Returning to '97, creating a new life

Park In-ji stopped allowing Xu Kai to participate in basketball team training at a high school.

A few months later, Zhao Jian withdrew from the basketball team. His parents said they wanted him to focus on specialized training, particularly the triple jump, in order to get into a professional university.

A few months later, Xu Kai once again participated in a high school basketball team training ahead of schedule.

Yunshang told Xu Kai that it was Coach Pu who led Zhao Jian in triple jump training to achieve the results of a national second-level athlete, which was then the basis for the subsequent specialized training to break through to the first-level athlete level.

admire.

That's what you call a shrewd person.

Xu Kai deeply admired Teacher Park's handling of the situation. He had Zhao Jian's parents on his side, showing them through his actions that their son's future was still in his hands, and that forgetting the incident was their best option. At the same time, he reassured Xu Kai, saying, "You're a thoughtful child; don't worry too much or do anything now. I'll take care of your worries."

In comparison, the way my uncles handled things seemed rather presumptuous.

………………

With the intervention of adults and law enforcement, mediation was also conducted between the parties involved.

Having received some medical expenses and a small amount of compensation from Zhao Jian's family, the group of six knew that the matter was over.

The news spread, and Xu Kai once again sensed the changes around him, especially the attitude of Brother Song, who hung out near Tie Er Middle School, which had clearly changed.

Since everyone was eager to please him, Xu Kai naturally wouldn't put on airs. In fact, he was even more enthusiastic and polite than before. Not only Brother Song, but also people his age who had graduated from school, like Ma Xin, would always greet Xu Kai first whenever they saw him. He didn't smoke the cigarettes in his pocket; they were reserved for them.

He didn't calculate the specific value of selling goods at his stall. He was simply paving the way for the future by cultivating an image of a friendly but unapproachable person. Whether he would need it or not didn't matter; for now, it was just a matter of putting in a little more smiles and politeness.

Young.

Unfortunately, we must face the fact that it is very difficult to put all our current ideas into practice.

The identity of a student.

It's destined that we'll have to wait.

Fortunately, Xu Kai wasn't in a hurry. He was willing to start over, do what's appropriate for his age, and enjoy a life he hadn't experienced before. It didn't matter if his earning pace slowed down. Deep down, Xu Kai looked forward to high school life and even the possibility of university life. He felt that the restlessness and beauty of youth were something he couldn't truly experience once he entered society. Even if he owned a luxury car and chased after female college students at university gates, he could never truly understand university life.

Just like now, facing the potential troubles of contacting Yunshang, he was aware of it but still eager to go for it. After all, who wouldn't want to encounter the best of youth at the right age? Ignorant youth is still youth. Although it doesn't have the straightforwardness of adults, it also has a kind of excitement that adults can't feel.

Encountering things he had never experienced before actually made Xu Kai develop a love for school life.

When you come across a course you like, listen attentively, not with the goal of learning a lot or getting a high score, but simply to absorb knowledge that interests you.

Play ball with classmates, share martial arts novels, and chat quietly about various gossips during self-study periods.

They would occasionally skip class together, be punished by the teacher, and be penalized together. Despite being called the "Toilet Supervisor," he didn't feel anything. School was no longer the restrictive cage he felt when he first returned; instead, it became a life experience.

No longer obsessed with making money quickly, setting up a stall now allows me to earn enough pocket money so I'm not short of cash, and I can even buy meat and fruit for my family, which is great.

The timing and opportunity to make money are no longer here. After more than two months of deliberation and on-site investigation, I'm not sure how much I could earn, but the key issue is that it's not suitable for me. I used to think that capital was a burden, but now I realize that time is the real challenge.

Take it slow. Things are fine as they are now. In a few years, let the times catch up, and when the world joins the WTO, the real opportunities that belong to us will come.

Xu Kai smiled more often, and his sense of happiness from his rebirth soared. The most direct feeling was felt by Yun Shang and his mother, Sun Xiuyun. They each believed that Xu Kai's happiness came from themselves, and they also received a sense of happiness in return.

Having received 5,000 yuan in compensation, Sun Xiuyun believed that saving it for her child's schooling was the only correct choice. However, this didn't stop her from starting to improve her family's daily life. Fruits and meats, including ordering milk for her son every morning, were now on her agenda. She refused to let her sensible son pay for it himself and repeatedly stopped him from continuing to set up his stall in the cold winter.

Xu Kai neither listened to everything nor ignored everything. He was still very concerned about the fact that he had deliberately made things difficult for himself. He also had a general idea of ​​how much "goods flow" the school had experienced over the past three months.

Every week, he would choose one or two days when the weather was good and the midday sun was strong, and he would wear thick cotton shoes, down jacket, cotton hat and cotton gloves to set up his stall at the school gate at noon.

Saturdays are the busiest. He goes to Tieyi Middle School at noon and Wuzhong Middle School in the afternoon, welcoming a wave of customers after school every day without fail. He goes even when it snows, just wearing more layers. The income is good, and his current lifestyle makes him appreciate the profits of this small vendor.

He didn't want to spend a single day of his life again, even though he had to carefully budget his New Year's money and occasionally ask his mother for five or ten yuan.

