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墨書 Inktalez
"Village Chief." Everyone actively made way for the Old Village Chief.
Zhang Agou was already in his sixties, but he still had a sturdy build. When he smiled, his large yellowed teeth were visible, giving him a particularly endearing appearance typical of elderly people. However, those who knew him privately referred to him as the old fox. "What's going on? Zhang Liang, what trouble have you stirred up this time?"
"Oh dear, Village Chief, look at what I've done! I feel a pain in my chest," Zhang Liang said as he got up from the ground, ignoring the dust covering him. "Village Chief, you're just in time. Look, these thieves have come to our village to pry open doors and pick locks."
Zhang Agou walked up to Li Yan and suddenly seemed to recognize him. "Isn't this Li Yan and his brother Li Ming? I remember seeing you both when you were little. Time really flies; it’s been over a decade since then." Zhang Agou squinted his eyes, and a sharp glint flashed by, which Li Yan caught in an instant.
"Hello, Village Chief," Li Yan said, gently touching Li Ming's small face and smiling as he extended his hand. "When we were in A Province, Grandpa often mentioned you, saying how well you got along when you were young. Even before he passed away, he was thinking about coming back to the village to see you."
"Ah, that’s true. I heard that Old Zhang has passed away; it weighs heavy on my heart. As we grow older, some things are beyond our control. You two are good kids," the Village Chief said with a smile as he patted Li Ming who stepped forward. "This young lad is quite sturdy; although he's had a tough life, being with a capable older brother means he's doing better than most. By the way, Li Yan, where are you working now?"
Li Yan maintained his smile in response to the Village Chief's probing behavior; those who didn’t know would think he was an easygoing person. "I started a small company; thankfully I have a few friends helping me get by. Times are tough everywhere; we’re just managing to fill our stomachs."
Running a company? That makes him a big Boss. The whispers around indicated that many had abandoned their thoughts of taking over the house. In these times, there are plenty of people who bully the weak and fear the strong; seeing that Li Yan wasn’t an easy target made them reconsider their plans.
The Old Village Chief felt reassured; this person was not simple. Looking at his attire, it didn’t seem cheap either. Li Yan had just mentioned having many friends; given how confidently he called the police earlier, it was clear he had backing.
The Old Village Chief recalled that Old Zhang once mentioned his son-in-law was an official. After comparing in his mind, he made a decision. "Li Yan, there's no need to call 110; we’re all from the same village here, right? Let’s discuss this matter together. Zhang Liang is just a bit straightforward; he doesn’t mean any harm."
Li Yan raised an eyebrow at Zhang Liang's rogue demeanor beside him and thought it amusing that such a person could be considered straightforward. "Village Chief, I don’t want to call either, but there’s a whole group of people blocking my way home. Besides, Chinese law doesn’t say you need to consult 'outsiders' before going home; wouldn’t you agree?" Li Yan expressed his dilemma.
"Brother, they’re all bad people," Li Ming said as he clenched his small fist, indicating that he stood with his brother in this fight. "We will eliminate you in the name of the universe!"
As soon as Li Ming spoke up, it became clear that the child might not be very bright. However, with his brother around, everyone dared not look too openly.
"Yes indeed! What belongs to someone should go back to them. Since you have the land deed in hand, it should be easier to resolve this matter. They didn’t think too much about it; it's just that this Old House hasn’t been lived in for several years and everyone here is just trying to keep an eye on it out of neighborly concern. You can’t blame them—things aren’t peaceful in the countryside anymore with so many petty thieves around. Your house has been left empty here and has had several incidents; everyone helped retrieve your belongings."
"Now that you're back, everyone can relax. Let's disperse, everyone go home." Zhang Agou ushered everyone away. Zhang Liang, still unwilling to give up, wanted to say something, but in the end, he was also sent off by Zhang Agou. However, he kept looking back with a resentful glare that carried a hint of revenge, which made Li Yan frown.
Once everyone had left, Li Yan took out two thousand yuan from his bag and handed it to the village chief. The implication was clear: since you are back, the "management fee" must be paid; otherwise, there would be no way to explain it to others.
Zhang Agou's eyes lit up at the sight of the money, but he still tried to maintain a semblance of modesty. In the end, he couldn't refuse and "had no choice" but to accept it. As for Su Yan, it was better to return her to Zhang Liang; after all, with two thousand yuan in hand, one could buy several Su Yans. Satisfied, Zhang Agou left with the money.
Li Yan realized that during his years away, the Old House had been on people's minds, and not just one or two people at that. Given today's situation, it seemed he wouldn't be able to leave anytime soon. Regardless of whether there were issues related to the X Virus, this house was his grandfather's legacy, and Li Yan had no intention of giving it up.
Perhaps it was fate that allowed him to return before anyone else could deal with the house. Li Ming felt quite pleased once everyone had left; he clung to his brother's arm and looked up with a small face saying, "Brother, if they bully you again, I'll hit them." It seemed the child thought those people had been scared away by him.
