eurekapd Chapter 2019: Waiting for the weather to bring food, relying on luck to survive!
Chapter 2019: Waiting for the weather to bring food, relying on luck to survive!
"Brother Xiang Nan!"
Upon seeing Li Xiangnan standing near the accounting table, Cheng Kui immediately broke into a warm smile and greeted him loudly.
Li Xiangnan went up to greet him, beaming with joy, and said, "Cheng Gangtou, you've arrived! Please come in!"
"Congratulations!" Cheng Kui had already walked to the accounting table, but instead of taking out a red envelope like the others, he solemnly placed the item wrapped in red cloth on the table, and then carefully opened it, one stroke at a time.
The red cloth was lifted, revealing a blue and white porcelain vase inside.
This item has a warm and lustrous glaze and exquisite patterns; it's clearly not an ordinary piece.
The chattering neighbors were stunned by the commotion, and the courtyard immediately fell silent.
Li Xiangnan was also a little surprised. Cheng Gangtou didn't give a red envelope today, so why did he give a piece of porcelain?
What does this mean?
However, his doubts were immediately answered.
Cheng Kui cleared his throat and said loudly, "Brother Xiang Nan, do you remember this piece of Ming Dynasty official kiln porcelain?"
Li Xiangnan looked down and took a closer look, and his heart skipped a beat.
He remembered.
Back then, Cheng Kui's father, Cheng Yue, was the old head of the Red Star Pimping House. He was poisoned by a strange poison called Ice Marrow Leech, which almost killed the old man!
In order to ensure that he could treat the old man without any worries, Cheng Kui took this ancestral official kiln porcelain piece and sold it at Panjiayuan without hesitation to get money.
That day, he prepared a huge feast at Hongbinlou Restaurant and even gave himself a large red envelope on the table as a reward for saving his father from the brink of death.
Li Xiangnan naturally didn't accept the money, but in return, he gained the gratitude and loyalty of Cheng Kui and the entire gang.
But what puzzled Li Xiangnan was that the porcelain had been sold that day.
How did he bring me here again today?
Was the porcelain never originally intended to be sold? Was that just Cheng Kui's excuse to appease him that day?
That's not right. Cheng Kui is a member of the Jianghu (江湖, the martial arts world), and he values integrity and loyalty above all else!
“Cheng Gangtou, what’s going on…” Li Xiangnan was naturally puzzled.
Cheng Kui immediately saw the doubt in Li Xiangnan's mind and smiled, "I redeemed this porcelain from Panjiayuan later! I brought it here today as a witness!"
As he spoke, he grabbed the Ming Dynasty porcelain wrapped in red cloth and stuffed it into Li Xiangnan's hand.
Li Xiangnan was taken aback. Even through the soft fabric, he could still feel the warm texture and heavy weight of the porcelain.
This weight represents not only the porcelain itself, but also the profound and unwavering friendship between Cheng Kui and all the brothers of the Red Star Pole Factory, a friendship as heavy as a mountain.
“Cheng Gangtou, I can’t…” Li Xiangnan’s throat tightened, and he subconsciously wanted to say no, but Cheng Kui raised his hand to stop him.
Cheng Kui's weathered face no longer held its usual bold and unrestrained air; instead, it was filled with an almost solemn seriousness.
He glanced around at the neighbors in the courtyard, who were all looking at him with different expressions, took a deep breath, and said, "Brother Xiang Nan, fellow neighbors, today I, Cheng Kui, also have to take this opportunity to speak my mind and tell you all what's on my mind!"
He pointed to the red cloth bag in Li Xiangnan's arms, "This item may seem rare and valuable to everyone! That's right, it is indeed a good thing, a blue and white porcelain from the Ming Dynasty imperial kiln. In earlier years, it could really be a family heirloom, a life-saving item!"
His gaze deepened, as if he were back a month ago: "But as everyone knows, my father was recently poisoned and almost died! When my brothers from the coffin-carrying ward brought him to our yard, they were so anxious that they tried to tear down the door, which caused quite a commotion..."
A burst of laughter erupted in the courtyard.
