Chapter 51

Li Mu's parents did not go to work today. Since the morning, Li Ma had been calling their relatives to inform them of Li Mu's college entrance exam score and the dinner invitation for the evening.

Li Ma had repeated Li Mu's score many times in the morning, but she still felt it was not enough. She felt that 636 points had almost become her catchphrase. Even when she went out to buy groceries, she kept muttering, "636, 636..."

This score was indeed enough to make her and her husband proud for a long time.

Li Mu's grandparents were very happy when they learned about his score. Three years ago, their granddaughter, Xiao Yuanyuan, the only daughter of Li Mu's Uncle Da, scored 570 points in the college entrance exam and was admitted to a first-tier university in the province. The two elders were happy all summer long. When they heard that their eldest grandson had scored such a high score, the two elders couldn't stop smiling from the morning.

Li Mu's Aunt Da, Uncle Xiao, and others were also very happy and happily accepted the invitation over the phone. Only Uncle Da and Aunt Xiao felt a bit jealous. Although they felt uncomfortable, they couldn't refuse such an invitation, so they also agreed to come.

Li Mu's Uncle Da and Aunt Da both worked at the Tax Bureau. Together, they earned about 40,000 to 50,000 yuan a year, including their salaries and benefits, making them a truly well-off family and the best-off in the Xiao family.

Next was Li Mu's Aunt Xiao. She had not been able to enter the Tax Bureau and instead worked at a city textile factory. However, the factory went bankrupt a few years ago, and she was laid off. She then opened a small children's clothing store in an alley. The investment was not large, but the profit was considerable. It was said that she could earn about 30,000 yuan a year. Among the five people of Li Ma's generation, Uncle Da and Aunt Xiao had the best economic conditions, so they were also the most proud.

Around 5:30 PM, Uncle Da, Xiao Yunjian, and his wife, Cai Yanhong, set out. Xiao Yunjian rode his beloved Dayang motorcycle, and after Cai Yanhong sat down, he asked, "Where's Yuanyuan? She's been away for the summer, but we haven't seen her all day."

Cai Yanhong casually replied, "I called her. She said she's playing at a classmate's house and will go directly to the Hai Zhou Hotel."

Xiao Yunjian nodded. "This Li Daoping, his son scored so high in the college entrance exam, and he's so proud. He even arranged the dinner at the Hai Zhou Hotel. Can he afford it?"

Cai Yanhong patted his shoulder. "He wants to show off, but we don't need to care. We won't be the ones paying the bill."

After saying that, Cai Yanhong remembered something and quickly added, "Don't give Li Mu money today. Wait until he gets his admission letter and confirms his enrollment before giving him any. When our Yuanyuan went to college two years ago, your sister gave her 500 yuan. Remember that number and give Li Mu 500 yuan, no more."

Xiao Yunjian started the motorcycle and said, "I know, don't worry." Then he revved the engine and sped off.

Li Mu's parents deliberately left work half an hour early today, went home, and changed into more formal clothes. Li Mu refused his father's request to wear a shirt and continued with his casual style, wearing a loose white T-shirt and black shorts.

The Li family of three arrived at the hotel 20 minutes early. Li Mu took the opportunity to order the dishes before anyone else arrived. He basically chose the most luxurious options, the best dishes, and the best wine.

Just the seafood and Maotai wine alone cost about 3,000 yuan, and the waiter responsible for taking the order was somewhat surprised, but Li Mu remained calm.

Before coming, Li Mu had reminded his parents that today at the dinner table, they should only talk about his score and not mention anything about his earnings. Additionally, they should not contradict anything he said and should support him.

Although his demands were a bit domineering, Li Mu had his reasons. Having lived for over 30 years, he had seen many relatives who were only superficially harmonious or even treated each other like enemies. Truly harmonious large families were rare. He had many grievances with Uncle Da and Aunt Xiao, but he didn't want to embarrass anyone today. He just wanted to help his father regain his dignity in the Xiao family and prevent them from looking down on him in the future.

At 6:00 PM, eight cold dishes were already on the table, and two bottles of Maotai wine had been opened and placed on the large round table.

Li Dad looked at the setup and, although he hadn't ordered the dishes, knew that his son would spend a lot of money today. Just the two bottles of Maotai alone cost over 1,000 yuan!

