Chen Xinran went back home a few days ago, choosing an evening when everyone was at home. She placed the stub she had copied from the post office on the table and asked her stepmother for her thousand yuan.
Tian Xue held the chopsticks tightly, not daring to breathe.
The stepmother looked puzzled: "Didn't I give it to you a long time ago?"
Chen happily sat down on the sofa in the main room, relaxed: "Then I don't know, anyway, I haven't seen the money."
Father Tian Jianming also looked unhappy: "Do you think anyone in this room can take your money?"
Chen Xinran waved his hands and said, "Not really, but one thousand yuan is a lot of money. If no one took it, I would have to call the police. You can't just disappear without a trace, right?"
Tian Jianming wanted to slam his chopsticks on the table, but he knew in his heart that his daughter would not buy it.
This is a stone person. No matter how good you are to her, you can't warm her stone heart.
Tian Xue was so frightened that her face turned pale.
In modern times, she is just a student under 20 years old. Although she talks a lot, she is actually indecisive when things really happen.
She took the one thousand yuan, originally intending to bring Zhao Nan over. By then, her step-sister would be distracted and there would be no way to trace the one thousand yuan.
But who knew that Zhao Nan was so difficult to conquer? Except for the first few times when Zhao Nan was not on guard against her, Zhao Nan later almost avoided her every day.
All the things she gave were rejected, whether they were small food or big watches, which made Tian Xue feel extremely frustrated.
As time went on, Tian Xue also lost her temper. Who cares who she loves? She really thinks she is such a popular person.
She simply decided not to go to the oil field, feeling lucky. What if her stepsister didn't know about the money?
Think about it, it’s been such a long time since the money was sent to me, but I haven’t heard my step-sister mention it. Maybe she doesn’t even know about it!
Tian Xue spent money like crazy while numbing herself. Unlike what happened after inflation, the purchasing power of one thousand yuan now is really amazing.
Tian Xue, who came from an ordinary family before traveling through time, is now enjoying the happiness of being rich and beautiful.
With a decent family background, good looks, and plenty of money, Tian Xue could not help but straighten her back when she walked on the road.
Only when her step-sister came to her door aggressively did Tian Xue realize how scared she was. In just over half a month, she had already spent half of the one thousand yuan.
Now I can’t admit it even if I want to.
Stepmother was irritated by Chen Xinran's attitude. She smiled but questioned: "I asked Xiaoxue to send you the thousand yuan a long time ago. Xinran, have you been spending more money recently?"
What he meant was that Chen Xinran spent too much money lavishly, so he found an excuse to come back and ask for money.
Chen Xinran also smiled and replied: "If you say so, I will know. Dad, I'm leaving first. I'll call the police tomorrow."
Tian Xue cried out: "Don't——"
Now everyone's attention was focused on her.
Tian Xue gritted her teeth and discussed with her step-sister: "It's been so long, it's definitely impossible to find it back, why should we call the police?"
Chen Xinran looked at her with a half-smile. It was so obvious, so obvious that her stepmother and father beside her had already guessed the problem without her saying anything.
The stepmother was shocked beyond words. Tian Xue has always been timid, so how could she do such a thing now?
As soon as I reacted, I quickly described it for my daughter.
——Chen Xinran really dared to call the police.
The final result was very gratifying. The one thousand yuan was returned in full. Chen happily walked out and could still hear his father's roar and his stepmother and stepsister's crying from a distance.
After receiving the 1,000 yuan, Chen Xinran originally planned to send it all back, but her uncle refused to accept it, insisting that he was rich now and 1,000 yuan was not too much.
Chen Xinran had no choice but to decide to keep the money for herself first and return it to her uncle when he came to watch the ceremony after the Chinese New Year.
Before the 1,000 yuan was deposited at the post office, Qian Qing said she was going to the provincial capital to buy goods. Chen Xinran thought that putting the money at the post office would just be idle, so it would be better to give it to Qian Qing to do business.
After spending some time with Qian Qing, Chen Xinran felt that Qian Qing was hardworking and smart, and would sooner or later make a name for herself in business. She was also happy to give Qian Qing some fuel, wanting to see how far Qian Qing could go.
Qian Qing refused twice, but seeing that Chen Xinran didn't seem to be pretending, she accepted the other party's kindness.
She was really short of money. It was not easy to go to the provincial capital. If she could bring more goods back, she could earn more money. She made up her mind that when she paid back the money, she would pay Chen Xinran interest based on the time.
****
Everything was ready, and on the day of departure, Zhou Hao took over from someone else and helped Qian Qing carry her bag all the way to the platform.
"Be careful and alert on the road. I'll ask Lao Ding to pick you up at South Square when you get there. You've seen Lao Ding before. He will hold up a sign when the time comes. Don't miss him."
Even after the train left, Qian Qing couldn't help but look back at Zhou Hao.
The tickets I bought were for two seats by the window. The departure time was 9am and it took about five hours to reach the provincial capital. Even though it was only five hours, I didn't even dare to blink during the journey.
