Chapter 150 Meeting an Old Acquaintance Again

"I haven't even said anything yet," Xiao Li said, giving Liu Xing a resentful glare. "If you buy them, it will be a huge benefit to your shoe store's business. At least you can solve the problem of insufficient material supply for making shoes."

"How do you figure that?" Liu Xing was intrigued, but he remained somewhat wary of this girl.

"You should know that I used my connections over the past couple of days to buy a lot of used tires, right?" Seeing the sky overcast and threatening rain, Xiao Li had to speed up her talking. "Now that the supply cooperative I managed has been sealed up, I naturally can't keep these used tires anymore. So I want to sell them to you as travel money to go back home."

"Isn't your home in HY City?" Liu Xing asked, feeling curious.

"It's in Dongzhou Province, far away!" Xiao Li replied.

"Alright!" Liu Xing caught the meaning behind Xiao Li's words. If she wasn't playing any smart tricks, he had truly hit the jackpot of luck. "But how can I trust that after I give you the money, I'll actually receive the used tires you bought?"

"Logically, they should be arriving soon. Just wait a moment, there are seven truckloads of used tires in total!" Saying this, Xiao Li reached out to wipe a tear from the corner of her eye. "I originally bought them through connections for five hundred yuan, including the transportation cost. You can just give me three hundred yuan now."

"Are you going to do it or not?" Seeing Liu Xing's indifferent attitude, Xiao Li stamped her foot in anger.

After all, from her perspective, Liu Xing was only sixteen or seventeen years old, so his temperament shouldn't be so calm and steady.

"Yes, but you must let me see the seven truckloads of used tires first." Liu Xing didn't want to waste any more breath on Xiao Li. "If there really are seven truckloads of used tires, I won't short you a single penny of the five hundred yuan."

Given Xiao Li's current plight, taking advantage of her was not in his character.

"You're being serious?" Hearing Liu Xing say this, Xiao Li turned her tears into a smile and led his people to wait by the street.

Watching Xiao Li's receding figure, Liu Xing felt an inexplicable sense of sorrow for some reason.

With a long sigh, he stopped letting his imagination run wild and instead walked into the shoe store to help sort out the shoes they had brought.

At the main entrance, Tang Si and Old Zhang's wife saw that Liu Xing and Xiao Li had finished talking and hurriedly crowded around.

Tang Si awkwardly asked Liu Xing, "Little Xing, c-can I still come to your place to work and make money?"

"Don't ask me about that; go ask my mom!" Liu Xing smiled. "If she wants to keep you, I have no objections."

"Alright!" Hearing Liu Xing say this, Tang Si quickly pulled Old Zhang's wife and a few other young wives away.

Seeing this scene, Liu Dongju couldn't help but walk over. "Little brother, you still want to keep these ungrateful people around to help out?"

"Not at all," Liu Xing replied.

"Then just now..." Liu Dongju was thoroughly puzzled.

"What does Mom hate the most?" Liu Xing asked, leaning against the main door.

"Ungrateful people," Liu Dongju replied without a second thought.

"That settles it then." Liu Xing spread his hands. "If I chased Tang Si away directly, it would be a bit inappropriate among fellow villagers. But Mom is different. After all, she was the one who originally let Tang Si come work here. Even if she tells them to get lost now, they won't have anything to say."

"In other words, you want to make Mom play the bad guy!" Liu Dongju teased.

"I never said that!" Liu Xing waved his hands in denial, smiled, and went back to his work.

Liu Dongju smiled as well.

Only then did she realize that her younger brother was extremely smooth and worldly in his dealings—an old fox.

No, a little fox.

This kind of personality might seem a bit unlikable, but in reality, it ensured he would never lose out anywhere.

Yet, that didn't seem quite right either, because Liu Xing gave everything without reservation to her and their family.

This was completely contrary to the way an old fox behaved.

"He really is an inscrutable person." After shaking her head with a self-deprecating smile, Liu Dongju went to the kitchen to cook.

……

Half an hour later.

The street surface of the entire market suddenly began to vibrate slightly.

This startled Liu Xing, who was playing with Guazi.

However, seeing several large trucks appearing on the street, the heart hanging in his chest finally settled.

In other words, the vibration of the street was entirely caused by these large trucks.

The open-air cargo beds of these trucks were piled high with used tires.

