Love Me in Another Universe

Chapter 27. Soupy Has Got a Telephone at Home

July 3, 1995, Monday. As soon as Mr. Guan entered the door, he hugged his wife and exclaiming with delight, "Dearie, it's all set!"

Mrs. Guan looked bewildered, then pushed Mr. Guan away, her voice tinged with mock anger, "Go away, have you lost your mind? What's all set?"

Mr. Guan continued, his face alight with excitement, "Didn't we ask Cheng Mingli's old classmate at the telecommunications bureau for help? Today our approval has been granted. Now we can install a telephone in our home!"

"Really?" Mrs. Guan was over the moon, exclaiming, "You're awesome, Honey!" Mrs. Guan was overjoyed and gave Mr. Guan a hard kiss on each of his cheeks. But she quickly put away her smile again and said worriedly, "But...the installation fee must be very expensive, right?"

Mr. Guan stammered, "It's going to be three--three thousand yuan..."

"Three thousand!" Mrs. Guan was shocked, then said with a whine, "We already spent three hundred yuan on the gift before. Now it's another three thousand. And we'll have to pay the monthly rent and phone bill after installing the phone. I guess we have to withdraw some money from the time deposit again..."

"Dearie, you have to look at things from a different perspective. There are many benefits to having a phone installed." Mr. Guan smiled and said, "With a phone, you can also chat with your friends more often."

Mrs. Guan was unimpressed, "I can go to my friends' homes by bus and chat with them all day. It's much cheaper than making phone calls."

"But with the phone installed, it's much more convenient for people to find me to do moonlighting." Mr. Guan smiled and continued to explain, "I'm confident that I'll soon be able to earn back the installation fee. By then, I'll also have money to buy you more beautiful clothes. It's actually a very cost-effective investment..."

While Mrs. Guan was still hesitating, Guan Xuchen came back and happily hugged Mrs. Guan as soon as he entered.

"Like father, like son..." Mrs. Guan looked at Mr. Guan in amusement and then gently patted Guan Huchen's head and asked, "Xuchen, why are you so happy? Is there any good news?"

Guan Xuchen nodded enthusiastically and replied, "Uh-huh. The results for the final exams were announced today. I ranked second in my class and sixth in the entire grade!"

"Oh my, what a good son of mine, with dad's excellent genes." Hearing this, Mr. Guan happily kissed his son on the cheeks a few times.

"That's only right. "I told you, you just had a slip-up during the midterms." Mrs. Guan patted her son's head, then said teasingly to her husband, "Did you get good grades in technical secondary school? I'd say Xuchen is good at studies, just like me."

"Yes, yes, Dearie, you are always right." Mr. Guan said with a joyful smile, "Today our family is doubly blessed!"

"Dad, what other good news do we have today?" Guan Xuchen asked curiously.

"Xuchen, we are going to install a telephone in our home." Mr. Guan replied with a smile, then looked at Mrs. Guan and said half-jokingly, "But only if your mother approves the installation fee."

"Mom, Mom, approve it, approve it." Guan Xuchen shook his mother's hand and pleaded.

Mrs. Guan thought for a moment and said to her husband with a smile, "Alright. Approved! I'll go to the bank to get the money in a couple days."

"Great, long live Dearie." "Yay, long live Mom!" Both father and son cheered in unison.

Mrs. Guan then said to her husband, "Go get some money from the drawer and go buy half a white-cut chicken. That's Xuchen favorite. Let's reward him with an extra dish tonight."