The Spring Festival of 2006 was unforgettable for many, including Wen Kai, who had been studying at a Beijing university for half a year.
For wealthy families like Xie Qian’s, troubles stemmed from a father too rich, spawning numerous conflicts around vast wealth, leading to strained father-son ties, where even a reunion festival like the Spring Festival became a battlefield for their clashes!
For those without money, troubles were also aplenty.
The poor faced more straightforward woes, often tied to money.
The weight of life left Wen Kai feeling powerless. During the winter break, he returned home to find his mother, Zhu Meiqun, had quit her factory job and become a mobile street vendor in Chengdu!
At first, the family hid it from him, but Zhu Meiqun’s job didn’t require travel, and after several days away from home, how could they keep it secret?
When Wen Kai learned of this, tears welled up instantly.
“It’s so cold, and my mum is running a stall…”
Chengdu’s cold was different from the North’s.
The North’s cold was dry, but Chengdu rarely saw snow, with winters seldom sunny. When the wind blew, it cut through to the bone, no matter how thick the coat—cotton jackets couldn’t fend off Chengdu’s winter winds!
In such cold, Zhu Meiqun tended a roadside stall selling wontons.
The wontons were freshly made, and gloves were impractical for work, leaving Zhu Meiqun’s hands chapped with frostbite.
Was the family’s financial situation this dire?
Factory work wasn’t easy, but it spared her from wind and sun. Running a stall was harder than factory work!
In his first semester, Wen Kai worked hard, confident he could win a national scholarship.
If that wasn’t enough, he could apply for a student loan.
The university offered work-study jobs.
Or he could follow senior students, finding part-time tutoring gigs off-campus!
Beijing was indeed a high-cost city, with higher living expenses for students than elsewhere, but it was also a city of opportunities. With Wen Kai’s intelligence, having gotten into Capital Aerospace University, if he diverted some study time to part-time work, he could surely support himself through college.
Some classmates from poor families did just that!
“I can cover my university costs, don’t let my mum run a stall!”
Wen Kai’s outburst startled his father, who waved his hands, “We have money for your studies, we really do!”
Wen’s father wished he could show Wen Kai the family savings book.
They definitely had enough for university, saved over years by the couple.
But there wasn’t extra to buy Wen Kai a house, to help him settle and marry in a big city. This boy was a dragon, not meant to be trapped in their hometown’s shallow pond.
Of course, Wen’s father was honest but not foolish, knowing he couldn’t tell his son the truth.
Wen Kai was a conscientious child. If he knew Zhu Meiqun quit her job to vend in Chengdu to save for his house, he’d fiercely object.
Wen’s father smoked two cigarettes before finding the right words, “Look, your second uncle’s family moved to the provincial capital. Following him can’t go wrong. We got to the city thanks to him, but we can’t keep relying on him. Your mum and I discussed it, we want to try making it in the provincial capital ourselves. Your mum went first, and if things go well, I’ll follow… It’s not just her, your uncle went too!”
Wen Changlin earned more than Zhu Meiqun and her husband.
Wen Changlin, leaving a stable life to start anew in the provincial capital, made Wen’s father’s words convincing.
This wasn’t a spur-of-the-moment idea or desperation, but a family’s carefully considered decision to aim for a better life—a process that inevitably involved hardship.
Unlike Wen Changlin, who was eloquent and educated, Zhu Meiqun could only run a stall!
Wen Kai fell silent.
If it was for his university, he’d have to stop her.
But his father said it was for the family’s better future… what right did he have to object?
Getting into Capital Aerospace University meant Wen Kai had a bright future, but turning that into reality was years away!
He couldn’t dissuade Zhu Meiqun with vague promises.
Wen Kai thought all night, and the next day, without a word, he went to help at Zhu Meiqun’s wonton stall.
Zhu Meiqun couldn’t bear her son working hard, but Wen Kai insisted on helping serve wontons, collect money, and wipe tables—she couldn’t drive him away.
Zhu Meiqun had set up her stall outside a university. Though students were on break, the food street nearby stayed open. Regulars greeted Zhu Meiqun warmly, “Sister Zhu, you hired a winter worker!”
“Exactly, your business is good, you should’ve hired help ages ago, but you couldn’t bear to.”
Wen Kai wasn’t talkative and wasn’t quick at work, but he was earnest and learned fast.
Zhu Meiqun felt both heartache and pride, explaining to customers while wrapping wontons, “Not hired, it’s my son. He’s on university break, helping at the stall. I told him not to come, but he’s stubborn!”
Her words carried a subtle Versailles flair.
Yet no customer minded.
Nowadays, young people were often prideful, some avoiding their parents’ stalls, fearing embarrassment if spotted.
Helping parents at a stall showed understanding and filial piety, and customers not only didn’t mind but envied Zhu Meiqun!
Some asked where Wen Kai studied, and Zhu Meiqun, setting down her wontons, stood tall, “In the capital, Capital Aerospace University!”
In those days, any university tied to the capital was prestigious in Chengdu folks’ minds, and Capital Aerospace University’s name was indeed renowned. Even if some customers didn’t understand, the name alone sounded elite.
Several customers praised Zhu Meiqun for raising such a child.
Wen Kai, wiping tables, didn’t know what to say.
So his mum was this proud of him getting into Capital Aerospace?
Good thing he repeated a year!
Helping Zhu Meiqun at the stall, Wen Kai slept on the floor in her rented room. In Chengdu’s freezing winter without heating, seeing Wen Kai curled up in blankets broke Zhu Meiqun’s heart.
Closing the stall early for a few days would mean less money, delaying the house purchase for Wen Kai. Zhu Meiqun was torn.
On New Year’s Eve, Wen Ying’s family moved to a new home and invited all relatives for the New Year’s meal, so Zhu Meiqun finally didn’t set up her stall.
Though Wen Dongrong insisted Zhu Meiqun didn’t need to cook, saying he’d ordered two tables of New Year’s dishes from a restaurant, Zhu Meiqun still prepared ingredients early, bringing freshly made wontons.
After the restaurant’s feast, relatives sat chatting, and eating a bowl of small wontons added a different flavor—restaurants could deliver all sorts of dishes, but not freshly cooked wontons.
Wen Dongrong personally drove back to their hometown to pick up relatives, filling the dining table, with another table eating around the coffee table.
Wen Ying, a bestselling author and hit drama screenwriter outside, was just another kid at home, sitting with cousins by the coffee table. Noticing Wen Kai’s restlessness, she nudged her cousin’s arm, “Kai, are you adjusting to studying in the capital? You seem a bit down.”
