[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"origin-that-year-the-flowers-bloomed-in-1981":3,"chapter-that-year-the-flowers-bloomed-in-1981-that-year-the-flowers-bloomed-in-1981-chapter-259":6},{"origin":4,"title":5},"chinese","That Year, the Flowers Bloomed in 1981",{"chapter":7,"nextChapterSlug":19,"prevChapterSlug":20,"totalChapters":21,"novelImage":22},{"id":8,"novel_id":9,"title":10,"slug":11,"index":12,"content":13,"wordcount":14,"created_at":15,"updated_at":15,"volume":16,"translator":17,"content_hash":18},2294677,4489,"Chapter 259: One Incident, Three Flat Tires","that-year-the-flowers-bloomed-in-1981-chapter-259",259,"\u003Cp>“Kuang qie~ kuang qie~ kuang qie qie~”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The train heading south from Jingcheng to Hushi rolled through the early summer night, its rhythmic clatter against the rails like a lullaby, lulling the packed passengers into slumber.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Li Ye also sat squeezed on his seat, eyes closed, feigning sleep; it was already three a.m., when the human biological clock was at its peak, and even he, a cheat, couldn’t escape exhaustion.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Suddenly, Li Ye felt his arm being prodded.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He opened his eyes and saw Han Xia, seated across from him, nervously glancing toward his side-rear.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Li Ye, there are pickpockets over there.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Li Ye slowly turned his head and indeed saw a gang of scoundrels preparing to rob a woman.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>They had lookouts, cover, and operatives—clearly a professional crew with high technical skill.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In his past life, Li Ye would have kept sleeping with his head buried.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In an era where no one dared to help an old woman who fell for two hours, why wake up and cry out against injustice?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Haven’t you watched the classic scene with Song Xiaobao and Sha Li? Can’t you feel the quiet sorrow of those small people?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But now, Li Ye was no longer a small person.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Where’s my wallet? Oh no, where’s my wallet? My wallet’s gone~~~”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Li Ye’s clear, loud cry echoed through the entire carriage, jolting nearly two hundred passengers from their dreams.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Including the woman who was about to lose her wallet.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Who lost their wallet? Who—”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“What are you yelling for? Just check your own wallet, don’t shout!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Passengers on seats, in the aisle, even under seats—all woke up instantly and began checking their wallets.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The coordinated gang glanced at each other, thoroughly confused.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Liu Liu, did you just do some private work?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“No, Brother, you know me—I never hoard for myself. Besides, that kid’s group had over ten people; they’re not our kind of easy prey.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Then why did his wallet disappear?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Brother, he’s faking us out. I saw that girl look this way earlier—I thought she wouldn’t interfere, but turns out she’s got the guts of a bear and a leopard. Maybe—”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Maybe what? Hmph. Kill a thousand, lose eight hundred. Switch carriages.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The gang rose and left; as they went, Liu Liu shot Han Xia a glare.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Han Xia glared back defiantly, but her heart pounded wildly, uncontrollably.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Only now did she realize there were seven of them.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Only after they were all gone did she snap back to reality, waves of dread washing over her.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Danger you’ve never experienced never feels quite real.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Just like men who aren’t cowards until they’re on the battlefield—shouting bravely when safe, but peeing their pants on their first real fight? That’s normal.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Han Xia, Hu Man, Yan Jinbu, and others had woken up, watching the quiet Li Ye, wanting to speak but feeling it inappropriate.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Because the road was unsafe, Li Ye had traveled home in a hard-seat group of eight, no longer booking a sleeper.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wang Qiangqiang, Wang Qiangdong, and several ex-soldiers were also returning to Qingshui with Li Ye; together, over a dozen men ensured absolute safety.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>If they hadn’t had Li Ye and the others with them, Han Xia’s single glance might have landed her in serious trouble.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But brave, righteous people still existed.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wang Qiangdong, a veteran of the People’s Liberation Army, stepped closer and whispered to Li Ye: “They’ve moved to the next carriage. Should we stop them?