Looking at Wang Dabao supporting Yan Bugui, Yi Zhonghai felt a strange emotion rising within him.
For a moment, I felt that Wang Dabao was actually a pretty good person!
Yan Bugui and Wang Dabao had only known each other for a few days, but when Yan Bugui needed help, Wang Dabao genuinely offered assistance.
It seems that I should try to resolve the misunderstanding that happened before when I have the chance.
If I get along well with Wang Dabao, this kid probably won't go against me in the future, my voice in the compound will be more secure, and things like disrupting donations won't happen again.
Liu Haizhong squinted his eyes, seemingly lost in thought as well.
He had been slapped by Wang Dabao before and had been extorted for money, but those were all misunderstandings caused by Yi Zhonghai and others.
If I can win over Wang Dabao in the future, with his help, I might be able to take a seat as the eldest uncle in the compound.
Yan Bugui, tears streaming down his face, grabbed Wang Dabao's arm and sobbed, "Brother Dabao, I know you mean well, but I'm heartbroken!"
"I wish I hadn't seen those two fish today. Isn't this damn fate playing a trick on me?!"
In the end, Yan Bugui was carried home by his eldest son, Yan Jiecheng.
After two heavy blows, Yan Bugui could no longer stand steadily, let alone walk.
A group of people escorted Yan Bugui back to the compound. When they saw that Yan Bugui looked like he had lost his soul, the third aunt was terrified.
"Honey, don't scare me! It's just that we didn't catch any fish. It's no big deal. We still have to live our lives as usual!"
The three women threw themselves at Yan Bugui, crying with snot and tears streaming down their faces.
All the residents of the compound rushed to the front yard to see what was going on. After Yi Zhonghai and others explained the situation, they finally understood what was happening, and everyone felt sorry for Yan Bugui.
Of course, if Yan Bugui actually catches the fish, these people who feel sorry for him might have a completely different attitude.
After returning from Shichahai, many anglers followed, hoping to learn about Yan Bugui's experience in catching big fish. However, seeing his distraught appearance, they couldn't get any information from him, so they started to target Yan Bugui's bait.
While everyone in the compound was focused on Yan Bugui, the group of anglers carefully studied his bait and groundbait, and found that they seemed to be no different from theirs.
That's strange. There are hundreds of people fishing on the shore, so why did the two big fish only bite Yan Bugui's hook?!
Some people put the bait in their mouths and tasted it, but it didn't taste particularly special.
It seems to be a problem with the available stalls!
Realizing this, the group of anglers arrived quickly and left just as fast, disappearing in droves.
This infuriated Yan Jiecheng, who had originally intended to sell the bait to the group at a high price to recoup his losses. However, the other party lacked sportsmanship, having both seen and tasted the bait before leaving without a second thought.
Helpless, he had no choice but to take out his only four yuan and pitifully hand it to Wang Dabao.
Wang Dabao, with a cigarette dangling from his lips and tears in his eyes, accepted the four yuan. He patted Yan Jiecheng on the shoulder and said earnestly, "Jiecheng, it's not that I'm being heartless, but this is a bet. If I waive your money, what will the other losers think?"
"But Uncle Dabao isn't an unfeeling person. You can have this cigarette."
Wang Dabao pulled a pack of cigarettes out of his pocket and shoved it into Yan Jiecheng's hand.
Yan Jiecheng felt a surge of emotion as he held the cigarette box, but when Wang Dabao walked away and he opened it, he was caught completely off guard to find that there was only one cigarette left inside.
When Yi Zhonghai saw Wang Dabao strolling closer to him, he pretended to just realize what was happening and slapped his forehead. "Oh dear, I almost forgot. Dabao, here's twenty yuan, take it."
"I'm a man of my word, and I never renege on my debts. Since I lost, I will definitely pay the money."
Wang Dabao didn't expect Yi Zhonghai to agree so readily; he thought it would take a while.
"Old Yi, you're being too polite. I trust your character."
"Alright, try to persuade Lao Yan again when you have time. I'll head back now."
After stuffing the twenty yuan into his pocket, Wang Dabao strolled back to the backyard.
Thinking about his morning's earnings, he had won fifty-two yuan from Sha Zhu, forty yuan from Liu Haizhong, forty yuan from Xu Damao, twenty yuan from Yi Zhonghai, and four yuan from Yan Jiecheng, for a total of one hundred and fifty-six yuan.
However, Xu Damao still owes twenty yuan.
After a morning of running around, I'm hungry now.
When I got home, I lit some coal briquettes and made do with what I had to eat.
Tomorrow is the day to report to the steel rolling mill, and Wang Dabao plans to take another good nap this afternoon.
In the evening, Xu Damao came to return the money and mysteriously told Wang Dabao that Yan Bugui was sick and had been running a high fever. He was still shouting in his delirium that he had caught something, that he had caught something.
Upon hearing this, Wang Dabao sighed inwardly, thinking that Old Yan was really too fragile to withstand even this little test. How could they possibly play together in the future?
The two strolled to the front yard.
As soon as they arrived at Yan Bugui's house, they saw Yi Zhonghai and Liu Haizhong lingering at the door.
"Hey, Da Bao, you've come at the right time. We were just thinking about how to persuade Lao Yan."
Yi Zhonghai's face was full of worry. "I heard from his third aunt that after Lao Yan woke up with a fever this afternoon, he didn't eat or talk. Can you believe how worried he is?"
Liu Haizhong nodded in agreement: "Old Yan is petty and prone to overthinking. Today's events have been a significant blow to him."
"Why don't we go in and check out the situation first?"
Wang Dabao waved his hand and led the way inside.
When the group entered the room, they saw Yan Bugui lying on the kang (a heated brick bed) like a dead dog with no soul, and Yan Jiekuang lying next to him wearing only a pair of trousers.
The three women were so worried that they didn't feel like pouring water for the group; they were wiping away tears.
When Yan Bugui saw Wang Dabao come in, his lips trembled as he said, "Dabao, why is my life so miserable?"
"So what if you didn't catch any fish? Old Yan, look at you. You can't even handle a little setback. You're such a disappointment."
Wang Dabao sighed, "Look at Lao Liu and Lao Yi, they made a bet with me, one lost forty and the other lost twenty, did they cry and wail like you?"
Even if you don't catch anything, you won't lose anything.
Upon hearing that Liu Haizhong and Yi Zhonghai had lost money, Yan Bugui seemed to perk up a bit. After finding out the details, he turned to look at the three aunties.
"Honey, I'm feeling better. Go and bring the food over."
Yi Zhonghai and Liu Haizhong were taken aback.
Wow, Wang Dabao really knows how to persuade people!
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