Fatty told Xiao Dang, "Come upstairs later, I'll give you candy," and then strode away. Bang Geng didn't even have a chance to say a word.
Enraged, she took it out on her two younger sisters: "It's all your fault, especially Huaihua, you were so slow! We should have just kowtowed to him and wished him a Happy New Year, how could he not give us money? You two are driving me crazy!"
Once inside the courtyard, Sha Zhu's room was quite lively. You could see many figures through the paper window.
Just as the fat man was about to go back inside, he saw the curtain move and Qin Huairu came out from inside with a big smile.
Upon seeing the fat man, her smile froze. Only after the fat man unlocked the lock did she deliberately raise her voice and say, "It's Fatty! I haven't seen you for so many days!"
The fat man ignored her completely and went straight into the house.
The fire inside had long since gone out, and it was as cold as an icebox...
Qin Huairu's face darkened completely, her teeth clenched. No one in this courtyard had ever dared to disrespect her.
Hearing Qin Huairu's voice, He Yushui lifted the curtain and came out, calling out towards Fatty's room, "Fatty, Fatty."
The fat man came out helplessly, smiled, and said, "Happy New Year, Sister Yushui, Happy New Year, Sister Qin."
He Yushui was very enthusiastic and waved to him, saying, "Come on in, it's lively inside."
The fat man sighed: "I'll start the fire first."
He Yushui knew about his relationship with Sha Zhu, so she didn't try to persuade him further. The fat man went straight to the backyard, arrived at Xu Damao's house, and knocked on the door: "Is Brother Damao home?"
The door creaked open, and Lou Xiao'e appeared, saying, "Oh, what a rare guest!"
"Happy New Year, Sister Xiao'e! Wishing you youthful beauty, good health, happiness, and longevity!"
"If you can speak, say a few more words."
"That's easy," the fat man blurted out, "I'll lock you in a carefree castle with a lock of greetings..."
"Alright, alright, I want to live for another two years. Come in."
Once inside, the fat man looked around and asked, "Isn't Brother Da Mao here?"
“He went back to his hometown to visit his parents. I only got back this morning.”
The fat man asked again, "Have you eaten?"
Lou Xiao'e, hands on her hips, exclaimed, "What exactly did you come here for?!"
"I originally came to borrow some coal to burn in the stove, but now I've changed my mind."
Using the ingredients from Lou Xiao'e's house, the fat man cooked two dishes, then, taking advantage of the situation, asked, "Want to have a couple of drinks with me?"
"roll!"
Lou Xiao'e was truly impolite, yet both of them had smiles in their eyes.
After borrowing coal and lighting the stove, the room finally felt a little warm.
Having been away for several days, Fatty had just wiped away the dust when He Yushui pushed the door open and came in.
After inviting the landlady to sit down, she got straight to the point: "Why didn't you come over when I called you? With the deaf old lady, the old man and woman, and my boyfriend all here, it's a perfect opportunity to talk things out between you and my brother. What a great chance."
The fat man hesitated for a moment, but still said to her, "Sister Yushui, even if your boyfriend is there, I still can't go."
He Yushui does have some traits that are quite similar to Sha Zhu, such as her tendency to glare and say, "Speak properly!"
"Oh, I'm serious. Think about it, what does your partner do for a living?"
Rain seemed lost in thought. Fatty continued, "You know how my conflict with Master He started. Sister Rain, have you ever thought about how he would view you if he found out?"
He Yushui fell into deep thought; she hadn't actually considered this issue. Just now, Qin Huairu had told her that it's better to resolve conflicts than to let them fester, and that she should find an opportunity to defuse the contradictions…
If I remember correctly, in the TV series, He Yushui said she would get married to her boyfriend during the Spring Festival as soon as she appeared. But in reality, they didn't hold their wedding until the National Day of the following year.
What exactly happened during this period that caused the originally scheduled wedding date to be postponed for more than half a year?
Now it seems that it was mostly due to Sha Zhu's involvement.
However, the fat man had no intention of giving He Yushui any advice. Speaking too intimately with someone you barely know is a major taboo; the mark of a mature man is not advising wayward young women in nightclubs… cough cough, it's that he no longer sees himself as a savior!
There are two things that are most difficult in this world.
The first is to find a way to get money from other people's pockets into your own;
The second is imposing your ideas into other people's minds.
The fat man didn't think he was good at this kind of thing, so he decided to avoid trouble.
However, considering that Yu Shui was reasonable and had helped the fat man resolve his worries, he still decided to give him some pointers.
“Your brother’s affairs, and the affairs in this yard, are not something the police will not know just because you don’t tell them.”
Look at all the things he's done! Stealing chickens, framing his own comrades, stealing bicycle wheels... Everyone knows about these things. With those old women's big mouths, do you think the police officers know?
Having a brother-in-law like that, who would want to be with him?
Seeing that He Yushui was visibly startled, clearly understanding what he meant, the fat man continued, "Sister Yushui, do you know what I'm most afraid of?"
What I fear most? He Yushui asked, puzzled. The fat man explained, "What I fear most is people labeling me, whether it's good or bad, because some labels are stuck on for life. You can't just tear them off by moving or changing your environment. People will treat me the way they treat me, no matter what kind of label they have on me."
"You mean... people should cherish their reputation?"
He Yushui understood, stood up, and walked away dejectedly.
The fat man bolted the door shut and eagerly entered Stardew Valley.
He had been notified several days in advance that there were new visitors at the farm.
When the fat man entered Stardew Valley, he discovered that the cabin's first upgrade was already complete. A kitchen and a bedroom had been added, more than doubling the total area.
Because there was hardly any furniture, the whole house felt empty.
That's great! From now on, we can prepare food here and take it out with us.
As expected, outside the door stood the beautiful proprietress Robin, an old man with a white beard wearing a green baseball cap, and a middle-aged woman with curly hair and a figure even rounder than Auntie Pang.
As soon as Robin saw the fat man, he quickly introduced him: "Hi, darling. This is Lewis, the mayor of Pelican Town, and this is Manny, the ranch owner."
The fat man chuckled. So it was you two adulterers... cough cough, it was you!
Lewis welcomed the fat man, a newcomer to the small town, and Manny said she would like to visit her ranch more often, where she has all sorts of baby animals.
Then Robin said to him, "If you want to raise animals, I can build you a chicken coop and a barn, but there will be a price." After saying that, he winked at him ambiguously.
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