Jiang Cheng followed up with a question: "Then what about the issues with your blood vessels?"
Great-Grandfather happily patted Jiang Cheng's hand, his eyes filled with a gratified smile. With an air of having come to terms with everything, he said, "Don't worry, it's all good. People come for checkups every day. My body is quite normal. I'm getting old, so it's normal to have some minor ailments. My life has been very exciting. If I were to suddenly pass away one day, I think that would be fine too. At least there wouldn't be any major pain. I just worry about you all a bit..."
Seeing Great-Grandfather getting sentimental, Jiang Cheng immediately said, "Grandpa, don't think like that. Didn't Second Grandpa just clamor about wanting to hold a great-grandson last time?"
Great-Grandfather smiled and comforted him, "Silly child, everyone must die eventually. It's a law of nature. But now I feel much better. I'm not greedy; I just want to live a few more years to make sure everything is arranged for you. Then, when I go, it'll be much safer."
If he had heard these words before, Jiang Cheng would have certainly felt exceptionally distressed.
But now, the healing card's effect was active on Great-Grandfather's body.
So as long as no accidents occurred, Jiang Cheng believed that Great-Grandfather would surely live to be a hundred.
In fact, with all his organs becoming healthy, living past a hundred shouldn't be a problem at all.
Moreover, given the security forces around Great-Grandfather and the overall safety environment of China, accidents were almost impossible. Thus, for the next decade or so, there was practically no need to worry about Great-Grandfather.
Thinking of this, Jiang Cheng felt even more at ease.
The noon hours quickly passed by.
In Beijing's winter, the daylight hours are very short.
Soon the sun set, and it began to turn cold and damp. Scraps of snowflakes even began to drift down from the sky.
The three of them left the courtyard and walked into the warm house.
Inside, both the charcoal fire and the floor heating were on, making it feel extremely comfortable.
As soon as they entered, they immediately took off their down jackets.
Jiang Cheng glanced around and saw an exquisite enamel hot pot on the dining table. Its design was very retro and did not look like a modern utensil.
Exquisite patterns were carved all around the pot, and the lid was circular.
A smooth gemstone was embedded on top, shimmering with a faint light under the lamps.
Beneath the pot was a small stove wrapped in copper material, also carved with exquisite patterns.
Under the stove was a circular base carved with fine patterns, looking very delicate.
It looked like tonight's dinner was hot pot.
Plates of various thinly sliced meats were laid out on the table.
To cater to Jiang Cheng's tastes, there were even various types of seafood.
On the table were minced garlic, minced ginger, chopped green onions, cilantro, soy sauce, vinegar, chili oil, sesame oil, and even various spicy sauces.
Great-Grandfather happily led Jiang Cheng to sit beside him, his face beaming with a smile.
"Come, sit here! Today's hot pot is very authentic. This is genuine Old Beijing Copper Pot Sliced Meat."
Second Grandpa Jiang Chenhong followed up, "And the chef is a disciple descended from the old Imperial Kitchen. His skills are superb; he can cook all sorts of palace dishes. Especially his carving technique—it's practically divine. Look."
Jiang Cheng leaned over to take a look.
He saw that the fish and meat ingredients were each meticulously carved into the shape of translucent flowers.
They were lifelike, appearing just like works of art.
The plating of the various dishes was also very sophisticated; every dish appeared exceptionally exquisite.
Furthermore, the ingredients all looked very fresh.
Each slice was cut as thin as a cicada's wing and neatly arranged on the plates.
In addition to the meat, there were fresh green vegetables on the table, such as bok choy, spinach, and lettuce.
The vegetables looked very tender, each leaf a vibrant green that made one's mouth water.
Compared to those old alleyway hot pots in Chengdu, the meal before him was simply the most exquisite hot pot he had ever eaten.
After sitting down, Great-Grandfather immediately picked up his chopsticks and put a few slices of donkey meat into the pot.
Ten seconds later, he placed the first piece of freshly cooked, tender, and juicy donkey meat into Jiang Cheng's bowl, saying with a face full of affection, "Here, try this donkey meat. I guarantee you'll like it."
"Thank you, Great-Grandfather!"
Jiang Cheng happily accepted it and put the donkey meat into his mouth. With a gentle bite, the tender and juicy texture instantly exploded in his mouth.
Suddenly, a system notification sounded in his mind.
"Ding! Congratulations to the Host for triggering a gourmet mission."
"Mission Reward: One gourmet card."
Seeing the gourmet card which he hadn't seen in a long time, Jiang Cheng nodded with a pleasant mood.
After all, he happened to need money right now, and one gourmet card could net him at least a few small goals.
The three of them happily watched CCTV programs while eating hot pot.
At this time, the television was broadcasting a program called "2017 China Entrepreneur Role Models."
Currently, they were presenting an award to Miss Dong.
Miss Dong held the trophy, giving her acceptance speech with a face full of pride.
"A good enterprise must first undertake three responsibilities: responsibility to consumers, responsibility to society, and responsibility to employees. And it must innovate on this basis..."
After watching for ten minutes, Jiang Chenhong's brow suddenly furrowed.
He was clearly very repulsed by those people on TV passionately recounting the hardships of their entrepreneurial journeys.
He turned his head and said to Great-Grandfather beside him, "Oh, this is too fake! Big brother, quick, change the channel."
Hearing this, Great-Grandfather gave him a sideways glance and then said unhurriedly, "Can't you see I'm eating? You're a grown man; if you want to watch a different program, can't you press the button yourself?"
Seeing the two elders starting to bicker, Jiang Cheng smiled helplessly. "Second Grandpa, why do you say that?"
Second Grandpa took the remote control from an auntie attending nearby while muttering under his breath.
"These people, most of their ancestors were officials, and many from their maternal families were princesses. To say they suffered during their startup is only true for the bit of hardship they faced during the founding of the country. But after the Reform and Opening-up, they still obtained a lot of resources and conveniences..."
Listening to Jiang Chenhong talk about some of these secrets, Jiang Cheng felt that his eyes had been opened.
Sure enough, there is no such thing as success without cause.
Just like himself—if it weren't for the system, Jiang Cheng would have had no way to reach his current status so quickly.
Unless he relied on his family background, then it might be possible to be like he is now.
But for ordinary people, the gap between a hundred thousand and several million is already a massive chasm that is difficult to cross.
Let alone these big entrepreneurs worth hundreds of billions.
If you don't have some connections and inside tracks during your startup, you'd be stuck just by some of the procedures involved.
It truly is difficult to achieve such a large commercial empire.
Indeed, no one can succeed casually.
Those who succeed casually are not ordinary people.