A Living

Over an hour later, in the time it took to eat a midday meal, several men walked out from the factory grounds of Haian. The moment they stepped outside the gates, the young man behind Gou Er could no longer contain his excitement. "Second Uncle, we hit it big! From now on—" "Shut your fucking mouth!" Before he could finish, Gou Er's hunched back snapped straight, and his hand flew out in a vicious backhand slap across the boy's face. "What did I tell you on the way here? Forgotten already, have you? Did I tell you that you could speak? When I'm talking, you dare butt your fucking mouth in? Worthless piece of trash!" Compared to the dried-up older man, the strapping youth was packed with muscle, yet taking a beating like this in front of everyone, he dared not fight back. He could only keep his head down, begging for mercy over and over. Only when Gou Er had hit him enough and cursed him enough did he finally stop. He spat a wad of thick phlegm onto the ground. "All of you, remember this fucking well!" With a chilling glare, he swept his eyes across the seven or eight people he had brought along this time. "From today on, we work for Haian. We're Director Ji's fucking workers! Starting today, don't any of you get cute or disrespectful around the director. You understand?" The crowd nodded like chickens pecking at grain. At that, Gou Er nodded in satisfaction, then suddenly asked, "Who's the leader here?" In the brief silence, A'nao sensed his uncle's gaze turning dangerous again and instantly blurted out, "Director Ji!" And so, A'song, who had just taken a beating and was still slow on the uptake, caught another vicious cuff to the back of the neck from his uncle. "Learn from him!" After the scolding, A'nao finally worked up the courage to ask, "Uncle, where are we going to find over a hundred people?" "We'll have them right away!" Gou Er instructed, "A'nao, you and A'song skip lunch. Drive back right now and tell Lao Liu and Lao Tu that it's done. Once Lao Liu and Lao Tu deal with those two traitors, Liuzi and Shihuliu, tell them not to rush into moving just yet. Head over to the neighboring villages first." Gou Er paused, the wrinkles across his face creasing into something like a grin. "Tell them that for the sake of our years of acquaintance, I won't hog the feast alone. The chance to turn their lives around is right here. I'll wait just one day—it's up to them whether they can seize it!" The two young men took their orders and left. Gou Er watched as their heavily modified Huasheng tricycle chugged away into the distance with a sputtering roar. After fingering the gold dust in his pocket, he indulged in a rare luxury and led the rest of his men into an eatery. Sipping home-brewed liquor while sucking on stir-fried river snails, he drank until he was half-tipsy, a ruddy flush spreading across his wrinkled face. Squatting by the entrance of the eatery, watching the bustling, clamorous market, he happily lit a cigarette. Puffing clouds of smoke. Fine drops of rain began to drift down from the sky—a sun shower. Yet the rainwater that used to make his skin crawl and keep him awake with torment suddenly didn't seem so terrifying anymore. He squatted lazily beneath the awning, basking in the sun's lingering warmth. When he grinned, he showed a mouthful of yellow teeth. Wasn't this what making a living was all about? In truth, over the days that followed, Gou Er never saw Ji Jue again. Disappointed though he was inside, he never showed it. Instead, he bustled tirelessly back and forth between Xinquan and the wilderness. He spent several days getting his face familiar to Yan Jian and Lu Feng, snooping around quietly, and then, taking advantage of a drink or two, begged them for some pointers. Only then did he realize all his worries had been entirely unnecessary. Yan Jian currently only managed the factory grounds. What went on outside them was none of his concern, nor did he care whether Gou Er used the opportunity to plant his own people. After receiving the advice to "follow the rules and do your job honestly," Old Gou finally cast his reservations aside, rolled up his sleeves, and got to work. According to factory rules, no matter who arrived, so long as they signed the contract, kept their hands clean, and were willing to work diligently, room and board were fully covered. The monthly wages weren't massive, but out here in the wilderness, they were more than generous—and never paid late. The tenement buildings rented out to families were ugly, cramped, poorly lit pigeon coops with shared bathrooms, but at least they were a roof over one's head. Water and electricity were cheap, and for a little extra cash, one