Chapter 45 Just off the plane, does the school accept Euros?

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Xia Wei actually didn’t want to go over because she clearly felt that Uncle Zhou’s relatives didn’t like her at all. But she didn’t understand why her mother insisted on pushing her forward. Her mother told her it was basic etiquette. But what kind of etiquette was this? Xia Wei couldn’t argue with her mother and was dragged over against her will.

At that moment, Zhou Guowei’s uncles and elder cousins were obviously a little drunk. They grabbed Zhou Guowei’s hand under the table and spoke some heartfelt words. They said that Ziyang had grown up and was well taken care of now. No matter what, he had to be brought over. “Ziyang is your own blood; how can you let him stay with his mother?” “Exactly, look at the muddled life you’ve been leading these years.” Though these uncles and elder cousins didn’t hold as high a social status as Zhou Guowei, they were older, so Zhou Guowei had to listen. But he could only respond helplessly, “I want to, but it’s impossible to get him back.” The uncles slammed the table, saying, “How can it be impossible? You’re a grown man, what are you afraid of?” “If the woman won’t obey you, just pin her down!” “Exactly!” The men at the table were carefree in their talk, but Zhou Guowei thought to himself, “It’s easy for you to say; it’s not your face that’s getting scratched.”

“Guowei, let me speak honestly.” An elder lit a cigarette and said, “There’s an old saying: new clothes aren’t as good as old, and new is no match for old. Ziyang’s mother is your legitimate wife; you two will be buried together someday. No matter how well you treat her now, when she gets old, her children will take her to be with her father. What you’re doing now means you’ll be lonely in old age.” Zhou Guowei had never thought of this before. After the reminder from the elder, he nodded and said, “Yes, you’re right.” Then he poured a glass of wine in toast.

At that moment, Xu Qing came over uninvited, smiling, “Everyone’s drinking.” Seeing Xu Qing, the others, out of respect for Zhou Guowei, didn’t make things difficult for her. Some who were more successful would make veiled remarks, but Xu Qing was always tolerant; as long as they didn’t speak outright, she pretended not to understand. She toasted several times in a row, introducing Xia Wei to them and asking them to take good care of her in the future. The others lowered their heads and drank quietly, saying nothing.

Under her mother’s direction, Xia Wei drank several glasses but found the atmosphere unbearable. Taking advantage of a pause in her mother’s chatter, she said she needed to use the restroom and hurried away. “Hey, this child has no manners at all,” Xu Qing said unhappily as Xia Wei left, then turned back to be polite with the group.

Zhou Ziyang didn’t go to the restroom; he stepped outside the hotel to make a call. He asked Li Jianhong if they were still short of workers. “Very short! Brother, do you have anyone on your side?” Li Jianhong quickly asked when he caught the meaning behind Zhou Ziyang’s question. It was the start of the school season; many students were upgrading their gear like phones and computers, and Li Jianhong’s factory handled a lot of that production.

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There was more than one factory lacking workers. The head office said the factories in Kunshan and Jinling were both short-staffed. If Zhou Ziyang had people, their company was willing to take all of them, but the factory in Sucheng was full; workers would have to be placed in Jinling. If Zhou Ziyang agreed, they could take as many as he could send.

After understanding the situation, Zhou Ziyang said, “Then for now, arrange 300 people for you.” “Brother, 300 people! You really are my timely rain!” Li Jianhong was delighted. If everyone did business as smoothly as Zhou Ziyang, their factories would have already flourished everywhere.

Zhou Ziyang hung up and called Li Dongfeng next. He said, “It’s arranged, but 200 people need to be sent to the Jinling factory.” “I was thinking that since you’ll be studying in Jinling in two months anyway, you might as well take a few from Jinling to start with. You won’t work in the factory; just find some reliable people to manage them. I’ll pay you 6,000 yuan a month, and the others 4,000 each.” “Brother, that’s too much! Isn’t that like getting paid for doing nothing?” “Not at all. If it weren’t for you, I wouldn’t have grown the business this big. Since the opportunity’s open, recruit as many as you can. The pay stays the same—500 yuan per person. Then let your friends recruit too; they can develop downlines with 300 yuan per person.”

“All right! Brother, I’m on it!” Li Dongfeng was thrilled. He didn’t know when he started calling Zhou Ziyang “brother,” but that title felt very solid, as if being by Zhou Ziyang’s side gave him a great sense of achievement. He had transformed from a poor, underperforming rural boy into a popular figure in the factory, all thanks to Zhou Ziyang. He was determined to be Zhou Ziyang’s loyal supporter.

After hanging up, Zhou Ziyang turned and found Xia Wei standing behind him. It startled him, and he asked when she had arrived. Xia Wei looked at him coldly and said, “Is everything going exactly as you wished? Are you proud?” Zhou Ziyang said, “I don’t understand what you’re saying.” “Hmph.” Xia Wei sneered. “You never liked me from the start. You’ve been using me to turn me against my mother to achieve your goals!” As she spoke, her eyes reddened. She said she had figured everything out and would help her mother. She would make Zhou Ziyang regret it.

Hearing this, Zhou Ziyang sighed, “It seems you still don’t understand me.” “If I really had no feelings for you, why would I have worked so hard to study in such a short time?” Zhou Ziyang said this as he was leaving. Xia Wei was stunned. Thinking this through, the logic seemed off again. “Wait! What do you mean?” Xia Wei wanted to follow him and ask clearly, but Zhou Ziyang had already left.

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The lively gathering wasn’t suitable for Zhou Ziyang. The uncles and elder cousins at the table wanted to drink more with him, but Zhou Ziyang quietly told Zhou Guowei he had other matters and had to leave. Zhou Guowei looked troubled. “Can’t you stay a little longer? It’s almost over.” Zhou Guowei was seated while Zhou Ziyang stood beside him, bending down to pat his father’s shoulder affectionately, saying, “Dad, I really have something to do. I’ll leave first.” All the proper formalities were observed, but the atmosphere was not close. This made Zhou Guowei feel a pang of loss. But no matter how sad he was, he couldn’t make up for the ten years of absence.

Thus began the last summer vacation of high school. Zhou Ziyang remembered that summer. The year he failed the college entrance exam, he felt hopeless about the future. He wanted to try harder but didn’t know how. So every day, he thought about working hard, accompanied by the chirping cicadas, birdsong, and the camphor tree outside the window. His fingers never paused on the keyboard. He played games and read novels.

Honestly, that summer before his senior year, although Zhou Ziyang played games constantly, he was not happy. Gaming was just a reflex; his mind was numb. He wondered what to do in the future. So the summer passed with him playing games, his mind fixed on that question, but there was no answer. Oh, and in his previous life, besides gaming and reading, he also joined freshman groups. An ordinary second-tier university’s freshman group full of flirtatious senior girls and boastful senior boys. Incoming freshmen eagerly showed their talents like the Eight Immortals crossing the sea.

In this life, Zhou Ziyang joined the freshman group of Jinling University. He thought to himself, “A prestigious university’s freshman group must be different.” And indeed, it was. As soon as he joined, someone posted a photo of a wallet full of blue bills, asking, “I just came back from Europe; can the school accept euros directly?”