Chapter 43: Never Letting Go of Any Business Opportunity

Liu Weidong stayed by the river until nearly eight o'clock before riding his bicycle over to the entrance of No. 1 High School.

Sitting by the river, he kept thinking about his father-in-law. Lou Nan's faith had collapsed, and his personality would undergo a drastic change. If his mother-in-law continued to press him aggressively at a time like this, Lou Nan would very likely turn into Xiao Nan from the novel, leading to the disintegration of his marriage with Song Qian.

In his past life, Lou Nan and Song Qian never divorced, but Liu Weidong had no idea how well they actually lived.

After rebirth, not everything turned out the same as in the previous life. Didn't he defy the heavens and change fate by saving Lou Yanru?

Then there was the sister-in-law, Li Hong, and even Secretary Zhao Lijun. In the past life, they had no connection to him whatsoever, yet now they were intimately entwined with his life.

He certainly didn't want any turbulence in the Lou family, because the one who would end up heartbroken and distressed by it all would still be Lou Yanru.

Once Lou Yanru and her younger sister came out, the three of them grabbed a quick bite at the state-run restaurant before heading home. Seeing the newspaper pasted on the wall, Lou Yanru felt both shy and ashamed.

"You really something else, actually pasting the newspaper on the wall. Are you deliberately trying to embarrass me?"

Lou Yanru reached out to tear it down, but Liu Weidong stopped her.

"How can you say it isn't something you wrote? This book can be considered the fruit of our shared hard work, just like a child. Are you going to tear up your own child?"

Lou Yanua chuckled and nodded, "Ain't that the truth, Sis? Whatever Brother-in-law has is yours anyway. By the way, when are you two planning to have a baby? Have it, and I'll help raise it for you."

Lou Yanru's face blushed even deeper. She glared at Liu Weidong and headed to the kitchen to boil some water.

"Brother-in-law, I sang the song you wrote at No. 1 High School. Forget about the students, even the teachers were completely blown away. The teachers at No. 1 said they had never heard lyrics and melodies like that before; they were at least a whole decade ahead of their time."

Liu Weidong nodded, "Yanhu, don't be too flashy. I wrote this song for you to boost your art exam score, but at the same time, Brother-in-law also hopes you can pursue the path of an independent musician."

"What's an independent musician? How come I've never heard that term before?"

Too lazy to explain it to his sister-in-law, Liu Weidong simply told her to keep strengthening her musical appreciation, and she would understand when the time came.

After all, his sister-in-law wasn't his wife; sooner or she would belong to someone else, so he didn't need to invest too much effort.

After washing up, Lou Yanru entered the bedroom. Only then did Liu Weidong speak up, "I went to see Dad at the cadre school today and talked with him for a long time. I feel like his emotional state isn't quite right. Does your mom always give your dad a cold shoulder every time she goes?"

Lou Yanru hesitated, words hanging on her lips, but Lou Yanhua had a quick tongue.

"Who doesn't my mom scold? Ever since I can remember, she and my dad have had massive fights every three days and minor spats every five days. This time, because she was implicated by my dad and labeled a reactionary academic authority, she hates him even more. If it weren't for her bad temper, would I have needed to hide out at your place?"

Liu Weidong sighed, "After that ten-year turmoil, many people's ideologies and beliefs took a heavy hit, but taking out bad emotions on family members is unacceptable.

Yanru, if you get the chance, go home and talk some sense into your mother. At the very least, she has already been rehabilitated, but your dad is still undergoing re-education. As husband and wife, they need to support each other through these difficult times."

Lou Yanru nodded, opened her schoolbag, and began to review her lessons.

In his past life, Liu Weidong had never asked about his wife's family matters. He truly hadn't expected that two high-level intellectuals would experience such a crisis in their family life.

By half-past ten, Lou Yanhua was already yawning. She rubbed her eyes and retreated to the west room.

Liu Weidong closed his wife's textbook and went to fetch a basin of warm water for her to wash her feet.

"Yanru, I asked Manager Wang at the No. 3 Department Store, and he said he has connections to sell the ginseng. Do you want to keep it or sell it?"

Lou Yanru hesitated for a moment. "Weidong, you saw my dad's physical condition. Besides, your dad's health isn't great either. I want to keep these two roots of ginseng as a lifesaver. If we aren't desperately in need of money, let's not sell the ginseng.