Led by Xiao Li, they slowly drove toward the shoe store.

Seeing this, Liu Xing couldn't help but smile.

It seemed Xiao Li really intended to leave HY City this time; otherwise, she would never sell so many used tires to him at such a cheap price!

Seeing the commotion, Liu Dongju also walked out. Staring at the massive pile of used tires, she was stunned. "Little brother, did you buy these?"

"More or less," Liu Xing replied.

"Wait, why is Xiao Li back?" Liu Dongju was puzzled.

Liu Xing didn't answer, stepping forward instead. "My dear Miss Xiao, it seems your previous plan was to completely trample me underfoot! Fortunately, heaven takes care of the fortunate, or I really would have had a hard time escaping this disaster."

"Stop talking nonsense. There are seven truckloads of used tires in total. Hand over the money!" Xiao Li said coldly.

"How can I pay you before the goods are unloaded?" Liu Xing had no intention of being scammed.

Xiao Li glared at Liu Xing. Having no other choice, she led her people to start unloading the used tires from the trucks.

As for the storage location, it was naturally the backyard of Liu Dongju's house.

Seeing that Xiao Li was not playing tricks, Liu Xing called over a dozen villagers—including Zhao Dongkui, Zhao Liang, and Zhao Gou—to help unload the large trucks.

Many hands make light work. Half an hour later, all the used tires had been unloaded.

Because the backyard couldn't hold them all, a significant pile accumulated right at the entrance of the shoe store.

However, none of this mattered. Brushing the dust off his clothes, Liu Xing took out five hundred yuan and handed it to Xiao Li. "Keep your money safe. Be careful on the road back though, don't end up like Liu Siwen, showing off your wealth and getting robbed in the end."

"Thanks for your kind wishes." Taking the money, Xiao Li and her people climbed onto the truck bed and left.

Liu Xing watched her depart in the distance. Suddenly, he noticed Xiao Li look back at him, her phoenix-shaped eyes shimmering with crystal tears.

……

Time flew by, and evening arrived.

After finishing dinner, Liu Xing was getting ready to take a bath.

Zhao Gou, accompanied by his mother Zhong Ping and three other women from Old House Village, came looking for him.

"Little Xing, what you told Zhao Gou earlier about the market management office hiring cleaners—is that true?" As soon as they met, Zhong Ping couldn't wait to ask.

"Yes, it's true," Liu Xing nodded.

"We are all here to report for duty. We already cleaned up the garbage on the street earlier. Zhao Liang's mother also wanted to come, but she hadn't eaten yet, so she went back to cook," Zhong Ping said with a smile, stating the purpose of their visit.

"That works!" Liu Xing scratched his head. "Though we can only hire a maximum of five cleaners. Any more than that, and the market management office won't be able to afford them."

"We know," a pockmarked woman quickly chimed in.

"Then just go to the market street on time tomorrow to clean up. I'll go inspect when I have time." Seeing that the women looked somewhat familiar, Liu Xing didn't ask further and gave his direct approval.

"Our idea was to have you go to the market right now to see how we cleaned up, so you can at least give us a standard!" The pockmarked woman exchanged a glance with Zhong Ping before voicing her thoughts.

After all, finding a job wasn't easy, and each of them wanted to do a good job.

"Alright then!" Liu Xing looked at the sky and saw the moon had come out, meaning it wouldn't rain. With a smile, he walked toward the street.

A grinning Zhao Gou followed behind with his mother and the three women.

……

Because of the rain over the past few days, the streets of the market were damp everywhere.

To Liu Xing's surprise, however, the mud on the road had been thoroughly cleaned away.

In some prominent areas, the ground was even clean enough to shine.

If not for the uneven potholes detracting from the appearance, he would have genuinely suspected he had come to the wrong place.

Recovering his wits, he quickly looked at Zhong Ping. "Did you and everyone else clean this market street this afternoon?"

"My son helped a lot too," Zhong Ping replied with a smile.

"Then thank you all for your hard work," Liu Xing said with heartfelt emotion. "No need to look any further; it's cleaned so well that even if I wanted to find fault, I couldn't."

"Oh, right!" Liu Xing glanced at the surrounding tents and shops. "The cleaning duties of our market management office are limited to public areas. Places like the insides of the tents and the doorways of private shops do not fall under our jurisdiction. Don't make any mistakes about that."

