Chapter 52 The Quarrel
It was already early September, and the weather was still fine. The temperature was over 30 degrees Celsius, and the occasional breeze brought a touch of coolness.
Since that heavy rain, the weather has gradually turned cooler, and the water in the fields has receded. However, the vegetables that Su Tangtang and the others had planted were basically all soaked.
That morning, everyone gathered together to discuss buying new seeds and planting them again. Meng Meng spoke first, "Director, the seeds were destroyed by a natural disaster. Shouldn't the production team provide some compensation?"
The money her family had used to buy vegetables was borrowed, and now it's all gone, leaving them really short of money.
The director smiled and replied, "Everyone made quite a bit of money selling vegetables and wheat before, right? Even if the seeds are ruined, you should have enough money to buy new ones, right?"
“That’s enough, we have enough,” Zhou Yan replied.
As soon as she finished speaking, the expressions of Meng Meng's and Shen Yingying's families visibly stiffened. Meng Meng's family was indeed out of money, while Shen Yingying's family had previously lent some money to Meng Meng and were also short of cash now.
The director then said, "Since that's enough, then we won't give any compensation."
Meng Meng's face immediately turned ugly as she glared at Zhou Yan. "Sister Yan, are you doing this on purpose?"
Zhou Yan looked completely innocent. "What did I do on purpose? My family is just that well-off," she said, turning to Lin Lang and Su Tangtang. "What about you two?"
The two nodded.
Su Tangtang added softly, "We do have money."
Meng Meng felt a lump in her throat, almost unable to breathe. "Are you guys stupid? If the director is willing to compensate us, wouldn't we all get more money?"
Su Tangtang remained calm, "But we really have enough."
Meng Meng: "..."
They did it on purpose.
She was completely speechless, feeling a surge of anger rising within her, yet she couldn't utter a single word.
In the afternoon, the group went to town to buy seeds. Su Tangtang and Huo Yizhou headed to the seed shop they had visited before.
Zhou Yan and Lin Lang's families followed Su Tangtang and the others.
Shen Yingying and Meng Meng's families exchanged a glance and silently followed. They were really short of money and planned to pay on credit first and then pay back when they had more money. They followed Su Tangtang and the others because they thought that with regular customers around, the boss would be more accommodating.
"Boss," Su Tangtang greeted as soon as she entered the store.
The shop owner looked up and saw a regular customer; a smile immediately spread across his face. "You're here? What kind of seeds do you want this time?"
Su Tangtang explained, "We still need spinach seeds. The heavy rain a while ago washed away all the seeds we just planted, so we have to replant them."
The shop owner sighed, "You're right, there have been so many people coming to buy seeds these past few days. This natural disaster has really done a lot of harm."
Su Tangtang nodded and paid for the spinach seeds.
The Zhou Yan and Lin Lang families have also successively selected the types of vegetables they need.
When it was Shen Yingying's and Meng Meng's turn, Gu Qingke picked up a packet of seeds, looked at it, and tentatively asked, "Boss, can I buy on credit?"
The shop owner's smile vanished immediately. "We don't offer credit here."
Meng Meng quickly replied, "Boss, we'll pay it back soon. We're filming a show here, we can't run away."
The shop owner frowned. "No matter what program we're filming, we don't offer credit."
Meng Meng couldn't help but mutter under her breath, "This boss is so stingy, he has no humanity at all."
Although the voice was soft, the boss heard it clearly and immediately straightened his face, "Young lady, why are you swearing?"
Meng Meng simply stopped pretending. "My friends are all big stars. Do you think they would cheat you out of this little bit of money?"
The shop owner waved his hands angrily, "I don't care if you're celebrities or not, you have to pay for what you buy! Besides, your friends are big stars, do you think they need my money for seeds? Aren't big stars all rich?"
"You..." Meng Meng wanted to argue, but Shen Yingying grabbed her arm.
"Say less," Shen Yingying whispered, her face burning, especially when she saw Su Tangtang standing to the side, making her feel even more ashamed.
Gu Qingke suppressed her temper and continued to negotiate, "Boss, we are indeed short of money, and we need to plant the vegetables urgently, so please be lenient."
"Go away, go away! Don't buy if you don't have money!" The shopkeeper waved him away, "I said no credit!"
