Chapter 92: From now on our lives will be much better than the Village Chief's

Just got on the vehicle, Ye Cheng always felt his heart suffocated; damn it, he needed to vent his unhappiness.

Then let's go spend!

Spending doesn't just make women happy; men are the same!

He got on the vehicle and headed straight for the appliance store; there was no way he could afford a house or a car, so for now he could only buy some consumables.

Air conditioner!

The greatest invention in the human world, bar none.

Ye Cheng had wanted to buy one for a while; the seaside weather is unpredictable, sometimes stuffy and humid, uncomfortable to sleep without an air conditioner, leaving you feeling sticky.

Air conditioners aren't cheap these days; they're expensive right now, a wall-mounted unit costs over 2000, Ye Cheng bought two without hesitation, one for himself and one for his older brother's home.

The balance in his card dropped by 5000 just like that, leaving only 13,000.

Making money is hard, spending it is easy.

After spending the money, his mood lightened; he also had a big basket of vegetables, enough for himself, and he added some snacks like chips and chocolate before heading home.

Back in the village, it was already noon; Ye Cheng grabbed a big bunch of vegetables and headed straight to Xiao Hu's home.

"A Cheng, have you eaten? If not, just eat something at home," Xiao Hu's mother said warmly.

"Aunt, I came because I haven't eaten; I grabbed some vegetables that looked cheap in the city and brought them over for you."

Saying that conscience‑pricking line, Ye Cheng felt a pang; it wasn't the money that hurt, it was the beautiful woman.

At Xiao Hu's home, lunch was casual: steamed buns and a few side dishes.

Seeing Ye Cheng arrive, Xiao Hu's mother went to steam that Yellowfoot fish; the fish doesn't need much preparation—just add some scallion sections, steam lightly, then drizzle a bit of oil to increase fragrance.

Ye Cheng picked up a chopstickful; the flavor was extremely fresh, with a hint of soy sauce saltiness, combined with the fish's own aroma and the scallion‑oil scent from the heated oil—it was incredibly delicious.

"Well, here's today's 1300," Ye Cheng said while eating, handing over the day's money to Xiao Hu.

Unexpectedly, Xiao Hu pressed his hand down and said solemnly, "Brother, I didn't help with yesterday's fishing, so I can't take this money."

"What are you talking about? We all went together, so of course we split it."

"No way, brother. In the past when we went gathering at sea I could usually get something, but last night I only caught this fish in the bowl, so I can't take the money."

Ye Cheng was about to say more when Xiao Hu's father spoke: "A Cheng, I know you brothers are close, but since Xiao Hu didn't help, he definitely can't take the money. Next time we go gathering at sea and he helps, you can give him some then—but not this time."

"Right, A Cheng, we can't take it; if we did, Xiao Hu would feel embarrassed to go out with you again," Xiao Hu's mother added.

Ye Cheng looked at the three of them, all sincere, so he dropped the pretense, nodded, took the money back, and continued,

"This afternoon we're going gathering at sea; we can't stay idle."

"Sure, brother, gathering at sea is great, I can help you," Xiao Hu said happily; taking the money for nothing made him feel embarrassed, but Ye Cheng had to go fishing, so there was nothing he could do.

Now saying we'll go gathering at sea—that's perfect, a win‑win.

After finishing lunch at Xiao Hu's home, Ye Cheng first went to his older brother's house, taking some of the vegetables he had bought that morning from Lao Wang.

"A Cheng, why did you buy vegetables? We have them in the fields," Jiang Yunxiang said, a bit curious; given Ye Cheng's tendencies, buying meat would be more likely than buying vegetables.

"Oh, I just happened to see they were cheap, so I bought some."

Indeed, the more lies you tell, the less awkward it becomes.

"By the way, sister‑in‑law, I bought air conditioners in the city—one for each household; they'll be delivered and installed later, so tell your husband that from now on we won't lose sleep to summer heat."

Ye Cheng's main purpose for coming today was to mention this.

"Air conditioner?" Jiang Yunxiang widened her eyes and waved her hands, "No, A Cheng, why buy that? A fan is enough for summer."

"Forget it; the wind from a fan is hot, while an air conditioner blows cool air—they're not the same. Besides, we've certainly suffered through hot nights without sleep before."

"But... but..." Jiang Yunxiang hesitated, then said worriedly, "It seems only the Village Chief's family has an air conditioner in the village; if we, a family like ours, install one, will the villagers talk about us?"

"Last time you bought a water heater, many villagers were already gossiping, saying Second Uncle, you just like foreign gadgets and waste money."

Many mouths can melt gold—especially in the village; if we're envied by the villagers, it'll be troublesome.

But Ye Cheng doesn't care; he's always been the village's rascal, and even now that he has money he hasn't shaken off that bad reputation—he's merely gone from being a village rascal to a selfish person who refuses to lead everyone to make money.

"Ah, sister‑in‑law, you need to adjust; from now on our lives will be much better than the Village Chief's, so stop comparing yourself to him—he doesn't deserve it."

When the installers come, just go ahead and install it with peace of mind—the installation fee is included.

I need to go gathering at sea with Xiao Hu; if I come back early tonight I'll join my brother for a couple of drinks.

Ye Cheng said that and didn't wait for Jiang Yunxiang to keep nagging; he walked straight away.

This brother‑and‑sister‑in‑law pair are just too conservative.

Even with money, they're afraid to make a move, terrified of attracting envy.

Ye Cheng couldn't care less; not spending money when you have it is idiotic. After one rebirth, whether the spiritual world is rich or not can wait—the material world must be enriched.

Leaving his older brother's house, Ye Cheng decided to take Xiao Hu out gathering at sea.

Actually he had wanted to keep fishing, since yesterday's catch was good, but now he doesn't have enough points to buy a second fishing rod, and Xiao Hu's own rod gets no system boost, so relying purely on luck it's useless.

So for now he can only go gathering at sea; once he saves enough points he'll swap for a rod, and then we'll all laugh together as we face the vast sea.

On the way to Xiao Hu's place, Ye Cheng swung by Li Quezi's and bought two packs of cigarettes.

As soon as he entered, Li Quezi gave him a sly, grinning look, making Ye Cheng size himself up and touch his lips to confirm there was no food before he spoke.

"What are you grinning about? There's nothing."

Li Quezi chuckled, handed over the cigarettes, then pointed outside with a teasing tone and said, "Lao Er, did you do something again last night?"

Ye Cheng was bewildered: "What did I do? I went fishing—what happened? Did I offend someone?"

"Nothing like that, but I don't know why—early this morning a bunch of people showed up saying they wanted to buy MSG, then they bought a lot of packs without saying what they'd use it for."

"I guess it's probably related to you."

Ye Cheng stared in shock; "Damn, it seems it's actually related to my old man."