DBTHDCAR Chapter 97

The lobby of the budget hotel was tiny, and Ning Xiaobei paced left and right, forward and back, at least ten times, making the front desk clerk dizzy. If he weren’t reasonably good-looking and accompanied by guests, she might have called security to kick him out on the spot.

“Alright, here’s the plan: tomorrow at nine, Xiaobei and I will pick you up. In the morning, we’ll visit the Oriental Pearl Tower; lunch will be at the revolving restaurant; in the afternoon, we’ll check out the City God Temple. As for the day after, we’ll decide based on the weather. Get some rest tonight. I checked with the front desk: breakfast is a buffet in the morning, free with your room card. See you tomorrow!”

Since the hotel had no elevator, Fan Xia helped the family of four carry their luggage to the second floor. After confirming tomorrow’s meet-up, he smiled and waved goodbye as he went back down.

Right now, his actions were almost identical to Zhao Jingwen’s, treating Ning Xiaobei’s relatives as if they were his own, maybe even treating them better than his own.

“All set? Let’s go home.”

Seeing him head downstairs, Ning Xiaobei hurried to meet him.

Normally, these errands would have fallen to Ning Xiaobei himself, as the family’s maternal uncle, but his mind was entirely preoccupied with his father, Ning Jianguo, and that inexplicably appearing woman from earlier. He couldn’t focus on anything else.

Thankfully, Fan Xia was by his side; otherwise, this would have been a total embarrassment in front of the relatives. Grandma Ning had always been a strong-willed woman, especially among family and neighbors. She never allowed herself to appear weak.

Today’s commotion, though later dispersed by his father and Zhao Jingwen, had left a bitter taste that Lady Jian wouldn’t easily forget.

The most shocking part was… the woman claimed to be his father’s wife.

His father had actually been married?!

Even combining memories from both worlds, Ning Xiaobei had never encountered this woman. If she was his father’s wife, then what was her relation to him?

A tangle of confusion clogged his chest, making it hard to breathe.

“Taxi! Taxi!”

Ning Xiaobei ran to the roadside, standing on tiptoe and waving frantically toward the street. He was desperate to check on the situation over there.

“Boss, calm down. My uncle’s there, it’ll be fine. She’s just a country woman,” Fan Xia said. Though suspicious, he trusted his uncle. There was no one his uncle couldn’t handle, especially women.

A Qiangsheng cab pulled up in front of them. Ning Xiaobei opened the door and got in, with Fan Xia following into the back seat.

“Where to?” the driver asked, turning around.

Ning Xiaobei was about to give his grandmother’s address, but thinking it was already late, he decided she must be resting, so he gave the address of the Workers’ New Village instead.

The driver nodded and pressed the “Ready” sign.

“Boss, don’t rush when you see your dad. Speak to him calmly,” Fan Xia said.

He reached to grab Ning Xiaobei’s hand, but noticing the driver’s curious glance in the rearview mirror, he reluctantly withdrew.

“Maybe talk to him tomorrow. We’ve already rushed from the train today; you’re tired. Get some sleep and have a proper talk with your dad in the morning.”

“Don’t worry, I can handle it,” Ning Xiaobei said, though his heart was in flames, urging the driver to go faster.

Fan Xia wanted to say more, but seeing Ning Xiaobei’s expression, he realized nothing he said would get through. He sighed, crossed his arms, and leaned back against the car seat.

If that eccentric woman had been telling the truth, then Ning Jianguo really had been married. And… that would make him just like Brother Kai’s first love, tricking a woman into marriage and kids. What did that make his uncle, then?

The thought made Fan Xia increasingly uneasy.

But then he considered his uncle’s usual character and a new possibility, maybe Ning Jianguo hadn’t been gay at all at first. Maybe it was Zhao Jingwen who… forcibly changed him!

Otherwise, how would Xiaobei even exist? Xiaobei wasn’t like Sun Wukong, popping out of a stone.

Wait! That woman could actually be Boss’s mom! And he had just thrown her away with his grappling technique…

Fan Xia held his chest. Even though she wasn’t his own mother, hitting your mother-in-law, wouldn’t that bring down a divine lightning strike or something?

The two of them got out at the neighborhood entrance and headed straight for the bottom of the apartment building. Looking up, the second-floor windows were pitch black, only the third floor showed light.

“Oh, you’re back,”

Just as they were about to knock, the door opened from inside, and Zhao Jingwen stepped out.

“Are the relatives settled in? Bring extra money tomorrow. They came all this way, so we’ll cover tickets, transportation, and meals. Let them enjoy Shanghai without worry.”

Before the younger ones could speak, Zhao Jingwen took charge, like the head of the Ning household, issuing instructions.

He didn’t realize that his nephew also treated him like a family patriarch. But Fan Xia had already thought of this. On the drive, he had even coordinated with Ding Zheyang, the companion for sightseeing, so they’d all meet at Workers’ New Village in the morning and head out together.

Fan Xia glanced at Ning Xiaobei. Right now, his boss wasn’t in the mood to enjoy sightseeing; in the end, it would probably just be him handling everything.

