Chapter 349

Today it was Su Qu's turn on duty in the lab, the lab's trash can was full, so he dragged it out, and unexpectedly, as soon as he stepped out the back door he saw the boss's cat.

The master's and doctoral students under Professor Jiao all know that the boss's cat has a high status; don't look down on it, don't slight it, or you'll regret it. And Su Qu, who had already received favors before even entering the lab, had truly been grateful to that cat back then, and over these years he's become quite familiar with it.

But the kid standing beside the cat, Su Qu, whom he had never seen before and who didn't seem to be a relative of the boss, that snakeskin bag… Su Qu was tall; after taking a few steps he could see the empty bottles inside the bag, and instantly understood what this kid was up to.

Seeing the kid about to leave, Su Qu hurriedly said, "Hey, don't go, I still have lots of bottles over there, want some?"

Wang Xing had just taken a step when he stopped again there, but he felt embarrassed to speak.

But Su Qu didn't wait for him to speak, put the trash can down, said "Wait a moment," and ran back into the building.

Wang Xing stood there, watched the people running into the building, then glanced at the black cat beside him and whispered, "Hey, black cat, is that an acquaintance of yours?"

Zheng Tan waited off to the side; he had once glanced from the window at a certain study room where many students would pile their drink bottles and mineral water bottles in a corner, not necessarily because they wanted to sell them for money—those who often drank them weren't necessarily short on that bit of cash, they were just lazy, letting them accumulate before tossing them all out together.

Su Qu soon came out, followed by a man and a woman who weren't wearing white lab coats; they must have heard Su Qu and come out from other study rooms, the three of them either carrying or clutching a pile of bottles—some plastic, some aluminum cans. Some students aren't used to the water boiled here, dislike the taste, and often drink purified water or vitamin drinks, so there are many of these bottles.

The three put their bottles into the snakeskin bag without letting Wang Xing do it himself; Wang Xing stood awkwardly to the side, not knowing what to say, only blushing and managing a few thanks.

A student Zheng Tan didn't know helped Wang Xing sort things while giving him advice: "Hey kid, let me tell you, over at the Chemistry Institute you probably won't find these aluminum cans—they have people working on precious metal recycling projects there. Basically you won't find any electronic waste aluminum or tin cans over there. So you don't need to go there. There are a few places that might have a lot. But don't go to the upperclassmen dorm area—the territory's already been completely divided up by the dormitory managers, old men and women, and a kid like you would likely get taken advantage of… Also, our school has several scrap‑collection spots, though one of them has a nicer boss who pays better… You can go to the small hardware store at the school gate and buy a pair of those ordinary labor‑protection cotton‑yarn gloves for one yuan each; that would be safer…"

Upon hearing "let me tell you," Zheng Tan knew there would be a long spiel; the guy was quite long‑winded, but he spoke in detail, and Wang Xing listened attentively—learning more could save a lot of time and boost efficiency.

This person said he'd also done this sort of thing in his undergrad years; although the phrase "picking up trash" sounds embarrassing when spoken, you can actually make decent money in a day. Before, out of curiosity he'd gone with classmates to pick up stuff, and the dorm folks added a week's worth of meals from it, but later his studies stopped him. "Like their environmental protection association, some people ride around on tricycles under the banner of environmentalism, openly scavenging all day on campus; recently I heard someone used the money from selling scrap to buy a little electric vehicle, showing off…"

Besides giving Wang Xing tips, they also told him that some places' trash cans must not be rummaged through randomly, like in their department—there could be harmful substances inside; although highly toxic dangerous waste isn't dumped here, even an ordinary‑looking empty bottle might have held something unknown, could have been illegally tossed, might retain drug residues, or cause other harm.

Usually the trash cans here aren't left long; someone soon comes to haul them all away—just now the cleaning auntie dragged one off, and she's back again, putting down an empty can and hauling away a full one.

"Thanks, big brother and big sister." Wang Xing said, looking at the sack full of bottles.

"What's there to thank for, little brother? Come by anytime and we'll set some aside for you. Hey, if you come in summer there'll be even more—we don't have summer break here, so if you need stuff during the vacation you can drop by." The girl said. On campus not a few kids just call them uncle and aunt; it's rare to hear them called big brother and big sister, so their mood instantly improved a bit.

After Su Qu and the others went into the building, Wang Xing dragged his full sack off to the other scrap‑buying place that person had told him about, picking up more along the way. The place he and his classmates had gone to before not only low‑balled the price, but was exact down to the fen, so Wang Xing decided to try somewhere else.

Just as that graduate student had said, that scrap‑buying spot was a little farther away, but only a little bit; this time Wang Xing sold more, the price was a bit higher, he got more money, and the person rounded it up for him—originally 5.6 yuan, he handed over 6 yuan straight away.

Wang Xing carefully put the money in his inner pocket, thinking maybe tomorrow he should swap for a bigger sack? They're just empty bottles, not heavy, and he has the strength to drag it.

With experience it gets easier—first time awkward, second time familiar—and with someone giving him tips, his efficiency went up. Wang Xing made three trips that afternoon, plus his morning sales, for a total of twenty‑three kuai.

