money player

Chapter 107 Big Business, Small Business

"Are there any chicken cakes or sesame candy?"

Wang Xiali took the bag from Wang Xiamin's hand, lowered her head and rummaged through it. She didn't find the food she mentioned, but she found peck candy, egg waffles, and smelled the smell of Shaoxing stinky tofu. It was sweet and put it aside. First take out the oil paper of the stinky tofu, twist a piece and put it in your mouth. While eating it, you say it smells bad.

Wang Xiamin looked at Wang Xiali eating several pieces of stinky tofu with a kind face, then she straightened her face and said sternly: "Why are you at home?"

Seeing the stern expression on Wang Xiamin's face, Wang Xiali took a step back in fright, "Sister, I'm bleeding, a lot, and my pants are stained."

In families where parents have to work hard to fill their stomachs, parents don’t have much time to take care of their children. Often, the eldest brother and eldest sister need to share a large part of the parents’ responsibilities for teaching and caring for their children. This is probably what the eldest brother is like father, and the eldest sister is like mother. The origin of.

Wang Xiali is almost eight years older than Wang Xiamin, and she has been taken care of by Wang Xiamin since she was born. Most of her "fear" for her mother falls on Wang Xiamin.

Hearing Wang Xiali's answer, Wang Xiamin's face suddenly turned into a kind smile, "It's menarche, Ali is also a big girl, don't drink cold water or buy soda these days..."

Wang Xiamin gave a lot of instructions and didn't stop until Wang Xiali finished eating the stinky tofu.

When Wang Xiali was about to eat egg waffles, Wang Xiamin's mother who was standing by couldn't stand it anymore. She stepped forward and snatched the bag from Wang Xiali's hand, "Eat, eat, eat, you still eat, I'll be reincarnated as a starving ghost, it's a little bit edible." Do you have to eat it all at once?"

Looking at the bag that was snatched away, Wang Xiali pursed her lips and muttered: "If you don't eat it now, there will be no share for me when my brother comes back."

"Mom, tell me, what have you done, why do you want to collect money?" Seeing my mother jumping out, Wang Xiamin became angry, "Do you know that it was your husband who ordered this?" During the New Year holidays, when did your husband fail to express his gratitude to the family? As long as things are done well, he will forget about the benefits of his mother.
What have you done?

What would my husband think of me if he knew?

Mom, I give 120 yuan to my family every month. Isn’t it enough for the family’s expenses?
Do you know that the money was given by your husband?

Do you know that if I am kicked out, I will no longer be there? "

"I didn't ask for it, they gave it to them themselves. It's so shameless to ask for it back after giving it to me." Wang Xiamin's mother said without confidence.

Wang Xiamin knew her mother's temper very well. She didn't want to have any more meaningless arguments, so she just said with a dark face: "How much money did you get in total? Who was there?"

As soon as money was mentioned, Wang Xiamin's mother jumped up and said, "Nanny, do you really want to send it back?"

"Mom? Do you understand the big and small accounts?"

"270 yuan, you have to pay for it yourself, I don't have it." Wang Xiamin's mother stretched her neck, and the iron cock and Pixiu were on her body at the same time.

"Take the money. If you don't take it, I won't pay home next month."

Wang Xiamin naturally has her own private money, and the number is larger than 270, but it is not a matter of life and death. She will never take it out. The husband said that besides taking care of the family, girls should also plan for themselves and keep some for themselves. Money can give you the confidence to deal with troubles.

"No money." Wang Xiamin's mother's neck was even more irritated.

"Ali, let's go. You can spend time with Sister A from now on." Wang Xiamin took Wang Xiali's hand and made a gesture to walk out.

You have Zhang Liangji, I have a wall ladder. Wang Xiamin's mother didn't like Wang Xiamin's tricks. She sat on the ground and howled, "Mom, God, please open your eyes and take a good look. I I raised my daughter like this by pooping and peeing, but now that her wings are hardened, she no longer cares about the family, grandma..."

While howling, she observed Wang Xiamin's reaction. Seeing that Wang Xiamin refused to take her medicine, she tried her best to squeeze out a few tears, and howled even more sadly.

Who is Wang Xiamin's mother? Fang Yuanzhu, a famous mourner in Hang County. If there is a funeral in a ten-mile radius, she will be invited to cry for three days. She was awarded the title of "Moving the King of Hell" twice in 1941 and 1942. She cried loudly. To her, it is as innate as breathing, as natural as nature.

"Ali, sister will take you to a restaurant for dinner tonight. I'll order you two Dongpo pork elbows, a large plate of braised pork, and a fish..."

