Financial freedom starts from graduation

Chapter 170: Becoming Famous

August 2024, 8, cloudy, occasionally sunny, a little rain.

An ordinary evening.

Archives office in the headquarters building of a state-owned enterprise in Jingcheng.

It was almost time to get off work. Comrade Lao Zhou was bent over his desk, wearing a pair of reading glasses, carefully writing a document stroke by stroke.

There was a cup of tea next to him and a half-burned cigarette in the ashtray...

Although Zhou Wang directly brought back a box of Da Chongjiu, except for the one pack he brought and distributed when he first came to the office a few days ago, his favorite cigarette is still the Ziyun, which has increased in price to 15 yuan a pack.

I'm used to smoking this cigarette, and it still tastes better.

But the tea he is drinking now is very good. The seemingly ordinary jar in the drawer is actually filled with Icelandic tea bought by his son. 1 gram costs more than one hundred yuan and is as rare as gold.

Of course, Zhou Dajun did not show off to anyone, but just silently endured this unknown glory -

You can't drink tea that's much more awesome than your boss's...it's inappropriate.

But Zhou Dajun had been marginalized in the company all his life and always had his own vanity. Occasionally, when he got tired of writing, he would get up to stretch his muscles, walk to the window, and take a look at the 24-model white Mercedes-Benz GLC AMG that happened to be parked in his field of vision downstairs.

The strongest experience is naturally the day the car first arrives.

Especially when getting off work, Zhou Dajun specially prepared a towel, starting from the 5:30 off work time, and kept wiping back and forth for 50 minutes...

"Oh, my son Zhou Wang bought it. How could I have the ability to do that..."

"Of course I'll pay in full. Although there's less discount for paying in full, there's no need to pay interest for nothing, hahahaha!"

"More than 70 yuan, this kid, I told him there's no need to buy something so expensive, guess what he said... The brat said it's not even a million yuan, how can it be expensive? He doesn't listen to an old man like me when he makes money, young people nowadays, ah..."

"Oh, you didn't ask the price, sorry..."

On that day, more than 200 people in the state-owned enterprise building all knew that Lao Zhou’s son had become rich, and...it turned out that Lao Zhou’s way of speaking was so "annoying"!

But no matter what, at Lao Zhou's age, with an idle job in the archives room that allows him to stay away from the world, most people still gave him sincere congratulations and expressed their envy, satisfying the little vanity of this middle-aged man.

On that evening when the sky was filled with rosy clouds, Comrade Lao Zhou felt that he had reached the peak of his life.

After all, he didn't have much hope in his life. When he was young, he chose the wrong team three times in a row, missed all chances of advancement, and his career prospects had come to an end more than ten years ago...

"Brother Zhou, give you some water!"

Xiao Gao from the opposite table came in with a kettle, laughed and poured more tea for Zhou Dajun.

"Xiao Gao, I can do it myself, why should I bother you again?"

Zhou Dajun quickly expressed his gratitude.

Xiao Gao was transferred to the archives room this year. He is more than ten years younger than Zhou Dajun. He was not very familiar with Zhou Dajun before. After all, they both had the fate of sitting on the bench, so they probably had no time to engage in worldly affairs.

But after Zhou Dajun drove the Mercedes-Benz GLC over, Xiao Gao unconsciously changed his way of addressing him from "Old Zhou" to "Brother Zhou", and his attitude towards him also became much warmer.

It cannot be said that Xiao Gao wanted to get something from Lao Zhou, but it is undeniable that the relationship between the two has become much closer than before.

"Oh, it's just something that happens to me, please don't be polite to me..."

Glancing at the materials Zhou Dajun had spread out on the table, Xiao Gao became a little surprised again, "Hey, Brother Zhou, are you still writing an application for leave?"

"Well, Director Sun rejected my last application, saying that my reasons were not sufficient and asked me to submit it again."

When Zhou Dajun mentioned this, he frowned and his expression turned unsightly.

He asked for leave naturally in order to travel to Europe, but he did not expect that what he thought was going to go smoothly would encounter some obstacles.

"Isn't Sun Liancheng going a bit too far?"

Xiao Gao was also a little angry. "You applied for a public holiday, which is reasonable. Why did he block you?"

