Thirty Days to Hoard: Reborn into the Frost

Chapter 78: Chapter 77: Uncle Gu Is Still Single

Previously, the conflict between him and Huang Yuqing wasn’t that obvious. But ever since arriving at the base, Yang Shunsheng found that the tension between them was escalating every single day.

After Gu Rongjin finished his inspection of the base while carrying Chen Xiaobao, the two of them found a table in the cafeteria. Earlier, when he had been carrying Xiao Bao and inspecting the cafeteria stalls, the stall owners had absolutely adored the little boy.

Liu Hui Chun brought over two hot rice bowls. In the apocalypse, being able to eat a rice bowl with both meat and vegetables was an immense blessing. This was especially true for rice, as its current price had remained stubbornly high.

”Base Commander, the owner of the rice bowl stall heard you were ordering, so he specially added a lot of extra toppings for you!” Saying this, Liu Hui Chun lifted the lids off the two containers.

A thick layer of fatty beef with pickled greens covered a perfectly round mound of rice. Xiao Bao’s portion was exactly the same. The owner had even gone out of his way to add an extra serving of beef compared to a regular order.

Gu Rongjin nodded. With his long, slender fingers, he handed his meal card to Liu Hui Chun. ”Go pay for the two rice bowls.”

Liu Hui Chun smiled and said, ”The owner said today’s meal is on him to treat the Base Commander and Xiao Bao, so he wouldn’t accept any money.”

Many of these cafeteria stall owners hoped to get on Gu Rongjin’s good side, banking on him to look out for their interests in the future. Because of this, they were always incredibly eager to please him. However, Gu Rongjin stood firm. ”Everything must follow the cafeteria’s rules. What should be paid will be paid.”

Liu Hui Chun knew Gu Rongjin was a man of principle. Once he made up his mind, there was no room for negotiation. So, Liu Hui Chun could only smile, take Gu Rongjin’s meal card, and jog back to the stall to pay for the two of them.

When the stall owner heard the Base Commander insisted on paying, he was somewhat disappointed. After all, he had hoped to curry favor with the Base Commander through two free rice bowls. He hadn’t expected the Base Commander to stick so strictly to his principles, causing their plan to fall through entirely.

”Xiao Bao, let’s eat,” Gu Rongjin said with a faint smile at the little boy.

A thought suddenly occurred to Xiao Bao. He tilted his little face up and asked curiously, ”Uncle Gu, do you have a girlfriend?”

Gu Rongjin paused, taken aback. ”Why do you ask?” For such a young child to ask such an adult question was certainly surprising.

Xiao Bao giggled. ”I just wanted to know if Uncle Gu has a girlfriend.”

Gu Rongjin was amused. Naturally, he wouldn’t use adult lies to deceive such a young child. So, as he ate his rice, he answered honestly, ”No, I don’t.”

Xiao Bao was delighted to hear this. He tilted his little head and said, ”Mommy doesn’t have a boyfriend either!”

Gu Rongjin burst into laughter. So, this little rascal was trying to play matchmaker for him and Chen Momo. Stifling his amusement, Gu Rongjin nodded. ”Okay, Uncle knows.”

Xiao Bao then began acting as the ultimate wingman, praising Chen Momo to high heaven. ”Mommy is vewy gentle. She takes suuuper good care of Xiao Bao every day. Plus, Mommy is so pwetty! Xiao Bao loves Mommy a lot.”

Gu Rongjin chuckled. ”Hurry up and eat. Your mom will be calling you back soon.”

Chen Xiaobao giggled. Using his little spoon, he mixed the fatty beef and pickled greens with the rice underneath, then started taking big, hearty bites. NOM NOM NOM.

Only after Chen Momo finished selling her fish with pickled greens did she realize her son was missing.

”Where’s Xiao Bao?” Chen Momo asked Xu Xiaoka in surprise.

Xu Xiaoka pointed at a dining table. ”He’s eating with the Base Commander!”

Chen Momo was speechless. She realized that Student Chen Xiaobao sure had a busy schedule. He had actually gone to keep Gu Rongjin company for a meal!

Xu Xiaoka craned her neck to look at the stall diagonally across from them. ”The owner of the mini-bowl dish stall across from us didn’t open for business today.”

Chen Momo sneered. ”I’m guessing they won’t be able to open for a few days.”

She had indeed been a bit heavy-handed yesterday. As a taekwondo black belt, she was very clear about the limits of her strikes and their consequences. Based on her experience, yesterday’s female boss would have to rest at home for at least a week.

Sure enough, a little while later, the boss of the mini-bowl dish stall arrived—but it wasn’t the female boss. Only the male boss came. Ding Qiao arrived and tidied up the things behind the counter. Finally, he pasted a ”Stall for Transfer” notice next to the window.

His wife had been severely beaten, and business at the stall hadn’t been doing well anyway. After discussing it with his wife, Ding Qiao decided to transfer the stall to cut their losses in time.

Seeing the notice on the stall diagonally across from them, Xu Xiaoka asked, ”Sister Momo, can we rent that stall across from us?”

She noticed that it looked like they weren’t doing business anymore. She thought, ”If we rented it to sell fish with pickled greens, how great would that be!”

”We can’t,” Chen Momo replied. ”The base has a rule that close relatives or family members can only rent one stall.”

Xu Xiaoka had no choice but to drop the idea. Reluctantly, she muttered, ”Alright then.” But on second thought, the base’s regulation made sense. Otherwise, the entire cafeteria would be monopolized by fish with pickled greens.

After finishing his meal with Gu Rongjin, Xiao Bao came running over, his little footsteps echoing with a rapid PIT-PAT. ”Mommy!”

Gu Rongjin stood not far from the stall, waving goodbye to Xiao Bao. When he saw Chen Momo, Gu Rongjin didn’t smile, but he uncharacteristically took the initiative to speak. ”Sharing a meal with Xiao Bao for lunch today put me in a very good mood.”

After Gu Rongjin left the cafeteria, Chen Momo called Xiao Bao over. Deliberately keeping a straight face, she asked, ”Where did you go?”

Chen Xiaobao said happily, ”I went to eat with Uncle Gu!”

He thought proudly, ”And I even found out for you that Uncle Gu is still single!”

Chen Momo crossed her arms. ”Did you tell me you were eating with Uncle Gu? Did I agree to it?”

Chen Xiaobao fell silent. The smile vanished from his face. Feeling a bit guilty, he scratched his head and said awkwardly, ”No.”

Chen Momo lectured him, ”How many times has Mommy told you? If you’re going out to play, you have to tell me in advance. You can only go with my permission.”

Chen Xiaobao defended himself weakly, ”Xiao Bao didn’t go out. Xiao Bao was just in the cafeteria...”

”That’s still not allowed,” Chen Momo said coldly.

Seeing Xiao Bao’s pitiful appearance as he was being scolded, Xu Xiaoka felt an immediate pang of heartache. She quickly stepped forward to explain, ”Sister Momo, Xiao Bao told me. I was the one who gave him permission to eat with the Base Commander.”

Chen Momo’s attitude remained firm. ”That doesn’t count either. He needs to come and tell me himself.”

Chen Xiaobao let out a sigh. He realized that making Mommy happy was a tough job! She had him completely under her thumb! Right now, Xiao Bao wished he could grow up quickly. Once he grew up and could earn his own money, he wouldn’t be under Mommy’s control anymore!

Being the sensible child he was, Chen Xiaobao took the initiative to apologize to Chen Momo. ”Mommy, Xiao Bao knows he was wong. From now on, when I go out to pway, I’ll make sure to tell Mommy first!”