Chapter 27: The Lazy Educated Youth (End)

Chapter 27: The Lazy Educated Youth (End)

In the first year after Luo Chengxing left Shanbao Village for Haicheng, He Yubin's father wanted to repay him for taking care of He Yubin by using his connections to find him an easy job. Luo Chengxing politely declined and went through a rough job search on his own, going around to various factories as a temporary worker.

By the end of Luo Chengxing's first year in Haicheng, he used his savings to rent an apartment near where Luo Fang attended university.

Luo Chengxing was hardworking and willing to endure hardship, fast and thorough in his work, unafraid of exhaustion, and steady in character. As a result, he earned the favor of many factory owners who wanted to make him a permanent employee. He started as a temporary worker and gradually built connections, saving and earning money step by step.

By his third year in Haicheng, Luo Chengxing had become someone capable of partnering with others to run a factory, getting called "Boss Luo."

Even the popular songs said this was a great time to be alive.

The year he went from Shanbao Village to Haicheng marked a new opportunity. From that year on, everything entered a phase of rapid development.

The autumn wind carried a slight chill as the leaves at Haicheng University turned from green to yellow, fluttering down.

He Yubin was in the mathematics department at Haicheng University. His class had thirty-five people from all over the country. Because of the earlier large-scale "Up to the Mountains, Down to the Countryside" movement, their class had students of all different ages.

"He Yubin, you said you're not going to the cafeteria?" two classmates beside him asked. "Then we'll head off."

He Yubin waved them off and said with a smile, "I've got family coming at noon, so I'm eating out."

The two classmates didn't ask further, hugged their books, said goodbye to He Yubin, and left.

The walkway was busy with foot traffic. He Yubin stood under a tree with his bag, waiting, until he saw a tall figure approaching in the distance.

"Why didn't you wait at the classroom building?" Luo Chengxing reached out to pull He Yubin's scarf up higher and placed a just-bought baked sweet potato into his hand.

"Class ended early today, so I headed out with my classmates first," He Yubin said with a smile.

A lot had changed for both of them over those three years, but Luo Chengxing had changed the most.

When they first met in Shanbao Village, Luo Chengxing was a real farmer. After arriving in Haicheng, he had gradually transformed. It's easy to notice when someone's whole demeanor changes.

If Luo Chengxing used to come across as honest and simple, now he was steady and reserved.

Luo Chengxing was now Boss Luo who ran a factory with partners. With He Yubin's tutoring, he had learned to read and his manner of speaking had changed a bit.

He Yubin was surprised to find that Luo Chengxing had a real knack for business.

It wasn't just He Yubin who was surprised—Luo Chengxing himself was just as surprised.

Luo Chengxing had been born and raised in Shanbao Village, working the land with Luo Dasheng from the moment he was old enough to work. He was a genuine, down-to-earth farmer. In those days, buying and selling goods was considered profiteering. Luo Chengxing had never been exposed to any of that, let alone thought about going into business.

His years in Haicheng had him soaking up everything here like a sponge.

"Didn't you want to eat Zhang's fish head stew? I'll take you today," Luo Chengxing said.

He Yubin looked at him and said, "Luo Chengxing, you've changed."

"Changed how?" Luo Chengxing took He Yubin's bag off his shoulder and slung it over his own shoulder.

The two walked side by side out of Haicheng University and strolled through the streets of Haicheng. Faint traces of the old days were still visible, but everything was gradually being covered by bustling new development.

He Yubin said, "Just looking at you now, you'd never guess you used to be a farmer."

"You fit in wherever you go. Now that I've come to Haicheng with Luo Fang and you—both of you university students with bright futures—I just have to work harder."

Hidden by his coat, Luo Chengxing discreetly took He Yubin's hand and continued, "If I were still in Shanbao Village now, I'd tend the fields well, work the land right, and make a good life."

"Now that I'm in Haicheng, I can't drag you two down."

Luo Chengxing had always been used to protecting the two of them—how could he allow himself to be a burden?

He Yubin was momentarily stunned at his words, then quietly slipped his hand into Luo Chengxing's.

Luo Chengxing never mentioned any of the hardships. At his first temp job, he ate only one meal a day, at noon, to save money. He worked a whole month for next to nothing because the factory showed him paperwork saying that was the temp wage.

Luo Chengxing never told He Yubin about this—it was Luo Fang who let it slip.

After that, Luo Chengxing got smarter and kept his guard up in everything.

Manufacturing was booming now. The factory Luo Chengxing co-ran produced household necessities. It had started as a small operation, but it kept growing unexpectedly, making more money every day. Even as profits grew, the partners kept things clear, each taking their own share without stepping on each other's toes.

At Zhang's, Luo Chengxing ordered a few of He Yubin's favorites and then handed him the menu. He Yubin glanced at it and added two more dishes, both spicy, since those were Luo Chengxing's favorites.

When the food arrived, Luo Chengxing served food into He Yubin's bowl.

As He Yubin was eating, Luo Chengxing said, "Yubin, I want to talk to you about something."

He rarely called him by that name. He Yubin set down his chopsticks. "What's wrong?"

