Thank you @Beverly for the Kofi.
President He didn’t stay long on his return trip. He mostly chatted with Shan Yu, and the staff he brought with him had also gotten to know everyone. At noon, the group had a barbecue with the Dayin crew in the garden.
In the middle of it, Big Li came over twice, saying he was just there to grab a bite, but everyone knew he was trying to get some inside information.
Although from what Shan Yu said, these matters would eventually be communicated to the other businesses, the information had to come from Dayin, not be obtained by them on their own. The nature was different.
So, when Big Li came over both times, Chen Erhu was very enthusiastic in keeping him company. The second time he left, Sanbing even chased after him to give him a plate of barbecue.
“Just feed him until he’s full this time, save him the trouble of finding another excuse to come back.”
“He’ll come back later to see Boss Shan crocheting a scarf,” Lao Si said. “That’s a real spectacle. It’s not strange at all that he’d want to come see it.”
“You too,” Chen Erhu looked at Sanbing. “You could have just asked for one for yourself. How could you have the nerve to ask for four?”
“I didn’t think he’d agree,” Sanbing said.
“He’s not going to get sick from exhaustion, is he?” Lao Wu suddenly started to worry.
“Don’t say such unlucky things during the New Year!” Chen Erhu glared at him.
Compared to whether Shan Yu would get sick from exhaustion, Chen Jian was more worried that President He would suddenly say, “I want one too.”
Fortunately, perhaps because Shan Yu was crocheting a scarf the entire time except when he was eating, and it didn’t affect his conversation with President He, it gave people the illusion that the crochet hook and yarn had become a part of Shan Yu, and they automatically ignored it.
Shan Yu’s phone rang, but it wasn’t on him. Chen Jian grabbed it from the nearby bench and handed it to him.
After answering the call, Shan Yu hooked a finger at him.
“Yeah?” Chen Jian walked over.
“There’s feedback on yesterday’s call. The headquarters is quite efficient,” Shan Yu said in a low voice. “They’ve already corrected the system error. The station will issue the wages normally before tomorrow. Let your dad know, and tell them to follow up on it.”
“Was the system really in error?” Chen Jian asked.
“Let them say what they want. They can even say the Americans are attacking us, starting with that broken computer at your dad’s station,” Shan Yu said. “Anyway, the wages can be paid now.”
“Okay,” Chen Jian nodded with a smile.
“When you tell him…” Shan Yu glanced at him. “Do I need to teach you?”
“Yes,” Chen Jian said.
“Didn’t you say that if you learned from me, you’d be stabbed until you looked like a sprinkler head?” Shan Yu said.
“That was about learning your brand of subtlety, where things can’t be resolved without a fight,” Chen Jian said sincerely. “It only applies to that, not other things.”
“Tell your dad that you’re the one who solved this,” Shan Yu said.
Chen Jian looked at him.
“You know what to say, right? The call was made just like that,” Shan Yu looked at him. “Just take the credit.”
“Didn’t you say yesterday…” Chen Jian squatted down next to him and said in a low voice, “…that you wanted him to see what kind of person you are? It was clearly you who handled it, doesn’t it count as yours?”
“Are you stupid, Manager? Do I need to prove my ability to your dad? I have this big guesthouse right here,” Shan Yu said. “What I want him to see is that I’m a good person, nothing else.”
Chen Jian started to laugh. “So I’m stealing it?”
“Steal it,” Shan Yu lifted his chin.
His dad answered the phone with unprecedented speed. Before the dial tone had even finished ringing, his dad’s voice came through. “Chen Jian!”
His voice was full of cheer.
This surprised Chen Jian. It had been a long time since he’d heard his dad’s voice like this. He couldn’t even remember the last time his dad had been in such a mood.
“Dad, your…” Chen Jian was cut off before he could finish.
“I was just about to call you,” his dad said eagerly. “Our wages, they’ve started processing them. The boss notified us in the group chat to go get our money tomorrow! It’s never been this smooth before!”
“I was just about to ask about that,” Chen Jian smiled. “That was pretty fast.”
“You knew?” his dad was taken aback.
Chen Jian hesitated for a moment, then began to take the credit. “Yeah, I called your headquarters yesterday.”
“To complain? Someone from our side complained, but it was useless,” his dad said, surprised.