Gu Qingke's face darkened. "He's just a seed seller, what's he so arrogant about?"
"What did you say?" the boss immediately raised his voice. "So what if I'm arrogant? What kind of big stars do you think you are? You have no manners at all!"
"Who are you calling rude?" Gu Qingke was furious, her fists clenching involuntarily.
“I’m talking about you!” the boss retorted defiantly.
Gu Qingke almost made a move, but she managed to restrain herself in the end.
He's been acting strangely lately; everything annoys him, and he's easily angered. Arguing with a street vendor in the street is really beneath his dignity.
In the end, the four of them emerged looking disheveled.
Su Tangtang noticed that their hands were empty, but she didn't say anything.
Meng Meng's gaze was fixed on the seeds in Su Tangtang and the others' hands. A surge of anger rose to her head, and she suddenly pointed at Su Tangtang and the others, "It's all your fault! If you hadn't insisted on not accepting the compensation from the production team, would we even be unable to afford seeds?"
Upon hearing this, Zhou Yan immediately retorted, "We have our own money, of course we don't need it. You didn't have any money, so why didn't you ask the director for it yourselves?"
"How could the director possibly give us a share separately?" Meng Meng's voice shrill with anger. "He definitely has to treat everyone equally. If we take some, wouldn't you all get a share too?"
Zhou Yan crossed her arms, finding the statement utterly ridiculous. "So it's wrong for us to have money and not want it?"
"Ah!" Meng Meng was speechless, choked by this self-righteous attitude, and could only scream, "I'm so angry!"
Shen Yingying, who was standing to the side, also looked very unhappy and couldn't help but chime in, "Sister Yan, you guys really went a bit too far this time."
"Excessive?" Zhou Yan raised an eyebrow as if she had heard a joke, and asked, "We spent our own money and didn't take advantage of anyone, and that's considered excessive?"
Shen Yingying was speechless, feeling a tightness in her chest. At this moment, she finally truly understood Meng Meng's feeling of powerlessness to the point of collapse. Reasoning with these people was like talking to a brick wall.
"I'm speechless. There's nothing to say to them," Zhou Yan said impatiently.
“We’re too lazy to even tell you,” Meng Meng retorted immediately.
Shen Yingying gently tugged at her, signaling her to stop talking, then turned to Huo Yizhou, her tone hesitant, "Yizhou, could you lend us some money?"
Shen Yingying didn't know where she got the confidence, but she actually asked Huo Yizhou for the question.
Zhou Yan and her husband, as well as Lin Lang and his wife, were stunned almost simultaneously, their jaws nearly dropping in surprise. When did Huo Yizhou become so familiar with Shen Yingying?
They all looked at Su Tangtang and Huo Yizhou simultaneously.
Su Tangtang's face gradually darkened. Recently, Shen Yingying had indeed been calling her "Yizhou" affectionately, deliberately trying to annoy her.
Huo Yizhou refused almost without hesitation, coldly replying, "Sorry, I won't lend it to you."
"Also, we're not that close, so there's no need to call each other so intimately."
Shen Yingying's expression froze, and she immediately lost face.
Meng Meng chimed in, "You're so stingy. Asking you to be intimate is already giving you face, and you're still not happy about it."
Qu Xian couldn't stand it anymore and retorted, "You're being generous? Who's giving whom face here?"
Meng Meng retorted stubbornly, "I just don't have any money. If I did, I would definitely lend it to you! We've already given him face."
"Give me a break!" Zhou Yan was too lazy to argue with them anymore, and turned to Su Tangtang and Lin Lang, saying, "Let's go."
Shen Yingying could only watch helplessly as the six of them took the seeds and turned to leave, unable to utter a single word.
As soon as the person left, Meng Meng's face fell, and she asked in a tearful voice, "Yingying, what do we do now? We don't have any seeds, what are we going to grow vegetables with?"
Shen Yingying shook her head in frustration, "I don't know either."
At this moment, Gu Qingke, who had been silent all along, turned her attention to Shen Yingying and said coldly, "If you hadn't insisted on lending money to Meng Meng's family, would we have ended up in this situation?"
Shen Yingying was instantly enraged, "Gu Qingke! That money isn't yours alone. I can borrow it whenever I want, so who are you to interfere?"
