241: Chapter 237: Connections 241: Chapter 237: Connections After leaving Wenchang Pavilion Community, a hundred meters forward lies the Liuyuan Ninth Middle School.
Following this road further ahead, within a few steps, you’d arrive at the fruit market.
The Happy Dance Hall that Chen Hai was planning to visit is located inside the fruit market.
In this era, there aren’t many places for entertainment.
Billiards rooms, pool halls, video halls, dance halls, and an ice rink were the few places the youngsters of this era loved to hang out.
“Chen Hai, are we going to the dance hall?”
“Yes!”
“I’ve never been to such a place before.
When we get there, can you teach me how to dance?”
“I’m not great at dancing either, just the slow dance which I can barely manage.
But of course, no problem teaching you as long as you don’t mind me stepping on your feet.”
“I’m not scared.
If you step on my foot, I’ll just step back.
At worst, we’ll just dance clumsily!”
…
Back at the bus station, when they encountered Brother Qiang, Ye Qingqing was right there.
Naturally, she knew where Chen Hai was headed that evening!
Speaking of dancing, the girl had quite the enthusiasm.
Perhaps in her eyes, dancing hand in hand with Chen Hai was already a delightful thing.
When they arrived at the Happy Dance Hall, it was already past eight by several minutes.
The dance had already started for a while inside.
However, it was the peak time for people buying tickets and entering the dance hall.
What the dance floor inside looked like was impossible to see from the entrance.
Standing here, one could only see a worn-out table where the dance hall owner sat collecting tickets and behind him, an empty space where a ragged pool table, passed through many hands, had a few youngsters playing pool.
Whether it was Sun Jinzhong or Brother Qiang, Chen Hai couldn’t tell if they had already entered the dance area separated by a thick curtain, as he couldn’t spot them from the doorway.
“Chen Hai, shall we go in?” It was Ye Qingqing’s first time at a dance hall, and she was a bit excited yet slightly nervous.
Seeing that Chen Hai was only looking inside and not entering immediately, she tentatively asked.
“Yes!” Chen Hai said with a smile and nod.
“Boss, two tickets!” Pulling out a two-yuan note and slapping it on the table in front of the dance hall owner, he grabbed Ye Qingqing’s hand and headed inside.
This wasn’t Chen Hai’s first time at the Happy Dance Hall.
He knew the ticket price here was one yuan per person.
If it were Sun Jinzhong and his gang, they usually didn’t pay, simply claiming they were with someone and would sneak in.
Of course, the past Sun Jinzhong did that, but following Chen Hai and having made some money, he had not done such things anymore.
A yuan or two were small money for Chen Hai; he naturally had no interest in engaging in such disgraceful acts.
Inside the dance floor, it was time for the slow dance, and almost all the lights in the dance hall were turned off.
In the pitch darkness, if Chen Hai wanted to find his cousin and Brother Qiang, he would need to have his soul depart his body to do so, otherwise it would be very difficult.
“Qingqing, the slow dance I can do.
Shall we have a go?”
“Sure!”
“Come, take my hand, hold onto my waist, and step back a little with your left foot…”
Bringing Ye Qingqing here was all about having fun, and finding people was not something Chen Hai was in a rush to do.
The slow dance was very simple.
After stepping on each other’s feet a few times, Chen Hai and Ye Qingqing had somewhat gotten the hang of it.
“Chen Hai, those two over there, their mouths are together, they seem to be kissing!” Ye Qingqing, on her first visit to such a place, was clearly making a big deal out of it.
While dancing, she leaned in and whispered in Chen Hai’s ear.
“It’s not like it’s two men.
A man and a woman dancing to slow music, this kind of thing is normal.”
“What?
Do you want to try that feeling too?”
“What?
I’m just asking!”
Although she said so, the hand that Ye Qingqing used to hold Chen Hai’s waist clearly tightened a bit.
After the dance ended, the girl’s face even turned a bit red.
“Cousin, over there…” After the slow dance ended, the lights in the dance hall brightened up somewhat.
Not far away, Sun Jinzhong and Brother Qiang were sitting at a tea seat, with a dish of seeds and a cup of tea each.
The one waving at Chen Hai was naturally Sun Jinzhong.
His eyes were spinning around, looking all over the dance floor, it was uncertain whether he was checking out the beautiful women or looking for a target.
Upon seeing Chen Hai and Ye Qingqing, he got excited, quickly stood up, and waved at them.
That guy, with his shiny bald head, was indeed eye-catching.
Chen Hai, pulling Ye Qingqing along, walked over to Sun Jinzhong and Brother Qiang, casually pulled up two chairs, and sat down next to the small round table.
Just staring at his shiny bald head a bit longer, Chen Hai couldn’t help but burst out laughing.
“Brother Zhong, is playing stone fun?” he asked Sun Jinzhong with a peculiar look.
“Don’t even mention it, that’s just bad luck.”
“Three months, man, eating worse than pigs and working harder than oxen, I don’t know how I managed!”
