"Dream on," a voice echoed from the yard. Ouyang Lei trembled with excitement. It was indeed the great Tian. "Great Tian, uh, sister, I'm in dire need of this. Sell it to me?"
Tian Jing chuckled. "I said dream on, and you're still dreaming. My vegetables won't be ready for harvest for a few more days, and they'll be even more sought after by the end of the year."
"Do you know how hard plastic sheeting is to get? You ruined my plastic shed, shortened my vegetables' growth period by days, and now you want to buy my vegetables? You really dare to dream."
"I'll compensate, I'll compensate, I'll compensate." Ouyang Lei repeatedly said. "I have plastic cloth, not plastic sheeting. It's thick plastic cloth. I have as much as you want, sister. These vegetables have grown so well, and it's time to harvest. It's perfect that you don't need to go to the county town."
"And then? How much money do you want to give me in front of all these people? Do you think I'm not conspicuous enough?"
"I'd like to see who dares! I'll send Lin Guangde to be your subordinate. With him here, no one in this village would dare." Ouyang Lei glanced around at the onlookers and the two groups who had come to help.
The two groups were bewildered, fighting or not fighting?
Tian Jing was annoyed by Ouyang Lei's ruffian demeanor. "Do you think I'm one of your kind?"
"Never, never," Ouyang Lei quickly appeased her, worried that the formidable young lady might beat him up on the spot, ruining his reputation in the county. "Lin Guangde caused trouble, so it's only natural for him to smooth things over, right?"
"So, in the end, you've taken a fancy to these vegetables, haven't you?"
"Yes, yes, yes, sister understands me best."
"Alright, then you can take them. Tomorrow, bring me plastic cloth, enough to cover the sheds for two acres. And bring twenty catties of flour."
"Yes, yes."
"I'm not finished yet."
"Sister, please continue."
"These are just the price for the vegetables. You dared to stick your nose in without asking for details or investigating the other party's identity. You would have died in vain. So, you have to pay a price."
"Yes, yes, my mistake. Next time, I absolutely won't blindly intervene. Sister, what's the price? An arm or a leg?"
Tian Jing laughed in exasperation. "Can't you be normal?"
"Sister, please be direct."
"I want cement and bricks..."
"Leave it to me."
"You interrupted me again."
"Sister, please speak."
"I want more cement, about enough to plaster the ground floor of these few houses, then double that amount, plus the amount for building the kitchen, and tiles."
"Kitchen? You're not building the main house?"
"No, I prefer living in an earthen brick house." She didn't want to make her house the first of its kind in the village. "Ouyang Lei."
"I'm here."
"The bricks and tiles aren't urgent, they can be delivered after the new year. The cement is urgent, send it as soon as possible. The quantity isn't rushed, just send half of it in first."
"Understood."
"You all can harvest the vegetables yourselves. I'll lend you that straw mat to cover them. If they freeze, they won't be worth anything."
"Thank you, sister."
"Brother Zheng, see the captain and the Party Branch Secretary out. Thank everyone for coming to help. Didn't you find traces of wild boar? Go hunt it down in the next day or two and share it with everyone."
"Okay."
Li Zhengguo's voice was drowned out by the cheers of the crowd. The commune members didn't care about the relationship between Zhengguo's wife and this Brother Lei. They heard what they loved to hear.
"Oh, oh, great! I can finally have a proper meat meal."
"Oh, oh, oh, we're eating meat tonight!"
"Oh, oh, I'm going home right now to tell my wife to cook the meat. That piece of meat has been hanging above the stove every day, making me drool."
The crowd dispersed like a festival, revealing Li Aiguo and Zhang Fangcao behind them. Zhang Fangcao's face was full of jealousy and hatred. How could this happen? Why did this happen? She had clearly been trying to bring trouble to Tian Jing, and if that didn't work, she would have made her miserable. If Tian Jing dared to fight with a man, she would seize the opportunity to throw the last of her powder. In front of everyone, Tian Jing would either fall to the ground, into a man's arms, or even fall together with a man. But why? Why was this man, invited by Lin Guangde, so respectful to Tian Jing? It shouldn't be like this, it shouldn't be like this.
Li Aiguo's heart was also filled with mixed emotions. Was Jing Jing that formidable? Even the person Lin Guangde invited was intimidated by her. Had they clashed before? He had been kicked out by his father and moved into the Zhang family's house. After just one night, although the Zhang family seemed to treat him as usual, he could sense their displeasure behind his back. If his wife were Jing Jing, the person respectfully called 'brother' by this man would be him, and his father wouldn't have kicked him out.
Ouyang Lei glanced at a man and woman standing not far away and asked Lin Guangde, who was still stupidly covering his face, "Lin Guangde, who are that man and woman? Why are they looking this way with such strange eyes?"
Lin Guangde mechanically turned his head, mechanically turned his body, and mechanically replied, "Li Aiguo and Zhang Fangcao. Zhang Fangcao used to be Li Zhengguo's fiancée. After Li Zhengguo became lame..."
Lame? Ouyang Lei looked at Li Zhengguo leaning against the courtyard gate. Was he blind or was Lin Guangde blind? Li Zhengguo looked at him with a half-smile and forcefully kicked the leg he was pretending to be lame with. "This leg is lame."
Ouyang Lei was speechless. Brother, such a sturdy leg is lame? Great Tian likes to pretend, and you like to pretend too. You are truly a match made in heaven. Ouyang Lei waved his hand. "Deal with those two. That Li Aiguo, isn't he up to no good?"
"Yes."
"Warn him well. My sister, is he someone who can have designs on her? Don't they know each other's identities? He wants to ruin my sister's reputation, doesn't he? He wants to go to hell, but he shouldn't drag my sister down with him. Don't disgust my sister."
"Understood."
"You know perfectly well what happened with the third party. If you keep causing trouble, you'll be the one going in."
"I won't cause trouble anymore. I, I really follow sister, uh, a master?"
"The master doesn't want you. You just watch from the side. As for those toads and ignorant insects, drive them away."
"Alright."
Ouyang Lei patted his shoulder. "With me in between, the past between you and my sister is considered settled. From now on, keep your eyes open."
"I know."
"Alright, you can go back now!"
"Don't I need to help here? I can harvest vegetables, but they can't, right?" Lin Guangde pointed to the men behind Ouyang Lei.
A few of them glared at him. This old fellow was trying to steal their credit.
"That's right. You stay and help. You few, follow Lin Guangde's orders. Pull up those bamboo bows and store them, and take down the plastic sheeting."
"Yes."
The men responded and quickly got to work. Ouyang Lei looked at Li Zhengguo. "Brother Zhengguo, can I come in for a drink of water?"
"No, my humble abode is too small."
"Hahaha." Tian Jing laughed from the yard. "Brother Zheng, give him some water. Brother Lei has come to visit, we should entertain him." Su Dan Novel Network
"Then ask my mother and sister to go inside." Mother Li quickly pulled her daughter into the room.