All the heavens begin with the love in the courtyard.

After waiting for a while, seeing Su Meng angrily pushing her bicycle out the door, he immediately followed with a fawning smile.

Su Meng didn't give Cheng Jianjun a friendly look either, and without saying hello, she pushed her bicycle away.

Cheng Jianjun quickly followed, not forgetting to ask in a flattering tone.

"Su Meng, why are you angry so early in the morning? Did that bastard Han Chunming upset you?"

When Su Meng heard Cheng Jianjun mention Han Chunming, she immediately found someone to vent her anger on. She stopped and said indignantly.

"Jianjun, why is Chunming so unambitious? He's always slacking off, never does anything productive, and gets into trouble all the time. He's a real troublemaker!"

Upon hearing Su Meng's words, Cheng Jianjun was overjoyed and quickly replied.

"Yes, Chunming is always causing trouble. My dad finally found him a job, but after only a few days, he's already been behaving inappropriately and got fired from the factory. Who would dare to recommend a job to someone like him in the future?"

When Su Meng heard Cheng Jianjun bring up the matter again, she became even more disappointed in Han Chunming and pushed her bicycle forward.

Cheng Jianjun quickly followed behind. He looked at Su Meng's back, his small eyes darted around, and then he called out to Su Meng.

"Su Meng, on August 25th, Yang Jianhua and a few others are planning a reunion for former educated youth. They want to invite you to come along, so why don't you go too?"

Upon hearing this, Su Meng slowed her pace and then asked in confusion.

"I'm not a sent-down youth, what would I do there?"

Cheng Jianjun quickly replied with a smile.

“You’re not a sent-down youth, but you’re still our classmate. We grew up together. Yang Jianhua and the others have always said you sing really well. It’s been so long since we’ve all gotten together, so just treat it as a class reunion. They specially invited you to come!”

Cheng Jianjun and Han Chunming, along with Cai Xiaoli, were all from the same middle school. Back then, only three of them from the same school passed the high school entrance exam and did not go to the countryside to work. Su Meng was one of them.

Although they weren't in the same grade, they knew each other. After all, Han Chunming and Cheng Jianjun were childhood friends, so Su Meng also knew most of the educated youth who had been sent to the countryside.

Su Meng has always been the school's most beautiful girl and the goddess in the hearts of many boys. Although she wasn't a sent-down youth, she was still a classmate, so it wasn't abrupt for everyone to invite Su Meng over.

Su Meng hesitated, wondering whether she should go and join their gathering, when Cheng Jianjun continued speaking.

“Su Meng, here’s what I’m planning. Chunming got expelled, right? I think he’ll be too ashamed to go to the party this time. Why don’t you try to persuade him to go with us? He’s always had a good relationship with those classmates, hasn’t he?”

"We'll have Yang Jianhua and the others try to persuade Chunming and help him get back on his feet. Maybe one of his classmates can help him find a job?"

Cheng Jianjun's words startled Su Meng, who immediately recalled the scene when she ran into Meng Xiaoxing in the yard, where Meng Xiaoxing said that Han Chunming had given her the bicycle.

Su Meng felt angry just thinking about Han Chunming's silly grin.

After hearing Cheng Jianjun's words, Su Meng immediately had an idea and nodded in reply.

"Okay, I'll talk to him when I get home from get off work this afternoon and ask him to go too. If he goes, I'll go too!"

Upon hearing this, Cheng Jianjun was overjoyed, but soon felt a pang of sadness.

Su Meng hasn't spoken to that bastard Han Chunming anymore, but she still thinks about him all the time. If only Su Meng could think about herself like that one day!

Looking at Su Meng's slender figure, her ample bosom, and her flawless white face, Cheng Jianjun felt his hatred for Han Chunming intensify.

Han Chunming had no idea that his hatred in Cheng Jianjun's heart had increased several points. He didn't really care about Cheng Jianjun, that cunning old man.

It's like a naughty little rascal who's always eyeing the pocket money in an adult's hand; you just see him as a little rascal!

After giving the bicycle to Meng Xiaoxing, Han Chunming had to go to the repair shop to find another one, which cost him another hundred yuan. Han Chunming paid the money with a pained expression, then pushed the bicycle and rode towards the dilapidated Hou family's house.

Han Chunming sighed, "In less than two months, I've already spent several hundred of the two thousand yuan I got from Old Huang. People who spend money like water don't know how long it lasts!"

However, Han Chunming was not short of money. Before leaving, Master Huang left Xiao Qiao 10% of his wealth. Although Han Chunming did not ask how much it was, Xiao Qiao secretly told him that in addition to more than 4,000 yuan in cash, there were also more than 50 small yellow croakers of different sizes.

