Chapter 13: I'll remember this for you, to use when you go find a wife later

The clams I stir-fried last night were just average, or maybe the restaurant just has better food.

"I'll treat, go call my brother; he's around here anyway."

Xiao Hu still wanted to say he'd treat, but Ye Cheng flicked his forehead, saying, "You've got hardly any money—hurry up and call my brother, or he'll have to go back to work soon."

Ye Guowei works as a laborer at the dock; his hours aren't fixed—when there's cargo he loads and unloads, when there's none he just sits there waiting.

Seeing Ye Cheng approach, Ye Guowei was a bit surprised, hurried over, and asked, "How did you guys come here?"

"Guowei bro, Cheng bro said to call you for a meal."

"Yeah, bro, let's go, let's go to a restaurant." Ye Cheng said happily; having money made him happy.

Ye Guowei furrowed his brows, "What restaurant? Where would we get that much money? Why not just eat a boxed meal here—3 bucks, cheap and tasty, or if not, 5 bucks with a meat and a vegetable dish."

Boxed meal—again, a distant word.

Ye Cheng remembered that boxed meals were quite popular when he was little—construction sites and markets were full of them, ranging from two to six dollars, with options like fried fish, meatballs, stir-fried pork with chili, and the taste was actually pretty good.

But most boxed meals were for laborers like Ye Guowei—heavy on oil and salt, with mediocre fish and meat; fresh fish was out of the question, usually dead fish, and strong seasonings masked the taste.

"Bro, let's go—today I and Xiao Hu made some money gathering at the sea, so occasionally eating out is fine." Ye Cheng grabbed Ye Guowei, opened his pocket, and showed him.

"That much?" Ye Guowei's eyes went green—how could his good-for-nothing younger brother suddenly make money?

"You? Gathering at the sea?" Ye Guowei still couldn't believe it.

"Yeah, this morning we happened to catch a nest of sea squirts and sand worms, so we sold a lot—let's go."

"Fine, my clothes—these are still my work clothes."

"Just getting a meal, and you're being particular." Ye Cheng laughed.

Ye Guowei changed into a clean ordinary short-sleeve shirt.

"Bro, where should we eat?" Xiao Hu asked.

Ye Cheng searched the original host's memory; it seemed they often went to a place called Pangzi Canteen.

The boss surnamed Wu, being chubby, so they named it Pangzi Canteen, located in the town.

Upon entering, Ye Cheng saw a chubby middle-aged man sitting behind the counter, big-headed and large-eared—definitely a sign of wealth in these times.

"Yo, Lao Er's here." Seeing Ye Cheng come in, Wu Pangzi warmly greeted him—it seemed the original host really hadn't missed many visits.

"Yeah, we three, let's order." Ye Cheng casually found a table and sat down.

"Xiao Chen, take the order." Wu Pangzi called out, and a pretty young girl walked out from the back kitchen—this was Wu Pangzi's waitress here.

Xiao Chen saw Ye Cheng, her gaze instantly turned fearful, holding the menu and standing as far from him as possible.

Ye Cheng was just wondering when Wu Pangzi said, "Xiao Chen, it's Cheng bro who's ordering—why are you standing so far away? Last time he was drunk, but it's not like that every time."

Uh... looks like the original host hadn't done anything good before.

Ye Cheng looked her over—Xiao Chen dressed quite plainly in coarse cloth, but she was indeed delicate and lovely, with the beauty typical of a fishing village girl.

He coughed, "Um, standing there is fine; we're all acquainted."

"Give me a braised duck, a kidney, then some stir-fried fat intestines, then a smashed cucumber, and six bottles of beer."

Ye Cheng casually ordered the dishes—no vegetables, all hearty fare, plus a cucumber to go with the drinks.

"Duck 14, kidney 12, fat intestines 12, cucumber 3, beer 18, plus three bowls of rice—total 62 dollars." Xiao Chen reported the price efficiently, then stood there unmoving.

Before Ye Cheng could react, Xiao Hu slapped the table, "What's the meaning of this? Do we have to pay before we eat?"

Xiao Chen startled, quickly stepped back two paces, putting more distance from Xiao Hu.

Ye Cheng looked at Wu Pangzi, who hurriedly explained, "Lao Er, you still have quite a tab unpaid—why not settle it all together?"

"Damn, I've been running up a tab all this time—no wonder they didn't prep the dishes; they were afraid I'd run up another tab."

Ye Guowei's face flushed a little embarrassed, "A Cheng, how about just a bowl of noodles? Tell me how much you owe, I'll pay it for you."

Ye Cheng waved his hand, "Pangzi, how much do I still owe?"

Upon hearing Ye Cheng intended to pay, Pangzi bent over and slipped out from behind the counter, holding several handwritten menus,

"Well, this is what you ate alone last time."

"This is what you and Xiao Hu ate together."

"And also, this is..."

Ye Cheng said impatiently, "Just give me a total; no need to read each sheet."

"Okay, the total is 122 dollars, plus today's 62 makes 184 dollars."

"That much?" Ye Guowei exclaimed—200 dollars, his brother really is generous.

Ye Cheng had been indifferent, but hearing his brother say that made him a bit embarrassed; he quickly pulled out two large bills, "Here, is this enough? Hurry up and serve the food—my brother still has to go back to work soon."

Wu Pangzi took the money, rubbed it in his hands—it was real.

He instantly broke into a smile, "All right, right away."

"Xiao Chen, hurry and stir-fry it in the back kitchen."

Only then did Xiao Chen take the slip and go to the back kitchen.

"A Cheng, you..." Ye Guowei was about to give him a lecture, but Ye Cheng directly pulled out the remaining cash, took a 100-dollar bill for himself, and gave the rest to Ye Guowei.

"Bro, take this to pay off debts."

Looking at the stack of money on the table, Ye Guowei was at a loss—he had only glanced earlier, not expecting so much.

He carefully counted it, delighted, and said, "All together it's 1400—about a month's wages for me. I'll keep this in mind for you, to use when you go find a wife later."

"Guowei bro, be generous—this bit of money we Cheng bro can earn in two days." Xiao Hu said proudly.

Over there, Wu Pangzi watched Ye Cheng's expression shift—how did Ye Cheng suddenly become so rich?

He'd always just gotten a little spending money from his brother.

"Yeah, Xiao Hu's right, bro—this is to repay debts; take it to your sister-in-law so she won't worry."

"Don't worry, I said I'd pay back the money—I'll figure something out."

Ye Guowei looked at Ye Cheng with a kindly fatherly expression, gave a foolish chuckle twice, and said, "Good, good, A Cheng has become promising."

He is eight years older than Ye Cheng; to say the elder brother is like a father presents no problem.

Over the years, for Ye Cheng's sake, Jiang Yunxiang hasn't given him a good face, but he had no choice—this is his younger brother.

I never expected the younger brother to actually amount to something, and even give himself 1400 dollars.

The more Ye Guowei thought about it, the more excited he became, and a few tears actually welled up in his eyes.