Back to the prime of life

Chapter 20: What Happened (Seeking monthly tickets and follow-up reading)
It was not yet six o'clock when Lu Changge returned to the county town, and it was not completely dark yet. He planned to go home, take a shower and rest.

Over the past month since his rebirth, he has been trying to relax his always tense nerves.

In fact, the physical fatigue of urban people is not a big deal. It is the long-term mental stress that is really torturous.

During this period of time, he suddenly had a lot of free time, and he has been adjusting his work and rest schedule and diet, and calming his mind through exercise and reading. Now he basically goes to bed before 10 o'clock.

Then you will find that... the more you sleep, the more tired you will feel.

The situation after arriving home tonight caught him off guard. As soon as he opened the door, he heard Dad Lu yelling anxiously, "He Fanghui, how many times have I told you to turn up the ringtone on your phone? If you keep doing this, you might as well throw it away. Anyway, when I really need to find you, you never answer the phone!"

Both parents saw him at the same time and restrained themselves a little.

Dad Lu turned his head away, and Mom Lu said, "You're back. Have you had dinner yet?"

"No. No, what are you doing here?"

"Changge, you should go out and buy something to eat. We're not cooking tonight." Dad Lu said this after a moment's pause, then urged Mom Lu, "Hurry up and find the IOU. Let's go to his house and find him! You bastard, you can't even get through on the phone at this time!"

Lu Changge thought of something.
According to my memory, something must have happened to Cai Yue?
After getting the money last time, he decided to give 28,000 yuan to his parents, but to be honest, he had never thought about how to tell his parents.

After all, in the eyes of his parents, he is still a child. It seems a bit unreasonable to ask for the money back without giving the IOU.

Maybe it was because the amount of money lost was too much and the matter was too serious. Lu's mother, who was always good at fighting back, didn't dare to say a word even when she was scolded. Even if it wasn't her fault, she didn't dare to speak, or maybe she was very scared in her heart... the money was gone.

So I quietly went back to my room to look for something.

Lu Changge stood there for a while. He observed his father who was standing with his hands on his hips. He found that his breathing was a little rapid, his face was tense, and even his eyes had lost their former spirit and were now a little flustered. He must have been thinking about what to do about this matter so much that he forgot to wipe the sweat that slid from his forehead to his nose.

Just as expected, he couldn't feel at ease holding the money, and then he saw his parents so anxious.

So he quickly deduced various possibilities in his mind. After thinking about it, it seemed that he could only bring up Zhu Xingyu and tell them that it was Director Zhu who helped him.

Although it seems a bit outrageous, it seems that this is the only way to make parents believe that Mr. Cai is willing to take the money.

"dad,"

Father Lu seemed to be speaking to him, but also seemed to be talking to himself. "Wei Qiang has been arrested. He's Cai Yue's uncle, and Cai Yue can't be found. He was arrested for illegal fundraising. So the 28,000 yuan he owed our family may not be returned."

Lu Changge remembered that Wei Qiang was a relatively large boss in Huaishui City and also Cai Yue's uncle.

When this person got into trouble, a lot of people "downstream" died, and the first to suffer was Cai Yue, because many of his businesses were done by others because of his uncle's face, and even borrowing money from others was easier for him than for ordinary people.

For example, his father, even though Cai Yue had not paid the balance, he always felt that this kid was rich, so he simply considered it as a loan of 28,000 yuan to him and just wrote an IOU.

But that’s not the case now.

Because everyone knows that Cai Yue likes to delay payments, once there is any sign of trouble, everyone will focus on asking him for money.

Bank run, even the banks can't handle this, let alone Cai Yue.

There is no time left for Lu Changge. Even if there are loopholes, even if it is discovered, it will be discovered by his parents.

So he hurried back to his room, rummaged through his bag hidden in the corner, and took out the cash.

He has always kept it here, but he is just struggling with how to tell his parents.

"Have you found the IOU?" Dad Lu was still urging Mom Lu anxiously.

"Found it, here."

Lu Changge also quickened his pace, rushing out in two steps, clutching the money. "Dad, Mom, here are the 28,000 yuan."

This scene was a bit eerie, as it wouldn't happen in most families. Lu's parents would never have expected their son to hand over money. Their surprise was so intense that it almost shut down their brains, as if their language skills had disappeared for a few seconds.

A certain silence fell in the room.

"You guys, do you want to touch it?"

Dad Lu listened to his instructions like a little child and actually came over to touch him. "No, you...that, what's going on?"

Lu Changge said, "Mom, do you remember when Cai Yue asked me to play? One time we went, I told Zhu Xingyu that he owed my family money. Two days later, Cai Yue took the initiative to ask me to pay it back."

He didn't tell them the whole story. He wanted them to come up with their own reasons to complete the logic, which would be better than instilling it in them.

"So... it was Zhu Xingyu who found someone?" asked Lu's mother.

Father Lu was very smart and said, "It must be Director Zhu who did it!"

Lu Changge finally nodded in agreement, "That should be the case. Actually, I asked him how he got it, and Zhu Xingyu said he just made a phone call and said it was a small matter, so he's welcome."

The logic seems correct.

Father Lu's shock turned into surprise. "Oh my! You little bastard, why didn't you tell me earlier? I almost called your grandpa to ask him to find someone! That would be so embarrassing!"

Mother Lu almost cried, the twists and turns were so exciting.

Lu Changge scratched his head, "Ah, I originally wanted to charge some handling fees, so I delayed it for a few days."