Luo Chengxing had always discussed everything, big or small, with He Yubin—a habit he'd kept even now that he could handle everything himself.

"I want to cash out my shares from the factory," Luo Chengxing said, ladling He Yubin a bowl of fish soup.

He Yubin frowned. "What do you want to do?"

"I want to go check out Shencheng," Luo Chengxing said quietly.

Luo Chengxing had carefully observed the current situation. His instincts told him the south was only a matter of time before it took off, but he hadn't told anyone about this.

"Are you crazy? There's nothing over there right now," He Yubin said. "There are signs of development heading that way, but we don't need to be the ones to test those waters."

Luo Chengxing shook his head. "It's exactly because there's nothing there that it's the time to take the plunge."

Didn't Luo Chengxing also come to Haicheng with nothing?

He Yubin was silent for a moment, then said, "If you've really made up your mind, then go."

He muttered, "Is this you asking my opinion? This is you telling me!"

The two were sitting across from each other properly at the restaurant, or else Luo Chengxing would have been getting handsy again.

"All my money's with my wife." They had also ordered a fish, and Luo Chengxing carefully picked out the bones, putting the meat into He Yubin's bowl.

He Yubin had figured out that since coming to Haicheng, this man had changed in every way—except his shamelessness, which hadn't changed at all!

If Luo Chengxing went south, he'd be away from Haicheng for a while. He Yubin was a bit unhappy about that, but he understood the situation.

And so Luo Chengxing left, and he was gone for several years.

At first, Shencheng had nothing. Luo Chengxing started with small-time business, struggled at first, then gradually gained some traction. When Shencheng issued new policies for land auctions, Luo Chengxing put everything he had into bidding on land.

No one expected that a nondescript little city could shoot up out of nowhere, developing at breakneck speed in just a few years to become one of the most economically advanced areas, with new industries springing up one after another.

Luo Chengxing moved into real estate and made a killing.

Except when he was at his busiest, Luo Chengxing would take the train back to Haicheng every so often. Even though they were often apart, their feelings for each other only grew deeper with each passing day.

Four years later, He Yubin graduated with honors from Haicheng University and was ultimately retained as faculty.

Upon graduating, He Yubin made a decision that stunned everyone—he wanted to turn down his mentor's invitation to stay on and continue their research, and instead go into business as Luo Chengxing's right-hand man.

Never mind his parents' reaction—Luo Chengxing rushed back to Haicheng that very night upon hearing the news and talked him out of it.

Luo Chengxing said that if He Yubin chose not to walk his own path but to accommodate him instead, then all his years of effort would have been in vain—lovers don't have to be together every day; they each need their own path to walk.

That was the first time the two had argued since they'd confessed their feelings.

Over those four years, Luo Chengxing's businesses had branched into everything from real estate to electronics.

Once his company was on solid ground, he moved its headquarters to Haicheng, and the two were reunited.

His "Yuxing Electronics" became a top name in Hua Guo's electronics industry, and even years later, when more electronics companies had sprung up, it was still regarded as a time-honored brand in Hua Guo.

He also owned the second-largest real estate company in Shencheng at the time.

When people talked about Luo Chengxing, they always brought up his education and background, but once he'd made a name for himself in both Haicheng and Shencheng, his humble origins became proof of his ability.

His story was covered in Hua Guo's People's Report and youth literary magazines, yet Luo Chengxing kept a low profile and rarely showed his face in public.

In that era, he had a knack for riding trends and seizing opportunities, and his investments almost never failed—he was also a devoted philanthropist—so the media had little to dig into except his love life.

Rumor had it that Luo Chengxing had a lover, but no one knew who, and speculation ran wild, with the daughter of some Haicheng big shot being the most popular guess—after all, compared to the rags-to-riches story of a plain, barely literate man clawing his way up from the bottom in Haicheng, some preferred to believe he'd been taken under a big shot's wing.

Fortunately, such rumors were quickly put to rest.

It wasn't until middle age, when Hua Guo's attitude toward same-sex relationships became more tolerant, that the identity of Luo Chengxing's lover came to light—

It was Professor He Yubin, a recipient of the Hua Guo Mathematics Award. Even if one didn't know who He Yubin was, they certainly knew his mentor, who was one of the top figures in Hua Guo's mathematics field.

In the photo, the two men, even in middle age, remained handsome, holding hands with smiles on their faces.

In almost all interviews, Luo Chengxing's smile was faint, his years in business having given him the composed demeanor of a leader.

But in this photo, his brows were relaxed, and he wasn't looking at the camera—his gaze was fixed on the professor beside him.

Later, the publication of writer Luo Fang's memoir stunned the people of Hua Guo once again—Luo Fang turned out to be Luo Chengxing's younger sister! No one had ever known.

Even when placed alongside Luo Chengxing, no one would simply label her as "Luo Chengxing's sister."

Who was Luo Fang? She was a writer whose poems had been selected for Hua Guo's elementary school textbooks and whose essays had been included in middle school textbooks!

With Luo Fang's memoir, the people of Hua Guo gained a deeper understanding of this figure who had once stood at the forefront of the era.

==========Author's Note:==========

There are three more side stories.