“No, I called the headquarters…” Chen Jian paused. “…for legal aid, requesting them to resolve the issue of wage arrears as soon as possible…”
Growing up, he had told his dad many lies, or rather, he often didn’t tell the truth.
But this was the first time he had been so blatant.
“Really?” his dad was shocked. “You can do that?”
“Yeah, I reminded them that withholding wages before the New Year is a sensitive issue. They just gave… me some feedback, saying it’s been resolved,” Chen Jian repeated Shan Yu’s words, still feeling a little guilty. He didn’t dare to go into too much detail, and it was hard to replicate Shan Yu’s casual and effortless demeanor. “So I called you right away.”
“You… you’re amazing, son!” his dad was pleasantly surprised. “I was wondering why it was so fast! It really is your brain that works well! You handled this so well! Hey, Old Zhong! Old Zhong…”
His dad was probably still at the motel with Old Zhong. His voice rose. “It was my son! My son solved our wage problem…”
“Dad, Dad,” Chen Jian felt his face flush. “Don’t go bragging to people.”
“Don’t worry, I won’t tell them how it was solved,” his dad said. “I’ll just tell them it was my son… My son is a manager, after all, handling this kind of thing is easy for him… Old Zhong!”
“What! It was your son who did it?” Old Zhong’s voice still had a thick accent, but Chen Jian understood this sentence. What followed was a string of unintelligible chatter.
“I was just asking about this,” Chen Jian said. “So go get your wages tomorrow, and once you’ve settled your affairs, you can come over. I was going to pick you up, but I can’t get my license until the 27th…”
“It’s fine, I’ll wait for you,” his dad said. “I’ll wait for you to come. Old Zhong’s ticket home is on the 27th anyway, I can see him off.”
“Alright then,” Chen Jian smiled.
After hanging up, Chen Jian sat on a bench in the corner, basking in the sun and zoning out. It was a strange feeling.
He savored it for a long time and still couldn’t quite come back to his senses.
He was already happy that they could get their wages so quickly. Hearing that his own son had helped, his mood soared as if he were a different person.
Chen Jian felt like he was about to go out on the street and shout.
My son did it!
My son did it!
…He couldn’t shout it like that. It sounded like his son should be turning himself in.
“How did it go?” Shan Yu’s voice came from above him.
Chen Jian looked up. Shan Yu was standing in front of him with a crochet hook in one hand and a scarf in the other. He had a gym bag slung over his shoulder, and the dusty pink yarn being pulled from it was a very magical sight. Chen Jian couldn’t help but laugh.
“I’ll look up what kind of medicine you need for this symptom later,” Shan Yu said.
Chen Jian leaned back on the bench, looking up at him. “My dad is probably bragging in their delivery riders’ group chat right now.”
“Did they notify them to get their money?” Shan Yu asked.
“Yeah,” Chen Jian nodded. “When I called, he was just about to call me to tell me.”
“That’s good,” Shan Yu said. “He’ll be at ease once he gets the money.”
“Shan Yu,” Chen Jian looked at him.
“Hmm?” Shan Yu replied, looking back at him, his hands still moving without stopping. A true skilled worker.
Chen Jian wanted to say thank you.
But he felt that saying thank you at a time like this was both distant and weightless.
After hesitating for two seconds, he changed his words.
“I want a scarf too,” he said.
The skilled worker’s hands stopped.
“I was just saying,” Chen Jian quickly added.
“Just saying?” Shan Yu’s face was expressionless, but the crochet hook in his hand started moving busily again.
Chen Jian smiled.
“Am I a very casual person?” Shan Yu asked.
“Huh?” Chen Jian was momentarily unsure how to interpret his reaction.
“Wait until I’m done with these,” Shan Yu said. “There’s still some of that gray yarn left…”
“I really was just saying,” Chen Jian was startled. “I…”
“You don’t want it?” Shan Yu glanced at him.
“I do,” Chen Jian said.
“Before the Lantern Festival, then. After I finish these, I’ll probably be half-dead for half a month,” Shan Yu said.
“Don’t say unlucky things,” Chen Jian said.
“After I finish these, I’ll probably be lucky for half a month,” Shan Yu said.
Chen Jian laughed.
“When is your dad coming?” Shan Yu asked. “Do we need to pick him up?”
“He was originally going to take the shuttle bus, but as soon as he heard I’m getting my license on the 27th, he immediately said he’d wait for me to pick him up,” Chen Jian said.
