1990s: Spring Water Family

The broadcast of Chapter 88, "The People of the Spring," caused a sensation.
"No."

Gu Bin explained seriously, "She's happy. When you like someone, you can't help but want to tease her."

"Is that right?"

Xu Yi seemed to understand but not quite: "No wonder those couples in TV dramas are always hugging and kissing each other."

"puff."

Li Liang spat out another mouthful of sunflower seeds.

Qu Peng coughed violently and almost choked to death on his own saliva.

"I'm dying."

Lin Xiyu let out a wail, pressed her forehead against Gu Bin's chest, and refused to look up again.

"hehe."

Gu Bin was pleased with her embrace and naturally put his arm around her waist.

"Crack, crack."

The entire bag of potato chips in Wang Fan's hand was completely crushed into crumbs.

-

It's not far from Jinan to Tai'an; it's about an hour and a half by train.

Midway through the journey, Lin Xiyu used the excuse of going to the toilet to hide between two carriages and refused to go back.

Left with no other choice, Gu Bin could only accompany her, and the two stood for an hour before finally arriving at Tai'an Railway Station.

Tai'an is named after Mount Tai, which symbolizes national prosperity and peace.

The entire city is built around Mount Tai, and you can see the majestic and beautiful continuous mountains as soon as you get off the train.

"Wow, it's so beautiful, time to go hiking."

Xu Yi was very excited and started running around excitedly as soon as he got off the train.

"Xiao Yi, don't run around."

Many people got off the bus, and the crowd was congested. Lin Xiyu was afraid that he would get lost, so she grabbed his collar and pulled him back, forcibly ordering him to stay by her side.

"It's almost 6 o'clock."

Qu Peng, as the squad leader, was very worried: "It's expensive inside the scenic area. Why don't we find a small restaurant near the train station to have dinner before climbing the mountain?"

"You are the class monitor."

Gu Bin very smoothly passed the buck back to him: "You decide, we'll go with you."

"You can pull him down."

Qu Peng laughed awkwardly: "I'm just a figurehead as class monitor. You're the backbone of our class, and I have to listen to you."

"What to eat?"

Gu Bin glared at him helplessly, then turned his head to look at Lin Xiyu.

"I brought bread, so I can just eat bread."

Lin Xiyu was worried about the cost and didn't want to eat out.

Will bread work?

Qu Peng tried his best to mislead: "We'll be climbing all night, at least seven or eight hours. With that little energy, we simply can't make it."

“Even if you don’t eat, Xiao Yi will eat.”

Wang Fan seized the opportunity to make his presence felt: "He's very active, always running around, bread isn't enough for him, he gets hungry again in no time."

"Then let's just find a noodle stall and have a bowl of noodles."

Lin Xiyu glanced at her energetic younger brother and had to admit that what they said was true.

"to make."

Seeing that Gu Bin had no objections, Qu Peng waved his hand and led the large group away from the train station in a grand procession.

-

There's a food street near the train station, and it gets quite crowded with people eating around mealtimes.

Qu Peng wandered around the snack street twice before finally finding a suitable noodle shop that could accommodate forty people at the same time.

The noodle shop owner was all smiles when he saw that a big customer had arrived, and he specially turned on the 29-inch color TV that was placed in the hall.

"boss."

Gu Bin glanced at his watch and smiled meaningfully: "Please switch to the Jinan News Channel."

"OK."

The boss gave an OK sign, agreeing readily.

"What news are you looking at?"

Qu Peng, unaware of his intentions, jokingly teased, "Your grandpa isn't here, so no one's watching you. You come out to play but don't watch anything lighthearted; you're only focused on politics."

"Who said I want to see current affairs?"

Gu Bin scoffed lightly: "Tonight's show is different; it'll definitely dazzle your titanium alloy eyes."

"Cut~~"

Qu Peng was a little unconvinced: "You make it sound so true."

"Wait, then."

Gu Bin said confidently, "You'll find out soon enough."

-

Qu Peng asked his classmates for their opinions, and each of them ordered a bowl of pickled mustard greens and shredded pork noodles.

Wang Fan felt that eating noodles was too shabby, so he called over a waiter and ordered several more plates of cold dishes.

The pager hanging at his waist suddenly vibrated a few times. He glanced down at it, his brow furrowing slightly: "A message from Zhang Xiaoqian. She's asking where we are?"

"Where is she?"

Without thinking, Qu Peng asked a question in return.

"how could I know?"

Wang Fan didn't want to serve the rich young lady and wished he could stay far away to avoid getting into trouble.

"Let's send her a reply."

Qu Peng, acting as the class monitor, tried to smooth things over: "Tell her our location. If she wants to come, she can; if not, she can wait at the main gate of Mount Tai."

