Seven days of National Day.
Xiangjiang still has many fun places.
For example, this super yacht belonging to her own family, where Chen An’an and her parents spent three days and two nights at sea until they docked on October 3rd.
After landing, she didn’t go ho but took Shen Youwei and Zhao Yingying out to wander around.
"An’an, there are a lot of fun places in Xiangjiang. Do you want to go to Disney?"
"No, that’s for little kids."
At nine years old, Chen An’an was no longer interested in playing at amusent parks like the other little kids.
"Then what do you want to do?"
Phantom drove them around Central for three rounds, but Chen An’an hadn’t decided where to go specifically.
"I want to eat at street stands."
Patted her little belly, a face full of pride and anticipation.
She had been to Xiangjiang several tis but had never tried the authentic local food here.
It was always made by a chef at ho.
The most famous place for Xiangjiang snacks is, naturally, Temple Street in Yau Ma Tei!
Temple Street is divided into north and south sections, and there’s a Tin Hau Temple in the middle, hence the na Temple Street.
It intersects both Yau Ma Tei and Jordan.
The Tin Hau Temple is located at Banyan Tree Head in Yau Ma Tei. On the south side of the temple, there’s a row of fortune-telling stalls.
This place is also known as the "civilian’s nightclub."
It gathers young n and won who are not very high earners or co from families without much money.
Chen An’an really liked this place, "Youwei, my Dad often brought here with my mom to eat at street stands when I was little; as I grew up, we rarely ca."
"That’s not bad, right?"
Shen Youwei said with a smile, "The big boss is getting richer now, so An’an’s little life is naturally getting better and better."
Chen An’an still had affection for this kind of snack street; it’s just that her little sister, the little fart kid, couldn’t stand it.
She didn’t like crowded and noisy places at all.
It wasn’t easy; the spoiled brat had lived in a rented room for a few years, while she had lived in a villa from the mont she was born.
The house was large and spacious.
Suddenly running into such a crowded and noisy place, how could she get used to it.
"Sister, can we go back, please?"
The little fart kid tugged at her sister’s trouser leg; Chen An’an picked her up and in less than a minute tossed her over to Zhao Yingying who was beside them.
"You’re growing weight fast, even I can’t carry you anymore."
The little fart kid felt a face of disdain and was aggrieved.
Temple Street was still very lively, with a continuous flow of people and a clutter of noises.
Chen An’an passed by a snack stand and decisively ordered so curried fishballs, bowl jellies, and stuffed three treasures among other authentic delicacies.
It must be said, the food here was pretty delicious.
She also saw those sunglass-wearing fortune tellers. With a snap of a finger, a suit-wearing bodyguard handed her a hundred-dollar bill.
Touching his palm.
"Amazing, the young lady’s fate is indescribable!"
Chen An’an liked to hear the blunt truth. She pulled out a few more hundred-dollar bills and handed them to the fortune teller.
This could get her praised for a few more minutes.
She even had the fortune of the little fart kid read, and the result was the sa.
Chen An’an found it uninteresting and took her sister to the next place.
"Youwei, do you have any relatives in Xiangjiang?"
She did, seriously speaking.
Shen Youwei said, "My aunt runs a business in Xiangjiang. She’s also the wealthiest relative in our family. Every ti I go back, she gives a big red envelope, and buys lots of nice things."
"So where is your aunt?"
"I don’t know, I haven’t been able to contact her."
Chen An’an acknowledged this. As they passed by a snack stand, there was even a Chubby Woman squatting by the alley washing dishes.
Shen Youwei stared in confusion for a few seconds, "Aunt?"
This was too coincidental.
Just as they ntioned the aunt, she appeared.
Chubby Woman worked briskly and dressed very simply; her daily job was to wash dishes for several shops around here.
Maintaining the hygiene of their kitchens.
Although she didn’t mix well in Xiangjiang, she always looked glamorous every ti she went back.
That’s because the wages here were high.
Old Shen’s family didn’t even know she was washing dishes here to make money; they always thought she was running so big business.
Chubby Woman had neither sons nor daughters, and she had divorced a decade ago.
"Youwei, what brought you to Xiangjiang?"
Chubby Woman wiped her hands on her clothes, still sowhat embarrassed.
She didn’t want her family to know she was doing this kind of work in Xiangjiang.
"I’ve been here for several months now. The parents even told to contact you, but I couldn’t get through to you."
"Ha!" It was still a joyful thing to see her own great-niece in a foreign land.
Chubby Woman wanted to chat more, but the boss inside kept urging her to work faster.
"Youwei, wait a mont. After I’m done with this work, I’ll co to keep you company. You’ve just co to Xiangjiang and probably don’t have much money. I’ll give you twenty thousand to use in an ergency. Your parents should have told you were coming to Xiangjiang; they don’t know that expenses are particularly high here, do they? By the way, where are you staying?"
One of the toughest things in Xiangjiang wasn’t anything other than finding a place to live.
Chubby Woman was okay; the place she lived was like a pigeon house.
