Spring Breeze Twenty Years

Chapter 393 Children's Day

June 1st, 1991, Saturday, sunny, southeast wind level 2 to 3.

A crowd gathered in the courtyard. Xia Maosheng's room, which had been empty for a long time, was finally put to use. The windows were decorated with bright red "double happiness" paper-cuts, and the door was adorned with couplets and large "double happiness" characters. The bedding on the bed inside had been changed to bright red, and the chests and cabinets were covered with various red paper-cuts, making it look extremely festive.

Xia Maosheng and his wife Geng Hui arrived in Longcheng last night. Xiao Wei and Chen Hui finally met this shy beauty they had only heard of before. She was 1.63 meters tall, thin and frail. Perhaps because of her pregnancy, her breasts were quite full, definitely large for a woman from Northeast China. She had big eyes, shoulder-length hair, and was wearing a red overcoat. She spoke in a low voice and was very poised and confident in her interactions with others. You would never guess she was such a shy person.

The wedding was scheduled for two days, but in reality, each family held a one-day event. Today was Geng Hui's family's event, and tomorrow, the 2nd, is Lao Xia's family's event.

The bride's family's celebrations were much simpler than the groom's. It consisted of a banquet, writing gifts, the newlyweds toasting and lighting cigarettes, and no other activities. So, there wasn't much to do in the morning, and a bunch of people gathered in the courtyard, making a ruckus inside and outside Xia Maosheng's house.

Xiao Hong and Chen Xiao also came. Xiao Hong was temporarily in charge of Chen Xiao's security. This girl, despite being heavily pregnant, was still very restless. If it weren't for Xiao Hong blocking her way, she would have squeezed into the crowd to grab red envelopes. Geng Hui's family had quite a few relatives, seven or eight younger siblings, and about twenty classmates and colleagues who were close to her. They had all arrived early in the courtyard. Those with less close relationships would go directly to the restaurant to give their gifts.

Xiao Wei transformed into a photographer again, constantly taking pictures of everyone with his camera. Xia Maosheng and Geng Hui were completely reduced to human props, being pulled and tugged around by a group of people, being photographed repeatedly. Xiao Wei's mother and Mu Xiaojuan watched the commotion from the sidelines with their children in their arms. A group of cafeteria ladies prepared a lot of food and left it there for everyone to grab and eat.

Students who had nothing to do were peeking out of their windows from upstairs and downstairs to watch the commotion.

Xia Maosheng's Xiali had already been driven over by Chen Hui. Its bright red body was quite festive for the day, and it cost 53,000 yuan. The Xiali also came in silver, but Chen Hui and Xiao Wei didn't like it; it looked too shabby and just didn't feel right. This was because the Xiali didn't use metallic paint but ordinary industrial nitrocellulose lacquer, the kind you can buy anywhere and apply with a big brush.

This is a car with extremely low cost for paint repair, but the paint is really unappealing and not shiny at all.

Even so, in this day and age, it's still incredibly enviable—a sedan, costing over 50,000!

After taking the photos, everyone strolled around the house and chatted casually. Xiao Hong and Chen Xiao finally had a chance to talk to Geng Hui for a while. The three of them had only met the night before, and because two of the pregnant women had to go to bed early, they hadn't been able to exchange more than a few words. Now they were finally able to get together. The three men were good buddies and business partners, and the three women knew they needed to maintain a good relationship with each other.

"Originally, that 100 was for Lao Xia, but he said it was too expensive and it wouldn't be appropriate to drive it back, since he and his aunt have different statuses. You can make do with this one for now. If we go on a long trip in the future, we'll switch to that one." Chen Xiao explained to Geng Hui why they bought this Xiali.

Geng Hui laughed and said, "I don't know cars and can't tell the difference between good and bad. This car isn't good? It costs over 50,000 yuan. I never dared to dream of this before. Xia told me you gave me a sedan, but I didn't believe it at first. This is too expensive."

She called Xia Maosheng "Xiao Xia," a very strange way of addressing him.

