Tech startup: I really do make mobile phones!

Chapter 59 The mastermind behind the scenes
The Jinhu Mountain Villa area in Shenzhen is shaded by green trees, but the wind blowing through it is still hot.

When the carved bronze door was pushed open, a cool breeze carrying the distinctive chocolate scent of cigar smoke wafted in.

Zhao Tiezhu stood on the Persian carpet, looking at the two figures entangled on the sofa under the crystal chandelier, and his Adam's apple bobbed involuntarily.

Mr. Zhao put his arm around his sister-in-law's waist, his fingertips playing with the diamond stud earring on her earlobe.

His sister-in-law's scarlet lip print was particularly striking on his left cheek.

"Hey! Brother Tiezhu's here!" Boss Zhao released his sister-in-law's lips.

The older sister-in-law, with her wine-red nail polish, hooked her fingers around Mr. Zhao's collar, sat in his lap, and looked curiously at this "poor boy" who had come to her door.

"So you've finally figured it out and want to come here to earn a living?"

"Mr. Zhao, you flatter me!" Zhao Tiezhu put on a big smile, showing no fear, and sat down to the side, his work pants leaving dust marks on the leather sofa.

"Who in the entire city doesn't know you're a big shot? I'm here today to ask you for a few items," Zhao Tiezhu said, raising one finger: "1000 Lianfaco MT6573 chips!"

The eldest sister-in-law suddenly giggled, stood up, and the hem of her lace skirt brushed against the back of Zhao Tiezhu's hand.

"Young man! You came to see my old Zhao just for these mere 1000 broken chips?"

Mr. Zhao slapped her upturned buttocks with his backhand, making a crisp sound.

"Men are talking business, women shouldn't interrupt. Go upstairs and wait, I have important business to attend to."

He turned to the underling by the door, his eyes turning cold: "Have the warehouse bring out a batch of high-quality goods, don't try to fool Brother Tiezhu."

The older sister-in-law snorted and swayed upstairs in her high heels, suddenly turning her head at the corner of the stairs.

She bit her red lips and glared "fiercely" at Zhao Tiezhu.

President Zhao straightened his silk robe, stood up, and placed his hand heavily on Zhao Tiezhu's shoulder.

"Remember, we're both surnamed Zhao. Even if we're broken, our bones are still connected. If you ever have any trouble in Shenzhen, just let me know!"

Zhao Tiezhu hunched over and took a half-step back, his smile tinged with a hint of wariness.

"I'll remember your kindness, Mr. Zhao! But I just like tinkering with circuit boards; as for other things... hehe, I'm afraid I might mess things up for you!"

After watching Mr. Zhao go upstairs, Zhao Tiezhu followed his underling out of the old-fashioned villa area.

The villas here were developed relatively early, and the surrounding area consists of old residential and commercial communities.

Zhao Tiezhu handed a cigarette to his underling who came to deliver the goods in a Wuling minivan, asking him to give him a ride back to Huabeiqiang.

"Brother! Stop for a second!"

The Wuling minivan was parked in front of the bank, its hood still steaming.

Zhao Tiezhu tossed the half-crumped box of Shuangxi cigarettes to his younger brother who was driving and opened the passenger door.

"Brother! I need to take care of something, it'll only take two minutes. Take me back to Huabeiqiang later."

The bank's air conditioning hit him hard. Zhao Tiezhu pulled at his collar and fanned himself. He took a number, waited in line, and then slapped the cash wrapped in a plastic bag from his pocket onto the counter.

"transfer!"

Behind the glass partition at the counter, the teller mechanically counted banknotes, then suddenly looked up.

"I transferred 5200 yuan across banks, and the handling fee is 52 yuan. I'm still short 26 yuan!"

"What?" Zhao Tiezhu leaned forward abruptly, his forehead hitting the glass partition with a dull thud. "Last month I transferred five thousand and only received 26!"

The clerk pushed up his glasses, and the keyboard clattered loudly.

"New regulations! There's a 1% handling fee for cross-bank and intercity transfers. You have to sign before you can transfer, and there's a long queue behind you!" She pointed to the call number screen, where the bright red "27" was blindingly bright in Zhao Tiezhu's eyes.

"Transfer! Of course!" Zhao Tiezhu pulled a handful of loose change from his pocket—five yuan, five yuan, one yuan, one yuan—and laid them all out on the counter. "Alright! The rest will be deducted from the transfer!"

He watched as the teller stamped the receipt and transferred 5200 yuan back to him.

Suddenly, he remembered that he had borrowed money from all his neighbors, even mortgaged his three mud-brick houses, and that his old man, younger brother, and younger sister were still crammed into the old cave dwelling left by his grandfather on one kang (a heated brick bed). He couldn't help but feel a tightness in his throat.

