Chapter 39: Something Happened

“He went to East City. That kid, he can endure hardship when it comes to work, no doubt about it… just a bit reckless sometimes…”

Ye Dongping got sidetracked by his son’s question and forgot to press about Ye Tian’s whereabouts. He fetched a bottle of well-water-chilled beer from a plastic bucket in the yard. After opening it, he thought for a moment and poured a small half-bowl for Ye Tian as well.

Most ordinary people drank draft beer those days. However, a beer manufacturer had been promoting sales in the county town just a couple of days prior. A bottle of beer cost only eighteen cents, and since the empty bottle could be traded in for a bit of money too, it worked out to be about the same price as draft beer.

After discussing it with Feng Kuang, Ye Dongping had directly hauled a handcart’s worth and placed it at the Recycling Station. Whenever a scavenger came to sell scrap, they would be given a bottle.

Truth be told, those scrap collectors usually suffered plenty of scornful looks from city folks. So, even though a bottle of beer wasn’t worth much money, it still made them feel respected.

Moreover, the prices offered by the Recycling Station were very fair. So, those scavengers all thumped their chests and promised that in the future, all their scrap would definitely be sold to Feng Kuang’s Recycling Station.

Ye Tian, who had just been running outside until he was drenched in sweat, gulped down the half-bowl of beer in one go. Holding the small bowl, he looked pitifully at his dad and said, “It’s really good, Dad. Give me a little more, please.”

“You little rascal, how old are you, trying to snatch your dad’s drink already?” Ye Dongping scolded with a laugh, but he still poured another half-bowl for Ye Tian.

Despite having many years of schooling, which in ancient times would have made him something like a scholar or top candidate, Ye Dongping had grown up as a man in Sijiu City. His temperament was still very straightforward and hearty, not as rigid and pedantic as some parents.

This time, Ye Tian didn’t dare to drink in big gulps. He brought the bowl to his lips and took a small sip, then showed an expression of delight on his face. He said, “Dad, what is this… beer? It’s much tastier than hard liquor.”

“What do you know? Real men drink strong liquor. What’s so good about this stuff? Drink too much and you’ll just pee a lot…”

Hearing this, Ye Dongping curled his lip. His own father had loved alcohol all his life. Even he himself, from the age of two, had been given drops of liquor on chopsticks by his father to taste. His capacity for drink was trained from a very young age.

But it was precisely because his father loved alcohol that he developed liver cirrhosis before even turning fifty. Back then, Ye Dongping was in conflict with his family over Ye Tian’s mother’s situation. He didn’t accept letters from home nor telegrams, so he didn’t learn of his father’s death in time. This became the greatest regret of his life.

Thinking of this, Ye Dongping’s expression darkened. He lifted the bowl in front of him and drained the remaining wine in one swallow.

Seeing his dad suddenly fall silent, Ye Tian knew he must have thought of something unhappy again. He quickly said, “Dad, earlier I saw Brother Fengzi didn’t look so good. His glabella seemed a bit dim and unclear. Could something happen to him?”

“Hmm? Are you sure about that?”

Sure enough, Ye Tian’s words diverted Ye Dongping’s train of thought. To be honest, this Recycling Station could manage without him, Ye Dongping, but it absolutely could not be without Feng Kuang. Therefore, he was very concerned about Feng Kuang’s safety.

Ye Tian shook his head and said, “I’m not sure, but I have a bad feeling about it. Dad, if we know where he went, maybe we should go find him and bring him back.”

Ye Tian felt some regret. Today’s several opportunities for divination and physiognomy had all been wasted on total strangers on that street. Now, he couldn’t deduce Feng Kuang’s fortune or misfortune.

Based only on that brief glimpse of his facial features, Ye Tian couldn’t be certain Feng Kuang would definitely have an accident. He just had a bad feeling in his heart.

“I… I only know he went to East City. I don’t know specifically where.”

Hearing Ye Tian’s words, Ye Dongping grew anxious. Since arriving in this small county town, he hadn’t ventured more than two kilometers from the Recycling Station. And that was only when Feng Kuang took him to Ye Tian’s homeroom teacher’s house. Where was he supposed to go to look for Feng Kuang?

Seeing that his one sentence had made his father restless, Ye Tian hurriedly said, “Dad, don’t worry. Brother Fengzi is so clever. If there’s trouble, he can probably avoid it. You can relax.”

“I hope so. You kid, why didn’t you pull your Brother Feng Zi back if you saw something earlier?”

Ye Dongping glared at Ye Tian with annoyance. Although he opposed Ye Tian practicing fortune-telling and physiognomy for others, deep down, he understood his son’s abilities better than anyone.

“I wasn’t paying attention at the time…”

Ye Tian muttered quietly and didn’t say more. Who told him to be so idle and bored as to squat by the roadside doing physiognomy for unrelated people?

With this diversion from Ye Tian, the father and son’s meal became rather tasteless. After drinking two bottles of beer, Ye Dongping didn’t eat anything. He just moved a chair and sat by the entrance to the yard to wait.

But this wait lasted four or five hours. As the hands of the old reclaimed clock neared eleven, Ye Dongping could no longer sit still.

“No, Xiao Tian, come on. Let’s go find your Brother Fengzi.”

Ye Dongping knew his son’s skills might come in handy. So, after locking the door, he prepared to take Ye Tian out to search.

“Dad, someone’s coming. Is that Brother Fengzi?”

Just as they reached the yard entrance, Ye Tian heard the sound of a bicycle bell in the distance. In this isolated place with no village in front or shops behind, it was probably someone coming to the Recycling Station.

There were no streetlights outside the Recycling Station. Ye Dongping shone the era’s essential household flashlight toward the source of the sound. He was taken aback at what he saw. “No, it’s a woman. What is she doing here in the middle of the night?”

“Sister Yingying, it’s Sister Yingying!”

With the help of the flashlight beam, Ye Tian also saw clearly who it was. He called out and ran forward, leaving Ye Dongping bewildered. When did his son get to know a sister?

When he reached Wang Ying’s bicycle, Ye Tian also realized something. After steadying Wang Ying’s bike, he asked, “Sister Yingying, how did you know we were here?”

“Ye Tian, never mind that for now. Feng… Feng Kuang, he… he got beaten up.”

Wang Ying had pedaled quite fast on her way to the Recycling Station. Coupled with her fear, she was now so out of breath she could barely speak coherently. She had one foot propped on the ground, and her panting was loud enough for even Ye Tian to hear.

“What? Feng Kuang got beaten up? By… by whom?”

Ye Dongping, who had just walked up close, was shocked upon hearing this. He quickly asked, “This… young lady, what exactly happened? Is Feng Kuang… is he badly hurt?”

“You must be Teacher Ye, right?”

When Wang Ying had been dating Feng Kuang before, she often heard him boast about how cultured Ye Dongping was, a university graduate and top student. In those days, educated people were generally addressed as ‘teacher.’ So, seeing Ye Dongping now helped calm her down a bit.

Taking a few deep breaths, Wang Ying said, “Feng Kuang’s head was split open. He needed over a dozen stitches. He’s at the hospital now. He sent me to inform you.”

Ye Dongping was a man of decision. Since something had already happened, they had to face it and deal with it. After thinking for a moment, he said, “Young lady, you… wait for me a moment. I’ll be right out. We’ll go to the hospital together…”

Ye Dongping turned back, opened the door to the house, and retrieved a bag of money from an inconspicuous spot in the corner. This was all the money stored at the Recycling Station. They still didn’t know exactly how serious Feng Kuang’s injuries were, so taking more money couldn’t hurt.