Chapter 09: 800 yuan

 

  Cherry Adams was a bit confused, but not stupid.

"You can only stay in my house for one night," she said, pointing outside. "As soon as it gets light tomorrow, you must leave. And remember, I'm not an orphanage or a charity, so I can't take in children with broken hearts."

Jasper Lee and Pascal Lee entered the old house for the first time.

Although none of the three called it that at the time.

Old walls, old furniture, old floors.

  Everything was old, including the only bedroom.

Cherry Adams, being the oldest, quickly arranged the night: "Don't look, I'm definitely going to sleep in the bed. You two, love to sleep on the sofa, sleep on the sofa, love to sleep on the floor, sleep on the floor, of course, I agree to sleep in the toilet, the toilet has plenty of room".

  She was already extremely tired from driving all day and playing house with the two children. She was about to turn around and head for the bedroom when she heard a rumbling noise behind her. She turned to see Pascal Lee biting his lip and shyly covering his stomach.

"...Tut," Cherry Adams asked, "you haven't eaten dinner yet?"

Pascal Lee shook his head, as did Jasper Lee. They both looked at her expectantly.

  Cherry Adams is shameless, it is obvious, even when it comes to children. Friends and family aren't iced tea, and it's impossible to get another bottle, not to mention the fact that she doesn't have any. She said shamelessly, "Your brother has been paid, hasn't he? Tell him to buy a late-night snack."

  When we were young, there were always kids at our house who would tease their relatives, saying they wanted to be invited to dinner when they saw someone giving out New Year's money. Usually the kids would be reluctant to go, and they would angrily protect their money and say they wouldn't go. Their parents would laugh and accuse them of being stingy.

  Jasper Lee didn't hesitate: "Yes, I can."

Cherry Adams looked at him again, "You're really going to invite us?"

"I was going to invite you anyway. He seemed to understand human nature. Thank you for helping me find Pascal, and thank you for agreeing to put us up tonight.

When he said this, Cherry Adams laughed, "I'm just teasing you! Who would miss your measly 800 yuan salary? Keep it for you and your little brother.

  They went downstairs to the night market. Cherry Adams and her two unrelated younger brothers. They sat together and ate barbecue. This was their first real meal together, as they had always eaten separately at the Lee family table.

  The Lee family had gone bankrupt, and these eggs under the overturned nest began to approach and cross fatefully. They were all very young, the oldest no more than an adult, the youngest just turning ten.

Cherry Adams ordered two bottles of pure raw, which the children could not drink, but she could pour for herself.

The barbecue didn't come, so Jasper Lee and Pascal Lee first bought some fried rice noodles with eggs from the next stall to eat.

  Pascal Lee was so hungry that he buried his head in the bowl and started eating. He had just recovered from a serious illness and needed to regain his strength. Jasper Lee, however, did not rush to eat. Instead, he watched Cherry Adams' expression, picked up the empty bowl, and pushed it toward her with some noodles and a large piece of egg.

"You eat it," he said. Jasper Lee's bowl was only half full, with a thin layer of noodles on the bottom, and there was a lot of oil but very little noodles.

  Cherry Adams laughed again, "That observant?"

Cherry Adams did not eat and let him eat alone. She didn't lack food or clothing, at least compared to these two children. If she didn't help them, she wouldn't do anything to make their lives difficult. At that moment, Cherry Adams thought that she was really a good person, and if Heaven knew about it, Heaven would make her rich.

  Cherry Adams had two drinks before she remembered the Rye Village kidnapping case: "What did the police say? Will you be convicted? And the bald guys?"

"They're all in jail," said Jasper Lee. "They cooperated with the police investigation, so the death penalty was commuted to life imprisonment. The kidnapped children have also been found, and I provided leads."

"What about you?" Cherry Adams asked. "You're over 14, won't you be tried?"

  Jasper Lee shook his head: "The date on my ID is different from the birthday I celebrated at home, the difference between the lunar and solar calendars. Pascal is the same."

Cherry Adams thought for a moment, "What were you doing stuck here? You weren't even fourteen then?"

Jasper Lee gave a short laugh, but it was helpless: "I don't know, I didn't really think about it.

"You were... definitely scared to death, weren't you?"

  "I was scared! My brother wasn't!" Pascal Lee's mouth was shiny with lipstick, "My brother was especially brave!"

"That's disgusting. Wipe your mouth before you talk."

Cherry Adams looked at him in disgust. Pascal Lee's mouth fell open, he put down his bowl and chopsticks, and picked up a handkerchief to wipe his mouth, looking upset.

  "It's better to be scared," Jasper Lee said. "When you're in that situation, there's very little you can think about. If I had it to do over again, I wouldn't have taken such a desperate risk. After all, it was an emergency. Either you get tricked or you trick someone else. I had no choice.

  Cherry Adams said indifferently, "In a small village like this, far away from the mountains and rivers, not to mention you, some adults will never be able to get out in their lifetime. Don't hesitate. You have done the right thing. Whether it's illegal or not, the most important thing is to get out alive, and then you can be judged.

  "You're right," Jasper Lee whispered.

Cherry Adams sighed, "Your brother's lucky to have you.

"My brother is the best! Pascal Lee wagged his tail, "My brother is the best person in the world to me!

Cherry Adams teased her, "If your father, mother and brother fell into the water at the same time, who would you save first?

She thought Pascal Lee would be torn, but he quickly replied, "My brother, of course!"

  She looked at the two boys who had been living rough for a while and suddenly laughed softly, "You guys, do you know how I feel when I see you again? You definitely don't. I feel like it's been a lifetime. The last two years in your family have been like a dream.

