Rebirth: My dad is too obedient

Chapter 590 Extra - The Taste (Part 1)

parallel world.

Another timeline.

……

Hangzhou, 2024.

"Boss, the office rent... the property management is chasing us for it again..."

An Qing stood there, looking troubled, and spoke.

Xu Chen took a drag of his cigarette:

"Okay, I get it.

Tell the property management to wait a few more days, and that you'll definitely pay the rent next week.

An Qing looked troubled and wanted to say something, but in the end she just nodded and got up to leave.

……

After being laid off by a major company two years ago, Xu Chen spent more than half a year submitting resumes and looking for a job. Unfortunately, the job market was too bad and he was getting old, so he was essentially forced into retirement by society.

It wasn't until early last year, when Xu Chen saw a bidding notice for a real estate project in a group chat from his previous advertising circle, that he returned to his old profession and asked a friend to help him register an advertising company.

He stayed up for three days and three nights straight to work on the proposal and participated in a pitch for this small local Greentown Real Estate project.

Thanks to his eloquence and a bit of luck, he finally secured this small project with a total budget of only 200,000 yuan, which relieved his mortgage and survival difficulties at the time and also gave him a glimpse into his future career possibilities.

In the past year and a half, Dongchen Advertising has hired two new young employees, including An Qing, and has also secured two small marketing projects.

But in recent months, the situation has become unusually tense again.

The old projects have all been completed and closed, but no new projects have come in yet.

If things continue like this, Dongchen Advertising will really have to close down...

Xu Chen lit his last cigarette, threw the butt into the Red Bull can, and exhaled a thick, suffocating breath.

There is always a way out.

At worst, the mortgage will be defaulted on and the bank will take the house away, forcing you to "downgrade" to a manual laborer.

Fortunately, I'm all alone, unmarried and childless, so even in extreme circumstances I can live a carefree life...

Xu Chen comforted himself in this way.

……

Early the next morning.

The only two employees, An Qing and Liu Bohao, arrived at the company early in the morning.

Seeing that their boss, Xu Chen, was still asleep in the conference room, the two tiptoed to their workstations.

They knew the boss owned a house in Hangzhou, but it was already rented out, and the rent was used to cover the mortgage payments.

For the past six months or so, the boss has been eating and sleeping at the company.

Since the housing prices plummeted two years ago, the boss's apartment in Hangzhou is probably not worth much anymore.

Sometimes the two young men couldn't help but think that their boss actually had a much harder life than they did...

Xu Chen heard the noise, lifted the shirt covering his face, rubbed his eyes, and sat up.

He composed himself and walked out of the meeting room:

"I have to go back to my hometown and won't be back until next Tuesday."

If you don't have much to do, Monday is fine with you.

An Qing and Liu Bohao exchanged a glance but remained silent.

Xu Chen:

"You all know about the company's situation, so I won't hide it from you."

You can look into job opportunities outside. If you need to go for an interview, just let me know in advance...

I'll be back the day after tomorrow, and then we can take another look at the pitch projects together.

Don't be too anxious. You're both very talented; it's just that the market is tough right now, but you'll get through it eventually.

An Qing: "Boss, we're waiting for you to come back..."

Liu Bohao: "Let's summarize all the pitch projects in the next couple of days, and then we'll take a look at them together when the boss comes back."

Xu Chen smiled and said, "The sausages from my hometown are delicious. I'll bring some back for you when I come back!"

……

Tomorrow is Qingming Festival.

Xu Chen rushed back to his hometown of Tiancheng to visit his parents' graves.

Flying is too expensive, and even high-speed rail is considered too pricey.

Fortunately, there is still the "Express" option available.

Sleeping in a hard sleeper overnight is cheaper than taking the high-speed rail, and it also saves on overnight expenses.

Get more in one fell swoop.

……

……

Early the next morning, Tiancheng.

Xu Chen walked out of the train station carrying a backpack.

Looking around the square, everything was indeed still the same as it had been ten or twenty years ago.

For Xu Chen now, his "hometown" Tiancheng is only a spiritual place.

The house in my hometown was sold off to pay off debts many years ago after my father went bankrupt.

Xu Chen's household registration had long been moved out, and for him, Tiancheng was also in a state of "fallen leaves without roots".

Just like right now, "where to sleep tonight" is still a real problem that needs to be considered and solved.

……

Xu Chen walked more than a kilometer eastward, avoiding the "high-price" area around the train station.

I found a breakfast shop in the alley, checked the prices, and then sat down with peace of mind.

