene about divorcing Li Xiaoyu. She hadn’t even gone to see what her grandfather had left for her.
In the original owner’s love-addled mind, material possessions were merely worldly things and didn’t matter. Free love was what mattered most.
One had to admit that Liu Jihong’s brainwashing had been incredibly successful. It simply didn’t work on Gu Wan.
She had always believed that no matter the era, money was the most useful thing—a woman’s guarantee and foundation for standing on her own two feet.
So it was decided. Tomorrow, she would go and see how much security and support her grandfather had left her.
Early the next morning, Li Mingyue immediately chased after her and asked when she was going to complete the paperwork.
Gu Wan was momentarily confused.
“Complete what paperwork?”
Li Mingyue immediately grew anxious when she heard that.
“Didn’t I give you 5,000 yuan yesterday to buy the job? When are you going to handle the paperwork? Don’t even think about going back on your word!”
Gu Wan suddenly understood.
“Oh, that. Got it, got it. I’ll go to my workplace today and ask what paperwork is required, then I’ll come back and tell you so you can get everything ready.”
Li Mingyue was still uneasy.
“I’ll go with you.”
Gu Wan looked at her strangely.
“I’m going to work and will just ask the leaders about the situation while I’m there. That’s perfectly normal. Why would you go? You don’t even work at my unit. If you go looking for the leaders, anyone can tell you’re trying to pull strings. With a job like mine, the moment even the slightest rumor gets out, do you think it’ll still end up in your hands? If you don’t care, I don’t mind either. Let’s go!”
Li Mingyue hesitated.
Gu Wan’s workplace had excellent benefits and was considered semi-confidential. There were guards stationed at the entrance, and ordinary people couldn’t get in without an introduction letter. Li Mingyue gritted her teeth and had no choice but to abandon the idea.
“Then… hurry up and ask. Quickly!”
Gu Wan gave a soft scoff and sauntered away.
Li Mingyue watched her arrogant retreating figure and clenched her fists tightly.
“Just enjoy your triumph while you can. Once I get your job, I’ll coax you into divorcing him. After you marry Zhang Xiaowei, hehehe… your good days will be completely over! Let’s see how long you can keep acting so high and mighty!”
“No. I need to make sure Zhang Xiaowei steps up his efforts. The longer this drags on, the more likely something will change. We’d better settle this quickly. Once I trick her out of that inheritance… Heh heh, Gu Wan, your death is coming!”
Gu Wan had no idea what Li Mingyue was thinking. She took the bus and leisurely made her way to the Cultural Relics Management Office.
When she got married, her grandfather had bought her a house near the Cultural Relics Management Office. It was only about a ten-minute walk away.
Last month, right after discovering that she was pregnant, the original owner had made a fuss about getting an abortion and divorcing her husband. She had then moved back to her biological father’s house.
It had been nearly a month since she had last come to work. She wondered whether she had been fired.
As soon as Gu Wan entered the Cultural Relics Management Office, she ran into a colleague named Xiao Wang. He was a notorious gossip who seemed to find fault with everyone.
“Oh, look at some people. They’re so delicate. They get pregnant and suddenly stop coming to work. If everyone acted like that, how could we carry out revolutionary work?”
Gu Wan had no idea what was going on. She hadn’t even told the workplace that she was pregnant and wouldn’t be coming to work.
Besides… her pregnancy wasn’t very noticeable yet. Why had this person immediately started making such comments?
Hearing Gossiping Wang’s sour remarks, a middle-aged man walked out of a room.
His name was Lin Yong, Gu Wan’s supervisor and an expert in antique appraisal.
The moment he saw Gu Wan, he immediately walked over to her.
“If you’re not feeling well, you should stay home and rest for a few more days. Your husband already came here to request leave for you.”
Gu Wan froze.
Request leave? Who? Li Xiaoyu? When?
“Twenty days ago, your husband—a rather handsome military officer—came to ask me for leave on your behalf. He said you were pregnant and suffering badly from morning sickness, so you needed a few more days off and would come back once you were feeling better. I told him your health was the priority. There isn’t much work here anyway, so you could rest for a few more days. The first three months are the most important, and you absolutely mustn’t have any problems. It hasn’t even been that long, so why have you come back to work already?”
Gu Wan hadn’t expected that while the original owner had recklessly abandoned her job and run off to pursue a relationship with Zhang Xiaowei, the husband she had dumped had still come to request leave for her and protect her reputation.
Compared with him, the difference in their character was immediately obvious.
Gu Wan instinctively placed a hand over her belly.
“Baby, your dad really isn’t a bad guy.”
Looking at the concerned expression on Lin Yong’s face, she said, “It’s like this, Team Leader Lin. I’m feeling much better today, so I came out for a walk and thought I’d stop by to see you. There’s actually something I wanted to ask about.”
Lin Yong was about to ask her what it was when he suddenly noticed Gossiping Wang standing nearby and eavesdropping.
He looked at him.
“Stop standing around here. Go do whatever you’re supposed to be doing.”
Gossiping Wang still wanted to listen in, but Lin Yong had already led Gu Wan into his office and shut the door firmly behind them.
Gu Wan sat on the sofa while Lin Yong poured her a glass of water, then sat down opposite her.
“What did you want to ask about?”
Lin Yong could also be considered the original owner’s mentor. He had taught her quite a bit about antique appraisal. Unfortunately, the original owner had been deceived by her stepmother and stepsister into becoming utterly uninterested in studying, wasting all the effort he had put into teaching her.
Gu Wan was still very grateful to him.
“It’s like this, Team Leader Lin. I wanted to ask—what are the requirements if someone wants to transfer their job?”
Lin Yong was stunned.
“You want to transfer your job?”