After I finish my exams, I'll go roam the mountains with you again. Maybe we'll run into a big find. Once we harvest more ginseng, you can do whatever you want with it."

Liu Weidong smiled, "I was just floating the idea. The family isn't short on money right now; I was just worried that we wouldn't store the ginseng properly and it would get infested with bugs. As for the notion of going deep into the mountains, you should banish that thought early on. Nowadays, old man Guan takes the commune members up the mountains every day to gather herbs. If there were any ginseng left, do you think they'd leave it for you? Let me show you a few good things."

With that, Liu Weidong climbed onto the heated brick bed, opened the cabinet, and took out several pieces of antique porcelain and ancient books.

"The good things you're talking about are just this jar, this bowl, and some old books? Who doesn't have this kind of junk at home? And you treat them like treasures?"

Lou Yanru curled her lips in skepticism.

Liu Weidong shook his head repeatedly. "You're showing your layperson's ignorance, wife! This jar is actually a Ming dynasty blue-and-white lotus-patterned jar from the imperial kiln. Even though it's missing a lid, it's still worth twenty thousand yuan. These few sets of rare antique books are also of immense value, and while those small bowls and plates are from Qing dynasty folk kilns, each one is still worth a few hundred yuan."

"You're saying this broken jar is worth twenty thousand yuan? Have you lost your mind?"

Speechless, Liu Weidong packed the items away.

"Do you know what the antique trade is? Do you know what a pawnshop is? Antiques were already very valuable in the old days, but after the destruction of the 'Four Olds' and the Cultural Revolution, a lot of them were destroyed. There aren't many people playing this game domestically anymore; only Hong Kong businessmen and foreigners are willing to pay top dollar.

Tomorrow I'll borrow a camera, take a few pictures to show Manager Wang, and have him help me contact a buyer. You're about to go to university, and I'm always worried the money won't be enough."

At this point, Liu Weidong suddenly slapped his own forehead, giving Lou Yanru quite a start.

"What's wrong with you now?"

"I really have a pig's brain! How could I forget something so huge? Buying stamps..."

Stamp collecting didn't truly heat up until after 1982, and certain Cultural Revolution stamps could only be acquired through auctions, where the prices were astronomical figures.

If he didn't snap them up right now, wouldn't he be a fool?

Early the next morning, Liu Weidong went to the No. 4 Department Store to find Manager Wang. As soon as he mentioned wanting to buy stamps, Manager Wang was stunned.

"Don't post offices sell stamps casually? Why do you need to look for someone for that?"

Liu Weidong waved his hand, "I'm not talking about the kind they sell at the post office. I mean commemorative stamps and special stamps issued in the past, especially the ones from those few years. I enjoy stamp collecting, but living in the countryside, I don't know big leaders like you, so some stamps are impossible to buy even if I want them."

"Stop flattering me. Buying stamps is a small matter. Bureau Chief Wei of the Municipal Post and Telecommunications Bureau has asked me for favors more than once, and I've never asked him for a single thing. I'll call him right now.

Besides, a Hong Kong and Macao inspection delegation is arriving in a few days. Bring the ginseng and antiques you mentioned tomorrow; maybe we can sell them for a good price this time."

After Manager Wang finished making the phone call, Liu Weidong rode his bicycle to South Tianjin Road, right where the Municipal Post and Telecommunications Bureau sat adjacent to No. 1 High School.

Bureau Chief Wei was a woman, and she greeted Liu Weidong very warmly.

"Young man, you have quite a wide range of hobbies, don't you? You actually like collecting stamps? Manager Wang called me personally, so it looks like the stamps you want to buy must be pretty hard to dig up."

Liu Weidong accompanied her with a smile, "I had no idea Bureau Chief Wei was such an elder sister! If I had known, I would have bought you some cosmetics or something. Giving an elder sister two cartons of cigarettes really isn't appropriate."

Despite saying that, Liu Weidong still placed two cartons of high-grade Ginseng-brand cigarettes onto the table.

"Why are you doing this? Does a favor arranged by Manager Wang require bribery? Little Liu, what kind of stamps do you actually want to buy? A stamp costs only a few cents, and you're giving me two cartons of high-end cigarettes—you're making it so I don't even dare agree to this."

Without a word, Liu Weidong simply handed over a slip of paper listing the stamps he desired, specifying that he wanted full sheets of every single one.