Fiction: Group 3
him. He seemed really angry about something. “Go to the boss’s office. Someone has a message for you.”
He shuddered. Although he had never had a job before this one, going to the boss’s office, no matter for
what reason, was probably not a good sign. He forced a smile, thanked the manager and walked slowly and
grudgingly to the boss’s office to receive the message.
The boss pointed to a tape recorder on his desk. “There it is. The only thing I heard was someone asking
me to pass this message to you. I have listened to it, and this is dangerous to both our credibility and yours.”
Tian picked up the tape recorder and listened to the message. “This message is to Tian. Please pass the
message on to him. This is your landlord. I have called the police and they have traced you to this factory. If
your rent is not paid within the next year, further investigation will begin and both you and the factory will
be in some deep trouble.” Tian’s heart seemed to fall out of his chest. He owed so much to the landlord, it
would take him years to pay it off! He was in shock and couldn’t think straight. What could he do to make
it up? The boss raised his eyebrows. “Well? Can you pay it back?” Tian shook his head. The boss looked
very unhappy. “As part of company policy, you will have to leave your job and leave now.” Tian frowned.
He was back to square one, or maybe even further back - he had nothing left except a few hundred RMB,
and he was in trouble with the police.
Tian walked out of the factory, dejected. Suddenly, he saw an advertisement on the wall: “Long’s Currency
Exchange Station! Workers needed! Please go to:...” Tian waited no longer and found himself dashing to
the nearest newspaper stand to buy a map. He ran all the way to the address. About 20 minutes later, Tian
found himself in front of the exchange station, asking the man named “Long” for a job. After a brief
exchange of words and negotiations, Long looked into Tian’s eyes. “Since you’re so sincere about it, I’ll let
you try a day here and see if you do well.” Tian looked resolutely into Long’s eyes. “I won’t let you down.”
Long laughed. “Let’s see what you can do.”
Tian walked over to one of the stations on the side of the shop. A man walked over to him. “Please give me
US dollars for this money.” Tian looked at the conversions on the wall. “USD:RMB 0.16:1” He took the
1,000 RMB, and gave the man $6,250. The man looked surprised and said, “I think you got it wrong.”
Tian shook his head. “No, I’m sure this is right.” Long walked over to the stall and saw the $6,250 on the
table. He shook his head, took back the money and gave the man the right amount. As soon as the man left,
Tian apologized and started to leave the exchange station. Long held him back. “Where are you going? If
you give up on everything, you won’t get anywhere. The only way you can learn is to try harder.” Tian
turned around and looked at Long. Was this guy a saint or what?
Tian had another customer, whom he served quickly. Long smiled and nodded his head. “That’s the way to
do it, son.” Then, Tian had another one, which was very simple, and Long had the same reaction. Finally,
after a short wait, a man came and handed Tian two different currencies, which he wanted to change into
two separate types of currency. “Hurry up, I’m in a rush here!” He tapped his feet on the ground. Tian
looked desperately at Long. Suddenly, what Long said popped up in his brain again: “If you give up on
everything, you won’t get anywhere. The only way you can learn is to try harder.” Tian nodded and got
back to work. He quickly moved his hands around the computer, accurately doing calculations, and finally,
gave the exact amount to the customer, who smiled, thanked him, and left. Long saw Tian’s face and said
four words that meant everything to him. “You got the job.” That meant he could live in security.
Suddenly he thought of something: The rent.
Tian sank onto his knees. The rent! How could he have forgotten… He scratched his head. What in the
world could he do? Long saw Tian’s strange reaction. “What’s wrong?” Tian shook his head. “Nothing…
It’s just that I owe someone a lot of money…” Long smiled. “That’s fine. As long as you do your job, when
the time comes, I’ll give you the money so you can pay it back.” Tian was still tense. When the time
comes? What on earth could that mean? “Okay…” Long nodded his head. “Good. Now get to work.”
Quickly, three months passed. Tian had mostly uneventful days, but all he had on his mind was the debt he
had to repay. Tian worked hard and long to get the money he needed. One day, Long walked over to him
and patted his back. “Here’s your money.” Tian took the money, thanked Long and walked to the sleeping
area behind the shop.