“Then let’s go pick him up,” Shan Yu said. “And bring some New Year’s goods for your relatives on the way…”
“Why would you bring New Year’s goods to annoy people!” Chen Jian said.
“Annoying people politely is the most annoying,” Shan Yu said. “Since you’ve chosen to be an annoying person, you might as well do it right.”
There were only two relatives who would show up uninvited to be annoying: his uncle and his aunt.
Actually, under normal circumstances, Chen Jian might not have agreed to Shan Yu’s annoying plan, but the situation with his dad’s siblings was different. His grandparents had passed away early, and his dad had paid for his younger brother’s and sister’s education.
In the early years, when the family was doing well, they still kept in touch. But when his mother started to get sick, they slowly lost contact. Although, as his dad said, only family would know how hard it was for them to pay back the money, so it was normal that they were unwilling to help.
But thinking about all the years of hardship, Chen Jian couldn’t help but feel a little unbalanced.
He wanted to vent a little.
But on the 27th of the last lunar month, it was impossible for just him and Shan Yu to go into the city. Chen Erhu had taken a leave to go home and wouldn’t be back until tomorrow. Lao Si had gone back to the neighboring town. Sanbing and Lao Wu were still at the inn and insisted on coming along. Last time, he had taken Hu Pan and Sun Nana, so this time he had to take them.
“Exactly four people, plus Chen Jian’s dad, that’s five, just right,” Sanbing said, adjusting the scarf around his neck. “This scarf needs to go to the city once.”
“Alright, alright, alright, let’s go, let’s go,” Shan Yu nodded.
“Anything you need us to bring back?” Sanbing shouted towards the front desk.
Sun Nana stood at the front desk, then turned and shouted towards the storage room. “Panpan, anything you need us to bring back?”
“Bubble tea—” Hu Pan shouted.
“Bubble tea,” Sun Nana said, resting her chin on her hand.
“You got it,” Sanbing shouted.
Getting his driver’s license was no trouble. The first thing Chen Jian did after getting it was to take a picture and send it to his dad.
His dad replied with six thumbs-up emojis.
“Drive,” Shan Yu patted the driver’s side door.
“Is that a good idea? Isn’t Boss Shan driving?” Sanbing immediately became alert. “The first day Erhu-ge got his license, he drove Brother Rui’s car’s front right wheel into a ditch.”
“Chen Jian isn’t Erhu-ge,” Lao Wu said. “He rides a motorcycle better than Erhu-ge too. Last time we chased him in a car, the four of us couldn’t even catch him…”
Sanbing glared at him. “Stop bringing up old stuff.”
“It’s the first time I’ve mentioned it,” Lao Wu said.
“Are you his straight man!” Sanbing shouted. “Do you have to have the last word!”
“Not really,” Lao Wu got into the car.
“Damn you!” Sanbing also got in.
“Not really,” Lao Wu said.
“…Fine, you win,” Sanbing said.
“Yeah,” Lao Wu nodded.
Sanbing turned and threw a few punches at him.
“You’re on something,” Chen Jian said, laughing as he put his driver’s license in his pocket and patted it again.
“You guys raced cars?” Shan Yu asked.
“They used to do all sorts of stupid things,” Chen Jian’s hand was on the door handle, but he paused and looked at Shan Yu. “I’m really driving? I haven’t officially driven on the road yet, this car…”
“I’m right next to you, what are you afraid of,” Shan Yu pulled open the passenger door. “If you crash, it’s a stroke of luck. If you don’t, it’s smooth sailing. Let’s go.”
Chen Jian smiled and got into the car.
He had driven on the abandoned road a few times before, so he was familiar with the car. Starting up and moving off were both smooth.
It was just that when he drove out, he felt there were too many things on the road. A car here, a person there. There were more cars and people on the road before the New Year than usual. By the time Chen Jian drove out of the street where the vehicle management office was, his palms were already sweaty.
“Pretty steady,” Sanbing said from the back.
“Yeah,” Chen Jian immediately felt a lot more at ease.
“Turn signal,” Shan Yu said from the side.
“Right,” Chen Jian quickly turned on the signal. The ease he had felt vanished.
But having Shan Yu sitting next to him was indeed very effective. Every one of his reminders was perfectly timed for when Chen Jian needed to act—turn signals, changing lanes, overtaking…
Just as they were about to reach his aunt’s small supermarket, Sanbing finally asked, “Where are we going?”
