1990s: Spring Water Family

Chapter 99: After waiting for three years, he still hadn't received her confession.
Thousand Buddha Mountain.

Lin Xiyu, dressed in loose and comfortable sportswear, stood in front of the reclining Buddha halfway up Thousand Buddha Mountain and bowed three times devoutly.

"What did you ask for?"

During a break in filming, Gu Bin came to her side and said, "Let me guess, are you praying to Buddha to bless our marriage so that you'll marry me soon?"

"Pah, dream on."

Lin Xiyu's ears turned red, and she spat at him, feeling both embarrassed and annoyed.

What happened to your cousin?

Gu Bin chuckled and wiped away non-existent drool from his face, then said with a smile, "When I saw her this morning, her eyes were red, like she had been crying. I really can't imagine, given how fierce she is when she hits people, who could possibly make her suffer?"

"how do you know?"

"I ran into you by chance on my way to pick you up from your house."

"Ugh."

Lin Xiyu didn't want to air her dirty laundry in public, so she remained silent and sighed softly.

"what happened?"

Gu Bin was meticulous and could tell from her subtle changes in expression that something was on her mind: "What happened? Is Grandma unwell?"

"No."

Lin Xiyu didn't want him to worry, so after a moment's thought, she told him what had happened early that morning.

“My aunt was really wronged. Although my uncle didn’t say it explicitly, you could tell from his words that he found my aunt’s husband at that woman’s doorstep.”

"If this happened to me, to be honest, I couldn't stand it either. No woman can tolerate her husband spending the night at another woman's house. Even if nothing happens, there will be a knot in her heart, and it will make her very uncomfortable."

-

"My uncle-in-law was indeed short-sighted."

Gu Bin didn't want to get involved in other people's family affairs, so he gave a vague answer.

"Do all you men like to have your cake and eat it too, while eyeing what's in the pot?"

Lin Xiyu was very dissatisfied with his perfunctory attitude: "You get smug when beautiful women are interested in you, and you hook up with one after another. You have no sense of responsibility at all?"

"Cough cough."

Gu Bin, with a strong will to survive, decisively distanced himself: "What you're saying doesn't mean everyone is like that. I'm not like that at all. Apart from you, I have no interest in other women. They're boring to me, no different from telephone poles standing on the curb."

"Oh, is it so?"

Lin Xiyu deliberately drew out her words, looking at him suspiciously: "How can you say such things so unbelievably? I remember that he was the school heartthrob. Since the beginning of high school, girls kept sending him love letters, and the mayor's daughter even publicly expressed her love for him. He was surrounded by beauties. With so many suitors, he didn't fall for any of them?"

"There are peach blossoms, I admit that."

Gu Bin loved seeing her jealous and sullen little expressions, so he teased her on purpose: "But the one I like has never bloomed. I've waited for three years, but she hasn't come to confess her feelings."

"Cut~~"

Lin Xiyu said sourly, "You seem quite smug."

Gu Bin smiled and said, "Aren't you curious which peach blossom I like?"

Who cares to ask you?

Lin Xiyu felt a pang of jealousy: "I don't want to know about your romantic escapades."

"You really don't want to know?"

Gu Bin pinched his puffed-up cheeks, secretly amused.

"Do not want to."

Lin Xiyu turned her head away, trying to shake off his hand.

"Tsk, tsk."

Gu Bin was so engrossed in teasing her that he couldn't bear to let go: "You're so sour, it seems you care about me a lot. You said you didn't wish to marry me soon, but that was all a lie."

"Who wants to marry you?"

Lin Xiyu glared at him with her beautiful eyes and slapped his hand away in annoyance.

"hiss."

She used a bit too much force, and Gu Bin's hand turned red and burned.

"Xi Yu, filming has begun."

As the two were laughing and joking, the production crew had already prepared for the next round of filming.

"coming."

Taking advantage of the opportunity, Lin Xiyu took two steps back, turned around and ran away.

"Ah."

Gu Bin glanced at his bright red hand and shook his head helplessly.

Silly girl, you don't even know that you are the peach blossom.

No wonder he waited three years without her confession.

This girl is so adorably silly, she's really quite amusing!

-

"Qianfo Mountain is 285 meters above sea level. The earliest historical record of it appears in the Northern Wei Dynasty. It was called Lishan. Later, it was called Qianfo Mountain because the Qianfo Temple was built in the Sui Dynasty."

"The Thousand Buddha Mountain Temple Fair flourished during the Yuan Dynasty. Every year on the third day of the third lunar month and the ninth day of the ninth lunar month, people flocked to the fair, creating a bustling and lively scene."

"In the fourth year of the Chenghua reign of the Ming Dynasty, the temples on Thousand Buddha Mountain were rebuilt. Among them, the most popular temple was Xingguo Temple."

