Twenty-nine Luo Da is a good warrior

After school that evening, a group of children finished their homework at Li Wei's house. It was time to call her grandfather out to give the future shrimp a lesson. Li Wei then noticed that the house seemed unusually quiet today. When she went to the workshop, she saw her grandfather tidying up the food processing tools. Seeing Li Wei come in, he quickly said, "Girl, why don't you make something for them to eat later? Your mother went to see your second aunt. She gave birth to your cousin yesterday. Grandpa will be going back later too. Your father might be a little late today. Keep an eye on the little ones."

The old man couldn't hide his joy at the prospect of another grandson.

Li Wei remembered her cousin from her second maternal uncle's family. He was a very honest boy when he grew up. Although he didn't achieve much, he lived a hard-working life.

After Grandpa left, Luo Da continued to lead the training of the animals. Li Wei noticed that Luo Da was very serious about this, and the animals, who had all been disciplined by him, seemed a little afraid of him.

Li Wei signed up at school today for the town's July 1st cultural performance. She will officially participate in the school's selection next Monday. Tonight, she plans to practice a revolutionary song with Grandpa Wu. But that's not the most important thing. The most important thing is to go to the city and buy a beautiful dress that is even better than Gu Liwei's.

Ever since Li Lin saw Gu Liwei wearing that pink princess dress, she seemed rather absent-minded. Li Wei decided to buy an even prettier dress to provoke Li Lin, since only by learning to play the erhu could she have a pretty dress, so she let her choose for herself.

Success or failure hinges on this moment.

After the children finished exercising, Li Wei brought out some warmed vegetable buns, scrambled eggs, fried peanuts, and millet porridge for everyone to eat. She also specially asked Luo Er to call Luo San'er over to eat together, to calm that naughty boy down.

The children had gotten used to staying at Li Wei's house, and they weren't as reserved about food and drink as they had been at the beginning. Because of this, Wu Feng's mother and Aunt Lin always made sure to share any good food with Li Wei and the children, resulting in a very harmonious neighborhood relationship. As for Grandma Luo, she had a very close relationship with Li Wei's mother, Cheng Min. Cheng Min often asked the old lady questions, especially when it came to making cotton-padded jackets and trousers for the children in winter—the old lady practically did all the work herself.

So when Li Wei called out, the children all sat down around the table without any hesitation. They were all a little excited to eat with so many people together. Especially Luo San, who was brought by Luo Er. If Luo Da hadn't stopped him, he would have climbed onto the table.

After seven or eight children finished their meal in a lively atmosphere, Erpangzi and Wu Feng were called back home, leaving only the three Luo brothers. Luo Da conscientiously led his newlywed dairy goat to graze, while Li Lin, Li Lianhui, Luo Er, and Luo San excitedly followed along to play.

Li Wei thought to herself as she cleared the table. "Although Luo Da is a bit annoying, he's actually quite responsible. It seems I should consider taking him with me next time I go to the market to sell hair accessories or to the city's free market to buy raw materials. Li Lin is too restless and can't stay still. Besides, looking at Luo Da's physique, he can carry more things. He's much more useful than Li Lin."

Recently, Li Wei's initial excitement has worn off. Her speed in making hair accessories has noticeably slowed down. Cutting fabric strips and sewing are also quite tiring for her hands. Li Wei is considering outsourcing some of the work. At this pace, it's simply uneconomical. Besides, she estimates that the golden age of hair accessories will only last for the next two or three years. Gradually, more and more people will start thinking about doing it too. At that point, making money won't be so easy, and that will be when she should leave the industry.

I need to think carefully about how to do it. It's really inconvenient for a child like me to do things.

On Saturday night, Li Wei told Luo Da about wanting him to accompany her to the market to sell hair accessories. This was still a new idea for Luo Da, and he agreed without hesitation. Li Lin, however, had lost interest and could stay home with Wu Feng. She had no objection whatsoever to her sister abandoning her for Luo Da.

After dinner, Li Wei packed and tidied up all the hair accessories she had made this week. She checked her inventory of raw materials. There were still some fabric scraps left, but not much elastic cord. She was out of beads long ago. It seemed she would have to go buy more this week. If she could sell all the hair accessories by tomorrow, she would go immediately. However, she didn't have much cash on hand. She needed to go to the bank to withdraw some money first. She would need to bring two extra backpacks to carry other things.

