Becoming a Russian Oligarch After Rebirth
Chapter 1171 - 985: Time to Lay the Cards on the Table_2

Chapter 1171: Chapter 985: Time to Lay the Cards on the Table_2

Besides reaping the benefits in both his studies and career, it was time to make things official between him and Yanzi.

Although Xiao Gang was not that old, Yanzi was two to three years older than him, and a girl couldn’t afford to delay.

So, the two of them returned to their country together, planning to meet each other’s parents and settle things.

......

Just like Wang Ye going home, Xiao Gang, too, laid his cards on the table with his father, and his dad’s reaction was the same as Wang Ye’s parent’s—they were all stunned!

When they initially returned to their country, Xiao Gang and Yanzi each went to their respective homes, agreeing to first talk to their parents to clarify things before the families met.

When Xiao Gang got home, he didn’t receive the same treatment Wang Ye did at his home. His father was still working overtime at his unit and hadn’t come back yet, but fortunately, Xiao Gang had the keys to the house, otherwise, he wouldn’t have been able to get in.

His family lived in the residential compound of the unit, in a somewhat old-fashioned six-story building.

The corridor was long and dim, the layout outdated, and the decoration simple; Xiao Gang’s home was just over sixty square meters, comprising two bedrooms and a living room.

Fortunately, it was just him and his dad living there, so the space was reasonably ample.

The dining table was covered with a fine mesh lid holding two dishes, one meat and one vegetable, not leftovers, probably specially left for him by his dad.

Xiao Gang put down his luggage, washed his face, and started to eat alone.

As he ate, he pondered how to broach the subject with his dad.

While he was eating, a sequence of "thump, thump, thump" footstep sounds moved down the corridor from afar, stopping at his front door.

Xiao Gang hurriedly opened the door, recognizing his father’s footsteps.

Sure enough, upon opening the door, he saw his short, thin father standing there.

At the sight of his father, Xiao Gang’s nose tingled. His father looked even older, his hair completely white, and his face covered with dense wrinkles.

In fact, his father was only in his early fifties...

Seeing his son, his dad grinned happily, tiptoed, and patted Xiao Gang’s shoulder, laughing, "Good boy! It seems like you’ve grown a bit taller too, you have your mother’s height, not bad!"

Xiao Gang quickly said, "Dad, you’re off work? Come in quick. Look at you, sweating all over. Did you ride your bicycle back again? I’ve told you so many times, in the midst of summer, just take the bus, no need to always ride the bicycle."

His dad waved dismissively, "What do you know, kid? Riding those air-conditioned buses is too expensive, it would cost five to six yuan for a round trip, up to two hundred a month—that’s enough for my meals! It’s better to ride a bicycle, it doesn’t cost a penny, and I can exercise too; this great health of mine was gotten from bicycle riding..."

Listening to his dad’s chatter, Xiao Gang felt both distressed and guilty.

Should he have returned to his country earlier, two years ago perhaps, to clarify things with his dad?

That way, his dad wouldn’t need to be so frugal since he was now capable of earning money himself.

In fact, Xiao Gang hadn’t really been able to earn money until these past two years. In the previous years, it was mainly Wang Ye getting him to train and learn; the Group had its rules, naturally they couldn’t pay him a very high salary.

So, back then, he was making just a few tens of thousands of US dollars a year, which indeed wasn’t much.

However, now that he had been officially promoted to Vice President of the Xiao Ying Group, overseeing the gambling operations in the Petersburg region, Xiao Gang’s income had skyrocketed.

Now, he truly started with an annual salary of a million upwards, and with bonuses and other additions, he could make two to three million a year!

US dollars!

This was also the main reason Xiao Gang chose to lay everything out to his dad now.

Because now he had the confidence!

......

After his dad washed his face, the father and son sat in the living room, cooling off by the fan; indeed, Xiao Gang’s home didn’t even have an air conditioner.

It showed how hard it was to send him abroad in the first place.

"Dad, there’s something I need to talk to you about," Xiao Gang said earnestly.

Dad grinned, "Just speak up directly about whatever it is, don’t dither about."

