Rebirth: Fan Debiao rises from the Liaobei land

Fan Debiao stared at the girl under the streetlight, and paused for a moment.

Ma Xiaocui.

His niece, his sister Fan Deying's daughter. Although his sister passed away many years ago, and he didn't like his brother-in-law Ma Dashuai, they hadn't seen each other much in recent years, but they still saw each other during holidays. Why is this girl in the city? And in the middle of the night?

"Xiao Cui?" Fan Debiao took two steps forward. "What brings you here?"

When Ma Xiaocui saw Fan Debiao, tears welled up in her eyes: "Uncle..."

The word "Uncle" made Fan Debiao's heart clench. In his previous life, this girl had married Gangzi and moved far south, and they had gradually lost contact. When he died, he was all alone. Hearing this "Uncle" now, he felt a pang of sadness.

"What happened?" Fan Debiao asked. "Did something happen at home?"

Ma Xiaocui wiped away her tears, her words slurred. Da Liu stood there, unsure whether to stay or leave.

Fan Debiao waved his hand: "Da Liu, you go back first."

Da Liu left. Fan Debiao led Ma Xiaocui home.

They didn't speak on the way. Fan Debiao thought to himself that Ma Xiaocui was probably looking for him at this time because of that matter—Yu Decai.

Sure enough, as soon as she entered the small house, Ma Xiaocui couldn't hold back anymore.

"Uncle, something's happened at home." She sat on the edge of the bed, clutching the hem of her clothes. "My dad..."

"What? Your dad's gone too?"

"No, my dad wants me to get married!"

"Whom do you want to marry?" Fan Debiao asked, knowing the answer already.

"De Cai," Ma Xiaocui whispered, "Yu De Cai, the village chief's son."

Fan Debiao chuckled upon hearing the name: "De Cai? You mean that eggplant bun? It hasn't even fully grown yet, has it?"

He remembered Yu Decai. Short, bow-legged, with a face full of pimples, and he stuttered. In his past life, Commander Ma insisted on marrying his daughter off to him for a dowry of 30,000 yuan.

Ma Xiaocui was stunned, not expecting her uncle to react this way. She had thought her uncle would be angry and scold her father, but instead, her uncle laughed.

"Uncle, why are you still laughing?" Ma Xiaocui asked anxiously. "That Yu Decai... everyone in the village is laughing at him. If I marry him, my life will be over."

Fan Debiao stopped laughing and lit a cigarette: "Did your dad take money from them?"

"I've accepted it." Ma Xiaocui lowered her head. "Thirty thousand. I said I can't go back on my word once I've accepted the money, and we'll get married on May 1st."

"So you ran away?"

"Hmm." Ma Xiaocui wiped away her tears again. "I won't marry him. My dad beat me, so I ran away. My mom passed away early, and you're the only one I can find."

Fan Debiao exhaled a puff of smoke, his mind perfectly clear.

This plot makes sense.

That's how it was in the past life. That bastard Ma Dashuai actually sold his daughter for 30,000 yuan to build a house. Ma Xiaocui ran away from her arranged marriage and came to find him. He took her to Victoria, where Wu Derong took a liking to the girl and asked him to be her matchmaker. Everyone's story ended in tragedy.

This time it's different.

"Does your dad know you're here?" Fan Debiao asked.

"I don't know," Ma Xiaocui shook her head. "I ran away from home."

Fan Debiao thought for a moment. In his past life, he brought Ma Xiaocui into Victoria, and the plot started to go astray. He had to take a different approach this time.

"Xiao Cui," Fan Debiao flicked his cigarette ash, "you're eighteen this year, aren't you?"

"Um."

"Eighteen, just the right age to start school," Fan Debiao said. "Your mother passed away early, your father doesn't care about you, but your uncle does. So, you can stay here with me for now. I'll find you a school tomorrow so you can continue your studies."

Ma Xiaocui was stunned: "Studying?"

"Yes, go to school," Fan Debiao said. "You're only eighteen. What else can you do if you don't go to school? If you don't go to school, you'll only be able to wait tables in a restaurant for the rest of your life. You need to learn something so that you can have a bright future."

