Late summer of 1992
The workshop was always exceptionally hot and humid at the end of summer, making it difficult to bear. Lin Guodong sat on a stool with a newspaper in his hand, looking at the news report about Li Yu, the youngest chemist, who had overcome difficulties and developed a new drug to treat a certain disease. He couldn't describe the feeling in his heart.
They are clearly siblings, but their lives are worlds apart. One is in heaven, and the other is on earth.
Yu Cheng is a nationally renowned chemist, but he is just an ordinary welder, earning a meager monthly salary, and his future is predictable.
"Lin Guodong, are you looking at your sister again?" Zhou Lesheng, a colleague from the same workshop, walked up to him and said.
"No." Lin Guodong closed the newspaper in his hand.
Zhou Lesheng sat down next to him. "By the way, how's Master Lin doing lately?"
Lin Guodong paused for a moment, then said, "It's great. There are dedicated caregivers in the nursing home, which is much better than being at home."
Actually, he hadn't been to the nursing home for almost a month because every time he went, his father would cry and demand to go home, and would call him an unfilial ingrate. Although he knew his father wasn't lucid, those words were really hurtful, and he didn't want to visit so frequently.
Zhou Lesheng nodded and said, "It's a good thing. With a patient like this, there's no other way but to send him to a nursing home. After all, you and your sister-in-law both have to work, so you can't stay by his side all the time."
Lin Guodong patted Zhou Lesheng on the shoulder, deeply moved that Zhou Lesheng understood him. Ever since he sent his father to the nursing home, the neighbors and his colleagues at the factory had been saying, openly or secretly, that he and Zhang Jiao were unfilial.
Aunt Lin Qiufang even came to their house and scolded them, but Zhang Jiao said that if her aunt came to live with them to take care of her father, they would give her money, but she was not willing to do so.
But these outsiders make it sound so easy; they have no idea how difficult it is to take care of an elderly person with dementia.
They would rather give their father's retirement pension to a nursing home than have one of them quit their job and stay home to take care of their father with his retirement pension.
"Hey, Guodong, do you know Bai Haiyang from the workshop?" Zhou Lesheng asked, looking at Lin Guodong.
Lin Guodong paused for a moment, then nodded and said, "I know, didn't he win the factory's model worker award last year?"
Zhou Lesheng said, "I just saw him go to apply for a leave of absence without pay."
Lin Guodong was shocked. "He's taking a leave of absence without pay? Doesn't the factory think highly of him? He's a college graduate, and the factory intends to groom him for a management position. He's considered to have a bright future in our factory. Why would he take a leave of absence without pay?"
Zhou Lesheng said in a low voice, "I'm telling you, but don't tell anyone else. I heard from Bai Haiyang's good friend that Bai Haiyang went to Shanghai to speculate in stocks and made more than 100,000 yuan. He plans to focus on this, so he went to the factory to apply for a leave of absence without pay."
"If I could earn tens of thousands of yuan, wouldn't I do it? These days, what job doesn't make more money than a fixed salary? Take your mother for example, she doesn't work in a factory, she's self-employed. Now everyone owns factories, right?"
Lin Guodong felt that Zhou Lesheng made a lot of sense; nowadays, doing anything is definitely more profitable than working in a factory with a fixed salary.
Those street vendors they once looked down upon have all become millionaires and live in brand-new apartments.
He'd been seeing articles in the newspaper lately about how much money people made from stocks, and he always thought these people were far removed from him. He never imagined that one of them would actually be right next to him.
Zhou Lesheng said, "I want to go find Bai Haiyang and ask him to teach me how to trade stocks. We work in the same factory, so if I go to him, he should still give me face, right?"
Lin Guodong glanced at the newspaper in his hand. If he could make a fortune through stock speculation, maybe the Li family would respect him.
Lin Guodong: "I'll go with you."
After getting off work, Zhou Lesheng and Lin Guodong went to have dinner with Bai Haiyang. After a meal, they finally persuaded Bai Haiyang to agree to take them to Haishi for a try.
Bai Haiyang told Lin Guodong and Zhou Lesheng that when playing the stock market, one must not be greedy and must know when to take profits, otherwise one may lose everything.
That evening, Lin Guodong returned home drunk. He pushed open the bedroom door and saw Zhang Jiao applying a plaster to her buttocks.
Zhang Jiao's coccyx fracture hasn't healed properly, so sitting for a long time, or on rainy days, will cause pain in her coccyx.
"You're back just in time. Quickly put some plaster on your daughter."
Lin Guodong waved his hand in front of his nose, "This kind of lousy plaster smells awful again."
"Hey, could you help me stick this on?"
"Self-posted".
Lin Guodong turned and walked out of the bedroom to the living room to pour himself a glass of water.
Zhang Jiao put on the plaster, put on her pants, and walked out of the bedroom. She looked at Lin Guodong lying on the sofa, frowned, and asked, "You reek of alcohol. Who were you drinking with this time?"
Lin Guodong: "Never mind that. Right, the factory is organizing people to go to Haishi for training in a couple of days. You're on the list. You'll have to go to Haishi for a month or so."
Upon hearing this, Zhang Jiao clapped her hands and said, "This is great news! Your factory is finally going to give you a second chance."
Those who are selected by the factory to study there are generally people who are valued by the factory.
