This actor is full of tricks.

The next afternoon after school, Lin Jue went directly to Kaifeng Cuisine, which was not far from the school gate. He wasn't there to eat, but because he had found a part-time job there the day before.

The boss initially refused, but after learning about Lin Jue's situation, he kindly offered him a part-time job at the store, with wages paid every three days.

"The hourly wage is 12 yuan. I get out of school at 5:30, and after changing clothes, I start work at around 6:00. The shop closes at 8:00. I can work for 2 hours every day, which is 24 yuan a day."

"On weekends, I have to go to class on Saturday, which is 24 hours a day. I can rest on Sunday and work for 10 hours, which is 120 yuan. My weekly income is 264 yuan, and my monthly income is a little over 1,000 yuan."

"I'll keep my daily expenses under ten yuan, and I can save a little this month. After the college entrance exam, I'll have almost three months to earn more. I just don't know if it will be enough for college tuition. I heard that you can apply for poverty subsidies and scholarships after you get into college..."

As Lin Jue changed into the store's employee uniform, he counted on his fingers his future income and expenses. His days seemed to stretch out before him, and money was like toothpaste that was almost empty, needing to be squeezed out little by little.

"Oh, right, there's still the medical bill I owe Dr. Zhou..."

The more I think about it, the less money I have.

"Xiao Yan, are you ready? If you are, come out and help us." The store manager's urging voice came from outside the changing room. Lin Jue hurriedly agreed and rushed out to start work.

His job involved wiping tables and cleaning. Since it was his first part-time job and it was related to his living expenses and tuition fees, he worked very hard and volunteered to do many of the tasks.

It wasn't until 7 p.m., when it got dark, that the number of customers in the store decreased a bit, and some of the full-time employees also went off duty. Only one person was left to take orders, one chef in the kitchen, and Lin Jue, who was cleaning.

Just then, a middle-aged man with a pale face walked into the store. He staggered and plopped down on a chair by the entrance. He said weakly to Lin Jue, who was cleaning up at the next table, "Young man, could you please get me a hamburger and a Coke? I have low blood sugar and can't walk right now. I'll pay later."

Hearing the sound, Lin Jue looked up and paused in his work of tidying up the trash when he saw the middle-aged man's face.

The middle-aged man had an ordinary appearance, the kind of face that you wouldn't notice in a crowd. He had a very honest and simple personality, but this kind of face that you would forget at first glance gave him a very familiar feeling, just like Zhou Yue and Li Ge before.

There might be a way to explain why Zhou Yue and Li Ge are familiar to him. The former is very handsome and stands out from the crowd, while the latter has a positive and sunny personality. Both of them have impressive qualities, and he may have caught a glimpse of them on the street before, which is why he has some impression of them.

But this middle-aged man has nothing particularly memorable about him, so why does he feel so familiar?
"Brother, this..." Lin Jue suppressed the strange feeling in his heart. The middle-aged man's words made him feel awkward. He was also a part-time worker and didn't know if he had this right.

"Young man, please help me, please help me. I really can't walk anymore, I can barely breathe..." The middle-aged man looked like he was about to faint, and struggled to pull out a fifty-yuan note from his pocket: "Here's what we'll do, you take the money and count it for me, the rest is your thank-you fee."

Seeing that the middle-aged man's hypoglycemia symptoms seemed to be really serious, Lin Jue put down his work and went to the front desk to help take orders. While waiting for the hamburger, he first took a cup of cola.

After taking a big gulp of cola, the middle-aged man's expression softened a bit: "Thanks, young man. I usually keep some food or candy in my car, but I left in a hurry today and spent the whole afternoon picking up passengers, so I suddenly fell ill."

Lin Jue returned the remaining money to the middle-aged man: "Brother, are you a taxi driver?"

"Yeah, I've been doing this for two years now." The man refused to accept the money, saying it was for Lin Jue's hard work, but in the end, he couldn't persuade Lin Jue and had to put away the remaining change. Lin Jue was about to ask something when he heard the sound of a hamburger being prepared at the counter. He went to help bring the hamburger back and saw the middle-aged man wolfing it down, clearly starving. So he didn't bother him and went back to his work.

As darkness fell, looking out through the glass door, the streets were practically deserted. With ten minutes left until eight o'clock, the counter staff and chefs who took orders had already left work early.

"Xiao Yan, remember to lock the door when you leave work later." The young lady at the counter who was in charge of taking orders reminded her before leaving, and pointed to the entrance of the store: "Remember to wake up that customer and clean up the trash."

Lin Jue looked over and saw that the middle-aged man had fallen asleep on the table, with a half-eaten hamburger next to him.

He had been busy cleaning the kitchen and counter, and hadn't noticed that the man was still there.

"Okay." Lin Jue nodded, watching the counter lady link arms with the chef as the two left with happy expressions.

For some reason, his throat felt tight and his tongue tasted very bitter; even this most basic happiness seemed far away from him.

After he finished cleaning up the other areas, he went to the middle-aged man and gently tapped the table: "Brother, we're closing up shop."

The middle-aged man jolted, nearly knocking over the can of cola on the table. When he finally saw his surroundings, his still-drowsy eyes gradually came back to their senses, and he said apologetically, "I'm sorry, I was too tired from driving, and I don't know how I fell asleep."

Lin Jue shook his head: "It's okay, big brother. We're closing up now. You should go home and rest early."

“Going home…” The middle-aged man smiled bitterly: “What home do I have left? I’m all gone.”

"Young man, do you think people always experience setbacks when they reach middle age? Whether it's in love or in their career?"

"This..." Lin Jue was not old enough to answer.

The man didn't actually want Lin Jue to answer; he just wanted someone to complain to: "That's just how I am."

"Ten years ago, I was an employee of a large company, but then the fog rolled in, the economy declined, and the company began to lay off a large number of employees. I was on the layoff list."

"Back then, I had a blind date I was interested in, but as soon as he heard I lost my job, the relationship ended. To this day, I haven't even touched a woman's hand!"

The man picked up the Coke and downed it in one gulp, as if it were a drink: "After losing my job, I borrowed money to start a business, but I lost everything. The company failed, and I ended up with a mountain of debt. As I got older, no company wanted to hire me, so I had to drive a taxi, but all my income went to paying off my debts."

"This wretched life is utterly hopeless. I'm 35 years old and still living in a tiny rented room of ten square meters. I'm tightening my belt every day. If I hadn't happened to be passing by here today and had a hypoglycemic attack, I probably would never have been so extravagant as to eat something that costs 20 yuan." (End of Chapter)