Chapter 50: Made money

Zhong Yuying was so embarrassed that she could not stay in the classroom any longer. Covering her face, she ran out of the third-grade classroom, as if heartbroken to the extreme. A few male classmates showed signs of pity on their faces, but Tian Sisi let out a sneer. With Zhong Yuying possessing such acting skills at such a young age, it made sense that the original character had lost to her in the past life. Exiting the classroom, Zhong Yuying slowed down her pace and dropped her hands from her face. Not a single tear had been shed, not even her eyelashes were wet. She pondered as she walked. It was clear there was no hope with Tian Sisi anymore. She would have to find a new target and at least finish elementary school. When Zhong Juying returned home in the afternoon, she took out the steamed buns she had brought with her. They were steamed with dinner, which was simple as usual: a thin sweet potato porridge supplemented with steamed pickled vegetables. Every year, Zhao Manxiu would prepare a large jar of salted vegetables and pickled vegetables, as these were the main courses for their family year-round. A few drops of oil added to the pickled vegetables and steamed with rice could make a single bowl last for several meals. This time, thanks to the sugar Tian Sisi had given them, they added half a spoonful to the pickled vegetables, which significantly improved the taste. Even Daddy’s cough became less severe. In truth, Zhong Shigen’s tuberculosis was not that serious. In the future, it would just require a few antibiotic shots, but now, due to the lack of nutrition, it had become a chronic disease. Zhao Manxiu had planned on continuing to stew ’urine eggs’ for Zhong Shigen, but he had refused. In the previous years, he agreed to eat ’urine eggs’ only because his son, Zhong Shouliang, was too young to carry the burdens of the family. If he died, with no man to take charge at home and the label of being a wealthy farmer, his wife and daughters would inevitably be bullied to death. Now that his son had grown up and become a stand-up man capable of taking care of Mama and his sisters, Zhong Shigen felt he could die in peace. Therefore, he refused to let his wife continue to stew eggs for him and threatened her with the prospect of his death. In his eyes, a useless man like himself didn’t need such nourishment; dying earlier would lessen the burden on his wife and son. Having been husband and wife for half their lives, Zhao Manxiu could understand her husband’s thoughts. Even though it pained her, knowing his stubborn nature, if she continued to stew eggs, her husband would actually seek death. Out of no other options, Zhao Manxiu agreed, silently praying that the heavens would allow her husband to live longer. Zhong Juying steamed a bowl of dry rice especially for her brother, thinking of giving him an egg to go with it. But since there was a meat bun that day, she decided to save the egg. The family depended entirely on their brother, who worked hard every day. Without good nourishment, how could he have the strength? During dinner, Zhong Shouliang divided his bowl of dry rice among the others, but they all pushed their bowls away, refusing to take it. When Zhong Shouliang’s expression darkened, they reluctantly took a small portion from his bowl. Zhong Juying took out the steaming meat buns from the pot and placed them in the dish. To the Zhong family, meat buns were as precious as abalone is to people nowadays. "Where did the buns come from?" Zhao Manxiu asked in surprise. "They were Sisi’s lunch. She gave me two, and I ate one," Zhong Juying admitted, still feeling guilty about eating one at lunch. If she hadn’t, there would be two for dinner tonight. "No one saw. Sisi pretended to let me wash her lunch box and gave it to me then," Zhong Juying explained again, reassuring the Zhong family, who were worried that the two children had been careless and brought trouble to the Tian Family. "Shouliang, what should we do? We’ve already received so much favor from Mama’s nephew’s nanny, and we’ve yet to repay it!" Zhao Manxiu was anxious, as she hated being indebted to others. "It’s fine. If we can’t pay it back within a year, then we’ll pay it back in two. As long as we remember it in our hearts, we’ll definitely be able to repay it as long as we’re alive. When I’m less busy in a few days, I’ll catch some eels and loaches for Mama’s nephew’s nanny. Her Old Man likes to eat that," Zhong Shouliang thought aloud. "That’s good. It’s easy to add splendor to what’s already bright, but difficult to offer help in time of need. Both of you siblings must remember the kindness the Tian Family has