I still miss the soy milk, fried dough sticks, and pickled vegetables from my hometown.

He gulped down a bowl of soy milk and couldn't resist having another one.

After clearing the tables, the proprietress took advantage of a break to turn on the store's television.

Just consider it a noise from the store, a distraction from the utterly boring life.

Xu Chen chewed on a fried dough stick, glanced at the TV screen, and then stared blankly into space.

This is a local TV station in Tiancheng, broadcasting a public service announcement.

The content is roughly something like "Strive to be a civilized citizen of Tiancheng".

What made Xu Chen somewhat lost in thought was the person who filmed this public service advertisement.

Xie Bingran, an "Asian Games champion" and "Asian sprinter" who came from Tiancheng.

Xu Chen couldn't help but smile as he recalled some events from many years ago.

It really has been many, many years.

My poor, hungry classmate, Xie Bingran, is now on TV...

Xu Chen was a little curious, so he took out his phone and searched for information, which led him to learn about the current situation of his former deskmate.

After retiring as an Asian Games champion, Xie Bingran continued to work as a coach for the national team for a period of time before joining the Shanghai Track and Field Sports Center.

Even though she was already a "sports star," she still had a strong personal influence. So a few years ago, she left the system and founded a sports school in Shanghai called "Xie Bingran Sports School."

Last year, her first "Bingran Sports Center," a collaboration with Jiading District in Shanghai, officially opened to the public.

According to the news, when the sports stadium opened last year, in addition to Xie Bingran herself, many local Shanghai sports stars attended, including Wu Minxia, ​​Wang Liqin, Yao Ming, and Zou Shiming...

Xu Chen flipped through Xie Bingran's recent photos and looked at them.

Years have passed, but she still looks the same as "Bing Ge" from back then; she hasn't changed much.

Xu Chen couldn't help but touch his face, thinking that at over thirty years old, he was probably an uncle that no one would recognize.

He put down his phone and took another big bite of the fried dough stick.

My old deskmate and I are now from completely different worlds.

Thinking about it, it's really quite sad.

……

After breakfast, Xu Chen went to a nearby supermarket and bought some sweet pastries and savory braised beef.

These are all for use when we go to the graves to pay our respects.

The snacks are for Mom, and the braised meat is for Dad.

I remember when I was little, my father would take me to visit my mother's grave, and they would always make locust flower dumplings.

But Xu Chen doesn't even know where to get locust flowers now.

And if one has no "home" in Tiancheng, where can one go to make dumplings by hand?

……

……

My "old home" is still the same as before. Over the years, the village hasn't changed much.

Xu Chen carried the bag through the village, attracting the attention of some of the village's elderly residents.

After all these years of not coming back, probably nobody recognizes me anymore?
Xu Chen thought to himself...

There are still a few blood relatives in my hometown, but after my father, Xu Zhiquan, went bankrupt and fell into ruin, they basically all stayed far away and had no contact with me at all.

Back then, only his fourth uncle's family was still relatively close, but many years ago, his fourth uncle and aunt went to work in the south, and they have had little contact with Xu Chen for a long time.

……

After the memorial service, Xu Chen tore at the weeds on the grave mound with his hands while talking to his parents about some things.

When he talked about his recent situation, he said mostly nice things.

"The climate in the south is better than here. My rhinitis, which I've had for years, hasn't flared up again. It's definitely more livable over there."

"I started my own company, I'm my own boss, and I have so much more freedom now. I can sleep in whenever I want..."

"Don't rush me to get married, I want to enjoy my freedom for a couple of years first!"

"I've been working a lot of overtime lately and haven't been sleeping well, so I have some dark circles under my eyes."

Projects are busy, so I should make as much money as I can while I'm still young...

"You need to be more careful in the future and remember to balance work and rest."

"I'll come home to see you all again at the end of the year."

"When the time comes, I'll save up some money and erect a nice monument for you..."

……

……

Around noon, Xu Chen took a bus to town.

I only managed to snag a train ticket for the day after tomorrow. I'm planning to spend the night in town tonight.

The small hotels in town are much cheaper; you can get a room with hot water for 30 or 40 yuan.

……

Xu Chen sat on the bus, dozing off against the window.

As he passed a row of two-story houses, he couldn't help but look up at them.

One of those two-story buildings was built by his father, Xu Zhiquan, but it no longer bears the surname Xu.

……

The commercial district in the town center.

Xu Chen quickly found a small hotel, where a single room cost forty yuan.