"Fine, I'll call. Gu Bin's here; it'd be strange if she didn't come."

Wang Fan grumbled in dissatisfaction, resignedly got up, and used the phone at the noodle stall to reply to Zhang Xiaoqian.

As expected, the young lady arrived unexpectedly quickly, appearing at the noodle shop in less than ten minutes.

"Xiaoqian, you've finally arrived! If you hadn't come soon, someone would have stolen your thunder."

"That's right, someone is harassing Gu Bin while you're not around, shameless as hell."

"You have no idea how flirtatious she is. She thought no one was watching, so she deliberately hid in a corner and hugged and cuddled him, practically wanting to stick to him."

Several girls who were close to Zhang Xiaoqian harbored envy, jealousy, and resentment but dared not vent it. They maliciously instigated and slandered her, using her as a tool.

"Shameless slut!"

Zhang Xiaoqian was indeed furious and rushed over to slap Lin Xiyu.

"You're the one who's a slut, don't you dare insult my sister."

Before Lin Xiyu could react, Xu Yi became displeased and jumped up from his chair like a calf, crashing headfirst into Zhang Xiaoqian's stomach.

"Ouch."

Zhang Xiaoqian was caught off guard and bumped right into him, falling flat on her back to the ground.

"Xiaoqian!"

"Are you OK?"

Several girls who were close to her were terrified and rushed over to help her up.

"Get out of my way! How do you know I'm alright when you see me?"

Zhang Xiaoqian's tailbone cracked with a sharp sound when she fell, and it hurt as if it had fallen apart.

She slapped him, venting her anger on a girl.

"what!"

The girl saw stars from the slap, and her cheeks swelled up visibly.

There was a moment of silence in the noodle shop. Everyone was stunned by the sudden slap and speechless with shock.

"What are you all standing there for? Hurry up and help me up."

Zhang Xiaoqian was still angry and lashed out at the other girls.

"oh oh."

The girls didn't dare to go against her, so they gritted their teeth and helped her up.

"hiss."

Zhang Xiaoqian felt a piercing pain in her tailbone as soon as she moved slightly.

"Your injury looks pretty serious, you should go to the hospital."

One of the girls felt a chill run down her spine, but forced herself to persuade him, "I'm not going."

Zhang Xiaoqian was unwilling to give up and shook off her hand.

"Can you climb a mountain like that?"

The girl then advised, "What if it gets even worse?"

"If I'm not going, none of you are going either."

Enraged, Zhang Xiaoqian pointed at Xu Yi and yelled, "And you, you little brat! You dare hit me? I'll make you suffer a terrible death!"

"Shut up!"

Gu Bin's sharp shout interrupted her arrogance.

"Gu Bin, you just want to go against me, don't you?"

Zhang Xiaoqian wasn't stupid. Now she understood that Gu Bin didn't like her and was trampling on her dignity as a rich young lady for Lin Xiyu's sake.

Such unwavering protection and blatant favoritism drove her to madness: "Since you are so heartless, don't blame me for being ruthless too. You want Lin Xiyu to return to the show? Don't even think about it. I'd rather fight to the death than let her film."

"It's too late."

Gu Bin scoffed dismissively, not taking her threat seriously at all: "The special program for Quanshui Renjia will air today. Director Du is announcing it in advance to prevent you from causing trouble again."

"Good evening, everyone. Today's special news program for Jinan is scheduled to last 40 minutes. Please tune in."

As he finished speaking, the clock struck 18 PM, and the television screen flashed, displaying four large, elegant characters: "Spring Water Family".

-

"Look, Xi Yu is on TV."

"She really saved someone? That's amazing!"

"There were also interviews, in the TV studio."

"That dress is so beautiful, it makes you look like a completely different person."

"Did they go to her house to film a show?"

"Qu Peng and his team actually gave an interview as well."

"They must have gotten incredibly lucky. I'm so envious."

"If I had known I would actually be on TV, I should have dressed more formally."

"Qu Peng, you've gotten too cocky. You still dare to provoke us."

"Beat him up."

The documentary is profound in its artistic conception, reflecting the real lives of ordinary people living in courtyard houses.

It resonated with viewers shortly after it aired, strongly attracting everyone's attention.

The students in the noodle shop were even more excited and all turned their attention to Lin Xiyu.

"Xi Yu".

Wu Meng was incredibly envious: "You're so amazing, making a documentary! You'll be a big star in the future."

"No, it's just a documentary film, I'm not a celebrity."

Lin Xiyu was shrewd and didn't want to arouse jealousy: "Actually, you can film it if you want. Sister Yan said that we need a lot of extras. Our classmates and relatives can participate."

