Chapter 4 The Flavor of That Bowl of Braised Chicken with Mushrooms

  Su Cang forgot the printing and copying shop in 1998, where A4 paper was very expensive, one sheet cost 1.5 yuan, some students lost their books, re-printing a copy would be almost priceless, even within the school there might only be one or two precious copiers, to save on paper costs, so some test papers used ink printing, such as these internal exercises issued by Dong Qingyun.

  Compared to the prevalence of typing and printing shops 11 years later, as well as the development of price indexes and per capita purchasing power, the universal price of two cents per copy, with discounts for bundled copies, indeed reflects the earth-shaking changes brought about by the development of market economy under reform and opening-up, and is indeed a fruitful outcome.

  However, five cents is indeed just five cents. In this era where personal finances are strictly controlled, Su Can only discovered that he had empty pockets, not even a single cent.

  In the end, Tang Yu paid for the printing herself. Su Can was naturally very grateful and it seemed that their class monitor wasn't as cold and intimidating as he had imagined. At least from her pretended indifference, he could see her kind heart and personality.

  Indifference, perhaps just to pretend to protect herself, this may also be a necessary factor for her future success.

  Success...hmm...right!

  Su Can suddenly realized what was the important thing he had thought of before about Tang Yu!

  Suddenly recalling such a memory made Su Can break out in cold sweat, and when he looked at the boss who was helping him pay with 10 yuan, he found Tang Yu.

  Beautiful girl, perfect proportions, slender fingers, and even the blinking charming eyes, already have the outline of a future beauty. Su Can's heart remembered this moment, but suddenly had a kind of heart-wrenching pain.

  Su Can recalled a report he saw online in 2006, "Tang Yu is the director of the new project department of Morning Star International. This beautiful and independent woman, who has made a name for herself in the industry, is the focus of everyone's attention, with countless halos surrounding her. I believe that anyone who sees Tang Yu for the first time will think that it's a pity she didn't become a star... This outstanding female broker, who has manipulated billions of funds in the securities market, ultimately failed to manage her own love life. The romantic relationship that began in her student days eventually succumbed to the test of time and the temptations of the world. Tang Yu finally fell out of love with her boyfriend due to her feelings for a diamond-level client she met through work, as well as the constant bickering with her boyfriend in their daily life, which led to a tragic ending... No matter what, the beautiful woman from back then ultimately disappeared like smoke. Even the most beautiful, strong, and independent person will only end up in tragedy if they can't carefully cultivate their own love. Is this a warning to our rapidly changing society?"

  Tang Wei, the class leader in front of her own eyes, was also an excellent woman in the future. However, she eventually met a tragic end and was murdered by her boyfriend. Throughout the process, Tang Wei's boyfriend could not bear to accept the fact that their breakup had already been decided and his own shattered self-esteem. With a calm mind and thorough preparation, he brought a knife and told Tang Wei, who was already living in a rich businessman's villa, to meet him for the last time. Tang Wei's heart softened, and she agreed to the meeting. However, she ultimately refused her boyfriend's request to reunite again. Unexpectedly, in the end, she was stabbed in the heart by her enraged boyfriend and died on the spot.

  The beauty of Tang Yu's appearance coincided with the tranquility in front of her, and Su Can didn't expect that the warm sunlight would bring such a huge shock to herself.

  Maybe that's life, seemingly ordinary but actually turbulent, because no one can predict and measure what will happen in the future from this moment on.

  Su Can held the photocopied exercises in his hand, staring blankly at the departure of Tang Yu, Cheng Yun, and Cheng Lan, a pair of twins.

  Dong Qingyun naturally followed Tang Yu, accompanying her for a while, which was also good.

  It's just that today, Tang Yu actually paid the bill for Su Can herself, and what's even more hateful is that this kid finally stared at Tang Yu with a blank expression, his face looking like he was shocked by her beauty, it's really too presumptuous!

  Dong Qingyun, who had originally wanted to teach Su Can a good lesson, changed his mind and let it go. After all, graduation was just around the corner, and he and Tang Yu were both aiming for the provincial key school, First Municipal Middle School, while Su Can would likely spend his whole life stuck in the second-rate Third Middle School, not to mention his grades, which doomed him to a bleak future as a lower-class citizen.

