Through The Strait Gates

Chapter 53: in a hurry

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Wu Tao tried to make several calls during Xu Xilin's half-dead period, but Xu Xilin didn't answer, and he didn't get in touch much later. I heard that he went to become a physical education teacher after graduation.

Speaking of which, it is also a mess. People who yearn for a distant place when they are young will often stay in the local area when they grow up. When they are young, they will go further and further away; Peace of mind... In the future, I may intensify efforts to retrieve those rebellions that were not radiated in the early years.

On the contrary, it was an old growing love, and perseveringly left messages and phone calls to Xu Xilin, exerting his shameless dog skin plaster spirit, and became the only high school classmate Xu Xilin had contact with after graduation.

In those years, Xu Xilin never went to the group of high school classmates, did not watch them chat, and did not attend any parties.

He didn't know how to deal with his former classmates.

It's not that Xu Xilin doesn't believe in Lao Cheng and Wu Tao. Although those two people are two hundred and fifty and a bastard, they don't publicize other people's private affairs all over the world, but they don't publicize it, and it doesn't mean they don't tell others. After Yu left the society, all the middle school classmates who knew the basics became their own people, and they talked a lot with each other, and it was inevitable that a few words would be leaked occasionally.

Where in the world is there an impermeable wall

Instead of believing or suspecting other people's mouths all day long, Xu Xilin simply didn't expect someone to keep secrets for him.

After Cai Jing was sentenced, they tried to find out where he was imprisoned. Several times people wanted to send things and see him, but Cai Jing refused to see him. After Xu Xilin's job stabilized, Lao Cheng suddenly called him one day. Said that some classmates went to see Cai Jing, and he seemed willing to meet people.

The two hurriedly made an appointment and went to see Cai Jing once.

Cai Jing had a thin shaved head and was wearing a prison uniform. Xu Xilin almost didn't recognize him at first sight - Cai Jing, who remained in his memory, was still a talented and handsome young man, and he had no hair like the gloomy man in front of him. money relationship. Some of the bones of the youth that did not grow back have been sharpened by the bars to give a rough outline, which is completely irrelevant to the word "qingxiu". There was some kind of oily smoothness and composure that had a complex composition in him.

Seeing them, Cai Jing just smiled politely and distantly, and said, "I almost didn't recognize it."

Xu Xilin knew that in the eyes of others, he was beyond recognition.

Lao Cheng didn't know what to say for a while, so he had no choice but to ask: "How has the past few years been?"

Cai Jing said lightly: "It's all here, what else can I do? Just leave it like that."

He was like a topic terminator, one sentence that blocked the two people on the opposite side.

Meeting old classmates is nothing more than reminiscing about the past and exchanging their lives. Unfortunately, even if Xu Xilin and old Chengdu feel that they live like dogs, it is inconvenient to bark in front of Cai Jing.

The three of them used to sit at the front and back tables, hanging out all day long, and sometimes calling each other at night. No one was too talkative. Now they are sitting together with big eyes and small eyes, looking at each other, and they are a little speechless.

Lao Cheng coughed dryly, and gestured to Xu Xi to come to the rescue with his eyes.

Xu Xilin searched for a while and said to Cai Jing, "We saved some money and plan to open a kebab shop called 'Grandpa', which is near your house. In the future..."

When Cai Jing heard this, he glanced at him. As soon as Xu Xilin met his eyes, he knew that he had said something stupid. He could see that Cai Jing was not moved by this little thought, but might even feel a little ridiculous. .

Xu Xilin thought about it and found that it was indeed. Put himself in his shoes and think about it. If he and Cai Jing were in different places, he would not want to mention the word "go home". There is no family at home, only a bastard's resentful soul, why go back

When they were young, they also remembered that it was a show, and the sincerity of the year, it seems that it is actually quite ridiculous.

However, although Cai Jing's expression was untouched, he still accepted their stupid and embarrassing kindness, and nodded politely: "Is it called 'Grandpa'? Okay, I'll take a look later, but I don't know what to expect. It's time."

The three of them forcibly chatted for a while with big eyes and small eyes. When things were delivered, people had to leave.

Xu Xilin and Lao Cheng actually discussed it when they came here. When they met Cai Jing, don't ask him why he did that thing. But Lao Cheng is a person who can't sit still and fart. He couldn't hold back. Before leaving, he asked Cai Jing aloud: "Lao Cai, what was the reason for you at that time?"

Cai Jing still had a smile on his face, shook his head, but said, "It's over, I forgot."

Xu Xilin raised his hand and pressed the back of Lao Cheng's head, pressed him against his head and forcibly broke him back, and waved at Cai Jing, indicating that he would come back after a while.

Times have changed, and again, will you pull out that knife

This kind of question is just as meaningless as "do you like someone again if you do it all over again".

After Cai Jing left, Lao Cheng said to Xu Xilin solemnly, "I want to open a skewer shop, can you help me?"

It is not easy to open a skewer shop, and the main resistance comes from the old family.

