Chapter 77: It’s Snowing

Since Bai Su spoke with Li Dong, Li Dong had been spending even less time at school. Besides attending classes, he rarely stayed on campus. With the end-of-semester exams approaching and the upcoming opening of Longhua, he hardly had time to think about anything else.

By mid-January, the renovation of Longhua was finally completed. With the renovation finished and the staff in place, the next step was the grand opening. With less than a month before the New Year, it was the perfect time for people to buy New Year goods, so opening earlier meant earning money sooner.

After discussing the opening with Sun Tao, Li Dong had just left Longhua Square when he heard someone on the street shouting, "It's snowing!"

Li Dong looked up and saw delicate snowflakes gently falling from the sky. It was the first snow of the year. He was momentarily dazed, reflecting on how quickly time had passed—from the spring when he had just been reborn to the cold winter now.

...

The heavy snow continued for three days. During these three days, Pingchuan seemed to have turned into a city of ice and snow.

On the night of the Laba Festival, Li Dong received an unexpected phone call. When he answered, he was momentarily stunned. The call was from Yuan Xue. She didn't say anything awkward; she just wanted to see if Li Dong had changed his number, and it had connected.

Li Dong didn't know what to say. He was quiet, and so was Yuan Xue, who continued to speak in her cold, clear voice about her daily life at school. Li Dong listened silently to her joys and sorrows.

At the end of the call, Yuan Xue suddenly choked up, saying, "Li Dong, it's snowing! It's really snowing!"

After the call ended, Li Dong felt a sharp pang in his heart. He remembered what day it was—Laba Festival, a snowy night, and Yuan Xue's birthday!

In his daze, a memory flashed through his mind:

...

"Li Dong, this is for you. Don't forget to return the favor on my birthday."

"What? Just a simple greeting card and you want me to return the favor? I don't want it!"

"No way, you have to keep it! Remember, if it snows on Laba Festival, you need to return the favor; if not, then forget it."

"Hehe, then I'm lucky. Dongping hasn't had snow on Laba Festival for years, so no need for a return."

"Hmph, nice try! There will definitely be a day with snow. This promise never expires!"

...

It was during their first year of high school. For three years of high school, Dongping never had snow on Laba Festival. This year, it snowed on Laba Festival!

Snow was falling in Pingchuan, and it was also snowing in Beijing.

The playful promise he had forgotten was still remembered by the girl like snow.

That night, Li Dong couldn't sleep.

...

The next morning was the advanced math exam. After the exam, Li Dong stood in the hallway, lost in thought.

Meng Qiping came over, patted Li Dong's shoulder, and sighed, "Don't be sad. Later, let's chip in to give the advanced math teacher a gift and try not to fail."

Li Dong snapped back to reality and said, "Get lost! Do you think I'll fail?"

"Don't be stubborn. You seem distracted today. Besides failing, it could be a breakup. Did your girlfriend dump you?"

Li Dong's mouth twitched slightly, feeling awkward, "Is it that obvious?"

Meng Qiping was stunned and exclaimed, "Your girlfriend didn't really dump you, did she?"

"Go away! It's probably Cheng Nan who dumped you instead!"

Li Dong cleared his throat and quickly changed the subject, "The advanced math exam is over. There's only Marxism left. You don't have anything else to do recently, right?"

"Not much. Just waiting for the holiday," Meng Qiping forgot what he was about to say due to the interruption.

Seeing Meng Qiping didn't press further, Li Dong sighed with relief and said, "Didn't you want me to help you find a part-time job? It's pretty cold now. Are you willing to do it?"

"Willing!"

As soon as Li Dong mentioned it, Meng Qiping eagerly responded, "As long as it's not being a duck, I'm willing to do anything!"

"Get lost!"

Li Dong was exasperated. Even if he were to be a duck, someone would still have to be interested.

Meng Qiping, not caring about his thick skin, lamented, "Dong Ge, tell me what it is quickly. If I don't make money soon, I'll have to walk home this year."

Li Dong found it amusing. This guy seemed truly driven by money.

Given Meng Qiping's laziness, he would rather stay bundled up in bed all day in the cold rather than take a part-time job. Li Dong didn't keep him in suspense and said directly, "There's a supermarket opening at Longhua that needs people to hand out flyers…"

"Oh, handing out flyers doesn't seem to pay much," Meng Qiping said, disappointed. Flyer jobs at school paid only a small amount, which wasn't appealing even though he was nearly broke.

Li Dong glared at him, "Let me finish! Do you think I'd hire you to hand out flyers? You'd probably ditch them halfway!"

Meng Qiping laughed awkwardly, realizing it might be true.

Li Dong continued, "What I need you to do is recruit people. In two days, recruit as many as you can. Ten is fine, a hundred is even better."

"Isn't there an agency for recruitment?" Meng Qiping interjected.

Li Dong, irritated, said, "Stop wasting time. Do you want the job or not? I'll give you twenty bucks for each person you recruit. If not, forget it!"

Hearing twenty bucks per recruit, Meng Qiping's eyes lit up.

At that moment, he saw a flood of cash coming his way. If he could find a hundred or eighty people, that would be one or two thousand!

These days, hard labor paid just over a thousand a month. Earning twenty for each recruit was practically free money.

"I'll do it! Dong Ge, you're my savior. I love you!" Meng Qiping, full of excitement, almost hugged and kissed Li Dong.

Li Dong, disgusted, pushed him away and reminded, "If you take this on, you have to be responsible. If the people you recruit are dishonest, not only will their pay be deducted, but you'll also be fined. Don't recruit just anyone."

Meng Qiping nodded quickly, "Don't worry, Dong Ge! I know this is you helping me. No matter how careless I am, I won't let you lose face."

Seeing Meng Qiping's serious expression, Li Dong felt a bit relieved.

Recruiting flyers wasn't something he needed to worry about. He could easily find an agency to handle it.

However, considering Meng Qiping had mentioned it before, Li Dong decided to give him a chance.

With a twenty-per-recruit commission, it wasn't a bad deal in 2004. If Meng Qiping was capable, making two to three thousand in two days wasn't impossible.

For the far-off future, the entire university town and even Pingchuan were their target clients. Even a hundred recruits wouldn't make much of a difference.

Li Dong gave Meng Qiping a few more instructions before letting him eagerly go off to find recruits.