Spring Breeze Twenty Years

Chapter 762 Are you my father?

Upon arriving at the bank, he stood at the entrance and glanced inside. There weren't many people. He looked behind him, then quickly went inside and found an empty window, leaning over to ask, "Comrade, can I exchange foreign currency here?"

The sales clerk glanced at him: "What's the price?"

The old man lowered his voice: "It's a pound, the red one, they say one pound is worth ten."

The clerk said, "Pounds can be exchanged for fourteen, but you'll have to go to the Bank of China to exchange them; we don't handle foreign exchange here."

The old man was stunned for a moment: "Fourteen? You'll exchange one dollar for fourteen dollars?" His eyes lit up with excitement.

The clerk said, "Yes, the exchange rate today is 1 pound to 14 pounds, and 1 dollar to 6.1 dollars. If you want to exchange, go to the Bank of China."

The old man exclaimed, "Oh dear! Such a difference? Didn't you say they were the same? How come there's such a difference? Girl, can you help me check what kind of currency this is? It can't be US dollars." He handed over the money he was holding.

The sales clerk took the money, opened it, and paused, then asked, "Sir, where did you get this money from?"

The old man tensed up slightly: "Why do you care where it came from? You just traded it with someone else, is that alright?"

The sales clerk examined the money from all angles and said, "It's alright, it doesn't matter where you got it from. You've been fooled. This isn't pounds or dollars, it's worthless."

The old man was dumbfounded: "It's fake? This, it has all the anti-counterfeiting marks and stuff, take a look, shine a UV light on it."

The sales clerk was patient. Since she had nothing else to do, she said, "It's not that the money is fake, it's real. But it's neither pounds nor dollars, understand? This money isn't worth much, and there's nowhere to exchange it in China. We don't exchange it with this country."

The old man blinked. "Girl, don't try to fool me. They clearly said it's pounds. You're not going to confiscate it, are you?"

The sales clerk glanced at him, threw the money out, and said, "Why would I refuse this? Take it now."

The old man grabbed the money and asked, "How much is this money worth?"

The sales clerk glanced at the bill: "I estimate it's a little over ten cents? A few cents? Anyway, it's worthless, not even enough to buy an ice pop."

The old man stared, mouth agape, a sense of panic creeping in. After a long pause, he asked again, "Girl, you're just kidding me, aren't you? Aren't you?"

The teller said, "Oh dear, you old man, you don't believe me even when I tell you the truth. Go ask someone else, go to the Bank of China, don't bother me here." She waved her hand.

The old man slowly straightened up, wanting to spit, but then remembered the two yuan he had just been fined. He thought for a moment and held back, clutching the money as he walked out. He was going to the Bank of China to ask around. These people were dishonest; they must have seen that he was dressed like a countryman and wanted to cheat him.

After walking around for about ten minutes with no corners, I finally found the Bank of China.

At that moment, the Bank of China was not offering savings services, only foreign exchange management. The security guard stopped the old man: "Sir, is there something you need?"

The old man stepped back slightly, glanced at the security guard, and said, "I need to exchange money. Isn't this a bank?"

The gatekeeper said, "Sir, who let you in? We don't work for individuals; we handle foreign exchange, specifically foreign money."

The old man waved his hand: "I'll exchange for pounds."

The gatekeeper laughed and said, "Oh, sir, you still have pounds? That money is worth a lot. How much do you want to exchange?"

The old man said, "Five hundred, but they said they'd give fourteen, right?"

The doorman glanced into the room and said, "Today seems to be the fourteenth, this thing changes every day. Let me see your pounds, I haven't received any yet."

The old man carefully opened the money in his hand to show the doorman, whose expression was quite interesting: "Sir, who told you this is pounds? You've been fooled. Go back and find it."

The old man was stunned: "You also say it's not? Really not? This, it even has anti-counterfeiting seals. Hold a light on it, look, it's stamped with the Emperor's name."

The gatekeeper said, "Sir, in England, the Queen is the Queen and the Emperor is a woman. Is it possible that the person above you is a man? Who's kidding you? That's outrageous! Go back and find that person right now."

