Rebirth 1983: Building My Business Empire-Chapter 35 - 34 Trap

Chapter 35: Chapter 34 Trap

From Radiance Road to the cemetery, it was necessary to change buses twice. While waiting for the second bus, Lu Jiaxin smelled an overpowering fragrance. Following the scent, she discovered an old man selling roast chicken.

Already hungry, the aroma made her stomach grumble even louder. Lu Jiaxin asked, “Old man, how much for one roast chicken?”

This roast chicken smelled much more delicious than the one Lu Hongjun had bought last time.

“Eight yuan.”

Lu Jiajie almost jumped up upon hearing this, “A fat hen from the market costs only about three or four yuan, and this chicken looks to weigh at most two jin, yet you dare to ask for eight yuan?”

The old man wasn’t annoyed and, with a palm fan in hand, fanned the stove as he spoke, “The method for this roast chicken has been passed down in my family for generations, with no fewer than eight separate steps, plus the need to manage the fire meticulously. Young man, eight yuan for one is really not expensive.”

...

What he didn’t mention was that, in the past, their family’s roast chicken had sold for up to five foreign dollars each, but later on, they were no longer allowed to do business and had to close shop. Now that he saw many people starting businesses again, his family could hardly make ends meet, so he picked up the craft again.

Lu Jiaxin then asked, “Old man, may I try a piece? If it tastes good, I will buy one.”

The old man indicated that tasting wasn’t possible and said with a smile, “Young miss, after you buy it and take a bite, if you find it unpalatable, you don’t have to pay.”

When the roast chicken was taken out of the iron pot and brought before her, the fragrance became even richer. Lu Jiaxin didn’t taste it; she was a bit of a clean freak and didn’t touch food without washing her hands first.

After counting out eight yuan for the old man, Lu Jiaxin said, “Just for this fragrance alone, it must be delicious. Old man, are you here every day? I’ll come here when I want to eat it in the future.”

The old man chuckled and said, “My house is nearby. If you want to buy in the future, just ask anyone for Zhang’s roast chicken; everyone knows it.”

Carrying the roast chicken onto the bus, even though it was wrapped in oil paper and rolled in thick newspaper, the aroma could not be contained.

The other passengers on the bus salivated at the scent, including Lu Jiajie and Xue Mao. As soon as the two reached home, they rushed into the kitchen to start their tasks, one lighting the stove to boil water, and the other washing the greens. With their joint efforts, a bowl of green vegetables and noodles was ready in no time.

Looking at the roast chicken torn into pieces on the table, Lu Jiajie said, “Jiaxin, divide it into three portions, one for each of us.”

Lu Jiaxin smiled and agreed. She kept two chicken wings and the neck in her bowl and let the other two share the rest.

Lu Jiajie, unable to wait, tore off a chicken leg and bit into it, mumbling with appreciation, “Delicious, so delicious. Jiaxin, these eight yuan were well spent.”

Lu Jiaxin also picked up a chicken wing and took a bite, with the flavor instantly spreading through her entire mouth. The chicken was indeed tasty; the meat was succulent and chewy, and the more she chewed, the better it tasted.

A roast chicken and a bowl of green vegetable noodles were devoured completely by the three of them. Touching his belly, Lu Jiajie said, “I was originally going to stop you from buying it; luckily, I didn’t, or else we would have missed out on this delicious roast chicken.”

His monthly salary was just over eighty yuan, and one roast chicken had taken up a tenth of that. However, thinking of the three hundred yuan Lu Jiaxin had refused to take yesterday, he again urged her to accept the money.

Lu Jiaxin disliked rehashing an issue and shooed him away, “Brother Jie, it’s already half past one, you’d better hurry to work so you won’t be late.”

After glancing at his watch, Lu Jiajie hurried off to the shoe factory. During his break, he boasted to his colleagues about the roast chicken he had eaten that day.

After he left, Xue Mao locked the door before saying, “Sister, Brother Jie is coming over to sleep here tonight; it’s not good for him to never go home, right?”