Although Lao Cheng missed his first choice back then, he also had a lot of hard work. After graduation, at the request of his parents, he was admitted to a civil servant for several months. He has just been hired for half a year. The "finale goods" in the hands of the third aunt and the sixth wife of his family are reluctant to introduce them to ordinary girls, and they can only meet this "treasure of the town shop" unless they have very good conditions.

Right now, Zhendian Zhibao is going to quit the public meal and use it as a shopping mall. This launched a tireless persecution of Lao Cheng and his future kebab shop.

In the preliminary work of the skewer shop, Lao Cheng focused on dealing with the remnants of feudalism at home, and Xu Xilin used his spare time to help him run a lot of trivial matters, such as location selection, rent haggling, obtaining licenses, and building facades.

After work, although he occasionally worked overtime, Xu Xilin's life was much more comfortable.

Compared with the chaos in his college days, his work is almost like retirement. He feels that he has nothing to do all day long. His hobby is to go home and cook for his grandmother. The dishes can be a little bit, and they basically have the ability to hold up a table.

To be busy with the skewer shop, he was not used to it at first.

However, Xu Xilin may have a bit of a "nothing to do" factor in his bones, and he quickly found his state.

He was familiar with the trivial matters of starting a business, and he ran the procedures in an orderly manner. After three months, the two of them worked together to deal with internal and external troubles, and forced the skewer shop to open.

On the first day of opening, Song Lianyuan brought a large group of younger brothers over to cheer, crowding the shop to the brim. A group of men ate skewers while watching the national football team, making the noise until midnight. Xu Xilin felt that the atmosphere was very good that day, and got a little inspiration. He simply used the fan's skewer shop as a gimmick. The window of the small shop was covered with team logos. Whenever there was an important game, he launched a "watching the ball together" activity. Grandpa's kebab shop was packaged into a fan club.

The club is really a cash cow, and the skewer shop will pay dividends at the end of the year.

After the small shop was on the right track, Xu Xilin left it to Lao Cheng, left it behind, and became a quiet shareholder who received dividends.

With his "stable" job, the odds and ends of his income all year round are barely enough to pay their family's utility bills.

But this time, Xu Xilin was not in a hurry to resign and go to sea. He had suffered enough of "poor preparation" and "impulsive decision". While doing his own job, he firmly suppressed his desire to resign every day, while slowly helping people with business planning in his spare time and began to consciously accumulate experience and contacts.

There was no publicity or show, all was silent thinking and foreshadowing, and after accumulating enough experience points, we proceeded to the next stage in an orderly manner.

Unexpectedly, things are fickle, and before he can safely finish, the "Grandpa" skewer shop has passed its brief period of glory.

Since "Grandpa" became popular, several "clubs" with different names have opened within a radius of one kilometer, which inevitably divides the passenger flow, and the monthly rent increase has also become a problem.

At that time, it happened to be a real estate boom. The housing prices in the urban area were skyrocketing, and all the small stores on the street became the sweet pastry. The landlord was overwhelmed by the price increase. .

And Lao Cheng, with the stubbornness of the young foodie, is not willing to compromise on quality at all, insisting on using the best meat and the best spices, but the neighbors around him can't eat any quality or quality, and at most praise "your family" delicious", then turned mercilessly into the cheaper arms.

Over the past few months, the skewer shop has successfully turned a profit.

It persisted until the end of the year, but it was finally unsustainable, and the miserable skewer shop closed its doors.

Lao Cheng experienced the pain of failure for the first time in his life. He got drunk in the middle of the moon, cried so hard, and tugged at Xu Xilin's sleeve: "I have been in college for four years, and I haven't achieved anything except playing games. I haven't talked about love, and I was directly driven into the blind date market... Now they are starting to introduce me to second marriages... Am I, am I worthy of my youth? My youth has been eaten by dogs... "

Xu Xilin stroked his dog's head: "It's alright, let's spit it out, darling, stop crying."

Xu Xilin reassured him casually, while browsing the web page with his mobile phone, and sometimes gave Lao Cheng an "um", indicating that there was a living creature next to him.

He has been very light on this level of gain and loss.

Song Lianyuan heard that they ordered a bunch of wine in the private room, and was a little worried. When he came over, he was amused by the bored Xu Xilin and the heart-piercing Lao Cheng.

Finally, Lao Cheng stopped drinking and lay down quietly and silently.

Song Lianyuan then poured out the mineral water in Xu Xilin's glass, and the two of them each poured half a glass of beer and drank slowly.

"Is the work going well?" Song Lianyuan asked.

Xu Xilin: "It's okay, but there's not much money, so it's not interesting."

"It's all the same, let's take your qualifications slowly. In fact, the half moon is not interesting," Song Lianyuan raised his hand and pointed to the slightly outdated decoration in the private room, "It was like this many years ago, and it is still like this. It was fashionable back then, but now... Oh, I'm going to leave."

Xu Xilin was taken aback.

Song Lianyuan dropped out of junior high school and started working as a small waiter running errands until now. It is said that he is the boss in Yuebanwan. Song Lianyuan, the big gangster back then, has become Manager Song.

Xu Xilin: "Brother, where are you going?"

