Back to the 70s: My Childhood Sweetheart Spoils Me Rotten-Chapter 893 - 895: A Pleasant Conversation

Chu Ling noticed that Gong Ruwen was unusually busy today, having shamelessly come here to copy books for some time, she had never really seen Gong Ruwen work seriously.

From her angle, the sunlight was perfectly casting on Gong Ruwen’s face, making his skin look exceptionally good.

And his serious working demeanor really looked quite good.

Chu Ling had seen her family work earnestly many times, but she could honestly say none of them looked as serious as Gong Ruwen.

"What’s up?" Gong Ruwen, about to flip through some documents, looked up and noticed Chu Ling staring at him.

Gong Ruwen’s first reaction was wondering if there was something on his face. But there was no mirror nearby, and he couldn’t go to the bathroom to check.

"Nothing." Caught red-handed, Chu Ling was initially quite embarrassed, but she quickly adjusted her expression, "You’ve been a lot busier lately."

Busy? Of course, he was busy. Gong Ruini had suggested an idea, and after some discussion, everyone thought it was quite good.

But whether this plan was truly feasible required investigation, and a lot of preparatory work needed to be done.

Where to build the maternity ward, hiring management staff and designers, it was all exhausting.

This time, Zhao Gang entrusted this heavy task to Zhao Xuran and his team, under the pretense of wanting them to gain experience.

And before, when Wan Qiweng’s factory opened, Zhao Xuran and his team were helping out, so they had some experience.

But despite having some experience, for Gong Ruwen and his team, it was really their first time handling this, and they were getting all flustered.

But backing down like that wasn’t in their nature; they were determined to face it head-on.

"No choice but to be busy, with so many people watching us. Besides moving forward, we have no other option. If we don’t pay attention, make no progress, our days won’t be easy," Gong Ruwen clearly understood their current situation.

Even without those enterprises, just with the properties they owned, they could live quite well, but were they really content?

They could only move forward and not stop, or else life would be tough, wasn’t that exactly their reality?

"My family is the same. It’s fine while grandpa’s around, but if he’s not," Chu Ling was also quite worried, "Everyone says the family is thriving, but many families better than mine before have fallen because the older generation wasn’t around."

"Now it all seems well on the surface, but once the elders are gone, disputes aren’t few." Chu Ling didn’t care much about these things before, and the Chu Family didn’t tell her either.

But as she grew older, with Old Sir Chu’s favoritism towards his granddaughter, he would tell her many things, wanting to see her reactions.

Chu Ling, after hearing all this, became increasingly aloof. Even at home, she couldn’t confide in her brothers and sisters about how her favoritism affected the love they received.

Talk to friends, but could they really understand?

For some reason, today Chu Ling just wanted to talk to Gong Ruwen.

Chu Ling felt she could confide in Gong Ruwen about some things, but the latter was pretty taken aback by what she said.

Gong Ruwen knew about the Chu family’s background and also understood that no matter how good a family was, internal disputes always existed, but was it really okay for Chu Ling to speak so openly about her family’s issues?

Gong Ruwen didn’t want to listen, nor did he want to discuss these topics, as it seemed like digging his own grave. But seeing Chu Ling’s lonely expression, he couldn’t just ignore her.

"Every family experiences ups and downs, but as long as there are those with ambition, things will improve eventually. The best is to have a strong member in your family."

"Even without an overpowering figure, if everyone is capable, no matter how things change, there’s always hope."

Everyone understood this principle, but once reaching a certain status, who would really care? Even though her grandfather preached indifference to fame and fortune, was he truly indifferent?

For her uncle’s promotions, besides their abilities, wasn’t there any quid pro quo?

Chu Ling didn’t want to think about it, yet sometimes just thinking about it felt exhausting.

"The affairs of the elder generation aren’t things for us to meddle with. We just need to do well ourselves and give ourselves hope. If everyone strives to improve themselves, the family will naturally thrive."

Was that meant to comfort her? At this moment, Chu Ling really wanted to know if Gong Ruwen, having made such a career shift, was genuinely content.

"I know how difficult the path I’ve chosen is, but I’m not resentful." Gong Ruwen wasn’t one to mince his words, "Someone has to make sacrifices."

"And I also want to see how far I can go in this circle."

"In fact, I’m under pressure too. Brother Xuran and Ni Zi, the pressure they give me feels significant." Perhaps after hearing about Chu Ling’s issues, Gong Ruwen felt like sharing his own thoughts.

Gong Ruini found it odd that Chu Ling, who had said she’d come looking for her, still hadn’t shown up.

Gong Ruini walked to Gong Ruwen’s courtyard to see if she was there, only to find them chatting away intensely.

Seeing Chu Ling and Gong Ruwen chatting so happily was perplexing to Gong Ruini.

Whether listening to Gong Ruwen or Chu Ling, or even when Gong Ruini herself sought them out, they always seemed worlds apart. Why were they chatting so happily today?

Listening closely, she was even more astonished, as they weren’t talking about things related to books, but rather sharing their thoughts.

Isn’t this the kind of topic close friends or individuals in a good relationship would discuss? Why were they so engaged in conversation?

What upset Gong Ruini even more was that Gong Ruwen rarely talked about such things with her lately, yet now he was happily discussing them with Chu Ling. Did this mean he valued romantic interests over familial bonds?

"What’s wrong?" Zhao Xuran returned from outside and saw Gong Ruini looking lost and dejected, and immediately pulled her aside.

It was the weekend, and typically Ni Zi wouldn’t go out. Why was her mood so down? Had someone bullied her?

Zhao Xuran’s first thought was perhaps his own brother had been bullying her.

But then he realized Zhao Guangran had taken Cao Na to watch a movie, so they probably weren’t home.

Could it be that Ni Zi felt upset seeing Zhao Guangran taking Cao Na to the movies?

Zhao Xuran felt guilty, truth be told. He had promised to take her to see the red maple leaves, but never followed through because there was just too much going on.

"Let’s go see the maple leaves." Even though it wasn’t the peak season for maple leaves anymore, once he made a promise, he couldn’t break it.

Ah, go see the maple leaves? Wasn’t he quite busy? Gong Ruini felt a bit disappointed that Zhao Xuran hadn’t taken her out, but she understood.

A woman doesn’t need to be overly gentle, but she shouldn’t be unreasonable when a man is handling business.

"Let’s go, I’ll drive." Zhao Xuran decided on the spot, knowing there were still lots of things to get done, but when is work ever truly finished?

He’d just have to work overtime later. He couldn’t let Ni Zi see Zhao Guangran and Cao Na going on a date while she was left all alone at home. If he were in her shoes, his mood wouldn’t be great either.