Chapter 492: Strange Chen Jinhai

"That's the piece of the abandoned old house." Ye Cheng roughly described the area.

After Ye Cheng finished speaking, Chen Jinhai nodded, indicating he understood: "I know, but this plot is residential—you can't use it for aquaculture."

"I'm not farming; I want to fix up that plot and open a restaurant."

"A restaurant?" Chen Jinhai, who had remained calm since coming in, finally showed a look of surprise.

"Who would eat at your restaurant here? Everyone can cook their own meals, and opening a restaurant on such a big plot—how huge would that be?"

While Chen Jinhai was speaking, Ye Cheng stood aside and quietly observed.

Although Chen Jinhai's words were harsh, he didn't look like he was taking pleasure in Ye Cheng's misfortune.

How should I say it?

Just stating the facts, with no feeling at all.

Ye Cheng pushed aside his doubts: "Just tell me whether I can rent it and the price."

Despite Ye Cheng's tone, Chen Jinhai wasn't angry in the slightest; he merely took out a notebook from the drawer and examined it carefully.

Ye Cheng also sat down, lit a cigarette, and waited patiently.

The atmosphere was quite odd.

The two who used to quarrel or even fight upon meeting were now sitting here peacefully.

The cigarette smoke rolled around in his mouth and then was exhaled; Ye Cheng's gaze held a trace of confusion.

Could Chen Jinhai be setting a trap for me?

What's the catch?

Does he want me to rent it or not?

He was beginning to feel bewildered.

Fortunately, Chen Jinhai had already found what he needed; he took out a calculator, pressed a few buttons, looked up at Ye Cheng, his face calm.

"Lao Er, I've worked it out—this plot is 11 mu altogether. Are you sure you want that much?"

"Eleven mu is indeed not small; just for dining it's large, but a farmstay emphasizes leisure—not just eating—plus a parking lot, that's about right."

Seeing Ye Cheng nod, Chen Jinhai went on, "At 600 yuan per mu, that's 6,600 per year—are you still planning to rent for 30 years?"

"No, 15 years will suffice."

Chen Jinhai's pen, which had been about to keep writing, halted; his cloudy eyes fixed on Ye Cheng, as if doubting he'd heard right.

"Just 15 years—15 years isn't that little, is it?"

"This farmstay will only be good for another decade or so; after that we intend to switch to a guesthouse, and even though many guesthouses have opened, they don't earn as much as farmstays."

"Furthermore, many guesthouses lose so much they're left with nothing but the underwear on their backs."

"I just need to reap the benefits of this period; after that, the high-risk guesthouse business is best avoided."

Seeing Ye Cheng confirm, Chen Jinhai didn't waste words and quickly handled the paperwork.

Holding the handwritten receipt for 99,000, Ye Cheng glanced at the sky, feeling unreal.

When did Chen Jinhai become so approachable?

Could he have turned into an old fox?

Just as he was thinking that, Chen Jinhai's voice suddenly came from behind.

"Lao Er, are you in a rush? If not, sit down and we can chat a bit more."

Ye Cheng's lips curled slightly; this old fox indeed had another trick up his sleeve.

He pocketed the receipt, turned and went back to the office, didn't sit down, just quietly watched Chen Jinhai.

"Never mind sitting down—I have something to do later; just say what you need to say straight, no beating around the bush."

Seeing Ye Cheng not sit down, Chen Jinhai didn't press him.

"Um, Lao Er, you also know that our Chen family has contracted a plot for crayfish."

Ye Cheng stayed silent, silently wondering what the point of bringing up crayfish was now.

Are they planning to have me teach them how to farm?

How could that be.

I'm no saint.

Seeing Ye Cheng silent, Chen Jinhai felt a bit embarrassed, cleared his throat, and said, "Actually, we were thinking—could you take it over? Since we can't raise them well, leasing it would just be wasting money; might as well treat it as the village leasing it to you."

"You want me to take over the land you're leasing?" Ye Cheng was doubtful; this doesn't sound like Chen Jinhai—or the Chen family's style.

"Well, we've also leased it for 30 years, and it's not cheap—we're just trying to cut our losses a bit."

Ye Cheng was speechless; the Chen family actually leased it for 30 years—what boldness!

I have a system, so I'm not afraid.

They really dare.

If I take it over, for them it's equivalent to having leased only a few months; aside from the farming investment, their loss shouldn't be large.

If they kept leasing it but couldn't raise crayfish, that would be somewhat wasteful.

Ye Cheng thought for a moment, didn't immediately agree: "Let me think it over; I still haven't found a sales channel for my crayfish."

Seeing Ye Cheng not immediately agree, a flicker of disappointment crossed Chen Jinhai's face, but he quickly recovered.

"Fine, think it over; if it really doesn't work, we can lower the rent a bit."

Ye Cheng had been about to leave, but hearing Chen Jinhai say that, he really couldn't hold back.

He stopped in his tracks, looked at Chen Jinhai with a puzzled expression, and said, "Village Chief, why do I feel you're a bit different now?"

Chen Jinhai gave a self-deprecating smile, pointed at himself, and said, "Lao Er, I know what you're saying; before I couldn't stand you, but lately I've come to see things."

"The Chen family folks all expect me to secure benefits for them, never considering me."

As he spoke, Chen Jinhai grew increasingly annoyed, his tone rising a bit: "Earlier I said to buy a boat; when we didn't make money, they blamed me. They said to raise crayfish; when we didn't make money, they blamed me too."

Damn, let them do whatever they want in the future—I'm just an old man, I don't need much money. From now on I'll just listen to some tunes, live my life, how nice.

After saying that, Chen Jinhai looked at Ye Cheng: "Lao Er, whatever you want to do in the future, I won't stop you. If you can lead the whole village to prosperity, I'll gladly lend a hand."

I asked the old man a question, and he went on at length.

However, judging by the way he spoke, he seemed genuinely heartbroken and didn't want to continue.

That's fine too—at least I'll have something to do in the village later, and I won't run into so much trouble.

"Well, Village Chief, the goal of making the whole village rich is too lofty for a small fry like me to take on, but if you lease your farm to me, I could genuinely consider it—I'll give you a reply after I've looked it over."

After saying that, Ye Cheng exchanged a few casual pleasantries and left.

Whether it's sincere or not, we'll find out later.

After leaving the village committee, Ye Cheng went straight to his older brother's house.

Ye Guowei came home early today, had already washed up and tidied himself, and was helping Jiang Yunxiang with some chores.

"A Cheng's here—come, sit down and pick vegetables together."

Ye Guowei pointed at the edamame in front of him—a big bundle—and Dou Dou was also sitting there helping to shell them.

My older brother's house is my own home—Ye Cheng grabbed a stool, sat down, and casually teased his little nephew:

"Dou Dou, you're called Dou Dou—eating edamame, are you eating yourself?"