Chen Xiao asked, "Didn't Lao Xia tell you that we were going into business together?"

Geng Hui said, "I already said that, so what?"

Xiao Hong said, "But you didn't ask him how much he earns in a year?"

Geng Hui was a little embarrassed. She glanced at Xia Maosheng standing not far away and said, "I didn't ask. All the money he earns is his. Why would I ask?" Xiao Hong stared at her with wide, gossipy eyes and asked, "So you're not going to manage the money anymore? You'll just put all the money he earns into his hands without asking?"

Geng Hui said, "It doesn't matter who manages it, as long as there are flowers at home, it's fine."

Xiao Hong gave a thumbs up and said, "Magnanimous! He treats money like dirt. A role model for us all."

Chen Xiao interrupted, saying, "Come on, you're talking like you're in charge of the money in your own home. Isn't all your money in Xiao Wei's hands?"

Xiao Hong said, "We're not married yet. Besides, Fengtian has already been handed over to me. Your old man handed it over to me personally."

Chen Xiao said, "I'm not as generous as you guys. If a man has too much money, it'll cause problems sooner or later. Just leave him a few thousand yuan a month, that's fine. You can't let him have it all. Your Xiaowei is fine, though, the two of them have different personalities."

Geng Hui blinked and looked at Chen Xiao with her mouth slightly open: "A few thousand yuan a month? My goodness, how much money do you all have?"

Chen Xiao said, "Among the three families, my family earns the least right now. Xiao Wei's family earns the most, and your family is second. I guess your husband, Lao Xia, must have at least a few hundred thousand by now. You make tens of thousands a month. You're really quite ambitious."

Geng Hui covered her mouth in surprise, glanced at Xia Maosheng, and said, "Really? Tens of thousands a month? I always thought that doing some business would only earn a thousand or eight hundred yuan a month at most. My salary is only a little over three hundred yuan. Some of my relatives are in business too. My second aunt runs a small restaurant, and I think a little over a thousand yuan a month is quite a lot. What kind of business can earn tens of thousands a month?"

Chen Xiao said, "A snack bar is hardly a business. At best, it's a small-scale operation. Look at this yard. There's a training school on one side and a food factory on the other. Your family could easily make tens of thousands a month just from that food factory. There are also restaurants, billiard halls, cake shops, karaoke bars, dance halls, and pig farms over there. My goodness!" She turned to Xiao Hong and said, "Your Xiao Wei must be a reincarnation of a money-spending genius. He's so good at organizing things. Now that you mention it, I realize how amazing he is."

Little Red proudly tilted her head back and said, "Now you know how powerful I am, right? Let me tell you, if you flatter me well, I guarantee you'll have a lot of money to make in the future."

Geng Hui asked, "Is what you two are saying true?"

Chen Xiao said, "You don't believe me? It's true. In Longcheng, Xiao Wei and your Lao Xia are partners, and in Fengtian, my Chen Hui and Xiao Wei are partners. Anyway, with Xiao Wei around, just wait to make a fortune. That kid is too smart; he just tinkers around and comes up with something that makes a lot of money. I'm used to it."

Xiao Hong said, "They started operating later in Fengtian, only opening on May 1st, while they started earlier here, back in November last year. So it feels like we earn more here than in Fengtian. Actually, Fengtian will definitely catch up later. Aren't they going to open a branch in Andong now? I heard from Xiao Wei that they've already bought the house and are getting ready."

Chen Xiao said, "I know we bought it. The other day I was chatting with my in-laws, and Chen Hui said that Xiao Wei is particularly keen on buying houses and land. My father-in-law said that now that welfare housing is going to be abolished, houses will definitely become more and more valuable in the future. He said that Xiao Wei is a lucky person, he can always find the right path without any rumors, and money falls from the sky. My Chen Hui is also preparing to buy houses now, saying that he will buy them all when he has some money."

Chen Xiao turned to Geng Hui and said, "Your family is the same. Don't save your money. Buy a few more houses and put them there. They'll definitely be valuable in the future."

(End of this chapter)