nucmednet Chapter 3 The Passage of Time
Chapter 3 The Passage of Time
Zhang Liangjun is only awake five times a day, but the time is not long. He becomes very sleepy after that and spends most of his time in a drowsy sleep. This may be because he was born too young and his internal organs are not functioning properly, which is not enough to support his thinking activities.
Old Chen didn't show up again the next day; he must have gone out to work.
After learning that his name after time travel was Chen Yu, Zhang Liangjun decided to temporarily forget his original name and call himself Chen Yu for the next few decades.
Chen Yu was born in 1988, as reported on the news. The house he lived in was a two-story dwelling in the urban-rural fringe of a small county. Owning a two-story house at that time meant he was considered quite well-off. Chen Yu's father, "Old Chen," deserves much credit for this; regardless of what happened later, he certainly worked very hard in the early years.
Time passed in a hazy sleep and in the eating, drinking and relieving himself after waking up, until Chen Yu was almost two years old. At this time, Chen Yu was gradually able to speak. After all, normal two-year-old children can have simple conversations. Chen Yu did not want to scare his mother.
Mr. Chen's promise to return home after six months did not come true. He came back for the Spring Festival, when Chen Yu was almost one year old, but he didn't stay long, only two weeks, before returning home again. Chen Yu felt that he should do something, otherwise his father would still leave the family.
Chen's father was named Chen Yunqiu, and his mother was named Sun Suying. Chen Yunqiu was a sent-down youth from a big city, possibly one of the last batches of sent-down youth. Because he was somewhat educated, he was appreciated by his superiors and brought to work in the county, which is how he met Sun Suying. Because he worked in the county, he didn't return to the city after his sent-down youth period ended. However, his superiors later left, and Chen Yunqiu didn't get anything. Fortunately, after a few years, the spring breeze blew into the surrounding villages, and Chen Yunqiu, having gained some ability, started a small business. This two-story house was earned through Chen Yunqiu's hard work.
The couple had been married for several years without children. Just as Chen Yunqiu had decided to go out to work, Sun Suying discovered she was pregnant. Chen Yu suspected that Chen Yunqiu intended to never return, but Chen Yu had delayed her.
In the original drama, Chen Yunqiu left this small county town when Chen Yu was about ten years old and never appeared again, presumably without any further contact.
Chen Yu decided to send Sun Suying out to earn money. Sun Suying had been staying home to care for Chen Yu since giving birth to him. Chen Yu's grandparents were probably also struggling in the city, and there was no intention of bringing them back.
These days, unless you have exceptional qualifications and abilities, most entrepreneurs work in the clothing, retail, or food and beverage industries. The first two, frankly, involve going to wholesale markets to buy trendy clothes and small commodities and selling them in less developed or less up-to-date areas. Sun Suying has almost never traveled far from home, and with Chen Yu holding her back, it's unlikely she'd do either of those jobs. Food and beverage work, however, is something she could try—running a breakfast shop or setting up a street stall.
Getting an adult to listen to a three- or four-year-old is incredibly difficult, but time is of the essence. To keep Chen Yunqiu here, he needs to feel that this family isn't a burden, and that he can have a good life and future here. This requires Sun Suying to build up some wealth before Chen Xu is born. Even if Chen Yunqiu refuses to stay, having money is better than being destitute.
Could there be a butterfly effect that wipes out Chen Xu? Amitabha, if it's true, Chen Xu, please don't blame me, Chen Yu. It's not me who's wrong, it's the world.
An opportunity soon arose.
That day, Sun Suying took Chen Yu home from the market after shopping. On the way, they encountered a tricycle selling jianbing (Chinese crepes) with a complete set of equipment in the back. The vendor wanted to sell his cart and was haggling with someone.
Chen Yu had been observing for many days, and the business at this stall was extremely poor. The money earned was probably only enough to buy a single dish at a restaurant. The stall owner was an elderly woman in her fifties, and she wasn't very clean. Given the dismal business, she was even less attentive, and apart from the occasional rushing office worker, no one patronized the stall.
Okay, you're the one.
Chen Yu broke free from his mother's hand, ran to the stall cart, and nimbly climbed onto the seat from the footrest. Facing the stunned stall owner and buyer, Chen Yu declared in a commanding tone, "I want this cart! How much? You name it!"
At this moment, Chen's mother caught up and quickly apologized to the stall owner: "I'm sorry, Aunt Li, the child is just being silly. I'll take him away right away." Chen Yu's information was inaccurate; the two actually knew each other.
She tried to pull Chen Yu down, but he wouldn't let her. He crossed his arms and used a lock, locking them firmly in place. If someone tried to pull him, his arms would break. Fearing she might actually hurt him, Chen's mother tried to gently persuade him with a combination of sweet talk and enticement, "Xiao Yu, come down first, okay? Mom will buy you a lollipop when we get home, okay?" Of course, her persuasion was ineffective. Chen Yu wasn't a three-year-old; he wouldn't be so easily fooled. A soul in its thirties couldn't be satisfied with just a lollipop!
In the end, the stall owner and Chen's mother pulled Chen Yu down. No matter how well a child can lock his arms, he is not as strong as an adult. They could slowly untie him.
Chen Yu wasn't about to give up so easily. Since the locking technique was useless, Chen Yu simply lay down on the ground and resorted to a childish, invincible move: 'playing the rogue.' He had no choice but to use this move, because it would hurt the enemy a thousand while damaging himself eight million. Just like Chen Yu was doing now, his mother immediately stepped in and beat him up badly. Sun Suying, who had never laid a hand on anyone before, was equally ruthless when she started fighting.
Chen Yu felt that the beating was acceptable. Imagine if your child saw a car parked on the side of the road, ran in, grabbed the steering wheel, and wouldn't let go no matter what. If you couldn't persuade them and they even threw a tantrum, wouldn't you have to discipline them?
The stall owner, an elderly woman, couldn't bear to watch any longer and pulled Sun Suying, who was looking around for a wooden stick, aside. "If all else fails, you can just buy this cart. I don't earn much money with it every day, and I've been wanting to sell it for a while now. Suying, we know each other, and you don't have any other business, so why don't you bring this little... Xiaoyu with you to set up the stall? It's not tiring anyway, and I'll give you a discount on the cart."
The other buyer had already left. They hadn't reached an agreement on the price, and Chen Yu was lying on the ground. It wouldn't be good if people misunderstood that he had hit Chen Yu himself, so he left first!
"How much cheaper?" Hearing that his goal was about to be achieved, Chen Yu stopped lying on the ground waiting to be beaten and got up to bargain with the stall owner.
The stall owner was amused by Chen Yu. Mischievous kids are common, but such a persistent one is rare. It's quite amusing to see a little kid who hasn't even started school haggling with you.
…………
In the end, the car was still bought. Based on the average price of scrapped used cars, the stall owner's offer of a discount was just a small fraction of the price, and Chen Yu didn't expect to save that much money.
In short, being able to buy a car is a significant first step, and it has historical significance!
After this incident, Chen Yu also realized his shortcomings; his acting skills were too poor and he needed to practice more!