"Qianfo Mountain has a long history and profound cultural heritage. When we stand in Xingguo Temple and step on the same stone bricks that the ancients walked on a thousand years ago, we can't help but feel a sense of traveling through time."

Lin Xiyu climbed up the mountain path paved with bluestone, leading television viewers in front of the camera to appreciate the unique charm of the ancient temple.

"OK."

After filming wrapped, Director Du waved with satisfaction and called her over: "Xi Yu, this afternoon we'll go to Pearl Spring, which happens to be not far from your grandma's house. After we're done, we can go to your house to film some everyday scenes. What do you think?"

"Okay."

Lin Xiyu readily agreed: "No problem, you're welcome anytime."

"That `s a deal."

Director Du smiled and said, "Tell your grandma first, so they can prepare in advance."

"okay."

Lin Xiyu smiled and agreed, then thought for a moment and asked, "Director Du, are you going to have dinner at home?"

What other dishes are you good at making?

A glint of insight flashed in Director Du's eyes: "Suitable for filming, or something like that."

"I can make stir-fried shredded potatoes with vinegar, scrambled eggs with tomatoes, cucumber salad, and spinach with glass noodles."

Lin Xiyu listed a bunch of home-style dishes, which made Director Du frown.

"Anything else? Like sweet and sour carp, braised pork intestines, stir-fried pork kidneys, or stir-fried mutton with garlic?"

"will not."

Lin Xiyu blinked her innocent big eyes and poured cold water on him: "I've never eaten any of these dishes before, let alone cooked them."

"Cough cough."

Director Du coughed awkwardly twice: "To promote the famous dishes of old Jinan, we can't just focus on home-style cooking. We have to whet the appetites of tourists so that they will want to taste the food and come to the area for tourism."

"How about we hire a chef to fill in for us?"

The assistant director offered a suggestion: "Xi Yu, do you have a chef at home? Or a relative or friend would also be fine."

"My family doesn't have a chef."

Lin Xiyu suddenly had a flash of inspiration and her face lit up with joy: "But I know that my classmate Wu Meng's father is a chef, I just don't know if he'll be available."

"Where does she live?"

The assistant director's mind raced: "Does he live in a courtyard house in the old city like you?"

"It's a courtyard house."

Lin Xiyu did not disappoint him: "Her family lives relatively close to Gu Bin's family, and is also around Wangfu Pond. There is a well in the courtyard. It is said that the well is quite spiritual and has never dried up. Even in the event of natural disasters or droughts, the people in their courtyard have never lacked water."

"You mean No. 1 Xigengdao Street, right?"

Gu Bin suddenly spoke up, interjecting, "That well in the courtyard shouldn't be an ordinary well; it's a spring."

"spring?"

Director Du's heart raced, and his eyes suddenly lit up: "There's a spring in the courtyard at No. 1 Xigeng Road?"

“I played in that courtyard when I was a child and I saw that well.”

Gu Bin analyzed rationally: "The well is not very deep. If you look closely, you can see bubbles coming out of the bottom of the well. This phenomenon is very common in old courtyard houses. In some places, water will come out from under the bluestone slabs if you step on it. So the people don't take it seriously and just use it as a well for daily water use."

"Makes sense."

Director Du nodded repeatedly, his eyes shining brighter as he listened: "This courtyard is very unique and worth a visit."

Li Yan smiled and agreed, "This is what a real spring-fed village looks like!" "Let's go now."

The assistant director couldn't wait to see the spring hidden in the city.

"Not urgent."

Director Du was quite thoughtful: "It wouldn't be good to disturb you abruptly. Xiyu, please contact your classmate first and arrange a time before conducting the interview."

"Row."

Lin Xiyu readily agreed: "Wu Meng will definitely agree; she's been looking forward to being on the show for a long time."

She's not important.

Gu Bin said jokingly, "The important person is his father; she's just an accessory."

"hehe."

Lin Xiyu was amused by his humorous tone.

"Stop giggling."

Gu Bin patted her head affectionately: "Hurry up and call, Director Du is waiting."

"okay."

Lin Xiyu smiled and agreed, then ran towards the nearby public phone booth.

"It would be great if the station could provide us with a mobile phone."

The assistant director suddenly had an idea: "Having a cell phone would make shooting on location much more convenient, and we could stay in touch anytime even where there are no public phones."

"What good thing are you thinking of?"

The cameraman, sweating profusely, gave him a disdainful look: "A mobile phone costs tens of thousands of yuan. If the station has that kind of money, it would be better to do something practical and give everyone more cooling allowances. Carrying cameras around in this heat, I'm almost getting heatstroke."

"Having a mobile phone is useless if there's no signal."

Li Yan wholeheartedly agreed: "If you really go to a remote place, that thing is just for show. It's incredibly heavy to carry around and completely useless."

