Chapter One: The Eve of Graduation

  Even if he was a graduate of the Revolutionary Army, Cheng Xiaodong didn't shake his head as he looked at the full house of wolves. With a nimble waist, he quickly organized his luggage and put it into a large travel bag. He weighed it again and put it on his back, took out a cigarette, lit it, and let the swirling smoke surround him.

  "Xiao Dong, tonight we eighteen warriors of the 84th class will get drunk together at Xinxin Restaurant, how about you?" asked Qin Haiyang, the class leader, poking his head in and asking Cheng Xiaodong.

  "I'll die with you! But I might be a bit late!" Although Cheng Xiaodong was not interested in this graduation party, he had been classmates with them for four years and they were about to go their separate ways, so he agreed to attend.

  "I understand, I'll go say goodbye to the Jin Hui Garden side, I'll tell everyone!" As a four-year-old class leader, Qin Haiyang knew some things about Cheng Xiaodong. For four years, he had been working as a tutor for a family on the Jin Hui Garden side, and now he was leaving, of course, he had to go say goodbye.

  "Boss, what instructions do you have for us?" With a pat on Qin Haiyang's shoulder, Wang Yang, a fellow townsman of Cheng Xiaodong, squeezed in from beside Qin Haiyang and asked with a smile.

  "It was just about dinner last night, I mentioned it to Xiaodong." Qin Haiyang had a good impression of Cheng Xiaodong, but he didn't have much feeling for this fellow townsman. Four years of studying together hadn't fostered any particular feelings, and his tone when speaking was rather lukewarm.

  "Ah, it's clear that the class leader values Xiaodong the most, and even gave him a special call. By the way, how are we splitting the bill for tonight's gathering?" Wang Yang also didn't mind Qin Haiyang's coldness towards him, as it had been like this for four years.

  "There's still some class fees left, and we can't leave it for the younger students next semester. I've discussed with Xinxin, and we'll split the bill according to how much each person owes. As for the drinks...we'll just chip in when the time comes. Alright, I'm off! See you later!" Qin Haiyang said briefly, then waved at Cheng Xiaodong and turned to leave.

  "The class leader has a lot of style, I don't know if there will be opportunities to show it after the assignment. Let me ask you something, Xiaodong... how much money do you have left?" Wang Yang said, rubbing his hands together without hesitation. For four years, he and Cheng Xiaodong had borrowed money from each other at least a hundred times, but now, on the eve of graduation, they were about to go their separate ways.

  "I've bought a ticket and some stuff, not much left, you can have as much as you want! Chen Xiaodong didn't mind, after all, they were classmates for four years and also from the same hometown, even if he borrowed money, it would be hard to return, but emotionally, it was acceptable."

  "Lend me fifty... no, eighty!" Wang Yang muttered to himself, as if calculating his expenses, and said to Cheng Xiaodong.

  "Here, I'll give it to you!" Cheng Xiaodong opened his backpack, pulled out his wallet, counted out eighty yuan and handed it over to Wang Yang.

  "Xiao Dong, I promise, once I get home, I'll transfer the money to you!" The two were in the same city, but Wang Yang's home was in a suburban county, and it wasn't easy to meet up.

  "Alright, no rush, I still have something to do at Jinhuigarden, see you tonight!" Cheng Xiaodong put the luggage bag on his head and picked up the backpack, saying to Wang Yang.

  "Go say goodbye to Xiaoyu? This time, that girl will cry, remember to take good care of her!" Wang Yang followed Cheng Xiaodong to Jinhuai Garden, patting Cheng Xiaodong's shoulder and saying with a hint of meaning.

  "He's still a kid, easy to coax!" Not bothering to explain further, Cheng Xiaodong walked out the door.

  The dormitory building is about 300-400 meters away from the school gate. As Cheng Xiaodong walked, he saw his graduating classmates making a loud noise and waving at him casually. Cheng Xiaodong hurried to the school gate and saw a familiar yet unexpected figure from afar.

  "Dad"?! Hurriedly running a few steps, Cheng Xiaodong rushed to the front of Cheng Dongfeng and exclaimed in surprise.

  "Xiao Dong! I've brought some goods from the provincial city, thinking that you're on break for the next two days, let's head back home together!" Looking at his son in front of him, Cheng Dongfeng's eyes were filled with comfort and pride, he wiped the sweat off his forehead and said excitedly.

