Chapter 8#

When he returned home, the lights of thousands of households were already lit in the staff community. The smoke from cooking in the corridor had dissipated, and the army of dishwashers occupying the public sink had also disappeared. Each neighbor’s door was tightly closed, isolating the cold and darkness outside, and enjoying the leisure time of the night.

Chen Yuanming’s mood was quite relaxed. He had worked up a sweat on the way, and his stomach was rumbling with hunger, but the money in his pocket was real and reassuring. This time, he would hand over a part of it to his family to supplement their income, and the other part would be used as capital to try to invest in other businesses…

Pushing open the door, he was about to greet his family when he saw his father, Chen Jianhua, sitting on the bed with his arms crossed, his brows furrowed, glaring at him as he walked in. The tables and chairs in the small room were all cleared away, as if there was no intention of leaving him any food. His mother, Wang Juan, stood by the bed with a worried look on her face, seemingly worried about something.

What’s wrong?

Before he could open his mouth, the man opposite had already said sternly, “Where did you go today?!”

Chen Yuanming was slightly stunned, “To Auntie Liu’s house, Sun Lang and I…”

“Auntie Liu’s house?” Chen Jianhua interrupted his son unceremoniously, stood up, and walked to Chen Yuanming’s side in a few steps, “I don’t think so! Does Auntie Liu live in the municipal party committee compound?!”

Ah. Chen Yuanming instantly understood. His parents probably already knew that he was selling things. The first time he went to the department store in the old city, which was in the east of the city, half a city away from the bearing factory. He sold out quickly, so he probably didn’t run into any acquaintances. But it was hard to say about the municipal party committee family compound. Some leaders in the factory had spouses who worked in the municipal government, so it was possible that he was seen by someone he knew. But so what?

Chen Yuanming pulled out a smile, “No, Sun Lang and I went to the municipal party committee compound to sell things. Auntie Liu knitted some gloves, and I helped her…”

“You helped my ass!” Chen Jianhua roared, “How old are you?! How dare Liu Yun let you sell things? How can she be so shameless?! Didn’t you go to her house to study? Is this what you learned?! Are your wings hardened? You dare to make trouble with this?!”

Choked by these words, Chen Yuanming frowned slightly, “Dad, you misunderstood. Auntie Liu is doing a legitimate business, and I’m just lending a hand…”

“Legitimate? Would she be speculating if it were legitimate?!” Chen Jianhua was completely angry, “What Shanghai goods, what selling abroad, how can she let you help with such things?! She has no shame, but our family does!”

“Keep it down.” Wang Juan had already come over and closed the door, looking out the window worriedly, “It’s the middle of the night, don’t shout. It’s so embarrassing if the neighbors hear.”

After speaking, she also walked to Chen Yuanming’s side and touched her son’s arm, “Doudou, you don’t understand these things. Don’t get involved with her. These days, you know a person’s face but not their heart. Sun Jun is not a good person either. In the factory…” Seemingly realizing that there was something wrong with what she said, Wang Juan stopped abruptly and said no more, but the condemnation in her eyes pierced Chen Yuanming’s heart like a needle.

What ease, what comfort, what hope, all turned into bubbles at this moment. Chen Yuanming’s face was as hard as a rock, showing no expression, “What about the money? You don’t want the money either?”

He reached into his pocket and pulled out a handful of banknotes, “I went to help someone with work and got paid in return. It’s perfectly justified. Where is there anything to be ashamed of? Is our family not short of money? How much debt did you owe to treat grandma’s illness back then? How long has it been since our family has seen meat? During the whole New Year, how many New Year’s goods did you buy? How many relatives did you visit? Why? Isn’t it because of lack of money?”

The colorful banknotes were crumpled in his hand, like a tangled mess, as if they were on fire. Chen Jianhua’s arm twitched violently, and he raised his hand and slapped his son across the face.

“You even took the money… so much money…” His words trembled, like a mumble, and also like a shiver, “Do you know what you’re doing? This is speculation! You’ll be arrested and sent to prison!”

Wang Juan’s face also changed. She snatched the money from her son’s hand, “She gave you so much money just for helping out?! Are you stupid?! Why don’t you think about why she gave you the money?! How could she do that? I’ll go find her tomorrow!”

“Find her for what? Aren’t you embarrassed enough!” Chen Jianhua shouted, “Just throw the money at her! If you go to Liu Yun’s house again and earn this kind of black-hearted money with her, see if I don’t break your legs!”

“That’s right! You can’t associate with her family anymore. What kind of people are they! They’ve corrupted a good child. Is being a ‘speculator’ a good thing these days? Our family is poor, but your father and I are upright workers. We earn a legitimate salary and support ourselves with our labor. We can’t be like those nouveau riche and take the wrong path!”

“Even a dog doesn’t dislike a poor home. You should have some backbone! Don’t let people point fingers at our family behind our backs. A good student doing such sneaky things. If you’re not ashamed, think about your parents’ old faces!”

One on the left, one on the right, one high, one low, two voices buzzed in his ears. The slap was heavy. The strength of a front-line worker’s hand was fierce and ruthless, without mercy. Chen Yuanming only felt that half of his ear was ringing, and something cold and hard was rushing down his throat, freezing his heart.

He had thought a lot, thinking about how to use everything in that memory to change the lives of himself and his family. But he had never seriously thought about what these things represented in 1991, in this closed factory and mine staff dormitory, and how his parents would view them. What was the situation when he quit his job and went north? How could he be so wishful to think that his family would support him?