Lu Jiaxin did not want to discuss the Ma family’s affairs and made up an excuse, “It’s too crowded at home. It’s better for Brother Jie to come here, so Sister-in-law and the two kids can have more space to sleep.”

The Ma family originally had three separate rooms: one for the two elders, one for Lu Jiajie and Ma Lili to sleep in, and one for the two children. Since Yan Jixiang moved in, the children had started to sleep with their parents.

The room was small with only a one-and-a-half-meter-wide bed. It was tolerable in winter when they could squeeze together, but in summer, it was too uncomfortable for four people to sleep together, so Lu Jiajie had no choice but to sleep on the floor.

They could bear the harsh conditions, but now that Father Ma and Mother Ma had changed their attitude and Big Sister Ma always spoke in a sarcastic tone during her visits, no one would be happy to go back. Fortunately, Fifth Sister-in-law had agreed to buy a house, so they just needed to endure a little longer until things got better.

After taking a break, Lu Jiaxin was ready to go back to her room when someone knocked on the door at that moment, “Sister Jiaxin, it’s me, Su Heming!”

Xue Mao immediately went to open the door.

This chapt𝙚r is updated by freeωebnovēl.c૦m.

As he stepped into the courtyard, Lu Jiaxin noticed the gold watch on his hand. With just one glance, she knew it wasn’t the same one as last time.

Full of gratitude, Su Heming said, “Sister Jiaxin, thank you, you really saved my life. I had the watch appraised, and it’s indeed genuine.”

Xue Mao was full of questions: “Someone gives you a real watch, and it turns into a matter of life and death for you?”

Seeing his confusion, Su Heming explained, “That gold watch could sell for 150,000 on the black market. Wearing something so valuable around could end up getting you killed over money any day.”

Xue Mao’s eyes glazed over, his mind overwhelmed with the thought of 150,000. One hundred and fifty thousand, one hundred and fifty thousand—how much money was that? Could a room even hold it all?

A trace of gloom flickered in Lu Jiaxin’s eyes—there was certainly something off about the watch. And if she wasn’t mistaken, it was probably targeted at Su Ya. Su Heming himself wasn’t worth such a grand gesture.

“So someone gives you a gold watch worth one hundred and fifty thousand just so thieves would target you and kill you? There must be more to it than that, right?”

Su Heming said, “I’m not sure about the details, but there’s definitely something wrong with this watch. My aunt advised me to swap the real watch for a fake one and halt all my business for now until my dad and big brother come back from Hong Kong.”

Lu Jiaxin had asked Lu Jiajie, but unfortunately, he didn’t know much about the Xie Family or the Su family.

Xue Mao was incredulously surprised, “Your family can even go to Hong Kong?”

Su Heming said his dad went for a family visit, “My grandfather and elder uncle moved to Hong Kong many years ago to do business, We lost contact for some reasons, but reconnected recently. My dad missed my grandfather, so he took my elder brother to visit him.”

Lu Jiaxin understood at once—the Su family must have been very wealthy before, possibly even big capitalists.

“Why didn’t you go?”

Hong Kong, huh? Everything from there is so sought-after these days; people would be envious of the chance to go there.

The smile disappeared from Su Heming’s face, “I don’t want to go. Back then, my grandfather left my grandmother, my dad, and his two younger sisters behind to go to Hong Kong with my elder uncle’s family. My grandmother passed away before forty because she worked too hard, and my eldest aunt was bullied to death. Since they didn’t need us initially, why bother acknowledging us now!”

“What about your aunt’s opinion?” asked Lu Jiaxin. Madam Xie’s attitude was the key since the Xie family was on the rise now, and if the main branch of the Su family wanted to come back to the Mainland to do business, they would need her support.

Su Heming hesitated before saying, “My aunt said she respects my dad’s decision. As for herself, she didn’t say much.”

Not taking a stance was effectively the same as not wanting to acknowledge them. It was just that China has valued filial piety for thousands of years, and some things are inconvenient to say outright, so they had to convey it in this manner.