Sha Zhu, carrying a thermos, took a roundabout route to Qin Huairu's tea stall and queued up.
I must say, Qin Huairu's tea stall is really lively.
It's not expensive either, just one cent for a large spoonful, and one spoonful is enough to fill a small teacup.
The neighbors from the three courtyards next door were notified beforehand that they could bring their own teacups, or they could drink directly from the large bowls next to the tea stall if they didn't bring any.
The price is the same, one cent per bowl.
Liu Haizhong and Yan Bugui, who were standing nearby, had just finished their inspection.
Qin Huairu, a pretty young woman, was selling tea here. Although it was right in front of her own house, these two old men were still worried and came over to check on her, hoping that no ignorant young man would say anything offensive.
The two men watched from the side, and Wang Dabao also came over.
Qin Huairu took a moment to prepare three bowls and had Banggeng bring them over.
The three of them sat on a simple long bench made of bricks and wooden planks and chatted. Perhaps Bang Geng still remembered the time when Wang Dabao had played a trick on him and made him lose his front tooth, because when the whole bowl of tea was brought to Wang Dabao, only half a bowl remained.
Wang Dabao didn't mind and happily took the drink.
Banggeng waited nearby, knowing that the three of them had to finish drinking from the large bowl and take it back quickly, as his family didn't have that many spare bowls.
Liu Haizhong and Yan Bugui slurped their drinks, while Wang Dabao took a small sip and chatted with them for a bit, then took another small sip, making Bang Geng next to them grind his teeth and stomp his feet in disbelief.
When Liu Haizhong and Yan Bugui handed the bowl back to Bang Geng, they saw that Wang Dabao still had half a bowl.
So he only licked it a few times, and just kept covering his hands with the bowl.
"Can you hurry up?"
Banggeng felt he couldn't stay silent any longer, "They're waiting over there to use their bowls."
"It's too hot for me to drink. Never mind, I won't drink it. Why don't you take it back?" Wang Dabao pushed the bowl into Bang Geng's arms.
Banggeng was dumbfounded. He knew that his mother was able to set up this stall because it was Wang Dabao's idea. How could he explain if he left half a bowl of food at home?
It's only two steps; he can't possibly fall over halfway there.
If his mother saw this, he would definitely get a beating, the kind that even Jia Zhangshi couldn't control. Now, his mother, Qin Huairu, has absolute authority at home.
"Please drink it, I'm begging you, okay?"
Banggeng gritted his teeth, rolled his eyes, and said.
"It's fine to drink it."
Wang Dabao nodded. "But you'll owe me a favor. If you agree to do me a favor in the future, you'll certainly get your share of the benefits."
“Okay, then you can drink it,” Banggeng readily agreed.
Wang Dabao downed his tea in one gulp and handed the bowl to Banggeng, saying, "Remember what you said, or I'll knock out your last front tooth."
Being stared into Wang Dabao's eyes sent a chill down Banggeng's spine for no reason. He nodded cautiously, grabbed his bowl, and ran away.
Yan Bugui chuckled and pointed at Wang Dabao, saying, "Dabao, you're such a grown man, why are you scaring a child like that!"
"Old Yan, what you said is wrong."
Liu Haizhong straightened his back and said in a strong voice, "Brother Dabao, this isn't a scare tactic, it's education. Banggeng is notoriously difficult to manage. Have you ever seen him afraid of anyone in this yard?"
"That's true. Sha Zhu, Xu Damao, and my Jie Cheng, which one hasn't been cursed at by this kid?!"
Yan Bugui straightened his head and put on the dog-skin hat. "He doesn't dare to scold us old folks, but he won't listen to us either. Now that you mention it, I think only Da Bao in this yard can handle him. That's good!"
"Hey, you two, you've got to be kidding me. I was just trying to scare you."
Wang Dabao chuckled, glanced at the crowd, and seeing Wang Tiangao chatting with people from his compound, he looked away again. "The lively scene in our compound today is largely thanks to you two!"
Liu Haizhong and Yan Bugui also glanced around the room, and were somewhat moved.
"Brother Da Bao, what do you think of my management skills?"
Liu Haizhong leaned forward and humbly asked, "Why don't you give me an evaluation, older brother?!"
Wang Dabao nodded thoughtfully: "Old Liu, I think it's a waste of your talents to put you in charge of this compound. Your potential for advancement has reached a bottleneck, and you need a broader stage to showcase your management skills."
"Brother Da Bao, do you really think I have this talent?"
Liu Haizhong's eyes gleamed with an eager desire to improve, and he stared longingly at Wang Dabao.
"Old Liu, you're being modest. This isn't about talent; it's about innate ability. You understand what innate ability is?!"
Wang Dabao coughed lightly, and Liu Haizhong immediately took out a cigarette. The three of them began to smoke.
After a moment's thought, Wang Dabao continued, "Before, with Yi Zhonghai holding you back, you could only be subordinate to others, Lao Liu. Now you've truly soared to new heights, and that's when your talent is revealed."
"This is something you don't need to study or understand. You are born with leadership skills. Now it's just a matter of letting your talent run free."
Yan Bugui adjusted his dog-skin hat again and straightened his glasses.
He really wanted to ask the two of them what they were talking about, whether it was something serious, because he was sitting right next to them and couldn't understand a thing!
Liu Haizhong swallowed hard, about to ask again, when a commotion broke out in the tea-buying queue.
The three looked up and saw that Sha Zhu was arguing with someone.
"That silly Zhu is such a worry. Da Bao, Lao Yan, you two sit and wait for me. I'm going to take a look."
Liu Haizhong struggled to lift his buttocks and slowly walked over.
Yan Bugui and Wang Dabao exchanged a glance and then got up and followed.
Wang Dabao listened for a few moments and understood.
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