Starting as a dockworker

Chapter 19 Old Man Shenghai, Deep Mother-Son Bond

"You... you called me Young Master???"

Li Xiao looked around, then pointed to himself and said.

"Yes, young master."

One of the men in a suit said, "Your father, Li Hanhai, is the vice president of the Shenghai Chamber of Commerce. He plans to take you and your wife back to enjoy a life of luxury. We've been trying to persuade your wife for several days now. Why don't you go and talk to her?"

"My father, Li Hanhai, is the vice president of the Shenghai Chamber of Commerce?"

Li Xiao was stunned; this script was wrong.

That old man didn't die, and he even made a name for himself?

"Yes."

The man in the suit replied.

"....."

Li Xiao couldn't help but take a deep breath.

The vice president of Shenghai Chamber of Commerce, this is no joke!

It was a free port that had opened to trade, and it concentrated more than half of the country's modern industry.

This area was a bustling international metropolis where concessions from various countries converged.

The bustling metropolis of Shanghai, a vibrant hub of entertainment, a place where fortunes rise and fall.

To become the vice president of the Chamber of Commerce in Shenghai is no small feat!

Why are they only contacting the mother and son now?

This vice president position wasn't something that could be achieved overnight; he must have been wealthy before.

Li Xiao asked, "Why are you only contacting us now?"

The man in the suit said, "Sir, you have your reasons."

"oh...."

Li Xiao said "oh" and took out his key, went into the house and closed the door.

The noise woke her mother in the room. She came out carrying an oil lamp, her eyes full of joy: "Ah Si, why are you home so late?"

These past few days, whenever Li Xiao went back to the dock to unload cargo, he would send someone to deliver messages to his mother every day.

He told her that he had been working outside and wouldn't be home for the past few days to put her mind at ease.

In Fang Shuhui's world, only Li Xiao remained.

She practically lived for her son; every time I saw her, her eyes were filled with a mother's love.

Li Xiao made up a lie: "I finished the work and came back early."

Fang Shuhui didn't suspect anything, but looked towards the door and said, "A-Si, you should know by now, right?"

"Hmm." Li Xiao nodded: "He said Li Hanhai wants to take my mother and me to Shenghai to enjoy a life of luxury."

Fang Shuhui's eyes dimmed slightly as she said, "A-Si, working at the docks is too hard. If you want to go, then go. Don't worry about your mother..."

She wiped away her tears and said, "Mother will not go to see this heartless man, not even if it kills me..."

Hearing this, Li Xiao understood everything...

The mother had long since lost all hope and her heart was ashen; she was only alive because of her will to raise herself.

Li Xiao was his mother's everything.

If I leave like this, my mother will probably choose to end it all and leave too...

In his previous life, he had no father and depended on his mother for survival.

In this life, I bear the memories of this body, and those memories are all of my mother.

As for the father, he didn't have a single hair.

If someone abandons their mother for the sake of enjoying a life of luxury, wouldn't that be the worst kind of animal?

"Mother, what are you talking about? How could I possibly go to Shenghai?"

Li Xiao cursed, "In my eyes, Li Hanhai is an irresponsible bastard, a dog, a beast... I'd rather work myself to death or starve than eat a single bite of that bastard's food. To hell with Li Hanhai, to hell with the vice president of the Shenghai Chamber of Commerce... I, Li Xiao, earn my living with my own two hands, and that's honest and reliable!"

Fang Shuhui looked at Li Xiao with a guilty expression: "You really aren't going?"

Li Xiao nodded: "Mother, I won't go, I really won't go. I just want to take care of you."

The oil lamp in Fang Shuhui's hand swayed slightly, its warm yellow light flickering on her gentle face.

She looked at her son, and in those eyes that were so similar to her own, there was not a trace of hesitation or pretense.

The bitterness accumulated over more than a decade, the coldness of being abandoned, and the hardships of raising a child alone all found a place to rest in her son's series of rough yet scalding curses.

She wasn't alone; Ah Si stood firmly by her side from beginning to end.

"Ah Si." Her lips trembled, as if she wanted to say something, but tears welled up first—not of sadness, but of relief and comfort. "You've suffered so much. It's all my fault..."