They wouldn’t… This had nothing to do with making money or not, it was just a gap in ideology. Face, group psychology, self-awareness, all of these made them unshakable, as stubborn as a stone in a latrine. Even if they were laid off a few years later and faced a more difficult life, their self-esteem could not tolerate selling on the street and smiling at people for a few yuan. How ridiculous…

Chen Yuanming slowly closed his eyes. His head was bowed low. Hunger and cold began to envelop his body, just like the first time he woke up from that nightmare. That night, Chen Yuanming lay stiffly on his hard wooden bed. The swollen half of his face was pressed against the buckwheat husk pillow, throbbing with pain. But he was afraid of falling asleep, afraid that the bloody dream would fill his mind again and make him unable to sleep all night.

One deep and one shallow breathing sound rose and fell on the big bed not far away, seemingly carefree and full of certainty about life.

What on earth was he doing…

The next day, Chen Yuanming was locked in the room by his family. A small room of about 10 square meters, full of furniture. He sat at the small dining table, looking at his hands, which were wearing a pair of coffee-colored half-finger gloves, specially knitted for him by Liu Yun, the right size and extremely comfortable.

But what had he done…

Bang bang! “Doudou!”

A voice sounded outside the window. Chen Yuanming raised his head and saw an anxious face. There were iron bars on his window, so it was impossible to get in or out from there, but he still opened the window.

“Doudou, what’s wrong with your mom?! She came to my house today and threw a stack of money at me, and said to let you not…” As soon as the window opened, Sun Lang couldn’t wait to shout, but halfway through, he looked at the boy’s face in the room in shock, “Did your dad hit you? How can it be so heavy, it’s all swollen!”

A hand reached in through the bars and gently touched the red, swollen, and bruised cheek. Chen Yuanming flinched slightly and dodged the touch.

“They locked you up?! Is it because you went to sell things with me? How could they do that!!”

“Second Brother…” Chen Yuanming pulled out a small smile, “Don’t worry about me. This is not something you can handle.”

“How can that be?! Just let them hit you and lock you up?! Are you not their biological son?!” The boy outside the window was angry. He couldn’t imagine how someone could treat their own child like this. Shouldn’t family members dote on their children?! Even his dad had never hit him in the face!

“If you get involved, it will only make my parents angrier.”

A cold sentence cut off Sun Lang’s anger. He stood foolishly outside the window, somewhat at a loss.

“I thought about some things too simply.” Chen Yuanming showed a self-mocking smile, “It’s okay, don’t worry about me. I know what to do.”

The boy had really never encountered such a thing. After standing there foolishly for a long time, he fumbled in his pocket and took out two 50-yuan bills and stuffed them in.

“My mom asked me to give this to you.” He said with a stutter, “She said she caused you trouble, but what should be given can’t be so greedy. She asked me to…”

The handful of money he grabbed in anger yesterday looked like a lot, but it was actually less than 60 yuan, all small bills from the top. Now it was specially exchanged for whole bills. The meaning was self-evident. Chen Yuanming smiled and took it without hesitation.

“Thank Auntie for me. I’m the one who caused her trouble…”

“It’s no trouble at all. My mom wishes she could rush over directly…” After muttering a few words, Sun Lang scratched his head, not knowing how to continue.

“Don’t worry, school will start in a few days. I’ll just take it as a vacation.” Chen Yuanming showed a smile instead and comforted, “As long as my academic performance improves, there’s nothing I can’t do. They’ll calm down after a while.”

“That’s true…” Coaxed by a few words, Sun Lang slowly showed a smile, “What are you afraid of? When we get into the same high school, are you afraid we won’t see each other?”

“The same one?” Chen Yuanming raised his eyebrows, “My goal is the city’s No. 1 High School. If you want to get in, it’s not too late to work hard now.”

The boy’s face turned red in an instant, “No~ isn’t it just No. 1 High School?! You watch me! There’s still hope for the top ten in No. 2 Middle School!”

“That’s right.” Chen Yuanming didn’t interrupt the other’s bold words. Sun Lang was not stupid, just a bit of a teenager’s temperament, unable to calm down. With a final push in the last semester, it shouldn’t be too difficult to get into the city’s top high school. “Second Brother, you can definitely get in.”

Praised by the other party, the boy showed a proud smile and scratched his head. “Then I’ll go first, so your dad won’t see me and beat you again. Don’t be stubborn either. If you give in, what can they do to you? And…” He lowered his voice quietly, “My mom said, she’s still planning to do business, and she wants you to be her military advisor. When you make a lot of money, see what your family will say!”

“Pfft!” Unable to resist, he reached out and ruffled the other’s messy short hair. Chen Yuanming replied seriously, “I will not fail my mission.”

“Oh, fuck, don’t touch my hair!” He slapped away the mischievous hand. The dark clouds on Sun Lang’s face had all dissipated, and he had returned to his cute and sturdy appearance. His two big eyes blinked, “Then I’m leaving. I’ll come to see you secretly when school starts!”

“En, it’s a deal.”

Smiling as he watched the other’s back disappear into the corridor, Chen Yuanming took a deep breath of the dry and cold air outside the window and closed the window again. It’s okay, what’s such a small matter? I’ll just think of another way. Pressing his forehead against the cold glass, Chen Yuanming closed his eyes and seriously thought about the road ahead.

Author’s Note: The crime of speculation, as the name suggests, is the crime of making huge profits by means of buying and selling short, hoarding and cornering, and reselling. It was implemented in 1979 and deleted and revised in 2009. At that time, this crime could be big or small. In 1983, 30,000 people were convicted of this crime. In 1991, the last case was sentenced to death for this crime.