1
In 2001, when I was doing business in the five love market, because I had a public position in the body, at first mainly to hire people to do. But after a period of time, the business has been lukewarm, in 2002, I decided to resign from the business.
This decision caused an uproar within the family, the newly married husband firmly opposed, but also to “divorce” threatened. Outsiders did not understand and said I “let the door squeeze my head”. After officially taking over the business, which is difficult enough for outsiders to understand, but every day at 2 a.m. to get up, a person like a thief in the dark “on the line”, to the outside of the five love market to see the silent building in the dark, always have to take a deep breath, pumped up, in order to change a smile.
One day in March of this year, I sat in front of the stall to gather accounts, a figure suddenly projected down from above my head. I thought it was a buyer, and without looking up, I called out to the attendant inside to come out and answer.
“Brother zero buy or take goods?” The attendant asked.
My family sells women’s clothing, most of the time are female customers to pick up goods, come alone male customers are rare. Listen to the waiter a greeting, I looked up, I did not expect that it was the second brother – at that time, we have not contacted for almost a year.
The second brother did not answer the waiter’s question, but only condescendingly, smiling at me.
“Second brother, what are you doing here?” I hurriedly stood up and set aside my account book.
The second brother smiled slightly and said, “You are doing business here, the second brother can not come to support? Besides, this used to be my brother’s territory!”
Second brother’s name is Zhang Wen Shuang, he is not my real brother, but only my cousin Zhou Zheng’s a worship brother.
My cousin Zhou Zheng was very naughty when he was young, and when he became an adult, he got into fights and was convicted of seriously injuring others. In the year before the relocation of Shenyang Dabei prison, he and Zhang Wenshang live in the same number, because of the temperament of the same, in the inside of the worship. Zhou is a few months older, is the eldest brother, other prisoners will call Zhang Wenshang “second brother”.
Later, Zhou Zheng was released from prison first, after getting out no way to live, simply pull up a team to do a contractor. He does not understand the industry and no access, run into walls when the work around, not a few detours, it was difficult to pack a small job in Montenegro County. The second brother was released from prison a year later, the situation is worse. He spent nine years in prison, in addition to his grandparents, during which no one to visit the prison, out, he wanted to find a proper job, but did not know who to look for – the father is not to refer to, the brother graduated from college to work in the government sector, but the gap between their situation is too big, he was too embarrassed to beg.
The second brother first went to the street office, kind words, low voice, hoping that the street can give him a job, “even if it is sweeping the streets, I am not afraid of suffering and not afraid of tired, and not afraid of others look down on. I’m afraid to eat idle rice at home. After understanding the situation, people from the street office sent him away with a few words, and told him to go home and wait, “I’ll inform you when I get a letter”.
Waiting around for a letter, the second brother and patience to go looking for a few times, the result is the same answer each time: “Wait!” The last time, the second brother flipped out: “Can you give a quick word? Waiting beard are drooping ground, can not directly tell me no, which have you so serve the people?”
An old lady from the street yelled at him: “Don’t look at you as a ‘reformed prisoner’, I’m not afraid of you, where to arrange work? I can’t even arrange for good people, let alone people like you.”
At that moment, he felt that everyone was looking at him with a different and despicable gaze. When he got home, he locked himself in his room and cried secretly, thinking, “It’s so hard to be human and a good person.
From then on, he never went to that street office again.
Many years later, the successful second brother happened to mention this past to me, still look very complicated – can not say that all hate, but he certainly did not forgive.
The second brother’s life is quite bitter, contact time, one or two I know.
His father was a native of Shenyang, because he had been a false Manchu gendarme, when the liquidation was sent down to the rural areas around Shenyang. When he was two years old, his parents divorced, and his father remarried and left him and his brother at his grandparents’ house, unattended.
The second brother did not like to read as a child, a look at things with words on the brain pain, so mixed a junior high school diploma, how to say also do not read. Back then, “top class” was popular, and some half-grown boys did not study, taking over their parents’ positions can enter the factory to make money. The second brother’s father was working in the grain depot, the second brother went to his father’s house and said his idea, but also proposed that he would work after all the wages will be paid to the family.