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Li Ye considered briefly, then said: “You and I will go find the train conductor.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wang Qiangdong nodded, called the other ex-soldiers, and followed Li Ye to find the conductor.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>They found the conductor, and Li Ye showed his membership card from the Writers’ Association, making his small request.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Minutes later, the loudspeakers in every carriage of the train cycled a broadcast: “Passengers, please note: pickpockets are suspected on this train. Please safeguard your belongings.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>When Li Ye returned to his seat, Han Xia looked at him and said: “That’s it? The train isn’t full of—”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Li Ye closed his eyes and said nothing.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In 1983, the entire nation had only seventy thousand police.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>If that number means nothing, compare it to Hong Kong’s seven million people with thirty thousand Royal Police—then you understand the problem.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>There were only a few officers per carriage, earning a few dozen yuan a month—what do you expect them to do?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Don’t stand there talking without feeling the burden.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But at the next station, Hu Man and the others saw, under the platform lights, that gang disembarking.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Only then did they realize Li Ye’s “soft approach” had worked.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Hu Man whispered to Han Xia: “They had over ten people.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Han Xia nodded, still shaken: “Thank goodness for Li Ye—but I remember last year it wasn’t this bad. What are we going to do?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Yan Jinbu, Wang Qiangqiang, and others also wore worried expressions; these college students truly carried national concerns.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But Li Ye, eyes closed, said: “Don’t worry. When things reach their extreme, they reverse. It’ll get better soon. Bright days are coming.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It was already July; in less than a month, many people’s days of reckoning would arrive.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>If you can arrest or not, arrest. If you can sentence or not, sentence. If you can execute or not, execute.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This wasn’t a joke—it was a slogan.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>When daylight broke, the train, having rattled all night, finally stopped at the platform of Dongshan’s provincial capital.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Li Ye stepped off the train and found his father, Li Kaibian, hadn’t come to meet him.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Li Dayong frowned: “Didn’t Kaibian say he’d come pick us up? Why isn’t he here?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Han Xia immediately scolded: “What rank are you, that you expect to be picked up? Hurry up and squeeze onto the bus—you’ll miss your seat if you’re late.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Everyone rushed to the bus, barely managing to board.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Buses from the provincial capital to Qingshui County ran only twice daily; if you missed the morning one, you waited for the afternoon; if you missed that, you spent the night in the capital.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The long-distance bus crossed the Mother River at ten a.m., swaying along the highway toward Qingshui County.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Twenty kilometers from Qingshui County, Li Ye spotted a Dongfeng 140 truck stopped on the road; two men crouched beside it repairing a tire—his cheap father, Li Kaibian, and the driver, Old Hu.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Driver, stop! Stop the bus!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Li Ye shouted for the bus to halt, got off with Li Dayong and the others, and then Han Xia and the rest tumbled out to help.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Li Kaibian, seeing Li Ye, smiled: “You got up early this time, but didn’t make it to the night market. Wait a bit—the tire’s almost fixed, then we can head home.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“No rush. But how did three tires go bad at once?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Li Ye looked at the three flat tires on the ground, surprised.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This Dongfeng 140 had only traveled twenty kilometers from the county town—it shouldn’t have lost three tires simultaneously.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>If not for the fact that truck drivers back then were half-mechanics, carrying their own repair tools, the vehicle would’ve been stranded.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Old Hu, squatting and patching the tire, chuckled bitterly: “Ah, what a shame!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I was careless this morning—didn’t even circle the truck. If my apprentices find out, I’ll lose all face as a master!