Chapter 42

The family reunion dinner was not a happy one. Due to the house issue, Auntie had a long face, and Liu Hanshan's mood was also low. After dinner, he curled up on the sofa, playing games on his phone.

Grandpa and Uncle went into the bedroom, and no one knew what they were talking about. Liu Handong tried to listen, but Auntie immediately picked up the remote and turned on the TV, turning up the volume of "Empresses in the Palace" to a deafening level, with the constant chatter of "Lady this" and "Lady that."

After a while, Uncle came out, holding a thick envelope, which was probably the money Grandpa had saved for medical expenses. Seeing her goal achieved, Auntie cleared her throat and said, "It's not early, Dad should rest."

Liu Hanshan jumped up from the sofa, started the car, and Liu Handong and Grandpa saw Uncle's family off. After they returned, Grandpa said, "I treat everyone equally. I'll give you 20,000 yuan, and your brother will also get 20,000 yuan to help him buy a car, but the house cannot be sold. This house is for your wedding."

Liu Handong replied, "Grandpa, can't I get married without a house? I don't believe that. Besides, if you give it to me, where will you live? With your health, you can live another fifty years easily."

Grandpa smiled, "My body is not as strong as it used to be, and I know it well."

Liu Handong went to the kitchen to wash the dishes. Suddenly, the doorbell rang. It was Liu Hanshan, who said that there were too many cars in the neighborhood, and he couldn't back out. He asked his brother for help.

Liu Handong wiped his hands, went to the neighborhood road, and saw that his brother's Yueda was stuck in a line of cars, unable to move forward or backward. The only way out was to back up. It was a dark night, and the sides of the road were lined with parked cars. With Liu Hanshan's driving skills, it was indeed difficult. Without a word, Liu Handong got into the car, and without looking back, he backed out using the rearview mirror. Uncle praised, "Xiaodong, your driving skills are pretty good."

"During my military service, I once backed up on a mountain road at night for thirty miles. If I made a wrong turn, I would have fallen into a ditch," Liu Handong said.

"How deep was the ditch?" Liu Hanshan asked.

"Probably a few hundred meters," Liu Handong said casually, and the family in the car looked at each other in surprise.

By the time the Yueda had backed out to the entrance of the neighborhood, Liu Handong got out of the car, said goodbye to Uncle's family, and went back to Grandpa's house to continue washing the dishes.

That night, he stayed at the Binhe neighborhood, chatting with the elderly. At eleven o'clock, he received a call from a strange number. Suspecting it was a scam call, he hung up directly.

The next day, Liu Handong went to the bank to withdraw 20,000 yuan. He went to the used car market and bought an old 1.6L Fukan for 8,000 yuan. He parked it in the empty space at the Binhe neighborhood, then went to the computer market to buy a domestic brand laptop. Using his phone as a wireless hotspot, he bought a bunch of things online.

The online purchases arrived one after another. During this time, Liu Handong also went to the auto parts market to buy supplies. After gathering all the materials, he began to overhaul the Fukan. He replaced the three filters, timing belt, spark plugs, brake pads, and all the fluids. He also used carbon tetrachloride and a three-way cleaner to clean the intake, combustion, and exhaust systems, removing years of carbon buildup. When he started the engine, it sounded much smoother.

The car's registration had expired, and it had not been inspected or insured. However, Liu Handong didn't care about these things. He cleaned the car thoroughly, and the police and road authorities generally didn't check. As for traffic accidents, he was confident he wouldn't hit anyone.

After fixing the Fukan, Liu Handong went to the Civil Affairs Bureau to inquire about his discharge benefits. The staff replied that since he had left the military early, he would have to wait until the end of the year when the other veterans returned for the calculations. He would have to wait patiently.

Liu Handong returned home and said goodbye to his mother, who told him to bring his girlfriend next time.

"Mom has prepared a gift for Xiaoma."

"Sure, I'll try to bring her next time," Liu Handong said as he went downstairs to his car. His mother watched him leave from the doorway. At the street corner, he suddenly saw his stepfather smoking. Liu Handong turned his head to pretend he didn't see him, but his stepfather stopped the car.

"Is there something?" Liu Handong lowered the window with a blank expression.

"Finding a job is not easy. Take this," his stepfather said, tossing a brown envelope into the car and walking away.

Liu Handong opened the envelope and saw a stack of cash, about 2,000 yuan. It seemed his meticulous stepfather already knew he wasn't working at the traffic vocational college. He looked back, saw his stepfather walking slowly, and opened his mouth to say something but didn't.

The Fukan headed for the provincial capital. To save on tolls, Liu Handong took the national highway instead of the expressway. After a few hours, he arrived at Tiesha Street in the southeastern suburbs of Jinjiang.

