Chapter 5 Zhao Mingshi

Chapter 5 Zhao Mingshi

Zhang Xiangping pondered for a moment, then consulted Jiang Jianmin: "Regarding Jiang Luo, I think we should try to appease him a bit."

"His biological parents are quite well-off."

"I'm hoping his parents will take him back, arrange a good job for him, and then he can show us some filial piety later."

Jiang Jianmin's eyes widened: "He wouldn't dare not show us filial piety!?"

"I raised him until he was eighteen, cleaned up his messes, fed him—isn't that a sacrifice on my part?"

"The kindness of raising him is a debt; he owes us!"

Zhang Xiangping: "You know his temper."

"If we provoke him, he'll give us the cold shoulder."

"His biological parents are so well-off; he'll definitely go back to them."

"If we don't coax him, once he goes back, he might disown us."

Jiang Jianmin took a drag of his cigarette: "I'll break his legs!"

Zhang Xiangping retorted with disdain: "Break what? Break what? How tall are you, and how tall is he? Do you think you can win?"

She advised: "Listen to me, just put on a show, humor him a little."

"After all, he's not our biological son. Don't let us fall out with him, and then he truly disowns us, making our eighteen years of raising him all for nothing."

Jiang Jianmin finally fell silent.

But that day, when Zhang Xiangping went to the silk factory's storefront office to make a call, she couldn't reach Zhao Mingshi. The dorm attendant said he wasn't in his room, so Zhang Xiangping had to hang up.

What Zhang Xiangping didn't know was that their biological son, Zhao Mingshi, wanted nothing to do with them.

Zhao Mingshi simply couldn't accept that his biological parents weren't people like Su Lan and Zhao Guangyuan, but rather two ordinary silk factory workers.

Zhao Mingshi had been utterly distraught lately, in no mood for classes or even reading.

Today, Zhao Shuo came to the school. Zhao Mingshi left his dorm and got into Zhao Shuo’s Volkswagen, sitting glumly in the passenger seat.

Zhao Shuo tried to cheer him up, saying, "A McDonald’s is opening soon in Shenzhen—just like the one you had in San Francisco when you were little. I'll take you there to eat later."

Who wants McDonald's?

Zhao Mingshi turned to look at Zhao Shuo, his voice filled with grievance: "Brother, you're not really my brother anymore, are you? Will you still come to school to see me?"

"Will you take your actual brother to eat McDonald’s in Shenzhen?"

Zhao Shuo, driving, immediately replied: "Don't be ridiculous. Of course, you're my brother. Even if you're not Mom and Dad's biological son, you'll always be my brother."

Thinking of something, Zhao Shuo furrowed his brow: "I'll only take you to eat McDonald’s—just you, no other brother, biological or otherwise."

Like Su Lan and Zhao Guangyuan, Zhao Shuo also disliked Jiang Luo.

When they visited the silk factory's dormitory building at the beginning of the month, Jiang Luo happened to be returning from a disco early in the morning, reeking of smoke and alcohol.

Zhao Shuo frowned instantly.

From the first glance, he didn't like Jiang Luo.

His brother should have grown up as a cheerful child in a warm and happy family, like Zhao Mingshi—who had everything he wanted since childhood, carefree, innocent, lively, could play the piano, speak English and French, and got into the best university when he came of age.

Not a slacker like Jiang Luo.

Of course, Zhao Shuo also told himself that Jiang Luo might not have chosen to become who he was—it might have been unavoidable, given the Jiang family’s circumstances.

But Zhao Shuo felt Jiang Luo had chosen to be this way. Many ordinary families faced similar conditions—both parents worked, with no time or energy to look after their children—yet those children grew up safe and healthy.

Even if their grades weren't good enough for university, couldn't they at least attend night school or technical school?

Even if they weren't academically inclined, couldn't they at least hold down a decent job?

But what about Jiang Luo?

He didn't study, didn't work, became a slacker, spending day and night at discos, hanging out with other slackers.

Zhao Shuo found it utterly unacceptable.

Briefly picturing Jiang Luo in his mind, Zhao Shuo continued to comfort Zhao Mingshi: "Ming Ming, don't worry, don't be anxious."

"Even though you're not related by blood, all these years, the affection Mom, Dad, and I have for you is real. Our time together is real, and everything we've experienced together is real."

"Even without a blood relation, we're still a family."

