Chapter 128: If You’re Going to Beat Your Little Brother, Do It Early

On the road, Ding Lan appeared with Yang Zhiyou, the head of the rural cooperative, chatting and laughing together.

When the two of them saw the director of Zhongyi Distillery standing at the entrance of the shoe shop, they were both startled. After all, they knew Liu Siwen and were familiar with his background.

For no apparent reason, he had turned up outside the shoe shop. Clearly, something was not right.

Still, neither of them dared ask any questions. Pretending they had not seen him, they walked into the shop.

Of course, Liu Siwen did not know Ding Lan or Yang Zhiyou. He paid no attention to the people coming and going at the entrance, and he did not even notice Zhang Xiangjun, who had been watching the show inside the shop.

Before long, he lost patience waiting outside. After finishing a cigarette, he turned around and went back into the shop.

This time, he was greeted by Zhao Gou’s fierce glare.

The reason was simple: Yang Zhiyou and Ding Lan were counting money, while Liu Xing watched from the side.

In other words, anyone with a little sense would know not to approach them at such a moment.

But Liu Siwen charged straight ahead.

If Zhao Gou did not pick on him, who else could he pick on?

Liu Siwen, however, was a worldly and smooth operator. Once he understood the situation, he hurriedly retreated from the shop.

Only after Yang Zhiyou came out carrying a woven sack full of money, followed by Ding Lan and Liu Xing, did Liu Siwen breathe a sigh of relief and approach them again.

What puzzled him was what exactly this newly opened shoe shop had done. How had it suddenly made so much money?

Before he could finish the thought, Li Dawei pushed him away from Liu Xing.

“What are you doing?” Liu Siwen had already been simmering with anger, and now he finally exploded.

“Liu Xing said he doesn’t want to see you.” Li Dawei was not intimidated. Instead, he replied cheerfully.

“Who would believe you?”

Liu Siwen tried to follow Liu Xing, but the next moment he froze.

Zhang Xiangjun had appeared at the entrance of the shoe shop, smiling at him.

“What brings you here?” Liu Siwen could not help asking.

To him, Zhang Xiangjun’s background was far from ordinary. She was someone he absolutely could not afford to offend.

“What? You can come here, but I can’t?” Zhang Xiangjun suddenly wiped the smile from her face. “I’m warning the two of you. Today is the grand opening of my nephew Liu Xing’s shoe shop. Don’t cause any trouble. Otherwise, you know what the consequences will be.”

She had not originally intended to say anything.

But when she remembered that her husband was still nearby, laying a trap to catch the cattle thief Zhu Dachang, she could not hold back.

She was afraid that Liu Siwen and Li Dawei would end up like Xiao Yang and ruin her husband’s plan.

How could Liu Siwen have known what Zhang Xiangjun was thinking? Nevertheless, her words cowed him. Though astonished, he could only leave the area around the shoe shop in frustration.

Seeing this, Li Dawei followed him.

He was not a fool. For Zhang Xiangjun to say something so harsh, it was proof that the relationship between her and Liu Xing was far from ordinary.

If he and Liu Siwen still refused to heed her warning, then their trip to the market would have been utterly pointless.

...

In the blink of an eye, it was one in the afternoon.

As the crowds dispersed, the noisy market gradually fell silent.

Seeing that no one else was coming to buy shoes, Liu Xing said something to Liu Ziran and walked out of the shop.

At the entrance, Zhao Dongkui had already set up three tables in the open space.

The relatives who had come to offer their congratulations, along with Village Chief Zhao, Zhao Hu, Zhang Jinde, Nie Quan, Nie Sun, and the others, were already seated around the wooden tables, drinking tea and chatting.

The fragrance of stir-fried dishes drifted out from the kitchen.

Ding Lan and Zhang Xiangjun were helping with the cooking, carrying dish after dish out to place on the tables.

Seeing that everyone who ought to have arrived was there—and that no one who should not have come had shown up—Liu Xing casually sat down beside Nie Quan.

