Chapter 112
When Yang Yuyan knocked on the door again in the morning, Prof. Dai and Shi Wuwei had already left first.
Yang Yuyan was surprised: “Why did they leave so early? Mrs. Zhang has already cooked for them.”
Su Chunjun: “They left at dawn. What did Zhang Ma do?”
Yang Yuyan went downstairs with him, “Zhang Ma bought three cages of buns.”
Su Chunjun laughed, “Don’t worry, there won’t be any left, I can eat them.”
Zhang Ma’s standard is two buns a meal for women and four buns a meal for men, no matter how big or small they are, they are all of this standard, and not a single one more. She was certain that the guests would not have the guts to say they were not full!
Professor Dai discovered this secret from last night’s rice soup, so he took Shi Wuwei back to school for dinner early in the morning.
Yang Yuyan was amused as she listened to Su Chunjun’s explanation, “Zhang Ma is a careful person, and besides, things aren’t going too well at home right now.” She sighed.
More and more tenants are running away, and the remaining people have to pay more and more, if this continues, I’m afraid that all the people will run away. Even if the Zhu family wanted to do good deeds, they couldn’t cover all the donation costs themselves.
She heard Mrs. Zhang say that if things continue like this, the Zhu family will be closed by the end of the year, because the tenants have all run out.
She asked Su Chunjun, “Will it get better by the end of the year?”
Su Chunjun dared not make this guarantee. He smiled and said, “It’s only May, it’s still early.”
Yang Yuyan did not eat the coaxing and shook her head.
The two walked into Zhu’s house one after the other, and closed the door before she said, “Our family’s ice tribute this year has been sent over, doubled from previous years, but several bureaus are not satisfied. They are now used to receiving big money and can’t look at small money.”
In the past, the fire-fighting bureau, the health bureau and other places all had little oil and water, although they also wore official skins, but in the eyes of the real big officials, they didn’t count as human beings at all. So Zhu Yanshu can use a little money to win the shelter, here in peace and quiet for so many years.
But now that little bit of money, people no longer look at it in the eyes.
Originally it was only the gendarmerie that wanted to collect the security fee to make up for the empty pockets, but as a result, the Fire Services Bureau, the Health Bureau and other departments immediately followed suit.
Above also do not bother to care about these departments is how to charge, a few bureaus see no one to control, the more the guts to raise more and more big, all kinds of fees will be rubbing upward soaring! Firefighting fees have risen to two hundred dollars a month.
A few people sat at the dining table, and Zhang Ma said, “Alas, that candy store on the corner has been open for over a hundred years, and it’s also closed. The Health Bureau said they sell candy, there must be rats and cockroaches, have to increase their health fees, last month went to the four recycling money, every time they refused to open the receipt note, took the money on the go, the next time to change a set of people to go. How can this top yo.”
Su Chunjun asked, “How much did our family charge for sanitation this month?”
Zhang Ma breathed out, “It’s more than enough, but compared to other families, it’s less.” She held up a hand, “Only eighty dollars were collected.” She tsked and shook her head, sneering.
Yang Yu Yan and Yang Yu Cicada’s faces were both unsightly.
Yang Yuyan was nervous when she remembered the big engagement party she had just organized and said, “Will we be alright then?”
Zhu Yanshu comforted them, “Don’t worry. We made Yan Yan’s engagement party so big and beautiful, and invited so many people, no one will come looking for trouble from us for the time being. If they want to bully people, they have to pick a soft target to pinch.”
Only then did Yang Yuyan turn this corner, but her mood still couldn’t get any better. She then understood why Zhu Yanshu and Su Chunjun had to organize a big engagement party. She realized why Zhu Yanshu and Su Chunjun had to hold a big engagement party.
Su Chunjun said, “It’s better for Yan Yan and big sister not to go to school lately, I heard from Professor Dai last night that the school has hired several Japanese lecturers and started teaching Japanese classes.”
Yang Yuchan frowned and asked, “Is the school planning to use the Japanese power to fight against the gendarmerie?”
Su Chunjun: “You guys don’t know at home. Just last week some men from the Military Police ran to the university, preaching the way to save the country and planning to recruit soldiers from the school to become GIs. They came on the front foot, and the principal went to hire Japanese teachers on the back foot.”
Yang Yu Cicada drew in a breath of cold air, and the sweaty hairs on his back stood up.
“They really did that? Aren’t they afraid of being scolded in the newspaper?” She exclaimed.
Su Chunjun held the buns and said, “Once they drive the truck toward the school and drive the students up there, once the truck drives away, where are you going to save the people? It’s too late to publish it in the newspaper.”
Yang Yucan was so shocked that she couldn’t speak, this was beyond her imagination.
If it was a foreigner who did this, she would have accepted it better.
Yang Yuyan was more calm, because she had no hope for the current national government, so no matter how bad it was, she could remain calm.
She asked Su Chunjun, “Then what should we do next? Should we move to the Concession now?”
This matter had only been discussed once between her and Su Chunjun, no one else in the family had heard about it, and now they were all shocked.
Zhang Ma hurried over, “Moving? Moving to the rented world?”
Yang Yucan went to look at Zhu Yanshu first: “Mom, is that what you think? We’re moving to the rented world?”
Zhu Yanshu had never thought of moving from the Zhu family building, she froze for a moment.
When Su Chunjun saw her expression, he busily said, “Mom, don’t be anxious, it may not be that far yet.” He turned to Yang Yuyan and said, “I’ll go to the rented world in the next few days to look at houses, and buy them first when I see them. When it really gets to that point, we can leave right away.”
