Rising Up from the Factory Floor

The noodles at that shady little shop downstairs from Longhua Hotel cost five yuan a bowl. Even the most common daily-pay jobs at the labor market require a fifty-yuan deposit. And the cheapest overnight stay at Sanhe’s crummiest internet cafe has gone up to twelve yuan. These days, everything costs money! A fortune-teller said I was a Qilin Child, born for wealth and status! At first, I didn’t believe it, until I struck it rich at the age of twenty-three…