From then on, Yao Tongjia and Xiao Gengwu resumed their school days. Xiao Gengwu almost wore out the book that Lao Pan had given him, and he even managed to make a wooden bicycle.
The bicycle is made of wood, with only the chain and screws being metal; everything else is wood. The chain and screws were found at a junkyard.
It was the first time Yao Tongjia had ever seen something so cool, so she immediately rode it off. The height was designed by Xiao Gengwu according to Yao Tongjia's height, so she could just touch the ground when she sat on it.
At first, Yao Tongjia was worried that the wood would fall apart as she stepped on it, but after circling around the door, it miraculously returned home intact. It was truly amazing!
Yao Tongxu couldn't help but tug at his sister: "Sis, sis, step on it, step on it!"
"Do you know how to pedal?" Yao Tongxu was speechless. He really didn't seem to know how, but that didn't dampen his enthusiasm: "You can teach me. It would be strange if I didn't pedal when I had a bike!"
It seemed that Yao Tongxu was right. Yao Tongjia helped Yao Tongxu pedal the bike, and Xiao Gengwu quickly stepped forward: "Let me do it, let me do it, I'm strong!"
Yao Tongjia felt that her strength seemed to have improved recently, but she still concealed her true strength: "Then I'll have to trouble you, Brother Xiao!"
No one saw Yao Tongjia pedaling when she did, but now that Yao Tongxu is pedaling, someone has seen it and is asking incredulously, "Is your bicycle made of wood?"
Yao Tongxu immediately boasted, "It's made of wood, and it was made by my brother Xiao! He spent two days making it!"
These words intrigued the neighbors, who knew that bicycle tickets were not easy to obtain these days, costing nearly 100 yuan on the black market.
Including the cost of the bicycle, the total cost of a bicycle is at least 250 yuan, given a monthly salary of around 30 yuan here.
A bicycle is equivalent to eight months' salary for a person who doesn't eat or drink, but who can live without spending money? Even if you save every penny for a year, you might not be able to buy a bicycle!
Now that you can make a bicycle out of wood, if I get some wood myself, can't I just have this kid make one? It only takes two days, and I can just pay him a few dollars for his labor.
Thinking this, several male neighbors followed Yao Tongxu, wanting to see if the bicycle was durable!
After falling several times, Yao Tongxu finally learned to ride a bicycle. If he hadn't learned, people would have tried to take the bicycle from him, especially after seeing it fall to the ground.
Even knowing the bicycle wasn't theirs, they were heartbroken. If it were their own child, they would have already beaten him!
Yao Tongxu: "..." What terrifying parents!
After seeing Yao Tongxu pedal back and forth, even falling several times, the wooden bicycle remained unharmed, and the others became eager to get Xiao Gengwu's help in making one!
One of the ringleaders took out a cigarette and handed it to Xiao Gengwu: "Xiao kid, right? Can you make one for me? I can pay you for the workmanship!"
Xiao Gengwu refused without even glancing at the cigarette: "I won't do it!"
The one who stood out thought he had misheard: "Anyway, it's only two days' work. I'll give you 20 yuan. 10 yuan a day for labor is a lot!"
Xiao Gengwu's response remained the same: "I won't do it!"
By this time, the one who stood up had already attracted a crowd of people, who were also unwilling to give up: "We're all neighbors, so let's help each other out. We'll provide the wood, and we'll give you 20 yuan per vehicle!"
"There are 5 households here, so 5 vehicles would cost 100 yuan, which is quite a lot!" Everyone felt a pang of sadness when they heard about 100 yuan. A high school student could earn that much in just ten days.
They work themselves to death for a month and only earn 30 yuan. Isn't that price too high? Everyone exchanged glances, about to adjust the price, but Xiao Gengwu still said the same thing: "No way!"
"You're such a disobedient child. Come on, let's go to your home and let your parents talk to you. You're so unsociable!"
Xiao Gengwu continued watching Yao Tongxu ride his bike, wondering if such a bike, which wouldn't be able to withstand the wind and rain in winter or on rainy days, could be covered up by himself to enclose the area around it!
Xiao Gengwu was so engrossed in his thoughts that he didn't hear the sounds around him. All these people rushed into the courtyard. Yao Tongjia and Yao Yanxin were in the pharmacy.
When they heard the voice, the people started talking all at once, saying, "We're all neighbors, helping each other out, how can we refuse?"
Yao Tongjia was about to speak when Aunt Xue came back and interrupted, "Then tell us first, what can you do to help us? I heard that last time someone came to cause trouble, you just stood by and watched!"
These words made everyone feel awkward. Indeed, the last time the woman with the slanted eyes came to cause trouble, they all ate their rice while watching her. Now they were starting to regret it.
Aunt Xue sneered as soon as she saw their expressions: "You didn't say anything when something happened back then, so don't bother with polite words, get out of here!"
"You! You're not the owner of this place, why are you kicking people out!"
Yao Tongjia stepped forward and said, "I would also like to ask you to leave. Although that car is made of wood, it still needs iron chains and screws. We went to the scrap metal recycling station last time."
"We've taken all the chains and screws. Without those two things, we can't make a bicycle!"
The one who stood out immediately became shameless: "How about you give me this car first, and I'll give you 20 yuan!"
Several people immediately started arguing: "Why should I give it to you? Give it to me, I'll give you 20.5 yuan!"
"I can give you 21 yuan!"
"I can give you 21.5 yuan!"
"I can give you 22 yuan!"
Yao Tongjia: "......." You guys are really generous!
Just then, Yao Tongxu returned with the cart, his eyes sparkling!
Not wanting his bicycle to be stolen, he said, "I'll bring you the money later, I'll give you 23 yuan!"
Aunt Xue snatched the bicycle back: "How dare you add a few cents here? This is a bicycle, it costs two or three hundred!"
"Get out of here, all of you! I'm just a country bumpkin, not an educated person. If anyone dares to steal my car, I'll go to your doorstep and curse you for days and nights, and see if you'll still have the nerve to leave your house!"
Now no one dares to steal the car. They thought that since the family was small and the members were thin-skinned, they could use moral blackmail to get a bicycle for the least amount of money.
As a result, their plans were thwarted by the village woman in front of them. The group of people walked along, looking at the bicycles with reluctance. "This bike is so cool. If I ride one of these, I'll definitely get 100% attention."
Thinking that if the Xiao family's son did it for them, their coworkers, relatives and friends would definitely ask them to do it too, and then they could act as middlemen and earn the price difference.
Now I have nothing left, I'm so unwilling to accept it!
After everyone left, Aunt Xue closed the door and pointed at Yao Yanxin: "You! Why did you let Tongtong be in front?"
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