Chapter Seven: The Black Market

"Young man, you should head home quickly after finishing your shopping."

After taking the money, the old man hesitated for a moment before whispering this advice.

Zhang Huacheng tucked the books away. "Thank you, sir. I'm heading back now."

He knew he had been targeted. He had been too flashy while shopping; pulling out a thick stack of bills in this day and age was enough to make anyone green with envy.

Watching Zhang Huacheng leave, the old man shook his head and sighed.

At the entrance of the alley, Zhang Huacheng saw two thugs holding knives blocking his path. Behind him, three more followed. Aside from the leader, the other two clutched knives and an axe, their expressions cold as they stared at him.

"Brother, lend us some money to spend."

The leader wore a military-style overcoat, his hand tucked into his pocket as he walked over, a cigarette dangling from his mouth.

Zhang Huacheng silently set his belongings down. Without warning, he lunged forward in a single bound, closing the distance to the leader.

Iron Mountain Lean!

Before the leader could react, he felt himself flying through the air, crashing hard against the wall.

"Brother Dong!"

"Damn it!"

The thugs were momentarily stunned before they all rushed forward.

Little did they know, they were facing Zhang Huacheng—a physically powerful former Black Dragon Brigade special forces instructor, possessed of all the combat expertise from his past life.

The fight was over in an instant, and Zhang Huacheng was unscathed. One thug who had brandished a knife was unconscious, two were twitching on the ground, and a fourth was already on his knees, hands raised in surrender. As for the leader, he was still on the ground, retching.

A quick search revealed, much to Zhang Huacheng's delight, that these men were indeed black-market ticket scalpers. Together, they had seven yuan and fifty cents in cash, but more importantly, they carried over twenty ration, meat, and cloth coupons. Two of the grain coupons were for fifty pounds of coarse grain each.

The leader's overcoat was brand new. Zhang Huacheng didn't hesitate to strip it off and put it on; such items were impossible to buy through official channels.

"Where did you get this military knife?"

Zhang Huacheng spotted a knife among the thugs' belongings. His eyes lit up—it was a Swiss Army knife, a rare and incredibly versatile tool.

"Stole it," the thug whimpered, on the verge of tears.

"Brother, we messed up. Take the goods, just spare us!" The leader knelt down and kowtowed.

They had been taken down in mere seconds. Was this even human? Had they failed to check the almanac today and ended up robbing a grizzly bear?

"I'll be coming back these next few days. If you're not satisfied, feel free to bring more people."

Zhang Huacheng realized that robbery was a much faster way to make money. He had been targeted the moment he arrived at the black market, so he had decided to turn the tables. The haul was indeed bountiful.

As Zhang Huacheng walked away with his supplies, the leader struggled to his feet.

"Brother Dong, it hurts so much." A thug lay on the ground, twitching; Zhang Huacheng had nearly killed him with a single punch.

"I hurt too, you idiot! What kind of monster is this guy?" Qin Xiaodong cursed in frustration. No wonder he was showing off his money; he had been baiting them all along.

It took a while before they managed to support each other and limp away.

***

Zhang Huacheng was currently at a bun shop, devouring six large meat buns to satisfy his hunger, then packing a few more to take home. Checking his pockets, including the "unexpected" windfall, he had 18 yuan, 5 jiao, and 4 fen left.

Chentang Sali Canal.

As Zhang Huacheng returned, carrying his heavy load, he saw Wang Lin shoveling snow at the door, accompanied by a very tall young man also helping with a shovel.

Seeing Zhang Huacheng, Wang Lin dropped her shovel and ran to meet him with a smile.

"No need to help me carry this, just open the door!" Zhang Huacheng smiled.

"Okay!" Wang Lin happily ran to open the door.

"Tie Zhu, have you eaten yet?" Zhang Huacheng looked at the tall young man, who was scratching his head and grinning. This was his neighbor and childhood friend, Chen Tie Zhu, who stood at one meter ninety-five and possessed raw, untamed strength.

Tie Zhu shook his head.

Zhang Huacheng remembered that in these times, people rarely ate in the morning, waiting until noon for their first meal.

"Come inside and have a bite."

Tie Zhu was his childhood friend. When he was five, his mother had been driven away by his father, leaving him with a wicked stepmother who kept him hungry, cold, and prone to beatings.

Chen Tie Zhu shook his head and continued to shovel.