Han Chunming hadn't expected that old man Huang Wuye would have so much money. If he really kept his word, then this 10% would be worth at least tens of thousands of yuan. So his assets over the years must be at least hundreds of thousands or millions of yuan.

This person is definitely a low-profile millionaire!

However, Han Chunming had seen those small yellow croakers, and they were all from the Republic of China era. It seems that this old guy had kept them hidden for a long time!

Qi Siqiao's money is, of course, Han Chunming's money, so he's not short of money now. It's quite nice to occasionally live off a woman!

Han Chunming hummed a little tune as he arrived at the Broken-Scrap Lord's place, where the Broken-Scrap Lord had been waiting for a long time.

The ragpicker never expected that Han Chunming would actually follow him to collect scrap. In order to prevent his mother from finding out that he was collecting scrap, Han Chunming went with the ragpicker to the suburbs for the first time to see what it was like.

The "Scrapper Hou" doesn't actually collect scraps; with their skills, how much money could they possibly make from the small price difference in scrap metal?

Both men knew perfectly well that the ragpicker Hou didn't treat Han Chunming as an outsider, and besides, Han Chunming's appraisal skills were no less than his own, so the two men got straight to the point.

Actually, collecting scrap metal isn't difficult. There are quite a few people like them who collect scrap metal and go from street to street, but they are mostly old men and women, and the youngest are middle-aged men. It is indeed rare to see a young and strong laborer like Han Chunming collecting scrap metal.

In the eyes of Chinese people, collecting scrap is a lowly profession, involving people who are dirty and smelly. Even thirty years later, this is still the prevailing opinion.

It wasn't until the internet age that people were surprised to discover that many people in the scrap metal business were actually hidden millionaires.

In reality, Zhang Peng had a childhood home with a scrap metal yard in the suburbs of the county. It was run by a middle-aged couple. Every now and then, Zhang Peng would "collect" scrap metal to sell for money.

The reason he went to that place was because the couple's son was Zhang Peng's elementary school classmate. But that wasn't the key point. The key point was that the scrap yard offered a price one or two cents higher than other places.

So the scrap yard business grew better and better, and the area expanded until 2007, when the city needed to carry out construction and the government expropriated the land, and the scrap yard was relocated.

After that, Zhang Peng never went to that scrap yard again, but he kept in touch with his elementary school classmate via QQ. In 2011, Han Chunming occasionally opened the other's QQ space and saw that the elementary school classmate had posted a picture.

It was a picture of a BMW, with the caption: My first car.

Zhang Peng was stunned. In his memory, wasn't his elementary school classmate's family just a scrap collector? His parents were always dirty and covered in grime, so how could they afford a BMW?

After that, Zhang Peng frequently checked the kid's QQ space and witnessed his family's flaunting wealth.

From his first BMW to his first house (not an apartment), I witnessed him marry a beautiful wife, have a lovely son, and eventually take over his father's junkyard. I even had the privilege of seeing him flaunt his wealth once, with a bank deposit of 80 million...!

So, the scrap metal business is really murky. But these days, scrap metal collecting is truly scrap metal collecting, because there are no private scrap yards yet. People go door-to-door collecting scrap metal just to make a little profit.

Han Chunming and the Scrapper Hou collect scrap as a cover for collecting antiques, while some of those who truly make a living from this line of work can also earn money by collecting scrap.

For example, they might buy high-priced items like copper and aluminum at the price of iron, deceiving children and elderly people who don't know the market, and then quote exorbitant prices. They might also buy rubber products at the cheapest price, and even more unscrupulous people might manipulate the weight, etc.

This line of work has no fixed hours or income; it all depends on luck. For example, today, when the ragpicker Hou took Han Chunming to the outskirts of the city to collect scrap, they wandered around for half a day and only collected a few pairs of worn-out rubber shoes, earning just 11 cents. It turned out that a scrappicker had come to this place the day before yesterday.

These days, everyone's rubber shoes are worn out and patched up. There are plenty of skilled craftsmen who can repair scissors and pots, so what junk do you have at home to sell?

Han Chunming had been wandering around all morning and was starting to have second thoughts. His feet were aching from walking, and he had only gotten nothing in return. He was also constantly being pointed at and gossiped about. Was this thing even made by a human?

However, the thought of the dilapidated Hou's house, with its room full of bottles and jars, gave Han Chunming a little more motivation.

The ragpicker noticed Han Chunming's discouragement and laughed heartily. He took him to a house and borrowed two bowls of water. With the cornbread they had brought, the two finished their lunch.

