At 8:15 in the morning, Wang Lijun finally directed the workers to move the last car out of the showroom.
The open space outside the dealership and the curb were packed with luxury cars, a feast for the eyes akin to a car show, drawing pedestrians to stop in their tracks to take photos, and some even bold enough to touch and try to open the doors.
Wang Lijun's brother-in-law was overseeing everything with some people, ready to scold and shoo away anyone who got too close. When he saw his brother-in-law resting on the planter, he jogged over.
After lighting a cigarette for Wang Lijun, the chubby guy hesitated and said, "Brother-in-law, with all this fuss, we're not only spending a fortune, but we're also wasting a whole morning. Is that Xiao Ming really that bizarre?"
Wang Lijun himself was not sure, but felt he couldn't lose face in front of his brother-in-law. He gave him a disdainful look, "That's why you will never amount to anything.
I got you so many gigs, but in the end, you can only be a salesman here. Do you know why?
You lack insight and guts!"
The chubby guy giggled awkwardly, scratching his head, "I just want to stick with you and learn. My sister always said, no matter how great others are, they're not as great as you. Following anyone else won't compare to following you."
This flattery did wonders for Wang Lijun's mood. He chuckled, looked around to ensure nobody was nearby, and then started to recount the events of the underground race in a hushed tone.
"...At that time, none of us thought much of Ming, thinking what gave this bumpkin the right to show off in front of us? But guess what he told us?
He said, I'm not your dad, I have no reason to indulge you; you only get one chance.
Believe it or not, this is the closest you'll ever get to stepping out of your fathers' shadows, even to surpass them.
Listen to that, isn't it impressive? Yet we didn't believe him, and if Shen hadn't stopped us, we would have beaten him up right there.
Good thing we didn't, because later everything he said came true, incredibly so.
The thing I regret the most about growing up is not trusting him that night along with Shen and Chuan. Otherwise, in just a few minutes, I could have won a Ferrari.
What's a real badass? That's a real badass!"
The chubby guy hesitated, then said, "That just proves he knows about racing, picking winners, that's all, isn't that... not a big deal?"
"You don't know shit!"
Wang Lijun slapped him on the head, "Didn't you hear what I just said?
Every single word Ming said came true, including how many cars would crash at each turn, the order of the cars, and who would be in the first, second, and third place. All correct to the dot.
Plus, you've met Siyi. Before, he just idled around on pocket money from his family, not even as good as me. But after following Ming for just a few days, he's already worth a billion.
Zhang Dachuan might be a notch below, but he can still whip up over ten million in a minute.
Tell me, is all this something that can be done by merely understanding car races?"
The chubby guy was stunned. Just as he was about to nod and express his amazement, he saw his brother-in-law suddenly fly out.
To be exact, he dove headfirst into the flower bed across the street.
"Is this the f*cking reason you're messing with the dealership?"
A bellow erupted, jolting the chubby guy into hastily standing at attention with his head down, not daring to lift his face even a glance.
Wang Lijun's father, Wang Xianqing, was a fitness enthusiast, his muscular forearms glistening in the morning sun like a bodybuilder's.
Just like his rugged exterior, despite being in his forties or fifties, he still carried the air of the streets, hot-tempered, a firm believer in producing filial sons through corporal punishment, which of course made the chubby guy wary of crossing him.
After kicking his son and not feeling pacified, Wang Xianqing grabbed Wang Lijun out of the flower bed like a dog, dragging him in front of him, and slapped him across the face.
"You son of a bitch! I drank till the wee hours last night, and just as I had gone to sleep, I get a call saying you moved all the cars out of the showroom.
Your phone was unreachable, thought you'd gotten into some trouble, so I rushed over here, only to hear you talking nonsense.
Anyone with a brain could see that the stuff Xiao Ming's pulling is classic conman tactics, getting sold out and still helping to count the money, how the hell did I raise such an idiot?
Call him right now and get him over here, I'm going to beat the living daylights out of him!"
With just one slap, Wang Lijun's face swelled up, but being used to getting hit since he was little, he had thick skin.
"Dad, can't you listen to someone explain before you start swinging? I'm an adult, taking a beating under the bright sun—how am I supposed to keep my face out there in the world?"
"Mix with your grandma's claws!"
Wang Xianqing flung him to the ground with a swing of his hand, "You still care about your face? Then don't do stupid shit!"
Wang Lijun, rubbing his sore butt, stood up and stiffened his neck, "Dad, since you heard what I said just now, why don't you explain those so-called gang tricks to me?
As long as you can explain it clearly, even if you beat me to death today, I'll accept it."
How could Wang Xianqing explain? He simply didn't believe it and, cornered by his son at this moment, his cheeks trembled with rage.
"You little bastard, you still dare to talk back to me? Fine! I'm going to kill you today!"
Before his words faded, Wang Lijun was kicked into the flowerbed again.
Then, Wang Xianqing glared at the chubby boy: "What are you waiting for? Go get his phone for me."
The chubby boy dared not resist, jumped into the flowerbed to help Wang Lijun, and fumbled in his pockets, but didn't find the phone. He then remembered that he had seen it in the office earlier, and turned his head to run towards the showroom.
Wang Lijun spat out the mud in his mouth and suddenly remembered Xiao Ming's solemn warning: Property doesn't matter, but by nine o'clock, there must be no one in the store!
Seeing the chubby boy enter the showroom door, Wang Lijun's scalp tingled, and he shouted, "Stop! Don't go in..."
Boom!
Without warning, the entire world began to shake, making one feel dizzy and disoriented.
An earthquake!
Wang Xianqing was startled for a moment, then, terrified, without thinking, he pounced on Wang Lijun and pinned him down.
But Wang Lijun kept struggling, "Let me go! Dad! Stop Sheng... You can't let him go in..."
Rumble, rumble...
The trembling ground made it seem as though everyone's blood was boiling. Alarms from luxury cars on the streets blared everywhere, people screamed and ran in all directions, showroom glass shattered, and everything plunged into chaos, as if the end of the world had come.
Time seemed eternal, it may have been only a few minutes, but for Wang Lijun, it felt like a century.
Finally, the shaking stopped.
Wang Xianqing lifted his head to look around, but then he heard another massive boom—the ground trembled again briefly, and a thick cloud of dust billowed toward them.
The showroom had collapsed.
"Sheng!"
Wang Lijun, with strength from who knows where, pushed his father off, and staggered into the dust.
The brother-in-law might be useless, but how could there be no affection after their daily interactions?
Thinking of his wife's unbearable grief, Wang Lijun felt as if something was tearing at his heart.
"Sheng! Sheng! Are you still alive? If you are, give me a damn sign, otherwise, I'm going to beat you to death..."
Wang Lijun frantically dug through the rubble, his eyes bloodshot, tears carving out two comical wet streaks on his filthy face.
"Brother-in-law, I... I'm here..."
A timid voice suddenly came through, and Wang Lijun whipped around to see his brother-in-law standing behind him, looking bedraggled but unharmed, without even a scratch.
"You... you just went in, didn't you?" Wang Lijun asked, dumbfounded.
"I heard you telling me to stop," the chubby boy scratched his head and chuckled sheepishly, "You know, brother-in-law, I always listen to you the most."
Wang Lijun's heart fell back into place, and he collapsed on the ruins, looking at his silly brother-in-law and laughed reprovingly, "You little bastard, lucky as hell..."