Chapter 00097: The Big Brother
# The Big Brother
Chapter 97
Novel: 1979 Golden Age
Chapter 97: The Big Brother
As the saying goes, wealth should not be flaunted.
But sometimes, you just have to show it off.
Chen Qi had specifically gathered a few people, partly for safety and partly to show off, especially to Li Lianjie.
The effect was immediate—since leaving the bank, the kid hadn’t said a word.
“Chen… Brother Qi!” Wang Qun, who was the same age as Chen Qi but with a later birthday, called him “brother” for the first time. “You… you… I mean, this money…”
“Oh, I wrote a script for a Hong Kong company, the one run by that martial arts director. This is the payment I got.”
“You wrote a script for Hong Kong?!”
“That’s amazing!”
Ge Chunyan and Huang Qiuyan exclaimed in unison, their faces full of awe.
To mainlanders at the time, Hong Kong was like heaven.
“What’s so great about Hong Kong? I feel like I got ripped off!” Chen Qi’s face was as thick as the heel of his foot, mimicking the attitude of future bosses.
To him, earning 200,000 less was like losing 200,000.
Because what he had sent over wasn’t just a script.
It also included the detailed designs, essentially handing over the entire Qimen Dunjia movie to Yuen Woo-ping.
If it weren’t for the fact that neither the mainland nor the leftists could produce it, he wouldn’t have sold it.
He glanced at Li Lianjie and deliberately asked, “Xiao Li, what are you thinking about?”
“Huh? Nothing.”
Li Lianjie paused and then said, “You… you’re what they call a ‘ten-thousand-yuan household’ in the newspapers, right?”
“I guess so, but this money won’t last long. My parents are helping me look for a house. I want to buy my own place… Today’s a happy day, so everyone gets a share. Let’s go to the Overseas Chinese Store!”
So, the group headed to Xidan.
In the basement of the Xidan Shopping Center, there was a large Overseas Chinese Store.
Many people knew about the Friendship Store, but the two were different: the Overseas Chinese Store catered to Chinese citizens, while the Friendship Store served foreigners and overseas Chinese.
Our dear Sihanouk was a regular at the Friendship Store, spending lavishly.
He didn’t pick and choose—he just bought everything except what he didn’t want.
Then there was Imelda Marcos, the wife of the Philippine president, who once bought 1,000 Jinhua hams in Shanghai.
They had to scour every food store in the city to gather them all, and they were sent directly to the airport.
All of this was for the sake of precious foreign currency!
Now, the group arrived at the Overseas Chinese Store.
Without the Overseas Chinese Exchange Certificates, they weren’t allowed in.
Only Chen Qi went inside.
He almost cried! Not just because of the dazzling array of goods, but the sight of the beautiful salesgirls in their little uniforms gave him a taste of the modern world he had missed.
Life as a time traveler was tough—even the toilet paper was rough.
“Hello, sir, welcome!”
“Food is over here, daily necessities are there, and over there are crafts… and there’s also traditional medicine!”
“Alright, I’ll take a look around first.”
He quickly browsed the store.
There were indeed many good things—watches, televisions, Maotai liquor, cigarettes, pastries, mahogany furniture, antiques—you name it, they had it.
Having the Overseas Chinese Exchange Certificates didn’t mean you didn’t have to pay.
The certificates were just a purchasing permit—you still had to pay in RMB.
Then he wandered over to the traditional medicine section, which was even more impressive.
There were raw herbs, Chinese patent medicines, and a row of large glass jars filled with medicinal wines, each containing serene-looking centipedes, scorpions, and snakes.
“What’s that wine?”
“Deer antler wine!”
“And that one?”
“Tiger bone wine!”
Chen Qi’s eyes lit up.
Just as he was about to ask more, he spotted another one. “What’s that over there?”
“Oh, that’s tiger penis wine!”
Wow! This is good! This is really good!
He hurried over and took a closer look. “Is it real?”
“How could a tiger have a fake one?”
“No, I mean, is it from a real tiger?”