"Let's go to the south first," Song Lianyuan said, "I want to go out on my own, and if I don't go out, I'll be old. I'll explain it here for the rest of my life. I'll wait for the closure to go home and look at the door. In the future, when my brother is away, you have to take good care of yourself. met…”

Song Lianyuan wanted to say, "Just settle down when you meet a sweet girl." He glanced at Xu Xilin and swallowed the words again: "Forget it, you know it yourself."

Song Lianyuan originally planned to leave after the Spring Festival, but he didn't do it, and was stumped by one thing - Ms. Su Wenwan, the idol old lady who swept the entire elderly community, and Xu Xilin's grandmother, is gone.

It happened to be the fifth day of the first day. Xu Xilin, who had nothing to do, got up early in the morning and had a whim. He fried a pot of oil cakes himself, and half a barrel of oil was in trouble. Only then did I realize that it was already past nine o'clock and my grandmother hadn't woken up yet.

He called the door a few times and it didn't open, so he pushed the door and went in, only to find that the old lady had silently closed her eyes.

Her face was the gray of a dead man, her head was tilted to one side, and her skin was sagging.

However, on closer inspection, it seems to be smiling.

Xu Xilin stood blankly beside her bed for a long time, and when he looked up, he was facing the photo of his grandfather when he was young on the bedside table. He had a gentle smile, handsome features, and was an old-fashioned handsome man.

Seeing that grandma was smiling so happily, it was probably grandpa who came to pick her up in person last night.

Travellers who have been separated between heaven and earth have been separated for more than 30 years. In the end, they have a reunion.

Ms. So Man Wan passed away at the age of seventy-eight.

Friends and relatives all came. The old man next door, who grows grapes and tomatoes in the yard every day, cried like a widow, and was fooled away by his granddaughter who came to hear the news.

Song Lianyuan was afraid that Xu Xilin could not handle it himself, so he postponed the date of going south and stayed at his house for a few days to help.

Zheng Shuo is also here, but we haven't seen him for a few years, and Zheng Shuo sees his old age. As soon as we met, he solemnly apologized to Xu Xilin, saying that his plans to return to work in China had not been smooth. Xu Xilin understood as soon as he heard it, knowing that the word "work" was used to shirk it. I am afraid that there are some problems with his new family.

However, he has passed the age of "hatred of an irresponsible father", Xu Xilin treated Zheng Shuo politely, feeling that it was quite speculative to chat with him, and there might be a place for Zheng Shuo in the future.

In the dead of night, Xu Xilin couldn't help but sent an email to Dou Xun, but there was still no reply.

On the day of the funeral, Zhu Xiaocheng deliberately returned to China and read a scripture to his grandmother on his knees, but Dou Xun did not go with her.

Xu Xilin secretly crushed the hope and luck in his heart, and went forward to greet his godmother. Then he understood in his heart that parting in the world was not much closer than the distance between life and death.

Even in today's era when a single ticket can fly to the ends of the earth, people who can't be seen are still invisible.

Maybe it was only then that Xu Xilin really accepted the fact that Dou Xun had left him. He was really like a slow-moving cog, who only turned around in three years, facing his own clear and long traces alone.

At this point, he was finally alone.

In fact, Dou Xun didn't receive the letter at all. Xu Xilin didn't know that he was going to Europe, and he didn't know that he was in Europe. That's all very later. Dou Xun once turned to his old mailbox to find his own forum account for information. He turned to the email from more than half a year ago. If he was struck by lightning, he immediately pushed everything away and returned to China overnight. …Unfortunately, Xu Xilin was nowhere to be found.

The first decision Xu Xilin made after sending his grandmother away was to sell the house he had to stay while crying and arguing.

At that time, there were very few low-density residences like theirs in the city. In terms of quality and location, they were almost out of print.

The house price was crazy at the time, and his house was sold very quickly. The buyer seemed to be afraid that he would go back and not even pay back the price.

Xu Xilin changed hands and bought three more suites—two small units with convenient transportation, about 80 square meters, and kept them for rent. The monthly rent was 2,000 higher than the salary and bonus of his broken job combined.

After hearing this, Lao Cheng almost cried: "I just got tricked by the landlord and couldn't find the North, and you betrayed the revolution and joined that organization! You are really a classmate!"

In addition to the two rented houses, Xu Xilin, the charterer, also bought a three-bedroom house in a slightly more remote location.

He moved his bedroom and Dou Xun's bedroom intact - a chocolate box full of candy wrappers, a closet full of shirts and jeans full of student characteristics, and a childish and funny love letter with a preamble that doesn't fit the description... none of them disappeared.

The remaining room was used as a study, and he moved Madam Xu Jin's study and old records collected by his grandmother.

Xu Xilin arranged his "new home" as a huge souvenir, and then spent more than half a month soothing the gray parrot, who was so depressed that he plucked his hair, and let it get used to the days when the two of them depended on each other. Then, he resigned. After taking a job, he left his hometown, which he hadn't left for more than 20 years, and went south with Song Lianyuan without any reluctance.