Chapter 2: 0002 【All Good Books, Help You Grow】
Chen Guiliang's stall was located at the campus transportation hub, where a row of propaganda boards also stood.
He found a large banyan tree with lush branches and leaves, squatted under it, and opened his broken suitcase.
The second-year high school students had a holiday these two days, vacating their classrooms for the third-year students to use as exam halls. However, the first-year high school students were still attending classes normally, and occasionally, students going to and from physical education classes could be seen.
Chen Guiliang took out his books and magazines, arranged them, sat cross-legged, and waited for the right moment to attract business.
In his youth, he was thin-skinned and had a strong sense of shame, not suited for doing business.
He remembered the summer holiday after he graduated from junior high. Chen Guiliang carried a load of bamboo shoots into the city. He left home at 4:30 AM and stood foolishly at the vegetable market in the urban-rural fringe from morning until noon, without selling a single bamboo shoot!
In the afternoon, he carried the bamboo shoots back home, hungry and untouched.
From then on, he never set up a stall again.
Thinking about it now, it was pitifully foolish.
The reborn Chen Guiliang silently observed the students coming and going.
One shouldn't shout randomly when hawking; one must observe people's expressions and choose the right target.
For example, the several boys who just ran past, dribbling a basketball and chasing each other. Their eyes were only on the basketball court; they just wanted to quickly grab a hoop. Even if you pressed them in front of the book stall, they wouldn't buy anything.
After more than twenty minutes, four girls came by, eating ice cream together.
They were chattering and laughing non-stop, and one of them looked at the book stall, her steps noticeably slowing down.
Chen Guiliang's eyesight was sharp, and he immediately shouted, "Student, do you want to buy books? I have famous works, ancient and modern, Chinese and foreign. I'm a third-year high school student about to make a final push, so I'm selling my books to focus on the college entrance exam. The prices are so cheap, it's practically giving them away."
These girls were first-year high school students, having only been enrolled for a little over two months.
To put it more bluntly: easy to fool!
...
Tao Xue's home was in the city, but because she loved literature and admired Guo Xiaosi, she came to study in the county.
The school's atmosphere here was indeed free, even somewhat lax, turning a blind eye to students' early romances.
Several girls in her dorm still went to buy ice cream even when the weather cooled down in autumn. Passing by the bulletin board, Tao Xue saw someone setting up a stall to sell books, and she instinctively slowed her steps.
She hadn't intended to buy anything, but hearing what the other person said, Tao Xue curiously approached.
She slurped her ice cream and asked, "Do you have 'The Edge of Love and Pain'?"
Actually, she had read this book several times, but saying it now was merely to show off her taste.
Chen Guiliang grinned and said without hesitation, "You're a fan of Guo Xiaosi? What a coincidence, I happen to know him. In our school's literature club, he was the president in '01, and I was the president in '02. Understand? A predecessor-successor relationship."
"Really?" Tao Xue was half-skeptical.
Chen Guiliang said, "Why would I lie to you? The current president of the literature club was nominated and elected by me."
Tao Xue couldn't help but ask, "Senior, what's your name?"
Chen Guiliang said, "My name is Zhang Wei, from Class 1, Senior 3. Have you also joined the literature club?"
Tao Xue nodded and said, "Yes, the literature club recruited new members a while ago, and I filled out the form and became a member. Senior Zhang Wei, do you have Guo Xiaosi's phone number? His QQ number would also work."
"Guo Xiaosi is very busy, I can't casually reveal his personal information," Chen Guiliang quickly picked out a book, "I think this 'Dream of the Red Chamber' is very suitable for a literary girl with substance like you."
Another long-haired girl glanced at it: "Is this a pirated copy?"
Chen Guiliang quickly flipped through the pages: "Look at this printing quality, look at this binding and dust jacket. Even if it's pirated, it's a high-quality pirated copy. Aside from not having a publication number, what's the difference from the original? I bought it for 20 yuan last year. It's still 90% new, and I'll sell it to you for 5 yuan!"