“Of course! This was produced by the Beijing Traditional Medicine Factory over a decade ago. It’s Li Shizhen brand tiger penis wine!”
“How much is it?”
“We have bottled ones, 12 yuan per bottle.”
I’ll take them all!
Chen Qi really wanted to shout that, but he had to save face—there were still a few buddies waiting outside.
Maotai was only 8 yuan a bottle, while tiger penis wine was 12. But if given the chance, would a man buy Maotai or tiger penis wine? The answer was obvious! In a few years, tigers would be protected by the state.
Reluctantly, Chen Qi left the counter, thinking he’d come back tomorrow.
Better to be prepared.
In the end, he bought some hard-to-find items like chocolate, Western pastries, dried squid, and canned luncheon meat, then sauntered out.
“Wow, what did you buy?”
“Is it full of good stuff inside?”
The group was anxious and curious, but given their current relationship, they couldn’t just rummage through the bag.
Chen Qi opened it himself and showed them, smiling. “I’ll head home in a bit. Who wants to run an errand and take some of this to the Beijing Film Studio to share with everyone?”
“Huh? Really? You’re giving it to us?”
“You’re too generous! From now on, I’ll call you Little Brother Chen!”
“No need to be polite. Here, take some, whatever you want.”
Ge Chunyan and Huang Qiuyan were a bit shy, hesitating for a moment before reaching for the chocolate.
In the martial arts team, they had a small kitchen, but the so-called “small kitchen” only offered milk, eggs, and occasionally some meat.
Chocolate and Western pastries were exotic treats.
Li Lianjie had seen the world, but he only got to eat such things when he went abroad.
Normally, where would he find these? He struggled to maintain his pride as a national champion, but eventually consoled himself:
“He sold a script for 30,000 Hong Kong dollars. What’s a little snack? He’s the one offering!”
So he took some too.
Wang Qun, being honest, said, “I’ll go to the Beijing Film Studio and share it with everyone.”
“Alright, thanks for that. Can you guys escort me home first?”
“No problem, it’s nothing!”
“If I’d known you were this awesome, I’d have called more people. We could’ve brought Ji Chunhua—he’d scare anyone off!”
“Forget it. Would Ji Chunhua be a bodyguard or a bank robber? He’d get taken down before he even got through the door.”
When you take someone’s food, you owe them.
At least the two girls were in high spirits, chattering all the way.
Li Lianjie remained silent, occasionally glancing at Chen Qi: It seems he’s more than just a two-trick pony.
He’s really something!
If you want to be the big brother, you have to be willing to foot the bill.
If there’s no benefit in following you—just a few thousand yuan a month, no overtime pay, workplace bullying, constant WeChat messages, and no holidays—what are you, a modern-day wage slave?
…………
“Oh, son, you’re back!”
“Why aren’t you at the factory? Is it a holiday?”
In the evening, Chen Qi’s parents came home and were surprised and happy to find their son there.
“Huh? What did you bring back? Stinky socks?”
Yu Xiuli, with her sharp eyes, noticed the bag and casually dumped it on the bed.
Out poured a pile of cash and Overseas Chinese Exchange Certificates.
“Oh my god!”
“Son, did you rob a bank?!”
“Ahem… let me explain something.”
Chen Qi raised his hands to calm them down. “For the purpose of promoting cultural exchange between Beijing and Hong Kong, and with the hope of Hong Kong’s early return, I wrote a script for a Hong Kong film company and received 10,000 RMB, plus these Overseas Chinese Exchange Certificates. I’ve decided that tomorrow, the whole family will go to the Overseas Chinese Store. I need a watch, and you can buy whatever you like. Then we’ll buy a TV for the house. We don’t need a color TV yet—they’re too expensive, not cost-effective. Let’s get a big black-and-white one. Uncle Zhang has a 9-inch black-and-white TV, right? We’ll get a 12-inch one. I’ve checked the price—it’s cheaper than the department store, only 420 yuan! I’ve withdrawn 1,000 yuan, which should be enough. Don’t worry about the money—I’ll earn more. Your son has made it. I’m now a ten-thousand-yuan household!”
(End of chapter.)