The Sun Liancheng mentioned by Xiao Gao is the director of their archives office. There are only three people in the entire archives office, and Sun Liancheng is the only leader.

"Haha, maybe they want me to apply for early retirement..."

Zhou Dajun smiled and said.

Although he was smiling, Lao Zhou must have felt uncomfortable.

My son has become successful, and “most people” have given their sincere congratulations. That also means there will still be a small number of people who don’t take it seriously, or are even more unhappy.

Sun Liancheng, who has always had some minor conflicts with Zhou Dajun, is obviously one of them.

Even something as trivial as asking for leave was brought up to disgust him.

Not to mention that there is still a big difference between "internal retirement" and "early retirement". Although Zhou Dajun certainly doesn't care about that little thing now, he will still feel a little aggrieved.

"How about Brother Zhou, I can help you write an electronic version and submit it online. Maybe the effect will be different..."

Xiao Gao suggested after some hesitation.

"No need, let's just leave it at that. If he continues to make things difficult for me, I can just retire early. What else can I do?"

Zhou Dajun waved his hand and spoke in a nonchalant manner.

"That's right. You don't care about the loss of insurance and salary now. If it really doesn't work, there's no need to put up with Sun Liancheng's anger. Who does he think he is?"

Xiao Gao's voice was a little loud, but it didn't matter at all, after all, he always called Sun Liancheng by his first name in private.

But just at this moment, Sun Liancheng walked in from the office door.

In addition to the warehouse, there are only two offices in the archives room. Sun Liancheng's office is at the other end. He seldom comes here. When he suddenly saw him, not only did Xiao Gao's face become unnatural, but Zhou Dajun was also a little embarrassed.

Although it was Xiao Gao who cursed, it looked like the two of them were plotting against him behind his back. Even though Sun Liancheng couldn't really do anything to them, it certainly wouldn't look good in front of them...

However, soon, to Zhou Dajun's surprise and Xiao Gao's astonishment, Sun Liancheng, who walked in, acted as if he had heard nothing.

Not only that, the other party quickly put on a smiling face and strode towards Zhou Dajun.

"Haha, you haven't left yet... Lao Zhou, do you want to have dinner together tonight? I know a place that sells pickled fish, and it tastes amazing!"

Facing Sun Liancheng who enthusiastically invited him to dinner, Zhou Dajun looked at the sun outside the window in confusion...

That’s right, the sun still sets in the west.

"I won't eat. My mother-in-law is still at home. I have to go back to eat... Uh, Director Sun, what good news has happened to you?"

Zhou Dajun replied subconsciously, and then asked speculatively.

From his perspective, this was probably the only possibility that would cause Sun Liancheng's attitude towards him to be so different.

Who knew that Sun Liancheng patted his shoulder and pointed at him with a smile: "Old Zhou, it's not me who has any happy event, it's you who has a big happy event... Speaking of which, you have kept Xiao Gao and I a secret for a long time!"

Facing Sun Liancheng's smiling look, Xiao Gao felt a little flattered. As far as he could remember, when had Sun Liancheng ever smiled at him?

But Xiao Gao was also confused and looked at Zhou Dajun in confusion.

What kind of "good news" happened to Brother Zhou that made Sun Liancheng treat him like this?

But Zhou Dajun himself was also very confused. He really didn't know what Sun Liancheng was talking about.

In Sun Liancheng's eyes, Zhou Dajun was just pretending, but he could understand it. After all, some things were not easy to publicize before the dust settled.

"Old Zhou, if you haven't received the exact news yet, you can rest assured now!"

Sun Liancheng then took out his other hand from behind his back and placed the Jingcheng Evening News, which had been delivered to his office 20 minutes ago, on the table:
"Look, this is a newly published newspaper, and the official website has also published a brief report. Your son Zhou Wang is now the pride of our entire Jingcheng, hahahaha..."

Zhou Dajun, who was confused by what he heard, subconsciously moved his gaze to the evening paper that still smelled of ink.

The headline on the front page read: "The new 'Top Ten Outstanding Young People of Jingcheng' are announced..." When Lao Zhou saw this title, his breathing became heavier because he realized something.

