Siheyuan: Relieve stress and relieve worries

Chapter 406 Gambling Trap
In August, the hot autumn weather swept across the city. Kodak Company purchased a batch of air conditioners, and Yan Jiekuang installed them in the study, dining room and central hall of his home. Xiaohai stayed in the study all day and never went out. Yan Jiekuang couldn't stand it anymore, so he kicked him out and told him that he would catch a cold if he always used the air conditioner.

Xiao Hai reluctantly went to the back garden to find Xixi. Da Wang and Xiao Wang had grown so big that it felt like the back garden could no longer accommodate them. It would be better if they were sent to the farm in Fangshan, but Xixi wouldn't let her. The little girl started crying when she mentioned sending them away. I don't know who she learned her acting skills from, but she cried so easily.

Little Fatty carried a few bottles of iced soda from the front yard and walked towards the back garden. Big Fatty was busy in the studio and never left the house. He said that before going to college, he wanted to make a fully automatic ice-making machine and was busy there all day.

In the past, it was Xiaopang who never went home, but now it is Shi Li who never goes home. She goes out every day and no one knows where she goes. She carries her stamp albums with her every day and when you ask her about it, she won’t tell you and just says she’s going out to play with her classmates.

Yan Jiekuang is almost losing control of his children, but he knows that these children have grown up, and only Xiaohai and Xixi are still clinging to him, while the other children have their own things to do.

Yan Bugui and his wife called him from Bijie, Guizhou, and said that they would live there for a while. Mainly because Yan Bugui worked as a temporary teacher in a village, An Ran and An Rui also served as temporary teachers, and Yang Ruiping took care of Yan Bugui's daily life.

On this day, Yan Jiecheng found Yan Jiekuang and took him out to eat. Yan Jiekuang refused and said, "Brother, if you want to drink, let's eat at home. I'll cook a few dishes. Look at my family. Can I leave?"

Yan Jiecheng thought so too, so he said, "Okay, let's eat at home. You go cook the dishes. I'll wait for you in the main hall. I heard that your main hall has an air conditioner installed."

Yan Jiekuang worked in the kitchen for a while, made a few cold dishes, and brought them to the main hall. He then went to his study to get a bottle of wine and started drinking with Yan Jiecheng.

Yan Jiekuang asked, "Brother, what's the matter? Why are you looking for me to drink in the afternoon?"

Yan Jiecheng clinked glasses with Yan Jiekuang, took a sip of wine, and then said, "Old Third, I heard that you opened a supermarket for my younger sister?"

"No, she wanted to open a supermarket herself and borrowed money from me. She has to pay it back," said Yan Jiekuang.

Yan Jiecheng looked at Yan Jiekuang and said, "You can't favor one over the other. Your elder brother is in a difficult situation right now. You have to help me."

Yan Jiekuang chuckled and said, "You are so ungrateful for what you have. My sister-in-law is so capable. Your family's restaurant is making a lot of money, right? Your grandson is already one year old, right? What are you doing?"

Yan Jiecheng turned out all his pockets and pulled out twenty yuan, slapped it on the table, and said, "Your sister-in-law doesn't give me any money at all. I only give me a hundred yuan a month, including money for cigarettes. You can't even stand up straight outside."

When Yan Jiekuang heard this, he knew that the sister-in-law was indeed a bit strict, but not to this extent, so he said, "No way, aren't you helping out at the restaurant? How can she not pay you?"

Yan Jiecheng was hesitant and couldn't explain clearly. Yan Jiekuang saw that there must be something wrong, so he said, "Brother, we are brothers, we have to tell the truth, otherwise how can I help you?"

Yan Jiecheng sighed and told what happened in his family some time ago. It turned out that a few months ago, Yu Li was still paying Yan Jiecheng a salary every month. In today's society, when waiters only earn three to five hundred yuan, Yu Li gave Yan Jiecheng one thousand yuan every month, which was already a lot.

Yan Jiecheng, apart from helping out in the restaurant, had nothing to do all day, so he just wandered around. One day, he suddenly discovered a large game hall. Seeing so many people coming in and out, he became curious and followed them in. When he went in, he saw that it was a poker machine. Many people were playing it, and he learned how to play after watching for a while.

Curiosity made Yan Jiecheng go up and try it. After a short while, the money in his pocket doubled and he also won a few packs of cigarettes. Just this one time, he got addicted, and within a month, he lost everything.

After that, he asked Yu Li for money in various ways. Yu Li thought he was useful for some purpose at first, so she gave him some. Later, Yan Jiecheng's appetite became bigger and bigger, and he asked for one thousand yuan at a time. Yu Li flatly refused and later refused to give him a penny. Yan Jiecheng knew that what he did was wrong, but he always wanted to make back his capital before stopping. Later, he asked Yan Yongqing for money again. Yan Yongqing was a poor man, so he didn't get the money. But Yan Yongqing told his mother about it.

Yu Li then realized that there was something wrong with Yan Jiecheng, so she followed him secretly with her son. Seeing Yan Jiecheng playing the poker machine, she was furious. Yu Li demanded a divorce from him. Yan Jiecheng knew the seriousness of the matter this time, so he went home and apologized and made promises to Yu Li. Yu Li asked him to write a letter of guarantee and stated that if it happened again, Yan Jiecheng would be kicked out of the house.

Yan Jiecheng was frightened and never went to that kind of place again. However, from then on until now, Yu Li has strictly controlled the money in his pocket, only one hundred yuan a month, not a penny more, which made Yan Jiecheng very painful.