Liu Handong planned to return to his old job as an unlicensed taxi driver. He chose the location for his business: the entrance of the Traffic Vocational and Technical College in the university town. This area was in the suburbs, with many students and few city taxis, making it a good place for unlicensed drivers. The road in front of the school was usually lined with domestic cars like Chery and BYD, mostly unlicensed taxis.

At noon, the Fukan parked on the road opposite the school entrance. Liu Handong turned off the engine, got out, and leaned against the car, calling out to passing students, "Going to the city? Thirty yuan."

It was noon, and no one was going to the city. Liu Handong took out his phone to send a message to Ma Ling. Suddenly, the phone rang. It was the same strange number starting with 01. He hesitated for a moment, then answered, ready to scold the scammer.

No one spoke on the other end, only breathing could be heard.

"Who is it? Speak up," Liu Handong said.

Still no response.

"If you don't speak, I'll hang up," Liu Handong said, feeling something was off. A thought flashed through his mind, and he asked, "Is it Xiaofan?"

"Brother... I... I..." a voice finally came, indicating that Xiaofan's speech impediment had not fully recovered.

"I thought it was a scam. It's an international call from the U.S. I didn't recognize it. How are you, Xiaofan? When are you coming back?" Liu Handong asked cheerfully. Suddenly, someone pounded on the roof of the car. A burly man with a red face stood outside, looking unhappy.

Liu Handong lowered the window, held the phone between his shoulder and ear, and asked the man, "What's up?"

"Get out!" the man shouted.

"Got to go, brother," Liu Handong hung up and got out of the car calmly. He saw several people surrounding him, dressed in a rural style, holding weapons, apparently other unlicensed taxi drivers.

The red-faced man asked, "New here? Do you know the rules? This is my territory, got it?"

Liu Handong crossed his arms and looked down at him. "Your territory? Who approved it? Do you have a land deed?"

The red-faced man lunged at him like a hungry tiger, grabbing Liu Handong's waist tightly and shouting, "Brothers, attack!"

The others followed, punching and kicking. They used the most basic but effective fighting method. Although Liu Handong was brave, he was held tightly by the red-faced man's iron grip and couldn't use his strength. In a moment, he was hit on the head and back. In a panic, he struck the red-faced man's head, once, twice, and finally broke free. He then kneed him in the stomach, and the red-faced man let go, clutching his stomach and squatting down.

Liu Handong turned around, blood streaming down his head, looking fierce. The unlicensed taxi drivers, who were used to street fights, hesitated for a moment and then continued to attack. Liu Handong kicked two of them down, grabbed a stick, and fought fiercely, driving the rural unlicensed taxi drivers to flee in all directions.

The road was lined with students from the Traffic Vocational and Technical College, a third-tier college with students from all over the province, mostly those who had failed the high school entrance exam. They paid to attend, and many were delinquents who loved skipping classes, smoking, drinking, and fighting. Seeing a real-life street fight, they were delighted and cheered.

The unlicensed taxi drivers fled in disarray, and the red-faced man tried to stand up but was kicked down by Liu Handong. He threw the stick and walked away.

The street erupted in applause.

Liu Handong returned to his car, took out his phone, and tried to call the number back, but the voice prompt said international long-distance service was not available. He had to give up for now.

After driving away the unlicensed taxi drivers from the school entrance, Liu Handong didn't leave but continued to wait for business. The others helped the red-faced man up and took him to the other side of the road to rest, cursing and glaring at Liu Handong, but they didn't have the courage to attack again.

The street returned to calm. Students went about their business in groups. Two girls knocked on the car window, "Going to the Dihao Internet Cafe?"

The Dihao Internet Cafe on Tiesha Street had over a hundred computers, and students often went there to stay overnight. It was not far away, and a regular taxi would cost about 10 to 12 yuan.

"Ten yuan," Liu Handong said.

The girls thought it was too expensive and got into another BYD and left.

The unlicensed taxi drivers were puzzled. Why didn't the new guy take the business? They looked at Liu Handong as if he were a fool until a few troublemakers from the school approached his car.

These boys were tall and arrogant. They walked up to the Fukan, about to open the door, but suddenly saw Liu Handong. They exchanged glances and politely asked, "Big brother, do you know Huolei?"

Liu Handong said, "Yes, he's my little brother."

The boys were enlightened. "We didn't recognize you, it's Dongge, we saw you at Dihao that night."

Huolei was a graduate of the Traffic Vocational and Technical College. He was unemployed and still hung around the school area. The students called him their leader. That night, it was these boys who came to the rescue and scared off Nanqiang and his gang.

Liu Handong took out Hongmei cigarettes and gave each of them one. The boys were flattered, lit the cigarettes for their leader's leader first, and then lit their own. They chatted with Liu Handong, and the red-faced unlicensed taxi drivers were surprised. This guy was a real player.

The phone rang again, but it wasn't the 01 number from the U.S. It was a local number. He answered, and a male voice said, "Liu Handong, right? Be careful, someone is paying to have your leg broken."