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As summer vacation was drawing to a close, a group of friends gathered in a small courtyard in Suzhou. The table was spread with account books, and the sound of the calculator clicking filled the air. After finishing their calculations, they divided the profits as previously agreed, handing out stacks of red bills. Each face lit up with joy, their excitement impossible to conceal. After all, this money was earned through hard work and perseverance, and who wouldn’t feel proud?
Teacher Zhuang, back in his hometown, initially frowned upon hearing that the kids wanted to start a business. He was skeptical, thinking they were just wasting their time. In his view, Zhuang Tunan should focus on his studies as he was pursuing a graduate degree; engaging in business seemed like a distraction. However, when he later learned that they had made a significant profit, he was left wide-eyed and speechless for quite some time. Though he didn’t show much on the outside, he felt deep admiration for these kids and was quite pleased, thinking to himself that this group of young people was far more capable than he had imagined.
Lin Dongzhe didn’t rush home but chose to spend the remaining days of summer vacation in Suzhou. Every morning at dawn, as sunlight streamed onto the old streets, he would wait downstairs at Xiao Ting’s house with breakfast or snacks in hand. The two would hold hands as they strolled through the old alleyways lined with ancient houses and cobblestone paths. Whenever they passed by small stalls, Lin Dongzhe would pick out little trinkets that Xiao Ting liked—things like bracelets and bookmarks—showing great thoughtfulness. As they chatted, he shared stories about the challenges of sourcing goods from Fujian and haggling with wholesalers, almost losing the deal at one point; he also recounted their experiences selling in Suzhou and dealing with troublesome customers. They stayed up late watching over their goods, feeling cold and tired but ultimately thrilled when they made a profit. Xiao Ting listened intently, sometimes worried and other times laughing; their relationship grew sweeter by the day.
Lu Zean was eager to return home, filled with anticipation. On the train ride back, the clattering sounds faded into the background as he focused solely on how his parents were doing and whether Lin Xiaoyu was faring well. Once he disembarked, he dashed towards home, longing to see his family and Lin Xiaoyu so he could share everything that had happened during his trip.
Arriving at his doorstep, Lu Zean knocked excitedly on the door. "Who is it?" came his mother’s familiar voice from inside, followed by the sound of hurried footsteps. When she opened the door and saw him standing there, she paused for a moment before her eyes welled up with tears of joy. "Oh my son! You’re finally back!" she exclaimed as she pulled him into an embrace, gently patting his back while murmuring how much she missed him. Lu Zean felt a lump in his throat as he tightly hugged her back, saying softly, "Mom, I missed you too!"
At that moment, his father emerged from inside with a smile on his face. Although he tried to appear calm, the corners of his mouth betrayed him as they curled upward with delight. He patted Lu Zean on the shoulder and asked, "Was your journey smooth?"
Once inside, Lu Zean's mother busied herself like a whirlwind—serving tea and laying out his favorite snacks from childhood while chattering away about how he must not have eaten well while away and how thin he looked now. "You need to eat something to fill your stomach!" she insisted.
Lu Zean chuckled and replied, "Mom, I really didn’t lose weight; I ate well! How are you and Dad doing?"
His father jumped in: "We’re doing great! Don’t worry about us; you should tell us what happened on your trip!" Lu Zean’s spirits lifted as he began recounting his adventures starting from Fujian—talking about visiting Lin Dongzhe’s uncle’s house where he encountered all sorts of bizarre snacks and heard locals speaking dialects that sounded like singing but were completely unintelligible to him. His stories brought laughter to both parents.
As he spoke about sourcing goods, his excitement grew: "Oh man! Haggling with those wholesalers was tough! Lin Dongzhe and I worked hard at it; we talked until our mouths were sore just to lower the prices a bit! When we were picking out goods, we barely dared to blink for fear of ending up with subpar products."
When it came to selling in Suzhou, his face lit up even more: "Under the blazing sun, we shouted our wares until our throats were sore! We were sweating buckets at night while guarding our stock; we were so tired we could hardly keep our eyes open but couldn’t afford to sleep—nudging each other awake just in case something went wrong with our goods. But thankfully our efforts paid off; we made a fortune! Everyone was overjoyed when we hit it big!"
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