Chapter 48: The Winds of Fortune, Blowing Wildly
Tonight, it wasn’t the usual uncle watching the store, but an elderly woman. Chai Jin inquired about the uncle. The woman explained that earlier, while lining up to buy subscription certificates, the uncle got into a fight. He was struck on the head several times and now was at the hospital getting examined.
Chai Jin shook his head: ordinary folk are so powerless, always rushing to fight for something only after it’s become a sensation. He dialed that familiar number. The call connected quickly—it was indeed Wang Xiaoli.
He instinctively scolded her, “Why are you still sleeping at the factory at night? Didn’t I tell you yesterday to go home to rest?”
This was Chai Jin’s most peculiar and conflicting feeling: he wanted Wang Xiaoli to answer the call, yet once she did, he couldn’t help but reproach her.
Wang Xiaoli, though chastised, didn’t feel upset at all. Her small, delicate face broke into a charming, shy smile. “No, I’m just working overtime.”
“Do you think there’s little to do at the factory? We have a big truck from the south waiting for goods, so we must speed up production.”
Chai Jin understood the truck surely came from Feng Haodong. He nodded, “Can you handle the workload?”
“Yes, it’s all right. Anyway, we work overtime like this every day.” Wang Xiaoli rested her arm on the desk, one slender leg playfully curled behind her, like an innocent girl.
“What are you so busy with every day, that you’re still on the phone so late?”
“Oh, right—something happened today. I’m not sure if I should tell you.”
Chai Jin let out a bitter laugh, “You’ve said that much, so should you tell me or not?”
“You’re right, I dislike people who only speak half their mind.” So Wang Xiaoli recounted the incident.
It was about her mother, Guo Rufeng, and her family. Two days ago, they caused a scene at the factory and were taken away by the police. Originally, it wasn’t a big deal, but today, the family sent a lawyer, threatening to sue. Their demands were shameless: since Guo Rufeng’s son has built up such a business, how could Chai Mingguo cut her out? She demanded Chai Jin pay for her retirement, and Chai Mingguo compensate her for emotional distress, among other claims.
The lawsuit sought thirty percent ownership of the factory.
Hearing this, Chai Jin lost his temper and cursed, “Who gave her such nerve!”
“To reach this level of shamelessness—it’s truly beyond my comprehension!” Wang Xiaoli was startled and hurried to calm him, “Chai Jin, don’t be angry, okay?”
“Sister Fangfang told me not to mention it to you because she feared you’d get upset. She said she’d handle it.”
Chai Jin took a long time to regain his composure and replied, “Fine, tell my sister she can use the factory’s money however she pleases—even donate it to beggars outside, I wouldn’t interfere at all.”
“But not a single cent goes to that woman! That’s my principle. If she wants a lawsuit, then you get a lawyer too and sue her for the child support she owes me and Xiao Shan!”
“For all these years, she abandoned her family, and my father raised us alone. What did he sacrifice for this family?”
“Absolutely shameless!”
“Okay, okay.” Wang Xiaoli didn’t dare pursue the topic further. After a brief silence, she said, “Can we not talk about this anymore?”
Chai Jin exhaled deeply, “Fine, let’s drop it.”
“Has the weather warmed up yet in Yuanli County?”
…
March 2, 1992, a day destined to be recorded in the annals of China’s economic history.
On this day, crowds surged outside the Zhonghai Lianyi Tower, witnessing an unprecedented spectacle. Chai Jin was there too, having booked a room at a guesthouse across the street, where he could observe everything clearly.
He brewed a cup of tea and quietly watched the scene below, awaiting the imminent uproar.
Everyone in the square clutched their subscription certificates, breathing anxiously, gazing toward the exchange inside, desperate to learn the outcome.
For today was the first lottery draw for the subscription certificates!
Time ticked by slowly, emotions in the square held taut.
At ten o’clock in the morning, the tens of thousands gathered erupted in thunderous cries.
“We won! We won!”
“We’re rich! I’m going to be rich!”
One man scaled a wall, stripped off his clothes, and waved them wildly in excitement.
He was not alone; countless others were swept into utter frenzy.
The building where Chai Jin stayed also burst into deafening cheers; evidently, some there had also won.
Chai Jin remained quietly sipping his tea, unnervingly calm, as if he were not of this world.
That evening, he checked out of his room.
As he descended, he overheard people everywhere discussing the subscription certificates. Though the crowds had dispersed, the air still thrummed with the scent of fortune.
He walked to a newsstand and bought a newspaper.
The headline in Zhonghai Evening News read: “First Stock Subscription Certificate Lottery Results Announced—214,000 Winning Numbers, Win Rate 10.3%!”
Exactly the same odds!
The result matched perfectly with what Chai Jin remembered from his previous life—no deviation at all. This meant the upcoming new stock issuance wouldn’t be limited to ten shares, but would increase to fifty!
The second lottery in early June would reach an astonishing fifty percent win rate!
At last, Chai Jin’s heart settled.
In the night sky over Zhonghai, just after the Spring Festival, a lingering trace of fireworks and gunpowder still hung in the air.
Yet Chai Jin now felt the world could indeed be so beautiful.
This lottery would create a wave of millionaires in the early nineties.
And Chai Jin would be the only billionaire among them!
Of course, there would also be a multimillionaire—the shrewd Liu Yiqian.
He walked through crowds engaged in spirited debates, an ordinary youth among ordinary people. Who could guess that in his hands were over eleven thousand subscription certificates—the very thing others struggled to obtain even one of?
Back at the guesthouse, the topic dominated every conversation.
Tired from the day, he washed up and went to bed.
Late at night, half-awake, he sensed someone entering the room, accompanied by a feminine scent of perfume.
She stepped in, undressed in the moonlight, and slipped into his bed, pressing herself against him.
Under the covers, she grabbed Chai Jin’s hand and placed it on her hip, while her own hand wandered boldly toward his waistband.
Chai Jin, startled, snapped awake, instinctively scrambling out from under the covers.
He switched on the bedside lamp and, upon seeing the woman clearly, was furious. “What the hell do you think you’re doing? Who gave you permission to come into my room?”