Chapter 39: Starting the School

"We need to find a place first." Fang Che said, biting his spoon. "There's an abandoned night school classroom on Temple Street. It used to be used for teaching English. It's big enough, but it's dirty."

Xi Rong stopped wiping the table and listened attentively.

“We still need to find a teacher.” Fang Che continued to plan. “Chen Bo can teach math. There’s a madam at Sister Thirteen’s place who used to be a middle school teacher. Maybe we can hire her to teach Chinese… but we’ll have to pay her.”

Cheng Tieniu walked in, scratching his head. Hearing the second half of the sentence, he asked, "Che, are you really going to start a school? We're a club..."

"What's wrong with clubs?" Fang Che glared. "Can't clubs do education? Let me tell you, this is the long-term solution! When our people can all write and calculate, understand contracts without being taken advantage of, and negotiate with confidence, that's when they'll have real skills!"

He spoke so excitedly that he almost stood up from the bed, but a sharp pain in his left shoulder wound made him sit back down.

Xi Rong supported him, saying, "Brother Che, don't worry."

"How can we not be anxious?" Fang Che lowered his voice. "We haven't found the mole Ma Wang yet, Jiang Tianqi is keeping an eye on us, and now Lu Che has come along... If we just rely on fighting and killing, we'll be devoured sooner or later."

Cheng Tieniu's expression turned serious: "Che, you're right. When I was at the dock, I was often cheated out of my wages by the foreman using fake accounts. I suffered because I was illiterate."

“So,” Fang Che slapped his thigh, “we need to make plans early! Xi Rong, take the children to that classroom on Temple Street these next few days to check out the landlord and rent. Remember, don’t say that He Yi Tang wants to rent it, just say that a charity wants to run a free tutoring class.”

Xi Rong nodded: "Understood!"

"Tiezi," Fang Che turned to Cheng Tieniu, "find out if there are any retired teachers nearby willing to work part-time. The price is negotiable. Also... help me find some textbooks at the used bookstores, from elementary to junior high."

Cheng Tieniu laughed: "I'm an expert at this! There's an old man at the end of Temple Street who specializes in selling used books, and they're cheap!"

As the three were talking, footsteps came from outside the door.

Li Hanzhou pushed open the door and came in, holding a document in his hand.

He was wearing a dark gray shirt today, with the sleeves rolled up to his forearms. His gaze swept across the room and landed on Fang Che's face.

"What are you discussing?"

Fang Che's heart tightened. He hadn't even told Brother Li about setting up the school yet!

"N-nothing!" He sat up straight. "Just chatting... Brother Li, what brings you here?"

Li Hanzhou didn't answer. He walked to the bedside and handed over the document: "Take a look."

Fang Che took it, opened it, and was stunned.

It was a draft business plan titled "Portland Street Community Services and Information Network Integration Solution".

The content outlines the structure, expansion direction, cost and benefit, and goals for the next three months of "Chefeng Express".

What surprised him most was that the plan clearly stated "to build a neighborhood trust network by utilizing the waste collection business and collect intelligence in the same way," and suggested "to absorb homeless children in the form of public welfare tutoring classes, which can both solve social problems and train manpower."

This... isn't this what he was just talking about?

"Brother Li, this..." Fang Che looked up, "When did you..."

“It was compiled by Uncle Chen.” Li Hanzhou sat down in the chair. “He thought your previous ideas had potential, so he systematized them.”

Fang Che flipped through the neatly prepared plan, his mind filled with mixed feelings.

He admired Uncle Chen's business acumen; the plan was written much more clearly than he had imagined!

At the same time, he felt a little guilty, as if his plans had been seen through.

“Brother Li,” he asked cautiously, “do you think…it’s feasible?”

Li Hanzhou didn't answer directly, but instead asked, "Were you talking to Xi Rong and the others about setting up a school?"

Fang Che shrank back: "Yes... I was just thinking about it..."

“It can be done,” Li Hanzhou interrupted him, “but there are a few things to keep in mind.”

He held up his finger: "First, the venue must be safe; it can't be a dilapidated building. Second, the teachers' backgrounds must be thoroughly investigated. Third, only truly homeless children will be accepted; relatives of gang members will not be accepted. Fourth..."

