Chapter 287: Cheng Shi and Old Jia

Cheng Shi and Old Jia

But reality was far more miserable than imagined. When Cheng Shi returned to the so-called home with Old Jia, he learned that Old Jia didn't have a job at all. He usually picked up trash and did odd jobs when he lacked money.

This outfit of his was all fake.

It really was Old Fake.

This "home" was a bit too dilapidated for Cheng Shi, who grew up in an orphanage, and was even worse than the utility room in the attic where he was often locked up.

There was no warm little bed, no clean desk, no little friends to accompany him. There were only four walls, a bed, a table, and a missing table corner.

The whole house didn't even have a single electrical appliance, except for the light bulb on the ceiling that was sometimes bright and sometimes not.

But strangely, Cheng Shi didn't feel depressed when he saw this scene, and didn't even feel disappointed, just calmly asking: "Where do I sleep?"

Old Jia pointed to the dark kang: "You sleep inside, I sleep outside."

"Oh."

Cheng Shi replied, didn't even take off his clothes, climbed onto the bed, pulled up the oily quilt to cover himself, closed his eyes, and went to sleep.

Old Jia looked at this child blankly, then turned to look at the big sun outside, shook his head and smiled, closed the door for him, and left.

But because this was Cheng Shi's dream, Jiang Wu Mei didn't know where Old Jia went. He only knew that not long after Old Jia left, little Cheng Shi, like a little fox, held his nose and woke up.

He pricked up his ears to listen to the movement, then jumped off the bed, picked up his little schoolbag, and walked out.

This was a village in the city. The road into the village was winding, and even the ranger himself almost didn't remember it, but this kid just followed it in once and walked out along the original road like an old horse knowing the way.

It seemed little Cheng Shi didn't intend to live with Old Jia at all.

"Running away? Interesting."

Jiang Wu Mei followed little Cheng Shi like a ghost. When they had just stepped out of the village in the city, they discovered Old Jia's figure in a supermarket at the entrance of the village.

Little Cheng Shi immediately stopped making noise and stood against the wall, and then heard the voices of the clerk and his "father" inside.

"Yo, Old Jia, got rich? Willing to buy ham?"

"Didn't get rich. I don't eat it; the kid eats it."

"Ah? When did you have a kid? Picked up?"

"Don't talk nonsense. Mine. It's not good for the kid to hear."

"Fine, hurry up and go, hurry up and go. You're making me nauseous. You have a kid at home and you're still so dirty. Be careful of getting sick. Hurry up and wash."

"I know, none of your business."

Old Jia took the things and walked back. Little Cheng Shi stood at the foot of the wall and frowned, a hesitant look flashing in his eyes, and then he sighed, hung his head, and carried his schoolbag back.

But he walked faster than Old Jia, so before Old Jia got home, little Cheng Shi happened to wake up from the bed.

"Awake? Come, eat something. There's meat."

"Oh." Little Cheng Shi jumped off the bed, looked at this house with four bare walls, curled his lips, "How do I wash my hands?"

Old Jia was stunned and scratched his head.

"You wait, I'll go borrow a basin."

"..." Watching Old Jia leave in a hurry, Cheng Shi stood in the room and laughed out loud. After laughing, he didn't know what he was laughing at. He picked up the ham sausage and looked at it, muttering with a strange expression, "Pretty good, at least it hasn't expired yet."

This seemed to be a not-too-bad start. At least the two people, one old and one young, accepted each other, and little Cheng Shi settled down in this poor home honestly.

But he never discarded his "tools." Although this home wasn't very wealthy, at least he could still cheat some things to subsidize the family through his hands—oh no, his mouth.

Their neighbor lived with a rich person, surnamed Sun, not young, but well-maintained.

No one knew why a rich person, especially a rich woman, would live here, but Jiang Wu Mei discovered that a large area of houses in this village in the city seemed to be her property. This was a rich and idle landlady.

Little Cheng Shi soon discovered this point and began to go to Aunt Sun's house to get some food every few days.

The woman surnamed Sun didn't dislike him, but her attitude wasn't very good either, just treating him as feeding a little pet.

