Reborn during the early days of China’s reform and opening, the narrator finds himself in the 1980s countryside. In this setting, the past is still a cold reference, yet it is also a fresh start....
Xiao Jun also stood up suddenly: "What are you talking about? Say another word."
The bald man stepped forward and started to confront Xiao Jun.
Wan Feng looked at the bald man expressionlessly and then at Xiao Jun.
"What? Am I done?"
Xiao Jun snorted and took a step back.
The bald man saw Xiao Jun take a step back and looked at Wan Feng in surprise.
Wan Feng looked at the bald man and said, "I really don't like the way you say it."
The other guy with the flat head was also unequivocal: "Do you like having chicken feathers useful?"
Wan Feng frowned and looked at the bald man, then suddenly smiled freely after a few seconds.
It seems useless to compete with Qi Guangli's brother.
He turned his gaze to Qi Guangli and said, "Brother Qi, what do you think? I think it's better to have more friends and more options than to have everyone fight each other. Think about it."
"But my cousin can't be beaten in vain."
Wan Feng casually pulled out a two-yuan bill from his pocket and held it between his left index and middle fingers. "I wonder if this money can heal the trauma in your cousin's heart?"
In Wan Feng's calculation, they were just a few thugs, and two dollars was enough to get rid of them.
Qi Guangli was still hesitating. Even though he looked like a decent person, he really couldn't find a two-yuan coin from his body if you asked him to do so.
Qi Guangli's cousin was still a teenager after all, and he was already impatient: "If it can be smoothed out, it can be smoothed out."
Wan Feng snapped his fingers with his right hand, took out two boxes of Pegasus from his pocket and pushed them in front of Qi Guangli together with the opened box of Pegasus in front of him, then put the two dollars on the cigarette box.
"The cigarettes are for you and your two brothers who said those harsh words. Put these things away. We are all friends from now on. If you need any help in Gushan, ask Xiao Jun for help. If you, Brother Qi, want to fight to the death today, then these words of mine will be ignored. I'm telling you straight up, we are not easy to bully. You still can't conquer Gushan! Okay, I've finished what I said. From now on, whether to fight or cooperate is up to you, Brother Qi."
Qi Guangli took a deep breath and was silent for a minute. Then he reached out, picked up the two-dollar bill and threw it to his cousin.
"Smart! I like dealing with smart people. Xiao Jun, come over and shake hands with Brother Qi. We will be friends from now on."
Xiao Jun came over and shook hands with Qi Guangli, and then shook hands with the two people Qi Guangli brought with him.
"Brother Qi, since we are all friends now, why don't we get together?" Wan Feng suggested.
Qi Guangli thought for a moment and said, "Brother Wan, I won't be here today. We'll meet again if we're lucky. We have something else to do today, so I'll leave first."
Wan Feng didn't really want to get together with them. He also saw that Qi Guangli and the others didn't really want to reconcile or anything, and they still looked down on his side.
This is no wonder. The people on my side are all fourteen or fifteen years old. Who would look down on a group of children?
"Well, even if the mountains don't move, the water will. It's only a matter of time before brothers meet again."
Qi Guangli, his cousin and the two men disappeared into the crowd.
"Brother, you've already spent almost three dollars. Don't you feel bad?"
Wan Feng looked at Xiao Jun strangely. "Feeling bad? Why? I only spent three dollars to avoid a dispute. Why should I feel bad?"
"That's three dollars, enough to set up two bookstalls for us."
"Haha, Brother Xiao, remember what I said, if it can be settled with money, then it's not a problem. You can earn money again after spending it. It's only three dollars."
"But I saw that Qi Guangli seemed a little resentful before he left. What if he comes again?"
"That's possible, but I don't think he'll come in the short term. We've already given his cousin money, and that's the end of the matter. Even if he comes again, it has nothing to do with us. If he wants to make a name for himself on Lonely Mountain, then let him do it. Lonely Mountain doesn't belong to us for the time being, so we can't control that much. But if he wants to use us to make a name for himself, then don't blame us for being rude. A strong dragon can't suppress a local snake. If that happens, we'll make him crawl back."
"But this Lonely Mountain is our brothers' territory now. If he interferes..."
"Now, you absolutely must not entertain such thoughts. Remember my words: even if you do entertain such thoughts, you must wait until after 1983. Remember?"
Xiao Jun was puzzled: "Why wait until after 1983?"
"Because by then we were both grown up, you were eighteen, and I was sixteen, we had the strength to crush Lonely Mountain. Now is not the time for that..."
Wan Feng had no other choice but to do this. Should he tell him that there would be an extremely severe crackdown in 1983?
"Settle the accounts for the previous few, and then pick out the books I'm going to take back."
Xiao Jun's income here is very stable, and he can make a profit of more than eleven yuan per market session.
After deducting the material rewards he had promised to his brothers in Gushan during the last battle with Zhang Xiangping by the river, and Xiao Jun's share, Wan Feng still had six dollars left.
"Brother Xiao, you already know what books I have. If you want to invest in a bookstall, you can buy them yourself. But it's not advisable to buy too many books at once. After all, school will start in a month, and after that, your income will be reduced by at least half. You can decide for yourself. I won't take any profit from the books you invest in."
Brothers must settle accounts clearly.
It was almost noon when Wan Feng and Xiao Jun said goodbye and returned to Wa. After eating a few bites of lunch, they rode their bikes to Shutun.
Some children came to rent books in the afternoon, so he had to deliver the books.
Once you cross the river north of Shutun Village, the yards of Jiangwei Brigade and the Supply and Marketing Cooperative are on the side of the avenue, and Xu Bin's house is behind this yard.
When he was about thirty meters away from Xu Bin's house, Wan Feng saw more than a dozen girls gathered in front of Xu Bin's house.
The girls, mostly under ten years old, sat in a circle.
"Don't dirty my new clothes. Stay away from me."
Xu Meilin's proud voice came from the crowd.
Wan Feng couldn't help but smile bitterly when he got closer. He saw Xu Meilin in the middle of the crowd wearing that dress like a proud peacock, her face full of pride and satisfaction. She covered her belly with both hands and looked around vigilantly, afraid that someone's dirty hands would dirty her new dress.
That's just the nature of women. They love to show off.
"Meilin, your new dress is so beautiful. Did your mother buy it for you?" A girl who was still wearing patched clothes asked enviously.
"My mom didn't buy it for me. My brother Feng bought it for me. Ah! Brother Feng is here."
Xu Meilin, who was showing off, suddenly saw Wan Feng outside the crowd and rushed over with a scream.
Judging from the situation, he is planning to throw himself into my arms.
Wan Feng was startled. Would it be too early to throw himself into Xu Meilin's arms now? He quickly waved his hand to block her: "Brother, don't let the dirt on your clothes get dirty."
These words were more effective than anything else. Xu Meiling slammed on the brakes and stopped rushing over, but she held Wan Feng's hand.
"My brother Feng is here. He will buy me lots of colorful clothes in the future." Xu Meilin announced proudly, attracting envious and jealous looks from the girls.
Damn it, when did I say that? Is this demon planning to blackmail me from now on?