Morning grumpiness
When everyone came out of the police station, the sun had already set. Zhou Lexing touched his uneven stubble and sighed.
"This trip to town was quite hectic, huh?"
Zhou Yuanxiang smacked him on the back of the head without any politeness: "I see you're the least nervous! You're actually thinking of fixing someone's car! Don't you know what kind of person that is? Would we work for someone like that?!"
Zhou Lexing said aggrievedly, "I'm fixing cars for someone surnamed Chen, not for Xu Laosi."
Although Zhou Lexing knew that this Chen was definitely not simple, the fact that he could keep his identity hidden meant that he had been preparing for the future to clear his name.
Zhou Lexing had no intention of getting involved in these matters. His idea was simple: to make Xu Laosi unhappy, and making extra money was just a side effect.
After this setback, Xu Laosi's life in town will definitely not be as comfortable as it is now. In addition, with the official document from above, the first to be dealt with will definitely be Xu Laosi's clique.
Zhou Lexing's original plans no longer needed to be put to use, which he found somewhat regrettable. However, as the tractor rattled all the way home, he cheered up and dragged over the fertilizer bucket he had recently acquired while making mops. The bucket was filled with all sorts of gadgets he had been tinkering with lately.
One hundred yuan isn't much, but if you put it together, it should be enough for him to renovate the walls and gates of both his own house and Gu Jiansheng's house.
Villagers often visit each other's homes, but the incidents of Zhou Dongqiang climbing over Gu Jiansheng's courtyard wall and Zhou Laozhuang trying to break in this time have served as a wake-up call for Zhou Lexing. To prevent such accidents from happening again, security doors and anti-climb walls must be installed.
Zhou Lexing was working hard, while Zhou Shusheng sat on a small stool next to him, watching with clear eyes as Zhou Lexing's calloused hands moved nimbly back and forth.
As the finished product gradually took shape, a tiny seed seemed to grow in his heart. Every time he saw different objects being slowly shaped by Zhou Lexing, that seed would grow a little bigger and a little bigger, as if it might sprout at any moment.
"You like it?" Zhou Lexing smiled when he saw Zhou Shusheng engrossed in looking at it. "How about I make you a flute?"
Although Zhou Shusheng only had a vague understanding, he still nodded emphatically.
As night deepened, Zhou Yuanxiang looked at the two brothers huddled together, and her uneasy heart finally seemed to settle down at this moment.
She let out a silent sigh, ultimately refraining from urging them to go to sleep. Instead, she turned and went inside, leaving the dim light in the living room, which, amidst the occasional hushed conversation, created a small, cozy space.
The next morning, Zhou Lexing went to Lao Yang's place and gave him an extra five yuan for bus fare, but Lao Yang refused, as if giving him money was a sign of disrespect.
Seeing his irritable state, Zhou Lexing finally managed to get the money back before his high blood pressure spiked.
"Are you really going to help fix the car?"
Zhou Lexing looked at Lao Yang, who was repeatedly and carefully confirming, with amusement, and nodded in agreement.
"Let's steal Xu Laosi's business."
Upon hearing this, Old Yang couldn't help but laugh.
When the old man and the young man arrived in the county, it was already broad daylight. Zhou Lexing paid for a few flatbreads and cooked two bowls of meatball noodles. After eating and drinking to their hearts' content, they said goodbye to Lao Yang and slowly walked towards Xu Laosi's repair shop.
Outside the repair shop, Xu Laosi was also eating breakfast and discussing with his brothers about going to Zhoujia Village to arrest someone in the afternoon.
"If you ask me, this guy will definitely desert his post. He's probably not even home now. I think you should just talk to Brother Chen and clear things up. Why bother making this trip?"
Old Xu tapped his underling's head with his chopsticks: "What do you know?! We have to make two trips to show we're doing our best. Let me tell you, don't think that Brother Chen and the others are too busy to keep an eye on us. Actually, there are countless eyes waiting to find fault with us and report us to Brother Chen! You guys better be smart!"
The man wasn't annoyed at being hit on the head. Instead, he cautiously looked around while still chewing on a steamed bun: "Who is it? Brother Xu, who's the daredevil watching us?"
Xu Laosi took another bite with his chopsticks: "They were peeping at us, and we saw them? You've really become a fool now, haven't you, since we call you 'Second Fool'?"
Er Lengzi was a little unconvinced. He had sharp eyes and could remember everyone in town perfectly. How could he not know if someone was watching him?
He didn't doubt Xu Laosi's words, but he was determined to find out who was watching them. Even while eating breakfast, he kept looking around.
What he saw in that glance was truly astounding.
"Brother Xu! Brother Xu! That guy! That guy's coming!"
