"Er Gouzi, aren't you just giving them money? We don't know how many pairs of shoes they have. All we have to do is let them hide the shoes they wore yesterday..."
"Uncle, don't worry, I have a way!"
Zhang Cheng smiled, his eyes gleaming, and spoke again.
"If five thousand yuan isn't enough, how about ten thousand yuan?"
"Zhang Ergouzi, you dare write a note!"
"Yes, yes, no proof, why should we believe you? If you deny it later, we'll have nowhere to reason with you and file a complaint!"
"As long as you agree, I'll write a note and put my fingerprint on it right away!"
"Zhang Ergouzi, you said those words, don't regret it!"
In the crowd, Wang Jian and Wang Weiguo huddled together. Wang Weiguo looked panicked, glancing at Wang Jian and repeatedly trying to signal him with his eyes.
Wang Jian seemed oblivious, a smile of excitement on his face, while inwardly cursing Zhang Ergouzi for being out of his mind.
No matter how capable he is, he can't do anything as long as I don't take out the shoes I wore last night.
Seeing that Wang Jian was ignoring him, Wang Weiguo became a little anxious and reached out to tug at his sleeve.
"What?" Wang Jian asked impatiently.
Wang Weiguo quietly took a step back, half of his body hiding behind Wang Jian, and lowered his voice:
"I forgot to change my shoes."
Wang Jian's expression stiffened, but he wasn't worried. He whispered:
"Just go back and change your shoes later!"
"Done!" Wang Huanchun tapped the ground with his cane, staring at Zhang Cheng:
“Zhang Ergouzi, since you’re convinced that it was people from our village who cut down your village’s fruit trees, then we’ll give you a chance.”
Hongzhao, go to the village committee and get paper and a pen. Have Zhang Ergouzi write a note and put his fingerprint on it. Everyone else, go home and bring all your shoes. Have them check the shoe prints!
"Wait!" Zhang Cheng suddenly called out to the villagers of Wang Village who were preparing to go home, grinning as he spoke.
"No need for that complicated process. I can just use the shoes you're currently wearing to match the shoe prints!"
Zhang Cheng raised his eyelids and looked at Wang Jian and Wang Weiguo standing in the crowd.
When they met Zhang Cheng's gaze, Wang Jianqiang pretended to be calm, while Wang Weiguo lowered his head.
"The people from your Wang Village who have conflicts with me are Wang Jian, Wang Weiguo, and Wang Jimin... I'm thinking, if there are really any heartless people in your Wang Village, it must be these three!"
"Zhang Ergouzi! Stop talking nonsense! We would never do such a heartless thing!"
Wang Jian shouted with his neck held high.
"Don't shout, don't yell. Just compare the shoes you're wearing now with the shoe prints on the mountain path, and you'll know!"
Zhang Cheng's smile grew even brighter as he stared at Wang Weiguo, who was looking down and twisting his hands together.
Wang Jian was anxious. He had changed his shoes, but that idiot Wang Weiguo hadn't.
With a quick glance around, Wang Jian steeled himself:
"Zhang Ergouzi, yesterday many people from our village walked along the mountain path to go into the mountains to hunt wild game..."
In an instant, everyone turned to look at Wang Jian.
Everyone here is shrewd. Wang Jian's sudden explanation gave them a bad feeling.
Wang Huanchun gripped his crutch tightly, gritted his teeth, and stared intently at Wang Jian, who was still stubbornly rambling on and on, wishing he could smash his brain with his crutch.
Wang Weiguo, with his head down, was also speechless. Wasn't Wang Jian's explanation just a case of protesting too much?
"Zhang Xiangui, how about this? When the fruit ripens, our village will give you half of it?"
Wang Huanchun stopped mentioning the shoe print.
"No way!" Before the old village chief could speak, Li Yongheng gritted his teeth and said:
"After doing such a heartless thing, at least show some compassion, right?"
"You guys from Zhangjia Village! Get the hell out of here! We don't welcome you in Wang Village!"
"Yes, yes, yes! What nonsense about matching shoe prints! You think it's right just because you say so?"
"Get out! Get out!"
Old village chief Zhang Xiangui laughed in fury. Was he really going to throw away all pretense of shame? His gaze shifted to Wang Huanchun, and he said coldly:
"Your Highness, you are the most senior and have the highest prestige in the surrounding area. Tell me, shall we leave or not?"
Wang Huanchun clenched his fists, torn between two options. He remained silent.
Sharp Commentary:
Hmm, this is a slight improvement over the previous chapter.
At least the conflict became more direct, and the protagonist used his brain a bit.
The beginning is still drawn out, but you can see that you are trying to create a contrast between daily life and crisis.
Zhang Cheng's plan is interesting, but it's not presented cleverly enough and needs further refinement.
The idiot duo of Wang Jian and Wang Weiguo were convincingly portrayed, their stupidity perfectly timed. The ending was alright, but it could have been a bit harsher.
Keep up the good work, don't let me down too much.
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