With an embarrassed look, Sun Jinzhong glanced at Ye Qingqing and chuckled, “Is this young lady your sister?
I, Sun, have traveled far and wide for many years and have never seen a girl prettier than your sister!”
“You’re really something, cousin, not only are you skilled, but even in finding a girlfriend, you’re streets ahead of the rest of us!”
“Yeah!
My girlfriend, Ye Qingqing!”
“This is my cousin, Sun Jinzhong.”
“This is Brother Qiang, you’ve seen him before at the bus station, Qingqing!”
Smiling and nodding, Chen Hai introduced everyone to each other.
“Nice to meet you, Brother Zhong, Brother Qiang!” Ye Qingqing quickly greeted.
Chen Hai was introducing himself and his friends to his relatives, and she was naturally happy to join in.
“It’s nice to meet you, sister, but it’s a pity I’m too poor to offer you a gift!”
“Chen Hai duped me saying that I’d be ‘cloaked in Yellow Robe’; I’ve been waiting every day for pies to fall from the sky.”
“This guy, he’s no good; following his advice almost starved me to death!”
Brother Qiang snorted and laughed, his remark merely a joke with no other implication.
Chen Hai had done divination for him, but he hadn’t taken it seriously!
At this moment, he brought it up merely to lighten the mood.
“Chen Hai’s divinations are accurate.
He said you’d be ‘cloaked in Yellow Robe,’ so you will definitely wear one in the future!” Ye Qingqing knew well of Chen Hai’s talents and hurriedly explained.
“Really?
I didn’t expect that, not only are you beautiful, you also speak so nicely!”
Brother Qiang laughed heartily and called out to the bar not far from the table, “Boss, bring us two cups of hot tea!”
When you sit in the tea area of a dance hall, you’re expected to consume something.
But the tea isn’t expensive, just one yuan per cup.
Besides having a seat and sipping some hot tea, sitting here isn’t much different from sitting on long benches around the dance floor.
Some guys, having a bit of spare cash and wanting to show off, like to order tea and some sunflower seeds to sit in the tea area.
No doubt, both Sun Jinzhong and Brother Qiang were such people.
“Brother Zhong, messing around at home all day isn’t the way to go.”
“Have you thought about finding something to do?”
After chatting with Sun Jinzhong for a while, Chen Hai brought up the issue.
His cousin had always been very close to him, especially right after finishing his college entrance exams; he had done quite a few things together with Chen Hai!
If possible, Chen Hai definitely wanted to help him, not wanting to see him continue to mess around aimlessly!
“In our county, so many workers are being laid off, staying here doesn’t offer much work!”
“Go to Yuedong to work?
After what happened last time, I’ve honestly developed a bit of a trauma and don’t want to go there anymore!”
“As for future plans, let’s discuss that in the future; for now, I’ll just take each day as it comes.”
Rubbing his bald head, Sun Jinzhong sighed and gave a bitter smile.
This era was rather chaotic, primarily because there were too few jobs and too many idle hands.
Youngsters like Sun Jinzhong often didn’t lack the willingness to do honest work; there simply wasn’t any available.
Spending their days loafing in groups, when they’re broke, they naturally start thinking of crooked ways to make money.
“What do you mean ‘take each day as it comes?’ Continuing like this, you’ll have no future to speak of.”
“If you’re really motivated, find some proper work to do; even if you stay in the county and don’t go to Yuedong, it’s not like there’s no way at all.”
“I, as your cousin, want to help you as much as I can, but you need to pull yourself together first!”
Chen Hai rolled his eyes at Sun Jinzhong and huffed.
With his head bowed, Sun Jinzhong didn’t say a word.
After a long silence, he clenched his teeth and said, “Cousin, staying in the county, what can I do?”
“If you really find a good opportunity for me to do something legit, I’d put my life on the line to make sure it works out!”
He spoke through clenched teeth, clearly showing determination.
“Chen Hai, if there’s any decent opportunity, don’t forget to count me in!”
Hearing Chen Hai and Sun Jinzhong’s conversation, Brother Qiang quickly chimed in.
In the past couple of years, he made money scalping train tickets in Yuedong, making good money but also facing high risks, like being chased with a machete for territory disputes.
Had it not been for that, he wouldn’t have stayed put in the county these last couple of years.
Recently, he was hustling at the county bus station, helping solicit passengers, just making ends meet without earning much money!
If there’s a good, legitimate opportunity, he was naturally very interested in joining Chen Hai.
“You’re welcome to join my cousin and me in finding some legitimate work to do, Brother Qiang,”
“However, I might not stay in the county.
If something comes up, it’ll depend on you and my cousin.”
Frowning slightly, Chen Hai thought for a while, then after a period of silence, added, “The enterprises here aren’t doing well, a lot of workers are being laid off.”
“When you have some free time, you might ask around in the county to see which factories the county is willing to sell.”
“If the price is right, we could buy it outright…”