Chapter 204
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Because of Lin Luoran’s presence, Mr . Qiu dealt with these kids with leniency . He considered the “fight” as a “quarrel” and let the kids go .
Mr . Qiu wanted to invite Ma Ming’s parents to the school to talk about their son’s bad behavior . Lin subtly turned down the head teacher’s undue favor . Since this was just a quarrel, why was there the need to notice the kid’s parents? Mr . Qiu came up with a final solution — these kids must clean the classroom for half a month!
From the incident today, Lin Luoran can assume what Luodong had been through . She feels sorry about his old life and happy that he has grown up so much .
Therefore, Lin Luoran waits for Luodong to finish cleaning and takes him home .
Seeing that Lin Luodong gets on a BMW with his “movie-star” sister, Ma Ming spits on the ground with disdain .
“Yuck . They are just rich rednecks!”
The second after Ma Ming said this, he sees his father, who is wearing a huge gemstone ring and a tight suit . Ma Ming’s father looks exactly like an older version of Ma Ming . He comes to pick Ma Ming up unexpectedly .
Unfortunately for Ma Ming, his father is driving a BMW .
Wei Xue bursts out of laugh when Ma Ming’s father calls out to him . Ma Ming is embarrassed . He gets on the car and disappears into the street before saying goodbye to his minions .
Due to all the cleaning, these kids are the last ones to leave the school . Wei Xue waits for her mother to pick her up and then sees Huang Weijian walks out of the school . He keeps his head down, holding the book which is in pieces .
Wei Xue looks to the other way to show her disappointment .
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Light of the dusk pours down on the introverted boy, making him look even more pitiful .
At the corner of the street, Lin Luoran sits in the car and stares at the direction which Huang is heading to . Seeing that she is in a daze, Luodong calls out her name . Lin Luoran comes to her sense and says with a smile, “This boy is interesting… Luodong, you don’t have too much homework today, do you?”
Lin Luodong shakes his head . He doesn’t understand why his sister is suddenly interested in Huang Weijian .
Also, what does this have to do with homework?
Lin Luodong is confused . However, he is guilty that he started the fight today so he feels uneasy to ask more questions .
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It’s already autumn . Night has turned longer and the day is shorter now . The neon lamps in R City are already on . The young boy, whose eyes are covered by bangs, walks into an alley like a swift cat . He doesn’t even hesitate when he smells the fragrance of dishes along the street .
He stops at an old building .
This residential building is beside the wholesale market of the R City . All kinds of people work in or visit the market, which makes this area quite dangerous . Huang Weijian walks through the crowd and goes up to the seventh floor on his own .
There is only one room made of iron sheet on the seventh floor . The paintings of the walls are off, which indicates that this room has been there in years . In fact, this kind of “rooms on top of the building” is illegal . The owners of the building build the rooms secretly and they rent these rooms to non-native people who work in the city .
Huang Weijian doesn’t light up the fire and cook the meal as usual . In the dusk, he takes out half a bottle of glue from a pile of rubbish and starts to put the pieces of his book together . There are lots of waste paper and plastic bottles neatly placed by the walls of the room .
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Huang is relieved when he finally puts the pieces of his book together . “Happiness” crawls onto his childish face .
Then he starts to do the homework . His school supplies and his bag are just as shabby as the room is . Even his notebook is made from the leftover pages of many used notebooks .
The night falls . Huang Weijian bends over his desk . The dim light gives him a hard time seeing the words on the book, but he insists not to turn on the light . Everything in the shabby little room made of iron sheets can be seen at a glance . A single bed made from wood board, some clothes, a broken cupboard, a wok, some bowls and chopsticks, a plastic basin, and… There is nothing more .
The only thing that can be called an “electric appliance” is a lamp base without a light bulb . Clearly, Huang Weijian is broke .
Luckily, like Lin Luodong told his sister before, kids in Class Three, Grade Six don’t have too much homework today . Before the sunset, Huang Weijian finishes his homework . He packs the books and notebooks up and takes out the wok . Huang seems to live in the room alone, without parent .
Huang has a simple dinner . He makes some rice and eats the rice with pickles and chilly . This twelve-year-old boy is able to make perfect rice with the cooking bench made by three pieces of brick and the small fire lighted by rotten wood . Huang cherishes food so much that he thinks his dinner is nice .
