Spring Breeze Twenty Years

Chapter 49 Borrowing Money

After leaving the courtyard, the group headed towards the Cultural Palace.

Xia Maosheng patted Wang Zhilong on the shoulder and said, "I didn't realize you were such a generous and magnanimous person, and quite the tycoon too."

Wang Zhilong squinted his small eyes, tilted his head back, waved his hand, and said humbly, "It's nothing, it's all the same. We can't let people look down on us. It's just a small amount of money."

Yang Changjiu said, "You son of a bitch, Wang Zhilong, you have no class! You're so rich, yet you want me to pay for dinner tonight? I only have two hundred yuan on me. No way, you have to treat me tomorrow."

Wang Zhilong tilted his head back and glanced at Yang Changjiu, then said with a smirk, "Don't worry about these things, they're all just small change."

He occasionally stuttered, and coupled with his expression, he really deserved a beating; Xiao Wei's palms were itching to punch him. However, everyone was now somewhat impressed with Wang Zhilong. He threw down that hundred yuan with gusto. These days, it's not uncommon to spend ninety yuan and still get a ten-yuan tip, but it's definitely rare. Now, everyone was a little hesitant, unsure how to re-evaluate Wang Zhilong.

Xia Maosheng and Li Guangzhao walked ahead, talking as they went. Yang Tiebin followed beside them, while Xiaowei and Chen Hui lagged two steps behind. Xiaohong held Xiaowei's arm as they walked together, and Yang Changjiu followed behind Yang Tiebin.

As they walked, Wang Zhilong came up to Xiaowei. He reached out and gently pulled Xiaowei. Xiaowei turned his head to look at him and saw Wang Zhilong wink at him, signaling Xiaowei to move aside.

Xiao Wei paused for a moment, but still took a few steps to the side, distancing himself from the group. He then asked Wang Zhilong, "What?"

Wang Zhilong looked at everyone and whispered, "Um, could you lend me twenty yuan?"

Xiao Wei was stunned. After a long pause, he asked, "What?"

Wang Zhilong seemed a little embarrassed, raised his hand to wipe his nose and said, "Lend me, lend me twenty yuan, I'll pay you back in a couple of days."

Xiao Wei asked, "What's up?"

Wang Zhilong's face returned to that expression as he looked at the people in front of him and said, "I've spent all my money, only a hundred left. I still need to eat tomorrow. Tomorrow, my family will wire me the money, and I'll pay you back when it arrives."

Xiao Wei's mind went blank for a moment. If it were a few years later, he would feel like a million alpacas were galloping through his head.

This arrogant and aloof guy casually tossed out a ten-dollar tip and paid the bill for everyone without hesitation, but then he ran out of money for food? He only had a hundred dollars left and still dared to act like this. He's a real warrior.

After thinking for a moment, Xiao Wei reached into his pocket, only to find that he really didn't have any change. He didn't know how to take any out, even though it was all tucked inside his clothes. He turned to Xiao Hong and asked, "Xiao Hong, do you have any change in your pocket?"

Xiao Hong stayed close to Xiao Wei. Although she couldn't quite hear what they were whispering about, she vaguely caught about 70-80% of what they were saying. After hearing Xiao Wei's words, she didn't say anything, but took out some money from her pocket, took out 20 yuan and handed it to Xiao Wei.

Xiao Wei turned and handed the money to Wang Zhilong, then thought for a moment and said, "Consider it my treat to dinner. But buddy, don't do this again. What are you doing trying to show off if you don't have money? Who's watching you?"

Wang Zhilong took the twenty yuan and quickly stuffed it into his pocket. He smiled and said, "It's nothing, just a small amount. My family will wire it to me tomorrow. I've been spending it a bit too quickly these past few days, so I didn't bring enough. We can't lose face, can we?"

Xiao Wei gave him a thumbs up, speechless.

After catching up with the group, Xia Maosheng turned back to Xiao Wei and asked, "What are you doing?"

Xiao Wei shook his head, glanced at Wang Zhilong who looked completely calm, and said, "It's okay, let's go, it's quite cold."

If you come out of the railway and walk straight along Second Road, it's only a few steps to the Cultural Palace, about 200 meters. You can get there while talking. The main reason is that it's cold, and the roads in Fengtian are straight. The wind blows against pedestrians and everything on the road without any obstruction, so you naturally walk faster at night.

When they arrived at the Cultural Palace, the group went inside. The gatekeeper stared at them for a few moments and said, "Go back earlier next time. Otherwise, I would have locked up and gone to bed long ago. What are you doing out in this cold weather? This area is always noisy at night. Behave yourselves."

Xia Maosheng and the others quickly smiled and offered cigarettes as an apology. The old man took the cigarette and said, "Are they all back? I just went up to check, and it seems like seven or eight people haven't returned."

Xiao Wei said, "Grandpa, I don't live here, and none of the three of us live here either. So there are still three people who haven't come back? I'll go upstairs and check."

The old man turned his head and glanced at Xiao Wei, who was running up the stairs, and said, "Why are you going up here if you're not going home? Running here so late at night instead of going home."

Xia Maosheng said, "Grandpa, this is our dormitory head. He's in charge of this matter. He's just coming over tonight in case anything happens."

The old man nodded, lit a cigarette in Li Guangzhao's hand, and said, "What a load of bull. What business is it of anyone who doesn't live here? You all go upstairs and tell him to come down quickly, I'm going to lock the door."

The group agreed and went upstairs, with Xiao Hong and Chen Hui following behind.

Xiao Wei went up to the second floor, passed through the classroom, and entered the dormitory. The dormitory was noisy and chaotic, with people lying down, sitting, and standing, smoking, drinking water, gesturing wildly, and talking nonsense. As soon as you entered the room, a thick smoke choked your nose, and the floor was littered with cigarette butts and scraps of paper, mixed with the smell of smelly socks.

A few people on the innermost lower bunk were playing cards together, their faces covered in slips of paper, each with a cigarette between their fingers, the ash covering the bed and the floor.

Xiao Wei came in with a frown. He greeted a few people he knew, but most of them just glanced at him and went back to doing their own thing.

Xiao Wei asked his friend, who was lying on the bed by the door, "Hey, don't you guys have any cleaning duties? This room looks like a pigsty after only a few days, and there's so much smoke, why don't you open the windows to let it air out?"

The guy turned his head, stared at Xiaowei for a few seconds, and asked, "Who are you? What are you doing here?"

Xiao Wei looked at him, then turned and looked around, saying, "Is everyone in this room a smoker? Is there anyone who doesn't smoke?"

The guy slowly sat up and said, "I'm not smoking. Didn't you see I was sleeping with the door closed? It's a bit windy here, so the smoke is less."

Xiao Wei asked, "Then why didn't you say anything? This isn't anyone's house; everyone lives here. Why should you have to suffer?"

This guy looked at Xiaowei like he was an idiot: "There are only four non-smokers, how many smokers are there? Looking for a beating?"

Xiao Wei said, "You can open the window."

The guy slumped back down with a thud and said, "Cold."

Within a few words, Xia Maosheng and his group walked in. They all frowned as soon as they entered. Despite their smoking habits, it didn't mean they didn't hate the smoke filling the room. Xia Maosheng waved his hand in front of his face and said, "Damn it, is this a fire? Hey, can you guys smoke less? Is this place even safe to live in? Is this your own home?"