Zhang Huacheng didn't press the matter and carried the supplies inside. He was stiflingly hot; the military overcoat had kept him warm on the walk back, and he hadn't dared to take it off for fear of catching a cold.

"Daddy! Daddy!"

Dou Dou, sitting on the heated kang, clapped her hands in joy when she saw him.

Zhang Huacheng laughed, set the sack down, took off the overcoat, and playfully draped it over Dou Dou, pinning her down.

"Where did you get that coat?" Wang Lin had noticed the military overcoat immediately. They were very expensive and nearly impossible to buy even with money.

"A kind stranger sold it to me cheap. Look what's inside," Zhang Huacheng said, gesturing to the basket to change the subject.

"You—you bought all this?"

When she saw the contents of the basket, she was overwhelmed with joy: salt, vinegar, soy sauce, and a thick, fatty piece of pork.

"The fox fur was worth a lot, and the fish and crabs sold for over a dozen yuan. We still need to buy more crab cages, but this is the leftover money." Zhang Huacheng pulled out a stack of bills and pressed them into her hands.

Wang Lin froze, staring at the money. It was so much!

"Dou Dou, Daddy bought you some candy!" Zhang Huacheng handed a bag of hard candies to his daughter.

"Candy?"

Dou Dou, having finally struggled out from under the coat, clutched the bag to her chest. She didn't recognize the candies; she had only ever tasted brown sugar blocks.

"Lin Lin, this is for you." Zhang Huacheng handed over the three volumes of *Dream of the Red Chamber* wrapped in newspaper.

In the first year of their marriage, Wang Lin had told him stories from the book many times, though even she had never finished it.

"What is it?" Wang Lin quickly pocketed the money and took the parcel.

***

When she opened it, she was stunned.

*Dream of the Red Chamber*. Before she was married, she had always wanted a set, but she could never find one; her father had queued up four times and failed to buy it.

He remembered that she liked it...

Wang Lin's eyes reddened. She clutched the books tightly, her voice trembling. "Why—why did you waste money on this? How much did it cost?"

"Second-hand books, found them at a stall."

Zhang Huacheng smiled, pulling a bundle of vermicelli and the paper-wrapped buns from the sack. "We'll have these buns tonight. Soak the noodles; we're going to have pork, cabbage, and vermicelli stew."

He unpacked the items one by one: flour, millet, and corn grits.

Zhang Huacheng opened the oil-paper for Dou Dou and gave her two fruit-flavored hard candies. When she popped one into her mouth, the little girl's eyes lit up as if a new world had opened before her.

"Don't swallow it. Keep it in your mouth and let it melt slowly."

"Mm!" Dou Dou nodded repeatedly.

Zhang Huacheng slipped the other candy into Wang Lin's mouth before heading to cook. There were two cabbages buried in the cellar for the New Year, which he and Tie Zhu had spent a while digging out.

He sliced the fatty pork, letting it sizzle in the pot until the intoxicating aroma filled the room.

"Should—should we add more water?" Wang Lin asked, watching him add only a single ladle.

More water meant more grease, she reasoned.

Zhang Huacheng shook his head. "No. This way the fat is more fragrant. These two pounds of pork will render into a pound and a half of lard."

He added a pinch of salt. As the cracklings turned red and sizzled in the oil, Zhang Huacheng poured the lard out. The two pounds of pork yielded over a pound and a half of lard and a large plate of cracklings.

Dou Dou was delighted with the cracklings, though Wang Lin quickly hid them in the cupboard after she had a few, leaving the little girl staring longingly at the cabinet.

Zhang Huacheng was a master at making pork and vermicelli stew. Within half an hour, the scent was wafting through the house and outside.

He insisted that Tie Zhu sit down, handing him a corn pancake and a bowl of the stew.

"Tie Zhu, do you want to eat meat every day?" Zhang Huacheng asked suddenly.

Tie Zhu was strong, obedient, and most importantly, they were close—otherwise, he wouldn't have come over to help shovel snow.

"Yes," Tie Zhu nodded without hesitation.

"Then start today, come work with me when you're free. I'll cover your three meals a day. I'll make sure you're full, but I won't give you money."

He wouldn't give Tie Zhu cash, knowing it would only be stolen by his family. Since his mother was driven away, Tie Zhu had never known a full stomach.

"Mm!" Tie Zhu nodded.

When he was a child, his mother had told him to listen to Huacheng. He had remembered that advice to this very day.