Thinking this, he felt his status in the Ning family rise considerably, surpassing his uncle was only a matter of time. After all, the uncle was aging day by day, while he was like the morning sun, destined to become the family’s pillar, taking care of both Xiaobei and Ning Jianguo.

Zhao Jingwen, oblivious to Fan Xia’s ambitions, linked arms with him and headed downstairs.

Ning Xiaobei paused at the entrance, peeking inside. In the living room, Ning Jianguo sat on the sofa, with two cups of tea and a crystal ashtray made from automotive glass on the coffee table. The air smelled of smoke, making him cough a couple of times.

That automotive-glass ashtray had quite a history, it was Ning Jianguo’s prize for first place in a footwear mold skills competition, back when he first joined the factory.

It was a heavy, old glass ashtray that looked like a chrysanthemum from above and a lotus from below. Compared with the flashy, meticulously cut Swarovski eight-star, eight-arrow crystals of the future, the craftsmanship taught to Shanghai glassworkers by Eastern Europeans in Ning Jianguo’s early years, infused with Slavic aesthetic sensibilities, felt grounded, authentic, and far superior. On a sunny day, placing this ashtray in sunlight made it sparkle like a giant diamond, each cut and groove scattering rainbow-colored light.

Twenty years later, this ashtray could easily fetch a four-digit price. So even after Ning Jianguo quit smoking, he kept it carefully. Occasionally, he’d take it out, wipe it down with a cloth, and reminisce about his early factory days. That was the only chance Ning Xiaobei had to look at it, touch it, and feel the icy, delicate luxury.

Now, however, the ashtray was filled with ash and the orange filters of cigarettes, what Shanghai locals call cigarette butts. Seeing it made Ning Xiaobei feel heavier in the chest.

Ever since Ning Jianguo’s first asthma attack in this world, he had quit smoking completely.

He didn’t just stop himself, anyone visiting the Ning home, whether in Jiande Lane or the tenement apartment, wasn’t allowed to smoke indoors. Guests had to smoke outside or in the stairwell, ensuring all smoke odor dissipated before stepping inside.

This rule had lasted for years. Even after Ning Xiaobei reached high school, fully recovered from his second growth spurt, and outgrew his asthma, Ning Jianguo stuck to it.

Yet today, both of them had lit cigarettes right in the living room. That alone showed how tense things were.

“Wait a moment before coming in. Leave the main door open for ventilation,” Ning Jianguo said before Ning Xiaobei could speak.

He stood, took a non-woven bag hanging by the sofa, used for storing plastic bags, carefully placed the ashtray with all its ash and cigarette butts inside, tied it up, opened the balcony door facing south, and set the bag on the floor.

Ning Xiaobei slipped his hands into his pockets and stepped back into the corridor, letting the cold wind blow through the open door to the balcony. Once he confirmed there was no trace of smoke in the room, Ning Jianguo finally let him inside.

“Dad, that woman just now…”

Before Ning Xiaobei could finish, Ning Jianguo gently guided him toward the bathroom.

“Don’t talk about it. Take a shower and get some sleep. You just got off the train and didn’t rest properly. You have to accompany the guests tomorrow. Hurry, wash up and sleep.”

“But Dad, who exactly was that woman?”

Ning Xiaobei turned to see his father’s face and froze.

He had never seen his father look like this.

His brows were deeply furrowed, forming a “川”-shaped crease so deep it could almost hold a playing card. The large, slightly exaggerated eyes that had always stood out among men were now shadowed by prominent blue-black eye bags of exhaustion. His mouth and cheeks sagged, carrying a mixture of unease, fear, and pleading, almost spilling out from his eyes. The first white strands at his temples made the sight even more striking and unforgettable.

Faced with his father’s expression, Ning Xiaobei swallowed all the knots in his heart, all the endless questions pressing in on him. He obediently took the change of clothes Ning Jianguo handed him and stepped into the bathroom.

Listening to the sound of water brushing and flowing, Ning Jianguo pressed a hand to his chest and sank back onto the sofa, looking defeated. After a while, still feeling uneasy, he got up, opened a cabinet, took out a bottle of cardiac pills, and swallowed two with warm water.

Since the last time he collapsed against the high school wall with Xiaobei and the others, Zhao Jingwen had been forcing him to have regular heart checkups. These cardiac pills and ginkgo tablets had become staple medicines in the household. Ning Jianguo had once joked that Jingwen and Xiaobei were making a fuss, but now they were truly useful.

Once his breath evened out, Ning Jianguo went to the balcony, tidied the ashtray, and then washed the teacups in the kitchen.

“Brother Jianguo, right? Long time no see. Ah, after all these years, you’re still so young. Unlike Jinju and me, someone unfamiliar might even think we’re a generation apart.”

Not wanting to draw attention or embarrassment, after sending off the relatives and Xiaomei, Ning Jianguo and Zhao Jingwen took them to a nearby tea house.

The man, with small eyes, a small nose, and a calculating look, was polite, immediately extending his hand. Ning Jianguo didn’t have time to pull away; the man’s hand caught his squarely.