He paused, then looked at Fang Che: "You will take the lead in this matter, but it will not be officially affiliated with Heyi Hall. Uncle Chen will register a charitable foundation, and you will be the actual person in charge."

Fang Che was stunned.

Not only did Brother Li agree, he even thought of all the details!

“Brother Li…” His nose tingled a little, “You’ve thought of everything so thoroughly.”

Li Hanzhou looked at him, a faint smile flashing in his eyes: "What do you think I've been busy with these past few days?"

Fang Che then realized what was happening!

Brother Li had been planning this all along!

"Thank you, Brother Li!" he exclaimed excitedly, but was stopped by Li Hanzhou's gaze.

"We'll talk about it once you're healed." Li Hanzhou stood up, walked to the door, then turned back. "The tricycle will be delivered this afternoon; go check on it. Also..."

He looked at Cheng Tieniu and Xi Rong: "Keep a low profile when setting up the school. Jiang Tianqi and Ma Wang are keeping an eye on it, so as not to leave any evidence."

"Yes!" the three replied in unison.

After Li Hanzhou left, Fang Che was still holding the plan in a daze.

Xi Rong leaned closer and whispered, "Brother Che, Boss Li is so good to you."

Cheng Tieniu laughed, "Yeah, Che, Boss Li is treating us like family!"

Fang Che touched the paper of the plan and felt a warmth in his heart.

He recalled the cutthroat competition in his previous life's workplace, the days when he fought tooth and nail for projects.

Now, some people are willing to believe him and support his wildly imaginative ideas.

This feels good.

"Let's go!" He put the plan away. "Let's go look at the tricycles!"

...

At 3 p.m., five bright red tricycles were neatly parked in the backyard.

The children gathered in a circle, their eyes shining.

Wow! So beautiful!

"This car can carry a lot of things!"

"Look at this bell! It's ringing!"

Fang Che walked over with Cheng Tieniu's help, and smiled when he saw the row of bright red tricycles.

Ah Gui stood by the car, arms crossed, his face still showing impatience, but his eyes had softened a bit.

"Brother Che!" The older kid named A-Ming ran over. "We've all tried out the bikes, they're great to ride! It's just... we don't know how to fix them yet."

"I'll teach you how to fix cars," Cheng Tieniu patted his chest. "I've fixed all kinds of vehicles at the docks, tricycles are a piece of cake!"

Fang Che nodded, walked to the front of the car, and touched the handlebars.

The paint was freshly applied and still smells.

Each bicycle basket contained a canvas bag with a matching little red hat, armband, notebook, and pencil.

It was made overnight by Xi Rong and a few other girls.

"Brothers and sisters!" Fang Che cleared his throat. "From today onwards, 'Chefeng Express' is officially upgraded!"

The children quieted down and looked at him.

“These five vehicles are our first batch of assets!” Fang Che pointed to the tricycles. “From now on, you will no longer be messengers who run on foot, but deliverymen with vehicles! We want to expand our business to the three streets around Portland Street, and eventually to the entire Kowloon!”

He spoke with increasing conviction: "But having a car isn't enough, you also need brains! So starting next week, every evening from 7 to 9 pm, we'll have classes in the abandoned classrooms on Temple Street! We'll learn to recognize characters, do arithmetic, read maps, and memorize routes!"

The children looked at each other, somewhat bewildered.

Sai Yung explained it all in Cantonese.

Now, the children's eyes lit up even more.

"Can I really study?"

"No money required?"

"I...I want to learn to write my own name..."

Fang Che looked at them, feeling both bittersweet and warm inside.

"It's free, and dinner is included." He raised his voice, "but there are conditions! You have to finish your work every day, you can't be late or leave early for class, and you have to hand in your homework on time! Anyone who slacks off..." He straightened his face, "will be punished by sweeping the entire street!"

The children laughed and nodded in agreement.

Ah Gui watched from the side, his lips twitching slightly.

This kid really does look like a teacher.

"Also," Fang Che lowered his voice, "classes are one thing, but we can't forget our business. Xi Rong, divide the children into five groups, each with a vehicle, responsible for a fixed area. Besides collecting garbage, they also need to pay attention to..."

He made a "look" gesture.