Zhu Yanshu really wasn’t used to being called mom by a twenty-something year old, and this call really brought her back to her senses.
She fixed her heart and saw that Zhang Ma and Yang Yucan were looking at her with fear and uncertainty, she quickly smiled and said, “Look at you, what are you worrying about? I’m here! Don’t worry.”
Hearing Zhu Yanshu say this, even if Zhang Ma hadn’t heard any guarantee, her heart was leisurely put back into her stomach.
However, Yang Yucan knew that this meant Zhu Yanshu had not rejected the idea of moving to the rented area. It meant that there was a real possibility that things could get worse.
The family finished breakfast in silence.
Su Chunjun was about to leave after eating, Zhu Yanshu called out to him, and as the two of them walked in front of the balcony, she whispered, “Is it true what you said about going to the rented world to buy a house?”
Su Chunjun nodded and said, “I think things are going to be bad, the mayor they …… may want to run.”
Zhu Yanshu’s eyes instantly widened, and it took two hands clutching his arms to keep from screaming. Three feet away was the chattering sisters Yang Yuyan and Yang Yucan, and Zhang Ma who was cleaning up the table while chattering.
Zhu Yanshu exhaled a breath and said calmly, “How much money do you want to buy a house?”
Su Chunjun: “The money I prepared a long time ago is enough to buy a house.” He paused for a moment and said, “How much cash money is left at home?”
Zhu Yanshu didn’t hide it and said, “One or two thousand dollars.” It’s all hidden in the small safe in her bedroom, and the rest is in the bank vault.
Su Chunjun: “It’s best to exchange them all for gold bars.”
Zhu Yanshu nodded: “Right, money should be getting worse and worse. Then I’ll go and do this today.”
Su Chunjun glanced back at Yang Yuyan, revealed a smile, and said softly, “Don’t worry, with me here, everyone in our family will be fine.”
This was the home he had managed to get with great difficulty, a home where all the people liked him and he liked all of them.
Zhu Yanshu calmly said, “I can’t help you with anything else, if you need money, just tell me, don’t be polite.”
Su Chunjun guessed that the Zhu family should still have money stashed away, but he wasn’t short of money right now, guarding the Treasury’s small treasury, how could he be short of money?
“I understand.” He said.
At this time, there was a knock on the door, Yang Yuyan went to open the door and took a note to call him, “Someone wrote a note looking for you.”
Su Chunjun went over and took the note, and saw that it was a handwritten note from the governor of Ho, telling him to hurry to the Finance Bureau.
He put away the note and said, “It’s Chief He who is looking for me, so I’ll leave first.”
Zhu Yanshu and Yang Yuyan together sent him to the door and said, “Be more careful in everything and take care of yourself.”
Su Chunjun nodded and held Yang Yuyan’s hand and gently shook it before leaving.
After he left, Yang Yuyan said, “Is Mr. He the one who didn’t show up yesterday?”
Mrs. Liao and Wang Wanchuan, who were at the main table yesterday, had been looking forward to meeting Mr. He, but unfortunately, Mr. He never arrived.
Zhu Yanshu: “Well, it should be that person.” She takes Yang Yuyan’s shoulder, “You read well, don’t worry about anything else.”
Yang Yuyan says, “I want to read the letter Miss Jin wrote to me first.”
Zhu Yan Shu wrinkled her eyebrows and sighed, “Sigh. Read it, but don’t answer the letter.”
The letter was placed in Yang Yuyan’s handbag, she went back to the bedroom to take it out and sat on the bed to read it.
The letter is very short, and it seems that Ms. Jin doesn’t have anything to write.
[Ms. Yang:
Zhan Xinyue.
I am very sorry that I have not answered your letter for a long time. Spring is rainy, and many annoying things make me worry and fret. I still remember what you said when we last met; it made sense and used to give me great encouragement, but in the end I found it of little use. I now spend my days with nothing to do but sit in my room and stare. During this time I have read your letters from time to time, it is now my only favorite reading matter, and you can’t imagine how much I look forward to having a newspaper, a picture book to look at.
I am now removed from the house, and am neither well nor badly off. But call the bystanders, I haven’t suffered. I don’t have to cook with my own hands, I don’t have to work with my own hands, I’m always being waited on, I’m always being fed and clothed, so I really shouldn’t complain anymore. But if it were you, you would understand how I feel!
That’s all I have to say. I don’t like to write now, and seldom write anything. You don’t have to write to me anymore.
Thank you very much. I wish you peace and all the best!
Your son]
Yang Yuyan read this letter many times, but her heart was empty, she lifted her pen and didn’t know what to write to Ms. Jin.
She didn’t seek death again, but now that she was alive and tortured, it wasn’t worth it for the onlookers to celebrate for her and say that she at least had a life.
She couldn’t pretend to be ignorant of her situation or that she could understand her feelings. The most horrible torture she had ever endured in her life was just her parents arguing, which was not even comparable to what Ms. Jin was suffering now.
Zhang Ma’s sisters were also sold by their parents, and even though many years had passed, Zhang Ma was still in agony when she spoke about it, and as a bystander, she could feel the empty fear, like being in the darkness, with nowhere to land and no way to move.
The most painful part of this was that …… she couldn’t help Miss Kim, she could only watch as she was sold, bullied, and victimized.
All she could do was watch, but she couldn’t do anything about it.