บท 36: Tony
บรรณาธิการ: Henyee Translations
On the other side of the ocean in Texas —
In his family stable, Tony was grooming the pony his father had just bought him.
While he was brushing the pony, he complained to his Uncle Clark, "Why do we have to wash it?"
Putting away the high-pressure water gun, Uncle Clark turned around and smiled at Tony. "If you want to become a proper cowboy, you'll have to look after your pal."
"I know…"
Lowering his head, Tony mumbled, "But I don't think I can become a cowboy."
"Hey, Tony, cheer up!"
Clapping his hands, Clark encouraged the boy. "Riding a horse is very easy and you have to trust yourself. I believe that you'll become the best cowboy in the whole of Texas… no, in the whole country!"
"I don't have a problem with riding a horse…"
Putting down the brush, Tony scratched his blonde head in distress. "Dad told me that I'm the son of a farm owner, so that's what I'm going to become, not a cowboy, a helper!"
Clark didn't know what to say.
That sounded quite reasonable!
Although he didn't quite understand what little Tony had in his mind, Clark was still willing to talk about his future with him, as he was the son of his old friend.
"What a shame. I think Miss Gwen will be quite sorry if she can't see our Tony galloping in the ranch on the back of a horse."
"No, she won't. Her favorite is Peter, the bookworm type," mumbled Tony.
Clark smiled in resignation. The relationship between the kids completely lost him.
Tony soon lost his patience and grew tired of cleaning the pony. He tossed the brush aside and went back to his room.
"A burglary took place in San Antonio and all suspects have been shot to death by the homeowner… because of the retaliation of the burglars' associates, a large scale gunfire broke out in the eastern blocks…"
There went another uneventful day in Texas.
Little Tony grabbed a can of coke from the fridge, opened it, and threw himself onto the sofa.
"What the hell is Fox doing?"
Checking the time, little Tony thought impatiently.
"It's already this hour, but why is the news still on? Gunfire in the street is nothing compared to the 'Yo-yo'."
"And what about Episode 10?"
Little Tony was still wondering when the door was pushed open and in came his bushy-bearded old man.
"Hey, Tony, here's the yo-yo!"
Tossing the packaged toy to Tony, who was still on the sofa, Howard rubbed his forehead, saying, "Listen, son, I'm not trying to tell you what to do, but I don't think we should buy more of these toys."
"Why?"
Catching the box containing the latest model of Power Silver S, little Tony turned to his dad and asked.
"Damn it! Why do you think?"
Howard vented his sarcasm. "I've never seen such a greedy toy maker! How can they charge $29.90 for a piece of plastic?!"
He wished for this to only have been a dream!
He was known as "Smart Howard" among his cowboys. If word got out that he had paid 30 bucks for a piece of plastic, he would lose his reputation!
"PD Company, is it?"
Fine! Howard decided that he had just made a new enemy.
Little Tony didn't think much of his dad's grimace. So what if it cost 30 dollars? He liked it, so he needed to have one.
Seeing that his son wouldn't answer him, Howard poured himself a glass of water, sat down at the other end of the sofa, and said, "This piece of plastic…"
"It's a yo-yo!" Tony corrected him without turning his head.
"Okay! This yo-yo!"
Taking a deep breath, Howard spoke in his most resentful tone. "What good can this thing do? Tony, you should learn to spend your money wisely! Maybe you won't become as wealthy as I am, but at least you won't do something so stupid…"
Paying 30 dollars for a piece of plastic just wasn't something a son of a shrewd farm owner would do!
Howard hoped that his son could understand him: there was nothing wrong with buying toys, but he had to avoid getting ripped off.
He didn't feel this way when he spent over 100 dollars on a robot dog for Tony. After all, one look and one could tell that the robot toy was worth the money.
But this yo-yo…
To be frank, it was a piece of sh*t!
"This is the most popular toy in all American schools! Every boy has one, and it can be used as a weapon, too. How cool is that?" Tying the string back, Tony said unhurriedly with a smile.
"But does it have to be so expensive?"
Hearing that this piece of crappy plastic was popular all over the country, Howard sounded a little hesitant.
All schools in America?
So, he wasn't the only one who had been ripped off.
That made him feel a lot better.
"Haha! I guess they charge this much money for a reason. It's an imported toy and there's import duty involved." Clark walked in at that moment and chuckled at Howard.
"Imported?"
The look on Howard's face changed. "The sales person told me that it was made in California…"
"Look here… Made in China!"
Clark picked up the torn plastic package that Tony had tossed on the ground, and pointed at the product information on the back.
Howard's face darkened.
"This is fraud! They've committed a crime!
"That salesperson must be a spy who has been planted here in Texas! That b*tch told me that PD was an American firm! F**k!"
Fox News just happened to end at that moment, and after some advertisements, Yo-yo, an imported TV show, started.
"Holy sh*t! There's got to be something behind this! Fox, that son of a b*tch, is part of it!" Howard lashed out.
Patting his old friend's shoulder, Clark shrugged. "Come on, man, it's not the first time Fox has done that. Get used to it!
"Have you read the paper?"
"No… Has something happened?" Howard asked.
Clark chuckled. "If you had, you wouldn't blame Fox any more. After all, it's not Fox's fault, but that damn PD company!"
"What did they do?"
Raising an eyebrow, Clark said, "That company has set different prices for their products in different markets. The difference between the high and low prices is enough to buy several toys in its local market."
"High and low prices?"
This baffled Howard, and he only came to a long while later. "Damn it! Who came up with such discriminating ideas? The CIA should arrest these people and lock them up in jail…"
"I agree with you, but it's a legitimate method. Even the lords up in Capitol Hill can't overrule it."
Clark clapped his hands, then said, "It's beyond our pay grade to worry about such things. Man, cheer up! Have you forgotten what day it is today?"
"Of course, I haven't!"
Howard's face lit up and he grinned expectantly. Throwing an arm over Clark's shoulder, Howard winked at his friend. "You're right. There's a party waiting for us. Let's get going!"
Shortly after the two men left the house, the sound of a pick-up truck rang out in the yard. Little Tony sighed in resignation.
"Mommy seems to be going, too… Sh*t, am I going to have a younger half-brother?
"Or… a younger half-sister?"
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