Tao Xue took the "dream of the red chamber" and stood there, carefully flipping through it, finding that it indeed looked no different from the original.
She had actually read "dream of the red chamber" in junior high, but Chen Guiliang was so enthusiastic that she found it hard to refuse for a moment.
Suddenly, a thought struck her, and Tao Xue asked, "Senior, which character do you like the most? I like Xue Baochai."
This was a roundabout way of reminding Chen Guiliang that she had read the book and didn't need to buy it again.
Chen Guiliang seemed not to understand, and his answer was astonishing: "I like Granny Liu the most."
"Ah?" Tao Xue was particularly surprised.
Her three roommates also burst into laughter.
Someone actually liked Granny Liu?
Chen Guiliang quickly found the main text where Granny Liu appeared by looking at the table of contents of "dream of the red chamber": "Everyone uses Granny Liu entering Grand View Garden to describe someone who is ignorant and makes a fool of themselves. Do you think Granny Liu is a comical character?"
The girls instinctively nodded.
"Granny Liu knows how to advance and retreat; she's very shrewd in her dealings. Look here," Chen Guiliang said, flipping through the pages, "When visiting someone's home, Ban'er made a fuss about wanting to eat meat, and Granny Liu slapped him. Would she be someone who doesn't understand manners?"
"And look here. Granny Liu also has a sense of shame; she clearly put aside her pride for the sake of survival. Her dialogue with Sister Feng, every sentence is a subtle confrontation, using retreat as a way to advance, making it hard for Wang Xifeng to refuse."
"Through observing Wang Xifeng's communication with Jia Rong, Granny Liu had already figured out Wang Xifeng's personality. The four characters 'Calm your mind' (her mind finally settled) here were not written casually by Cao Xueqin; they indicate that Granny Liu already had a plan. The next phrase, 'your nephew,' directly put Wang Xifeng on the spot, making it impossible for her to refuse without losing face."
"She finally managed to get twenty taels of silver, but she proactively left one tael for Zhou Rui's wife. She has brains, knows how to talk, understands etiquette, is not greedy, and knows how to repay kindness. Granny Liu's way of doing things not only surpasses Zhou Rui's wife, but even Wang Xifeng appears naive in front of her."
"What Granny Liu lacks is merely experience."
After Chen Guiliang's analysis, Tao Xue felt that Granny Liu was indeed very shrewd.
Why hadn't she noticed it when she read "dream of the red chamber"?
Chen Guiliang continued flipping through the book and said, "You might think Granny Liu is comical and embarrassing, but Wang Xifeng doesn't think so. Look at Chapter 113, Wang Xifeng knew her life was short, and in the vast Jia family, she trusted no one, yet she actually thought of entrusting her daughter to Granny Liu. If you had a daughter and were seriously ill and wouldn't live much longer, would you entrust your daughter to a foolish old country woman?"
Tao Xue began to think seriously.
Chen Guiliang said, "Because Wang Xifeng understood in her heart that Granny Liu was grateful, loyal, courageous, and resourceful—much more reliable than those people in the Jia family. Her most correct choice in this life was to forcefully make her daughter acknowledge Granny Liu as her godmother before she died. When everyone in the Jia family couldn't protect her daughter, only Granny Liu would step forward and act righteously."
Tao Xue suddenly realized, her heart filled with admiration: "Senior, you're amazing, no wonder you could be the president of the literature club!"
Chen Guiliang happily shoved "dream of the red chamber" over: "So, you should read this book repeatedly. Each time you read it, you'll gain new insights. Five yuan, take the book."
Tao Xue fumbled for the money and bought the book, only to remember afterward that she already had a copy at home.
She was also too embarrassed to return it.
To prevent Tao Xue from regretting, Chen Guiliang had already gone to communicate with the other three girls: "Do you want me to recommend a few? This 'Silver Age' is good, by Wang Xiaobo, witty, humorous, and profound."