Wang Xiali's head started to spin, and words covered in saliva came out of her mouth, "Sister, that's enough, that's enough. I can't finish eating any more."

"It doesn't matter. Sister earns a lot. You don't have to pay money to your family in the future. You can eat as much as you want, sister."

"Okay."

Wang Xiali nodded happily. Although she knew in her heart that what her sister said would not come true, she still couldn't help but live in her fantasy. How could the little girl not be greedy?

Since Wang Xiamin started working at Xian Yaowen's family, the Wang family has actually become a strong contender for the richest family in Shek Kip Mei. Wang Xiamin pays a sum every month, plus her grandmother and parents are not idle, so they can always make money every month. I can earn dozens of yuan, and still have a monthly income of 200 cents.

Despite this, the Wang family's food is not very good, it can only ensure that they are full. Meat and meat are almost rare, and the rare fish and meat are mostly bought by Wang Xiamin. Fang Yuanzhu holds the money very tightly, and he does not want to eat. She knows how to spend money blindly and doesn't spend too much for her family members. Let's talk about Wang Xiali. Most of the clothes she wears are Wang Xiamin's old clothes. There are one or two decent ones made by Wang Xiamin.

Speaking of exceptions, there are some. Fang Yuanzhu secretly gives Wang Songgen ten yuan of pocket money every week. This generous gesture is simply terrifying. You must know that there are many people in Shek Kip Mei whose monthly income is less than thirty yuan, but they can make The family lives a good life, and every two or three months they can cut off some meat for a tooth ceremony.

Fang Yuanzhu saw Wang Xiamin playing against herself and showing no concessions. She knew her eldest daughter was bluffing, but she still couldn't help but feel flustered. She had no choice, she was the weaker side and she couldn't afford to lose.

No one gave her a ladder, so she could climb down by herself. She stood up from the ground, dusted off the dust on her buttocks and behind her thighs, twisted her waist and walked deeper into the house. After a while, she was holding a dirty bag. The rag head came back.

Open the end of the rag to reveal the oil paper inside, peel off the oil paper, and reveal the handkerchief inside, and then open it again to find a roll of banknotes. While counting the money, he muttered, "Damn girl, I fed you in vain. Turn your elbows outward, two hundred and seventy, enough to give your brother a housewife."

"Mom, as long as you find the right person quickly, not to mention two hundred and seventy-seven, even Mr. seven hundred and two will give it to you."

"Really?" Fang Yuanzhu, who was counting the money, raised his head and said.

Wang Xiamin expressed helplessness that her mother was smart in small things and confused in big things, "Really, it's just more, not less."

Hearing this, Fang Yuanzhu's hands became nimble, and after a while he counted out two hundred and seven, put away the rest, and said to Wang Xiamin: "You don't need to go to refund the money. I will go by myself. You can make dinner before leaving. I’m going to visit other villages.”

Fang Yuanzhu turned into a gust of wind, hid the money and went out happily. Before leaving, he didn't forget to give Wang Xiali an egg waffle and hid the rest of the food.

After Fang Yuanzhu left, the two sisters went to sit by the door. Wang Xiali bit her egg waffle and said pitifully: "Sister, I want to eat meat."

Wang Xiamin stroked Wang Xiali's hair and said affectionately: "Go to my sister's place when you go to school tomorrow morning. My sister will buy you a basket and you can take it to school to eat."

[Danlan means to beat the cold, and now it means to eat Teochew food. In Hong Kong in the 50s, there was no such term. In the eyes of most people, the basket means braised food, and buying a basket means buying braised food. ]
Wang Xiali nodded and said sweetly: "Sister, you are so kind."

In the evening, Xian Yaowen returned home and saw someone setting up a curtain in front of the People's Convenience Store. It was not too big, and it didn't look like a movie curtain, but more like a slideshow.

After parking the car, I stood at the door of the garage and took a few glances before going up to the fourth floor.

In the living room, the gramophone played Yao Li's "Golden Bird". Su Lizhen stepped on the nodes and danced in the air. Xian Yaowen entered the living room, feeling a little weird in his heart. He didn't understand why Su Lizhen played this song, "Golden Bird". The first lyric is "golden bird in a golden cage". It is self-evident what the song expresses.

After being stunned for a moment, Xian Yaowen walked towards Su Lizhen and danced with her for less than a minute in the air.

After dancing, Su Lizhen helped Xian Yaowen wash up.

After wiping his face, Xian Yaowen handed the towel to Su Lizhen, "There is a slide show downstairs. Do you know what it is showing?"