His father said, “If you don’t study hard, you’ll be a fool.” His stepmother scolded him, “Family? Which family? I know you don’t have any good intentions. You’re sick in the head! What do you think? If you take your father’s place, our family will drink the northwest wind, right?”
My second brother, who was still a minor at the time, could not understand why his father’s family had nothing to do with him. He stood in the doorway and stubbornly stuck his neck: “You are my father, you should be in charge of me! People don’t take over the class, why can’t I?” My father kicked him and slapped him again.
This was the only and the last time his father hit him, because until his father died of illness, the second brother never came to the door of that house.
With no one to control him, the second brother began a “hustling career”, he spent his days with a group of punks stealing chickens and dogs, fighting and brawling. He grew tall, brainy, and bold, and soon became the small “boss” of the group of gangsters.
When he became an adult, the first big thing he did was to lead a group of young brothers to steal carpets from a carpet factory, which resulted in the gatekeeper being caught in flagrante delicto. At that time, it was just in time for the “strict crackdown”, the second brother was young and vigorous, and confessed to the crime with a bad attitude, so he was sentenced to nine years.
2
After being released from prison, my cousin Zhou Zheng decided to be a new man.
But his first project in Montenegro County, a group of local gangsters suddenly stormed into the site, see people on the fight, see things smashed, the other party’s leader put out the word, let Zhou Zheng rush to roll up and get out, “or see you once beaten once, until you beat you out of Montenegro.
Zhou Zheng insisted not to withdraw, “If you withdraw it will not come back!” –The bottom of the fight up is you die, I live, lost the project is lost to live. Once he gave in, he lost the prestige of the leader, can no longer lead the team, and it is impossible to mix in the engineering circle.
Moreover, in his hometown, Zhou Zheng has become a typical of life in the eyes of the villagers to turn the tide against the wind, many people say behind the face: “Look at the old Zhou family boss really capable, people finished the prison out as usual when the big boss.” People think he made a fortune in engineering outside, in fact, he did not have much money in his pocket, and even in debt to live.
There is no way back Zhou is thinking of the second brother just released from prison, a phone call, in Shenyang to do nothing in the second brother quickly rushed to Montenegro with people.
Both sides after the fire, Zhou Zheng kept the first single business, but also in Montenegro, a battle of fame, a thorough footing, but paid a heavy price – his right ear permanently deaf, a little voice can not hear; second brother almost hung, the whole person like a blood gourd, the beginning can still find the bleeding point, and later did not know where to come out so much blood, whose blood.
The second brother back to Shenyang to recover from injuries killed into the management chaos at the time, the red-hot five love market, he said: “In addition to fighting, I will not do anything.”
He quickly pulled up a “team” to collect protection money, but also to the tenants to “level things out” – who lost a package of goods, who was the management ” Take the card” hard, what contradictions between neighboring tenants, he will step in to help solve. Of course, he also for people to collect debts, with the boys in the middle of the night to the debts of the big head down hanging on the Hun River bridge, asking when to pay back the money.
In 1995, I went to college in Shenyang, to buy some living supplies in the five love market. Get the news, the second brother took me straight to the appropriate stall, what I like, he let the shopkeeper take, take the leg after pulling away. I was very embarrassed and said “I should give money to people or have to give money to people. As a result, not waiting for the second brother to speak, a punk next to him interjected: “The second brother really throw money to them, they dare not want ah!”
The second brother laughed and kicked the punk, cursing: “Why are you everywhere, your mouth is so indebted!”
At that time, he was calling the shots in the five love market, infinite beauty.
But in 1997, the five love market changes, a person named Li Liyan appeared. This person is ruthless, completely reckless, everything is solved by violence, his minions openly equipped with shotguns, steel pipes and watermelon knives, a word of disagreement will be shot at the sky, and then disobeyed to break people’s legs, but also armed with weapons into the office to threaten public officials with beatings. This reckless life has a strong attraction to the gangsters in the five love market, they feel that the money is fast, powerful, touching the officials do not need to le (take care of), do not have to nod and bend with the other side, “do not serve him!