A dream.

A dream.

Jasper Lee lowered his eyes and searched his brother's face, "It's useless to think about it now."

  "Yes," Cherry Adams passed the skewers, "eat, eat."

After filling their stomachs, they talked more on the way back. Jasper Lee asked her why she didn't go to college, and Cherry Adams said the school was closed. Jasper Lee's eyes widened and he said that a school was not a business, so how could it just close down? When he was a child, he also wished that his school would close down quickly.

  "That's good," Cherry Adams said heartlessly, "now you can't even go to school, hahaha.

Pascal Lee pouted and said that it was good because he didn't want to go to school anyway. However, Jasper Lee firmly said that this would not be the case:

"I will let Pascal Lee go to school."

  "It doesn't hurt to go to school more," Cherry Adams said. If you want to cross social classes, studying hard is the most practical and effective way.

In many ways, Cherry Adams thinks like Jasper Lee, even if her words are coarse. Cherry Adams has a broader perspective and is more assertive than she is. Jasper Lee asked her for advice: "Is there any kind of money-making work that minors can do?

  "Minors still want a job!" Cherry Adams gave him a blank stare. I think you better hurry up and find a good family and marry into a wealthy and influential family so you don't have to work as hard as everyone else for decades... Don't tell me you still can't let go of your pride."

No, what I'm afraid of now is that if I let go of my pride, I'll still get cheated," Jasper Lee said. "I can't trust anyone now except you."

  What a childish trust. Cherry Adams played with her phone for a moment, then said, "You might consider getting a job as a tutor.

"At my previous school, many students worked part time and joined the local tutoring group," Cherry Adams paused, "If you can teach yourself some high school or even college material, you can teach others. You don't have to be very skilled, it doesn't take that much to teach elementary school students.

  Jasper Lee collected his thoughts: "I need a cell phone, a library card, and enough money for food and clothing for the time I'm studying."

"A cell phone..." Cherry Adams said, "The one my mother used before she died has all the features and everything. If you don't mind, just take it. The library card is easy to say, renting it for a month is cheaper than buying it. Finally, the money..."

  Jasper Lee looked at Cherry Adams in confusion.

Pascal Lee spoke up, "Sister..."

Cherry Adams sighed and took out 2,000 yuan from her purse, "Remember to pay me back.

Come on, this meal cost more than the medical fees.

  As they walked along the dimly lit night market toward the old neighborhood, they passed a clothing stall, and Cherry Adams glanced at the brothers' clothes. Pascal Lee was still decent, wearing a long-sleeved shirt from a certain cultural tourism company, but Jasper Lee was a different story. His oily and tattered work clothes looked like something a beggar would wear.

"Hey," she simply called out to them.

Jasper Lee and Pascal Lee returned to the stall.

  "What's this?" Cherry Adams asked as she looked over. "It's almost winter, buy something warm for your brother or he'll catch cold again."

Pascal Lee was still hesitant, shaking his head repeatedly, not wanting to waste his brother's hard-earned money. Jasper Lee told him to pick it out quickly, and Cherry Adams said the older brother should do the same.

  "To get a decent job, you need decent clothes," Cherry Adams taught him. "Didn't you notice how impressive I looked when I went to your construction site? I even wore formal clothes when I drove myself, summer and winter, to make a good impression."

  The shirt on the ground floor costs fifteen dollars each, the pants twenty dollars each, and the leather jacket sixty dollars each. This outfit makes Jasper Lee look neat and clean. Cherry Adams took her to a five-dollar hairdresser, flirted with the lady, and ended up not paying.

"Dealing with people is a science, too," Cherry Adams said, reaching out to wipe the stray hair from Jasper Lee's nose.

"Okay, much better.

  Well, what can I say, the genes of Jasper Lee's parents are still too powerful. The World Journal reported that the Lee family went bankrupt, but the two children still have bright eyes and teeth, clear features, and a smart demeanor. With a little tidying up, Jasper Lee and Pascal Lee still exude an extraordinary air of nobility.

But as the old saying goes, what's the use of looking good? You can't eat it.

  By the time they got home, it was late. Jasper Lee left the sofa for Pascal Lee and made the floor his bed.

Cherry Adams hadn't done her housework properly, and the floor wasn't clean. She felt bad about it, so she found a quilt and spread it out in the bedroom and told Pascal Lee to come in and sleep and Jasper Lee to sleep on the sofa.

Cherry Adams explained, "It's not that I have a problem with you, it's just that your brother is a little weaker and the bedroom is heated."

  "Thanks for letting my brother turn off the heat," Jasper Lee understood, "I can sleep anywhere.

The two children went into the bathroom to take a bath, and Cherry Adams left. When she came out, they were already asleep.

Jasper Lee lay on the sofa, his hands unclenched, spread flat at the tip of his nose. Three months' salary lay on the table.

Cherry Adams watched the sofa for a while, then reached for his money and counted it. There was only $2,600.

  Cherry Adams turned and went back to her room to get another $500 and round it up to a whole dollar. That was all she could do.

The next day, Cherry Adams opened her eyes when the sun was high in the sky.

She found Pascal Lee curled up obediently in the corner of the bed.

He hadn't woken up yet, and his brother probably hadn't either. Cherry Adams yawned and walked into the living room, but stopped short.

  There was a quilt on the sofa, folded into a square. On the coffee table was the 2,000 yuan she had given him last night.

And Jasper Lee had quietly left.

He took his 800 yuan pay.

"I'll be damned..." Cherry Adams put her hand to her forehead.

"How could you forget your brother?