Chapter 69: The Era’s Beloved Scapegoat? It Doesn’t Matter—My Father Will Step In

When they arrived at their destination, Qin Ye carried one child on his back and another in his arms. He instructed Liu An to look after Liu Hua and Li Xianglan, then hoisted all the luggage onto himself, transforming into a walking rack of baggage.

Liu An watched in awe, his respect deepening, realizing keenly that he had much to learn from Qin Ye. Even Qin Ye’s image in his heart grew taller and more monumental.

As Qin Ye carried everyone’s belongings, his daughter Qin Zhizhi in his arms grew concerned for her father. “Dad, let me down, I can walk by myself.”

“There are too many people here, and some might be bad. I’m afraid someone might take you away,” Qin Ye answered.

Upon hearing this, Qin Zhizhi clung tightly to her father, eyes vigilant, watching every passerby. She also reached out for Qin Sansan on Qin Ye’s back, holding her sister’s hand for fear she might get lost.

Qin Ye was pleased with her caution and said no more, letting her remain alert.

After leaving the train station, Qin Ye took everyone to stay at a guesthouse. He didn’t ask about the price, simply paid and took the keys, then brought Liu An and the others to their rooms.

Later, Li Xianglan learned the cost and bit her lip, digging through her layered cloth bundle for cash of various denominations, asking Liu An to take it to Qin Ye.

Liu An went, but didn’t find Qin Ye—only Qin Zhizhi, who was guarding her sister.

“Zhizhi, where’s your father?”

“Dad said he’s gone to find a friend to arrange a place to stay.”

Liu An returned with the money, handing it back to Li Xianglan, afraid he might lose it. On the train, he’d already lost a few coins from his pocket, which had dampened his mood the entire way, as he couldn’t figure out how the money had disappeared.

In truth, it was stolen by a pickpocket right under Qin Ye’s nose. Qin Ye, seeing how little it was, said nothing—letting his brother-in-law learn a hard lesson.

Li Xianglan didn’t push the matter and stowed the money away again.

Qin Ye had brought the Liu family to a city far from his original home and life path—a strange place. It seemed unimpressive now, but in a few years it would blossom into a major metropolis.

The original owner had never been to City A and had no friends here. But to Qin Ye, friends were made with a handshake.

He forcibly shook hands with the local gang leader and declared them friends. Patting the bruised, toothless leader on the shoulder, Qin Ye mused, “There are truly more good people in this world. Oh, and one more thing: I don’t want any chaos near the house. I have two daughters—children need a stable, harmonious environment.”

“That area’s near the university, very safe. Lots of old professors live there,” the leader replied, voice muffled.

“Good. And one more thing—I’ve just arrived, penniless... the rent…”

“I’ll pay.”

“Don’t worry, I’ll pay you back,” Qin Ye assured him.

The leader thought: Whether he pays me back or not doesn’t matter, just never let me run into this calamity again.

Holding his face, the leader took Qin Ye to see the house, paid three months' rent on his behalf, and was forced to bring Qin Ye home, performing a dramatic brotherhood act before his parents.

The gang leader could only grind his teeth in silent fury.

Before leaving, Qin Ye even emptied the leader’s pockets of all his money.

The gang leader’s reaction: A shrill screech, like a marmot.

With the housing settled, Qin Ye returned to the guesthouse, and the next day moved everyone into their new home.

The house was bright and tidy, with a refrigerator and a black-and-white television. The living room had a sofa, the walls were snow-white, and the windows clean and gleaming.

Everything made the Liu family tiptoe around, afraid to break or soil anything.

Qin Ye bought powdered milk for Qin Sansan, lit the stove, boiled water, and made a cup of milk powder for everyone.

Li Xianglan’s wrinkled, sun-darkened face flushed slightly. She waved her hand, “I’m too old to compete with children for food. I don’t need it. An’an and Huahua don’t need it either. Just give some to Zhizhi and Sansan.”

Qin Ye didn’t insist, but the younger ones were required to taste it, even though, to Qin Ye, powdered milk wasn’t anything special.

Apparently, only Qin Ye felt that way.

Qin Ye went out again, buying groceries, meat, grains, oil, and flour.

Li Xianglan couldn’t sit still and went out for a walk. The locals were decent—no one looked down on her rural appearance. Instead, they warmly struck up conversations.