Marquis of the Broken House, resting under someone else's eaves, glanced at Han Chunming, who looked utterly hopeless, and couldn't help but laugh as he spoke.

"How's it going? Pretty good life experience, huh?"

Han Chunming sighed and said.

"Brother Hou, this is no job for a human being! Tell me, why did you even consider collecting scrap in the first place?"

"Idle Man" smiled helplessly and said.

"You'll get used to this job after you've done it for a while. Besides, I think it's a good job. It's free and you're not under anyone's control. This is only your first day, so it's natural that you're not used to it yet. But Chunming, you're really not suited for this line of work. Take advantage of your youth and find a job. That way, you'll have some security when you get old, right?"

Han Chunming smiled, glanced at the ragged Hou, leaned against the wall, crossed his legs, and said casually.

"Brother Hou, I'm not in this line of work to make money. I don't even really care about antiques. Don't worry, I'll only work for you for two years at most. You'll see after that!"

Seeing that Han Chunming had said that, the ragpicker Hou didn't say anything more. After resting for an hour, the two of them started to wander around again, each carrying a burlap sack.

It wasn't until after 4 p.m. that Han Chunming, seeing that his luck was really bad today, and the two of them finally headed home.

When they arrived at the dilapidated Hou family's house, Han Chunming left his burlap sacks and other belongings there, tidied his clothes briefly, and then pushed his bicycle home.

Han Chunming's feet were really sore from walking all day. He estimated that he would walk for several months. Whether he made money or not didn't matter, but his physical fitness would definitely improve.

When they arrived home, Meng Xiaoxing was standing at the door with a worried look on her face. When she saw Han Chunming return, she rushed towards him like a little eagle with its claws outstretched. Her eyes lit up when she saw the bicycle Han Chunming was riding, and she quickly said in a flattering tone.

"Brother Wu, is this your new car? How about we swap it?"

Han Chunming could roughly guess what had happened just by looking at the little girl's expression, and he scolded her in an unfriendly tone.

"Don't even think about taking my bike, it's borrowed from a friend!"

Upon hearing that it was borrowed, Meng Xiaoxing immediately hung her head dejectedly.

Seeing this, Han Chunming found it amusing, so he went over, patted her head, ruffled her hair, and then asked with a smile.

"Speak! What is it?"

Meng Xiaoxing shook her head like a cat, brushing away Han Chunming's hair-stroking gesture, and then said with a mournful expression.

"Brother Wu, I...I took the bicycle apart and I can't put it back together!"

Han Chunming laughed heartily, ruffled her messy hair again, and said in a grand manner.

"Come on, I'll fix it for you!"

When Meng Xiaoxing got the answer she wanted, her face immediately lit up. She quickly went up to Han Chunming, took his hand, and led him to fix her bicycle.

Han Chunming didn't push her away; he simply treated the girl like a younger sister and pushed the cart into the yard.

What Han Chunming didn't notice was that Su Meng was pushing her bicycle and standing at the entrance to the courtyard. She had seen everything that had just happened, and her little face was full of grievance and anger.

Chapter Twenty-Two: Jealousy and rivalry?

Han Chunming didn't notice Su Meng's presence behind him, and even if she did, he wouldn't care.

Pulled by Meng Xiaoxing's arm into the yard, Han Chunming immediately saw a bicycle that had been dismantled into pieces in front of his house. Seeing that the seat had been removed, Han Chunming felt a headache coming on!

Knowing she was in the wrong, Meng Xiaoxing quickly grabbed his arm and begged for forgiveness and apologized.

Han Chunming was quite helpless, so he could only roll up his sleeves, pick up a wrench, and get to work.

Seeing Han Chunming's nimble movements, quickly installing a wheel as if it were her own, and how he had sorted out the tangled parts in just a few moments, Meng Xiaoxing couldn't help but feel a sense of admiration and respect.

Young girls are prone to first love, and Meng Xiaoxing, who is only seventeen years old, is no exception.

Han Chunming had always treated her well since she was a child, and she naturally developed this affection into admiration for him. She often fantasized about how happy she would be if Wu Zige could marry her in the future!

Unfortunately, she was willing, but he was indifferent. Han Chunming was completely unaware of the young girl's affections.

He was humming a tune, preparing to attach another wheel, when he saw Su Meng angrily pushing her bicycle up to him from the doorway, speaking in a cold yet somewhat coquettish tone.

"Han Chunming, come out here! I need to talk to you!"

After saying that, Su Meng put down her bicycle and turned to walk out of the yard.

Han Chunming was completely bewildered, while Meng Xiaoxing looked even more worried. Only after Su Meng had walked a long way away did she whisper to Han Chunming.