The old man asked, "Then, what kind of money is this? What country is it from? How much is it worth?"

The gatekeeper shook his head: "Never seen it before. Probably from some small country. It's definitely worthless."

The old man grabbed the gatekeeper's hand and said, "Young man, I don't know either. How about I exchange this money with you? Just give me the banknotes, eight hundred. I won't make a penny off you, okay? You can exchange it again, I won't be jealous no matter how much you exchange."

The gatekeeper was stunned for a moment and said, "Grandpa, are you out of your mind? Eight hundred? I don't want it for eight yuan. Hurry up, go find whoever gave it to you." He shook off the old man's hand.

The old man held up the money and said, "I'm really not lying. You didn't add a single penny. Please be kind and I'll give it back to you. I'll even cover the cost of your bus fare."

The security guard said, "You admit it? What's the use of admitting it? I don't admit it, you'd better leave now."

The old man said, "Please, exchange it for me, have pity on me, okay? I really exchanged it for 800."

The security guard grew impatient and said, "Are you my father? You think you can just tell me to change it and I have to? You want me to pay eight hundred yuan for a piece of paper? Get out of here now, or I'll call the police. This guy is so strange."

Someone walked over and asked, "What's wrong?"

The gatekeeper said, "This old man, I don't know who's got him into this mess, he insists I give him eight hundred yuan, acting like he's my father. He's asking for two months' salary, he's gone mad."

The old man said, "I'm not kidding you. I really did get it for eight hundred, I didn't add a single penny."

The security guard picked up a broom from the side: "Here, take this five hundred, I'll give it to you. Here, take the money, okay?"

The old man said, "This thing costs three yuan, why are you asking for five hundred?"

The security guard said, "Why are you charging me eight hundred for that thing that only costs a few dollars?"

The man next to him looked at the money in the old man's hand and said, "It's not worth it. This looks like the currency of some small country. Five hundred is only a few cents."

The old man was stunned for a moment, then suddenly became agitated and said, "You all conspired to cheat me, cheated a farmer, an old man like me! Have you no conscience? Eight hundred! Eight hundred yuan and you still won't take it? Is this how you bully honest people? Huh? Is that so?"

The man next to him said to the gatekeeper, "Let's call the police. This noisy scene is not a good sight."

The security guard said to the old man, "Sir, if you don't leave, I'll call the police. Hurry up and take your money home. Go find whoever gave it to you, okay?"

The old man stood there in a daze for a while, then suddenly nodded, turned around, and left. He wanted to go back to the police station to get his money back.

By the time he took the bus back to Waitou Mountain, the sun was almost setting. He rushed to the police station and headed straight for the chief's office. A policeman stopped him: "Hey, what are you doing here?"

The old man stiffened his neck: "I came to exchange money, and they said they'd give me back the eight hundred, but they didn't."

The director had just finished get off work and came out of his office, closing the door behind him. He saw the old man, thought for a moment, and said, "Oh, it's you. You're the one who came this morning. Didn't you say you'd give me the money? Why did you run away?"

The old man said, "In this day and age, country folk have nowhere to reason with each other. Fine, I'll accept it. Give me back my eight hundred, and you can keep the pounds."

The director said, "I told you I'd give it to you this morning, but you ran away. What am I supposed to give you now? Just wait. Leave your phone number, and I'll let you know when the case is closed and the money comes back. You don't need to give me this; keep it with you for now. Besides, who told you this was pounds? Why don't you believe the truth? This piece is only worth a few cents, not pounds. You're dreaming."

The old man said, "Alright, I admit it. Just give me my money."

The station chief said, "Don't you understand? Leave your contact information after the case is closed and wait for further notice."

The old man said, "Why are there so many scoundrels everywhere? The bank won't exchange my money, and you guys won't give it to me either. Are you just taking advantage of an old man like me? Don't you have any conscience at all?"

The director said, "Did I kick you out this morning when I offered to give it to you? You trusted a liar, who bullied you? You think you can just change it whenever you want, or not? You get to take all the benefits? Are you my father?"

(End of this chapter)