………………

Inside the arcade.

Wang Lei was playing Dinosaur King with great enthusiasm.

Xu Kai sat to the side of a horse racing machine, occasionally pressing down on it, but mostly chatting with the owner next to him.

A wooden table with two locked drawers containing trays of game tokens, banknotes, and coins.

On the table, there was a plastic tray filled with game tokens. The boss sat in a chair in front of the table, bored with the repetitive work every day. People get bored eventually, and he was more willing than anyone else to chat with someone.

Xu Kai deliberately chose this machine, and deliberately chose a position close to the boss. He didn't care about winning or losing ten or twenty yuan in game coins, but instead, he would occasionally slip in some personal information during the chat.

For example, the sourcing channels for these game consoles.

For the average person, this is an unfamiliar channel. It's not exactly a secret with the arcade owner; you can easily glean information from his complaints about how expensive the machines are.

After playing a few times, Xu Kai started buying game tokens worth five or ten yuan without hesitation. He chatted with the owner and got to know him well. At a suitable moment, Xu Kai spoke up.

"Hey bro, I heard there are those big poker machines now, haven't you thought about getting one?"

"You know that too? It's too expensive. I'm planning to get a few to try out first."

"My relative lives in XX town. He wants to open an arcade. He's lost a lot of money on these machines himself. He owns a house and is thinking of buying a few machines..."

Xu Kai obtained a landline number and a pager number.

After that, I started going to the arcade less often.

………………

Sunday.

Department store.

Yunshang asked curiously, "Are you going to buy a VCD player?"

Xu Kai nodded and looked at several machines. The quality of domestic brands wasn't that good, but the price was attractive, making them his first choice.

The two then went to a nearby commercial center, where some second-hand home appliances were for sale.

Xu Kai's goal is a 25-inch color TV; 21 inches is the mainstream size and not his first choice.

He leaned close to Yunshang's ear and whispered a few words, explaining the purpose of his decision to come out for a stroll today.

Unlike most girls, Yunshang's eyes lit up: "Will it work?"

Xu Kai said confidently, "Never underestimate curiosity and those lewd thoughts."

Yunshang frowned: "Can we do this business?"

Xu Kai: "Sneak into the village. But before doing it, you still need to get to know the people in the area. Ask someone to help you find someone beforehand. Just one person is enough. You can get some money every month to buy peace of mind. If anything happens, they can take care of you."

Yunshang thought this was normal given the prevailing societal views; she was just surprised that Xu Kai could think about things in such a mature way.

Yunshang: "I'll help you find places and people, but that will cost several thousand yuan. How much can you earn in a day? I feel like it's very difficult to make money."

Xu Kai didn't deny it: "I'm just taking a look beforehand to get a general idea. I'll only do it if the conditions are right. I don't have time to keep an eye on things. Hiring someone else might be counterproductive. Let's see how it goes..."

A single approach is certainly not very attractive. In this era, anything that allows you to make money on the edge of the "line" is extremely profitable. Within a few years, it's not considered crossing the line. Xu Kai hopes to have a clear understanding of the situation first, so that he won't be caught off guard when the opportunity arises to expand.

After browsing around and inquiring about the prices of several used color TVs, and trying to negotiate, they had a general idea of ​​the prices before leaving.

Even the frigid winter of Northeast China couldn't stop the blossoming of innocent youth. Even just two people strolling down the street felt wonderful. Holding hands and cuddling in a quiet spot—that was happiness.

Xu Kai has enough money in his pocket, and Yunshang is also not short of money, so the two of them naturally wouldn't try to spend more time together by taking a budget trip.

Yunshang still prefers to go to places with more people, as if letting others know in public that she is in a relationship is something worth showing off.

Xu Kai, on the other hand, was completely different. When the two were together, he avoided any crowded places. Only immature people like to gather with a large group of people; mature people always prefer to act alone.

Even if it's an old movie, even if it's in a venue like a workers' cultural palace, Xu Kai is still willing to take Yunshang to see a movie. The lights are off, there aren't many moviegoers, they just find a corner to sit in. Does it matter what the movie is about?

Holding hands? Even if it were a goddess, Xu Kai wouldn't have the slightest emotional reaction; such a gesture is completely worthless to him.

Ultimately, one has to get close enough to inhale the girl's fragrance to be even remotely satisfied.

Hug him, embrace him, let your hands wander a little, and then give him a kiss—that's why Xu Kai is willing to spend his time on this.

In the time it takes to watch a movie, his hand had already touched the skin of her waist. Yunshang held him down, and Xu Kai stopped his advances. It was more like a kiss, transitioning from the cheek to the more intimate part.

Yunshang still wanted to maintain her bossy demeanor, but her face was already flushed and slowly turning red. She reached out and pinched Xu Kai's waist: "Little brat, your head is full of dirty stuff."

Xu Kai rolled his eyes, inwardly chuckling bitterly. "Big sister, if you hadn't come to me for the first time riding a racing motorcycle and looking all mature, would you have paid any attention to me? I can't be sure if I like vegetarian food or not. I'm somewhere in between, neither here nor there. Am I supposed to find a public restroom that's completely people-oriented and has a lockable door?"