Chapter 155: Good Deeds Bring Good Rewards

The noon meal was not yet finished when the sound of a car horn echoed from the country road outside.

Guazi ran out to take a look and saw Li Dawei driving a sedan with Li Weiwei in the passenger seat. She was utterly thrilled. "Brother! Brother! Director Li is here to see you."

"Is that so?" Liu Xing put down his bowl and chopsticks and walked outside.

When he saw that it really was Li Dawei, he couldn't help smiling. "I was actually planning to head over to the Hengshui Winery to find you after finishing my meal! I didn't expect you to come yourself."

"I had no choice! Three more wine-bottling machines broke down at the plant." Li Dawei stepped out of the driver's seat carrying cartons of cigarettes and liquor, paying no mind to Li Weiwei for the moment. "Have you eaten? If so, shall we go to the Hengshui Winery right now to help repair them?"

At this juncture, if Liu Xing didn't step in to help, Li Dawei simply wouldn't be able to hold his ground much longer. After all, those maintenance workers at the Hengshui Winery were seasoned old slickers who refused to listen to anyone.

Of course, even if they did listen, it didn't mean they were capable of fixing anything.

Otherwise, the Hengshui Winery wouldn't have ended up in its current state.

"Alright," Liu Xing nodded.

Since he had already accepted the twenty thousand yuan from the Hengshui Winery, he naturally needed to fulfill his promise as quickly as possible.

"However, you should take your cigarettes and liquor back! I don't smoke or drink." Seeing Li Dawei heading toward the house, Liu Xing immediately spoke up to remind him.

"I brought these for your dad, not for you," Li Dawei teased with a smirk.

Seeing that Liu Xing looked somewhat awkward, Li Dawei didn't dwell on it and walked straight into the main hall.

Liu Xing shook his head, thinking to himself that this old fox Li Dawei was truly cunning, using a diversion tactic against him. Still, he wasn't afraid, because even if these cigarettes and liquor were given to him, he deserved them entirely.

Noticing that Li Weiwei wanted to get out of the car, he walked over, accompanied by Guazi and Lanlan.

"Brother Liu Xing," Li Weiwei greeted him with a sweet smile.

"Hmm," Liu Xing opened the car door and wheeled Li Weiwei down from the vehicle.

He originally intended to casually ask about the situation at the Hengshui Winery over the past two days, but suddenly he froze.

In the back seat of the sedan, luggage was piled high.

Feeling rather puzzled, Liu Xing looked at Li Weiwei. "Are you moving?"

"Yes. To support you in repairing the bottling equipment, my dad sold our house," Li Weiwei replied after a brief hesitation.

"Wait... what does me repairing equipment have to do with selling a house?"

Hearing this, Liu Xing scratched his head in utter confusion.

After all, Li Dawei wouldn't sell his house and smash pots and pans just for his sake.

"Because most of the leaders at the Hengshui Winery strongly disagreed with letting you fix the bottling equipment. They trusted the five ace repairmen hired by the Zhongyi Winery instead, so they restricted my dad's authority and even demanded that the twenty thousand yuan given to you be taken back. To avoid going back on his word, my dad sold the house and returned the money to the finance department." Seeing that her father Li Dawei had not yet come out, Li Weiwei lowered her voice and explained the reason.

"What?" Hearing this, Liu Xing felt a heavy knot in his stomach.

He originally wanted to ask a few more questions, but ultimately kept his mouth shut.

He knew that asking more was useless; the only way to resolve Li Dawei's current predicament was to fix the bottling equipment as quickly as possible.

He just couldn't understand why the leaders of the Hengshui Winery didn't trust Li Dawei and refused to utilize his skills. Could it simply be because he was only sixteen years old?

"What a bunch of fools," Liu Xing muttered to himself inwardly before turning and walking toward the main hall.

As for Li Weiwei, he didn't worry too much about her; with Guazi and Lanlan keeping her company, nothing should go wrong.

Inside the main hall, Li Dawei was chatting cheerfully with Liu Dazhao.

Seeing Liu Xing enter, Li Dawei immediately said, "I've already talked it over with your dad. We're going to hang out at the Hengshui Winery later, so don't you go meddling!"

"Hang out? Heh..." Liu Xing smiled. "You'd better worry more about your own situation! Now that your house is sold, where are you and Weiwei going to live?"

"You... how do you know?" The color drained from Li Dawei's face.

"Weiwei told me. Enough nonsense, let's go! We'll talk at the Hengshui Winery," Liu Xing said with a frown.

"Fine!" Li Dawei had no choice but to nod and walk outside.

Seeing this, Liu Dazhao hurriedly picked up the cigarettes and liquor from the wooden table and chased after them. "Old Li, take these back. I know things haven't been easy for you either."