"Mother, what are you saying!"

Li Xiao felt a pang of sadness and said, "It's hard for a mother to give birth to a son. Without you, where would I be? Our lives are simple, but we have peace of mind! I'd be ashamed to be the son of that vice president who abandoned his wife and children!"

Fang Shuhui could no longer hold back, and tears streamed down her face.

She stopped talking, but took a step forward, stretched out her arms, and hugged Li Xiao tightly.

This was a mother's completely dependent and protective embrace, her arms encircling her son's body, which was already much taller than hers, trembling slightly, as she buried her face in his shoulder.

"Mom, I'll take you to the hospital for treatment tomorrow. I did some odd jobs and earned some money."

"Alright, Mother will do as you say and go get treatment..."

Without asking too many questions, she was extremely gratified by her son's filial piety.

The next day, Li Xiao didn't get out of bed until the sun was high in the sky.

His mother didn't disturb him until he woke up naturally and went to the kitchen to heat up the food.

"No, something's not right..."

Sitting at the dining table, Li Xiao felt very uncomfortable, and his appetite decreased.

He replaced the [Rat Leather] in his equipment slot with [Ragged Shoes] and his appetite returned immediately.

Both old handkerchiefs and old cloth shoes can improve appetite and physical condition.

One is to boost strength, and the other is to consolidate the foundation and replenish vitality.

Eat heartily; you need to eat your fill to grow strong.

As for the effect of the rat spirit skin on improving comprehension, Li Xiao couldn't feel it at all.

It's estimated that it can only be effective when practicing martial arts.

After the meal, Li Xiao took his mother to the hospital.

To their surprise, when they opened the door, they found that the two men in suits were still there, sitting on the floor asleep.

The moment the door opened, they woke up and quickly got up to look at Li Xiao.

"Please go back, you two. My son and I are quite content here, so we won't go to any big cities."

After politely declining, Li Xiao left with his mother.

After walking for a while, we left the shantytown.

"Both of their life forces are very strong, on par with Zhao Liqun..."

Li Xiao closed his eyes slightly and immediately noticed that the two men in suits were following behind him.

"rickshaw!"

After leaving the shantytown and entering the main street, Li Xiao waved and flagged down a rickshaw.

The rickshaw driver ran over with a smile. Seeing that Li Xiao was dressed like a laborer and didn't look like a wealthy person, he still greeted him warmly, "Sir, where to?"

"Ah Si, isn't that too extravagant? Let's walk..."

Fang Shuhui said with some heartache.

My son only earns five or six cents a day working at the dock, while the starting price for a rickshaw is one cent.

"Mother, I've earned money, why should I let you work so hard?"

Li Xiao smiled and pulled his mother into the rickshaw, saying to the driver, "To Renji Hospital."

Renji Hospital is run by foreigners and uses Western medicine.

Before the Republic of China, the previous government had signed a large number of unequal treaties, and many foreigners came across the ocean to do business here, which flourished in all walks of life.

"Alright, sir!"

The driver shouted and started running.

"Hey bro, how much do you make pulling a cart all day?"

In the car, Li Xiao was a little curious and casually asked a question.

The driver paused for a moment, then smiled and replied, "Sir, I don't earn much. After deducting the rental fee from the rickshaw company and the commission, I only get less than ten silver dollars a month..."

"Less than ten dollars..."

Li Xiao thought to himself that this guy must have something up his sleeve, at least fifteen silver dollars.

An ordinary laborer can only earn two cents a day, which is about six dollars a month.

Not only is pulling a rickshaw easier than being a manual laborer, but you also earn twice as much money.

No wonder Lao Gang and his gang all wanted to buy a rickshaw to pull a cart after they made money.

However, getting a rickshaw here probably won't be that easy. Even getting into a dock involves many intricacies, so getting a rickshaw in Wuling City won't be a simple matter...

Li Xiao was just thinking about it casually; he had no intention of continuing to do these ascetic practices.

He had already earned three hundred silver dollars from Huang's Rice Shop.

Having made his first fortune as a time traveler, if he were to continue his ascetic practices...

That's truly a disgrace to time travelers...