Chapter 94

After leaving the sales office, Bian Xuedao hailed a taxi and headed back to school.

About 400 to 500 meters from the school, a new barbecue restaurant had just opened. Since Shan Rao wasn't around, Bian Xuedao, feeling lazy about cooking, got off the taxi early and went to have a meal at the barbecue place.

Walking under the afternoon sun, he watched the passersby with various expressions, speculating about the stories behind each of them. Unconsciously, Bian Xuedao fell into a state of neither joy nor sorrow.

As he walked, a crowd gathered not far ahead, watching something.

Bian Xuedao approached and saw that it was a lottery station. The owner was directing someone to hang a red banner above the entrance.

Once the banner was hung, Bian Xuedao read it: "Congratulations to our station for winning the second prize of the Double Color Ball, 290,000 yuan, in the XXXth draw."

In July 2003, the Double Color Ball had only been around for a few months and was not very well-known, at least not in Songjiang City. Many passersby were attracted by the banner and listened to the owner's promotion: "Just 2 yuan can win you 5 million yuan."

Standing by the roadside, Bian Xuedao stared at the red banner. He had a vague feeling that this could be useful, but he couldn't immediately figure out how to use it.

A few minutes later, Bian Xuedao came up with a kind lie, a lie that could immediately improve his family's living conditions.

He bought paper and a pen from a nearby stationery store, entered the lottery station, and bought 20 yuan worth of Double Color Ball tickets. He wrote down the winning draw number and the winning numbers on the paper and inquired about the details of the second prize from the people around him.

After leaving the lottery station and returning home, he took a few items and opened a new bank account at a campus bank. Then he went to an off-campus bank, withdrew 160,000 yuan, and deposited it into the new account.

Back at his home in the Red Building, Bian Xuedao spent a while thinking about how to phrase his words and control his emotions before calling home.

Surprisingly, it was his father who answered the phone.

At this time, his father was usually at work, so Bian Xuedao asked, "Dad, are you off today?"

His father replied, "The boss's nephew got married, and we all went to the wedding in the morning. The boss gave us the day off, and I just got back from the restaurant."

Bian Xuedao lowered his voice and asked, "Is there anyone else at home?"

His father said, "No, just me and your mother. What's up? Is there something?"

Bian Xuedao deliberately trembled and said, "Call Mom over, I have some big news, some good news."

His father said, "What big news could you have? Just tell me, your mother is hanging clothes outside."

Bian Xuedao said, word by word, "Dad, I bought a lottery ticket with a classmate, and we won."

His father said, "Why did you buy that thing? It's a waste of money. How much did you win?"

Bian Xuedao said in a very low voice, "290,000 yuan."

...

His father on the other end of the phone was silent for a while, then suddenly asked, "What kind of lottery did you buy? How much did you win?"

"Double Color Ball, 290,000 yuan!"

His father continued, "Really? How many people bought it?"

Bian Xuedao said, "Just me and a classmate."

His father asked, "How much did you spend on the lottery?"

Bian Xuedao thought for a moment and said, "This time I spent 50 yuan, and over the past few months, I've spent about 2,000 yuan."

His father said, "Wait a moment, I'll call your mother over."

...

When his mother took the phone, her first question was, "Have you received the prize money?"

Bian Xuedao said, "Yes, I have."

His mother asked, "Did you and your classmate split the prize money?"

Bian Xuedao said, "Yes, I got 160,000, and he got 130,000."

His mother asked, "Why did you get more?"

Bian Xuedao said, "We spent 80 yuan in total, I contributed 50, and he contributed 30."

His mother asked, "Does your classmate have any complaints about the distribution?"

Bian Xuedao said, "No, 130,000 yuan is a huge sum for him."

His mother asked, "Did you deposit the money in the bank?"

Bian Xuedao answered, "Yes, I did."

His mother asked, "When are you coming home?"

Bian Xuedao said, "Tomorrow."

His mother asked, "What train are you taking?"

Bian Xuedao said, "The train."

His mother asked, "What time is your ticket?"

Bian Xuedao said, "Around 9 in the morning."

His mother asked, "Does anyone know you booked the ticket?"

Bian Xuedao said, "No one knows."

His mother said, "We'll talk about other things when you get home. Leave early tomorrow, and be careful of the people around you before you leave."

After hanging up, Bian Xuedao knew what his mother was reminding him about.

In fact, the cautious and thoughtful nature of Bian Xuedao, his tendency to think ahead and be wary of others, was inherited from his mother.

However, what his mother was worried about, Bian Xuedao didn't need to care about at all. He hadn't actually won the lottery, so no one would covet his prize.

What made Bian Xuedao happy was that he finally found a way to give money to his family, to improve their living conditions and alleviate his guilt for earning money but not fulfilling his filial duties.

In Chunshan City in 2003, the average housing price was around 1,000 yuan, and the best neighborhoods in the city center didn't exceed 1,200 yuan. Basically, 160,000 yuan was enough to buy an 80-square-meter new apartment, including renovation.

Bian Xuedao's plan was to give the 160,000 yuan to his parents and have them use it to buy a new apartment in Chunshan. Compared to a house, an apartment had centralized heating, so they wouldn't have to wake up early to light the stove in winter, allowing them to sleep until breakfast, a small comfort.

Bian Xuedao had also considered using the 160,000 yuan to buy a house in Songjiang, but he estimated that persuading his parents would be difficult.

