"Sir, is it okay to mount the outdoor unit under the window? Oh wait, that won't work… better put it on the left side then."
"The modem goes in my bedroom… hmm, the cable's not long enough. Could you extend it a bit?"
After a long, exhausting day at the factory, Zhuang Shufen dragged her tired body back to her apartment complex.
Just as she reached the building, she heard her son's voice coming from the third floor, along with a flurry of clanging and banging noises.
"That little brat—is he tearing the house apart?!"
Her expression changed instantly as she rushed up the stairs, stomping her way to the third floor.
When she reached their front door, the first thing she saw was a middle-aged man in work overalls crouched on the floor, installing an air conditioner.
On the other side of the living room, another middle-aged man seemed to be fiddling with the phone line.
Outside the window, yet another technician dangled in mid-air, installing equipment.
The floor was scattered with white foam boards and cardboard boxes.
The apartment, already small to begin with, now felt even more cramped.
Just then, her son emerged from the kitchen holding a plate of neatly sliced watermelon, cheerfully calling out, "Thanks for the hard work, everyone! Take a break and have some watermelon!"
At the mention of watermelon, the two installers in the living room instantly set down their tools and eagerly accepted the treat, beaming as they dug in.
Spotting his mom standing at the doorway, Fang Yi gestured toward the kitchen with a nod. "Mom, there's half a watermelon left in there. You should have some too."
Hiss—
Zhuang Shufen took a deep breath, forcing down her irritation. "What exactly are you doing?"
"Nothing major. Just getting an air conditioner installed, hooking up the internet," Fang Yi replied matter-of-factly.
Zhuang Shufen's eyes narrowed as she caught sight of the laptop and phone boxes on the dining table. "Of course I can see you're installing stuff. I'm asking—where did you get the money for all this?"
Air conditioner, laptop, smartphone, broadband connection… All of that had to cost tens of thousands! Their entire family savings didn't even come close to that!
"Royalties!" Fang Yi replied, bringing over a slice of watermelon to offer her.
"Don't try to butter me up!"
She snatched the watermelon away, her face skeptical. "How much did you even make in royalties?"
Fang Yi rolled his eyes. "Didn't I already tell you? After tax, 1.27 million!"
"You… you actually made that much?!"
Zhuang Shufen was completely stunned.
She'd thought her son was just pulling her leg this whole time. But seeing the sheer amount of high-end equipment now in the house, she had no choice but to believe it.
Fang Yi nodded earnestly. "Yup, it's all real!"
Glancing at the three installers around the room, Zhuang Shufen pointed a trembling finger at him. "You just wait till they leave. I'm going to settle the score with you properly."
Half an hour later, the air conditioner and modem were successfully installed.
"Thanks again, everyone!"
Fang Yi handed each technician a 50-yuan tip as he expressed his gratitude.
This was all part of the arrangement—they wouldn't have come out this quickly otherwise. Sure, they'd still do the job without the tips, but who knows how long you'd have to wait?
Zhuang Shufen watched this whole exchange, her eyelid twitching.
That was 150 yuan—almost half a month's salary for her!
Once the workers left, she could no longer hold it in. She slammed the table and shouted, "Alright! What's going on here?!"
"I already told you! But no one believed me, and now you're giving me grief?"
As he spoke, Fang Yi picked up the remote and turned on the AC. Then he set the temperature to 18 degrees.
You know what the absolute best part of summer is?
It's not chilled watermelon.
It's not a cold shower.
It's cranking the air conditioner to 18 degrees and curling up under a blanket for a nap!
As the chill air swept across the room, Fang Yi let out a long, satisfied sigh. Damn, this feels amazing!
"Oh, what, now you're the victim?"
Zhuang Shufen smacked him on the back in frustration, then went around closing the windows and muttering, "What a wasteful brat! You turn on the AC but leave the windows wide open? You could've waited a few days and saved the money. That 150 yuan could've lasted us a whole month!"
But even as she grumbled nonstop with a scowl on her face, the pride in her voice was unmistakable—anyone could hear it.
Fang Yi ignored her and went to the kitchen to retrieve the remaining half of the watermelon.
He had bought a large 5-horsepower standing air conditioner. It was powerful—once the windows were shut, the whole apartment quickly turned refreshingly cool.
After tidying up the foam boards and boxes, he grabbed a change of clothes and headed for the bathroom.
He took a long, luxurious shower. When he came out, good old Comrade Fang—his dad—was already home from work, sitting on the couch while listening to Zhuang Shufen's non-stop complaints.
"Your son's right there. Ask him yourself!" she huffed, before heading back to the kitchen to continue cooking.
Fang Yucheng paused for a moment, then asked, "Your mom says you earned 1.27 million in royalties?"
"Yup!" Fang Yi nodded, biting into a juicy slice of watermelon.
Fang Yucheng tried to keep his cool, but Fang Yi noticed it right away—his dad's hand gave a slight, involuntary tremble.
Pfft.
For someone who worked as a shop floor manager, his dad's poker face was seriously lacking.
Catching his son's amused expression, Fang Yucheng's face flushed slightly. "So… what are you planning to do with the money?"
"Obviously I'll invest it and make more. This is just the beginning!" Fang Yi grinned.
Seeing the confidence in his eyes, Fang Yucheng fell silent for a moment, then nodded. "If you've got a solid plan, go for it. Your mom and I have some savings—we're doing fine for now, no need to worry about us."
Suddenly, Fang Yi asked, "Should we upgrade our apartment?"
Right now, housing prices in the city were insanely low. A 120-square-meter apartment in a commercial complex was just 100,000 yuan, and it came with a free parking spot.
Buy a new home?
Fang Yucheng thought it over carefully and then shook his head. "No rush. Your mom and I are still a long way from retirement. Commuting from downtown would be too inconvenient."
"Alright, your call."
Fang Yi respected his decision and didn't push the matter.
After dinner, he grabbed his laptop and phone and headed back to his room.