shown us. Even if your Mama and I are gone, you must repay it for us. Understand?" Zhong Shigen admonished his children in a raspy voice. Zhong Shouliang and Zhong Juying nodded in agreement. Although Zhong Shigen was now so weak he could hardly walk, in their hearts, he was still the strong, loud-voiced Daddy they had always relied on. They divided the meat bun amongst the four family members, the aroma making them all feel extraordinarily content. Years later, the Zhong Family had become a well-known wealthy family, yet they would often reminisce about the night of 1972, the meat bun they shared as a family of four, so delicious that they never found another bun that tasted as good. The Tian Family After dinner, Jianguo and the young ones all went to bed, and Tian Sisi also washed up and got ready to sleep. Tian Mantong walked in, looking dust-covered and weary, and no wonder — getting up early in the morning, driving three to four hours to Shanghai, then another three to four hours back, without any rest in between or anyone to take over the driving. It would be strange if Mantong wasn’t tired! As soon as Tian Mantong entered the room, he picked up Tian Sisi and kissed her several times heavily, murmuring non-stop, "Little lucky star, Ah Nan truly is a little lucky star." Tian Sisi struggled to jump down from her uncle’s arms, complaining, "Uncle, your beard hurts me." Tian Manjin tenderly took her daughter into her arms, gently touching her little face reddened from the prickly beard, and shot a blaming look at her brother. When Granny Zhao learned that her youngest son had come straight from Shanghai without even returning to the family’s townhouse, she went to the kitchen to make noodles, and soon presented a large bowl of fragrant pickled vegetable and shredded pork noodles, topped with two golden poached eggs. The Old Man signaled Tian Mantong to eat first and then discuss business in detail, believing that the batch of liquor must have sold very well — otherwise, what else could make Mantong so happy? Sure enough, after finishing his bowl of noodles, Mantong wiped his mouth and pulled out a bundle of crisp banknotes from his pocket, tossing it in the room while it made a swishing sound. Who has ever seen so much money? Even Granny Zhao, the family’s finance minister, only collected twenty-some banknotes each month, a thin stack in her hand, nothing like the several dozens Mantong surely held. "Man Tong, how much money do you have there? There must be US$ 500, right?" asked Tian Manjin curiously. Tian Mantong shook his head smugly, his big white teeth showing as he said, "750, the liquor sold for 1.5 yuan per jin, totaling 750 yuan." In fact, Tian Mantong had sold the liquor for 2.5 yuan per jin. The restaurant owner agreed to purchase it at two yuan per jin on the spot, but Mantong bargained it up to two yuan and fifty cents per jin. The reason he kept that one yuan a secret was to save for Tian Sisi’s dowry. He had specifically opened a savings account in Shanghai and deposited the 500 yuan he kept back in Tian Sisi’s name, planning to give her the bankbook when she grew up. In his view, since the recipe and the brewed liquor were both Ah Nan’s doing, it would be unfair to give her so little. With him around, she wouldn’t be shortchanged, especially since he was the only one who could sell this liquor. Tian Mantong’s words exploded like a bomb, shocking everyone — 750 yuan? So much money? Only Tian Sisi remained calm, as she used to have savings of over a million yuan in her previous life. If only she had known she would die in her thirties, she should have spent it all! This really confirmed the saying, "The person is gone, but the money remains." The Old Man took the stack of banknotes into his hands, and everyone intently watched as he handled the money. Tian Manjin asked, "Dad, should we call Second Uncle over?" "Hmm, go call your second uncle and Xinhua. No need to call the others," agreed the Old Man with a nod. Tian Manjin promptly ran out to fetch them, while Tian Mantong asked, "Daddy, how do you plan to divide this money?" "Didn’t we agree last time? After deducting the cost, we split it evenly into five parts." "How much is the cost?" "The grain money, wine medicine money, plus the money you spent on the urns — let’s round it up to an even three hundred," replied the Old Man without certainty. He just estimated the cost generously based on the current market rates. Even so, there would be a good amount left, ninety per share, which was no small sum. Bajin’s house only made around three hundred yuan in a full year. PS: Thanks to the support from 123 Ting, Dou Dou Mouth, and Youzi is so handsome!