Second brother’s men began to stir, some simply ran to Li Liyan’s side. Li Liyan’s hand is also getting longer and longer, frequently nuisance a few with the second brother very good relationship with the big business households. At that time in the five love market, but anyone who is well-informed, know that there must be a vicious fight between the two of them.
The news spread further and further, and finally even my cousin’s wife heard about it. She was very worried, let me advise Zhou Zheng never to get involved, and said that if the second brother had to ask for that debt, she was willing to take the money out to set things right.
But this is not a matter of money, that afternoon I called my cousin: “I heard that you want to come to Shenyang to fight with people? I will not stop you, but I have to go, you win we do not say anything, you lost I call the police for you. To put it bluntly, if there is really a shortage, there is also someone to report to run errands ah.”
Zhou and I are blood relatives, the second brother to me also have nothing to say, since I came to Shenyang to study in college, he has been taking care of me, calling twice a day, moving people to send me things, every ten days and a half months also invited me to a restaurant. They are both in trouble, I do not want to see.
Zhou Zheng half did not say anything, then said I got the news is not the latest: “Your second brother has quit the five love street, he opened a hardware store in Shandong Temple there. I’ll be in Shenyang the day after tomorrow, you come out at night, we go out together to liven up.”
“No more fighting?” I asked.
“Do not fight, so poor that they can not eat, forced to rely on fists when there are no tricks, now it is necessary for a bunch of rotten people to put their own lives on the line? After so many years of fighting, who does not want to go ashore to live a normal life, it is an opportunity, he opened a hardware store, are almost ready.”
At that time, Zhou’s business has been on track, and the second brother in five love dry camp generation has become a piece of his heart: “Your second brother that person, I directly give him money he can not do, let him do with me he can not do. In fact, the kid surnamed Li came good, otherwise he always felt that he could only do that line, but also said that a group of brothers followed him to mix food, he can not just think of their own brothers left behind. This time is good, no need to persuade.”
The next day, the second brother really called, said he opened a new face, to invite me over to lively. I said Zhou Zheng has told me, the second brother scolded him mouth really owed: “My own thing I will not tell ah, but he owed like, where all show him.”
I laughed out loud. At that time, the three of us never talk in a roundabout way, there is no taboo, in front of each other are the most natural, the most relaxed state. But I never thought that one day, the second brother will actively distant us – because of his new girlfriend.
3
At a banquet to celebrate the opening of the hardware store, I first met Wang Cancan, my second brother’s new girlfriend. She was tall and thin, with long hair, and very clean-looking.
The second brother introduced her to everyone in a high profile, Wang Can Can’s response is not indifferent, but there is a kind of arrogance in the bones of the arrogant energy, so many people at the scene feel a little uncomfortable. Zhou Zheng couldn’t keep the words in his stomach and said directly to his second brother, “This woman is too capable of pretending to be a calf.” He believes that the two of them will not survive the day of marriage: “Split! Hurry up and split!”
Wang Cancan and the second brother, or with us, are not the same people. The day they first met, Wang Cancan accompanied his powerful and wealthy father to a dinner party, where they sat at the top table, while the second brother’s status was not up to par and could only sit at the bottom table, responsible for paying the bill. The first thing is that Wang Cancan was attracted to the second brother – first of all, he looks strong, like Gu Tianle; secondly, Wang Cancan was well protected since childhood, and rarely came into contact with people like the second brother, but only felt that he had a domineering and jianghu righteousness.
After that, Wang Cancan often come to the second brother, one after another, the two secretly talked about friends. The second brother in the past is not without a woman, but most of them are water marriage, do not look at him a no culture, two no family, three no legitimate occupation has also been in prison, but the general girl he can not see. This time, like a princess, Wang Can Can only make the second brother feel inferior, he is immensely attached to her, simply do not know how to baby to good.
The first thing you need to do is to get a good idea of what you are getting into. At that time, unmarried cohabitation was still rare.