As he picked up the newspaper and quickly flipped through it, he soon saw what he wanted in one of the special columns:

[…Jingcheng Outstanding Youth: Zhou Wang: Zhou Wang was born on December 2002, 12 in Jingcheng Maternal and Child Hospital. He studied at…Born in an ordinary working-class family, he always believed that the starting point of life could not determine the end point. Starting from college, Zhou Wang, who dared to fight,…After returning to his hometown, he never forgot the cultivation from his alma mater. At the opening ceremony of the homecoming season, he donated RMB 24 million to the education development fund established by Jingcheng No. Middle School. This move…]

Zhou Dajun was stunned. His eyes seemed to still be reading the words, but they became distracted.

An indescribable emotion rose from his heart, even making his head hot, so that he couldn't hear clearly what Sun Liancheng and Xiao Gao were saying beside him...

Zhou Dajun's hands holding the newspaper were trembling slightly.

This is the newspaper he has been reading every day since he started working!

People who are not of their generation cannot understand the importance of newspapers, a traditional propaganda medium, in their minds...

That means authority, fairness, credibility, and supreme glory.

Touching the slightly blurry portrait photo, Zhou Dajun's eyes began to become moist, and he felt that this moment was so unreal.

Is this young man with a bit of childishness in his eyes and eyebrows really my son, Old Zhou?

"...Haha, Old Zhou, I don't think it's just me. I'm afraid that soon, even our CEO Lin will have to ask you to treat him to a meal!"

Zhou Dajun, who was gradually returning to his true self, finally heard the laughter from Sun Liancheng. That laughter was not hypocritical, but sounded sincere.

Sun Liancheng's emotion was genuinely brewing with some complicated feelings, and he was not deliberately flattering Lao Zhou.

A Mercedes-Benz GLC is a good deal, and leaders will ask about it as gossip, but since Lao Zhou's son has received this honor, he is a person with official endorsement.

Zhou Wang is only 22 years old!

Who can be sure where he will go in the future?
The various influences behind this, at least in a state-owned enterprise of their level, everyone has to weigh them carefully. So in Sun Liancheng's opinion, General Manager Lin will most likely personally visit Lao Zhou to express his condolences. It can even be said that it is a done deal...

Maybe, Lao Zhou can leave the archives room and shine in other positions, it's hard to say.

Xiao Gao was naturally envious of his father, so this is the fate of people. Brother Zhou is almost at retirement age, but he can still do "father relies on son to gain status", who would have thought...

"Old Zhou, it's okay if you don't have time today, but I'm serious. We must find a time to get together!"

Sun Liancheng patted Zhou Dajun's shoulder enthusiastically and said, "I just found out from reading the newspaper today that there is a connection between us!"

"Oh?"

Zhou Dajun, who had barely calmed down, asked curiously, "What's the origin?"

"This is my fault. I never had a good conversation with you before... My daughter and your son were classmates in the same middle school. Maybe they even know each other!"

Sun Liancheng laughed and said, "My Ningning also attended the back-to-school event of Jingcheng No. 1 Middle School that day. When she came back the next day, she told me that one of their classmates donated 10 million yuan. I didn't expect that the classmate she mentioned was your son Zhou Wang..."

Listening to Sun Liancheng's explanation, which sounded like he was forcing himself to establish a relationship with him, Zhou Dajun just smiled.

Especially since Sun Liancheng was obviously trying to sell something and kept bragging about how beautiful his daughter was. How could Zhou Dajun not know what was going on?
In the past, Zhou Dajun might have really wanted to help him, after all, his son might not have any good choices, but now...

At least in his and Zhao Guihua's hearts, they already regarded Jiang Qingkui as half a daughter-in-law. No matter how outstanding your girl named Ningning is, can she compare to Jiang Qingkui?

While casually dealing with Sun Liancheng, Zhou Dajun couldn't help feeling a little shaken.

This kid donated 10 million quietly without even telling them a word... Yes, it was not until he saw it in the newspaper that Lao Zhou learned about it.

I don't know how much Zhou Wang has hidden from them...

Their son has grown up and has become successful, so they don’t have to worry about him anymore.

Thinking of this, Zhou Dajun felt happy but also a little lonely for no reason.