Li Xianglan returned glowing, having made friends with an elegant older lady, whose refined manner reminded her of the landlord’s daughter she’d met as a child.

By the time she got back, Qin Ye had finished cooking.

Li Xianglan felt embarrassed. She could hardly help with anything, and now the son-in-law cooked too. She felt like a freeloader, just there to take advantage.

The next day, Qin Ye went out again, leaving the children to Liu Hua. Li Xianglan also continued going out, and through her new friend, found a job.

Twenty yuan a month, just for keeping the house clean. The money felt almost too hot to hold—was housekeeping really worth twenty yuan?

Qin Ye reassured her, “City workers earn about forty yuan a month. In dual-income families, both spouses are workers and have no time for housework. Their children and meals go unattended, so hiring a nanny for this price is nothing. Yours is quite high, but if it’s a factory manager, their wage is even higher. So, really, it’s not much. Just stick with it for now. I’m getting my business off the ground—once that’s running, you can come home and take care of our household, and I’ll pay you a salary.”

Li Xianglan was surprised, “That’s not considered high?”

“Not at all. You’ll see after living here for a while. Just stick with it.”

Liu An listened in silence, and the next morning waited at the door, eager to join Qin Ye in his work.

Qin Ye agreed, taking him along as a helper.

Qin Ye’s business relied on the gang leader—who handled procurement. Qin Ye managed the shop as the owner, and the leader got a cut.

The leader wasn’t thrilled, but after a beating from Qin Ye, he tearfully agreed to the hard work.

Qin Ye wasn’t worried about him running off, since Qin Ye hadn’t invested any capital; the gang leader borrowed all the money from his own buddies.

Surprisingly, his friends were loyal enough to lend him money—even if their methods involved pilfering from their families and being chased down the street by their parents.

The leader’s family was well-off; his parents and brother were all workers. When sent to the countryside as a youth, he managed to avoid it by working in a factory for a while, but once the political climate changed, he quit and spent his days idling with his brothers, strutting around the streets.

That’s how Qin Ye noticed him.

Qin Ye taught him hand-in-hand how to procure goods, even gave him a block of wood, claiming it could protect him if he encountered danger.

A laughable notion.

The leader, Long Jianjun, didn’t believe Qin Ye in the slightest.

But after a beating, a piece of candy, and Qin Ye’s arm around his shoulder painting grand visions, he started to dream—imagining himself a wealthy boss, dressed in a suit, driving a car, returning home with honor, greeted by admiring and envious neighbors.

Qin Ye's promises made Long Jianjun grit his teeth and get to work.

Thus followed the scene where Long Jianjun borrowed money from everyone he knew.

He learned quickly—whatever Qin Ye did to squeeze… no, to urge him for help, he did the same with his friends, all equally wayward.

Long Jianjun was tall and burly, with a murderous face and excellent fighting skills—no one dared challenge him. He and his gang ruled their turf in City A.

But he was unlucky to run into Qin Ye.

The rise of Brother Long was in shambles, but the path to becoming Boss Long unfolded steadily before him.

Boss Long, half coerced and half willing, boarded the train to the coastal city to procure goods, while Qin Ye, with Boss Long’s money, scouted for a storefront.

Once he found the right place, he negotiated with the landlord, signed the lease, and began renovations.

Renovation workers were played by Long Jianjun’s brothers, with Qin Ye as technical supervisor.

Liu An watched and learned, and practiced his reading.

In these times, being a son-in-law had no future. Before, there was no choice—now there was, and Liu An wished he could pry open his head and pour knowledge in.

Once the shop was renovated, Long Jianjun returned with a full load of goods.

Fashionable stockings, women’s wear, little leather shoes—everything imaginable. His taste was questionable, but it didn’t matter; for City A, Hong Kong was the beacon of style.

Stylish women permed their hair in big waves, wore huge earrings, donned leather shoes, imitated movie heroines, and became dazzling sights on the street.

At this time, people bought things at the supply and marketing cooperatives, ate at state-run restaurants.

Workers’ jobs were seen as iron rice bowls, as prestigious as civil service jobs in later generations.

Workers were most respected, laborers most honorable. Small business owners—once labeled speculators—were now allowed, but few dared to test the waters.

Those who did and made money were not admired, but rather subtly looked down upon.

Workers held the real iron rice bowl; anyone who gave up a worker’s job was considered foolish.