Wu Jun had left full of enthusiasm but returned in disappointment. Dejected, he went back to the supermarket and opened for business.
"Young Boss Wu, you're finally open! I've already been by three times. Quick, weigh out some rice for me. We're waiting on it to start dinner!"
The moment the supermarket opened, Auntie Lin from the neighboring building walked in. She handed Wu Jun a hundred-yuan bill and said anxiously.
"Sorry about that, Auntie Lin. I had to run some errands." Wu Jun adjusted his mood, took the money, and asked with a smile, "Since you were in such a rush, why didn't you just grab some from another store to tide you over?"
Auntie Lin said, "Hah! My whole family, young and old, will only eat your rice now. We're picky! You little rascal, is your head getting big now that business is good? Are you really trying to push your customers away?"
Wu Jun chuckled. "I was just teasing, don't take it to heart. I wouldn't trade a loyal customer like you, Auntie Lin, not even for Lin Chiling herself. Just a moment, I'll go weigh your rice."
With that, Wu Jun turned and headed for the rice and flour section.
"You little sweet-talker. How could an old woman like me possibly compare to her? No comparison, no comparison at all." Although Auntie Lin was being modest, she was inwardly blooming with joy. She followed Wu Jun to the rice and flour section. "Here, Little Wu, let me hold the bag for you."
It took them less than two minutes to weigh the rice together. Wu Jun then walked Auntie Lin to the door.
Seeing Auntie Lin start off a little too quickly, Wu Jun called out a reminder, "Auntie Lin, take it easy! Don't fall."
"Can't slow down, can't slow down! They're waiting for this rice to cook!" Auntie Lin trotted out of the supermarket, clutching her bag of rice. With such nimble feet, she hardly looked her age. Wu Jun couldn't help but chuckle as he watched her go.
No sooner had Auntie Lin left than Auntie Li arrived, followed by Uncle Wang. The midday rush continued, and Wu Jun threw himself back into the repetitive work of taking money and weighing rice.
He was busy until 2:10 in the afternoon, when the flow of customers noticeably slowed. Only then did Wu Jun have a moment to catch his breath.
Between 2:00 PM and 5:00 PM, customer traffic was always slow. In three hours, he wouldn't even make 300 yuan in sales, and the profit was pitiful.
Wu Jun packed two large bags with food and other necessities from the supermarket, hailed a cab outside, and headed straight for Shimen City First Hospital.
City First Hospital, Ward 1512.
The moment Wu Jun walked through the door, he heard his mother's booming voice.
Ma Dongmei was saying loudly, "Xiulan, you can't keep doing this. You can't keep indulging him!"
Wu Jun saw Xu Xiulan sitting on a small stool next to the hospital bed, her head bowed in silence.
"Mom? Auntie Xu? What's going on?" Wu Jun set down the bags he was carrying and walked toward them, confused. The two women were usually as close as sisters; he'd never seen them like this before.
"Ah, Jun, you're here. Come, sit." Hearing his voice, Xu Xiulan turned and saw him. She reached under the hospital bed, pulled out a small folding stool, and gestured for him to sit.
"What else could it be? Your Auntie Xu just got her paycheck, and that ungrateful wolf took it again!" Ma Dongmei complained to Wu Jun. "I wasn't here when it happened. If I had been, I would've taught that ungrateful wolf a lesson!"
The moment Wu Jun heard that, he knew. 'The ungrateful wolf Mom's talking about has to be Wang Hongliang.'
Wu Jun was annoyed to hear this. "Auntie Xu," he said to Xu Xiulan, "if he ever dares to ask you for money again, you call me. I'll take care of him."
"Sigh, he's really in trouble this time," Xu Xiulan said with a heavy sigh. "My daughter-in-law's two younger brothers... apparently they got into a fight with some young punks or something and have been in a detention center for days. Those two just got into college. After something like this, whether they can even attend is a problem..."
"Er..." Wu Jun's expression turned awkward. 'So that's what this is about,' he thought. 'I'm one of the people involved.'
'But how did I end up being one of the 'young punks'?'
Through Xu Xiulan's mournful sighs, Wu Jun learned the whole story. After Wang Hongliang was released, his wife, Hu Yanmei, had thrown a fit—crying, screaming, and threatening divorce—demanding he pull some strings to get her brothers' records expunged.