However, seeing Sun Liancheng's "face" at the moment, and Xiao Gao's speechless admiration, Comrade Lao Zhou had to admit that this feeling...

It feels really good!
……

At seven o'clock in the evening, when Zhou Wang, who was thirsty, hung up the last phone call, the Mercedes-Benz G finally drove into Mingcheng.

From the initial excitement to even becoming a little bored later on, this feeling is something that most people really don’t understand.

Pretending to be cool can get annoying!

Jingle Bell!
The phone rang for the Nth time. After taking a look at the strange caller without a name displayed, Zhou Wang chose to hang up directly.

The person on the other end of the phone might be a classmate you haven’t contacted for a long time, or a relative you’re not that familiar with, or the media, or even an individual who appears out of nowhere and is looking for investment…

In short, on the way from Licheng to Mingcheng, Zhou Wang truly experienced what it means to "become famous overnight and be known by everyone."

Of course, considering that it was only a local honor, the influence was actually relatively limited. But even so, the waves it caused in a specific range had already exceeded Zhou Wang's expectations.

As for the backlog of more than 99+ unread messages on WeChat, Zhou Wang didn't even have the desire to open them and take a look.

Originally, only the alumni group members congratulated Zhou Wang first, and then the circle of friends also began to ferment.

Someone who worked in an official organization and knew Zhou Wang reposted the news, and by the time Zhou Wang realized what was happening, even in the escape room entertainment group chat that he had joined at some point, someone was @ing him...

As a result, Zhou Wang had to answer various phone calls along the way, and the words he said most often were "No, no" and "Sure, sure."

The former is the humble attitude towards various compliments, while the latter is the perfunctory attitude towards various invitations.

When Zhou Wang wiped his sweat and pressed the car window, someone quietly handed him an opened bottle of water.

After taking a look at Shen Yutong's bright eyes beside him, Zhou Wang said "thank you" and took the bottle of Evian in the glass bottle.

After drinking half a bottle in one breath, Zhou Wang breathed a sigh of relief and said to Shen Yutong embarrassedly: "Sorry, I must have been very noisy along the way. You must be a little sleepy..."

Since no one slept well last night, Zhou Wang said this.

"I'm not sleepy, nor do I find it noisy. Well, I... quite like listening to these things."

Shen Yutong did not hide the admiration in her eyes, "Zhou Wang, you are really amazing!"

At first, she didn't quite understand what "outstanding youth" meant, but while Zhou Wang was on the phone, Shen Yutong had already looked up a lot of things on her mobile phone and shared them in their dormitory group.

She even posted a message on WeChat Moments, reposting the official media's announcement, even though she didn't know if she was qualified to do so...

But looking at the likes and inquiries from people on WeChat, Shen Yutong still felt genuinely satisfied, even if such a sense of pride was just an illusion.

"Stop praising me, please. You know how many times I've heard such things. I'm almost feeling physically sick..."

Zhou Wang waved his hands quickly.

"Puch!"

Shen Yutong couldn't help but smile.

Not long after, the car slowly stopped at a commercial building on the second ring road of Mingcheng. There was an idle apartment under Yu Duo's name here. Shen Yutong, who had not yet found a house, stayed here temporarily.

After Shen Yutong got off the bus and took her luggage, Zhou Wang wanted to stop her and ask her about her future plans. However, Shen Yutong bowed her head briefly and then suddenly walked over quickly. Before Zhou Wang could react, she had already leaned in with her amazingly curvy body and put her arm around Zhou Wang's neck without saying anything...

The next moment, hot lips were pressed upon him.

The suffocating tightness and the frenzy without any skill, as if she was afraid that Zhou Wang would refuse, Shen Yutong stuffed the slippery strip in at the first moment.

She tried her best to make a fuss and chase him awkwardly, trying to stop Zhou Wang from saying anything.

After about a minute, Shen Yutong finally let go of Zhou Wang. She was panting and a little unsteady on her feet, but she still mustered up the courage to look at Zhou Wang:

"Zhou Wang, believe it or not... this is my first kiss."

After speaking quickly, Shen Yutong picked up the small suitcase with both hands, turned around and ran into the community, not knowing where to go.

(End of this chapter)