could even rent an air conditioner. Conditions like these would make even the lowliest city laborers curse the bosses for black-hearted scoundrels, but compared to the godforsaken, desolate settlements they had come from, it was paradise itself. The factory clinic didn't stock an abundance of medicine, but the prices weren't overly expensive. Any common medication found in the city was available, and doctors from Mercy Hospital even came by every few days to run free clinics. Even if a person died, they died knowing why, without cursing heaven or blaming earth. Those with experience took a test and were put straight to work; those without signed a contract and could work as apprentices under masters, learning all sorts of crafts—production, maintenance, and the like. Once the harsh ten-year contract was up, nothing stopped you from heading somewhere else to open your own repair shop. Anyone with half a brain who understood the offer would throw themselves with sheer delight into the six-days-on, one-day-off assembly lines. However, out in the wilderness, one could rarely count on gratitude. There were always those whose hands were sticky and whose minds were a little too clever for their own good. Such people tended to vanish mysteriously before long, never to be seen again. In less than two weeks, Gou Er realized that Haian Industries was not as simple as he had imagined. What lurked behind the curtain might be even more terrifying. Yet so what? Encountering such things only brought a grin to his face, making him all the more certain that he had come to the right place and clung to the right backer. After settling his settlement's people, he gathered a crew of men, women, young, and old under his wing and threw himself into the shantytown overhaul ordered by Director Ji. In just a few days, the chaotic shantytown was whipped into crisp order. Haphazard shacks, illicit additions, and buildings siphoning water and electricity were completely demolished. Even if a few blind fools occasionally tried to resist, under the gentle caress of rubber batons they quickly admitted their errors, weeping with snot and tears as they embraced Haian's great benevolence and bowed to the arrangements. Later, once he had cleared the area, Haian's newly trained engineering crew moved in to dig sewers and untangle the chaotic mess of wiring and electrical lines snarled among the illegal structures. Then, brand-new utility poles with wet paint were erected, mounted with security cameras that brought everything under surveillance and control. And so, under the blazing sun, the intense renovations finally drew to a close after the better part of a month. Following that, the whole of Xinquan sank into an eerie desolation. In broad daylight, not a soul could be seen on the streets. Because—everyone was fucking melting from the heat. The temperature continued to climb day by day. What had averaged thirty to forty degrees Celsius rose even higher; at midday, parts of the Haizhou wilderness could even hit over fifty degrees. At this juncture, people only ventured out in the early morning and at night, throwing management into chaos once more. Yet after Gou Er submitted an error-riddled report, it actually earned Yan Jian's praise. Soon, the original marketplace area was expanded, massive awnings were set up, and stalls were rezoned. Thus, amid the bustling roar of a night market, Xinquan—which used to plunge into dead silence after dark—became ablaze with lights. A few days later, the first violent storm broke from the sky. At the scorching hour of noon, it arrived without warning, plunging heaven and earth into darkness. Amid rolling peals of thunder, torrential rain poured down in an instant, swallowing the entire world. Nerve-wracking thunder rumbled without pause. In just a few minutes, the wilderness outside Xinquan turned into a vast swamp. When the dark clouds dispersed and the sun rose once more, everything grew even drier and stifling under the steaming, sweltering haze. After the storm passed, no one looked pleased. The rainy season had arrived early. At least half a month ahead of schedule. When a dirt-streaked A'nao rushed back from the site of their old settlement, Old Gou received word that it was completely underwater. Many praised Uncle Gou's foresight. Even the fierce, sharp-tongued women of the settlement who used to grumble now behaved meekly, not daring to utter a peep. Listening to his nephew's report, everyone felt the jubilation of having cheated death. Only Gou Er, sitting in the guardhouse enjoying the air conditioning, remained silent, his expression growing ever more grim. Until no one spoke anymore. Old Gou finished