Huang eats some rice first . Before his chopsticks touch the pickles, he hears the sound of footsteps coming from the stairs . A chubby middle-aged woman shows up at his door . Seeing that Huang Weijian is having dinner, the woman hesitates . Then she walks in .
“Ms . Liu…” Huang Weijian puts down the bowl and stands up .
“Don’t be shy . Keep eating your dinner . Your room will be too dark a few minutes later . ” The woman waves her hand and tells Huang to sit down . She seems to know some inside information about Huang .
Huang doesn’t sit down . He says, “Ms . Liu, the rent…”
The chubby woman blushes, “Huang, I’m not here to ask for the rent . We have been neighbors for so many years and I know you well… The thing is, I have to pay the tuition fee for my daughter, Xinxin . I really…” Though she said she wasn’t here for the rent, every word of hers was indicating that she also needed money . Huang Weijian understands immediately .
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“Ms . Liu, I know . Hold on a second!” Huang Weijian takes out a wad of cash from the bed . There are a few 100 yuan bills and some changes . He gives them to the woman .
“Did you make these money by selling waste?” Though Ms . Liu is here to ask for the rent, she feels embarrassed . This is the hard-earned money of the little boy . Ms . Liu can’t say the words she prepared to say before coming here .
Huang smiles shyly, “Yes… Ms . Liu, please take it . I’ll pay back the rest of the rent as soon as possible . ”
Ms . Liu becomes too embarrassed to say anything more . She sighs, “You are such a good kid, yet fate is against you… Your grandfather…”
Huang Weijian lowers his head, “Grandpa said he would come back soon . He wouldn’t lie to me . ”
Thinking of the fact that this little boy is in the same age as her daughter, Ms . Liu’s heart gets soft . She stops talking about Huang’s grandfather, and she even forgets to urge Huang to pay back the rest of the rent soon . She says some nice things and goes downstairs .
Huang Weijian is relieved after Ms . Liu is gone . He murmurs to himself, “It’s fine that grandpa has disappeared for months… He didn’t have the money to pay the rent . Why did he transfer me to the new school? If the tuition fee weren’t so high, my life wouldn’t become so hard . ”
Huang certainly feels betrayed by his “disappeared grandpa” . Eventually, he turns these complaints into appetite and eats the rice clean .
He washes the bowls and wok at the tap . He puts away the leftover chilly and sits on the worn stool for a while .
There is only a few rice left . Even if he only eats rice for the next few days, he won’t last for long .
He must go to school because the tuition fee is already paid and he can’t get a refund… Huang can’t let himself starve to death . He whispers to himself, “Where can I get a large pile of money?”
He thinks and fails to find an answer to the question . Huang shakes his head and smiles bitterly . Then he takes the gunny bag he uses to pick up the waste and pinchers, locks the room, and goes down the stairs .
Ms . Liu, who lives downstairs, sighs, “That boy is heading out to pick up waste again . He is so pitiful…”
A man beside her says impatiently, “Who is not pitiful in these days? The price of commodities rises and our salaries don’t . Aren’t we also pitiful? If he doesn’t pay the rest of the rent back soon…” It seems that something covers the man’s mouth .
Nevertheless, Huang Weijian hears what the man says clearly . He grabs the gunny bag in his hand tighter . Eventually, he decides to spend more time picking up waste tonight . It will be ok if he sleeps later .
A cat jumps into Huang’s room . It can smell the fragrance of food . However, Huang Weijian doesn’t leave any food out . The cat gets angry . It scratches the table and plans to take away Huang’s bag . Something tinkles and the cat is scared away .
Two people are on the rooftop of the building next to Huang’s . It’s already late in the night, or else their sudden appearance may seem scarier .
Lin Luodong is embarrassed after knowing the poor condition of his classmate . Huang Weijian seems to be an orphan… No wonder Huang is so much like the old me .
Luodong suddenly feels closer to this boy who just went out with a huge bag . Though he doesn’t understand why his sister wants to follow Huang, Lin Luodong feels that this little trip isn’t useless .
“Sister…” He calls out .
Staring at the bag on Huang’s table, Lin Luoran laughs, “This is interesting… Luodong, this new classmate of yours is not ordinary . ”
Of course he is . He lives in such a shabby room and he is still tough and independent . Lin Luodong now understands why his sister leads him here . However, Lin Luoran pats him on the head and takes his hand and leaves .