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Master, don’t blame the innocent! I didn’t laugh at you—I’ll help you—”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“No need, no need. Just bring me a new tire from the rear. Otherwise, both front tires will have patches—it’s unsafe.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Back then, tire patching wasn’t as good as today; the 140 was a heavy truck, and patching a large plug on a front tire wasn’t reliable.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Before Li Ye could move, Wang Qiangdong, an ex-engineer soldier, had already gathered several ex-soldiers and got to work swiftly.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Li Ye stepped beside Li Kaibian and whispered: “Someone sabotaged you?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Li Kaibian chuckled twice, glancing toward Qingshui County, then spat contemptuously.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“A bunch of cowards—only know how to use low tricks.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Li Ye followed his father’s gaze and saw several motorcycles on the northern highway.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In this era, motorcycles were rare; seeing several together was clearly suspicious.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Li Ye thought for a moment and asked: “Were they robbing travelers, or targeting us?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Li Kaibian waved his hand: “Don’t worry about it. A bunch of trash who can’t even count as petty thieves. They rode by earlier, I hadn’t even picked up my crank handle—they ran off like rabbits from the northern grasslands.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Only then did Li Ye notice the one-meter-plus-long crank handle beside Li Kaibian’s foot—the one used to start the 140 truck.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Li Ye thought a moment, then whispered: “Is San Shui back?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Two months ago, when Li Zhongfa went to Jingcheng, he told Li Ye that San Shui had returned—and had expanded his smuggling business.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He’d originally started smuggling motorcycles, which led to his falling out with Jin Peng; now, any thought pointed to him.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Hmph~”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Li Kaibian lit a Da Qianmen cigarette and sneered: “Don’t bother yourself. Your grandfather said he won’t last long.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Doing shady business means keeping your head down—but he’s the opposite, strutting around, showing off, as if no one knows how capable he is.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A few days ago, he took a gang to Hewan Township, forced a family to marry their daughter to his brother, and when they refused, broke the father’s arm.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Li Ye was stunned. He knew San Shui was arrogant, but not this extreme—he’d gone completely off the rails.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Did the family give their daughter to him?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“No. Your grandfather interfered,” Li Kaibian said. “When the storm comes, he’ll be the first to be cut down. Anyone who marries their daughter into his family is blind.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Li Ye paused, then asked: “When did Grandfather say the storm would come?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“At most one or two years,” Li Kaibian exhaled a smoke ring. “Your grandfather’s been in the system for over forty years—he can guess the direction. Do you think the higher-ups are deaf and blind?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Li Ye, stunned, felt deep admiration for Li Zhongfa.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Li Zhongfa had no cheat tools, yet through his familiarity with policy trends and decades of experience, he’d predicted what was coming.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"The axle is fixed—get on board and let's go!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lao Hu packed his repair tools into the toolbox and called out to everyone to get on the vehicle.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Li Ye instructed Wang Qiangdong: \"Tie that rope around the cargo bed several times—once everyone’s on, hold tight to the rope; this road is rough!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wang Qiangdong replied: \"Got it. Back in the army, we’d drive so fast the vehicle seemed to fly, yet nothing ever fell off.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Li Ye and Wang Qiangdong secured the rope, then scrambled into the driver’s seat, laughing: \"I haven’t driven in ages—let me have some fun.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lao Hu said generously: \"Drive however you like—this vehicle’s in my hands, it’s as good as new.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Hu Man, Li Dayong, and the others climbed onto the truck bed with laughter and cheer, grateful that today Li Ye would deliver them straight to their doorsteps.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But they had no idea what thrilling game Li Ye was about to take them on next.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>(End of Chapter)\u003C\u002Fp>",1860,"2026-06-20T05:05:01.382Z",1,"Qwen3-Next 80B","15582502de457efc5a577062d5db76ebd7b3541c673144aeaba4261ae2d3352d","that-year-the-flowers-bloomed-in-1981-chapter-260","that-year-the-flowers-bloomed-in-1981-chapter-258",884,"https:\u002F\u002Fnovelzhen.com\u002Fimages\u002Fcovers\u002Fthat-year-the-flowers-bloomed-in-1981-cover.jpg"]