During this time, Jiang Luo and Wang Chuang kept themselves busy. When they weren’t meeting local Wencheng merchants to network or visiting factories, they were wandering around the city, getting a sense of the local situation.
Jiang Luo also made several trips to Yueqing. Through Zhang Zhiqiang, he visited friends and relatives who ran low-voltage electrical workshops.
As for acquiring a workshop, Jiang Luo temporarily held off, choosing to observe the situation.
Since getting the pager, his contact with Huo Zongzhuo had increased—almost every evening, Huo would call Jiang Luo’s pager, and Jiang Luo would often call back from the landline before or after meals.
At first, Jiang Luo teased: “Boss Huo, you’ve got a lot of free time, huh? Calling every day?”
Huo Zongzhuo replied, gently teasing back: “Still haven’t given up, huh? Want me to follow you? You really think highly of me, and you’re persistent.”
Soon, Jiang Luo stopped commenting on this. Huo Zongzhuo would simply ask what Jiang Luo had been up to that day, and Jiang Luo would casually answer. The conversations were light, and after chatting, they’d hang up.
Wang Chuang asked several times: “Boss Huo really thinks that highly of you, huh? Calling every day like that.”
“Yeah,” Jiang Luo admitted. By then, he had realized that Huo Zongzhuo’s persistence likely meant he genuinely recognized Jiang Luo’s talent—nothing more complicated than that.
Through these calls, Jiang Luo found Huo Zongzhuo easy to get along with, someone who understood his approach. More than once, Jiang Luo thought: if only things had been like this in my previous life.
Finally, by late May, all the doll and European-style lamp orders were shipped. Jiang Luo and Wang Chuang took the green train back to Haicheng.
As soon as they got off the train, Wang Chuang stood with his back unnaturally straight, chest puffed up as if he wanted to poke the sky.
Jiang Luo teased him: “Showing off, huh?”
Wang Chuang draped an arm over Jiang Luo’s shoulder, still strutting with a noticeably confident air. “Before, we were just a couple of puny kids. Now look at us—we’ve got pockets full of cash!”
“People used to brag about being ‘ten-thousand-yuan households.’ We’re way past ten thousand now, so of course we’re showing off!”
“This is what they call making it big!”
They walked with the crowd outside the station, and compared to the ordinary people around them, they definitely stood out—Wang Chuang in a crisp white shirt with a belt and pager clipped to his waist, hair slicked back, looking every bit the businessman.
Jiang Luo was tall, lean, and handsome, dressed finely, exuding a confident and wealthy aura.
And indeed, they did have money—while others squeezed onto public transport or haggled for cheap tricycles outside the station, Jiang Luo and Wang Chuang called a cab, hopped into a four-wheeled car, and drove off in style.
Some onlookers even whispered: “Wow, they’re rich. Really rich.”
Their first stop was Wang Chuang’s home. He had left for another province suddenly, and even though he had returned to Haicheng a few times, he never went home in a hurry.
Before heading to Wang Chuang’s house, Jiang Luo accompanied him to buy a lot of things: skincare products and scarves for women, high-end clothing, wallets, cigarettes for men. Jiang Luo also picked out a pricey box of bird’s nest.
Wang Chuang, unfamiliar with such luxury, was shocked to see it cost three thousand yuan.
“It’s a supplement, good for beauty and health. Give it to your mom, your dad can have some too,” Jiang Luo explained.
“Just this little thing costs that much?” Wang Chuang asked.
“I’m buying it. Consider it a gift for your parents,” Jiang Luo said.
Wang Chuang smiled, lightly tapping Jiang Luo’s shoulder: “Good brother!”
Little did Wang Chuang know, their bond went far deeper. In Jiang Luo’s previous life, his parents’ love had been distant, but in Wang Chuang’s family, he had always felt genuinely cared for. They invited him to meals, called him for holidays, and treated him as one of their own.
When Wang Chuang’s mother was bored at home, she would knit two sweaters: a large one for Wang Chuang, a smaller one for Jiang Luo.
During his childhood, Jiang Luo had been a “latchkey kid,” with both of his own parents working shifts and no one at home to cook for him. He often ate with Wang Chuang at their house. Wang Chuang’s parents never minded—if there was extra food, they would make sure Jiang Luo got his share, too.
By the time he reached adulthood, Jiang Luo had lost count of how many meals he had shared with Wang Chuang’s family.
Now, returning home in style, Jiang Luo remembered the kindness Wang Chuang’s parents had shown him. As Wang Chuang brought gifts back, Jiang Luo made sure to show his gratitude as well.