In the years since the reform and opening up, the policy of going to the countryside has been cancelled, but the college entrance examination has been resumed, and people have returned to the city one after another.
But there are only so many factories, and the individual economy is still developing. With more people idle, some messy things will naturally arise.
It's not so bad in their own province, but I heard that in some remote areas, some people are stealing things from trains, and some are even stopping cars on the road to rob.
Zhou Hao took this into consideration and told Lao Ding in advance to transfer the money. If he carried three thousand yuan with him, it would be conspicuous no matter how he stuffed it, and he would not be able to have a peaceful journey.
In the end, Qian Qing and Qian Yu each had fifty yuan stuffed into their pockets, and the rest of their bags contained only a few pieces of clothing and dry food.
As soon as she got on the train, Qian Qing went to find the train conductor. Chen Xinran got to know the conductor and found out that he grew up in a railway compound.
Qian Qing went straight to the train crew lounge in carriage No. 9. She never thought that using connections was a bad thing. Since you have the connection, why can't you use it?
Besides, the master can only lead you to the door, but the practice is up to you. She relied on her own ability to get along with people, so wouldn't this be her own network in the future?
The train attendant was named Lin Xiaohui. She had a long face and narrow eyes. She was wearing a uniform and drinking tea from a cup.
When Qian Qing told her that it was Chen Xinran who asked her to come, she immediately became much more friendly.
"You came at the right time. There is someone here who wants to return his ticket. Come on, I will give you a new berth."
Qian Qing thanked the other party, took her sister's bag and followed behind Lin Xiaohui.
After squeezing through two carriages, they finally reached the sleeper car. Lin Xiaohui gave them a ticket and pointed to the lower carriage: "Look, it's right there."
Qian Qing couldn't be more satisfied and passed the chili sauce to him.
"I didn't bring anything else with me on the train, so take this bottle of chili sauce. My mom made it herself, and it tastes just as good as the ones in state-owned hotels."
The chili sauce was naturally prepared in advance, but it was certainly not enough to repay the favor of the person who gave him the chance to sleep with him through the back door.
But when people get along with each other, the worst thing to do is to calculate too much.
The calculation is too clear. How can we communicate next time?
It's like a couple who are both interested in each other and they plan to have dinner together. If you treat me, then I will treat you next time. But if we calculate the amount on the spot and split it in half, it basically means that the two of us are done with it and there is no guarantee that we will meet again.
Doing business means owing favors to others. This time I owe you a favor, and next time I have something good, it will be natural for me to come and pay you back. If I don't pay you back equally, then you owe me again.
Coming and going around, that's your network.
Qian Yu was confused as she listened to Qian Qing explain to her why she did this.
She just asked casually. After all, the gift was a bit shabby. There was obviously a big bottle in the bag, so it would look better to give that one.
Qian Qing was consciously cultivating Qian Yu. Her sister was good in every way except that she was too honest. If someone gave her one point, she would return three points, without taking advantage of them at all.
This kind of behavior is honest in life, but a bit too straightforward in business.
The green train was shaking and swaying, and in the blink of an eye it was noon. The two did not go to the dining car, but instead ate the steamed buns and sauce they brought with them.
After passing two cities, Qian Qing began to get nervous.
"This section is close to the mountains, and the next stop is the provincial capital."
So be careful in this section, as many pickpockets will commit crimes in this section. If you happen to steal something, the train will slow down near the mountain area, and some brave people will dare to open the window and run out. The timid ones will squeeze in and get off at the stop before the provincial capital.
Just after he finished speaking, Qian Qing saw a commotion in front of him. Several men were huddled together smoking. A man with a small moustache leaned on a man who was smoking in the middle of the carriage, as if he was not standing steadily.
Not long after the man with the mustache passed by, the smoking man started shouting at the top of his voice.
"Where's my money!? Who stole my money?!"
Qian Qing pressed her sister's forehead back. The two of them could not protect themselves if they were outside. Zhou Hao had specifically reminded her that many criminals on the train were gang members, and told her not to get angry and do something irrational.
After passing the mountain area with trepidation, the train arrived at the provincial capital.
The two of them held each other's hands and walked out of the station to South Square to look for someone.
There were quite a few people in the South Square, and many of them were sitting there resting while carrying large bags.
Just when Qian Qing was worrying about how to find someone, she heard the sound of gongs and drums coming from somewhere.
Thinking of what happened last time she saw Lao Ding, Qian Qing had a bad feeling and pulled her sister into the crowd.
As expected, in the middle of the crowd, there were three or four young men, one of them holding a gong. Next to them was a large white paper with the names of Qian Qing and Qian Yu written on it.
Old Ding was squatting on the side with a cigarette in his hand and wearing sunglasses. His eyes were darting around behind the sunglasses to see which one was his sister-in-law.
Finally seeing Qian Qing, Lao Ding quickly stood up and crushed the cigarette butt in his hand. He slapped a young man on the head and said, "Stop knocking!"
After saying that, he came up and took off his sunglasses, revealing a baby face.
Qian Qing: "...Old Ding, are you going back to your old ways?"