“The manager is visiting relatives,” Shan Yu said, reaching out to hold the steering wheel. As Chen Jian was about to drive into a parking spot on the sidewalk, he guided it a little to the right. “Good, give it some gas and go up.”
The car drove up.
“Parking might have to be you…” Chen Jian glanced at Shan Yu.
“Why park in a spot? Just park at the entrance of the store,” Shan Yu said. “We’ll be gone in two minutes.”
“Okay,” Chen Jian bit his lip and slowly parked the car at the entrance of the small supermarket.
He could see his aunt tidying the shelves through the glass wall.
Chen Jian got out, opened the trunk, and took out a small box of tea leaves. It was a sample that President He’s group had brought back from a neighboring town during their route inspection. The packaging was exquisite, but the taste was unknown.
When a car pulled up and blocked the entrance, his aunt immediately walked to the door, lifted the wind-blocking curtain, and poked her head out.
“Auntie,” Chen Jian called out to her.
His aunt followed the voice and glanced his way, then froze. She looked at the car, then her gaze shifted from the car back to his face. “Chen Jian?” she asked in shock.
“Yeah,” Chen Jian walked up to her. “Are you alone in the store?”
“Ah, yes,” his aunt looked into the car again. “Your uncle is at home. You’re…”
“I was in the area for some business and thought I’d stop by to see you,” Chen Jian handed her the tea leaves. “It’s almost the New Year, after all.”
“Oh, my,” his aunt took the tea, hesitated for a moment, then lifted the curtain. “Want to come in and sit for a while?”
“No, I’m going to see my uncle in a bit, and then I have to pick up my dad to go back for the New Year,” Chen Jian said.
“You’re… doing well now?” his aunt asked.
“Yeah, pretty well,” Chen Jian said.
“This car… is it yours?” his aunt took two more steps out, looking at the car.
No.
But I can say yes.
“Yeah,” Chen Jian replied.
Shameless, Chen Jian!
But it feels so good.
“In such a hurry to go back?” his aunt said. “Why don’t you call your dad and we can all have a meal together? It’s been… so many years since we’ve seen each other, right?”
Just as Chen Jian was thinking about how to end the conversation, the car window rolled down. Sanbing, wearing sunglasses, stuck half his face out. “President Chen, President Shan is calling to check in.”
His aunt recognized Sanbing. Although it had been over a decade, Sanbing was basically just a scaled-up version of his younger self. The sunglasses were probably to avoid being recognized. After all, even if he didn’t go back to the village, he would still hear stories about the Pigsty Gang from acquaintances.
No matter what kind of “President” it was, having Sanbing involved made it feel like it wasn’t a legitimate business.
So after saying his line, Sanbing quickly retracted back into the car.
“So busy,” his aunt looked at Chen Jian. “You’re… really successful now.”
“It’s busy before the New Year. I’ll be going then,” Chen Jian said. “Say hi to my uncle for me.”
“Okay,” his aunt replied. “Is your dad doing well?”
“He’s doing great,” Chen Jian smiled, pulled open the car door, and got in.
His aunt stood at the entrance the whole time, staring at the car.
Chen Jian needed to make a U-turn to leave. With her staring, his already clumsy maneuvers became even clumsier.
At a time like this, any mistake would make his aunt think the car was stolen.
“Turn the wheel all the way to the left,” Shan Yu said. “Slowly give it gas. Good. Straighten the wheel. Reverse. Turn all the way to the right. OK, give it gas. Stop. To the left again, all the way. Go forward…”
The car’s radar started beeping. Chen Jian hit the brakes.
“I’m about to hit that car’s butt,” he said.
“It’s far away, far enough for Sanbing to lie down in between,” Shan Yu said. “Keep going, you won’t hit it.”
Chen Jian continued to give it gas. The car, indeed, did not hit anything. He finally completed the U-turn smoothly. He glanced at his aunt, who was still standing at the entrance, and drove the car forward.
“Pretty impressive!” Sanbing patted the seat from behind. “How was my acting?”
“Perfect,” Chen Jian smiled. “Who arranged that?”
“Boss Shan, of course. He was afraid you wouldn’t be able to get away,” Sanbing said. “Hey, your aunt has aged a lot. When she used to come to my house to hit me as a kid, she didn’t have any wrinkles on her face.”