The second brother’s love affair was a blast, no matter where he went, he took Wang Cancan with him, so our “threesome” became a “foursome”. In front of us, the second brother does not hide his love for Wang Cancan, such as eating, he remembered her taste preferences, after serving food to her dish pour water, drink something must order hot drinks …… in the rough and tumble of Zhou Zheng, this is a great “sin”. The first thing you need to do is to get a good idea of what you are getting into.
It is also strange that Zhou Zhengping can laugh and smile in the face of people he hates, but only refuses to pretend in front of Wang Cancan. Every time they meet, he pulled his face long, not salty to others. This makes me suffer, I can only act as a peacemaker between them, and the arrogant Wang Cancan said: “My brother is born with a cold face, talk less to anyone.” On the other hand, he advised Zhou Zheng not to be too obvious.
Zhou Zheng is indignant, he feels that people and people will know what is going on when they look at each other, Wang Can Can is from the bones to despise us: “Why does she despise me? She has money and I am not bad ah, besides, I do not look at her eyes to eat, and do not care about her borrowing money, why does she give me such a face to!”
At that time, the size of Zhou Zheng is also a boss, under the hands of hundreds of workers, everyone saw him respectfully. But I think this matter is a misunderstanding, Wang Cancan is the daughter of a large family, some arrogance is not necessarily to have a problem with anyone, and Zhou Zheng think so, may be he is too sensitive and vulnerable.
A year later, the second brother finally got his beauty back.
Zhou and I went to the wedding, to the place only to find that the female relatives, male relatives and friends less, only two tables, and the arrangement of the location is not good. It is said that the second brother’s guest list was screened by the Wang family layer by layer, the second brother’s store employees are not allowed to participate, the second brother’s former brothers, in addition to Zhou Zheng, the other one is not allowed to invite.
Zhou Zheng was still holding bad want to take advantage of the opportunity to make trouble with the bride, the results of a look at the scene, the heart is cold. He felt that the second brother’s marriage was too shameful, almost fuming on the spot: “This is a fucking marriage to the daughter-in-law it or to the aunt it? The second is not yet mixed to the part of the backward door, right?
I was afraid that the female relatives heard the trouble, and stabbed Zhou Zheng, asking him to take the big picture: “Today is the second brother’s big day, we have to endure how much slack.”
The wedding went according to the process, and it didn’t take long for Ergo to get drunk, crying and laughing, laughing and crying again, and yelling, “I have a son!”
Perhaps because I understand his past with his own parents, perhaps because I am a girl, so I can understand the complex emotions of the second brother at that moment. When mixing five love market, the second brother has been renting a house to live outside, hotels, hotels, small hostels, where to go where is home, but also where to go where are not home. After the death of his grandparents, every New Year’s Eve, when the family reunion, the second brother is hiding himself alone. Now married, with a wife and children, the second brother is very happy – he finally has a home.
However, in Wang Cancan’s mother’s family’s opinion, the second brother lost his temper in public and played drunken madness, disgraced their family, Wang Cancan’s mother was so angry that she scolded her daughter: “Look at this person you chose!”
Some people say that the second brother is intentionally promoting Wang Cancan unmarried pregnant, “no family education, no culture, dog meat can not be on the state banquet stage, rotten mud can not support the wall”. In fact, even if you do not say, their eyes, the expression of disdain and contempt, as long as not blind can see.
Soon, the second brother let the whole to the hotel room “sober” to go, Zhou Zheng has been drinking mulled wine not talk. When we left, we looked in the neck, still no sign of the second brother, Zhou said with a grunt: “Your second brother is now a stolen girl, let people house arrest in the embroidery building, can not get down.”
The next day, the second brother booked a hotel to invite other brothers who did not participate in the wedding to eat “thank you banquet”. I heard that the second brother was very sober throughout, not drunk and not crazy about alcohol. After the wedding, he did not seem to be drunk in front of people, Zhou Zheng once teased him, saying that he was “very well taught”. This is a bit harsh, but the second brother just laugh it off.
4
After the wedding, the second brother’s hardware business went to the next level.