  "Dad, you're here, why didn't you go inside to find me? You've been standing at the door, getting all sweaty. Look, your undershirt is all wet!" Cheng Xiaodong said with concern, pulling out a handkerchief and wiping away his father's sweat as he scolded him. After just a few wipes, the small handkerchief was already soaked, and with a twist of his hand, the sweat dripped down.

  "I thought you'd always come out, so I didn't go in!" Cheng Dongfeng said with a sigh. Ever since his son grew up, he had received many lessons from their role-reversal, and as an excellent son, Cheng Dongfeng felt unusually childish.

  "Hey, go sit in that waiting pavilion over there, I'll go buy you a bottle of soda!" Although Cheng Dongfeng looks chubby, he's actually quite frail. Seeing him drenched in sweat, Cheng Xiaodong couldn't help but worry.

  "Xiao Dong, don't...don't run anymore, I have water in my bag!" Cheng Dongfeng saw his son's worried face and felt delighted, but he couldn't bear to spend two cents on soda, so he quickly pulled out a plastic water bottle from his bag, unscrewed it and took a sip.

  "'Cold water'?" Cheng Xiaodong stretched out his hand to touch the teapot and frowned.

  "It's Liang Bai Kai, Liang Bai Kai", Cheng Dongfeng hastily explained, and quickly pulled his son to the waiting pavilion.

  "Cheng Xiaodong!" Under the cool pavilion, three slender girls were waiting for the bus. Seeing Cheng Xiaodong's excited greeting, they looked at the unremarkable person beside him and curiously asked: "Is he your relative?"

  "It's Dad!" Cheng Xiaodong nodded and let Cheng Dongfeng sit on the cement stool, pulled out a folding fan from his bag and fanned his father.

  "Uncle is well!" Although the greeting was as usual, the expression couldn't hide the surprise. The father and son were intimate in their manner, but their appearances were worlds apart.

  "Dad, I'll go say goodbye to my tutoring student later. Tonight, classmates are organizing a gathering. Where will you be staying? I'll send you back first, and we can head out together tomorrow." After saying goodbye to his father and three female classmates, Cheng Xiaodong said to his father.

  "Alright, I know you're busy after graduation. I've already found a hotel, so I'll head back myself later, no need for you to send me off. Class reunions must cost money, right? Do you have any left?" As he spoke, Cheng Dongfeng undid the two buttons on his waistband and pulled out a coarse cloth pouch, grabbed a handful from it without counting how much, and directly handed it over to his son.

  "Dad! You......" The street was crowded with people coming and going, and there were also three classmates over there, so it wasn't a good time to drag him. Cheng Xiaodong had no choice but to put the money away, just as a taxi happened to be driving by, Cheng Xiaodong stretched out his hand to hail the cab.

  "Dad, you take this taxi back to the hotel and rest well. Don't suffer from hunger or thirst. We'll take the 5 o'clock bus tomorrow afternoon together!" He pushed his father into the taxi, not caring that Cheng Dongfeng was grumbling about how expensive it was, and only then did he tell the driver to start the car.

  "Cheng Xiaodong? Was that really your father?" The three female classmates asked curiously as they waited for the bus to leave.

  "Is there a true or false father? He is my dad!" Cheng Dongfeng was short and fat, with a somewhat lewd appearance... he didn't even need makeup to play the role of a fatty. He looked very different from young Cheng Xiaodong, who had encountered this kind of questioning too many times since childhood.

  "It really doesn't look like it, but Uncle is indeed rich!" Seeing Cheng Xiaodong's calm expression, the three female classmates didn't dare to discuss further, but they couldn't help but describe how generous Cheng Dongfeng was when giving money earlier.

  "It's okay, just doing some small business!" But in his heart, Cheng Xiaodong was secretly amused. For more than 20 years of father-son relationship, they understood each other the most deeply. The tone Cheng Dongfeng used earlier was simply intentional. Since he surpassed him in height at the age of ten or so, his father had been using this rich man's attitude to regain his dignity as a parent.

  Cheng Dongfeng originally worked in a clothing factory in his hometown, running procurement and sales. After the factory's poor performance, Cheng Dongfeng resolutely went into business on his own, but the current market is not very mature, so he has to work hard, at least it's better than working in the factory.

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