Chapter 30: Chapter Thirty: A Big Deal

Near noon, as Li Ye was deeply engrossed in writing his novel, the school gatekeeper, Old Liu, arrived at the remedial class one, his face dark, and told Li Ye that someone was looking for him outside.

Li Ye was puzzled.

Old Liu had a grudge against him—why would he come to the classroom to deliver a message?

Li Dayong immediately grew wary: “Bro, could this old bastard be holding a grudge and lying in wait outside to beat you up?”

Li Ye scoffed: “What nonsense are you imagining? Do you think this is Romance of the Three Kingdoms? If it were, that’d be fine.”

Li Ye gathered his novel manuscript and handed it over to Wen Leyu.

“Hold onto this for me—don’t let anyone read it!”

“Got it. You can rest easy.”

Wen Leyu accepted it solemnly, as if receiving a heroic mission.

Li Dayong, seeing the stack of letter paper in Li Ye’s hand, felt a sudden pang in his chest and glared sharply at the papers.

He never imagined Li Ye was writing a novel—he assumed it was a letter.

Who to?

Aside from some woman he hated with all his might, Li Ye had never written letters to anyone else.

[Bro, didn’t you swear just days ago you’d cut ties with that damn woman? How are you getting involved with her again? You’ve hit bad luck—good horses don’t eat back grass...]

Wen Leyu, noticing Li Dayong staring at the papers in her hands, also widened her eyes.

“What are you staring at?”

“........”

Li Dayong, facing the fierce little mute, had no anger left.

He had clearly seen how Li Ye and Wen Leyu had been cozying up lately.

Even if there was the slightest chance Wen Leyu might become involved with Li Ye, Li Dayong wouldn’t quarrel with her.

He had deeply experienced Li Ye’s fierce protectiveness.

So Li Dayong turned to Fu Yingjie and activated his “damage transfer” skill.

“What are you staring at? I’m talking to you—still looking? Nobody’s allowed to look!”

“.........”

Confused Fu Yingjie opened his mouth, then helplessly accepted this undeserved punishment.

Li Ye stood up and walked out. He already suspected it was Hao Jian and the others returning from the provincial capital—though they’d come back earlier than planned.

Li Dayong followed Li Ye out, still uneasy—what if Old Liu was seeking revenge for that day’s incident?

But when they reached the school gate, they saw no thugs—only fellow disciples Jin Peng, Hao Jian, and Wang Qiangqiang.

“Brother Jin, what are you doing here?”

“I came to find you and Li Ye!”

Jin Peng, smoking, spat: “What’s up with that old bastard at the gate? I told him I wanted to come in and look for you—he acted like his nose was crooked and his eyes were askew!”

“Didn’t let me in? Fine—I won’t go in. But he’d better Guaiguai call you out.”

Li Ye and Li Dayong exchanged glances, then turned in unison to look at the reception office.

Old Liu had his back turned to them, but the large footprint on the back of his cotton coat told the brothers everything.

They knew exactly what Jin Peng was like.

Street thugs avoided him—he’d have ruled the county and ended up in jail long ago if his mother hadn’t kept a tight leash.

Old Liu had clearly been stupid enough to provoke Jin Peng, got beaten, and then vented his rage by calling Li Ye out to the remedial class.

What’s called “bluffing with a fierce face but weak inside”?

This is it.

You bully school kids like a roaring lion—why don’t you roar at real thugs outside?

Li Ye didn’t tell Jin Peng about that day’s incident—if he had, it’d only bring more trouble.

The five of them went to a mutton soup shop a few hundred meters away. In the freezing winter, each held a bowl of steaming mutton soup, slurping it down—pure comfort.

Li Ye asked Hao Jian: “Why’d you come back so early today? So fast?”

Hao Jian glanced at Li Dayong, saying nothing.

Li Ye said: “We’re brothers—his mouth is sealed. Speak freely.”

Hao Jian then said: “We didn’t expect it to go this fast. We only visited two places and sold out all the malt sugar. With no stock left, we figured we’d better hurry back to boil more—other places we’d arranged with are still waiting!”

Li Ye was surprised: “So smoothly? Did they think our sugar was high quality—or cheap?”

Whenever something unexpected happened, he analyzed the cause—that was a habit from his past life.

Hao Jian shook his head: “Neither. Some relatives and friends of those two families got involved—each wanted ten or eight catties to try it out.”

Li Ye understood.

People back then were timid—when they wanted to do something, they always gathered in groups, relying on the idea that “the law won’t punish the many” to muster courage.

This was good for Li Ye—each extra person meant an extra retail point and a potential customer. Eventually, a few would break through and gradually form a terminal market.

But Hao Jian added: “Still... it wasn’t entirely smooth. When we dealt with the second place, they tried to lowball us and demand credit, relying on their numbers—but the two brothers handled it.”

Li Ye was startled. This wasn’t trivial. Strong dragons don’t overpower local snakes—if the other side had ill intentions, he must cut ties early, or it’d lead to failure.

“Tell me—what trouble did you stir up?”

“No trouble at all,”

Seeing Li Ye’s serious expression, Jin Peng hurried to say: “They just started showing signs of trouble—I hadn’t even opened my mouth when Qiangzi smacked his own forehead twice with bricks—right then and there, those people were stunned...”

“.........”

Li Ye was also stunned. He’d thought Wang Qiangqiang tagging along was just for free meals—but this idiot actually had a use?

Seeing Li Ye’s shock, Jin Peng lifted off Wang Qiangqiang’s cotton hat, revealing a dark bruise on his forehead.

Wang Qiangqiang, still slurping his soup, looked up and grinned foolishly at Li Ye.

But sharp-eyed Li Ye clearly saw the flicker of fear in his eyes.

This kid... was afraid Li Ye would scold him and not let him come along next time.

Li Ye pursed his lips and whispered: “Qiangzi, next time, watch Jin Peng’s cues. Even if you have to hit, just one brick’s enough—got it?”

“Yeah yeah, I got it, bro, hehehehe, doesn’t hurt, hehehehe.”

Wang Qiangqiang really didn’t feel pain—when his mother, older brother, and younger brother scolded him for wasting food, that was real pain.

“How could it not hurt? But Qiangzi’s two bricks were worth it—I and Jin Peng carefully watched—those people weren’t tough at all, couldn’t cause trouble...”

Hao Jian was a shrewd one—he immediately began subtly praising Wang Qiangqiang, sensing Li Ye’s concern.

Of course, today’s events also showed him that he couldn’t venture into the provincial capital alone—he needed these two as backup.

With Hao Jian livening things up, the table quickly warmed up—the five ate and drank merrily.

But slowly, Li Ye noticed Li Dayong’s mood was off.

His childhood friend’s gaze at Li Ye seemed filled with... resentment.

Li Ye asked: “Dayong, what’s that look for?”

Li Dayong lowered his head: “Bro, you all went to the provincial capital together—why didn’t you take me? Do you think I’m useless?”

Only now, after hearing Jin Peng and Hao Jian’s lively tales, did Li Dayong finally realize.

He’d just assumed they’d gone to the capital to make some money and were now treating him and Li Ye to a feast.

But now he saw—they were in business together, a real “big deal” worth several yuan at a time—and he’d been left out entirely.

He asked himself: how could his relationship with Li Ye possibly justify leaving him behind?