"Then what if we take their money, and they demand that we clean?" the pockmarked woman voiced her worry.

After all, in this era, whoever had money was the boss.

Village women like them were treated as lesser beings no matter where they went.

"Hehe... First of all, I must tell you that the money you receive does not come from them, but from the market management office. Although the money is collected from them, it is completely reasonable and legal. Since we are acting reasonably and legally, why should we care about their attitudes?" Liu Xing explained with a smile.

These words caused Zhong Ping and the three women to nod in agreement, their backs straightening quite a bit.

"In short, you belong to the market management office, and what you manage is the environmental hygiene of the market. Sometimes, you can even supervise them. Remember not to let your status change your mindset." Seeing steam rising from the steamer baskets of a nearby steamed bun shop, Liu Xing couldn't help walking over.

It wasn't that he wanted to eat a meat bun, but rather that he wanted to buy a few to take back for Guazi, Lanlan, Xiaodoudou, and the other children.

The next second, however, he froze completely.

He spotted a familiar female figure at the entrance of the bun shop.

This woman was holding a young boy with her right hand and carrying an infant in her arms.

To anyone else, this would be an utterly ordinary sight.

Yet in Liu Xing's mind, it stirred up monstrous waves.

The reason for this reaction was simple: this woman was none other than Ma Xiaomei, the human trafficker who had almost abducted Guazi before his rebirth.

To encounter her here in the market after being reborn was truly unexpected.

Noticing that the little boy in Ma Xiaomei's hands didn't look like he was being abducted—since he was laughing and talking with her—Liu Xing decided not to overthink it for the moment and instead turned around to head back with Zhao Gou and Zhong Ping.

After all, without evidence, he couldn't just act recklessly against Ma Xiaomei.

However, he took the matter to heart. On the way back, he instructed Zhao Gou to send someone to keep a close watch on Ma Xiaomei in secret.

It wasn't that he was being hypersensitive, but he felt that Ma Xiaomei's appearance in the market at this particular time was somewhat suspicious.

After all, tomorrow was the market day.

If Ma Xiaomei took advantage of the bustling crowds to kidnap a vendor's child in the market, he, as the person in charge of the market, would be hard-pressed to escape blame.

……

At the entrance of the shoe store, Liu Dongju was chatting with Village Chief Zhao, who was smoking a dry tobacco pipe.

Seeing Liu Xing return, the village chief immediately asked, "Did you see Zhao Jing in the market just now?"

"No, I didn't?" Liu Xing replied.

"That's strange." Village Chief Zhao frowned. "Normally, little Jingjing is either here at your sister's place or playing at her uncle's house. She rarely goes anywhere else. But today, even though it's already dark, there's still no trace of her!"

"Don't worry," Liu Xing comforted Village Chief Zhao. "When did Zhao Jing go missing?"

"How would I know? I was busy transplanting rice seedlings and didn't pay attention!" Village Chief Zhao said with regret.

If he had paid attention, this kind of thing wouldn't have happened at all.

"How about this? I'll ask Dongkui to help look for her in the market, and we can also get the neighbors to rally their friends to search. The market is a bit big, but finding Jingjing shouldn't take long," Liu Dongju suggested.

"That's all we can do," Village Chief Zhao nodded in agreement.

"Then let's not waste any time." Liu Xing dashed straight toward the market.

Liu Dongju didn't comfort Village Chief Zhao any further; she called Zhao Dongkui and followed right behind.

Guazi, Little Dot, Lanlan, and Xiaodou all wanted to follow, but they were promptly swept back to the backyard with a broom.

After all, this wasn't child's play. If Zhao Jing was found only for the others to get lost as well, that was the last thing anyone wanted to see.

The news of Zhao Jing's disappearance spread like wildfire, quickly sweeping through the entire market.

Many villagers spontaneously ran out to help search, and several vendors who had a good relationship with Village Chief Zhao even brought their people to check the places Zhao Jing frequented.

Yet, strangely enough, every single place had been thoroughly searched, and there was still no sign of Zhao Jing.

Thinking she might have gone home early, Village Chief Zhao ran back to check his house.

The result, however, left him utterly disappointed.

Not only was Zhao Jing nowhere to be seen, but the neighbors had no news of her either.