It lacked even space to turn around; eight people lived in one tiny room.
It was worse than those university dormitories or even factory rooms.
After she finished her work, Chubby Woman specifically took Shen Youwei to the place she lived, mainly because her card was not with her.
How could she withdraw money without the card?
Shen Youwei looked at where she lived and felt a pang of sadness.
Even Chen An’an, who was standing beside her, was shocked by the strong pungent sll.
Is this really a place for humans to live?
The little fart kid felt even worse; visiting such a place made her feel uncomfortable all over compared to the environnt she was born into.
It was simply like water and fire.
"Chubby Woman, why didn’t you talk to your family?"
"Talk about what?"
Chubby Woman said, "For people like us, who lack education and everything else, being able to co to Xiangjiang is already quite good. Although it’s not dignified for to wash dishes here every day, I still make over twenty thousand a month. The owners treat pretty well too, and they even provide with two als a day."
Over twenty thousand a month, which would definitely be considered a high salary inland.
But in Xiangjiang, it was just an ordinary inco.
"Alright, stop it, Chubby. How are you doing in Xiangjiang?"
"I’m doing okay. This is our boss’s daughter; I just accompanied her to go shopping today."
"The boss’s daughter, your boss must be quite rich, right?"
Chubby Woman had been in Xiangjiang for a long ti, and her insight was very high.
The two little girls had covered their noses as soon as they arrived here, clearly not born to this kind of environnt.
In Xiangjiang, half the people couldn’t even find a place to shelter.
You could only lie down to sleep where you live, and you couldn’t do anything else.
The other half dressed in suits and shoes, looking more decent than her, but in fact, they spent their entire lives trapped in a ga of capital ticulously designed for them by wealthy people.
From the mont they started school, they worked hard to buy a house and then spent decades in repaynt.
Their whole life was essentially working for a house.
And a very small fraction of people, they really live at the pinnacle.
These people live up on the hills.
Looking down at the small mountains below, the people below were only worthy of looking up in admiration.
These individuals ticulously designed a lifeti of living conditions amid the scent of luxury and wine.
Just like the current housing prices of over half a million per square ter.
Shen Youwei nodded, "The big boss is indeed quite rich."
"Let’s not talk about this anymore."
Chubby Woman saw that she was just babysitting, not much better off than herself; the only university graduate from Old Shen’s family had to fare better than herself.
"Chubby, let take you shopping for clothes."
Chubby Woman was genuinely nice to her, and Chen An’an hardly spoke along the way.
She seed to recall the rented houses her parents used to live in when she was a child.
They lived there until she was five before moving out.
"Sister, why don’t they live in a big house? This place slls awful."
The little fart kid looked disgusted, which was actually normal.
To know where she lived, even breathing a breath of fresh air was a luxury for Chubby Woman.
It wasn’t a place her status afforded her entry.
Didn’t you see the housekeeper coming out to buy groceries was always in a Rolls Royce?
Or else it was an Alfa.
"Shut your mouth!"
Even though it had been so long, Chen An’an still retained so experience of the lower-class life.
Back then, all her parents thought about was buying a small house in Capital City.
Then they’d be out early and returning late every day, endlessly busy.
"I’m sorry, my sister is only two and a half years old. She doesn’t understand these things."
Chen An’an explained briefly.
Chubby Woman thought she was very sensible and polite.
"It’s okay, my place is not good anyway, I will rent a better single room later."
Living in Xiangjiang, for these expatriates from the inland, the sole purpose was to make money.
Then return ho in glory after making the money.
If there were high salaries inland, she wouldn’t have spent over a decade washing dishes here.
"No need to rent, I’ll ask Dad to give you a small apartnt."
Chen An’an took out her mobile phone from her pocket, perhaps thinking of the places she used to live, she still couldn’t bear such living conditions.
She wondered if the people living here still had their own decency and dignity.
Perhaps for them, money was the only thing that mattered.
Chubby Woman was shocked, where do you see people offering to arrange a house just after eting.
When she first ca to Xiangjiang, she too had dreamt of buying an apartnt and then having holidays with Shen Youwei and the others.
Latter, hopes slowly turned into despair.
With the price of half a million per ter, washing dishes fifteen hours a day, 365 days a year.
Enough to buy half a ter.
It would take twenty whole years to gather ten square ters, and that too on a diet of bread and water.
"Stop stop stop, you are the little princess, we are not worth your help with our miserable lives."
Although helpless, that was the reality.
Chubby Woman was afraid that this phone call might affect the job of her niece here.
Having stayed in Xiangjiang for a long ti, she knew it well.
Those living on the hilltop, surrounded daily by champagne and fine wines, wouldn’t care about the lives and deaths of people like them.
To them, perhaps casually throwing a few hundred-dollar bills from a car would have a crowd of people scurrying over to grab them.
This was the inevitable social hierarchy of humanity.
Clearly, this little girl also lived on the hilltop.
That level was simply not sothing they could aspire to reach.
Not even the slightest bit.
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