He found someone to handle it, who told him it would cost over three hundred thousand yuan. Now, Wang Hongliang was desperately scraping the money together from wherever he could.
Since he had caused the incident, as their brother-in-law, he had no choice but to take responsibility. The alternative was his wife leaving him and his family falling apart.
Wu Jun listened quietly until Xu Xiulan finished, then asked, "By the way, Auntie Xu, I heard that Wang guy also has a rice processing factory?"
"He does have a small factory," Xu Xiulan said. "My husband, Old Wang, used to be the manager there. When he was around, the factory did alright. After he passed, his son took over. It's been less than two years, and I hear he can't keep it running anymore. He's already sold off most of the equipment, and the money's nearly all gone."
Xu Xiulan looked at Wu Jun, mentally comparing him to Wang Hongliang. She sighed, "You're both young men, so why is there such a huge difference? If he'd just been a bit more frugal, he wouldn't be running around trying to borrow money now."
Ma Dongmei chimed in from the side, adding salt to the wound, "Xiulan, if he hadn't encouraged his two brothers-in-law to go pick a fight, he wouldn't need to borrow money in the first place."
Wu Jun agreed. "Yeah, Mom's right. He brought this on himself. No need to feel sorry for him."
"Alright, let's not talk about this anymore. We'll let it slide this time, but there can't be a next time." With that, Ma Dongmei ended the conversation about Wang Hongliang. She turned to Wu Jun. "Jun, how's business at the supermarket?"
Wu Jun smiled. "It's great. I'm selling more and more rice every day."
Xu Xiulan added, "The rice Jun brought last time was truly delicious. Our family ran a rice processing factory for so many years, and I've never had rice that good. I'm not surprised it sells so well."
"That's wonderful. I guess you could call it a blessing in disguise." Ma Dongmei turned, took her husband Wu Guangqiang's hand as he lay in the bed, and said in a choked voice, "Guangqiang, did you hear that? Our Jun is earning more than some big bosses now. Our lives are getting better every day. Please, open your eyes and see."
In the bed, Wu Guangqiang lay with his eyes closed, his face expressionless and peaceful. Suddenly, a single tear slid from the corner of his eye and dripped onto the pillow.
Ma Dongmei wiped the tear from her husband's eye. "Jun," she said, her voice thick with emotion, "your father can hear us. He can hear us. After this next surgery, he'll definitely wake up."
Seeing this, tears began to stream down Xu Xiulan's face. She had witnessed every step of the Wu family's journey out of their initial despair.
During the hardest times, Ma Dongmei had survived on a single steamed bun a day. Now, little more than half a month later, their situation was so much better. From the bottom of her heart, she was happy for them.
Wu Jun sniffled, turning away to wipe his eyes. He said with a watery smile, "Mom, do you have to be so dramatic? This scene is emotional enough for a TV drama."
Ma Dongmei scolded him with a laugh. "You little rascal, getting cheeky again. You're just like your aunt—asking for a spanking."
He stayed at the hospital until four in the afternoon. Before Ma Dongmei could kick him out, Wu Jun left of his own accord.
He took a cab back to the supermarket. The evening rush hadn't started yet, so Wu Jun sat in the boss's chair behind the counter, lost in thought.
From his conversation with Xu Xiulan at the hospital, he'd learned that Wang Hongliang's factory, the Hongyun Rice Processing Factory, was now just a shell. All that was left was some small, unsold processing equipment and a warehouse full of unsellable, moldy inventory. The only thing of value was the brand's trademark.
'For me, that rice trademark is a rare and precious opportunity.'
'But in Wang Hongliang's hands, it's just a worthless piece of paper.'
'I've been waiting for over twenty days to buy a rice trademark, and finally, someone like Wang Hongliang shows up.'
'If Wang Hongliang wants to sell that trademark, he'll probably have to wait a lot longer for another buyer.'
'And now, because of his two brothers-in-law, he's desperate for cash and trying to borrow money from all over.'
'I might be in a hurry, but Wang Hongliang is even more desperate.'
'Now we'll see who can hold their nerve.'
Having figured this out, Wu Jun felt a great sense of relief.