First, all their relatives were in Chunshan, and his parents might not want to move to Songjiang. Second, both his parents worked in Chunshan and would have to find new jobs in Songjiang. Third, the housing prices in Songjiang were more than twice as high as in Chunshan, and his parents might not be willing to spend that much.

In Bian Xuedao's mind, the first step was to get his parents into an apartment. He planned to wait until he graduated and find a reason to earn quick money, then buy a house for his parents in Songjiang, sell the house in Chunshan, and have them move to Songjiang to live with him.

The next day, Bian Xuedao boarded the train home.

He only carried a small travel bag, partly because he didn't like carrying a lot of things when traveling, and partly because he could only stay at home for 12 to 13 days before returning to Songjiang to sign the house purchase contract.

It was the peak of the summer vacation for college students, and the train car was filled with young people carrying backpacks and suitcases.

Bian Xuedao originally had a standing ticket, but someone got off midway, and he managed to get a seat by the aisle.

The smell in the car was terrible, indescribably complex.

Fortunately, a few passengers by the windows opened them. The wind came in from one side, bringing the scent of the fields outside the train, circled around the car, and went out the other side.

A person reading a book by the window, not paying attention, had their pages flipped by the wind, making a rustling sound and messing up the pages. They had to re-find their place in the dappled sunlight filtering through the leaves.

In front of Bian Xuedao, a row away by the window, sat a quiet and delicate girl, wearing earphones and listening to music. The wind from the window gently blew her hair, but she didn't mind, just gazing at the poplar and locust trees outside, and the fields and distant mountains beyond.

Bian Xuedao felt for the first time that such a quiet and self-contained girl had a unique charm.

The narrow aisle of the car was crowded with people. A woman who seemed to need to use the restroom encountered a train attendant pushing a food cart. Everyone knew that even during the Spring Festival travel rush, the cart had to be pushed through, so they automatically moved to let him pass.

The woman, having no choice, squeezed past Bian Xuedao.

The food cart still couldn't pass. A middle-aged man also squeezed into the space in front of Bian Xuedao. Just then, the train jolted, and the woman lost her balance, falling toward Bian Xuedao's head. He reached out to support her waist, preventing her from colliding with him.

The woman was very embarrassed and repeatedly said sorry. Seeing that the food cart had passed, she continued to the other end of the car.

A few minutes later, the woman returned and, seeing Bian Xuedao looking at her, smiled apologetically.

Finally, he arrived home.

The family of three sat around the table, and without much formalities, they started eating.

After a while, his father asked, "How long are you staying this time?"

Bian Xuedao, chewing his food, said, "About two weeks!"

His father took a sip of wine and said, "I see other college students, none of them are as busy as you. Can't you stay a few more days?"

Bian Xuedao said, "If I work hard now, I'll have it easier later."

His mother gave him two dishes and asked, "How did your exams go?"

Bian Xuedao, putting the food in his mouth, said, "Not the best, but not the worst. College is like that; I don't plan to stay for a master's degree or anything, so 60 is enough."

His father said to his mother, "You used to ask about his grades every day in high school. Now he's in college, can't you ask something new?"

His mother, not even looking at his father, said, "What's wrong with asking about his grades? I didn't say he had to get a certain score. By the way, do you have any close female classmates at school?"

Hearing this, his father put down his wine glass, his ears seemingly perking up.

Bian Xuedao put down his bowl and said, "Yes, one."

His mother immediately perked up, her eyes bright like a fully charged flashlight, and she grabbed his arm, asking, "Really? What's her name? How old is she? How long have you been together? Where is she from? Why didn't you tell me on the phone?"

His father followed up, "What do her parents do?"

Bian Xuedao told his parents what he knew about Shan Rao.

His mother was concerned that Shan Rao was a year older than Bian Xuedao, while his father said, "Her parents are both officials? Do they know you two are dating? Will they accept our family's conditions?"

Since returning to college, Bian Xuedao, leveraging his information advantage, had quickly found ways to make money, becoming the top rich kid in his dorm. With money, he had gradually ignored social status and biases. When Shan Rao mentioned that half of her family were civil servants, he hadn't thought about it the way his father did.

Bian Xuedao felt he needed to give his parents some confidence: "We have a good relationship, and I'm working hard. I believe that by the time I graduate, if I can achieve something, everything will be fine."

His father drank the wine in one gulp, nodded, and didn't say anything.

After dinner, Bian Xuedao took out the bank card with the savings and handed it to his mother, saying, "Mom, there's 160,000 yuan in the card. The password is the one I usually use."

His mother glanced at his father, took the card, and said, "This money is still yours. I'll keep it for you, and we'll use it when you get married."

Bian Xuedao said, "I'm not getting married anytime soon. Let's talk about that later. I was thinking, let's go to the bank tomorrow, deposit the money into our family account, and then I'll go with you to look at some apartments."

His mother looked at him and asked, "Why look at apartments? Our house is fine, and we have a garden. We can grow our own food. If we move to an apartment, we'll have to pay property management fees, heating fees, and other expenses."

Bian Xuedao smiled and said, "I didn't say we have to buy one. We'll just go and look. If we find something suitable, we can discuss it."

His father added, "The housing prices in Chunshan have been rising recently."

Bian Xuedao said, "Dad knows the market well. If we buy now, it's like living and investing at the same time. In a couple of years, when I graduate and start earning money, we can move to Songjiang. By then, we can sell the apartment, and the fees will be covered by the profit."