Soon, carrying bags of purchases, they left the department store and took a cab back to the employees’ building at the silk factory.
On the second floor of the block, Wang Junwei and Bai Ting had just returned from their morning shifts. Bai Ting was carrying a basin, ready to do laundry, while Wang Junwei grabbed a mop to clean the floor.
The couple chatted. Bai Ting sighed: “I wonder how Wang Chuang and Jiang Luo are doing in Zhejiang.”
“Wang Chuang called, but I’m afraid he’ll only report the good news.”
Wang Junwei said: “Nothing major should happen. Jiang Luo’s with him. That kid’s clever—he’ll figure out how to make money out there.”
“I’m not worried about Jiang Luo, just that Wang Chuang might not understand enough and end up holding him back.”
Bai Ting asked: “What do you think they’ve been up to there?”
“Without supervision, running a business isn’t exactly easy.”
Their conversation turned to Zhang Xiangping and Jiang Jianjun. Bai Ting frowned: “Those two are fine now—Jiang Luo has been raised for eighteen years, but they didn’t care. Now they have another son, and all they talk about is how he’s a top student at Fudan. Ugh, disgusting.”
Wang Junwei said: “You know them. They never cared for Jiang Luo. When he was a kid and didn’t have lunch… all because of…”
Suddenly, Wang Chuang’s voice came from the door: “Mom! Dad! Tingjie! Your sons are back!”
Wang Junwei and Bai Ting both turned in shock, only to see Wang Chuang, dressed like a big-shot boss, carrying bags with a broad smile. Behind him was Jiang Luo, also carrying bags.
Bai Ting, ignoring the soap suds in her hands, jumped up in delight: “My sons! Jiang Luo! You’re back!”
Wang Junwei was happy too—until he remembered something. Raising the mop, he scolded as he stepped toward Wang Chuang: “You little brat! You actually came back! Where the hell did you run off to without a word?!”
Wang Chuang barged in, chest out, carrying his hands full, and called out: “Look what I brought you!”
Then he grinned: “My brother Luo and I made money while we were away!”
“How about that? Aren’t we amazing?”
Bai Ting stepped forward, ignoring the packages for the moment. Her nose twitched, and she pounded on Wang Chuang with her soap-sudden hands: “You little brat! You ran off without a word! I was so worried!”
“And you!”
She gave the same treatment to Jiang Luo, hitting him hard while muttering: “After eating who knows how many chicken legs at my place, you just disappear with my son! No idea where you went!”
“It’s infuriating!”
Wang Chuang laughed, and Jiang Luo couldn’t help laughing too.
……………………………………………………………………………………
Bai Ting, still fuming, finally laughed too. Looking at the two of them, she relaxed—they were back safe, well-fed, and in good shape.
She turned to look at the things in their hands: “What did you buy? You didn’t need to—everything’s already at home.”
“We weren’t visiting relatives,” Wang Chuang replied. “You don’t need to be so polite.”
He shoved everything he was holding into Bai Ting’s arms: “Bought them from the department store. Good stuff, for you and Dad.”
Excited and overjoyed, he spread his arms and hugged Wang Junwei tightly, exclaiming: “Mom! Dad! Brother Luo helped me make a ton of money! A ton!”
“Money we could never make working in the factory for ten years!”
Bai Ting and Wang Junwei exchanged skeptical glances. Making that much money—how could it be that easy?
Wang Chuang and Jiang Luo exchanged looks. Jiang Luo handed a travel bag to Wang Chuang.
Wang Chuang placed it on the dining table, unzipped it, and carefully unfolded layers of newspaper inside, revealing stacks of banknotes—fifty thousand in total!
Bai Ting: !!!
Wang Junwei: !!!
Wang Chuang said proudly: “That’s not all. Brother Luo and I split the money—half each. This is my half.”
Bai Ting: !!!
Wang Junwei: !!!
Wang Junwei quickly closed the door and the nearby window to the hallway, then turned on the lights.
Bai Ting didn’t care about the gift boxes in her arms. She placed them down and walked to the table, staring at Wang Chuang’s hands, eyes wide: money! All one-hundred-yuan bills, stacked high!
“So much!”
Bai Ting gasped: “All this is from you guys?”
She glanced at Wang Chuang, then at Jiang Luo: “You’ve only been gone a month, and you made this much?!”
Worried: “You didn’t do anything illegal, right?”
“Mom!”
Wang Chuang held the money proudly: “Illegal? This is honest money! Why would I lie to you?”
Wang Junwei also walked to the table, staring in disbelief at the stacks of bills in Wang Chuang’s hands.
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