To Wang Xing, twenty yuan was a lot—he had saved two months just to get thirty, and today in one day he made over twenty, enough to pay off his debts; he'll continue tomorrow, Sunday, and if he can come every weekend his living expenses wouldn't need to come from home, and he could even buy something for his family. All he has to do is set aside his pride.

Seeing that the time was about right, Wang Xing went to the internet cafe at the agreed time to meet his classmates, then they headed back together.

After that, as long as there's no heavy rain, basically every weekend Zheng Tan could see Wang Xing's figure around campus.

Zheng Tan had also visited Wang Xing's neighborhood several times; each time he went, that old cat would be perched on the second‑floor windowsill of that building, whether or not it could catch the sun, it always stayed there. A red cord was looped around its neck, its eyes half‑closed.

When Zheng Tan appeared, the cat merely opened its narrowed eyes a slit, looking down from above at him standing downstairs.

Cats always like to perch high and look down, whether they're kittens or elderly cats.

According to Wang Xing, that old cat was also a local big shot when it was young, though Wang Xing's memories from then are scarce—some he heard from his parents, some he himself remembers. When Wang Xing was little he got into a fight with a neighborhood kid a year older than him; his family's cat even went to help him out. The result was that the cat scratched that kid, Wang Xing's parents brought apology gifts to the door, and they also paid for the injection. Because of this, Wang Xing's parents almost gave the cat away, saying it scratched people. If Wang Xing hadn't cried and rolled on the ground refusing to let them take it, perhaps we wouldn't see this old cat today.

For many kids, going home after school is a happy thing. Besides not having to sit properly in class under restraint, they also look forward to cartoons and TV dramas, and Wang Xing's greatest joy when he returns home each day is to pull out a weed, then squat at his own doorstep to play with the cat on the other side of the door. In summer he'll also catch some grasshoppers or similar little bugs to give his cat to play with.

People who haven't kept a cat can't understand the feelings of someone who's lived with a cat for years, even ten or twenty, just as Wang Xing would rather spend what to him counts as a huge sum of money to buy a cat a hope whose reality is uncertain.

He glanced at the old cat on the windowsill, Zheng Tan turned and left.

The old cat on the windowsill opened its eyes a slit; the sunlight was too strong, it could barely keep its eyes open, squinting, watching the black cat walk farther away, it yawned, lifted its paw and licked it, regardless of whether these paws were still sharp, whether they could still fight, it licked them earnestly, stemming from its own habit, nature, and perhaps other emotions, then calmly watched this community it knew all too well.

Azaleas bloomed, the sunshine remained.

After hesitating for a while, Zheng Tan found some time, wearing a vest and bringing money, went to find that old lady. He didn't buy a bracelet; the old lady introduced him to a waist chain adorned with some small stones, he didn't know what material they were, he wasn't familiar with it, hadn't studied it, but it looked pretty nice. But the old lady quoted a price of one thousand, and Zheng Tan couldn't help shaking his beard hard twice.

Zheng Tan's savings in his drawer amounted to exactly one thousand at this moment; that old lady really knows how to pinch!

In the end Zheng Tan still gritted his teeth and bought it, his private savings basically emptied. If it were the former Zheng Tan who spent money lavishly, the money for a day of picking up girls would be far more than this, but now Zheng Tan's situation is different; the money in his card is not easy to withdraw, he can only earn overtime pay.

He hoped to work more overtime next month, Zheng Tan thought.

The waist chain was made on the spot by the old lady; Zheng Tan crouched beside her, watching closely how she used her shaking hands to quickly tie one knot after another that looked very complex.

These knots were not all the same; Zheng Tan also didn't know what pattern they followed. In any case, after watching for a while without seeing the point, the chain had already been one-third done; after watching some more, it was then finished.

The old lady took the money out of Zheng Tan's vest without counting it, put it into the money box, then placed the waist chain in a small cloth bag and slipped it into Zheng Tan's vest pocket; her old face broke into a smile full of wrinkles.

Upon seeing Xiao Youzi happily putting on the waist chain, Zheng Tan no longer felt so reluctant about the money. He hoped Xiao Youzi wouldn't be as unlucky as Cai Lao Ban.

Speaking of Cai Lao Ban, who could get "hit by a bullet" even while lying down, lately his mood has improved considerably; he launched two new dishes, the shop's popularity remains booming, and he also found time to bring his wife and kids who came from Nan Cheng to travel around.

Zheng Tan had not seen Cai Lao Ban for several days at Shi Wei, but although Cai Lao Ban was absent, he had also instructed the manager that as long as Zheng Tan waited in Cai Lao Ban's lounge when he came, he would soon be able to eat.

Zheng Tan suddenly felt a bit of guilt at being waited on hand and foot, but it was only a fleeting feeling; what should be enjoyed should still be enjoyed—having been miserably turned into a cat, shouldn't he enjoy some special treatment?

That day, when Zheng Tan went to Shi Wei, he ran into an acquaintance again.

Liuba and the golden turtle.

Upon seeing Liuba, Zheng Tan finally realized he hadn't turned on his phone in a long time; the phone was still in the old tile-roofed area, he had only gone there once when returning the diamond, and it's been a long time since then. (To be continued...)