Chapter 18

Guo Suhua nodded. "That's good then."

Su Wenjun put down his chopsticks and asked, "By the way, what business does your Secretary Chen want you to handle in Jiangcheng?"

Su Xinghui told his parents about the business he had to handle in Jiangcheng this time. Guo Suhua asked in surprise, "You still have connections like that in Jiangcheng?"

Su Xinghui nodded. "I stayed there for four years; some of my classmates' families still have connections."

Su Wenjun said, "Your line of thinking is good. If this can be accomplished, it will be very beneficial for the farmers and can increase their income. You can go to your aunt's house; your second cousin is a fishmonger and has relationships with quite a few restaurants. He should have connections."

Su Xinghui's uncle was Su Wenjun's brother-in-law, Yu Maode. Su Wenjun was from Jiangcheng and had come to work in Shangjun County in the sixties, but the two families remained close. During his summer vacations as a child, Su Xinghui often stayed at his uncle's house for a period. Yu Maode was an old physician. Su Wenjun had lost his parents at a young age and lived at Yu Maode's house for several years; Su Wenjun's study of medicine was influenced by him. He also possessed martial arts skills, and Yu Maode's eldest son, Yu Gaoping, was a well-known local martial arts practitioner. Su Xinghui had also learned some medical skills and martial arts from Yu Maode.

Yu Maode had three sons and two daughters. His second son, Yu Gaoshan, was currently a fishmonger and was among the earlier batch of individual business owners. His third son, Yu Gaofeng, followed in his father's footsteps and was currently practicing medicine with Yu Maode.

Su Xinghui nodded. "I was planning to look for my second cousin when I go to Jiangcheng this time."

Su Wenjun said, "Alright, work hard!"

Su Xinghui said, "Oh, Dad, Mom, I won't be eating at home this afternoon; there's a class reunion."

Su Wenjun and Guo Suhua both nodded in agreement. Guo Suhua even reached for her wallet. "Xinghui, you've run out of money, right? Here, take some more. You'll need money for a class reunion."

Su Xinghui quickly waved his hand. "No need, Mom. It's already settled that someone is treating. Besides, I'll be getting my salary soon, so I won't need to ask you for money anymore."

Guo Suhua said, "You really don't need money?"

Su Xinghui nodded quickly. Guo Suhua sighed with emotion, "It seems our son has really grown up."

Su Xinghui thought to himself: Of course, the son has really grown up. In his past life, he was unpromising and caused you worry. In this life, he will never make you worry like that again; he will become your pride.

In the afternoon, after his parents went to work, Su Xinghui rummaged through his room, looking at the items from his youth. Because so much time had passed, he didn't remember what he had owned.

He searched through boxes and cabinets and found that his collection consisted mostly of childhood items like stamps, matchbox labels, and cigarette boxes, as well as the comic books he had read as a child—at least several hundred of them, filling an entire cabinet. Among them were complete sets of *Journey to the West* and *Romance of the Three Kingdoms*, and quite a few of *Water Margin*. He remembered buying them one by one with his pocket money and the money he earned from collecting scrap. He had been so happy when he completed the sets. It was a pity that many things were lost when the old house was demolished later.

Come to think of it, these things would be treasures in ten or twenty years and would be quite valuable. He had to keep them safe from now on; he couldn't throw them away.

Just past four in the afternoon, Zhang Cheng arrived, carrying a bag. Su Xinghui said, "It's not even off-work time yet, why are you here so early?"

Zhang Cheng said nonchalantly, "Hey, isn't that how working in an office is? It's usually like this in the afternoon; everyone leaves very early, and some people don't even go in the afternoon. I'm actually leaving late. Let's go, to the People's Hotel."

What Zhang Cheng said was quite realistic. Su Xinghui was, of course, well aware of this situation. He knew that this was not something he could change for the time being, nor was it something Zhang Cheng could change. Therefore, he didn't say much more and went out with Zhang Cheng.