"I don't know." Su Lizhen took the towel and put it in the basin to rinse. "The slides are frame by frame, and they are not as good as a movie."

"It's suitable for advertising." Xian Yaowen said unconsciously, and then said to Su Lizhen: "Bring me a pack of cigarettes. After dinner, let's go down and join in the fun."

Su Lizhen went to the closet to get a pack of cigarettes, and Xian Yaowen pocketed them. After Su Lizhen finished packing, they went downstairs to have dinner.

During the meal, Wang Xiamin took the initiative to explain Fang Yuanzhu's collection of money.

After hearing this, Xian Yaowen was not angry, but just smiled and said: "Amin, your mother's eyesight is a bit shallow, and she is not smart enough in handling things. This kind of money can only be collected from the most reliable one. Whoever collects it will definitely give up." Something happened. Tell your mother that when she finds the right one, she will be given room to operate. I want to see how much money your mother can receive."

Wang Xiamin was surprised and said: "Sir, are you not angry?"

"What's there to be angry about? Since ancient times, matchmakers have always had both ends. As long as they can get things done, getting some benefits is nothing." Xian Yaowen turned over the newspaper, glanced at the title, and then said: "Being a matchmaker It’s pretty good, it’s better than doing manual work. Your mother might consider becoming a full-time matchmaker.”

"No, my mother-in-law can't do this." Wang Xiamin didn't trust her mother-in-law at all. She only did it once and it made her go crazy. If she really wanted to be a matchmaker full-time, she was afraid that her house would be given away. .

Xian Yaowen just said this casually. Wang Xiamin was not happy, so he naturally wouldn't mention it more.

"How are your brothers and sisters doing with their homework?"

"Ali's grades are very good, but Songgen doesn't work hard enough, so his grades are a bit poor."

"You're a good little girl, but do you still like eating meat that much?"

"Ah."

Wang Xiamin felt a little shy when she thought of Ali's eating appearance that day.

"In the future, call her over for dinner more often and eat with her, and your appetite will be better."

"Sir, is this appropriate?" Wang Xiamin was very moved.

"There's nothing inappropriate. You are my close friend, so you don't have to be careful."

"Ah."

After eating, Xian Yaowen took Su Lizhen downstairs to the entrance of the People's Convenience Store. The slide show had already started to play. A woman stood in front of the slide projector to control it, and a man patrolled around, looking for someone to collect the tickets. Only adults and children were accepted. The child refused to accept it and looked at the gold coins being passed around, thinking they must be Dou Ling.

Dou Ling is a Hong Kong dollar coin with a face value of five cents. This term comes from the "Zhi Chen code" of the silver code transaction in Yangcheng City. The numbers 1 to 9 are represented by , Chen, Dou, Ma, Su, Zero, Hou, Zhuang and Wan respectively. .

Earlier, the Five Immortals coins were made of silver and weighed 1.37 grams, equivalent to 3 cents and 6 centimeters (0.036 taels), so they were called "Sanliu" and were replaced by the Zhichen code, which happened to be Dou Ling.

For a penny, you can buy a bowl of porridge or a fried dough stick on the street. It is not expensive to watch a slide show. Although you have a clear view of the viewing venue and are not surrounded by people, if you are shameless, you can watch it without paying, but it is not expensive. Some people still want to save face, and the men collect the money fairly smoothly.

Taking Su Lizhen's hand to the back of the crowd, Xian Yaowen looked up at the curtain and saw a photo on it - a clown with a mustache holding two wrenches in his hands, staring at a person in a funny but not obscene manner. Woman's butt.

The woman standing in front of the slide projector held a loudspeaker in her hand, speaking a narration that had almost nothing to do with the actual content of the photo, but it was fascinating. The crowd listened infatuatedly, and was led into a pale yellow world by her voice. world.

With a click, the slide changed, and the woman transitioned with the story from the previous slide.

Someone in the crowd obviously knew the origin of the second photo. Words such as "The Great Dictator" and "Chaplin" floated out from the crowd. Su Lizhen also leaned into Xian Yaowen's ear and said: "I have seen this movie, it is very good. , I won’t be able to see it the second time I look at it.”

"why?"

"Banned."

"Oh."

"The ban was lifted two months later, but by that time I had no money to watch it." Su Lizhen said regretfully, "I really want to watch it again."

"There will be a chance."

Xian Yaowen said vaguely, never mentioning a more romantic way to solve Su Lizhen's regrets.

Most of the theaters showing Western films have copies of "The Great Dictator". As long as the theater is reserved, the theater will be very happy to show a show specifically for them. However, the input of this kind of romance is not proportional to the output, so he will not consider it for the time being, maybe in the future. When the concubine comes in, she will give Su Lizhen a surprise as an appeasement.

