Returning to '97, creating a new life

From a distance, Xu Kai and Yun Shang watched as law enforcement officers rushed into the small courtyard of the bungalow.

In four months, he had earned nearly 10,000 yuan. Xu Dalong took this business very seriously. His relative and nephew, Xu Kai, was reliable and always adhered to the principle of keeping a low profile, so he didn't make a mess of things. Now that Song Jun was causing trouble, how could he not be furious?

They brought everyone back to the station immediately.

Televisions, VCD players, and all discs were confiscated.

Everyone was locked up.

After that, he didn't show up himself; instead, Officer Wang Jianshe, whom Xu Kai had met before, took charge of the matter.

Upon being arrested, the shopkeepers arranged by Song Jun immediately collapsed. With just a few simple words from Wang Jianshe, they were terrified and spilled everything. They had previously thought they were loyal and willing to take responsibility, but the seriousness of the matter described by Wang Jianshe made them afraid to take it on.

Across the street from the "place," a Volkswagen Santana was parked. Yun Sheng had originally arranged to have dinner with his sister, but he was dragged over to watch the commotion.

In the passenger seat, Xu Dalong sat silently smoking.

Yun Sheng, a playful smile on his face, met Xu Kai's gaze through the rearview mirror: "What do you want to do?"

Xu Kai's eyes gleamed: "If he doesn't appreciate our kindness, then we'll teach him a lesson he won't forget."

Yun Sheng chuckled: "So short-sighted. Are you going to kick this partner out later?"

Xu Dalong turned to look at Xu Kai in the back seat, his eyes filled with encouragement, hope, and consideration. When he introduced Xu Kai to Yun Sheng earlier, Xu Dalong had already made him think highly of Xu Kai. Now, he hoped that they could be on the same page.

Yunshang, a bystander, offered Xu Kai a piece of chewing gum with the foil removed. He chewed it a few times, the sharp minty flavor stimulating his taste buds: "I think Song Jun is a very suitable partner."

Xu Dalong smiled and nodded.

it is more than words.

A business that is destined to be abandoned at the right time, where the other party is unjust and will inevitably become the scapegoat in the future.

Xu Dalong knew nothing about this matter and was not involved. He was in charge of other matters and was not at the office. Now it depends on whether Song Jun has the nerve to page him.

If we don't find him, can he handle this responsibility?

I've looked into it. How do I explain to Xu Dalong that I'm starting my own business?

The play is excellent; enjoy it at your leisure.

Song Jun still had a sense of shame; at least he thought he did, otherwise he wouldn't be able to face anyone in the future.

The person was taken to the station.

By spending money, everyone present at the time was bailed out. Basically, in similar places, including mahjong parlors and arcade gambling machines, if someone comes to your rescue or checks you once, and people are taken away, the owner is responsible for getting the players out, no matter how much it costs.

Unless you quit this business and just run away without any shame.

The office is a source of revenue, the boss is there, and the main body responsible for handling this matter is there. Those customers are insignificant; they have already contributed their value. The boss has already paid the fines, so there will be no further punishment.

Chives, too, need to be harvested in batches.

Xu Dalong did not receive a page from Song Jun, but instead received a page from a colleague.

Yun Sheng took out his Motorola 8900. In Northeast China at that time, the shock of brick-sized mobile phones had not yet subsided, and his phone was the coolest one on the street. Among the people present, only Xu Kai was not interested at all.

If you gave him that thing now, he'd complain that it takes up too much space in his pocket. Of course, when he needs to do business, the convenience of a mobile phone is a sign of progress.

Xu Dalong nodded his thanks and dialed the phone number.

"Hello, yes, it's me. He's admitting defeat? Heh, then fine him. Seven days in jail should be enough. Don't be shy about the money."

After hanging up the phone, Xu Dalong laughed and said, "That kid is willing to pay up and take responsibility himself. It seems he doesn't know how to explain things to me if he comes looking for me."

Xu Kai shrugged. He guessed that was the case. Song Junren was dishonest, but he still had a bit of a fierce spirit in his bones. As long as he was given an acceptable solution, he would be too embarrassed to let his partner know that he had started his own business and done something dishonest.

Xu Dalong: "All the money he earned in the past few months has to go into this. He has to give back everything he ate."

Yunshang snorted, "Serves you right."

Xu Kai said to Yun Sheng with a slight apology, "Brother Yun, we can't have dinner together tonight. I'll treat you another day, and we can sit together. I reckon someone will be coming to my house to find me soon."

Yunshang asked with concern, "You're going to look after the shop; can you handle it during the day?"

It feels wonderful to be cared for. Xu Kai gently patted Yunshang's hand to reassure her: "Senior, are you underestimating the value of being a special admission student?"

With outsiders present, Yunshang simply rolled her eyes at him before turning to Xu Dalong and saying, "I'll address you the same way Xu Kai does, Uncle Long. Let my brother host a dinner sometime, so we can all eat together."

Xu Dalong nodded repeatedly: "Okay, okay."