Li Wei carefully went over everything she needed to bring and everything she needed to prepare, afraid of forgetting anything. She took out her notebook and, lying on her kang (heated brick bed), meticulously wrote everything down, categorizing it into different sections.

Meanwhile, Mom and Dad were also planning something big.

The town's prime real estate has been allocated apartment numbers, and many people who have made some money in business are rushing to buy apartment numbers and build houses. Cheng Min is discussing with her husband that their current yard is not enough, and they have some money in hand. Should they also buy an apartment number and build a small house? The children are getting older, and if they build a small house, the problem of housing will be solved, and there will be space for production workshops and other facilities. Besides, the traffic on the town's street is much more convenient than in the village, making it easier to buy and sell goods.

Li Wei heard from her mother that she really wanted to build her own small house, but since it was a large investment, she was a little undecided and it was up to her father to decide.

Her father, whom Li Wei had always thought was somewhat of a perfectionist, surprisingly made a decision after only a moment's thought: "Buy it. What kind of development can there be in the village? We still have to go out. If we buy it sooner, we can get a good location. It would be best if we bought the houses behind the one with the same number, so we'd have some leeway if we run out of space later. Our factory isn't doing very well right now. If things really come to a bad end, I'll come back and we'll work together. We'll make it bigger..."

After her father's long and eloquent speech, Li Wei looked at him with new respect. She remembered that after the winery closed down, her father had been working in sales for a private company, essentially an ordinary wage earner. Now it seemed he hadn't encountered a suitable opportunity that would excite him. Looking at her father's current demeanor, Li Wei had no doubt that in ten years or so, her father would be among the first to get rich.

The couple finally agreed to go to town on Monday to look around. If they found a suitable plot of land, they would buy it. As for the money, Cheng Min was confident. She estimated that the family had plenty of money to spare for building the house, so she told her father not to worry.

Li Wei secretly broke out in a cold sweat. Her mother was now... truly wealthy and powerful.

Mom, keep up the good work! I believe in you. I'm just waiting to become a rich kid.

The next morning, Li Wei carried her bag and went to Grandma Luo's house in the front yard to find Luo Da. When she walked into Grandma Luo's yard, she felt as if she had been reborn. Thinking back to the past few days, how dangerous it had been, how she had almost been beaten up was terrifying, although it felt great to beat up others.

However, I don't think I have the same murderous aura as Aunt Luo, so I shouldn't be able to cause any psychological problems for these little brats.

Li Wei entered the room while lost in thought, glancing inside deliberately, afraid that Aunt Luo might suddenly jump out.

Luo Da and the others were still asleep. Grandma Luo was cooking, and Li Wei didn't stand on ceremony. She went into the house and woke Luo Da up, and Luo Er also got up, stubbornly insisting on coming along. Li Wei had no choice but to take him along. Li Wei also brought them some dry food—steamed buns with bean filling—so they didn't have to eat at home.

The three arrived at the market early. Based on experience, they knew they wouldn't sell much at the beginning; the peak sales would start an hour or two later. After standing there for a while, they found it rather dull. They decided through rock-paper-scissors that Luo Er would watch the stall, while Li Wei and Luo Da went inside to look around. Li Wei planned to see if there were any suitable dairy goats to buy; she had been weaned for some time now, and she didn't want it to affect her growth.

The two walked around and found two vendors selling dairy goats at similar prices. Li Wei thought for a moment, then chose the larger one and bought it without haggling. Despite Li Wei's penchant for bargaining with vendors, she simply couldn't bring herself to ask these farmers who sold their own produce. And these honest farmers usually offered very reasonable prices.

The two men and the sheep returned to their stall. Luo Er was so uncomfortable from sitting there that he almost abandoned the stall and ran away. Li Wei didn't stop him, giving him a dollar to buy whatever he wanted, and telling him to come back and take the sheep home and not to return. Luo Er took the dollar and vanished in an instant. She didn't even know when he came back for the sheep; she was too busy selling hair clips and collecting money. It was Luo Da who gave the sheep to Luo Er.

The shipments went out quite quickly today, selling out before noon. Li Wei saw that it was still early, so she took Luo Da to the bank to withdraw some money, then hopped on a city bus and headed into the city.

