"Your money is harder to find than state secrets, where am I supposed to steal it from?" Wang Peng sneered. "Don't you know how much money you have at home? Are you trying to lie through your teeth?"
"How dare you talk to me like that?" Wang Song said angrily. "Where did you get the capital to do business? Don't tell me the watermelons were given to you on credit. There's no such fool in the world."
"Who are you calling an idiot? You're the fool!" Du Lei immediately lost his temper. The first truckload of watermelons was given to Wang Peng on credit by his grandfather.
He stared at Wang Song and said, "The car is mine, the melons are mine, Wang Peng helps me sell melons, eats and sleeps at my house, how did my business become his business?"
Wang Song was stunned and speechless after being rebuked.
This is the reasonable explanation. No money was lost from the family. How could Wang Peng, who was penniless, start from scratch?
"What's your relationship with him? What do you want to do?" Li Guifen questioned Du Lei.
“We’re classmates and good friends,” Du Lei retorted. “What are you trying to do? Are you deliberately passing off my business as Wang Peng’s to try and steal my money?”
"Do you think I'm stupid?" Li Guifen shouted. "I saw it all. Wang Peng weighed the watermelons and collected the money, while you carried them to deliver them. Whose business is it anyway?"
“Yesterday, it was just Wang Peng himself. My daughter saw him eating beef and buying sneakers. He’s the boss,” Wang Song said, pointing to Wang Peng’s shoes.
“Wang Peng sold 500 jin of watermelons for me yesterday, and the sneakers were a reward. He sold another 500 jin today, and I’m planning to reward him with a pair of pants. Is that any of your business?”
Du Lei put his arm around Wang Peng's shoulder and said, "Brother Peng, put the car down. I'll buy you some jeans."
"Are you serious, buddy?" Wang Peng was both amused and exasperated. He put down his cart and went with him to the People's Department Store.
At the same time, he secretly decided that if Du Lei bought jeans that cost more than thirty yuan, he would give him a good beating.
But buying pants is something that will happen sooner or later; you can't wear the same pair of pants every day.
Wang Song wasn't sure if Du Lei was lying, so he left Li Guifen to watch the cart and took Wang Cheng into the mall.
The first floor mainly sells clothes and shoes. Du Lei patted his waist bag and said, "Brother Peng, you can choose whichever one you like."
"Thank you, boss. You're very generous." Wang Peng gave him a thumbs up.
In his previous life, Du Lei was also a remarkable person. He had shown no fear just now, displaying a commanding presence.
"Comrade, how much are these pants?" Wang Peng asked, pointing to a pair of gray jeans.
"These are Apple brand jeans, 128 yuan," the saleswoman said.
"Ouch." Wang Peng almost bit his tongue, thinking to himself, "I have such good taste, I picked out a pair of pants that cost over a hundred yuan right away."
That's ridiculously expensive. The truckload of watermelons we just sold only cost 150 yuan, including profit. You could have bought a pair of pants with that money gone.
"I can't afford it, let's get another pair." Du Lei didn't dare to show off, much less buy pants that cost over a hundred yuan.
He was afraid of getting beaten up.
"Apple jeans are imported from the United States. The genuine ones cost 588 yuan, but these are high-quality replicas," the salesperson laughed. "The jeans here cost at least 30 yuan, which is too expensive for most people."
That's true. Wang Peng looked at Du Lei and said, "Brother Lei, can you buy me the cheapest one?"
"This..." Du Lei pretended to hesitate, "If I buy them for you, you'll have to sell me ten more truckloads of watermelons. The people in the family compound only recognize you; they won't buy the watermelons I sell."
“Okay, I’ll sell you ten more truckloads of watermelons.” Wang Peng nodded hurriedly.
This was all part of his carefully crafted script, and Du Lei's improvisation was quite clever.
The sales clerk looked at his figure, took out a tape measure to measure his waist, and took a pair of light gray jeans from the counter.
“Comrade, that door leads to the fitting room, why don’t you go try it on?” she said.
"Thank you, comrade." Wang Peng walked into the fitting room, took off his tattered pants, and put on brand-new jeans.
The ripped pants were hand-me-downs from Wang Song, which Li Guifen altered. He had never worn new clothes since he was a child.
"I'll sell another truckload of watermelons tomorrow and change my underwear and shirt," he resolved.
Looking down at her jeans and new sneakers, a bittersweet feeling welled up inside her. "I was so foolish in my past life. Why didn't I spend the money on myself?"
He left the fitting room, walked out with his head held high, and decided to spend his own money to please himself from then on.
The double-soled sneakers are full of dynamism, and the jeans accentuate long legs, giving off a youthful vibe.
"Goodness, as expected, clothes make the man." Du Lei clapped his hands.
He unzipped his fanny pack and pulled out thirty yuan bills one after another.
"I have to say, you look like a completely different person in jeans." The sales clerk smiled as she took the money and issued the receipt.
Amid the praise, Wang Peng gained confidence. Out of the corner of his eye, he glanced at the doorway and saw that Wang Song's face had turned as black as the bottom of a pot.
“Dad, a pair of jeans costs thirty yuan. If we buy groceries with that, it’s enough for our family to eat for half a month.” Wang Cheng stared at his older brother’s jeans.
Wang Song felt a pang of heartache. His family was so poor, yet he was using the little money he earned to buy himself pants.
Thirty yuan could buy enough meat to feed the family for several days.
He grew angrier the more he thought about it, glaring at Wang Peng. "Give your pants to your younger brother. As the older brother, you should care for your younger brother. Come home with me, and I'll let you go to school."
He wouldn't even buy pants that cost thirty yuan, so how could he possibly be willing to spend two hundred yuan on tuition?
This was blatant deception. Wang Peng was heartbroken and wanted to ask himself if he was really Wang Peng's biological son.
“I’m not a three-year-old. Give me two hundred yuan for tuition, and I’ll give him my pants right away.” Wang Peng shook his head.
If I were to live this life again, I couldn't be as foolish as I was in my previous life, and I couldn't take my parents' words as gospel.
When his lie was exposed, Wang Song flew into a rage, "You unfilial son? You dare to bargain with me?"
"I'm telling you, this is your last chance to go home. Once you miss this opportunity, it's gone forever." He gritted his teeth and pointed at Wang Peng's nose.
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