At that time, the real estate in Shenyang was mainly done by local developers, so in order to grab business, the second brother used the old methods, such as violence to scare off other suppliers. However, after the business was made possible, the second brother behaved very low-key and reliable, and he asked his men to strictly control the quality and keep up with the after-sales service. He is generous, but also willing to put down his body to the customer extremely welcome.
I can see that the second brother is trying to change himself for the sake of his small family, but Zhou Zheng always felt that he chose the wrong one from the beginning: “People of our origin, especially in terms of emotions, can’t afford to play with those rich ladies who were born and have never suffered.” He felt that Wang Cancan and the second brother were together not because of love, but to pursue the excitement that they had never experienced before.
About six months later, I learned that the second brother actually lived in the old man’s house, and it was agreed upon before the wedding. The first is that she is accustomed to the excellent living environment of her mother’s house; second, she hopes that her second brother will perform well in her mother’s house and get her parents’ approval as soon as possible, so that she can give them a pension in the future.
In the north, a man living in the woman’s house after marriage is looked down upon. But in order to get married with Wang Cancan, the second brother of such a tough guy agreed, and also did a pretty good job – I heard that he learned a lot of “new skills” in that home, serving tea and water, needless to say, sometimes catch the nanny rest, are the second brother to do housework, even the old man’s Even the old man’s socks are washed by him.
Men sharing household chores is also supposed to, but according to the temperament of the second brother in the past can do this, indeed greatly unexpected me. But people are sometimes like this, the more you rush the more not a deal, but the second brother can not see, still desperately want to integrate the family.
After the marriage, the second brother did not compromise on only one thing, is determined not to use Wang Cancan’s money. I think this may be the bottom line for him to maintain his dignity as a man. The second brother is very addicted to smoking, if it happens to catch the family out of cigarettes, he found an excuse to go out and buy will not smoke the old man, even if the old man bought him cigarettes, he did not smoke.
At the beginning of 2000, I had been working for more than half a year when I received a call from my second brother one day, saying that he wanted to invite me to attend the opening banquet of his new company.
His new company was actually a concrete mixing plant. At that time, his hardware business had ended, and he went to Liaozhong in winter to stockpile cement tickets at low prices, so that he could contract the concrete business when the groundbreaking of major buildings started in spring. I thought that he should earn more than before.
I called Zhou Zheng to go with him, but unexpectedly my cousin was not among those invited. It turns out that soon after the second brother’s marriage, Wang Cancan forced him to clear the line with Zhou Zheng. On the other side of the phone, Zhou Zheng did not say a word, so I did not want to go, but he said, “Go, see if he is crazy.”
When I arrived at the place I realized that the second brother’s guests were almost all new faces, not many old people. The second brother told me to take care of myself, and then like a social flower through the crowd, look at him that way, I have mixed feelings, but no matter what, he feels good about himself is good.
I handed over the red packet and wanted to go first, but several times I was stopped by my second brother. One time I tried to sneak away, but I didn’t get very far before the second brother came out after me. I thought he had a message for me to bring to Zhouzheng, but on second thought, he invited me but not Zhouzheng, which in itself has already conveyed the “message”.
That day was very cold, the north wind cut the face, the hotel porch wind through the hall, I could not help but tighten the coat, very helplessly said: “Second brother, I go back there are still things, besides I also congratulated, and then stay what is the point of it? I can’t help you much.”
The second brother rubbed his hands together, and just now in front of the crowd he was glowing is like two people. I saw something complicated in his eyes that could not be described in words. At this moment, I suddenly had a soft heart and chose to stay.
Waiting for the buzz to dissipate, the second brother took me to the large, luxurious new office. He sank deep into the boss’s chair, pointing to the dazzling, golden plaques on the wall and said, “Look, you show Ergo, is it okay to be this whole?”
Only then did I notice that the plaques were written in a row with “Liaoning Top Ten Star Enterprises” and “Shenyang Outstanding Private Enterprises” …… and the units that were judging the awards were unknown private organizations.