“Uncle, how was business today?”

Because of what had happened with Zhu Dachang the day before, Nie Quan had decided to come to the market himself and sell the small stools he had made, just in case. Liu Xing knew this, which was why he asked.

Nie Quan immediately replied, “You wouldn’t believe it. Business was excellent. The little stools I made were completely sold out by ten this morning.”

“That’s good to hear.” Liu Xing let out a sigh of relief.

“And how about you?” After pouring himself a cup of tea, Liu Xing turned to Village Chief Zhao.

“All the bamboo products sold out, and someone even placed an order for seven large baskets!” Village Chief Zhao replied happily, puffing on his dry tobacco pipe.

“My grandpa even bought me some popcorn,” Zhao Jing added cheerfully as she played nearby.

“That’s not bad. No one gave you any trouble, did they?” Liu Xing asked casually, lifting his teacup.

“Not at all,” Village Chief Zhao replied with a laugh.

Nie Quan laughed as well.

This time, they had finally come to believe Liu Xing’s words completely.

The reform and opening-up policies really did allow ordinary people to become prosperous.

Unlike in the past, when anyone who engaged in buying and selling could be branded a profiteer and arrested.

“Hm? Why do you look so unhappy?” Liu Xing asked when he noticed that the butcher, Zhang Jinde, was sitting across from him with his head lowered, smoking with a gloomy expression.

“Don’t mention it. Business at my pork stall was terrible. Apart from the pork belly and fatty meat, I didn’t sell a single piece of hind leg meat.” Zhang Jinde answered honestly.

“Sigh! It seems everyone’s pockets are still empty,” Village Chief Zhao said softly.

“That’s right. Business at my shoe shop was actually worse than I expected today.” Liu Xing took a small sip of tea. “But it’s only temporary. Just wait and see. In a few years, this situation will disappear.”

“But what am I supposed to do with the dozens of pounds of hind leg meat still sitting at my stall?” Zhang Jinde asked with a bitter smile, spreading his hands.

Anyone could offer words of comfort. The problem was that they did nothing to solve the immediate situation.

Liu Xing understood what he was implying. After thinking for a moment, he said, “If you can’t sell the lean meat, bring me a few pounds after we finish eating. Have you sold all the trotters and ribs? If not, bring those to my sister too.”

“You mean it?” Zhang Jinde asked quickly.

A deal that large was something he could hardly have hoped for.

“Do I look like I’m joking?” Liu Xing replied with a faint smile. Then he turned his head and glanced around. “By the way, where are Guaizi and Little Dot?”

“I saw them go over toward the cattle pen with Liu Ye. That girl in the wheelchair went with them too,” Liu Qiuyuan replied.

“What?”

A sudden sense of unease came over Liu Xing. As soon as he realized what might have happened, he jumped to his feet and ran toward the cattle pen.

“What happened, Xing-boy?” Village Chief Zhao called out worriedly.

“Nothing,” Liu Xing answered without turning around, then disappeared from everyone’s sight.

At the entrance to the cattle pen, several wooden rails as thick as a man’s arm had been removed and placed to one side.

The black calf that had been kept inside was gone.

When Liu Xing spotted cigarette butts scattered across the ground nearby, he grew frantic and shouted, “Liu Ye! Guaizi! Where are you?”

“Little Dot!” he bellowed toward the surrounding area.

Yet—

the surroundings were deathly quiet. No one answered.

Liu Xing knew something was wrong. He was about to run back and inform Zhang Xiangjun when several small heads emerged from the pine woods to the right.

Guaizi, Little Dot, and the other children had been hiding there.

When they saw Liu Xing’s anxious expression, they quickly ducked back out of sight.

Unfortunately, Liu Xing noticed them.

Not only did he see Guaizi and Little Dot, he also saw Liu Ye and Li Weiwei riding on the black calf’s back.

The two of them were chatting and laughing, completely unaware of how worried Liu Xing had been.

Li Dawei also appeared among the pines. Seeing how happy Li Weiwei was, he looked deeply pleased.

