Chapter 256 Making a Living

"Yeah, nothing much, so I came early." Lin Fan nodded, his tone calm.

Chu Jianming unscrewed the thermos in his hand, lowered his head to blow away the rising steam, and took a sip of water.

"It's really cold today." Chu Jianming tightened the lid of his cup and glanced at the Wuling Hongguang that Lin Fan had driven up.

"I heard from Xin Xin's father that you opened a restaurant on Phoenix Golden Street and that the business is very successful."

Xin Xin's father is Mr. Zhao, who invests in the catering industry. He was the one who insisted on paying a high price for Lin Fan cookies at the last sharing session.

"It's not big, just an ordinary shop, just enough to make a living," Lin Fan replied casually.

"Land in a place like Jin Street is incredibly valuable. It's no easy feat to open a shop there and establish a foothold."

Chu Jianming looked at the tightly closed kindergarten gate, his tone relaxed, "But I'm a little puzzled. Most people in the catering industry work from dawn till dusk, practically 24/7. How do you have time to pick up your child?"

Chu Jianming asked casually, without any sense of intrusion into other people's privacy, just out of pure curiosity.

"The shop only does business for half a day." Lin Fan put his hands in his jacket pockets and looked at the road ahead.

"We close the shop once we sell out of ingredients at noon. I use the afternoons and evenings to spend time with my children."

Upon hearing this, Chu Jianming turned and glanced at Lin Fan.

He lived to be over fifty and had met all sorts of people.

Jiangcheng is a place where materialism runs rampant.

Business people, once they see the potential for profit, will do everything in their power to expand their business and make as much money as possible.

To be able to cut off half of the revenue at the height of one's business, just to make time for one's children, requires a level of self-discipline that is not something most people possess.

"If you do half a day less of business every day, you'll lose a lot of money. Don't you think it's a pity?" Chu Jianming asked.

"There's nothing to regret," Lin Fan said calmly. "How much money do you think you can earn? Enough to live on and pay for the kids' tuition is enough."

"She's five years old now, which is the age when she needs someone to be by her side the most. When she grows up and has her own life, I won't have time to spend with her, and she won't have time for me. It would be a real waste to exchange the years I could spend with her for a little bit of money."

Chu Jianming listened quietly.

The wrinkles at the corners of his eyes smoothed out slightly, and he nodded.

"You're right. Many people in this world spend their whole lives striving, only to lose sight of what's most fundamental."

Chu Jianming reached out and touched the inside of the thermos. "Some people think that leaving a large sum of money for their children or sending them to the most expensive schools is fulfilling their responsibilities as parents. But what do children know about money? They only care about who is with them every day."

Lin Fan didn't reply.

Chu Jianming's words were completely contrary to the theories Su Qing had used in the past.

Su Qing constantly talks about international schools, imported mattresses, and the overwhelming assets of a multi-billion dollar conglomerate. She uses material possessions as the sole criterion for judging whether a father is qualified or not.

"There aren't many young people these days who can see things so clearly," Chu Jianming smiled and didn't continue the topic.

The two stood under the tree without saying anything more.

That's how casual conversations between men are: they touch on the subject briefly, don't delve too deeply into things they don't know well, and don't try to get too close.

As time went by, more and more parents lined up on both sides of the road to wait.

3:30.

The cheerful school dismissal music rang out from the loudspeaker next to the kindergarten gate on time.

The tightly closed black iron gate was slowly pulled open from the inside by the security guard.

Teachers from each class held up their class signs and led the lined-up children out of the school building one by one.

"Parents, please take your pick-up cards and pick up your children in class order." The security guard maintained order at the entrance.

Lin Fan and Chu Jianming stood side by side, watching the senior class walk over.

Today, Tuantuan was wearing a yellow hooded down jacket and carrying a small backpack, walking in the middle of the group.

She looked up and saw Lin Fan standing under the tree, and waved happily, "Dad!"

A little girl standing next to Tuantuan waved and called out to Chu Jianming, "Grandpa!"

Chu Jianming walked over with a smile and handed the pick-up card to the teacher.

"Was Chuchu good today?" Chu Jianming took the little girl's hand and then took the backpack from her back.

"Good girl," she replied sweetly.

On the other side, Lin Fan also received a call from Tuan Tuan.

He helped Tuantuan pull up the zipper of her down jacket to block the cold wind from getting into her neck.

Lin Fan gently instructed his daughter, "Tuantuan, say goodbye to Grandpa and Chuchu."

Tuantuan raised her little hand obediently: "Goodbye Chuchu, goodbye Grandpa Chu."

Chu Jianming nodded slightly to Lin Fan: "Tuantuan's dad, drive carefully."

"Take care too," Lin Fan replied.

Lin Fan, holding Tuantuan's hand, turned and walked towards the Wuling Hongguang parked by the roadside.

Chu Jianming stood there, watching Lin Fan help the child open the car door, protect her head as she sat in the back child safety seat, and then walk back to the driver's seat.

Chu Jianming didn't look away until the dusty bread truck drove into the traffic.

"Grandpa, the cookies that Tuantuan's dad made last time were so delicious. Didn't he bring any cookies today?" Chu Chu tugged at Chu Jianming's sleeve and looked up to ask.

Chu Jianming smiled and led his granddaughter toward his Volkswagen sedan.

"I didn't bring any today. Next time, Grandpa will take you to his restaurant."

As Tuantuan sat inside the Wuling Hongguang van, the warm air made her breathe a sigh of relief.

"Dad, Teacher Liu gave me a little red flower today." Tuantuan, sitting in the back row, took out a small red non-woven fabric flower from her pocket and handed it forward.

"Why did you give me the little red flower?" Lin Fan asked while changing lanes and looking in the rearview mirror.

"Because I ate the fastest at lunch today, and I didn't drop any rice on the table," Tuantuan said with pride.

"Good job. What do you want to eat when we get home tonight?" Lin Fan asked, holding the steering wheel steadily.

The car reached an intersection, and the light was red. Lin Fan stepped on the brakes.

"I want to eat roasted sweet potatoes," Tuantuan said, looking out the car window.

Lin Fan followed her gaze. On the street corner across the road, there was a tricycle selling roasted sweet potatoes.

A large tin barrel converted into an oven was emitting white smoke, and the unique sweet and caramel aroma of roasted sweet potatoes could be faintly smelled.

"Okay, I'll buy roasted sweet potatoes," Lin Fan agreed.

The green light came on. Lin Fan crossed the intersection and pulled the car over to the side of the road.

He unbuckled his seatbelt, opened the car door, got out, and walked to the tricycle stall.

"Boss, bring me a roasted sweet potato. I want it roasted until it's soft," Lin Fan said.

"Okay." The stall owner was a middle-aged woman wearing thick gloves.

She lifted the thick quilt covering the tin bucket, rummaged through it, and took out a sweet potato with a slightly charred skin and dripping sugar syrup. She wrapped it in a paper bag and handed it to her.

"Ten yuan."