"Buy a ticket, it's zero for a penny."

While he was thinking about it, the man who just collected the ticket money had already arrived in front of Xian Yaowen.

Xian Yaowen looked at the man, pointed at Su Lizhen, and said: "I am the landlord here. I don't have any change with me. The money for the two of us will be deducted from the electricity bill."

The man was surprised and said, "Mr. Xian, I got my electricity from the grocery store."

"You all know that my surname is Xian, haven't you found out that the store is also mine?" Xian Yaowen smiled and took out a cigarette and gave one to the man, "What do you call the boss?"

The man took the cigarette and said self-deprecatingly: "I'm just a slideshow player. I don't dare to call myself the boss. Mr. Xian, your family has a big business and you are the boss."

"You're welcome. No matter how big or small the business is, you can call me boss as long as you do business." Xian Yaowen lit the lighter and put it towards the man's mouth.

Seeing the light of the fire, the man was stunned for a moment, then he came closer to light the cigarette, thanked him first, and then introduced himself: "My surname is Qiu, Qiu Degen."

"It turns out to be Boss Qiu. Is Boss Qiu out filming every night?"

"As long as it doesn't rain, I will run outside." Qiu Degen was surprised that the big landlords of several buildings in front of him would be interested in him showing the slideshow.

"I just nodded the heads. There are 127 people in total, 83 adults. Are these people considered too many or too few?"

"Not too much, not too little."

Seeing Qiu Degen's vague answer, Xian Yaowen knew that the other party was wary of him, so he did not intend to follow the rhythm and step by step, and directly threw out his goal, "You can't make much in one night. Boss Qiu, do you want to make more?" "

Qiu Degen cupped his fists and said, "Please give me some advice, Mr. Xian."

"I'll provide the slides and stories, and you'll add one scene each time you run the film. I'll pay you three yuan for each scene."

As a former small theater owner, Qiu Degen knew the elegant meaning of Xiange when he heard it, and his shrewdness instantly went from the soles of his feet to the sky, "Mr. Xian, you want to advertise, but this price is not acceptable."

[Don’t think it’s out of the ordinary. One of the main uses of slides at that time was to display advertisements. As an industry insider, it’s natural to be transparent. ]
Xian Yaowen smiled lightly and said: "Boss Qiu, please don't forget that you are just a small boss running a movie, not a big boss with several theaters. Three yuan is already a lot of money for free."

“Mr.

"Boss Qiu makes a lot of sense. Doing business for three yuan is indeed beneath my status. Boss Qiu, let's talk about the business in a big way. Don't talk about three yuan a day, just say eighty yuan a month." Xian Yaowen said seriously. Said: "Also, the occasion for business discussion is not formal enough. I invite Boss Qiu to go to the office of Zhonghua Garments in Tuen Mun at ten o'clock tomorrow morning for discussion."

"I'll be there on time."

"Boss Qiu, you are busy first, I will continue watching the show." With a polite word, Xian Yaowen turned around and returned his gaze to the curtain.

Su Lizhen stood next to him and recounted to him the plot that he had just missed.

Qiu Degen, who was left there, was not in a calm mood at the moment. He vaguely felt that he had encountered an opportunity. It was very hazy under the veil and he couldn't see through it for a while.

After thinking for a while, he still couldn't figure it out. The previous scene was almost over, and it was his turn to narrate the next scene. He had to put his thoughts aside, cleared his throat, walked to the slide projector, and waited quietly for himself. The wife finished reading the last narration.

Xian Yaowen watched one scene, and without waiting to watch the second one, he went to the rooftop of Building 2 and stood at the top of the stairs to watch Xian Yaowu give an unexpected English lesson to Gu and Dong.

William Chan Law Firm has an English-speaking environment, and Xian Yaowu is exposed to it. He learns and uses it every day, and is exposed to difficult-to-explain legal provisions from the very beginning. After surviving the hellish week, Xian Yaowu naturally improved by leaps and bounds.

Xian Yaowu's English proficiency is already good enough to serve as an interpreter in the police force. When he returns from Africa, arrangements can be made for him to join the police force.

Xian Yaowen is quite satisfied with this cheap younger brother. Apart from being a bit coquettish, there is nothing major wrong with him.

After standing quietly and watching for a while, he left quietly again.

the next day.

It was just early nine o'clock, and Qiu Degen had already arrived at the gate of Zhonghua Garments. When he looked in through the open iron door, he immediately marveled at the size of the factory.

(End of this chapter)