Black Gold 1983

"Mr. Ren, you're so successful now, is there anything you regret in your life?"

Renye, a cigarette dangling from his lips, leaned back on the leather sofa in the private club room, swirling a bottle of Hennessy in his hand, his arm around a currently popular female celebrity, and said dismissively, "Regret?"

"I was mining coal in southeastern Shanxi in the late 1990s, just in time for China's entry into the WTO. I made more money in one night than you've ever seen in your entire life. Tell me, what do I have to regret?"

The female celebrity was a little embarrassed by his retort, but she still smiled and coaxed him, "I was just curious. Someone as amazing as you, don't you ever want to do it all over again?"

"Start over?" Renye scoffed, flipping over and straddling the female celebrity. "Only those who can't do it think about starting over. Do I look like I can't?"

"Ugh~"

No sooner had the words left his mouth than a crisp "crack" was heard, as if someone's bones had fallen apart.

The female celebrity froze for three seconds, looked down at the old man on top of her who had suddenly turned into a lump of dead flesh, and finally let out a piercing scream—

"Ah!! Help!!! He, he... he ended it before he even started!"

[Morning Briefing]

Jincheng Tianye Mining issued an obituary: Mr. Ren Ye, the group's founder and chairman of the board of directors, passed away unexpectedly yesterday at Buckingham. Despite all efforts to save him, he passed away that evening at the age of 63. He never married, and his assets worth billions of yuan have no heir.

-

The greatest regret in life is that one cannot simultaneously possess youth and experience the feeling of youth.

In his dying moments, Renye recalled the words of that female celebrity. In fact, if he could do it all over again, he would have many regrets to make up for.

His consciousness drifted back to the winter of 1983. He smelled the carbon monoxide from burning honeycomb briquettes when his family used to get through the winter. He even heard a commotion, one wave after another.

"That little rascal! How did he end up sleeping in your bed?!"

"Sui'er, you too! You don't even know how to close the door properly!"

"Today is your engagement day! Look at what you're doing!"

"You wretched girl! How do you expect me to save face?!"

"What are you still lying there for! Get up right now!"

"How incredibly embarrassing!"

Renye mumbled a "hmm" in his sleep, then suddenly opened his eyes!

The ceiling was covered with old newspapers, and the yellowed pages still bore the headline "Strive to achieve the Four Modernizations".

The room wasn't big; a metal-framed bed took up most of it. A three-drawer table with peeling paint sat by the window, and an enamel mug on the table was printed with the words "Advanced Production Brigade of Hongxing Mine in 1980." Several large red "囍" characters were pasted on the window.

This is the style of his room in the Red Star Family Compound when he was a child.

The room was now packed with people, and a girl wearing a red acrylic shirt was sitting on the edge of the bed, sobbing.

"You little brat! What kind of upbringing did your parents give you?!"

"What day is it today? Today is Sui'er and Dongsheng's wedding day! How dare you sleep in my daughter's bed? Are you even human?!"

A joyous occasion? Sui'er?

Renye's mind was still hazy; the effects of the alcohol hadn't worn off, and he was completely dazed.

The next second, a large hand grabbed him by the back of his neck, forcibly pulled him off the bed, and slammed him against the wall.

He felt a sharp pain in his chest and was forced to look up, his gaze meeting that of an old-fashioned wall calendar.

March 12, 1983, the 3th day of the first lunar month.

83 years?

He subconsciously turned his head to look at the girl sobbing on the bed, and all those long-forgotten memories suddenly flooded back.

It's her—Tian Sui'er!

I've actually traveled back forty years!

"Snapped!"

Tian Sui'er's father, Tian Mancang, slapped Ren Ye across the face: "You little brat! How dare you come to my bed and bully my daughter! I... I'll beat you to death!"

Renye was slapped so hard he staggered half a step to the side, fully waking up.

Judging from the current situation, I must have returned to the day when Tian Suier and Xu Dongsheng got engaged!

Tian Sui'er was his childhood sweetheart. The two were genuine children of miners, both of whom were employees of the Hongxing Mine, holding secure jobs in state-owned enterprises and receiving government-subsidized grain rations.

Xu Dongsheng is the son of the head of the Labor and Wages Department of Hongxing Mine. He works in the mine's transportation team and is quite handsome. With his status as the son of the department head, he is indeed a prominent figure in the mine.

The reason why Tian Suier got engaged to Xu Dongsheng was not some ridiculous youthful love story at all, but because of Tian Suier's father, Tian Mancang.