  Just get ready to move your stool and enjoy his tragic life being ruthlessly washed out in the college entrance exam!

  ···

  Su Can walked listlessly along the familiar route back to his residential unit, where everything he saw was a reminder of the old city's landscape. At that time, Xia Hai had not yet been granted national-level tourist city status and did not have several billion invested in rapid transformation. Even the construction of a central square took three or four years, and the urban area developed at a slow pace. The urban economy was not good, and industry was underdeveloped. Su Can's home was still located south of the city center, but all around were buildings constructed in the style of the 1980s.

  My family moved into a new house in 1997, which was the first time I had moved in over a decade and also the only time. Even in 2009, my parents still lived in that original house.

  But I went back to 1998, my family had just moved into the new house for less than a year. This was a house built by the collective investment of my parents' work unit, which was also a commodity house with epoch-making significance at that time. Of course, it was given priority to internal employees and prohibited from being sold externally.

  And this set of commodity housing emptied the income that was already spent on ordinary institutions for most of their lives as workers. In my impression, Su Can lost in the 1998 college entrance examination with a difference of more than ten points and failed to get into the high school department of the Third Middle School. To enter the First Middle School, which is a provincial key school, with Su Can's score at that time, there was a gap of at least eighty points or more, and it was impossible to make up for the difference even if they had spent tens of thousands of yuan.

  Now that Su Can's family can no longer afford to pay for his education due to their financial difficulties, missing the college entrance exam is another blow. The 5,000 yuan tuition fee may not seem like a lot now, and Su Can could have afforded it if he had tightened his belt for two months. However, at that time, it was undoubtedly a heavy blow to a family that had already depleted their savings.

  What was deeply etched in Su Can's memory was that at the time, her relatives on her mother's side were also urgently in need of money. Her mother was worried about this sum of money and secretly wiped away tears. Her father's face, which was normally resolute, furrowed his brow into a "川" shape. As a result, for a very long time afterwards, Su Can deliberately ignored this sad memory.

  Now it occurs to him that he indeed knew that money is always a person, even the source of a happy family life. Especially in future economically developed societies, money represents status and success values to some extent.

  The building in front of him made Su Can slightly excited, and if he hadn't seen the newly painted walls and familiar elderly neighbors who looked ten years younger waving at him from the courtyard, Su Can would have thought that he hadn't arrived eleven years later, and for a moment, he even thought he was still in 2009.

  "Mom... I'm back." The kitchen still had a special stove for stewing things with beehive coal, which didn't quite match the tile-floored kitchen, but it was originally chosen for its energy efficiency. Although the stove had been removed later on. Su Can looked at his parents busily chopping vegetables in the kitchen, the air filled with the savory aroma of braised chicken and mushrooms, and his eyes became moist once again.

  The two elders turned around, and the old mother was already smiling, "Why did you come back later than usual today? The meal is almost ready. I stewed chicken for you. My son is about to take the college entrance exam, so eat up to nourish your brain. Mom is expecting a good score from you!"

  Mom looks eleven years younger, although she has gained some weight, but her eyebrows still have a lingering charm. She also has a hint of cleverness, and later when mom was laid off, she opened a small shop by herself, the business is barely passable, that's another story.

  "Dad sighed and said, 'Well, from kindergarten onwards, your parents have paid a high price for you. This time, it's up to you, son. But with your current grades, I'm getting annoyed...' "

  The old mother secretly pinched the old father's waist, her face already changed, "I said you're like this! At this critical moment, you don't even encourage your son, what do you want him to do? Not work hard and get into a bad school? What's the point of reading?"

  Dad knew he had misspoken and nodded repeatedly, "Yes, yes, that's right! This time we'll just follow your lead!"

  Looking at his father's face, Su Can nodded vigorously and tried hard not to let tears fall. His father, who had been a soldier eleven years ago, now had wrinkles all over his face, and his originally straight waist was slightly hunched due to cervical spondylosis. Many times he couldn't sleep at night, but endured it until dawn.

  Worked in a construction company, later the company went bankrupt and was reorganized. He was too loyal and didn't have the same cunning as his superiors, ending up as just a small security guard, often facing difficulties with unpaid wages.

  Eating that fragrant and warm chicken stew with mushrooms.

  Su Can wanted to hold back, but ultimately couldn't, and big tears fell into the slightly salty chicken soup.