Li Wei can go wherever she wants now, and she's starting to ignore her mother's teachings, since her maternal grandfather is there for her anyway.

Upon entering the city, they first went to the women and children's store, picking out the most elaborately patterned, lace-covered, dazzlingly colorful, and expensive dress, and bought it. This was purchased according to Li Lin's aesthetic sense; Li Wei herself would have preferred to buy the milky white chiffon vest dress, which looked cute and cool.

After putting the dress they had bought into their backpacks, they pulled Luo Da along, heading straight for the free market.

This time, Li Wei was quite familiar with the place. She caught up with the fabric vendor, glanced at it briefly, haggled for a while, and then bought it all, much to the vendor's delight. He wondered what the girl wanted with all those fabric scraps, especially some of the dark-colored pieces that few people would buy.

What the shop owner didn't know was that the darker the color of the fabric scraps but the higher the quality, the more popular the bow-shaped hair accessories Li Wei made were with young girls and young wives. They looked pretty without being overly flashy, and because the fabric was of good quality, they were more expensive than ordinary hair accessories.

In order to bargain with the shop owner, Li Wei deliberately threw the scraps of fabric aside as if she didn't care, and then started to negotiate the price, which made her twice as effective.

They also bought a lot of other miscellaneous materials such as elastic cords, colored beads, and colored threads. Li Wei and Luo Da each carried a big bag, which looked like two little turtles from a distance.

Looking at the hardworking and conscientious Luo Da, Li Wei suddenly realized that Luo Da was actually a really good kid. He would do whatever she was asked to do, and his ability to carry heavy loads was even stronger than hers. It seems that she should change her attitude towards Comrade Luo Da in the future and make the most of his strengths and avoid his weaknesses.

After all, a fly with many advantages is still a fly, and a soldier with many disadvantages is still a soldier.

In Li Wei's mind, Comrade Luo Da had risen to the level of a soldier.

It was already afternoon, and both of them were hungry. Li Wei found a decent restaurant nearby, and the two of them went in and ordered two dishes: stir-fried shrimp with scallions and braised pork slices, along with two bowls of rice. They enjoyed a delicious afternoon meal. Li Wei didn't finish her bowl of rice; the remaining half was given to Luo Da, who had already eaten two bowls of rice. Luo Da then devoured the last piece of pork slice as well. He ate more than two-thirds of the meal.

Li Wei was secretly astonished. No wonder this guy was so strong; he could really eat! But he hadn't eaten this much at her house last time. He only ate a little more than Li Lianhui and Luo Er. Could it be that his martial arts training had improved his appetite?

To Li Wei's surprise, the dishes today suited Luo Da's taste.

Li Wei never thought about saving money when she went out to eat. After all, the purpose of making money is to spend it. She doesn't need to save money to build a house or get married. She earns more so that she can spend it well, and only saves the rest to make more money.

Li Wei and Luo Da, two small vendors, returned home close to dinnertime with huge bags on their backs.

Perhaps it was just a habit, but her mother glanced at her and then ignored her. Li Wei and Luo Da took the bag to the west room's storage room, and Luo Da was about to go home. Li Wei felt a little embarrassed, having used this little child laborer for half a day.

Just then, they saw the newly bought milk goat, so they called out to Luo Da, took a small basin, squeezed out about half a basin of goat milk, boiled it slightly, added some sugar, gave Luo Da a cup and themselves a cup. The two of them had each eaten a red bean bun beforehand.

To Li Wei's astonishment, Luo Da drank it down in a few gulps without saying a word, without even frowning. This was... too unexpected.

"Luo Jianhua, what do you think of the taste?" Li Wei wondered if Luo Da's sense of taste hadn't developed properly yet.

Luo Da put down his cup: "It's alright." He turned and left.

There was none of the strange, grimacing look that Li Lianhui and Li Lin made when drinking goat milk.

Li Wei stared blankly at the cup, wondering if she had finally met a kindred spirit.

On his way home, Luo Jianhua thought: What kind of rubbish is this? She thought it was something good and let others drink it! Humph! If it weren't for his grandma saying that goat milk can make people strong, he wouldn't have bothered with that idiot.

Unbeknownst to Li Wei, she was once again being looked down upon.