Chapter 9: Obedience is Key

Grandma Yi Yun was also quite surprised. She knew how hard it was to make money these days.

In the countryside, 156 yuan was a whole family’s annual income; even some impoverished families didn’t reach that level.

“Is driving really that lucrative?”

“Absolutely!”

Grandma Yi Yun thought of Gu Qinshui, who couldn’t even drive anymore and was nowhere to be found.

Yi Yun originally wanted to take care of her third son, but he seemed to be deliberately avoiding her. Even during holidays, he wouldn’t say a word.

She waited at his house until dawn, but he was so heartless.

For five years, she had cried and pleaded, but he still refused to see her.

He must have been incredibly wronged and heartbroken. Thinking back to when she had agreed to let him go to southern Xinjiang… Yi Yun couldn’t help but weep.

“I’m so useless. You’re truly my amazing Shuang’er.”

“So, Grandma, please stay. Don’t worry about Uncle Third. In a few years, we’ll get a robotic arm from abroad.”

“What robotic arm?” Grandma Yi Yun asked in confusion.

“It doesn’t matter. As long as we have money, there will always be opportunities.”

Yes, the most important thing right now was to make money; everything else was secondary.

The next morning, Gu Congshuang woke up to find a large space empty beside her. She quickly got up and discovered that Grandma Yi Yun was already preparing breakfast.

“Is cooking with coal more convenient than firewood?”

A slightly embarrassed smile appeared on the grandmother’s aged face; she clearly wasn’t used to the coal stove yet.

Li Yuqin usually didn’t cook breakfast at home. Gu Congshuang thought the siblings always went to school on empty stomachs, but Li Yuqin secretly gave Gu Congli a warmed bun every morning.

In Li Yuqin’s opinion, daughters would eventually marry off, so giving Gu Congshuang a bun was like throwing a meat bun to a dog—a lost cause.

Gu Congshuang sighed. Fortunately, the Gu Congshuang in the book didn’t know this. She had diligently saved money to buy milk for Lin Wanxing’s breakfast, unaware that Lin Wanxing gave it to Mo Wanwan.

Goodness, what kind of people were in this book! They didn’t commit murder or arson, but they were all major villains capable of causing heart attacks.

Grandma had prepared breakfast for the whole family: white porridge with dried pickled vegetables and a few eggs.

Eggs were in short supply, so the whole family loved them. Even the egg white attached to the shell was meticulously scraped off and chewed.

The yolks were mixed into the porridge. The sweetness of the porridge combined with the yolk, along with the crunchy pickled vegetables, made for a simple but satisfying breakfast.

Gu Congshuang felt a sense of happiness eating this simple meal.

After breakfast, the two of them drove to the airport again. With yesterday’s experience, they were better at disguising themselves and had even identified nearby checkpoints, choosing to refuse orders rather than risk them.

They returned after a busy day, bringing back over 130 yuan. Because they had subconsciously avoided certain areas, their income wasn’t as high as yesterday’s, but the journey was much safer and less thrilling.

“It’s a pity that we can only borrow the factory car for three days. Sister, should I ask you to teach me how to drive a little more tomorrow?”

“Teach you how to kill us both?” Gu Congshuang replied in the tone of a driving instructor.

Gu Congli lowered his head, not daring to speak. Since returning to this book, Gu Congli had been completely controlled by Gu Congshuang because of the driving lessons. If she told him to go east, he wouldn’t dare go west.

Obedience was key.

At this moment, Li Yuqin came crying from outside the door: “What do we do? Your grandmother is missing!”

Gu Congshuang was startled: “What happened to Grandma?”

“We went to the market to buy vegetables. We even used our meat coupons to buy some meat to nourish you. But Mom doesn’t know the market well, and I couldn’t find her after haggling with the butcher.”

“She’s just… gone missing…” Li Yuqin wailed again.

Her face was contorted, as if she were trying to squeeze out a few tears.

“Did Dad go look for her?”

“Yes, your father and I have searched for her all day, for miles around, but we couldn’t find her.”

“Then report it to the police!”

“I did, but they said it wasn’t been long enough.”

“Grandma might be in danger. She should be able to find her way home; she knows the way,” Li Yuqin wailed again.

Gu Congshuang felt a chill. She observed Li Yuqin’s expression, noticing a coldness in her eyes despite her apparent panic.

Could it be that she did it on purpose?

She had heard stories like this before. When an elderly person became frail, their children would take them to the mountains to abandon them.

Li Yuqin was capable of such cruelty. She was stingy and heartless.

Yi Yun could find her way to the front door, so how could she forget the way back in just one day?

“Mom, did you do this on purpose? If Grandma is really gone, you’ll never have peace of mind.”

“I swear… I wouldn’t dare even if I had ten lives!” Li Yuqin cried. Gu Congshuang didn’t bother listening to her nonsense.

“Let’s go, get in the car. We’ll go look for her.”

The three of them got into the car. Gu Qinshan was still wandering around the market looking for her.

Finally, they arrived at the market. Gu Qinshan was also distraught. Although he thought his mother favored his older brother, if she really disappeared here, he wouldn’t be able to explain himself.

Seeing Li Yuqin arrive, he urged, “Hurry up and look. What if she’s been harmed? Did you notify your older brother and sister-in-law?”

“Yes, they said they’ll be here soon,” Li Yuqin said helplessly.

“That’s good. More people, more power. We’ll find her.”

Then Gu Congshuang shouted, “Neighbors, my grandmother is missing! If anyone sees her, I’ll offer a generous reward—fifty yuan! I mean it! This is her picture. Have you seen her?”

The people in the market had never seen such wealth!

They usually haggled over pennies, and now someone was offering fifty yuan! The entire market stopped, and people crowded around Gu Congshuang to look at the picture.

“I know, I know. I think I saw her going that way…”

“I saw her too. She asked about my vegetables…”

“I saw her too…” Everyone said something different, but no one knew where she was.

“Everyone, please help look for her! Whoever finds her gets the fifty yuan! Please!”

Upon hearing this, the market vendors stopped their business and began searching in the possible directions.

The power of money was immense. Within minutes, terrible news arrived.

Someone had found a body floating in a nearby pond.

The clothes looked similar to those Grandma was wearing.

Gu Qinshan and Li Yuqin exchanged a panicked look, almost bursting into tears.

The four of them arrived at the pond. Someone had already jumped in to retrieve the body.

From afar, Li Yuqin saw that the clothes were indeed the same as those her mother had worn that morning. Her head swam, and she collapsed to the ground.

“Oh, it’s really my mother…”