Xu Laosi was startled by his sudden outburst. When he turned around, he was so shocked that he stood up from the bench. Er Lengzi, who was sitting on the same bench as him, was caught off guard and fell off the bench.
Ouch!
Er Lengzi tried to stagger to his feet like a moth, but unfortunately, he lacked the core strength and ended up landing on his buttocks after a few seconds of flailing around. For a moment, he felt like his buttocks were about to be split into four pieces.
Zhou Lexing looked at the pair, one standing and one sitting, and laughed: "Such a grand gesture?"
Xu Laosi didn't expect his brother to be so useless, making a fool of himself so early in the morning and embarrassing him, but it wasn't time to retaliate yet.
"You came in such a hurry, did you get the YouTube channel?"
Xu Laosi, with a toothpick in his mouth, glanced at Zhou Lexing, almost ready to sit down and shake his legs. But the fall that Er Lengzi had just made Xu Laosi more cautious.
"Okay, I'll go install it first, and then I'll let you drive it around a couple of times to try it out."
Zhou Lexing came early because he wanted to get things done as soon as possible and buy materials to add protection to the doors and walls.
When he squatted down and took out the specially made oil pipe, Xu Laosi's expression changed, a mixture of joy and anger that distorted his face.
"You think you can fool me with a bamboo tube?! I think you're just looking for some amusement because you're tired of living!"
As Xu Laosi spoke, he immediately gave Er Lengzi a look, telling him to hurry up and call Chen Libang over, preferably catching him in the act, so that he would know how unreliable this young man was. He was going to pick up the face he had lost at his place yesterday!
Upon receiving Xu Laosi's instructions, Er Lengzi immediately turned and ran.
Zhou Lexing saw it, but did not stop it.
He certainly didn't come here specifically to fool Chen Libang.
As an 'artist', Zhou Lexing had some knowledge of pottery and bamboo art in his previous life. Although bamboo is inferior to metal in terms of pressure resistance and corrosion resistance, it is still an excellent substitute. He had even practiced it for his thesis. Moreover, before he came to this world, bamboo-wound pressure pipes, which are made of bamboo as the main material, are a new type of environmentally friendly material.
In short, it is more than enough to serve as a substitute when resources are scarce.
"Hehehe, let me tell you, kid, trying to show off by pretending to be something you're not will only lead to big trouble."
Xu Laosi wanted to burst into laughter, but he maintained the air of an elder brother and made some sarcastic remarks.
Zhou Lexing glanced at him speechlessly, then lowered his head to replace the oil pipe. He wrapped the severely damaged oil pipe with a specially made bamboo tube of a specific size and shape, which not only extended the life of the replacement but also slowed down the rate at which gasoline dissolved the bamboo fibers, but also allowed for a more direct observation of the condition of the bamboo tube.
When Chen Libang arrived, his face was as black as charcoal.
At this time of day, he would usually be in bed reading the newspaper, enjoying a cup of comfortably homemade soy milk.
Unexpectedly, Xu Laosi, this brother, was clueless. When he arrived at his door, before even seeing him, he started shouting that there had been an accident with the motorcycle. Chen Libang was so scared that he rushed over with his men. He cursed Xu Laosi a thousand times in his heart and spat on himself several times. He vowed never to give a motorcycle as a gift again. He had really spent money and effort on this piece of junk, and it had been a huge hassle.
But before he and his men could rush to the repair shop, they could already hear the roar of motorcycles starting up.
A figure sat on a motorcycle and swept over like a gust of wind. Upon seeing them, he braked sharply, the wheels leaving a semi-circular skid mark on the ground.
"They arrived quickly."
Zhou Lexing was slightly surprised, but it was always better to hand over this matter as soon as possible.
Chen Libang was dumbfounded. Just a moment ago, he was cursing himself for making trouble for himself by getting a beat-up motorcycle, but seeing the young man's dashing appearance on the motorcycle, he was suddenly stirred up with the impulse and longing of his youth.
Back then, he worked himself to the bone to climb the ladder, initially just to prove himself and save face. He had fantasies of speeding along in a motorcycle, but back then, even getting enough to eat was difficult. How could he have imagined that one day he would actually be able to get a motorcycle?
Before Chen Libang could finish reminiscing about the past, Xu Laosi came running up after him, panting, yelling, "You, you bunch of bastards! Just driving off like that, do you want to die?! If the car gets damaged, are you going to take responsibility?!"
Zhou Lexing raised an eyebrow: "Watch your mouth. How do you know if there's still a problem with the car if you don't drive it?"
With current technology, there are no machines to test it; the simplest and most direct way to test it is naturally to open it yourself.
"The car is ready?!"
