Liu Changyun scratched his head, then quickly changed the subject.
“By the way, Zhou Yuwei, when you said we’d leave at rooster crow… what time is that exactly?”
How was he supposed to know when roosters crowed?
Normally, he slept until his old man came banging on his bedroom door with a broom before he reluctantly crawled out from under the blankets.
“Uh…” Zhou Yuwei looked embarrassed too. She had no idea either.
“The time roosters crow changes with the weather,” Grandma Xu explained. “In summer, it’s usually around three or four in the morning. In winter, it’s later—around five.”
She had overheard the children’s conversation and already understood what they were planning.
The kids hadn’t bothered to hide it from her.
“Three or four? That’s so early.” Liu Changyun looked shocked.
So did Zhou Yuwei.
“We don’t have to leave that early.”
There was really no need. Making money was important, but they were still growing. There was no point making life unnecessarily difficult.
“Let’s make it five o’clock. We’ll leave at five.”
“Sounds good.” Xu Zitao nodded.
“If you’re going into business, where’s your startup money coming from?” Grandma Xu looked at Zhou Yuwei.
By now, she had figured it out.
Among the group, Zhou Yuwei was the one everyone listened to.
“Grandma Xu… I’d like to borrow some money from you.”
At last, Zhou Yuwei voiced the plan she’d been carrying with her all along.
“Borrow money?”
“I’m borrowing it in my own name. It has nothing to do with the others.”
She took out an IOU she had already written.
“What? Zhou Yuwei, are you trying to leave us out?” Liu Changyun exploded.
“Changyun, are you really that slow?” Xu Zitao sighed. “If Yuwei wasn’t planning to include us, why would she tell us to meet at the compound gate at five tomorrow morning?”
“Oh… right.”
Liu Changyun still looked confused.
“This business was my idea, but it comes with risks. If something happens during transportation, or the eggs break on the way, we’ll lose everything. I can’t drag all of you into that risk.”
She looked at Grandma Xu and said seriously,
“I have one principle: if we lose money, the loss is mine alone. If we make money, everyone shares the profits.”
Then she continued,
“Grandma Xu, I don’t know how long this business opportunity will last. But I promise you—even if this deal completely falls apart, I’ll repay every cent within a year.”
Grandma Xu smiled.
“I believe you. How much do you need?”
For some reason, when she saw the determination shining in the girl’s eyes, she felt certain this child would accomplish great things one day.
Especially after hearing her say, If we lose money, it’s all on me. If we make money, everyone shares.
Anyone capable of saying something like that was destined for an extraordinary future.
The Zhou family had endured hardship for so many years.
Perhaps their fortunes were finally about to change.
“Two thousand yuan.”
She had already worked it out.
Her father would receive eight hundred yuan from selling his job.
Fifty thousand eggs would cost around two thousand five hundred yuan.
She also needed to keep three hundred yuan in reserve for emergencies.
“All right. I’ll get it for you in a moment. Grandma Xu has faith in you.”
“Thank you, Grandma Xu! I promise I won’t disappoint you.”
Liu Changyun and Xu Zitao exchanged a glance.
…
After receiving the money, Zhou Yuwei returned home.
Her father had just come back as well, dragging himself inside with obvious exhaustion.
“Yuwei, where have you been?”
“At Grandma Xu’s.”
“Oh.”
Since when had Yuwei become so close with the people from the front courtyard?
As soon as Zhou Kun entered the compound, Auntie Chen had told him that his daughter had gotten into a fight with Liu Changyun, Xu Zitao, and Cao Bingkun.
He had originally intended to say something.
But then he glanced at Yulan, who was still instinctively shrinking behind the others.
The words died in his throat.
Forget it.
Maybe it wasn’t a bad thing for a girl to know how to defend herself.
Otherwise, she’d only end up getting bullied.
“It’s nothing. Go get some rest.”
Zhou Kun took the towel from Lin Hongmei and wiped the sweat from his face and body.
“Dad, I need to talk to you.”
“What is it?”
Zhou Yuwei explained everything from beginning to end.
“Yuwei…” Lin Hongmei frowned. “Isn’t this risky?”
“What business isn’t risky?”
She looked at her father.
“Dad, how much did you make today?”
“Two yuan.”
“I repaired furniture for someone.”
He had worked the entire day for just two yuan, spending hours bent over without ever being able to straighten his back.
After a moment of silence, Zhou Kun said,
“If the child wants to try, then let her.”
“Even if we lose everything, I’ll just work a few more years.”
“All right. I’ll trust your judgment.”
Years of hardship had made Lin Hongmei overly cautious, always afraid of what might go wrong.
“I’ll go with you tomorrow,” Zhou Kun said after thinking it over.
“But didn’t Grandpa Zhang already arrange for you to make him a whole new set of furniture tomorrow?” Lin Hongmei reminded him. “He’s already prepared all the lumber. He’s in a hurry because his son is getting married.”
“I’ll go with Yuwei.”
Zhou Yulan walked out of the room.
“Yulan, are you sure you’re up for it?”
“I’ll be fine.”
“Good.”
“Yulan has lived in the countryside before.”
Even if it wasn’t the same village, Zhou Kun still felt she was more reliable than the younger kids. She was several years older and much steadier.
…
That night, Lin Hongmei tossed and turned, unable to fall asleep.
“Don’t overthink it.”
Zhou Kun patted her shoulder gently.
“The child wants to earn money. That’s a good thing.”
“But… what if she fails? Our family…”
She sat upright.
“Our lives have only just started getting better. If something happens this time…”
That was tens of thousands of eggs.
How could they possibly transport so many without incident?
The village roads were terrible.
Getting a truck into the village would already be difficult.
Then there were all the potholes and uneven roads.
Even if only some of the eggs cracked, they’d lose money.
What if there was an accident?
“Yuwei rarely shows this much determination.”
“If young people want to build something for themselves, we should let them try.”
“When you’re young, you should take risks while you still can.”
“Even if you fail, you just get back up again.”
He gently guided her back down.
“You’ve worked hard all day. Stop worrying and get some sleep.”
Lin Hongmei nodded and closed her eyes.
It wasn’t as if she’d never enjoyed good days before.
It was just…
These past years had been so frightening and exhausting that whatever little ambition she once had had long since disappeared.
Now, all she wished for was for the whole family to stay together and live peaceful lives.
…
Daybreak was just beginning to lighten the sky.
Zhou Yuwei and Zhou Yulan were awakened by someone knocking on the window.
Still half asleep, Zhou Yuwei opened it.
“It’s almost five. Are you two ready?”
Xu Zitao wore a wristwatch, so he had taken it upon himself to wake everyone up.
In truth, his grandmother had woken him first.
Older people naturally slept less.
She had gotten up at four-thirty, made him breakfast, and stuffed several egg pancakes into his hands.
“Share these with Yuwei and the others on the way.”
Once everyone had gathered together, they set off toward their destination.
“So where are we going first?”
“Shidu.”