At that time I was working in the quality supervision and management department, I quickly reminded the second brother: “They have no official relationship with the name of the group will dare to give people a plaque, the cost of one or two hundred dollars, open your mouth and dare to ask for a million or eight thousand children, in fact, there is no ‘gold’. How much money have you let people cheat you? I’ll find someone and ask them to give you a refund.”
The second brother’s gaze dodged up, I suddenly realized that these carvings, the second brother of this old bird of the jungle heart is clear. I feel a little unbelievable, I feel that the once familiar the second brother has disappeared – he has changed, become “that home” want to look like. I originally wanted to ask what happened between the second brother and Zhou Zheng, how did it become this way, but in the end, only opened his mouth, did not ask.
After a long time, probably to break the terrible calm, the second brother first walked to my side, and then pointed to the wall plaque and said: “Look, this thing is glorious gold how good? Look how decent! You have studied you know this, others know? No. And those leaders came to inspect the work, they know? Also do not know. Even if they do, they will not say anything.” After that, the second brother’s voice unconsciously weakened: “This is called packaging.”
The second brother sat back heavily on the boss’s chair, closed his eyes, then suddenly remembered something like, open wide eyes excitedly said: “You know what? These days there are reporters to interview me, to write an interview for me, and to put on the cover. Have you ever thought? I didn’t even think that someone like you could be in a newspaper or magazine one day!”
I couldn’t stay silent, and asked him in a very funny way if the journalist had to charge money for writing the article, and asked him how much the other side asked for. The second brother avoided answering and waved his hand: “That small amount of money is now a small thing for your second brother.”
Since this meeting, the second brother and I also gradually cut off contact. Later I heard that Wang Cancan found a way to earn a lot of money, despise the second brother’s concrete mixing plant, more despise the second brother.
5
In 2001, Shenyang Wuai market “a hegemony”, that is, when the second brother squeezed out of Li Liyan was sentenced to death by law. I got the news immediately want to inform the second brother, but the number are pressed, and finally deleted one by one.
I feel like I can’t talk to my brother anymore. There is no banquet under the sky, people’s destiny should come when you can’t stop, the sky and the sea also to tether in a place; the time to go also can’t stop, then reluctant or regret have to accept the reality.
I do not know whether the second brother is for that home to intentionally alienate me and Zhou Zheng, or for the sake of personal future to deliberately away from the past circle of friends, in any case, we can do is not to drag him back, gradually farther and farther away, and then forget about each other in the jianghu.
In March 2002, I resolutely resigned from my public job despite the opposition of my family, and concentrated on the clothing business in Wuai, but I did not want my second brother to appear unexpectedly. In fact, he has been silently following the movements of Zhou and I.
That day, the second brother enthusiastically introduced me to a few people behind him, because they are wearing civilian clothes, I only recognized one of them is the five love management, usually specializing in the management of our merchants.
Pointing to me, he said, “This is my own sister.”
My heart warmed up, in my most need of encouragement and support, the second brother appeared, at this time he had left the five love market has been a long time, on the table, the management of the five love is not the same as before; under the table, the market in charge of the matter, the peace of the mob has changed one after another. The second brother can appear in front of me with such a battle, must have cost some money and favors.
In 2005, the second brother and Wang Cancan agreed to divorce, ultimately did not go to the end. The second brother voluntarily out of the family, the child was sent abroad by Wang Cancan, it is said that also changed the mother’s name. The second brother said “it doesn’t matter”, is it true or tough talk, I don’t know. As for why they divorced, who mentioned the divorce, whether there is a tangle in the middle, the second brother did not mention a word, only said “your sister-in-law is a good person”.
He did not say, we do not ask. At this time, I have matured a lot, not only in the mall to experience some of the ups and downs, life with the in-laws are also very hard.
I let the second brother down, I do not know whether to advise him or advise themselves, and said that the sand into the clam, either by the clam spit out, or be ground into a pearl, but even if the pearl will be plucked out, or can not really melt into one, “strong melting each other are painful, separation may be a good thing.
The second brother smiled and did not speak.
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