Chen Mo carefully hung the "Green Bristle" back on the brush rest, put away the Xuan paper, and holding four "freshly baked" Gold Ingots, he tiptoed back to his room.
Judging by the weight of the four Gold Ingots in his arms, their value was likely no less than four million. The replenishment of this income settled his uneasy heart a little. With this money as a buffer, he could at least have a comfortable New Year at home. As the old saying goes, "Endure poverty, endure wealth, and if all else fails, close your eyes and deal with it." Having experienced the thrill of spending money like water, returning to being empty-handed was truly a torment.
Chen Mo didn't know what it felt like to count money until his hands cramped. But he truly experienced the wonderful feeling of sleeping with Gold Ingots. In Chen Mo's own words, the feeling was, "Heh, it feels great!"
"Uncle... Uncle..."
Early in the morning, while Chen Mo was still dreaming of Gold Ingots, the door was pushed open forcefully by a little person. The little girl ran to the bedside, shouting "Uncle" and pushing the sleeping Chen Mo with her small hands.
Woken by his niece, Chen Mo gave a helpless wry smile. He opened his eyes, raised his hand, pinched Yāyā's little face, and teased, "Is it holiday time?"
Yāyā giggled, nodded, and said crisply, "Uncle, let's go to Playland! Yāyā hasn't been there in a long time! Oh... what's this, it's so pretty!" Yāyā, who was leaning by the bed, immediately spotted the Gold Ingots scattered on the bed and reached for one.
Weighing about five catties, it was already heavy for a child just starting kindergarten. It was a bit of a struggle for her to lift one. Chen Mo didn't stop her. He only had this one niece, so he wouldn't begrudge her even more. He placed the other three ingots on the bedside table, picked up Yāyā along with the Gold Ingot in her arms, and walked out.
It was the weekend, and Chén Xuě was busy in the kitchen with her mother, chatting as they worked. Seeing Chen Mo come out with Yāyā, Chén Xuě smiled and teased, "Did this little pest wake you up?"
Chen Mo shook his head, playing with his niece, and replied, "It's okay, our Yāyā just missed Uncle, right?"
Yāyā giggled and nodded, holding the Gold Ingot in her hand, displaying it to Chén Xuě like a treasure. She said crisply, "Mom, Uncle has treasure, look..."
"Oh... you child, don't drop it and hurt your Uncle! It's such a big Gold Ingot!" Chén Xuě, who hadn't paid much attention at first, glanced at it. Women have a natural fondness for gold and jewels. The unique weight of gold could generally be recognized at a glance. Seeing how hard her daughter was trying, its weight was clearly not insignificant. Chén Xuě immediately stepped forward and took the ingot from Yāyā's hand.
Partly for fear that the careless Yāyā might drop it on Chen Mo or hurt herself. And partly for fear that if the child wasn't careful and dropped it on the ground, chipping off a piece, the loss would be immense.
The moment the Gold Ingot landed in her hands, that solid weight made Chén Xuě's expression change again. Such a solid piece had to weigh at least four or five catties. The value of such a solid lump of gold was self-evident. She immediately frowned in surprise and looked at Chen Mo, chiding him, "How could you give such a valuable thing to Yāyā? If it gets chipped or scratched, the loss would be huge!"
Chen Mo casually flicked Yāyā's nose and said with a smile, "It's fine, gold isn't glass. Even if it falls on the ground, it won't be damaged much! If my niece is happy, she can even use it to crack walnuts!" The little girl was unhappy that Chén Xuě had taken the Gold Ingot away. After being teased by Chen Mo, she let out a "giggle."
Upon hearing about gold, Wú Mǐnxiá put down her bowl and chopsticks and came out of the kitchen. Taking the Gold Ingot from Chén Xuě, her expression also changed, and she immediately asked, "Where did this come from? Such a large Gold Ingot, you can't let the child play with it!"
Chen Mo naturally couldn't tell the truth about the origin of the ingot. He made up a lie, "I saved it from past investments. When I came back, I kept it in my suitcase and forgot to take it out. I found it last night while looking for a data cable. Let's find some time for you and my sister to go to a goldsmith and melt these ingots down to make some jewelry to wear!"
As he spoke, Chen Mo fiddled with Yāyā's little face and "teasingly" said, "Let's make a small golden Buddha for our little Yāyā to wear too!"
"A child shouldn't wear a golden Buddha! No, it's not safe. It's too much of a waste to melt such a large Gold Ingot, let's keep it!" Wú Mǐnxiá, who was accustomed to saving, directly rejected the suggestion. The family was well-off, and her son was capable, but she couldn't agree to squandering money like this.
Although Chén Xuě was tempted, seeing her mother's expression, she pouted and said nothing. Yāyā, with the innocent honesty of a child, looked at Wú Mǐnxiá, pouted, and murmured, "Uncle said he'd give it to Yāyā, but Grandma won't part with it. Grandma is stingy!"
Wú Mǐnxiá was amused by her granddaughter's words. She pinched Yāyā's little nose and laughingly scolded, "Isn't your uncle's money money? If you want it, ask your mom to buy it for you. It would be such a waste to melt this much gold! Grandma will keep it for you as dowry when you grow up, you ungrateful child!"
Chen Mo put Yāyā down and went back into his room to get the other three ingots. He handed them all to his mother, smiling, "It's fine to melt one. We still have three! Anyway, they were going to be sold. I bought them cheap, and now the price is high, so selling them would be profitable. I'll buy more when the market price drops again. There's nothing to be stingy about!"
For an ordinary family, seeing so much gold at once was rarer than seeing a pile of hundred-yuan bills. Chén Xuě and Wú Mǐnxiá each took two, their expressions indescribable. Chén Xuě weighed the Gold Ingot in her hand and exclaimed, "My brother has really made it! This weight, it must be at least a million, right?"
The price of gold is transparent, and even those who don't understand the market have some idea. The feeling of holding a million in one's hand made the mother and daughter sigh.
Having it vs. not having it made a complete difference in mood. At first, seeing just one Gold Ingot, they found it novel and precious. But when all four were before them, it wasn't as rare as it had been initially.
No woman dislikes jewelry. Wú Mǐnxiá had naturally envied women who wore gold and silver. Their family's financial situation had not allowed it before, but now they had the means, and her son was so filial. After pondering for a moment, Wú Mǐnxiá also became generous, nodding, "Alright, let's melt one. Such a large piece can make a lot of jewelry! Let's prepare a set for my future daughter-in-law in advance, so we don't have to spend money on it later!"
"Hey, Mom, aren't you being a bit biased? You're willing to prepare for your daughter-in-law in advance, but not for your daughter?" Chén Xuě was unhappy when she heard this. She pouted, looking exactly like Yāyā.
Wú Mǐnxiá gave her daughter Chén Xuě a look, took the two Gold Ingots from Chén Xuě's hands, pulled them into her own embrace, and as she turned to walk inside, said, "So what if I'm biased! It's a gift from your maternal family, and you're still putting on airs. If you don't want it, I won't give it to you!"
"Mom... I want it..." Chén Xuě immediately protested, trotting after her and repeatedly pleading, saying nice things. Chen Mo and Yāyā, standing in the living room, looked at each other. Yāyā spread her hands and said like a little adult, "Uncle, it seems like we don't have anything to do here anymore!"
Chen Mo gave a helpless chuckle, tapped Yāyā's forehead, and teased, "You don't have anything to do right now, but you will when you grow up!"