"really?"

"Can we make documentaries too?"

The moment these words were spoken, the atmosphere changed immediately. The classmates who were originally envious and jealous looked at her with even more fervent gazes, and some even had fawning smiles on their faces.

"It's true, you can ask Gu Bin if you don't believe me."

Having achieved her goal, Lin Xiyu decisively shifted the blame: "He has a very good relationship with the director and is also my spokesperson. I have to listen to him on all the specific details of the filming."

"Gu Bin, can you do us a favor and recommend us to the director? We don't ask for much, just a chance to get some exposure."

"Me too, me too, I'd be happy with just one shot, a clear front view."

"I'd be willing to go from the side too."

"Even a view from behind is acceptable."

The noodle shop erupted in cheers as the students chattered and laughed, surrounding Gu Bin in the middle.

The girls who had been fawning over Zhang Xiaoqian changed their expressions and unconsciously moved closer to him.

"No problem, leave it to me."

Gu Bin was already very emotionally intelligent and good at winning people over. With just one sentence, he brought everyone's emotions to the extreme: "Let's go hiking first and have a good time for two days. When we get back, I'll discuss with Director Du about choosing a suitable location so that everyone has a chance to participate."

"Great!"

"Great, now we can make a documentary too."

Before he finished speaking, cheers erupted in the noodle shop, the noisy scene completely out of place with the person who had been deliberately forgotten.

"Gu Bin, I hate you!"

Zhang Xiaoqian was filled with resentment and anger. She stomped her foot angrily and ran out crying.

"Zhang Xiaoqian left alone."

Qu Peng was a little worried: "She doesn't seem to be in a good mental state. I hope nothing bad will happen to her."

"Don't worry about her."

Wang Fan scoffed: "There's a driver waiting outside; she's not alone."

"Let's go out and take a look."

For some reason, Qu Peng felt a little panicked: "There are a lot of people around the train station, it's quite chaotic, I hope nothing really happens."

Wang Fan was resistant: "Go if you want, I'm not going."

"Ugh."

Qu Peng couldn't get him to do anything, so he had to chase after him himself.

-

His hunch was right; Zhang Xiaoqian was indeed cursed with bad luck, and something bad happened.

A beautiful girl crying in the evening, as night is about to fall, is undoubtedly eye-catching.

Not long after Zhang Xiaoqian ran out of the noodle shop, she was spotted.

Two drunkards approached her, laughing and joking, trying to harass her: "Hey little girl, why are you crying? Heartbroken? Come on, let's keep you company."

"roll!"

Zhang Xiaoqian felt nauseous looking at the two greasy men.

She was already irritable, and the provocation made her even angrier. When one of them reached out to touch her face, she didn't think twice, picked up a stone from the ground, and smashed it over his head.

"Boom."

The man's head was bleeding profusely, his eyes rolled back, and he collapsed to the ground, instantly losing consciousness.

"Help! Murder!"

Another drunkard, startled, sobered up and howled like a wolf.

The food street instantly became noisy, with a large number of onlookers pouring out of the nearby restaurants.

"I didn't, I didn't kill anyone."

Zhang Xiaoqian panicked and offered helpless explanations.

"That's you."

The drunkard who hadn't fallen glared menacingly: "I saw it with my own eyes. You hit my brother with a rock. If anything happens to my brother, I'll make you pay with your life."

"She looked like a young girl, but she was so fierce, shoving stones into people's heads."

"Could he really be dead? He looks like he's breathing heavily, but not exhaling much."

"Call the police and an ambulance. It's bad luck for someone to die in front of the store."

The onlookers chattered amongst themselves, crowding the scene of the incident.

"What happened?"

Qu Peng realized something was wrong and squeezed through the crowd.

"I did not do it on purpose."

When Zhang Xiaoqian saw Qu Peng, she finally regained some of her composure: "They harassed me first, I was acting in self-defense."

"hiss."

Qu Peng gasped when he saw the person lying on the ground with a bloody head.

"Don't panic, I can't handle this. I'm going to find Gu Bin. You stay here and don't move. I'll come back."

Without thinking twice, he broke free from Zhang Xiaoqian's hand and struggled to squeeze out of the crowd.

-

Gu Bin arrived quickly; it was a matter of life and death, and he didn't have time to think too much.

Qu Peng, Wang Fan, and Li Liang all came with him, while Lin Xiyu stayed at the restaurant to comfort the frightened classmates.

"Gu Bin, I didn't mean to, I really didn't mean to."

When Zhang Xiaoqian saw Gu Bin, it was as if she had seen a lifeline. She rushed over and hugged him without hesitation.

(End of this chapter)