As dusk deepened outside the bank, Zhao Tiezhu leaned against a telephone pole, dialed the school store's number, and lit a Baisha cigarette, which he held in his hand.

The familiar commotion came through the receiver, and after a while, his second brother's panting voice finally came through: "Brother? I'm cleaning right now! What's up?" "I'm sending you guys money today!" Zhao Tiezhu tugged at the belt of his work pants, which were aching from the tightness, and his voice softened involuntarily: "Remember not to rush to pay off the debts. Buy Dad a few more boxes of medicine first. Don't skimp on your little sister's tuition for the start of school. Eat what you need, but don't spend recklessly. I'm in the city."

He paused, watching a family of three skipping and hopping across the street.

"I'm in the city, doing well. If you need more money, just let me know!"

"..." There was a moment's hesitation on the other end of the phone: "Brother! Don't worry! Everything's fine at home!"

Just then, the loudspeaker of the Wuling minivan blared from behind.

"Let's go, Brother Tiezhu! No parking here!"

When Zhao Tiezhu heard the other party say that everything was fine at home, he didn't think much of it. After hanging up the phone, he took two deep drags on his cigarette, threw it on the ground and stomped it out, then stuffed his phone back into his pocket and resumed his usual carefree attitude.

"Dude! What's the rush?" He pulled open the passenger door and got in. "Let's go! Let's go! I'm still waiting to mooch off Chen Gordon's BBQ!"

He hadn't forgotten Chen Mo's promise: if he could get the screen and chip sorted out within a week, he would treat him to roasted lamb kidneys on the grasslands.

Outside the floor-to-ceiling windows of Jinhu Villa, neon lights shimmered and dappled across the surface of the swimming pool.

The older sister-in-law drew circles on Mr. Zhao's chest with her fingers, which were painted with burgundy nail polish, listening to his steady heartbeat.

"Honey! That poor young man who came today doesn't look like someone who'll make a fortune!"

Mr. Zhao, with a cigar in his mouth, watched the smoke rings swirl beneath the crystal chandelier.

“His name is Zhao Tiezhu. A year ago, we had a fight at Shekou Wharf. If he hadn’t kicked me into the sewer, I would be two meters tall with grass on my grave by now.”

"Then just give him some money and we'll be even?" The older sister-in-law turned over and sat up, her silk nightgown slipping off her shoulders. "Is it worth bothering over a few worthless chips?"

"In his eyes, my life, Zhao Laoda's life, is only worth this little bit. He's trying to distance himself from me!"

Mr. Zhao suddenly stubbed out his cigar, sparks flying onto the expensive bed sheets.

"Old Qin is about to be promoted and go to another place, it's time for us to get out of here too."

The elder sister-in-law's eyebrows furrowed, cold sweat poured down her face, and her long eyelashes trembled slightly in the shadows.

"What does it have to do with some poor kid like him if we want to get ashore?"

“There are plenty of hotheads out there.” Mr. Zhao stroked her waist, but his eyes were as cold as ice. “But people who dare to stand up to thugs who collect protection money all by themselves, and can still chat and laugh with others and do business, are hard to find even with a lantern.”

"Why not just throw money at it?"

"If it were that simple, I would have kept him in my office long ago."

Mr. Zhao suddenly burst out laughing, his fingertips pinching his sister-in-law so hard it hurt.

“He was following a student who was starting a business in North China. I originally wanted to use someone else to do my dirty work—let the smugglers deal with the student, then step in as their savior, and naturally bring him under my control.”

"However, that stall owner was arrested a few days ago."

The elder sister-in-law's pupils constricted sharply, and she trembled all over: "Arrested?"

"What's the panic?" President Zhao pulled her long hair and hugged her like a kitten. "Or are you happy?"

"We're all in the same boat," the older sister-in-law nestled obediently in Mr. Zhao's arms like a kitten. "If something really happens to you, how could I be happy?"

Mr. Zhao stroked her long hair, as if he were petting a cat.

"Don't worry! If something happens to us, Lao Qin will be the first to be caught. It's probably just some other coincidence. To be on the safe side, when that vendor comes out, we'll send him straight to India to eat bananas."

"I thought you were going to send him to Southeast Asia to eat peanuts!"

The older sister-in-law traced the tattoo on his chest with her fingertips, a hint of ruthlessness flashing in her lowered eyes.

"A wasp's stinger is the most venomous thing a woman can have!" Boss Zhao slapped her face with a laugh, but the force was so strong that blood trickled from the corner of her mouth. "These are turbulent times. If you really send someone to Southeast Asia, do you really want me dead, you filthy bitch!"

A year ago, Mr. Zhao, who narrowly escaped death at Shekou Port, not only lost his courage as the eldest son, but also his second son.

Moonlight climbed onto the headboard, and the intertwined shadows of the two people twisted into grotesque shapes on the wall.

(End of this chapter)