Zhao Mingshi still looked hurt: "But will you still love me after you have your biological brother, your biological son?"

"Will Jiang Luo think I stole everything from him?"

Zhao Shuo said, his tone sharp: "If he really thinks that, it shows there's something wrong with his character."

"The baby switch wasn't intentional."

"No one wanted it."

"You didn't steal anything from anyone."

"Besides, with your talent and intelligence, even if you hadn't grown up in our home but at the silk factory, you still could have gotten into Fudan University."

Zhao Mingshi added: "When Jiang Luo comes back, will I have to go back too?"

"Brother, I don't want to go back."

"I don't like where they live."

"I only like our house."

"No, of course you won't go back."

Zhao Shuo said firmly, without a doubt: "You're my brother, Mom and Dad's son. You're not going anywhere. Stay at school, and come home on holidays."

"As for your biological parents, go if you want. If you don't want to, no one can force you—not even your biological parents!"

Zhao Mingshi seemed a little reassured: "Is that what Mom and Dad think too?"

"Of course!"

Zhao Shuo reached out and ruffled Zhao Mingshi’s hair from the passenger seat, comforting him: "Don't overthink it. Focus on your classes and studies at school."

"Your father, mother, and I won't let you go back."

"Our bond with you over all these years isn't something that can be severed just because of biology."

"In our hearts, you are our child, and you will always be a Zhao."

—

Over the next two days, Jiang Luo spent his evenings at Oriental No. 1 and his days at the Jing'an Branch dealing with his stocks.

He no longer slept on the streets; instead, he found a small inn in the alleys of Jing'an, paid for a room to sleep, shower, and freshen up, and bought a few spare sets of clothes. After all, Jing'an had everything, and with money, you could buy whatever you needed.

Jiang Luo also made time one evening to visit Wang Chuang's school. He met Wang Chuang at the school gate, had a meal with him, and took the 500 yuan Wang Chuang had borrowed from a classmate.

When he returned that night, Jiang Luo borrowed a basin and some laundry detergent from the innkeeper, washed the suit, and hung it up to dry. He also washed the pocket square and hung it up alongside the suit. He didn't touch the money and kept it safely stored away.

As he watched the dripping suit hanging there, he thought to himself that although he didn't know who the owner was and likely never would, he was still truly grateful for the stranger's kindness.

Jiang Luo reflected that in this second chance at life, he might not necessarily become a particularly good or kind person, but he would remember this act of kindness. If the opportunity arises, he would be willing to offer his own kindness to those in need in the future.

"Hey, it's dripping. Put a basin underneath to catch the water," the innkeeper complained.

"Got it," Jiang Luo said, nudging the basin with his foot.

Meanwhile, Jiang Luo didn’t know that Zhang Xiangping and Jiang Jianmin hadn't seen him for several days and assumed he’d gone back to the Zhao family without a word. They were furious and angrily called the Zhao household.

The Zhao family had a landline. When Zhang Xiangping called, Su Lan, who was sitting on the sofa, was puzzled: "Jiang Luo? No, he hasn't come back."

Su Lan and Zhao Guangyuan had been busy with work lately, so they had temporarily set aside the matter of the two children.

Su Lan had already asked someone to help line up a job for Jiang Luo.

When the parents compared notes, they realized Jiang Luo hadn't gone anywhere—he was missing. Zhang Xiangping was confused, and Su Lan was worried.

After hanging up, Su Lan immediately called Zhao Guangyuan at work. Zhao Guangyuan sighed when he heard Jiang Luo hadn't been home for days: "This child is such a handful. I understand, I'll come back right away."

Meanwhile, Jiang Jianmin grumbled to Zhang Xiangping: "He’s a useless piece of work. I have no idea who he inherited his terrible temper from!"

"The Zhao family should just take him back. Once he's gone, it'll be over. I'm not putting up with this!"

He also said to Zhang Xiangping: "You still expect him to take care of you? Stop dreaming! He's flown the coop, just vanished without a word!"

"You'd better pin your hopes on your biological son!"

Even so, they still had to look for him, otherwise they wouldn't be able to explain it to Zhao Guangyuan and Su Lan. After all, he was someone else's biological son, and he had gone missing under their care.

They searched and searched, but couldn't find him anywhere. Naturally, both families went to Oriental No. 1.