But begging for food was never a long-term solution. Many things that could be eaten and drunk in the orphanage became luxuries when they reached Old Jia's. So one day, little Cheng Shi, who was craving it, finally couldn't help it. He picked up a bottle cap at the door, used his clever hands to paint an identical "come again for another bottle" on the back of the bottle cap, and then took it to the supermarket to exchange for a drink.

The clerk didn't notice at all, and he really exchanged it.

But as soon as he walked out of the supermarket, he was caught by Old Jia.

Old Jia had just finished working and came back. Looking at little Cheng Shi drinking cola gulp by gulp, his eyes sank. Without saying a word, he took money from his pocket and paid at the supermarket.

Little Cheng Shi saw it, didn't say a word, lowered his head, and followed behind his butt back home.

This was Old Jia's first time getting angry. On this road, no matter how little Cheng Shi explained, he didn't smile. After arriving home, he let Cheng Shi lie on the bed and not move.

Cheng Shi's stubborn temper also came up. He lay down without a word and didn't move.

He guessed what Old Jia was going to do.

Sure enough, only to see Old Jia pick up the broom handle at the door, and one pole lashed onto little Cheng Shi's butt.

This was very painful. Jiang Wu Mei also felt it was painful, but little Cheng Shi didn't make a sound.

Old Jia was trembling with anger. He said: "People, this life is about being honest. Cheating is wrong, and liars don't have a good ending. Do you remember?"

Little Cheng Shi tilted his head to the other side, enduring his tears and refusing to accept: "When I was in the orphanage, I always cheated, and I lived better than this!"

"..." Old Jia choked. He threw away the broom with trembling hands, was silent for a moment, and then said, "So you met me. This is the retribution for cheating."

"..."

Now it was little Cheng Shi's turn to be stunned.

A pair of father and son stayed awkwardly for a whole night, without a word all night.

Early the next morning, Old Jia went out. Cheng Shi was lashed by a broom and couldn't get off the bed, so he just lay there and was in a daze for half a day.

When noon came, Old Jia returned. He returned covered in sweat and brought back a box of cola, a box of brand-new cola.

Little Cheng Shi looked at this box of cola, his eyes complex.

He didn't cry after being lashed by a stick yesterday, but he actually cried at this moment.

Old Jia saw little Cheng Shi crying and didn't speak, just spread out the lunch he bought and placed it on the bed for him.

Little Cheng Shi sobbed for a while and asked in a muffled voice: "Eat together."

Old Jia laughed foolishly: "The construction site provides meals; I've already eaten my fill, otherwise where would I have the strength to work?"

As soon as the words fell, his stomach rumbled.

"..."

Little Cheng Shi looked at Old Jia's stomach blankly. Old Jia didn't even blush, covered his stomach, and ran out, saying while running: "Look, ate too much and got diarrhea. You eat first; I'm going to take a shit."

"..." Little Cheng Shi looked at the disappearing father, curled his lips with "disgust," "People, this life is about being honest. Cheating is wrong... who exactly said this."

But after muttering, he started crying again, crying while eating, not leaving a single bite for Old Jia, and not wasting a single bite.

After Old Jia returned, he looked at the plastic box that was cleaner than if it had been washed, and smiled with satisfaction.

Since that day, the story in this dream was no longer exciting.

Because Cheng Shi didn't lie anymore.

He seemed to have discovered that the world could live very well without lies, so he lived a life with his father honestly.

The following time began to fly. After Cheng Shi entered school, Jiang Wu Mei could get less and less fun in the dream. He witnessed little Cheng Shi growing up like the third member of this family, accompanying him from elementary school to middle school to high school, and then to being admitted to university with a decent grade.

But before enrollment, this poor family finally faced the second difficulty, which was tuition.

Jiang Wu Mei knew too well what was in this family, even clearer than the father and son. The money in the two people's pockets might not be enough for the travel expenses to university. In such a situation, besides borrowing money, there seemed to be no other way.

But just when Cheng Shi was worried about this, one afternoon, Old Jia brought back 20,000 yuan. ===== CHAPTER 288 =====