"Don't be like that. Think of this as your younger brother showing some filial respect to you, alright?" Li Dawei turned back and said to Liu Dazhao.

"This..." Liu Dazhao felt rather embarrassed.

Just as he was wondering what to do, Liu Xing spoke up, "Dad, just accept it. This isn't the time to bicker."

"Alright!" Having no other choice, Liu Dazhao could only take the cigarettes and liquor back inside.

Li Dawei let out a sigh of relief and was about to turn the car around when he suddenly froze.

Along the winding country road, Director Wu was driving a jeep, heading straight toward Liu Xing's house as well.

That wasn't the crucial part; what mattered was that right behind it followed a brand-new black sedan, and judging by the license plate, it seemed to be from another region.

As it drew closer, they realized the sedan belonged to Guo Daquan, the largest leather magnate in Xiangnan Province.

"Why is he coming to Liu Xing's place too?"

After recovering his senses, Li Dawei was filled with deep puzzlement.

Liu Xing was also somewhat surprised by the vehicles on the country road, but without asking too many questions, he stepped forward to greet them. As Director Wu, Niu Lianfang, and Ding Lan got out of the jeep, Liu Xing smiled and said, "How strange. Why do you people keep running to my house every single day?"

"You'll have to ask yourself what good deed you've done." After Guo Daquan stepped out of the car, Ding Lan reached out and took a young boy from a woman in white who had stepped out of the back seat.

The boy looked somewhat familiar to Liu Xing, but he couldn't quite remember where he had seen him. Just as he was about to ask for clarification, Ding Lan spoke up, "We came here today at the request of Boss Guo to guide him here and thank you—thank you for rescuing his son from human traffickers."

"This is his son, Guo Hongzhi." Ding Lan carried the little boy over and placed him in front of Liu Xing. "Hurry, say hello to your brother."

"Brother," the little boy said shyly.

Because he had a particularly deep impression of Liu Xing from that night, he immediately reached out, wanting Liu Xing to hold him.

"Huh?" Hearing this, Liu Xing froze, but recovering quickly, he scooped the little boy up into his arms.

Li Dawei watched in a daze. As far as he was concerned, this kid Liu Xing had absurdly good luck!

He had actually rescued the son of leather magnate Guo Daquan; there was no way he wouldn't soar to success after this.

Because as far as he knew, Guo Daquan's personal assets had reached the million-yuan level, and he had powerful backing behind the scenes, making him far more influential than a mere manager of the Hengshui Winery like himself.

Director Wu watched this scene with a smile. With his hands on his hips, he said to Liu Xing, "I originally wanted to find a time to arrange a meeting between Boss Guo and you, but now it seems there's no need for that at all."

"Hello, hello! My name is Guo Daquan, though people usually call me Black Guo."

"Thank you for saving my son." Guo Daquan immediately reached out his right hand toward Liu Xing.

"Hello! Nice to meet you." Liu Xing handed Guo Hongzhi over to Ding Lan and quickly reached out to shake Guo Daquan's hand.

Seeing many passing villagers stopping to watch the excitement, Niu Lianfang suggested, "Shall we go inside to talk?"

"Well..." Liu Xing looked at Li Daquan.

"Sure, sure. We've got plenty of time," Li Daquan readily expressed his agreement.

"We certainly do have time. Let me tell you, those five ace repairmen hired by the Zhongyi Winery are complete frauds. Not only did they wine and dine at the winery's expense last night, but they also absconded with forty-six thousand yuan from the Zhongyi Winery. They haven't even been caught yet!" Director Wu looked at Li Daquan and teasingly revealed the news he had been dying to hear.

With this news out, it was without doubt that Liu Xing was now the only person left who could repair the bottling equipment. Previously, because of the competition, there was a sense of urgency, but now... naturally, he could do as he pleased.

After all, Liu Xing now held the upper hand!

"Y-you're telling the truth?" Hearing this, Li Daquan stood rooted to the spot, dumbfounded. When he finally regained his senses, he was ecstatic. "Hahaha... Liu Siwen is getting a taste of his own medicine today! With a fall that hard, I'd like to see how he turns things around."

"Would you stop gloating like that?"

Director Wu cast a side-long glance at Li Daquan, though he couldn't help chuckling along.

Back then, in order to help the Zhongyi Winery get its bottling equipment fixed as quickly as possible, he had swallowed his pride and approached Liu Xing in person. He had expected Liu Siwen and Lu Su to appreciate his gesture, only for them to go back on their word and nearly anger him to death.

Though this current outcome wasn't what he had originally intended, for some reason, it felt immensely satisfying.

A teasing smile played across Liu Xing's face as well. "By the current logic, things have come full circle. Even if those five fraudsters are caught and the stolen forty-thousang-plus yuan is recovered, they'll still end up coming back to me to fix the bottling equipment, won't they?"

