Chapter 55 Breaking One's Word

Chapter 55 Breaking a Promise

Chen Jianghai had no intention of letting the tragedy that befell Zhao Yuxi in his past life happen again.

Zhao Changgui hesitated for a moment before replying, "Brother Chen, there's no need for that, is there? She needs to study at home."

"That's easy enough," Chen Jianghai said casually. "Just buy her a desk and a table lamp to put right here. It'll definitely be a better environment than your place. If the lighting is poor, she'll end up nearsighted."

Chen Jianghai knew that this somewhat stubborn fellow Zhao Changgui probably wouldn't care about anything else, but when it came to his beloved younger sister whom he depended on for mutual survival, he would never be vague.

For his sister, he could go to any lengths.

Sure enough, upon hearing Chen Jianghai say this, Zhao Changgui's expression shifted slightly.

"Alright, then I'll bring her over tomorrow," Zhao Changgui nodded.

Following that, Chen Jianghai pulled four hundred yuan from his pocket and handed it to Zhao Changgui. "Here, I'll advance you a month's wages. Go buy the table lamp and the desk."

Zhao Changgui glanced at Chen Jianghai, said nothing, and silently accepted the money.

Seeing that Zhao Changgui had taken the money, Chen Jianghai let out a silent sigh of relief and then set back to work on his own matters.

A wage of four hundred and fifty yuan a month was definitely a high salary nowadays, but in his heart, Zhao Changgui was well worth the price.

Just as Chen Jianghai finished dismantling a television set, someone appeared outside.

"Excuse me, is Master Chen here?" the visitor asked politely.

A few days prior, Chen Jianghai had been walking through the streets and alleys specifically to build up his reputation.

It had to be said that doing so was quite effective.

Look, now customers were actively seeking him out.

The customer was a thin-looking man in his early fifties.

With half-white hair and a somewhat sharp, monkey-like face, his darting triangular eyes made him look less than upright.

However, Chen Jianghai didn't think too much of it.

Guests were guests.

He had opened his doors for business, and regardless of the customer, as long as there was money to be made, they were god.

"I am. How can I help you?" Chen Jianghai asked with a smile.

The thin man replied, "There's something wrong with my TV at home, and I'd like to ask you to go fix it."

"What kind of problem?" Chen Jianghai asked.

The thin man gestured with his hands. "There are a lot of white lines on the screen, the antenna fell off, and you can't see anything on it."

Chen Jianghai nodded, tidied up his things, and picked up his tool bag. "Alright, I'll go with you."

Zhao Changgui stood up alongside him. "Brother Chen, do you want me to come too?"

Seeing Zhao Changgui's appearance, the thin man was instantly startled.

Zhao Changgui's physique was simply too intimidating, resembling a small mountain, which brought a heavy sense of pressure upon him.

Chen Jianghai thought for a moment and then said, "You come along, and lock the door behind us."

Harm to others you should not intend, but precaution against others you must maintain.

It was always best to be cautious in everything one did.

Ten minutes later, the three of them stopped in front of a small courtyard.

"We're here, this is the place," the thin man said, pointing.

Chen Jianghai nodded to indicate he understood, but remained silent.

The thin man smiled and took out a pack of cigarettes from his pocket, offering one to both Chen Jianghai and Zhao Changgui.

Chen Jianghai expressed his thanks and tucked it behind his ear.

Zhao Changgui didn't smoke and declined to take one.

Upon entering the house, the thin man pointed to a television set placed on top of a wardrobe and said, "It's this TV. Sorry to trouble you to take a look at it!"

Chen Jianghai plugged it in and took a look, realizing that the problems were indeed quite numerous.

There were several white lines across the screen, the colors were abnormal, and the antenna had fallen off, leaving nothing but static no matter how it was adjusted.

After a thorough inspection, Chen Jianghai already had a clear idea in his mind.

"Well? Can it still be fixed?"

Seeing that Chen Jianghai remained quiet, the thin man couldn't help asking.

"It can be fixed. Twenty yuan."

Chen Jianghai raised two fingers and stated the price.

Repairing this TV was still somewhat troublesome, and since it was an on-site repair, this price was already very reasonable.

The thin man frowned slightly. "Isn't that a bit expensive?"

"My on-site service price isn't high at all. If you carried it over yourself, knocking off two or three yuan would be fine," Chen Jianghai said frankly.

The thin man hesitated for a moment, then said, "Alright then, get to work!"

Hearing the thin man say this, Chen Jianghai glanced at him, though he didn't mind.

Soon, he had completely dismantled the television set, taking out the parts one by one to work on them.

Seeing this, the thin man felt immensely proud of himself.

Still too young; this price definitely had to be cut down.

"Master Chen, this price of yours is a bit high. Lower it a bit, how about ten yuan?"

Seeing that Chen Jianghai was almost finished with the repairs, the thin man suddenly spoke up.

Chen Jianghai frowned slightly. "Didn't we agree on twenty just now? Look at how several of these components are broken; I still have to replace them with new ones for you."

"Twenty is too high. Make it cheaper, and I'll patronize your business again in the future, introducing all my acquaintances to you," the thin man said, waving his hand.

At this point, Chen Jianghai understood completely—this fellow was going back on his word.

"In that case, you can find someone else to fix it!"

With those words, Chen Jianghai immediately packed up his tools and motioned for Zhao Changgui to leave.

The thin man wore a face full of question marks.

What was going on?

He had been dismantling it so enthusiastically, and now he was just quitting over this?

"Hey, hey, hey, don't leave! You took my TV apart, at least put it back together for me!" The thin man hurriedly grabbed Chen Jianghai by the arm.

Chen Jianghai said indifferently, "I won't charge you for the labor, you can assemble it yourself!"

Having said that, Chen Jianghai shook off the thin man's hand and turned to walk away.

Now the thin man panicked—he had no idea how to assemble a television!

To think he had assumed the other guy was inexperienced, only to realize he had been led into a trap all along!

"No, no, no, Master Chen! Let's go with your price, twenty yuan, not a penny less," the thin man said hastily.

Only then did Chen Jianghai stop in his tracks, hold out his hand, and say, "Small business, no credit given. Boss, pay up first!"

"Don't you get paid after the repair is done?" The thin man frowned, looking rather displeased.

"That's for other people," Chen Jianghai smiled faintly. "To be honest with you, I don't quite trust you, Boss. Let's have the money first, then do the work!"

At this point, the thin man was completely out of options. He could only obediently fish the money out of his pocket, count out one ten-yuan bill and two five-yuan bills, and shove them into Chen Jianghai's hands.

With the money in hand, Chen Jianghai didn't waste any time. He fitted the replacement components he had brought and quickly finished repairing the television.

The thin man, who had kept a gloomy expression the entire time, showed a look of astonishment when he saw how quickly the TV was fixed.

"Take a look, there shouldn't be any problems now."

Chen Jianghai spoke conservatively before turning the television on.

The screen appeared exceptionally crisp; the white lines were gone, and the colors had returned to normal.

Though the thin man felt a pang of heartache over that twenty yuan, he couldn't help giving a thumbs up. "Master Chen, your craftsmanship is truly beyond reproach! I'll definitely give you a good word of mouth."

"Then I thank you," Chen Jianghai said with a faint smile, offering no further remarks.

Along the way, Zhao Changgui couldn't help asking, "Brother Chen, that man clearly lacked integrity just now. Why did you still fix his TV?"

"Didn't he pay up in the end?" Chen Jianghai asked with a slight smile in return.

For a moment, Zhao Changgui didn't know how to respond, so he muttered gruffly, "What he did wasn't right. He's not an honest person."