Capítulo 445: Chapter 445 Follow
Qu Fang never expected Xiao Tong, that kid, to be such an old soul in a young body.
He thought so too. Going too early would make him seem too interested in her, and after all, she was just a girl from the countryside. If it weren’t for the fact that her family was fairly well-off and she could make money, would he even look at her?
Initially, he had planned to approach Yang Peiying by offering help and borrowing things a few times, naturally leading her to warm up to him. Unexpectedly, she was like a block of wood, only capable of saying thank you or nodding without uttering another word. Later on, it became even more common not to see her at all. It was his mother who came up with a plan, knowing that Yang Peiying was good friends with that Lin Family girl. They bribed the Li Family girl a little, to speak well of him in front of Yang Peiying. But Yang Peiying remained unmoved. He had never met someone so wooden, so ugly, and so mute—it was unprecedented.
Then he and his mother felt that this method was ineffective, just like a stubborn lantern that wouldn’t light no matter how hard you tried.
His mother bit the bullet and gave two yuan to the Lin Family girl, to arrange a meeting with Yang Peiying. They worked to change the public perception, making a few moves until everyone thought they were courting. By that time, the Yang Family wouldn’t be able to refuse them. To their surprise, the plan was eventually foiled by that old woman from the Yang Family, who openly criticized them and caused them to be the butt of the neighborhood’s jokes. The Qu Family’s face was almost entirely lost.
Did they think their daughter was gold-trimmed or something? How could she look down on him? He didn’t even fancy her, did he! His mother also said she would find a better girl for him. Let that ugly Yang Peiying cry when she couldn’t get married!
But a few months later, a coworker mentioned that someone was selling delicious meals at the factory entrance, addictive as could be. He invited Qu Fang to try it with them.
Qu Fang asked about the price and found it too expensive. This one meal would cost his whole family their day’s food. After buying his father’s medicine this month, he hardly had money left over, and his mother was even considering reducing their three meals a day to two. They could hardly afford such luxuries.
He thought his coworker’s suggestion was excessive, yet a few of his coworkers went and came back sitting beside him, eating. The scent was indeed delightful. He looked over and saw the oily, brightly colored, appetizing food. He swallowed hard twice, forcing himself to look away, but couldn’t help overhearing the coworkers discussing the siblings who sold the food.
“They are quite generous. Look, there’s chicken in here. It wouldn’t cost much less to make it ourselves, and it wouldn’t taste as good. Look how well they’ve made the tofu; it’s like eating meat. I heard from the young man that they’re just making enough to cover their hard work.”
“Indeed, it’s much tastier than what you’d get in a restaurant. I think it’s great to have it every other day, and it would be even better with some liquor. We can afford it, so next time I’ll buy some for my mother and wife to try.”
“It’s good we went early. By the time those people behind us arrived, they had already sold out.”
Overheard by Qu Fang, he couldn’t help but think about how much money the siblings were making. He asked, “Is there really such a crowd buying? Don’t you think the food is quite expensive?”
His coworker just laughed, “Try it and you’ll know whether it’s expensive or not!”
“How many meals do they sell a day? And so many people buy from them.”
“Improving the meal every three or two days isn’t a big deal. They say they are short-handed, so they only make a bit just for lunch, none for the evening. Probably sell around a hundred or two hundred servings at noon.”
“How much money would that be!” Qu Fang exclaimed in amazement.
His coworker just shook his head, “Definitely more than we make working. But you know, not everyone dares to do this. They must be in dire straits to take this path. Weren’t you speculating a few years back? Who knows if the policy might change?” He said this with a sense of leftover fear.
Qu Fang nodded, indeed that was true. The best would be for the siblings to get caught and criticized.
Once, because he didn’t bring enough money, he had to go home for lunch. Passing by the factory entrance, he saw the siblings selling meals. From a distance, he recognized them as Yang Peiying and her brother.
He was shocked. The Yang Family was not poor, so why should they stoop to such a lowly job?
Could it be that’s how their family made money? Oh, right, they also had a soldier in the family. Who knew what rank he was? Others might risk doing such things, but the Yang Family probably faced no risks with a soldier in their house—yes, that had to be it!
Couldn’t sleep that night at home, he tossed and turned, pondering over Yang Peiying’s situation. This was a big, juicy piece of fat, right in front of him. He just needed to stick out his tongue to taste it—no way he would just watch that fat fly away.
After discussing with his mother, she slapped her thigh, “You fool, isn’t this a money tree? Who cares about the risks? If anything happens, we just kick her to the curb!”
Hearing this, Qu Fang’s eyes lit up. His mother was indeed far-sighted. Ideally, in two or three years, after they had made enough money, they could just kick her away and he could marry a beautiful girl. Having been with a handsome and tall man like him for two or three years, that ugly Yang Peiying would also consider herself lucky, and she probably wouldn’t dare say a word.
With this idea, he acted immediately. Given how his family and the Yang Family had nearly fallen out recently, if he approached them now, they would definitely suspect his motives. So, he sought the help of the Lin Family girl once more to act as a go-between.
However, when he arrived at the cinema, he didn’t see Yang Peiying anywhere. He looked around the entrance but found no trace of her.
Xiao Tong then said, “We were too slow. That girl might have already gone inside because the movie’s about to start. What if they don’t let you in?”
Right, Yang Peiying that country girl must have never seen a movie before. Wouldn’t she be in a rush to get inside? Qu Fang nodded.
He smiled at Xiao Tong, “Kid, just wait here nicely, huh?”
Xiao Tong made a face, “Then won’t I have to wait for over an hour?”
Qu Fang laughed nefariously.
Xiao Tong gritted his teeth and fished in his pocket, “No way, I can’t just wait here for nothing. I’ve got over two yuan left on me, money I earned from hard labor. I haven’t seen a movie in a long time, so today, Brother Tong is treating you guys to a movie!”
Watching as the other kids cheered and rushed by.
“Great, let’s go in together. Let’s see this sacred figure that Brother Qu is courting. I’m afraid she might slip away later with the crowd, and it’d be tough to explain when we go back.”
“That makes sense.”