Li Yan decided not to clean the house himself and went directly to the village chief to ask him to find five or six women to help clean his home. Zhang Agou was amazed; who would have thought cleaning could still earn money these days?
However, since Li Yan requested it, he naturally complied. Li Yan didn't care about the small amount of money; his main goal was to let everyone in the village know that he had returned—the owner of this house was back.
Sure enough, the next day six nimble young women came in with burlap sacks and iron buckets. They worked quickly and had everything cleaned inside and out within a day. Li Yan generously gave each of them two hundred yuan, making them very happy. Some even took the opportunity to ask Li Yan if he had a partner; it would be a shame to let such a good catch go.
Zhang Liang's wife also went to help with the cleaning. When she returned home, she found her husband sitting at the table drinking and eating peanuts. Over the past few years, Zhang Liang hadn't worked outside; their family's situation was getting worse by the day. Unable to hold back her sarcasm, she said, "You live such an easy life while I suffer and toil just to support you! I must have been blind to marry such a useless man."
Zhang Liang was already upset about not getting the house; hearing her words made his temper flare. He flipped over the table and immediately started a fight...
Li Yan didn't want to attract too much attention, so he didn't dare take anything out from his space. That night he still slept in the small wooden house. The next morning, Li Yan took Li Ming to a nearby town and arranged for two beds to be delivered. He also bought pots and pans; these items were mainly for show since they hadn't sold many snacks on their way here—Li Ming's little mouth was pouting as if it could hang soy sauce.
Fortunately, there were two medium-sized supermarkets in town. Li Ming picked up a jelly and asked Li Yan, "Brother, why isn't this 'Xizhilang'?"
Li Yan looked at the jelly and realized it was indeed called "Xizhilang," just one character off from the original name; if one wasn't careful, they might mistakenly think it was genuine. Li Yan felt speechless—China's bad reputation internationally often stemmed from such counterfeit products. A middle-aged woman overheard Li Ming's comment and glanced over before continuing to put "Xizhilang" into her shopping basket; after all, it was just jelly—if you liked it, eat it.
When they exited the supermarket, they ended up buying a bunch of things mostly belonging to Li Ming's little friend—mainly barbecue-flavored chips and beef jerky—because they couldn't find Teddy Bear Cookies anywhere in the entire supermarket. Li Ming rated this supermarket poorly and declared that they shouldn't come back next time.
Because the rice in the space had matured, Li Yan directly purchased a small peeling machine and two generators to bring into the space. Li Yan hadn't originally planned to buy them, but thinking about how often he had been taking rice out of the space, he worried that it might raise suspicion. With that in mind, he decided to make the purchase.
Although the town was small, it had a decent variety of goods. Even after putting most of his items in the space, the back of his car was still piled high. On the way back, Li Yan saw vendors selling chicks and ducklings, as well as rabbits.
Li Ming was eagerly looking at a vendor's basket and refused to let go, looking at Li Yan with a pitiful expression. He insisted that if they didn't buy them, he would go home with the chick seller and never speak to his brother again.
Li Yan felt sad; it seemed that he wasn't even as important as a chick seller. In the end, he compromised and bought over a dozen chicks. However, Li Ming wouldn't settle for just that; he insisted on buying the entire basket of chicks and ducklings.
Li Yan was quite distressed; it felt like his own brother valued those chicks more than him. Ultimately, he decided to buy fifteen chicks and fifteen ducklings, along with two pairs of rabbits and four pairs of lambs. Li Yan was still cautious about this decision; it was nearly November, and the weather remained around twenty-seven or twenty-eight degrees Celsius. With the ongoing outbreak of the X Virus and Zhou Miao being unreachable, Li Yan had an uneasy feeling. Given these circumstances, it was better to prepare in advance. Even if nothing happened later, having those poultry in the space wouldn’t be an issue.
The next day, Li Yan was pleasantly surprised to find that what used to be three acres of land had turned into six acres. Additionally, due to purchasing several fish fry last night, the original pond had expanded by two-thirds. After some thought, Li Yan decided to incorporate various types of plants and animals in the future.
Li Ming's little friend quickly forgot his old favorites and now enjoyed chasing after the chicks and ducklings in the space. He would catch them for a moment before they would flee in terror as if they had seen a ghost.
Once the rice was fully mature, Li Yan faced his first real dilemma. Although he had lived with his grandfather all this time, he had never actually done any farming work himself; he had never harvested rice before. Li Yan searched online for information and even consulted with the Old Village Chief, but there was a difference between theory and practical application.
After self-exploration and practice, it took Li Yan ten days to finish harvesting three acres of rice. By then, Li Ming watched as Li Yan struggled to even turn over due to exhaustion. He was so scared that he cried; he had never seen his brother look so "sick."
The child was particularly understanding; seeing Li Yan in pain, he not only massaged his arms but also knew to make instant noodles for him. They ate instant noodles for several days straight until the child's mouth nearly blistered from it, yet he didn’t complain once. Li Yan felt heartbroken yet comforted; his little brother was growing up.
After this experience, Li Yan quickly mastered various agricultural skills and had essentially reached an amateur level of proficiency.
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