On the way, Zhang Cheng excitedly said that he had notified almost all the high school classmates in the county seat, and he estimated that quite a few would come. He had brought a few bottles of Moutai from home and wanted to have a good drink today.

Actually, Su Xinghui knew that out of the sixty-plus students in their Class 4, Grade 3, over thirty had been admitted to technical secondary schools or universities. This was a quite high rate of advancement. The Shangjun High School they attended was a provincial key high school. The vast majority of these thirty-plus students had not returned to the county seat to work. Now, if their families had any means, who wouldn't want them to work in larger cities?

As for the remaining thirty or so classmates, some were working in the townships below. Therefore, it was impossible for everyone to come to the class reunion tonight. Of course, if twenty or thirty people could come, that wouldn't be a small number.

Upon arriving at the People's Hotel, Zhang Cheng spoke to the waiter, who led him and Su Xinghui into a large private room. This room could fit two large dining tables, so thirty-plus people wouldn't feel crowded. Zhang Cheng waited there with Su Xinghui for the others.

Su Xinghui said, "Zhang Cheng, such a big room—how many people are you planning to treat today? It must cost a lot of money."

Zhang Cheng waved his hand. "Don't worry about the money. I spend my salary on myself anyway, and I don't need to contribute to the family. Besides, the benefits at our Finance Bureau are quite good. Today will cost at most two or three hundred; it's nothing."

Su Xinghui nodded. The benefits at the Finance Bureau were indeed good, and he really didn't need to worry for Zhang Cheng.

Next, Zhang Cheng told Su Xinghui about the recent situation of their classmates in the county seat—who was working in which unit, who was dating whom—he knew it all. When Su Xinghui asked if he was dating anyone, he shook his head and said it was still early; he wanted to play for a few more years.

Su Xinghui did know that Zhang Cheng got married three years later. His wife was a teacher at the Experimental Primary School, a few years younger than them. They probably didn't know each other yet.

As the two were chatting, a man and a woman walked in. This was the couple Zhang Cheng had mentioned. The boy was named Wu Yuansheng, and the girl was Luo Xiaomei. Both had graduated from the regional normal school and were now teaching at Chengguan Middle School.

As soon as Wu Yuansheng saw Su Xinghui, he smiled. "Xinghui, haven't seen you in a long time."

Su Xinghui stood up and hugged him. "Yuansheng, you're quite capable, picking the flower of our class."

Luo Xiaomei spat, "Su Xinghui, how did you become so glib after a few years of university?"

Su Xinghui laughed. "When is the wedding? I want to drink at your wedding!"

Wu Yuansheng said, "Still early, probably next year."

Su Xinghui said, "Then you must notify me when the time comes."

Within two minutes, Xu Xiaoguang and Wu Jun arrived together. Both were Su Xinghui's best friends. Neither had been admitted to university during the college entrance exam. However, Xu Xiaoguang was a "second-generation rich"; his father, Xu Haimin, was one of the first bosses in Shangjun County to engage in construction and now had his own construction company, so he could be considered quite wealthy. Therefore, after graduating from high school, Xu Xiaoguang went to help at Xu Haimin's construction company, so he didn't have to worry about work.

Wu Jun's parents were both middle school teachers and were highly respected in Shangjun County. Their other two sons had graduated from prestigious universities; only this youngest son hadn't been admitted to university and refused to repeat the year. To secure a job for this youngest son, they had worried a lot and begged many people, eventually getting Wu Jun into the Public Security Bureau. He was now a police officer in the Public Security Brigade.

When these two best friends arrived, there was naturally some warmth with Su Xinghui. Xu Xiaoguang had been in society for four years and was much more mature than before. He hugged Su Xinghui and said, "Great scholar, we must drink well today. I've brought a few bottles of Wuliangye."

Wu Jun also smiled and hugged Su Xinghui lightly. His personality was relatively introverted, and it hadn't changed even now. ===== CHAPTER 20 =====