The landlady looked Xu Chen up and down, and as she handed him the room key, she took a small, colorful card from her drawer and slipped it over as well.
"There's a phone call from above."

Xu Chen took them all, smiled, and said nothing.

After resting in the room for a while, I went downstairs for a stroll.

Wandering around the town, I unknowingly found myself near the town's junior high school.

He looked up and saw the town's junior high school building, and couldn't help but feel a pang of emotion, so he walked over there.

It's been so many years since I've been back.

Looking back now, I realize that my junior high school years were truly the most relaxed and free period of my life.

Back then, my dad's factory was doing very well, and I was considered a "rich second generation" among my classmates.

He was a top student and class monitor, and was admired by a bunch of girls.

This naturally includes Xie Bingran, the poor little classmate who had no food to eat.

However, Xie Bingran later became known as "Brother Bing" and gradually drifted apart from Xu Chen.

As for his later becoming a sports star, that had absolutely nothing to do with Xu Chen.

It is still somewhat regrettable.

……

……

There were a lot of people and cars gathered at the school gate, including reporters and their vehicles.

Xu Chen was still a little curious, so he went over to take a look and looked up to see a striking banner hanging at the school gate:
[A warm welcome to Xie Bingran home!]

Xu Chen gasped.

I had to ask around to find out that Xie Bingran, the "Asian champion" and "sports star" who graduated from this junior high school, happened to be back at school today to participate in an event.

Xie Bingran funded the renovation of the school's playground and synthetic running track, and she was invited to attend the opening ceremony today.

Xu Chen thought for a moment, then asked a few more questions in the crowd.

I'm actually quite curious about this old classmate and sports star I haven't seen for many, many years.

……

Half an hour later, the newly built playground appeared.

The stage was simply set up, turning it into a small "press conference".

A crowd gathered below.

In addition to the invited local media and reporters from other places who came on their own initiative, there were dozens of student and teacher representatives.

Further out are the people who came to "join in the fun" and "see something new".

Xu Chen then mingled in the back row.

So, after so many years, Xu Chen saw his former deskmate again from afar.

Several leaders, whose identities were unknown, took turns speaking, while Xie Bingran, as the main speaker, simply stood quietly at the back, occasionally raising her hand to applaud.

She was wearing a light-colored tracksuit, still had the same short hair as years ago, and still had those eyes and brows that exuded a somewhat cold and sharp aura.

Even from a distance, Xu Chen tried to focus his gaze as much as possible.

Time will surely leave its mark on her face...

He thought so.

……

Xie Bingran did not speak on stage until the end of this small press conference.

In the end, he simply shook hands with a group of leaders and guests, and was then pushed to the very center to take a group photo with all the student representatives.

Afterwards, he was surrounded by a group of people and walked towards the school's new office building.

……

The onlookers were a little disappointed, but they had still managed to take some photos of the "big stars" so they could take them home and show them off to their relatives and friends.

Xu Chen then realized that he had been so busy looking around that he hadn't had time to take a picture.

He couldn't help but think with a touch of self-mockery, if he had the chance to ask for a photo, he wondered if his old deskmate from back then would still remember him...

……

The crowd dispersed.

Xu Chen followed them out of the playground.

He looked up at the campus, but felt a pang of reluctance.

A group of reporters and photographers are still on campus, gathering and compiling various materials.

Xu Chen looked down at himself. The clothes he was wearing today seemed to be enough to impersonate a reporter and sneak in, right?
So he followed a man carrying a video camera toward the main gate of the campus.

I got in smoothly.

……

It was the weekend, and there were no students in class.

Xu Chen strolled around the campus, reminiscing about his youth.

He paused in front of a blackboard bulletin board, recalling how he used to "manage" one issue of the blackboard bulletin board every month when he was in junior high school.

They would also hide some insults directed at teachers in their articles that only they could understand.

On several occasions when drawing blackboard newspapers, my deskmate Xie Bingran even acted as a "little assistant," coming over to help get the chalk and eraser.

I really miss it...

Before I knew it, I had arrived at a classroom in the teaching building.

Xu Chen looked inside through the glass window and stood there for a long time.

He looked at the two seats in the back row, and memories of the past came flooding back.

At that time, he was sitting on the right, and Xie Bingran was sitting on the left.

During class, Xu Chen would reach into his schoolbag, pull out a candy, cookie, or preserved fruit, and then quietly hand it over.

The little foodie reached out his little hand under the table to catch it, his face showing obvious panic as if he had done something wrong.

It's actually quite funny when you think about it.

……

……

(End of this chapter)