After exchanging a few polite words with Yun Sheng, he got out of the car and went home to rest. He had generated a lot of revenue for the station tonight, and he hoped to get a few packs of good cigarettes from the station chief tomorrow and receive some praise.

[And that Song Jun, he won't have a good time these next few days. Damn it, the money that should have been mine, you bastard, are all going to pocket. You deserve to die.]

On the way home, Yun Sheng laughed and said, "Your relative is a smart man; he guessed who we are."

"That depends on whether Brother Yun is willing to support me." Xu Kai already knew that Yun Sheng and Yun Shang's uncle was the deputy director of the city bureau, a position that, for Xu Dalong, meant the superior's superior's superior's superior's superior...

Strategic alliances and leveraging external forces are not important. What Yun Sheng sees is that Xu Kai is adept at maneuvering in these situations. The key is that Yun Sheng himself is not at all averse to being leveraged. It's just a trivial matter, but Yun Sheng finds it quite interesting that Xu Kai can make such a fuss about it.

Xu Kai's situation was opportune. It was Yun Shang who asked her older brother to meet with Xu Dalong. It wasn't to flex their muscles, but to elevate their cooperative relationship beyond simply thinking that the kid was reliable and valuable. At least for now, even if Xu Dalong had some dirty thoughts, he wouldn't dare to use them against Xu Kai casually.

As for Song Jun...

In the eyes of others, they are ants.

Excluding Xu Kai, he knew very well that he was merely surviving in the cracks, no better than Song Jun, and perhaps even worse than Song Jun because of his age and the fact that he couldn't participate in many things. He didn't want to get too involved with Yun Shang; it was just a little bit of pride in his heart. If he really encountered a crisis, he would bend down and beg a girl, which was better than kneeling in this world.

Without Yunshang, in his relationship with Xu Dalong, he only needs to protect his own value as much as possible. Now, the other party will be more wary, making him more comfortable in the process of getting along and cooperating.

"Just call the store."

Yunshang was quite reluctant to part: "Can I come visit you during the day?"

Xu Kai deliberately glared at him: "Skipping school isn't what good kids do."

Yunshang wanted to give him an Ultraman flying kick, and Yunsheng laughed heartily. He thought it was great and he was also quite envious. He had never been so happy at their age.

His understanding, and his parents' understanding, were that as long as Yunshang was unharmed, her happiness was the top priority, far outweighing everything else. The future that ordinary people had to consider, her family had already paved the way for her; from childhood to adulthood, she never needed to worry about "what will happen in the future."

………………

As Xu Kai expected, Ma Xin came looking for him less than an hour after he got home.

"Something came up at Song's home and he has to go out for ten days or so. He asked me to let you know. I hope you'll have to work hard these next few days."

It was clearly Song Jun's rhetoric. "Thank you for your hard work." He had a lot to say but couldn't say it. He had to swallow his anger and keep quiet about what happened today. If he did, Song Ge's reputation in the area would be completely ruined.

Xu Kai put on his clothes, said goodbye to his mother, and left home.

The biggest change in the past few months was that Xu Kai showed his mother his bank card balance, which made Sun Xiuyun begin to slowly accept the fact that her son has grown up.

After giving a few words of advice, Sun Xiuyun didn't know what else to say. She had already accepted the fact that her child was particularly troublesome.

She felt relieved after getting into high school.

Failing to get into high school and entering the workforce early puts her at ease, at least she, a mother with little ability, doesn't have to worry about her child's future.

It would be a lie to say she wasn't worried at all. After Xu Kai left, Sun Xiuyun still frowned and sighed. She watched TV listlessly, sitting on the kang (a heated brick bed), lost in thought. She really wanted to tell her son, "You finally got into a good high school, you have to study hard..."

She couldn't bring herself to say it; she could only silently blame herself, thinking, "Sun Xiuyun, you're so useless, making your son have to work so hard at such a young age."

Which parent doesn't want their child to get better and better? Sun Xiuyun was genuinely very satisfied with her son.

Many of my colleagues have children who dropped out of junior high school and are now wandering the streets, some even in their early twenties still living off their parents. Some of them cause trouble for their families, leaving their parents heartbroken and worried. What right does she have to continue being greedy?

Recently, Sun Xiuyun herself has been wearing a worried expression every day. She tries to hide it in front of her son, but when he is not around, she sighs and laments.

In the factory, rumors of layoffs were spreading more and more fiercely.

She was an ordinary worker in the large collective, with no background or connections, and her performance at work was mediocre at best. The risk of being laid off was growing ever larger.

For this reason, Sun Xiuyun was less inclined to discipline her son's antics, and in fact, his antics even brought her some peace of mind.

He can endure hardship himself, but he doesn't want his children to suffer. He has the ability to do so. The pressure that the layoff crisis brought to Sun Xiuyun was far less than what Xu Kai had experienced once. He has seen it all these days, but he pretends not to know.

"Mom, give me a little more time. I will make being laid off the start of your happy new life, and let you see how wonderful the outside world is."