his cigarette. Pinching the stub that had burned halfway down the filter, he took one last hard drag, finally stubbed it out, and stood up. "Things are about to get ugly. Over the next two days, keep your phones on you at all times. Pull yourselves together—we're splitting into day and night shifts. A'nao, keep a close eye on them. If anyone fucking dares to slack off on shift, beat them half to death! I don't care if their father died or their woman ran off—anyone who causes trouble gets the fuck out! Understand?!" After giving his orders, he trotted off to the factory grounds to find Lu Feng. Upon his return, he made another trip to Old Diaomao Town next to Xinquan and met with Brother Huangmao. Before evening even fell, everyone in the shantytown noticed that perimeter fences had already been erected, topped with barbed wire, standing under heavy guard. The rubber batons at the hips of the shantytown management squad were gone, replaced by barbed iron clubs, their faces dark and menacing. And the factory security team had completely shed their former laziness. Loaded with live ammunition. Before dawn the next day, the outskirts of Xinquan Town and its main entrances were already swarming with people— Grimy, dirt-covered faces clamored to enter the town, while others had already slipped off to secluded spots trying to scale the walls. Chugging modified vehicles belching thick black smoke were jammed bumper to bumper along the road, honking their horns incessantly, to no avail. Bribes that might have worked in the past were useless now. Unless one held a pass issued by Haian or could state their resident identification number, no entry or exit was permitted, regardless of how extravagant the excuse. As for those who tried to run the checkpoint or scale the walls—they could let their skulls personally experience the enforcement strength of the management squad and security department. Receiving the news, Yan Jian wiped away cold sweat. Looking at the dense, black mass of people outside the barbed wire, his skin crawled. Thank goodness they had prepared early and finished the overhaul, or who knew what kind of chaos Xinquan would have devolved into! A sudden downpour, a premature rainy season—like a one-ton straw crushing a camel, it shattered the hopes of countless settlements. Realizing survival was untenable, numerous settlements scattered in an instant. Those with connections sought them out; those without scrambled to find any place they could eke out a living. Yet as vast as Haizhou was today, how many places were willing to take in a crowd of unrelated outsiders? The crowd covering the hills and plains right now was merely the first wave... Amid the surging crowd, shouts rang out incessantly alongside bursts of wailing. The mob, which had briefly quieted under the threat of gun barrels, began pushing forward once more. Amid their shouts and roars, a surge was brewing. The atmosphere was rapidly turning sour! Clearly, someone behind the scenes was egging them on. Hiding behind the fence, Gou Er was drenched in sweat watching the spectacle, able only to bark continuous orders over the radio to hurry his management squad along in suppressing them. Yet amid his helpless panic, he suddenly grew calm. He took the newly lit cigarette from the corner of his mouth, stepped on it, ground it beneath his heel, and turned to look at the nephew beside him. "A'nao, has your uncle treated you well?" "Yes," A'nao nodded resolutely, without hesitation. Old Gou stared straight at him and suddenly asked, "Back then, I didn't let you enter the factory and kept you working beside me. You suffered plenty. Tell me the truth—do you hate me?" A'nao shook his head. "Before my mother died, she told me to listen to you. Whatever you tell me to do, I do." "Good. Then listen to your uncle this once." Old Gou suddenly reached out and clamped onto the boy's hand like an iron vise. "A'song is a useless piece of trash, no relying on him. Working an honest job is better for him. But you're different. You have a chance to make something of yourself—" He paused, then said, "There are things the boss can't do himself. The people below have to know how to handle things—you have to step up on your own. You understand?" A'nao nodded. "Good boy. Good, good." Gou Er smiled, the wrinkles on his old face smoothing out for an instant. Then he stepped closer, pressed a gun into the boy's hand, bent his fingers firmly around it, and shoved it into his pocket. "Follow me!" The hunched man straightened his spine once more, holding it rigid, holding his head high, and walked toward the other side of the barbed wire. Toward that roaring, boiling sea of people.