"Would you agree to it?" Director Wu looked at Liu Xing seriously.

Li Daquan, Ding Lan, and Niu Lianfang all held their breath, listening closely.

After all, Liu Xing's stance now concerned the entire fate of the Zhongyi Winery.

"Of course I wouldn't agree." Liu Xing put his hands behind his back and gazed off into the distant horizon, a wise and astute gleam in his eyes. "I am not someone Lu Su and Liu Siwen can summon at whim and dismiss at will. Earlier, when I unconditionally agreed to return the money, I had actually anticipated this day would come."

"Uncle, I can tell you quite frankly: even if the Zhongyi Winery begs you to ask me to step in again in the future, I will never touch those muddy waters again." After a brief pause, Liu Xing added, "Not for all the tea in China."

This wasn't about kicking a man while he was down; rather, Liu Siwen and Lu Su simply didn't know how to conduct themselves as human beings.

They had crossed his bottom line.

Therefore...

From now on, whether the Zhongyi Winery lived or died was none of his concern, and he would never meddle in their affairs again.

Previously, Lu Su had thought that a mere twenty thousand yuan could make him bow and scrape, willing to do anything.

That was pure wishful thinking. He was a person reborn into this world; if he wanted to make money, utilizing his memories of the future was as easy as pie.

Hearing Liu Xing say this, Director Wu let out a long sigh and patted Liu Xing on the shoulder. "Kid, don't speak with such absolute finality. After all, you haven't even successfully repaired a single bottling machine at the Hengshui Winery yet!"

If he managed to fix one, then naturally all the bargaining power would rest in Liu Xing's hands.

If not, then it was no different from empty boasting.

"That's only a matter of time." Knowing what Director Wu was thinking, Liu Xing smiled confidently. "Let's not talk about that anymore. Let's go inside and have some tea."

"Right." Director Wu nodded in agreement. Accompanied by Liu Xing, and followed by Ding Lan, Li Daquan, Guo Daquan, and Niu Lianfang, he walked into the brick-and-tile house.

As for Guo Hongzhi and the woman in white, they remained outside.

It wasn't that they didn't want to invite them in, but the little fellow Guo Hongzhi had already started playing with Guazi and Lanlan during the chat just now, and they were having a wonderful time.

...

Inside the house.

Seeing so many guests arrive all at once, Zhou Qiuxiang hurriedly told Liu Dazhao to boil some water for tea. She herself went to the kitchen and brought out milk candies, melon seeds, and peanuts, placing them on the wooden table. "Our home is modest, please forgive us."

"Oh, Sister-in-law, what are you saying?" Knowing she couldn't contribute to the serious talk, Ding Lan grabbed a handful of peanuts, took Zhou Qiuxiang by the hand, and walked outside.

Niu Lianfang didn't linger in the room either; she grabbed two milk candies and followed them out.

Director Wu chuckled as he watched them leave. Once he sat down, he said, "Liu Xing, I came here today for two reasons: first, regarding Boss Guo's matter, and second, I wanted to ask when Divine Doctor Jiang will be coming to the market to see Lanlan?"

There was actually a third reason, which was to discuss the situation at the Zhongyi Winery.

However, since Liu Xing had already shut the door completely on that topic, Director Wu found it difficult to bring it up again.

Hearing Director Wu ask about Divine Doctor Jiang, Liu Xing was slightly startled before replying, "I don't know the exact time either! The old gentleman didn't mention it to me, but he will definitely come to my house because his granddaughter Lanlan is still staying with me!"

After a brief pause, Liu Xing added, "Uncle, you're looking for Divine Doctor Jiang—is something the matter with your health?"

"It's not me." Director Wu picked up his teacup. "Your aunt's mother has been ill lately, and trips to the major hospitals never seem to yield any improvement. I know you have a good relationship with Divine Doctor Jiang, so I thought I'd ask."

If he were to seek out Divine Doctor Jiang on his own, given his personal connections, he wouldn't even be able to get an audience with him. That was why he asked.

Hearing this, Liu Xing immediately expressed his stance. "How about this, Uncle? Once Divine Doctor Jiang returns, I will definitely have him visit your place at the earliest opportunity."

"Great! Then let me thank you on behalf of your aunt first." Director Wu smiled gratefully. "By the way, since Boss Guo is here today, you should take this opportunity to talk with him about the leather shortage at your shoe store. You won't find an opportunity this good again."

"Right now?" Liu Xing hesitated slightly.

It wasn't that he didn't want to talk about it, but shoe materials were not something that could be settled in a sentence or two.

Besides, with so many people present, it wouldn't be polite to neglect them.

Guo Daquan shared a similar thought. He stood up and walked over to the main hall. Upon inspecting the styling and design of a pair of sandals on the floor, he couldn't help looking astonished. "Little Liu, did you come up with all these shoe designs?"