"I’ve graduated you know, and I already found a job over there, I might not be able to come back to the country to work for quite a long time," Song Xiaogang said.

About his post-graduation employment, the father and son had actually discussed it over the phone.

But at that time, Song Xiaogang’s dad didn’t know the specifics and still thought he was just an ordinary student, so he had urged Song Xiaogang to come back home quickly after graduation because there was still a chance to secure a position at their company.

Although he himself didn’t hold a high position, he had worked there his entire life and still had some contacts he could talk to.

If Song Xiaogang could also join his company, his life would basically be set!

Of course, the salary wasn’t high; he had worked there all his life and now his salary was only about three or four thousand a month, but that was already considered a fine income in the capital city of Zhongyuan Province.

Otherwise, they wouldn’t have been able to afford Song Xiaogang’s overseas education.

Back then, Song Xiaogang had been evasive over the phone, saying he would think it over after receiving his diploma.

Hearing Song Xiaogang say this, dad was a bit surprised. He leaned to one side and looked at his son, asking in astonishment,

"You’ve just graduated, how did you find a job already?

I’m telling you, don’t think that doing some odd jobs over there and earning a few hundred US dollars means the income is higher than back home.

But you have to understand, these kinds of jobs aren’t stable, you could be fired by the boss at any time!

Jobs at governmental institutions back home, those are the real iron rice bowls! As long as you don’t break the law or discipline, no one can sack you, it’s safe come rain or shine!"

He still thought Song Xiaogang was doing some job like a translator over there.

Previously, he had heard Song Xiaogang mention that working as a translator at the Moscow Wholesale Market could earn him a few hundred US dollars a month before he had joined the Xiao Ying Group, and he wanted to work at the market to make some money.

But his dad had scolded him at the time, telling him not to be tempted by that income and neglect his studies.

Now that Song Xiaogang said he had found a job, dad naturally assumed it was still something like the market job.

Song Xiaogang quickly shook his head and said, "No, this time it’s a formal job! By the way, dad, you’ve seen those advertisements for travel to Russia on television, right?"

Xiao Ying Group’s advertisements are plentiful in the domestic market, from CCTV channels to provincial satellite TV, mostly during prime time.

Dad didn’t have other hobbies, and he would usually watch TV when alone at home, so he must have seen Xiao Ying Group’s commercials.

As expected, dad nodded, "Yes, traveling to Russia has been quite popular in recent years, many of my colleagues have gone there, but it’s too expensive. A trip costs twenty or thirty thousand, I can’t afford that!"

Knowing that was a relief, Song Xiaogang then said, "The job I found is with Xiao Ying Group."

Dad’s eyes widened, and he furrowed his brows in thought before saying, "That... must be quite a large company, I guess the salary isn’t low! But... I still think it can’t compare to holding an iron rice bowl! What if you get fired for not doing well, high salary is useless, the key is how long you can hold it!"

The old man was truly stubborn, just convinced that holding a governmental iron rice bowl was the safest, even if it was a big foreign company, he still found it unworthy.

But what he said also made sense, just looking at the high salary really isn’t useful, it’s more important how long you can earn it!

Of course, that also depends on just how high the salary is...

Song Xiaogang sighed, "But the salary is very high."

"How high?" Dad chuckled, thinking his son, just out of university and inexperienced, thought earning a few hundred US dollars a month was a high salary.

While a few hundred US dollars was indeed not low, higher even than his own salary, the problem was that prices and living costs in Moscow were also high, making it impossible to save money.

How to start a family, how to buy a house, he guessed his son hadn’t considered these things yet.

Song Xiaogang hesitated for a moment before saying honestly, "The base salary is a million."

Dad’s eyes instantly bulged out, he blurted, "How much?!"

But quickly he seemed to realize, laughing to himself, "A million rubles, right? What’s the exchange rate, should be... thirty thousand US dollars? Well, that is indeed quite high!"

Song Xiaogang shook his head, "No, a million US dollars, and that’s not even counting bonuses and dividends. If you add those, conservatively, it’s probably two million US dollars a year."