Having no other choice, he had to check the fields and the pond.

He was terrified that Zhao Jing might have accidentally slipped into the pond on her way home.

If that were true, Zhao Jing's chances of survival would be slim.

At that thought, Village Chief Zhao felt like dying.

"Jing'er..."

"Zhao Jing..."

"Where are you... Zhao Jing!"

"Don't scare your uncle!"

In the market, dozens of members of the Zhao family gathered spontaneously. Holding flashlights and torches, they walked down alleys and streets they didn't usually frequent, their shouts echoing back and forth across the entire market.

Yet despite such a massive display, there was still no trace of Zhao Jing.

This drove Village Chief Zhao to tears, leaving the rest of the Zhao family at their wits' end.

Just as everyone was wondering what to do, Liu Xing suddenly appeared before Village Chief Zhao, running with a torch in hand. "Have you seen Zhao Gou?"

"No," Village Chief Zhao replied through his tears.

"Then we need to find him as soon as possible. Maybe finding him will lead us to Zhao Jing." With that, Liu Xing ran toward Zhao Gou's house with his torch.

"Little Xing, what do you mean by that?" Village Chief Zhao chased after him.

A dozen other members of the Zhao family nearby quickly followed suit.

"I can't explain it all at once, but you have to trust me," Liu Xing shouted back as he ran.

"Liu Xing, I saw Zhao Gou taking the dog toward the riverbank tents earlier," a robust member of the Zhao family called out.

"Riverbank tents? Whose?" Liu Xing looked at the robust Zhao family member trailing behind.

"Tang Lin's, but his family doesn't live there anymore. They rented it out to a few outsiders who are doing business," the robust man replied, sharing everything he knew.

"Let's go take a look." With that, Liu Xing had the robust man lead the way, and the group rapidly sprinted toward the river.

The riverbank was actually not far from the market—only a little over a thousand meters away.

Along the riverbank stood several dilapidated plastic-film sheds.

These sheds had previously been tofu workshops.

Later, when the tofu sellers moved into the market, the sheds were abandoned.

However, some outsiders rented them from time to time, though no one knew their specific names or where they came from.

These outsiders came and went without a fixed residence, sometimes even changing two or three batches of people in a single week.

To Liu Xing, who was not a native of Old House Village, the inside details of this were naturally unknown.

Seeing the sheds illuminated by torches not far ahead, he quickened his pace.

Just as he was about to cross the river, he ran into Zhao Gou and the dog returning across the wooden bridge.

Seeing Liu Xing leading such a large crowd, the two of them were startled.

Liu Xing, however, paid no attention to that, nor did he have time for explanations. He demanded, "Where are the people I told you to watch?"

"In the shed, eating dinner. We felt awkward hanging around, so we came back," Zhao Gou said, scratching his head.

"I heard a lot of people shouting Zhao Jing's name just now. What happened to her?" the dog chimed in.

"She's missing. We've been looking for nearly an hour and can't find her anywhere," Village Chief Zhao said, wiping his tears.

"That's right. I brought all these people out precisely to find Zhao Jing," Liu Xing sighed softly. "No more nonsense. Take me to the woman you were told to watch."

"Okay! Okay!" Realizing Zhao Jing was missing, Zhao Gou immediately rushed to the front to lead the way.

Liu Xing, Village Chief Zhao, and the dozen other Zhao family members quickly followed.

"The woman you had me watch lives in the second shed. Her husband and kids are both home!" Zhao Gou said as he walked. "I even ate two sweet potatoes at home earlier. If you ask me, Zhao Jing couldn't possibly be at her place."

"Can't we go check just in case?" Liu Xing cast a sidelong glance at Zhao Gou.

His suspicion of this woman, Ma Xiaomei, was not without foundation. After all, before his rebirth, she had been a human trafficker.

If Guazi hadn't been lucky, she would have been lured away by Ma Xiaomei with a piece of milk candy long ago.

Noticing Liu Xing's stern expression, Zhao Gou gave an awkward smile and stopped talking nonsense, instead accelerating his pace toward the second shed by the riverbank.

This massive procession instantly drew the residents living in the sheds out into the open.

Ma Xiaomei's family was no exception. Holding the infant in her arms and with a small boy by her side, she stood at her doorway, looking somewhat bewildered at Liu Xing's approaching group.