Cheng Kui clasped his hands in a fist and palm salute to the surrounding people: "First of all, I apologize to all my neighbors! In my life, I, Cheng Kui, have always acted like any other old Beijing resident, prioritizing filial piety above all else. Please forgive my rough behavior! My father is dying, and I have no choice but to seek help from Doctor Li!"
“I have too many brothers in the brothel, and everyone knows the situation. In recent years, no one has asked us to broth, and the business has stopped. To make a living, we've pawned everything we could at home. We brothers are all tightening our belts, not knowing where our next meal will come from. We're really just waiting for the weather to provide for us and relying on luck to survive!”
The courtyard fell silent, with only Cheng Kui's deep, reminiscent voice echoing through the air.
In the 1980s, as the economy was just recovering, many businesses that relied on traditional weddings and funerals, such as funeral parlors, faced unprecedented difficulties.
"But fate had other plans, and my father fell ill! I heard that only Doctor Li could save him, but I didn't know him. I thought he was like some doctors in Beijing, only interested in money! So I had someone take this last treasure to Panjiayuan and exchange it for money to save my father's life!"
Cheng Kui paused, looked at Li Xiangnan, his eyes filled with undisguised gratitude.
"But it was during the most difficult time that Brother Xiangnan showed me that some doctors are truly dedicated to saving lives! He didn't mention money or compensation; he just treated my father, gave him acupuncture, and prescribed medicine, and he managed to pull my father back from the brink of death!"
Cheng Kui's eyes were a little red, and he blinked hard: "At that time, I knew that I, Cheng Kui, and our Hongxing Gangfang had made this friend!"
He pointed to the porcelain piece and said in a firm voice, "This porcelain piece is a token of our friendship!"
Many people applauded.
“I know, everyone is wondering, didn’t you run out of money at the morgue? You’ve even been reduced to pawning things to survive! How do you still have money to redeem this porcelain?” Cheng Kui said with gratitude and emotion, “It’s all thanks to Doctor Li! He advised us not to just wait for jobs to come to us, but to take action ourselves!”
"So we went out to find work, carrying bags, pulling carts, moving equipment, unloading train cars... More brothers went to Dr. Li's construction site and found temporary jobs! Everyone worked together as one, putting their strength into the same goal! And just like that, life gradually got better!"
"The money to redeem this porcelain didn't come from me, Cheng Kui, alone. It came from the contributions of all the hundred or so brothers in our mortuary, who pooled together every penny! Everyone says that Dr. Li has been kind to us, like giving us a second life! This porcelain must be redeemed, and it must be returned to you today, in front of all your relatives and friends! It's not a gift, but I feel it's a thousand times more valuable! It represents the heartfelt recognition and unwavering friendship that all of us in the mortuary have for you, Li Xiangnan!"
Cheng Kui's words resonated powerfully, echoing throughout the courtyard.
Many sentimental neighbors couldn't help but raise their hands to wipe away tears.
Aunt Lu, Wu Xiaoyun, Lan Cuihua, Aunt Yuan, and others stood at the back of the crowd, listening with tears streaming down their faces, deeply moved.
Li Xiangnan held the cloth bag, feeling the burning heat in his palms, which seemed to reach his heart.
He opened his mouth, a thousand words stuck in his chest, but in the end, he could only utter a heavy sentence: "Brother Cheng... I, Li Xiangnan, appreciate the kindness of my brothers, and I will remember it for the rest of my life!"
This feeling is too heavy.
It embodies the struggles and hopes of a profession amidst changing times, the purest gratitude of a group of men from the lower classes, and the invaluable sincerity that Li Xiangnan, a doctor, earned through his benevolence and kindness.
Wang Defa slapped his thigh hard, exclaiming repeatedly, "So righteous, so damn righteous! Cheng Gangtou, all the men in the Red Star Ganghouse are like this!"
He gave a thumbs up.
Zhang Jingyang nodded deeply and had Xiao Tao solemnly write in the gift book: Hongxing Gangfang Chengkui and his brothers present a Ming Dynasty official kiln blue and white porcelain vase!
The crowd cheered. Just as the emotions in the courtyard were running high and everyone was recovering from the emotion brought by Cheng Kui, a thunderous announcement rang out again from outside the courtyard gate. It was so powerful that it made everyone's body tremble.
"The Qin family is here!"