Tian Mancang was the captain of the third coal mining team. He had worked in the mine for more than 20 years, and his chronic herniated disc was getting worse every day. At that time, there were regulations in the mine that required front-line cadres to meet physical standards, be able to go down the mine to lead shifts, and be able to carry heavy work. Therefore, the captain of the coal mining team had to undergo a physical examination every year. If he failed the examination, he would be demoted to an ordinary worker.

At that time, the mine was also downsizing and increasing efficiency, and those with poor health were given priority for early retirement. Tian Mancang was fifty-one years old this year, and if he worked for another three years, he could get the treatment of a senior worker, but given his current health condition, he might not even be able to keep his position as team leader.

As a result, Xu Dongsheng's father took advantage of his position to privately approach Tian Mancang, saying that as long as Sui'er and Xu Dongsheng started dating, he could help Tian Mancang get a fake exemption from the work injury exam and keep his position as team leader.

The Tian couple were truly at their wits' end. Back then, the position of team leader in a state-owned mine was incredibly prestigious. It took years of hard work to climb up to that level, and so many people would fight tooth and nail for it. If they were to lose their job because of their back problems, they would lose tens of yuan a month. With their wages reduced, and with elderly parents to support, the financial burden would become immense.

Only then did the Tian family couple wholeheartedly try to persuade Tian Sui'er to accept the marriage proposal.

Tian Sui'er was unwilling from the bottom of her heart, but as a young woman in a mining compound in the 1980s, she had no choice at all.

Back then, every household relied on factories and mines for their livelihood. People were tightly bound by personal relationships, and face was of paramount importance.

Xu Dongsheng's family are cadres in the mine, they have power and influence. If you really offend them, they will be constantly bullied and harassed in the mine.

She was young and incapable of being independent, and she couldn't escape this circle. Even though she was extremely unwilling, she could only endure it.

-

Today, Tian Suier and Xu Dongsheng's engagement banquet is being held in the mine's canteen.

Renye didn't want to go at first because he liked Tian Suier. He had liked her since he was a child and liked her from the bottom of his heart.

Sui'er is not only good-looking, but also efficient and meticulous in her work. She is currently an officer in the publicity department. Whether it is household chores or work assigned by the mine, she has never made a mistake when it is handed over to her.

But what about myself?

It's notorious in the family compound!

He was a notorious unemployed bum, a social outcast, and someone that everyone disliked and even dogs avoided—the only negative example parents could use to educate their children.

"If you don't behave, you'll end up just like that good-for-nothing brat from the Lao Ren family!"

This is a golden rule used by the old women in the Hongxing Family Compound to educate their children.

If the child doesn't eat properly, move him out of the room. If the child doesn't do his homework properly, move him out of the room. If the child cries and won't sleep, still move him out of the room.

It's as if any child who gets even the slightest connection with him is doomed for life.

He knew better than anyone else that Xu Dongsheng's father was the head of the labor and wages department and his mother was a teacher at the mine's affiliated school. They were well-off and lived a comfortable life.

Look at yourself again.

He was a notorious troublemaker in the family compound.

My father, Ren Shouyi, encountered a roof collapse when he went down into the mine. In order to save people and evacuate his coworkers, he was seriously injured and his leg was crippled, making it impossible for him to go down into the mine again.

My mother, Li Yue'e, helps out at the mine's canteen, earning a meager living through hard work.

Compared to the other two, if Tian Sui'er could marry Xu Dongsheng, she would truly have someone to rely on, a good life, and a peaceful and dignified existence for the rest of her life.

So back then, he didn't even have the courage to challenge Xu Dongsheng to a fight.

They're the children of officials, while I'm just a coal miner. What right do I have to compete with them?

On the day of the engagement, he still forced himself to sit down at the banquet.

Seeing Tian Sui'er dressed in a festive red cotton-padded jacket, with two long braids, sitting there quietly, about to become someone else's fiancée, he felt as if his heart was being torn apart!

He kept drinking one glass after another.

I don't remember much about what happened after that.

He was in a daze, and it seemed like someone was telling him that if he couldn't hold his liquor, he shouldn't pretend to be a big drinker, and it seemed like someone was carrying him away. He only remembered staggering into the family compound, staggering upstairs, pushing open the door, and collapsing onto the bed.

Yes, he treated Tian Sui'er's house as his own.

He grew up playing at Tian Sui'er's house and could find his way in with his eyes closed.

But what day is it today?

Today is the engagement day of Tian Suier and Xu Dongsheng.

Why is Tian Sui'er at home?

He remembered. Halfway through the banquet, Tian Sui'er said she wasn't feeling well, told her mother, and left. Her mother even said in front of the Xu family that her daughter was unlucky, getting sick on such a joyous occasion.

But by sheer coincidence, Renye went into the wrong room and got into the wrong bed, and the two of them were caught red-handed.