Mother Lu glared angrily, "Only bastards charge a handling fee. Do you want to be a bastard?!"

This map cannon was a bit harsh, but Lu Changge did not refute it.

Dad Lu was puzzled again, "But he wants to pay back the money, why did he come to you and not me? He didn't even ask for an IOU."

Well, that's the loophole.

Otherwise, Lu Changge would have confronted them long ago.

At this point, he could only fish in troubled waters. "Then forget it. He's mentally ill to begin with. It's okay as long as the money is returned. Seeing how anxious you guys were just now, it really scared me."

"Right, right, right. Why do you care about that guy?" Mother Lu dared to lecture him again. "Let's keep our money. This Cai guy's stirring up trouble outside has nothing to do with us. Don't have any contact with this guy again. He's such a troublemaker!"

Lu Changge gave the money to his father, hoping that money would stop his brain from thinking.

As it happens, money does have this function.

"I've counted them. Is it really twenty-eight thousand?" "I've counted them."

Mother Lu said, "Don't just stand there, put it away first and deposit it tomorrow. The bank is closed now."

When Father Lu came out of the room, the three of them had calmed down. Father Lu breathed a sigh of relief and said, "It's a good thing you knew Zhu Xingyu this time. We must find a way to thank Director Zhu."

Lu Changge said a few perfunctory words, saying that Director Zhu was too busy and they had to make an appointment.

Anyway, Mr. Lu has no way to deal with Cai Yue. If Director Zhu doesn't give him time, he can't do anything either.

"That's fine, I'll go make dinner." Mother Lu said as she went to the kitchen, "Don't worry about it. Changge must be blessed, a blessing for our family."

In this way, peace returned to the family.

Lu Changge felt relieved.

In the following days, he continued to live his life as before, but one night in late July, when he was walking home from the school playground after running and passed by Erlang BBQ Restaurant, something in his mind moved, so he walked closer and took a few more looks.

When he got to the door and took a look, he was shocked. All the hanging signs had been smashed to pieces, and the glass of the door was cracked by stones. As for the tables, benches, and leftovers in the house, it was a complete mess. The door was open and there was nothing left.

The electric rod that was originally attached to the top of the wall also fell off in mid-air, shaking and making a sharp "squeaking" sound.

When he sighed and was about to leave, he suddenly noticed a woman sitting on the side of the road in the non-motorized vehicle lane. Her hair was disheveled and her clothes were torn, revealing her delicate shoulders, which was very tempting.

Perhaps hearing the noise, the woman also turned her head.

There was a little blood at the corner of his mouth.

I’ve been beaten, Lu Changge thought to himself.

Looking more closely, I found that she had just cried, with tears in her eyes.

She is indeed beautiful, especially the whiteness of her chest which is exposed to the light and is about to burst out.

"Lu Changge?"

"How come you still remember me?"

The woman stood up, her expression dazed, and pulled out a folded piece of paper from her pocket.

Seeing that she was giving it to him, Lu Changge took it. When he opened it, he was a little surprised.

This is the receipt he wrote to Cai Yue at that time!

"Why is this here with you?"

The woman said, "I searched everywhere he'd be, and this is the only place I could find. Why would he give you 28,000?"

"Let me correct you first. It's not about giving, it's about returning."

"Also? He owes you money?"

The word 'you' is emphasized, which means that you are just a high school graduate.

"It's owed to our family. My family still has the IOU."

“So you did get the money.”

What do you mean? Why are you worried about whether I got the money or not?

He could accept being cheated in love, but not in money, because he could have a lot of love, but he only had a little money.

The woman wiped her tears, forced a smile and said, "Since you're here, come inside and sit down."

"Here?" Lu Changge pointed at the shabby store and asked doubtfully. He didn't really want to go either.

"There are still two stools."

"Forget it, I have something to do."

"Wait a minute..." the proprietress called out anxiously. After three seconds of silence, she took two steps closer, bit her lip, and said, "Do you... want to do that?"

"Ah? Which one?" He thought he had heard wrongly.

"That's right, eighteen or nineteen, you should want that too, right?" She moved closer, almost touching him. "I could tell the first time you came. You want to play with me, right? As long as you pay, I'll do anything."

Lu Changge was shocked. It was the first time he met such a desperate woman. He looked at her again seriously. Her eyes were red and she was holding back tears. There seemed to be madness and despair in her eyes.

"No way."

"It's okay, you have money now, and I don't need that much... or, you don't want to play with me?"

Her tone was very teasing.

"Of course I do. But I don't want to pay. If I pay... the nature of the situation changes."

The woman was confused and wanted to curse.

Fortunately, Lu Changge took out more than a hundred yuan from his pocket.

"This probably isn't enough... But I don't need you to do anything. Take it. Even if you don't have anywhere to go, you can still find a small hotel to hide in first, and then figure out a solution."

Mrs. Xie took a look at the money, and at a certain moment she suddenly reached out and grabbed it in her hand, then left without looking back. She must have been feeling a kind of stubbornness, or even shame.

Lu Changge felt that she would always remember that she had seduced a child who had just reached adulthood.

People are actually afraid of this.
He has obviously become a rotten mess, but it's a pity that he still has a little conscience.

After returning home, he asked Ms. He who was wiping the table, "Mom, what's the name of the owner of the barbecue restaurant, Mrs. Xie?"

"Thank you, youth."

(End of this chapter)