Soon, Li Mu's Uncle Xiao, Xiao Yunshe, with his wife and child, and Li Mu's grandparents arrived first. Uncle Xiao's life was average. He worked at a water plant, and his wife, Sun Qinqin, had no formal job and worked various odd jobs. The grandparents were taken care of by them, and the grandfather's monthly pension supplemented their household expenses. Although the money wasn't much, the life of the five people, young and old, was very harmonious, and Uncle Xiao's wife took good care of everyone.

After the grandparents arrived, they all praised Li Mu's college entrance exam score, especially the grandmother, who held Li Mu's hand tightly.

"Li Mu scored so high. Where do you plan to go to college?" the grandmother asked, holding Li Mu's hand with pride.

Li Mu smiled and replied, "Grandma, I plan to go to Yanjing."

"Yanjing is great, a big city!" the grandmother said with a smile. "Our family is the most accomplished with Li Mu."

Uncle Xiao pointed to his 12-year-old son, Xiao Hao, who had just finished elementary school, and said, "Hao Hao, see that? Your cousin is your role model!"

"Last year, you said my sister was my role model," Xiao Hao pouted, then forcibly pulled Li Mu away from his grandmother and asked with a grin, "Bro, when do you have time to take me to the internet cafe to play CS? My dad doesn't give me money, and I'm bored to death at home during the summer."

"If your dad doesn't give you money, you should stay at home obediently."

Li Mu smiled at his cousin. In the years to come, this kid would become quite a character, not because he did well in life, but because he got a girl pregnant in his second year of high school. He lied to his father, saying the school was charging for extra classes during the summer, and secretly took his girlfriend to get an abortion. His aunt, Li Mu's Aunt Xiao, went to the hospital to bring food to her hospitalized father-in-law and saw him enter the hospital with a crying girl, so she followed out of curiosity.

In the end, Xiao Hao was beaten by his father at home, and it was his grandfather who saved him. His college entrance exam results were also very poor, and he was sent to the army by his father right after high school. He eventually stayed in the military and reportedly did quite well.

At that moment, seeing that Li Mu didn't agree to his request, Xiao Hao pouted, "You're my only brother, and you're not being nice!"

Li Mu asked, "How can I be nice?"

"Give me ten yuan," Xiao Hao almost blurted out. "If you give me ten yuan, I'll pay you back double when I earn money!"

Li Mu was speechless. This kid was a smart one. In the past few years, during holidays, he would always come to stick to him, which gave him a headache. Xiao Hao even proposed a solution: he would stop sticking to him, but Li Mu had to give him 50 cents a day, paid every two days.

However, Xiao Hao was very emotional towards Li Mu. As he said, in the Xiao family, he had two older sisters, one from his Uncle Da's family and one from his Aunt Da's family, and a younger brother from his Aunt Xiao's family, who was about the same age as him, but they never got along. On his mother's side, he was the oldest boy, so in the end, he only had Li Mu as his brother, and he always respected him very much.

Li Mu thought for a moment and said to Xiao Hao, "If you study hard and try to get into a good university, I'll pay for your college education. But if you really don't think you're cut out for it, don't rush to make any decisions after high school. Come to me first, and if you encounter any difficulties you can't solve, remember to come to me."

Xiao Hao was a bit confused but was very excited when he heard that his brother promised to pay for his college education. He gave a thumbs up and said, "Bro, you're really nice, but it will be years before I go to college. Can you give me ten yuan first?"

Li Mu was taken aback. Xiao Hao, seeing that he didn't respond, quickly added, "Bro, I'm being honest. I plan to take the class beauty, Liu Mengmeng, to drink pearl milk tea. Have you had it? It has big beans inside, and it's chewy like QQ candy."

Li Mu smacked his lips. What a kid! He was only starting sixth grade, and he already had these thoughts. He would probably not be able to avoid a beating from his father in the future.

However, Li Mu wasn't stingy. He looked around and, seeing that no one was paying attention to them, took out a bill from his pocket and handed it to Xiao Hao.

"Chasing girls requires spending money. Drinking cheap milk tea is no good. Take her to KFC instead."

Xiao Hao was stunned. His cousin was holding a 100-yuan bill! 100 yuan!

He had never had control over even 10 yuan in his life. Although he could earn a few hundred yuan in New Year's money each year, it never made it into his pocket. These days, a primary school student with 5 yuan was considered rich, and 10 yuan was a tycoon!

Xiao Hao was so excited that