Liu Xing, however, was furious.

At that moment, he could no longer suppress his anger.

After clenching his fists, he strode quickly toward the black calf.

Before anyone could react, he reached out and stroked one of its horns. The black calf immediately knelt down.

Then, without a word, Liu Xing raised his hand and slapped Liu Ye across the face.

The muffled crack left Liu Ye rooted to the spot, completely stunned.

Even Li Weiwei was badly frightened.

Guaizi and Little Dot were dumbfounded.

In their eyes, Liu Xing had always been gentle. He had never hit anyone before.

When Liu Ye came back to himself, he climbed down from the calf, covered his face, and began to cry in grievance.

“Brother! Why did you hit me?”

“Why did I hit you? Don’t you know perfectly well?” Liu Xing planted his hands on his hips, anger blazing across his face. “Last night I told you that the cattle thief Zhu Dachang had come to the market. Did you think I was joking?”

At home, Liu Xing’s parents generally did not dare ride the black calf.

Liu Ye had not dared to ride it either. But after helping raise the calf for several days, he had finally been able to climb onto its back.

Naturally, the calf accepted him because of Liu Xing. Without that bond, an ordinary stranger might feed it for an entire month and still be unable to approach it.

Liu Xing had originally thought this was a good thing.

Now, it seemed he had been completely wrong.

The scene before him was proof. So many children were following behind the calf, while Zhu Dachang might be watching from somewhere in the shadows. If the calf suddenly panicked and ran wild, and no one could control it, the consequences would be unimaginable.

When Liu Xing had first begun letting the black calf roam freely, something like that had happened to him.

The crazed animal had stepped on his toes and crushed them. He had needed three months of rest at home before he recovered.

And now Liu Ye had taken Li Weiwei riding on the calf, with Guaizi, Little Dot, and the other children following close behind.

If Zhu Dachang had not been involved, it might not have been such a serious matter. After all, the calf knew Guaizi and Little Dot. Under normal circumstances, it would not hurt anyone unless absolutely forced to.

But Zhu Dachang had not yet been caught, and he had openly declared that he would kill the black calf.

Under such circumstances, Liu Ye had still dared to take Li Weiwei riding on it.

Wasn’t that simply courting death?

Wasn’t that asking to be beaten?

Seeing that Liu Ye had taken his words to heart and was beginning to regret what he had done, Liu Xing’s tone softened. He continued earnestly, “Do you know that Xiao Yang was stabbed by Zhu Dachang and still hasn’t recovered? You misbehave and refuse to listen on ordinary days, and that’s bad enough. But what if Zhu Dachang had run into you today and stabbed you to death? What then?”

“If something happened to Guaizi or Little Dot, how would you explain it to our parents?”

“Or if Li Weiwei were killed, how would you answer to Li Dawei?”

“You’re already in middle school. You’re not some ignorant little child anymore!”

The long scolding made Liu Ye wish he could find a crack in the ground and crawl into it. Unable to hold back any longer, he burst into tears.

“Brother, stop scolding me, please! I know I was wrong. I didn’t actually want to ride the black calf. Uncle Li begged me to do it. He said Sister Weiwei wanted to ride it.”

Upon hearing this, Liu Xing turned toward Li Dawei, his face darkening.

Seeing the embarrassment on Li Dawei’s face, Liu Xing lifted Li Weiwei down from the black calf and placed her in the wheelchair nearby.

Then he led the calf away, taking Guaizi and Little Dot with him.

He knew he had let his temper get the better of him.

After all, Liu Ye, Guaizi, and Little Dot knew nothing about how Li Dawei had joined forces with Director Zhang and Old Yu to set him up.

If they had known, they probably would never have played with Li Weiwei.

That was not Liu Xing taking sides with the children. It was simply the truth.

Of course, Li Weiwei herself might also have been innocent.

But Liu Xing had no intention of going back to apologize.

In his heart, the black calf’s safety was far more important than Li Weiwei.