Chen Libang was pleasantly surprised.
Xu Laosi immediately seized the opportunity: "Brother Chen, this kid tried to make up the numbers with just a bamboo tube! It's a complete mess! Look at him, he even dared to drive your car, he's asking for trouble! I'll have someone teach him a lesson right now!"
Zhou Lexing's temper flared up as well. After parking the car, he said, "I've installed everything for you. This thing might not last for a few years, but it should last for a few months. If you don't like it, then take it apart. There's only one thing: if you're going to fight, come at me. Don't cause trouble for unrelated people like you did last time."
As he spoke, he actually stood still, waiting for the group of people behind Chen Libang to surround him.
Xu Laosi grinned maliciously and was about to call for help when he saw Chen Libang walk over by himself, look down at the car, and ask, "Is the car okay now?"
Zhou Lexing crossed his arms and looked at him without responding.
Chen Libang: "Then I'll drive it around myself and see. Come on, young man, how do you drive this car?"
Zhou Lexing shook his head: "I want to dismantle the bamboo tubes. I'm not going to deal with this mess anymore."
"Brother Chen! This kid..."
"Alright." Chen Libang glanced at Xu Laosi, who was trying to stir up trouble again. "I only care about the results. As long as you get things done properly for me, everything else is fine. I don't care about anything else, but that doesn't mean I don't have eyes to see."
"You say this young man's bamboo tube is unusable, then can you get your hands on the original oil pipe? Huh? You son of a bitch! All you do is talk and talk, you haven't accomplished anything, and now you want to make decisions for me?!"
Chen Libang wasn't going to be polite to Xu Laosi. He stepped forward and slapped Xu Laosi on the back of the head. But this slap ignited the anger that Xu Laosi had been suppressing. So he couldn't help but slap him again and again, forcing Xu Laosi to run away with his head in his hands.
"Brother Chen! Brother Chen! That's not what I meant!"
"That's not what you meant! What did you mean then?! I've been putting up with you for so long! You kept making excuses, saying you couldn't fix it, couldn't fix it! I had to bribe you so much before you finally agreed to help, and now this stupid YouTube thing has dragged on until today! Where were you all this time?! Do you think your connections are as extensive as mine? You kept quiet just to try and squeeze money out of me! Now that the young guy has sorted things out, you're still complaining and trying to ruin things for me, aren't you?! Where were you all this time?! Huh? Keep dragging it out! I'll show you how to drag it out!"
Chen Libang unleashed his pent-up anger, venting his morning grumpiness along with his recent repressed rage. With each shout, he slapped Xu Laosi on the head. Still feeling unsatisfied, he even grabbed the slippers he hadn't had time to change out of that morning.
The crisp, muffled thuds, one after another, mixed with Xu Laosi's pleas for mercy, almost formed a melody.
Zhou Lexing was amazed and watched with great interest. He stopped dismantling the bamboo tubes and stood there watching Xu Laosi being beaten from one end to the other.
Xu Laosi didn't dare to run far away.
The men Chen Libang brought had already formed a circle around him when their boss made his move; if he dared to run, he would definitely be beaten even worse.
When the "Slippers Concerto" ended, Xu Laosi's face was swollen. He was curled up on the ground, in pain and exhausted, crying and apologizing incessantly.
The idiot who had summoned Chen Libang had his mouth agape the entire time.
Seeing Chen Libang panting and looking over, he immediately shuddered and shrank behind the thug, not daring to utter a sound.
Although they were local bullies, they were still afraid of well-equipped and vicious dogs. The men the other side had hastily brought out this morning were enough to deal with more than a dozen of their brothers.
"Young man, please excuse my poor appearance."
Chen Libang threw his slippers on the ground, put them on, and then calmed his breathing and said.
Zhou Lexing: "What's the big deal? It's just morning exercise."
The two exchanged a knowing smile.
Chen Libang didn't mince words with Zhou Lexing: "Young man, if you handle this matter well, you'll have done me a huge favor. I've also brought the money; please keep it safe. You have to come to the Chengquan Restaurant's birthday party tonight; I'll be waiting for you with good wine and food."
Technical talents like Zhou Lexing, who understand cars, are in short supply everywhere.
If possible, Chen Libang also wanted to take this opportunity to recruit the other party.
He's planning to start a factory, and the machines in that factory are extremely valuable, but he's short of manpower for them.
Zhou Lexing accepted the money but declined the invitation: "I'm in a hurry to go back, so I won't stay."
Chen Libang didn't want to antagonize him, so he tried to persuade him a few times, but seeing that the other party wouldn't budge, he had no choice but to give up. Only after the other party had gone far away did he beckon his men over.
"Investigate this kid's background and see what he's up to."
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