Volume One, Chapter 20: Coming Clean with the Family—I’ve Made a Fortune!

The eldest aunt was the first to grow nervous. "What is it? Xionghua, don't tell me they aren't buying them anymore?"

Tang Xionghua smiled. "It's not that. I'll explain everything in a moment."

With that, he stepped out, hopped on his bicycle, and headed to the neighboring village. His younger sister, Tang Chunhua, and her husband, Liu Kunfei, lived close by; less than five minutes later, they arrived together.

After the family finished a joyful meal, Tang Yifan and the eldest uncle’s daughter, Tang Yixin, prepared to take Tang Yichen outside to catch fireflies. This had been orchestrated by the grandfather and the eldest uncle, as the adults needed to discuss serious matters. Unlike Yichen, the other two children were old enough that it would be improper for them to hear anything and repeat it around the village. The grandmother even sat on the threshold to ensure no unexpected visitors would drop by.

With no choice, Tang Yichen left the table and ran off to chase fireflies. He trusted his father to handle things, and besides, he genuinely wanted to play with the fireflies, look at the stars, and relive the beautiful memories of his rural childhood.

With the children gone, only the adults remained. The dishes had been cleared away by the eldest aunt, who replaced them with a bowl of peanuts. Liu Kunfei fanned himself while snacking on the peanuts. The grandfather lit his pipe, while Tang Xionghua pulled out a pack of Red Plum cigarettes, offering one to both his older brother, Tang Jianhua, and his brother-in-law, Kunfei. He then left the pack on the table, signaling them to help themselves. He had bought these cigarettes to hand out to the staff at the county train station and had been reluctant to smoke them himself, but now that he was earning money, he didn't feel the sting as much.

"Xionghua, just tell us what's going on. This mystery is making me a bit nervous," the eldest uncle urged, taking a deep drag and exhaling before speaking.

"That's right, everyone is here now, just say it. We're all family," added the grandfather, Tang Jiaxiang.

Tang Xionghua scanned the room, sat up straighter, and began. "Alright, I'll say it. But please, don't interrupt me while I'm talking. And Dad, please don't lose your temper until I've finished."

The old man paused, stunned. He had never seen his son look so serious or his eyes so sharp. Still, he kept his composure, simply nodding without asking questions, waiting for Xionghua to continue. However, the eldest uncle and his brother-in-law were becoming restless and increasingly anxious. What did he mean by "losing his temper"? Was this something bad?

Seeing this, Tang Xionghua finally moved a black leather satchel that had been sitting by his side onto the table and unzipped it.

The family stared at the bag in silence, not yet grasping the situation, until a stack of cash was revealed inside.

"Second brother, why is there so much money?"
"Brother-in-law, where did this money come from?"
"Xionghua! Why are you carrying so much cash on you!?"

The three men were instantly stunned by the stack of bills. They were familiar with that leather bag; ever since Tang Xionghua became a teacher at the town middle school, he carried it every time he returned home. It usually contained nothing more than documents, stationery, and receipts. Who could have imagined it would be filled with a thick stack of banknotes—all large denominations of one hundred and fifty yuan? At a glance, there must have been two or three thousand yuan.

After the initial shock, the grandfather was the first to react. "Xionghua, did you empty your savings? Are you planning to use this to buy up the dried fish and shrimp? Do you really need that much money?"

It wasn't surprising that Tang Xionghua could produce such a sum; as a middle school teacher, he was the most well-off among them. But the question remained: how much dried fish and shrimp would he need to buy? Was the county feed factory asking for a larger volume? Was that what he wanted to discuss?

Just as everyone was filled with confusion and speculation, Tang Xionghua suddenly spoke up. "No, this isn't my savings, and it’s not for buying the fish and shrimp. This is money I've earned over the past few days!"

"What?" The old man’s eyes widened, his mind struggling to process the information. When it finally hit him, he stood up, his face filled with shock. The eldest aunt, always the most sensitive when it came to money, gasped aloud. "What!? Earned? You earned this? This much!?"

The eldest uncle and his brother-in-law were equally incredulous. They looked at one another, then back at Tang Xionghua, their minds filled with a single, massive question: "How did you earn it?"

Tang Xionghua repeated with absolute certainty, "It’s true. There’s over two thousand yuan here, and I earned it in just a few days—these past few days!"

The group was left speechless. What kind of work could earn over two thousand yuan in a few days? You couldn't even steal that much!

"Xionghua, you... you explain this to me clearly!" The grandfather’s right hand, holding his pipe, began to tremble. He even feared his son had done something illegal.

Tang Xionghua stopped beating around the bush. "Don't look at me like that. I really didn't do anything wrong. This money was earned by reselling those 500 catties of dried fish and shrimp from before..."

"Wait, Xionghua," the eldest aunt interrupted before he could continue. "When you sold those fish and shrimp to the county feed factory, you only made 20 cents per catty. That’s only 100 yuan for 500 catties—we all helped you calculate it!"

Her doubt was shared by everyone present. If Tang Xionghua had found a way to earn 100 yuan per batch, people would already be envious. But two thousand? How could that be possible?

Facing their burning gazes, Tang Xionghua offered a sheepish smile. "Well... I actually hid the truth from you. The goods weren't collected for a classmate; I collected them myself. And I didn't sell them to the county feed factory—I sold them all the way in the provincial capital, Chuzhou!"

"What!?" The crowd exclaimed again. Tang Xionghua had shown immense audacity! He had taken over 500 yuan of his own money, bought up dried fish in the village, and resold them in Chuzhou. If he had lost money, it would have been a disaster. But more importantly, the money was secondary! He was a teacher with a "steady iron rice bowl"—if the authorities found out he was acting like a capitalist trader, would he still have his job? He had gone mad!

"Xionghua, you’ve lost your mind! How could you..." The grandfather’s first thought was indeed the "iron rice bowl." His face flushed with anger as he pointed at his son, accusing him of being reckless and blinded by money.

Tang Xionghua knew this scolding was inevitable, so he took the verbal lashing without a word. The others knew the old man’s greatest pride was that Xionghua had finished vocational school and become a teacher; it gave him such status in the village. Thus, they remained silent, not daring to speak up for him.

Only when the old man had finished venting did Tang Xionghua speak calmly. "Dad, I know what you’re thinking, and I understand it completely. But I didn't just act recklessly. Before I started buying goods in the village, I bought a dozen catties in town and went to Chuzhou to scout the market. I discovered that these dried fish and shrimp are very popular in the city and there’s a huge demand, which is why I decided to start this business."

"You might not believe it, but I buy them in the village for 90 cents a catty, but I wholesale them to the small vendors in Chuzhou for 6 yuan and 90 cents. The vendors then retail them for 8 to 9 yuan a catty. After deducting travel and transportation costs, I make 6 yuan per catty. That is how I earned this two thousand yuan."