"But..." Ma Xiaocui hesitated, "What about my dad..."

"I'll talk to your dad." Fan Debiao stubbed out his cigarette. "Thirty thousand yuan, your uncle will figure it out. That old bastard of yours, he'd even sell his daughter for money, I need to have a good talk with him."

Looking at Fan Debiao, Ma Xiaocui felt that her uncle was different from before. She remembered that when her uncle used to come back to Majiabaozi, he would always brag about how well he was doing in the city, when in reality he was just a security guard. But now her uncle spoke steadily and clearly, and what he said made sense.

"Uncle," Ma Xiaocui asked softly, "Would it be convenient for me to stay here?"

"What's inconvenient about it?" Fan Debiao said, "You sleep on the bed, I'll sleep on the floor. When we have more money, we'll move to a two-bedroom apartment."

Ma Xiaocui's eyes reddened again: "Uncle, thank you."

"No need to thank me." Fan Debiao stood up. "We're family. Your mother is my own sister, and you're my own niece. Your father may not love you, but your uncle does."

In the middle of the night, Fan Debiao gave his bed to Ma Xiaocui and slept on the floor himself.

Lying on the ground, Fan Debiao couldn't sleep.

Ma Xiaocui's arrival was like a key, unlocking all his memories from his past life.

He remembered.

In the spring of 2002, Ma Xiaocui ran away from her arranged marriage and came looking for him. He took her to work as a waitress at Victoria. Wu Derong took a liking to this girl and asked him to act as a matchmaker. He went eagerly, but Ma Dashuai objected, accusing him of siding with outsiders. He ended up pleasing neither side.

Later, Ma Xiaocui met Gangzi in Victoria, and the two started dating, causing a lot of trouble. Later still, she went south with Gangzi and broke off all contact with him.

Now that he's been reborn, he has to change this girl's fate.

We can't let her go into that big, corrupting influence of Victoria.

Fan Debiao rolled over and looked at the ceiling. He was going to live a different life this time.

First, we need to handle Ma Xiaocui's matter properly. We can't let her be pushed into a fire like we did in the last life. We need to make sure she goes to school, has a future, and stops her from being a lazy bum all the time. We need to have a serious talk with Ma Dashuai. If 30,000 yuan isn't enough, we can borrow it from Boss Wu. After the engagement is called off, this money needs to be returned to the Yu family.

Secondly, Victoria's job is not a long-term one. Wu Derong will fall sooner or later, so she needs to make some capital now to prepare for the future.

And then there's Ma Dashuai. The two of them have been at odds for most of their lives, but they're still real relatives. If I ever succeed in this life, I'll lend a hand if I can.

As I was thinking, dawn was breaking.

Fan Debiao got up, saw that Ma Xiaocui was still asleep, and tiptoed out the door.

In the early morning in Kaiyuan, the streets were not crowded. The breakfast stalls had just set up, and the fried dough sticks were sizzling in the pan. Fan Debiao bought two sesame seed cakes and a bowl of soy milk, and carried them back home.

Back at the small house, Ma Xiaocui was already awake and folding the quilt.

"Uncle, you're up?" Ma Xiaocui asked a little embarrassedly. "I overslept."

"What's the rush? Perfect timing." Fan Debiao placed the sesame seed cakes and soy milk on the table. "Have breakfast. After you finish, I'll take you somewhere."

"Where to?" Ma Xiaocui asked.

"A school," Fan Debiao said, "Kaiyuan Vocational Secondary School. I've inquired about it, and they'll accept someone like you. You can study accounting or something; it'll be easier to find a job in the future."

Ma Xiaocui was stunned: "Uncle, you're really letting me go to school?"

"Nonsense," Fan Debiao said. "You're only eighteen. What are you going to do if you don't go to school? Wait for dishes? Can you do that for the rest of your life?"

Ma Xiaocui bit her lip, tears welling in her eyes: "But... the tuition..."

"Your uncle will cover the tuition," Fan Debiao said. "Just focus on your studies. Don't worry about anything else."