A chubby girl flipped through a magazine and asked, "Are these really twenty cents each?"
"Three for 50 cents, eight for 1 yuan," Chen Guiliang enthusiastically promoted, "'Reader' and 'Yilin' are both good books, especially those articles about foreign countries, which can broaden our horizons."
"You're only in your first year of high school now. Reading more 'Reader' and 'Yilin' can not only increase your knowledge but also improve your writing skills. That big foot-shaped ice cream of yours, does it cost 50 cents a stick? Ice cream is eaten in a few bites, but for the same price, you can buy the world's best magazines. How cost-effective!"
The girls found his words reasonable, and even Tao Xue, who had just bought "Dream of the Red Chamber," gave up the idea of returning it and turned to pick magazines.
Anyway, they were very cheap, and they could buy them to pass the time.
They picked for a while and actually bought all the magazines together.
While the four girls were picking books, two boys also curiously gathered around, but after standing there and looking for a couple of seconds, they turned and walked away.
Chen Guiliang quickly shouted, "Handsome guys, don't leave. These books of mine are very explicit and violent!"
At this, not only did the two boys stop, but Tao Xue and the others also looked at him in surprise.
The boy curiously asked, "Which one is explicit?"
Chen Guiliang pointed to the great works of contemporary sages: "These are all very explicit, full of suggestive remarks. Look at this 'Big Breasts & Wide Hips,' wouldn't you say the title is explicit?" Then he pointed to Yu Hua's 'To Live,' "That book is very violent; everyone except the male protagonist dies."
Tao Xue chuckled, already understanding that Chen Guiliang was spouting nonsense.
Chen Guiliang continued to vigorously bluff, attracting the two boys to squat down and pick books.
For Chen Guiliang, whether they bought anything or not didn't matter; just having them gather around was enough to draw a crowd.
When selling things at a stall, as long as there's popularity, more and more people will come to join the fun. The only fear is being deserted, with passersby not even bothering to glance.
Even the four girls who bought magazines, Chen Guiliang couldn't bear to let them leave. He said he was sworn brothers with Guo Xiaosi, fabricating famous anecdotes about Guo Xiaosi, which left Tao Xue astonished.
Gradually, a few more people came, surrounding the stall and listening to Chen Guiliang boast.
In a flash, the class bell rang.
The foot traffic here suddenly surged, and seeing the circle gathered under the big tree, passing students rushed over to watch the excitement.
"Goodbye, Senior, we're going back to class." Tao Xue waved happily. She planned to visit Class 1, Senior 3, to discuss literature with Senior Zhang Wei when she had time.
Chen Guiliang was also very happy, counting his money and shouting, "Take care, Junior."
After another round of idle chatter, the class bell rang, ending the ten-minute break. Chen Guiliang's used books had sold over twenty copies, and all the used magazines were sold out.
Because they were indeed very cheap.
Moreover, since Guo Xiaosi came out of this school, the literary atmosphere is particularly strong, and there are many students who enjoy reading leisure books.
Chen Guiliang stretched lazily with satisfaction: Students are really easy to fool!
"Damn, my suitcase!"
A glasses-wearing man with a center-parted hairstyle stood in front of Chen Guiliang's book stall and cursed.
The broken box temporarily used to hold books was clearly his.
Chen Guiliang's eyes lit up: "Oh, Xie County Magistrate, long time no see."
The glasses-wearing man was stunned: "What Xie County Magistrate?"
Chen Guiliang raised his hand, bent his fingers, and said mysteriously, "I can tell by a quick calculation that you'll be a county magistrate at 40."
The glasses-wearing man puffed out his chest with immense arrogance, his nostrils pointing skyward, saying, "County magistrate is nothing. I'm not going to be an official. I'm going to do business in the future, make games like Chen Tianqiao and Ding Lei, and when my company goes public, I'll be the richest man in China!"
Chen Guiliang muttered to himself: What kind of game are you going to make? I'm the one who'll be making games later.