"Yes," Liu Xing walked to Guo Daquan's side.

"Not bad, very creative," Guo Daquan praised sincerely. "How about this? Let me make you a suggestion. In a couple of days, my truck loaded with leather materials will be passing through HY City. When it arrives, I'll send a truckload of leather over to you—all genuine leather. I won't charge you for it upfront; you can just use it to make a batch according to your designs."

After a brief pause, Guo Daquan added, "I'll help sell them, and if business is good, we can discuss formal cooperation afterward."

"I have no problem with that, but how can I take leather without paying for it? Just charge me the wholesale price," Liu Xing said with a smile, politely declining the offer. He knew Guo Daquan was saying this out of gratitude for saving Guo Hongzhi.

The reason he refused was simply because he didn't need charity.

Hearing Liu Xing put it that way, Guo Daquan held him in even higher regard. "Alright! I'll give you the leather at cost price, but you'd better think carefully—that truckload of genuine leather is worth at least seven or eight thousand yuan!"

"Don't underestimate Liu Xing; he has money on hand now. A few thousand yuan is nothing to him," Director Wu walked over to Guo Daquan with his hands behind his back. "I'm not flattering Liu Xing here, either. His shoe store at the market brings in several thousand yuan in gross daily revenue alone!"

"Really?" Guo Daquan stared at Liu Xing in astonishment.

"It's true, but business is too good, and we've been running a bit short on shoe-making materials lately," Liu Xing replied teasingly.

"You kid, you're something else." Guo Daquan gave Liu Xing a thumbs-up. "It's a deal, then. When the leather arrives in HY City, I'll come talk to you in person about win-win cooperation."

"Deal," Liu Xing nodded.

That was precisely the assurance he wanted.

Win-win cooperation, growing the business together.

"So now..." Director Wu looked at Liu Xing. "Shall we head to the Hengshui Winery to deal with the bottling equipment repairs?"

"Sure! But aren't you busy?" Liu Xing smiled. "Don't forget, you haven't helped recover that forty-six thousand yuan the Zhongyi Winery was swindled out of yet!"

"We'll drag our feet on that for now; I'm not here to serve exclusively as Zhongyi Winery's errand boy." Director Wu furrowed his thick brows. "You kid are truly full of mischief, always pressing on sore spots."

If he had any solid leads on the case, he wouldn't have slipped away to visit Liu Xing's place.

"Hahaha..." Liu Xing laughed heartily and took the lead, walking out of the brick-and-tile house.

Although Guo Daquan didn't know the inside story, he chuckled along as well.

Seeing this, Li Dawei quickly accompanied Director Wu and followed right behind them.

...

At the threshing floor.

Guazi, Guo Hongzhi, Lanlan, and Li Weiwei were poking at an anthill, while Ding Lan and Niu Lianfang watched with keen interest, occasionally chuckling at some amusing moments.

"Ding Lan, Lianfang, let's go!" Seeing them, Director Wu called out.

"Oh!" Ding Lan glanced back, quickly pushing Li Weiwei toward the country road.

Niu Lianfang picked up Guo Hongzhi and handed him over to the woman in white who was walking over.

The group soon converged with Director Wu, exchanged a few words, and climbed into the jeep.

Liu Xing didn't get into the car right away. Instead, he said to Zhou Qiuxiang, who had come out to see them off, "Mom, I'll leave things at home in your hands. Just remember one thing: safety first above all else."

"Got it." Zhou Qiuxiang reached out to brush some dust off Liu Xing's clothes, her eyes filled with maternal affection.

"Brother-in-law..." Liu Xing called out with a smile toward the main hall, "Come out with me for a bit."

"Huh?" Kang Fuchuan ran out looking puzzled. "Where to? Weren't you going to have me deliver shoes to the market store later?"

"Kang Hu can handle that. You have a much more important task with me," Liu Xing replied.

Since Kang Fuchuan had decided to follow his lead, he naturally needed to bring him along to see the world and make a name for himself. Taking him to the Hengshui Winery to witness things firsthand was the first step.

"Alright!" Seeing Liu Xing's resolute attitude, Kang Fuchuan hurried back into the main hall to give instructions before returning.

Liu Xing smiled faintly and waited.

A moment later, accompanied by Kang Fuchuan, he climbed into Director Wu's jeep.

The reason he didn't take Li Dawei's sedan was because Li Weiwei occupied the back seat, making it inconvenient.

"Lanlan, remember to take Guazi to graze the cow later." Seeing Lanlan standing on the threshing floor and waving goodbye, Liu Xing hurriedly rolled down the car window to remind her.

"Got it, Brother!" Lanlan called back immediately.

"We won't let Black Calf go hungry," Guazi shouted along.

Hearing this, Liu Xing smiled faintly and rolled up the window.