After breakfast, Fan Debiao led Ma Xiaocui toward the vocational school.

On the way, Fan Debiao chatted with Ma Xiaocui.

"Xiao Cui, let me tell you the truth," Fan Debiao said. "A person always needs to be capable. If you're not capable, people will look down on you everywhere. I've suffered from a lack of education all my life. I'm good at bragging, but I'm useless at getting things done. You mustn't follow my example."

Ma Xiaocui nodded: "Uncle, I will study hard."

Upon arriving at the vocational high school, Fan Debiao sought out the admissions office. The teacher, surnamed Wang, wore glasses and appeared quite amiable.

"Teacher Wang, this is my niece. She wants to go to school," Fan Debiao said.

Teacher Wang looked at Ma Xiaocui: "How old are you?"

"Eighteen," Ma Xiaocui whispered.

What's your educational background?

"Junior high school graduate."

Teacher Wang nodded: "Yes, we can accept you. We have accounting classes, secretarial classes, and computer classes. What do you want to learn?"

Ma Xiaocui looked at Fan Debiao. Fan Debiao said, "Study accounting. You'll always need accounting knowledge."

After completing the formalities and paying the tuition fee of eight hundred yuan, Fan Debiao's hand trembled slightly as he took out the money. It was half of his monthly salary, but he felt it was worth it.

As Ma Xiaocui left the school, clutching her newly acquired textbooks, her eyes welled up with tears again.

"Uncle, I will definitely study hard."

"Okay." Fan Debiao patted her shoulder. "Study hard, and if you become successful in the future, don't forget your uncle."

"No, it won't," Ma Xiaocui said.

After escorting Ma Xiaocui back to her small house, Fan Debiao went to work at Victoria.

As soon as they entered the security room, Da Liu came over and asked, "Brother Biao, was that girl from last night really your niece?"

"Nonsense," Fan Debiao said, "She's my own niece."

"He's quite handsome," Da Liu chuckled.

Fan Debiao glared at him: "Don't get any funny ideas, kid. My niece is in school; she's going to be an accountant."

"Accounting is good," said Da Liu, "because you manage the money."

Just then, the walkie-talkie rang: "Brother Biao, Boss Wu wants to see you."

Fan Debiao went to the office. Wu Derong still had bandages wrapped around his head, but he seemed much better.

"De Biao, sit down," Wu Derong said. "I've been thinking about what happened last night all night."

"What have you figured out?" Fan Debiao sat down.

"Those people were probably sent by Lao Qian," Wu Derong said.

Fan Debiao's heart skipped a beat. Old Qian, Qian Dabao, was another entertainment center owner in Kaiyuan who didn't get along with Wu Derong.

"What evidence do you have?" Fan Debiao asked.

"There's no evidence," Wu Derong said. "But besides him, who else would bother me?"

Fan Debiao remained silent. He remembered from his past life that the conflict between Wu Derong and Lao Qian began this year.

"Mr. Wu," Fan Debiao began, "I have an idea."

"explain."

"Instead of fighting with the old money, we should cooperate," Fan Debiao said. "Kaiyuan is only so big, and the market is only so small. If we keep fighting, no one will benefit."

Wu Derong was stunned: "Cooperation? With Lao Qian?"

"That's right," Fan Debiao said. "You two each have your own clients and your own connections. If you can cooperate, you can expand Kaiyuan Entertainment."

Wu Derong stared at Fan Debiao as if he didn't recognize him: "Debiao, how come your brain... suddenly clicked?"

Fan Debiao laughed: "People always have to improve."

Wu Derong thought for a long time and shook his head: "Difficult. I know Lao Qian. He's petty and holds grudges; there's no way he'd cooperate with me."

"Let's give it a try," Fan Debiao said. "I'll go talk to them."

"You're going?" Wu Derong was even more surprised. "You know Lao Qian?"

"I don't know him," Fan Debiao said, "but things can be done by human effort."

Wu Derong looked at Fan Debiao for a while and then said, "Okay, you can give it a try. But don't have too high hopes."