"Who says it's useless?"

Director Du rarely showed humor, imitating holding up a phone and making a hitting motion: "You'll know if it's useful when you encounter a bad guy. Take it out and wedge it on his head; it can be used as a brick."

"Hahaha."

Everyone present laughed.

The assistant director was the most exaggerated, slapping his thigh and laughing so hard he almost laughed himself silly.

-

"Director Du, I asked Wu Meng."

After finishing her call, Lin Xiyu happily ran back: "She said her dad only gets one day off a week, and he's home today, but he won't be free for the next couple of days."

"Let's go today then."

Director Du did not hesitate and immediately decided: "Let's go to Pearl Spring first, then to Xigengdao Street. We won't go to Xiyu's house today; we'll go tomorrow."

"it is good."

Li Yan and the others had no objections. They divided the work, packed their belongings, and went down the mountain together.

-

No. 1 Yuanqian Street.

Lin Xiyu looked at the solemn and imposing gate with the national emblem hanging above it, and felt a little apprehensive.

"To be honest, in my eighteen years of life, I have never seen Pearl Spring. Every time I pass through this gate, I feel a deep sense of awe and dare not speak loudly."

"hehe."

Gu Bin couldn't help but laugh out loud.

"why are you laughing?"

Lin Xiyu glared at him with displeasure.

"I didn't realize that."

Gu Bin chuckled and teased her, "You're actually this timid? Where did your courage to jump into the river to save someone go?"

"I thought this was a key government site."

Lin Xiyu was a little annoyed: "There are guards at the gate, who would dare to go in casually?"

"This is not the provincial government."

Gu Bin suppressed a laugh and pointed to the sign: "This is the office of the Provincial High Officials Association, and the people on duty at the gate are not soldiers. Look carefully, they are security guards."

"Whatever it is."

Lin Xiyu's ears burned: "Anyway, it looks like a government department, not a place that ordinary people like us can just walk into."

"You're really wrong about that."

Gu Bin smiled jokingly and took her hand: "Come on, come in with me, let's see if they'll let us in."

"Hey, wait a minute, Sister Yan and the others haven't arrived yet."

Lin Xiyu's expression changed slightly, and she stood on the ground, unwilling to move.

"No need to wait for them, I'll take you inside."

Gu Bin pulled her forward with force.

"It would be better to wait a bit."

Lin Xiyu's legs felt weak, and she became more and more nervous as she got closer to the gate.

"They were moving slowly while carrying the equipment."

Gu Bin wouldn't let her escape, dragging her to the front door.

Lin Xiyu glanced at the security guard with trembling eyes, pretending to be casual. Seeing that he really didn't stop her, she quietly breathed a sigh of relief.

The two entered through a side door and immediately saw the magnificent and solemn Great Hall of the People.

"Wow."

Lin Xiyu's eyes widened, and she let out a shocked exclamation.

"Hey, snap out of it."

Gu Bin waved his hand in front of her eyes.

"Is this where the National People's Congress is held?"

Looking at the magnificent and massive building, Lin Xiyu sighed softly, "It's worth it to be able to go in even once in a lifetime."

This is the Provincial People's Congress.

Gu Bin's eyes gleamed with longing: "If you're so capable, go to Beijing and attend the National People's Congress. That's something to be proud of."

"It's impossible for me, you try your best."

Lin Xiyu's heart skipped a beat when she heard BJ's name, and she secretly glanced at Gu Bin.

In order to break free from these constraints, he gave up the opportunity to develop his career in Beijing.

Do his family in BJ agree?

Will there come a day when someone suddenly appears and forcibly separates them?

"What are you thinking about now?"

Seeing her in a daze, Gu Bin smiled helplessly and waved his hand in front of her eyes.

"nothing."

Lin Xiyu shook her head, trying to clear her mind of her chaotic thoughts.

"With a handsome guy like me around, how could you possibly daydream?"

Gu Bin didn't believe her and looked at her suspiciously: "You're making me wonder if I've lost my charm and am no longer attractive to you."

Lin Xiyu didn't want him to see through her thoughts, so she gave an awkward laugh: "Compared to the Great Hall of the People, it is indeed a little bit lacking."

"You're good enough, I admire you."

Gu Bin laughed in exasperation and gave her a sharp rap on the head.

What is that red building?

Lin Xiyu breathed a sigh of relief when she saw that he didn't ask any more questions.

"That used to be the government office."

Gu Bin looked in the direction she was pointing and smiled knowingly: "That's where the ancient Shandong governor held court to hear cases."

"Wow."

Lin Xiyu opened her mouth wide and exclaimed in surprise.

"Do you see that railing?"

Gu Bin pointed to the left rear of the government office: "The area in front of the railing is a public open area, and the building behind it is the office building of the Provincial People's Congress."

(End of this chapter)