"It's a good thing, but don't shout it all over the yard and let everyone know." If she shouts it out, no one will know that he went to Shanghai to study.
Lin Guodong didn't plan to tell Zhang Jiao about his plan to invest in stocks in Shanghai, because he felt that Zhang Jiao was a woman with long hair and short brains, and if she knew that he was going to invest in stocks, she would definitely hold him back.
Zhang Jiao raised her hand and assured her, "I definitely won't complain. You go to Haishi to study hard. I'll take care of things at home, so you don't need to worry about it."
The next day, Lin Guodong went to the factory to ask for a month's leave, and took his savings book to withdraw the 10,000 yuan that he and Zhang Jiao had saved together over the years.
Early the next morning, I carried my luggage to the train station to meet Zhou Lesheng and Bai Haiyang, and then boarded the train to Hai City.
On their second day in Shanghai, Bai Haiyang took Zhou Lesheng and Lin Guodong to a securities company to open accounts and buy subscription vouchers. After winning the lottery, Lin Guodong officially entered the stock market.
Lin Guodong was quite cautious as it was his first time investing in stocks, so he only used half of his money to buy stocks.
Since they bought the stocks, he and Zhou Lesheng have spent almost every day at the stock exchange, watching the rise of the stocks they bought.
Seeing the red banners fluttering all the way, the two of them were overjoyed.
Bai Haiyang looked at the stock, which had almost doubled in value, and said while smoking, "It's about time to sell."
Lin Guodong frowned and said, "I've heard that this stock has a lot of potential. Should we wait a bit longer?"
Bai Haiyang said, "Don't wait, just throw it away. It's better to keep the money safe in your pocket than to take risks."
Lin Guodong and Zhou Lesheng exchanged a glance, and decided to listen to Bai Haiyang and sell their stocks.
Five thousand yuan turned into ten thousand yuan in a few days in the stock market. Lin Guodong and Zhou Lesheng were overjoyed. That night, they treated Bai Haiyang to a meal to discuss which stock to buy next.
When Lin Guodong rushed to the stock market the next day and saw that the stocks he had sold the day before had almost doubled in value, his face turned rather ugly, and he even complained that he shouldn't have sold them so early.
Bai Haiyang knew he resented being forced to sell early stocks, but he didn't say anything and instead led them to buy new stocks.
The new stock was soaring all the way up, doubling in value by the fifth day.
Bai Haiyang felt the time was right and asked Lin Guodong and Zhou Lesheng to sell their stocks with him, but this time Lin Guodong did not listen to him.
Lin Guodong: "I listened to the analysis of several experienced experts, who said that this stock can still rise, at least for another week. If you sell at this time, it will be too much of a loss."
Bai Haiyang frowned and said, "This stock may rise again, but selling now is definitely the safest and most secure option."
Lin Guodong: "Last time you said it was safe and secure, and told us to sell quickly, which directly made us lose 10,000 or 20,000 yuan."
Zhou Lesheng tugged at Lin Guodong's sleeve, signaling him not to say anything.
Although he had some reservations about this matter, Bai Haiyang still managed to make money for them.
Lin Guodong shook off his hand, "I'm not saying this, but someone as timid and hesitant as you, afraid of this and that, will find it hard to make a fortune."
After spending so many days at the stock exchange, he's figured out some tricks of the trade. If you want to make a fortune, you have to be bold and gamble.
Bai Haiyang laughed and said, "You're right. You're timid and hesitant, afraid of this and that. But you won't listen to me. I've already given you my advice. Whether you throw it or not is your business. If you have to pay compensation, don't try to blame me."
After saying that, Bai Haiyang turned and walked away.
Zhou Lesheng: "The ocean."
"Lesheng, what do you say? Are you going to listen to Bai Haiyang's suggestion, or are you going to gamble with me and make a big profit?" Lin Guodong asked Zhou Lesheng.
Zhou Lesheng looked in the direction Bai Haiyang had left, hesitated for a moment, and said, "Let's listen to Haiyang."
After saying that, she went to chase after Bai Haiyang.
Lin Guodong looked at the still-rising stock price, gritted his teeth, and decided to wait a little longer.
That night, Lin Guodong slept outside the stock exchange. As soon as the stock exchange opened, he rushed in, only to find that the stocks that had been rising the day before had plummeted overnight.
Lin Guodong felt a chill run down his spine and quickly joined other shareholders in rushing to the window to sell their shares.
However, the 15,000 yuan he invested turned into 2,000 yuan.
As soon as Zhou Lesheng and Bai Haiyang stepped into the securities exchange, they saw Lin Guodong holding two thousand yuan, his eyes somewhat vacant.
Bai Haiyang shook his head when he saw him like this. "He who does not listen to the elders will suffer the consequences." This was exactly the kind of person he was talking about.
"Guodong." Zhou Lesheng walked over and nudged Lin Guodong.
Lin Guodong: "I'll pay you back, I'll pay you back completely, I'll leave you with 2,000 out of 15,000."
Zhou Lesheng: "You said you should listen to Haiyang, but you wouldn't listen."
"Lesheng." Lin Guodong grabbed Zhou Lesheng's arm. "Lend me five thousand yuan. I've got my eye on a stock that's sure to skyrocket. Once it goes up, I'll make a fortune and pay you back."
Zhou Lesheng: "..."
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