203: There is something important tonight

Song Yuan waited for another half an hour in the shop, feeling incredibly annoyed.

He simply asked the other party to send their location and went to find them.

Song Yuan drove according to the navigation and, from a distance, saw two cars stopped by the roadside ahead, with a tripod propped up behind them. Several people were gathered in front of the cars, negotiating with the traffic police.

Song Yuan parked his car nearby and got out, walking towards them.

As he approached, an elderly man with graying hair tapped him from the side.

"Your name is Song Yuan, right?"

Song Yuan nodded.

"Are you Master Liu?"

The old man responded, "Yes, my brother called and said you were coming to find me. I'll leave this here for my son to handle. Let's find a convenient place to talk."

Song Yuan invited him into a teahouse by the roadside and ordered a pot of Pu-erh tea.

He took out the golden lock he had been carrying for a long time and handed it to Master Liu.

"Master Liu, please take a look. Do you still remember this golden lock?"

Master Liu took out his reading glasses from his pocket and held the lock in his hand, examining it for a long time.

"This golden lock is from an older mold in my shop, one we haven't used for many years. The special thing about yours is that it has an inscription; ordinary people don't usually engrave them."

Master Liu fell into thought, then after a while, he said, "I remember a woman in her fifties once came to me to have three golden locks made. She asked for inscriptions on them, saying they were for her three unborn grandchildren.

Yours... I'm not sure if it's one of the ones that woman had made."

"Could you think again? Do you remember what was inscribed on each of the three golden locks? And what were the distinctive features of that woman's appearance?"

Master Liu shook his head. "I've made tens of thousands of golden locks, and there have been too many customers. As for the inscriptions, I really can't recall. That woman was tall and had a typical northern accent. I can't remember anything else."

Song Yuan felt a surge of frustration in his chest, as if a large stone was pressing down on him, making it hard to breathe.

"Did she leave any contact information or an address? How did you contact her when the golden locks were ready?"

Master Liu said regretfully, "She didn't leave any. At that time, mobile phones weren't widespread. I would issue an invoice, and the customer would come back a week later with the invoice to pick up the goods.

After she had those three golden locks made, she said if she had any more grandchildren later, she would come back to me. I never saw her again after that, so it seems her family didn't have any more grandchildren."

Song Yuan took a sip of tea, his mind a jumble.

This master didn't remember much, and he hadn't retained the crucial information. With just this description, it would be impossible to find the person.

As the tea cup was emptied, Master Liu's son came in. The old man put away his reading glasses and returned the golden lock to Song Yuan.

"Sorry, I can only help you this much. I'm almost ninety years old, and it's not easy to remember even this much. I wish you find the person you're looking for soon!"

"Thank you."

Song Yuan leaned weakly against the back of the chair, watching the old man leave.

Perhaps he needed to check the communities nearby. Since she came here to have gold made, she probably didn't live far.

Song Yuan paid for the tea and drove to the company.

Back in his office, he first opened his computer to check the household registrations of residents in the South City, looking for any families with three grandchildren who had lost a child.

In the family group chat, Grandma Gu tagged everyone:

"@everyone, children, come back to the Old Residence for dinner tonight. No one is allowed to work overtime!"

Gu Shiyu was the first to reply, "Yes, ma'am!"

Song Yuan replied with an OK emoji, while Gu Shiyuan expressed indifference.

"As someone with an inconvenient leg who needs to hitch a ride with my sister, I'll go wherever they go and at whatever time they go. But let's be clear, I don't have time to play mahjong, and I'm not staying overnight."

Song Yuan smiled, looking at the message on his phone. There was still Ji Qingxue at home. This guy must be worried about leaving her alone at home, which is why he insisted on going back tonight, right?

Song Yuan first called the housekeeper at home, asking her to cook for Ji Qingxue alone, as the others wouldn't be returning to eat.

In the afternoon, Song Yuan led the technical and product departments in a requirements meeting, going over the features to be developed next.

The team had expanded considerably recently, hiring several young and energetic fresh graduates. These individuals were quick-witted and full of ideas, proposing many fresh new ways to play.

The technical department provided an assessment: some features could be implemented, while others could not.

The product manager created prototype designs for the implementable features and added them to the requirements. The pressure would now be on the technical department.

After the meeting, Li Lei stretched.

"Brothers, let's work hard starting today! In the next iteration, our game content will be even richer."

Lu Chi laughed and said, "Our game has been quite popular online recently. I heard that a colleague even started a side business by streaming our game?"

Everyone exchanged knowing smiles, and Zhang Qiang chimed in, "Speaking of the best side business, it's our Young Master. His account has hundreds of thousands of followers. His livestream clearly states, 'Not short on money, no need to send gifts,' but people still keep sending gifts.

When will netizens show some care for those of us who actually need gifts?"

Li Lei retorted, "Whose fault is it that you don't have a good-looking face? Haven't you noticed that all the people sending gifts in Young Master's livestream are women, and the top donators are all rich women? How could we have such good fortune?"

Wang Shuai, "Alright, no more nonsense. I need to work, I need to write code, I need to become a god!"

The people in the office dispersed one after another, leaving only Lu Chi and Song Yuan.

Song Yuan joked, "How are you two doing recently? Are you still performing normally these past few days?"

Lu Chi cursed inwardly. The first time he made a fool of himself, this scoundrel would probably mock him for the rest of his life.

He said grumpily, "We're doing very well. We've already moved in together."

Song Yuan pulled two pieces of chewing gum from his pocket, tossed one to Lu Chi, and unwrapped the other, putting it in his mouth to chew.

Since quitting smoking, he had developed a habit of chewing things; otherwise, he always felt something was missing.

Song Yuan praised him, "Not bad, quite blissful. No wonder you've looked a bit weak these past few days. Your wife is your own, so take it easy. But when you need to replenish, you should!"

Lu Chi wanted to kick him. "Stop talking nonsense! Seriously, I'm going to visit her family on May Day to pay respects to the elders. It's the first time for a prospective son-in-law to visit, what kind of gifts should I bring?"

Song Yuan recalled his first time going home with Gu Shiyu to see Grandma.

"Cater to their preferences. Don't bring cheap goods for the first visit. First, ask your girlfriend about her family's preferences. If you really don't know, buy cigarettes, alcohol, and tea; picking the most expensive ones won't go wrong."

Lu Chi, "You understand best."

As it neared quitting time, Gu Old Lady spoke in the group again,

"There's an important matter today; we'll have distinguished guests at home. Children, remember to leave work early to avoid the rush hour."

Song Yuan called Gu Shiyu and asked her, "What important matter does Grandma have tonight?"