The front desk at Oriental No. 1 said: "Oh, Jiang Luo? He's been here every night recently. Are you looking for him? Come back tonight; he's here every night."

But that night, Jiang Luo didn't go to Oriental No. 1. Instead, he went to a shopping mall near Jing'an, browsed around, had something to eat, and then returned to his small inn to watch TV.

He saw news reports about the ongoing crackdown on counterfeit goods, which was in full swing. The news also mentioned Wenzhou in connection with the operation.

What is Wenzhou most famous for?

Its merchants, known nationwide.

Xue Zhizhong was from Wenzhou, one of the Wenzhou merchants.

At that moment, Xue Zhizhong was entertaining Huo Zongzhuo at his home, treating him to the local "dining culture" of Wenzhou—

On the high-end marble tabletop, fine, expensive white porcelain dishes held various exquisite dishes.

Among them were two soups: one in a large bowl with a small boat folded from a U.S. dollar bill floating on the surface, named "Smooth Sailing";

the other on a white plate with an expensive watch, named "A Token of Sincerity."

Xue Zhizhong smiled as he and his wife entertained Huo Zongzhuo.

Huo Zongzhuo glanced at the "Smooth Sailing" and "A Token of Sincerity" dishes as they were served, his expression reserved, betraying no emotion. He only said unhurriedly: "You Wenzhou people are very meticulous when it comes to hospitality."

Xue Zhizhong smiled: "Please, enjoy."

Huo Zongzhuo didn't look at the two dishes again. His wallet contained U.S. dollars, far more than what was represented by the "Smooth Sailing," and he wore a Rolex on his wrist, which far surpassed the watch in the "A Token of Sincerity" dish.

It wasn't until midway through the meal that Xue Zhizhong realized Huo Zongzhuo's indifferent reaction and how he hadn't even glanced at the two dishes. It dawned on him that this financial magnate wasn’t impressed by such gestures at all. He pondered silently, thinking that no matter what, since he had the rare opportunity to host Huo Zongzhuo, he had to make sure the hospitality made an impression.

Xue Zhizhong suddenly remembered the faint glance Huo Zongzhuo had given that young man named Jiang something at Oriental No. 1 the other day.

He thought to himself, damn it, if all else fails, get him drunk and send him to Huo Zongzhuo's bed.

Then he thought about Lu Fuhua, that good-for-nothing. It had been days, and he still hadn't managed to bring the person over. Useless!

After the meal, Xue Zhizhong invited Huo Zongzhuo to the tea seating area for some tea. As they drank, Xue Zhizhong stood up, approached Huo Zongzhuo, and said in a low voice: "President Huo, how about I arrange for someone to accompany you back to the Hilton?"

Xue Zhizhong thought that if Lu Fuhua couldn't get the job done, he'd find someone else. Just a young man—as long as he was Huo Zongzhuo's type, it should be fine.

Huo Zongzhuo, however, waved his hand and declined: "No need."

The man said politely: "President Xue, tea is enough. I'll return to the hotel on my own later."

Xue Zhizhong naturally smiled and agreed, not wanting to press further.

As Xue Zhizhong sat back down, he remembered something and added: "By the way, how have your stock purchases been going recently at the Jing'an Branch?"

"I didn't expect you to be into stocks too, Zongzhuo."

Huo Zongzhuo raised his hand to drink tea, revealing the watch on his wrist: "Just dabbling for fun."

Xue Zhizhong caught sight of Huo Zongzhuo's watch and thought, damn, what brand is that, I wonder? He'd never seen it before. Was it foreign?

No wonder Huo Zongzhuo had looked down on his "A Token of Sincerity" dish.

The next morning, Jiang Luo walked into the Jing'an Branch lobby while munching on a steamed bun.

He found it a bit strange, wondering what day it was—the place was so empty in the morning.

What he didn't know was that although the concept of "VIP rooms" hadn't yet emerged, some people, due to their substantial wealth, could already use the inner offices exclusively.

At that moment, Huo Zongzhuo was sitting in one of those offices.

The office door was only half-closed, allowing a clear view of the hall outside.

Huo Zongzhuo turned his head and glanced out, spotting Jiang Luo sitting outside, munching on a steamed bun while watching the screen.

The young man pursed his lips as he chewed, his cheeks puffing out in and out like an adorable little squirrel.

Huo Zongzhuo saw this and smiled faintly to himself.