One day, Yan Jiedi went to her eldest brother's restaurant for dinner and mentioned her plan to open a supermarket. Yan Jiecheng thought that if he wanted to ask the third brother to invest in him, he could do some business on his own and have some cash on hand. That's why he came to her today.

After listening to his elder brother's experience, Yan Jiekuang also felt a sense of disappointment and said, "Brother, our father has taught us since we were young not to touch pornography, gambling, or drugs. How come you didn't remember it? If our father knew about this, he would definitely slap you in the face."

Yan Jiecheng had a sad face and said, "Third brother, it's enough for you to know about this, but don't tell our parents."

Yan Jiekuang thought for a while and said, "Brother, investment is impossible. Don't even think about it. You have poor self-control. I think my sister-in-law is right. You should discuss everything with her. Have you ever thought that if you really leave the hotel, my sister-in-law will really divorce you?"

When Yan Jiecheng heard this, he shuddered. Thinking about it carefully, it was indeed possible, so he immediately dismissed the idea.

Yan Jiekuang continued, "If you want to drink, come to me, but if you want to borrow money or invest, don't ask, unless your sister-in-law comes to me."

Yan Jiecheng finally understood, so he chatted with Yan Jiekuang about other things, had a drink, and left. Shi Lei came over and said to his father, "Dad, I've also heard of this kind of gambling machine. Many of my classmates are playing it. Don't they know it's gambling?"

Yan Jiekuang said: "They know everything, but they are deeply involved and cannot extricate themselves. Such people do not deserve sympathy. By the way, if such classmates ask you to borrow money, don't lend it to them, because they will definitely lose."

Shi Lei said, "Don't worry, I know my limits, Dad. I want to learn how to drive."

"Okay, you go find your mother tomorrow. The company has a car class and someone can teach you." Yan Jiekuang said.

Shi Lei said happily: "Okay, I'll go tomorrow."

After seeing his elder brother off, Yan Jiekuang made a cup of tea and went to the study to relax as he still had to cook in the evening.

In fact, many people in the society have fallen into it. Someone in the Jia family is also deeply trapped in it, that is Jia Geng. He was brought into the game hall by a colleague. For a period of time afterwards, he won and lost, but overall he lost. Later, he became more and more addicted to playing, until he lost all his money. Then he started to ask his wife Tang Yanling for money. Tang Yanling inherited the excellent qualities of Qin Huairu and Jia Zhangshi, that is, money can only come in but not go out. To be honest, Tang Yanling didn't give him a penny.

Jia Geng thought about it and decided that his mother would definitely not be able to help, so his father was the only one left. He found Jia Dongxu who was busy at the hotel and said, "Dad, I have something to talk to you about."

"What can you do? Can't you see I'm busy? If I don't finish cleaning up here, your mother will nag me again soon." Jia Dongxu said.

When Jia Geng saw that his father was not going out, he gritted his teeth and said directly: "Dad, can you lend me some money?"

Hearing Jia Geng's words, Jia Dongxu was amused and said, "Do you think I have money in my pocket? Your mother bought my cigarettes and alcohol. Do you think I have money in my pocket?"

When Jia Geng heard this, he knew that what his father said must be true, so he stopped talking and turned away.

While walking on the street, he thought of his grandmother. His grandmother still loved him very much, so he was sure he could borrow money. So he ran to the Qianmen courtyard. When he got there, he saw an iron lock on the door. His grandmother was not there. Where did the old lady go?
The neighbor next door just came out of his house. When he saw that it was Jia Geng, he smiled and said, "Jia Geng, look for your grandma. She is in the teahouse in Courtyard No. 95. Your grandma is the owner now."

Jia Geng was stunned. What was going on with this grandma? He said thank you and ran to the teahouse.

When we arrived at the teahouse, we greeted her warmly and said, "Grandma, I'm here to see you."

Jia Zhang was sitting leisurely. When she saw that it was Jia Geng, she said, "Oh, my eldest grandson, you still remember to visit your grandmother. How long have you not seen me?"

Jia Geng scratched his head and said, "I'm busy with work, so I'm here."

"Yes, you came here empty-handed? You don't come here for no reason. Tell me, what's the matter?" Jia Zhang said with a pout.

Jia Geng felt a little embarrassed, but he still said, "Grandma, do you have any money in your pocket? Lend me some first. I need it urgently."

Jia Zhang looked at Jia Geng suspiciously. This was the first time her eldest grandson had asked him for money, so there must be something wrong. So she said, "I still have 10-20 yuan notes. I don't have any more. Do you want to borrow some?"

Jia Geng was anxious and said, "That's not enough. Lend me 200 yuan and I'll pay you back."

Jia Zhang shook her head and said, "No, by the way, why did you borrow so much money? You didn't go to play the gambling machines, did you? I'm telling you, you can't touch that thing. The kid from the Zhang family in Juer Hutong lost a house in one month. Did you hear that?"

Jia Geng quickly denied it and said, "No, I'm not playing, I'm really useful."

Jia Zhang pointed in the direction of Qin Huairu's hotel and said, "Go straight, turn left after three alleys, there is a man named Qin Huairu, he is very rich, go there."

When Jia Geng heard this, he looked bitter, knowing that he would not get any money from his grandmother, so he said goodbye and left.

Jia Zhang thought about it, and then said to Yi Zhonghai's wife next to her: "Aunt Cuilan, please help me watch it for a while. I have something to do outside."

As soon as she finished speaking, Jia Zhang hurriedly ran towards her son's hotel.

(End of this chapter)