Meng Meng and Ke Tangshu stood aside, not daring to interrupt.
Gu Qingke's temper flared up as well. "Yes, the money isn't just for one person, so why didn't you listen to me in the first place? Now look what's happened, we're all starving!"
"Gu Qingke, don't go too far! Everyone has their difficulties. We helped Mengmeng today, but if we face trouble in the future, do you think they'll just stand by and do nothing?"
"Help us?" Gu Qingke sneered, full of sarcasm. "They can't even take care of themselves right now, and you actually expect them to help? How naive!"
These words completely enraged Meng Meng. She jumped out and pointed at Gu Qingke, "What do you mean? Who do you think you are!"
Gu Qingke swept her gaze coldly over, "What I mean, someone knows perfectly well."
"You...you fickle beast!" Meng Meng cursed without thinking.
"Try saying that again?" Gu Qingke's face instantly darkened to the point of being dripping with water. He took a step closer, his voice low and menacing, "I never hit women, but if you dare to swear again, I won't hesitate to make an exception for you."
Meng Meng trembled at the undisguised ferocity in his eyes and hurriedly hid behind Ke Tangshu, not daring to utter another sound.
Seeing her cowardly appearance, Gu Qingke sneered disdainfully, turned around and left without looking back.
"Yingying, what do we do now?" Meng Meng asked softly, her voice trembling with fear and tears in her eyes.
Looking at the mess in front of her, Shen Yingying sighed, exhausted. "What else can we do? Let's think of something else. Let's go back first."
She said this, and started walking wearily.
Meng Meng gave a soft "hmm" and silently followed.
Throughout the entire ordeal, Ke Tangshu remained a complete outsider, neither participating in the argument nor offering any solutions. He simply followed at the back with a blank expression. Shen Yingying felt a surge of intense resentment towards him, but she swallowed the words back down.
Undeterred, they reluctantly approached several more shops, but without exception, none were willing to extend credit. In the end, the group could only return home dejectedly amidst a heavy atmosphere.
After returning, Shen Yingying and her group went to see the director again.
The director still refused to pay for their work out of pocket.
"What if we don't have money?" Meng Meng's tone became sharp. "Director, if you don't give us the money, we won't plant it."
She tried to use a strike as a threat.
The director, however, was unmoved and calmly responded, "Breaking the program rules requires paying a penalty, which is clearly stated in black and white in the contract."
Meng Meng was speechless and could no longer say a word.
Ultimately, the four had to find another way.
They traveled to another town to inquire and finally found a shop that was willing to let them buy on credit.
The store only agreed to give them a 20-day repayment period and required them to record a video as proof.
The four of them had no choice but to suppress their anger and record a video of themselves making an IOU in front of the camera.
On the way back carrying the seeds, everyone felt incredibly frustrated.
Meng Meng kept cursing the whole way, and even Shen Yingying, who was usually gentle and soft-spoken, couldn't help but complain a few words in a low voice.
In fact, the seeds for eight acres of land only cost a little over a thousand yuan, but the two families couldn't even scrape together that amount of money.
They had been spending money too recklessly before, and only now did they truly realize how difficult it was to get by without money.
The thought of needing money to buy fertilizer later filled the group with even more worry.
A few days later, the newly purchased seeds were finally sown in the ground.
These days, Gu Qingke and the other three are busy farming during the day and have to go to the home of the owner of the hot pot restaurant they used to go to before to help skewer the food and earn some spare change to pay off the seed debt. The repayment deadline is like a sword hanging over their heads. If they can't pay it off by the deadline, the restaurant owner will release the video of the debt online. They don't want to lose face in front of the whole country.
Before we knew it, it was mid-September, and the corn in the fields was gradually ripening. In a few more days, it would be time to harvest.
Some families in the village who planted early are already busy in the fields.
There are actually specialized harvesters available, but most villagers are reluctant to spend the money, and every household goes to the fields themselves to harvest corn by hand.
That evening, the weather was still somewhat muggy.
After dinner, Su Tangtang and Huo Yizhou took a stroll along the edge of the fields.
The spinach in the vegetable garden has already sprouted tender shoots, growing several centimeters tall and vibrant green. Vegetables are always like this; they grow quickly and have short life cycles, appearing one after another before you know it.
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