His palm was damp, slightly suggestive, and cold, like a snake had slithered over his skin. Coupled with the man’s sharp, mean-looking face, the effect was perfectly unsettling.

“My wife didn’t know any better, and just now startled both the grandmother and your godsister. Ah, mainly we didn’t check properly. We thought Brother Jianguo was an only child. Who knew she was your adopted younger sister? All a misunderstanding, really, all a misunderstanding.”

The man smiled, revealing yellowed teeth.

‘What didn’t know better?’, Ning Jianguo thought. Their stunt today was deliberate, designed to make a first impression, to assert dominance.

Everyone knew Shanghai people were sharp and calculating. For someone from the countryside like them, politely asking for answers might not even get them through the Ning family’s door.

Back home, if two families had a dispute, they could go to the village head or the local capable person to mediate. Here in Shanghai, they had no relatives, no friends. To get things done, they had to rely on themselves.

It was a little humiliating, yes, but thinking of the advantages to come, a little loss of face was nothing, after all, no one here knew them.

With that in mind, the man curled the corners of his mouth in satisfaction.

“After all, this is an adult matter. We can’t scare the children. Fortunately, the child doesn’t know anything, right?”

Zhao Jingwen narrowed his eyes. The threat in the man’s words was clear, did he thought no one would notice?

“I, I’m an honest man. My wife is too.”

He tugged gently at the woman sitting beside him. She nodded obediently.

By the rules of their region, men spoke while women had no right to interrupt. Besides, the woman had already shown her part back at Grandma Ning’s convenience store. Now it was her man’s turn to act. So she behaved, only occasionally adding a soft “hm” or “ah” to make him feel he wasn’t performing a solo.

“My wife Jinju and I are not only honest, we’re kind-hearted as well. Otherwise, we wouldn’t have agreed to Brother Jianguo’s request back then. Brother Jianguo, be honest with yourself: if it hadn’t been for the two of us…”

“What exactly are you trying to say? If it’s unrelated, stop talking.”

Ning Jianguo lifted his head and said coldly.

His lips were tightly pressed into a line, his Adam’s apple rolling as he swallowed. Only the fists clenched under the table betrayed the storm of anger inside him.

“Isn’t it just about money?”

“Brother Jianguo, that’s great! You’ve really never changed, you’re as straightforward as ever. We’re not greedy either. We’ve even seen it on TV; yes, we watch dramas in the countryside too. What’s it called, ‘Compensation for Youth.’ Exactly! That’s it. Compensate Jinju for following you back then…”

“Stop talking so much. How much exactly?”

Just thinking that Ning Jianguo may have had a marriage with this woman, and even the woman sitting before them, made Zhao Jingwen’s anger flare uncontrollably.

His gaze and tone were like volcanic ash ready to erupt, and even the sleazy man before them felt uneasy.

But fear aside, they had traveled all the way from the north to Shanghai. They had spent money on travel, lodging, and meals, and staked all their hopes for the rest of their lives.

Having come this far, they could not return empty-handed.

“This amount.”

The man held up a palm.

“Fifty thousand? You’ll get it tomorrow.”

Zhao Jingwen snorted coldly.

Very well. 50,000 last time, and 50,000 again.

That was how Xiaobei kept being sold, time and again.

The child who had once been unwanted by them was now, time and again, treated like a cash cow. Poor Xiaobei, if he hadn’t left back then, what would he have become? How would they have shaped him?

Zhao Jingwen’s anger boiled, not just for Xiaobei, but also for Jianguo.

“Fifty thousand? Boss, help us out… this is how Shanghai people talk, right? Neighbor, please help us!”

The man squinted and made faces, awkwardly imitating Shanghai dialect with his northern accent. He laughed so hard he nearly choked. The woman beside him hurriedly grabbed a water glass from the table and made him drink, patting his back repeatedly.

Ning Jianguo and Zhao Jingwen watched coldly, as if they were observing performing monkeys.

“Hehe…”

The man wiped the water from the corner of his mouth with the back of his hand and grinned. “I know you city folks look down on me. No problem, I’m just giving everyone a little entertainment. Fifty thousand? Impossible.”

“Five hundred thousand.”

“Or… your Grandma Ning’s Pudong relocation apartment, half of it could work too, right?”

The man smiled, looping an arm around Jinju’s, not-exactly-slender waist.

………………

Author’s Note:

After settling these two, things are mostly done. I’ll try to write more extra chapters.

Currently planned:

1. Ning Jianguo’s Youth
2. Lady Jian’s Love Life
3. Xiao Bei and Fan Xia’s story in the real world (catching up on everyone else’s endings)
4. “Hello, Ning Jianguo” (Xiaobei returns to the 1980s in an adult’s body as a tribute to 《Hi, Mom》)
5. When Ning Xiaobei meets Ning Xiaobei (a hypothetical time-mixup: 19-year-old Xiaobei meets 35-year-old Xiaobei)

Other ideas are still brewing. If anyone has suggestions, feel free to share!

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