Chapter 10 You're taking advantage of my misfortune!
After lunch, everyone continued working in the fields. Su Tangtang and Huo Yizhou were about to leave when Wu Xiaojia and Zhao Zhiyi blocked their way.
"Su Tangtang, can I take up a little more time with you?" Wu Xiaojia forced a smile.
Su Tangtang glanced at them coldly, "What is it?"
“I still want to discuss the loan with you,” Wu Xiaojia raised her chin. “We’ve agreed to the interest rate terms you mentioned.”
Her tone carried a hint of condescending arrogance, as if she were giving Su Tangtang an enormous favor.
Su Tangtang chuckled softly upon hearing this, "I don't want to lend it to you anymore."
"You!" Wu Xiaojia's expression changed drastically.
Zhao Zhiyi glared at Wu Xiaojia and quickly stepped in front of the two of them. Huo Yizhou narrowed his eyes slightly, "Can't you understand human language?"
Zhao Zhiyi gritted his teeth inwardly.
What's so great about this gigolo who lives off women? But he still had a smile on his face, saying, "We're all on the same show, isn't it only natural to help each other out?"
"The production team said this is a competition," Su Tangtang rolled her eyes elegantly, "Helping you guys is like screwing ourselves over. Is that hard to understand?"
Wu Xiaojia clenched her fists, her nails digging deep into her palms. "Su Tangtang, you guys are so selfish!"
Zhao Zhiyi glared at Wu Xiaojia, and Wu Xiaojia immediately fell silent.
He was having a terrible headache. How come he hadn't noticed before that Wu Xiaojia was so bad at speaking? Every word she said was like adding fuel to the fire.
Zhao Zhiyi took a deep breath and put on a sincere smile. "We were indeed rude just now. I apologize on Xiaojia's behalf."
He bowed slightly, adopting a very humble posture.
Su Tangtang looked at the man in front of her with great interest, who was both flexible and adaptable. Wu Xiaojia wanted to say something, but Zhao Zhiyi stopped her with a look.
“Actually, borrowing money isn’t a bad idea,” Su Tangtang said slowly, tapping her arm lightly with her finger.
Zhao immediately understood, "Just name your conditions."
“The previous interest rate of 20% per day on the 10,000 yuan is void,” Su Tangtang said softly. “Now I want 50% per day in interest.”
"You're taking advantage of my misfortune!" Wu Xiaojia's voice trembled with anger.
Su Tangtang calmly counted on her fingers, "A loan of ten thousand yuan for a month would only incur an interest of fifteen thousand yuan. Is that too much?"
A glint flashed in Zhao Zhiyi's eyes, and he readily agreed, "Deal!" He gave Su Tangtang a meaningful look. It seemed that the rumored eldest daughter of the Su family who was relentlessly pursuing Gu Qingke was not the same person in reality.
Su Tangtang raised an eyebrow at Wu Xiaojia, then turned to Zhao Zhiyi with a charming smile, "Let's go, come with us to get the money."
Zhao Zhiyi nodded in agreement and dragged the reluctant Wu Xiaojia along behind.
Su Tangtang leaned closer to Huo Yizhou, her eyes sparkling, "How did I do? I returned the money to us and earned a lot of interest," her tone carrying a hint of seeking praise.
Huo Yizhou looked down at her, his thin lips parted slightly, "Your asking price is too kind."
His voice was low and deep. "If it were me, I would at least charge 200 per day."
Su Tangtang paused, quickly calculating in her mind: Wouldn't that mean charging more than half the interest?
She clicked her tongue in amazement: He really is a business genius; no wonder he can run his business so successfully.
Fortunately, they maintained a safe distance from the two people behind them and kept their voices very low, otherwise Wu Xiaojia might have fainted from anger on the spot.
“Keep this money in your hands,” Huo Yizhou analyzed unhurriedly, “We can use it to invest in other projects and generate greater returns. Lending it out now is equivalent to giving up this opportunity cost.” He paused, “So the interest of 500 is actually quite reasonable.”
Su Tangtang suddenly realized, biting her lip in annoyance, "Now that you mention it, I suddenly feel like I've gotten the short end of the stick," she said, her eyes darting around, "Or maybe..."
"In the business world, it's like playing chess," Huo Yizhou interrupted her, his voice steady and powerful, "once a move is made, there's no going back."
After listening to his analysis, Su Tangtang felt she had made a huge mistake, so she pouted and said, "Okay!"
Back at their residence, Su Tangtang led Huo Yizhou inside to get the money, while Zhao Zhiyi and Wu Xiaojia waited in the courtyard.
Wu Xiaojia was seething with anger, and nothing seemed right to her. Her gaze swept over the cucumber seeds soaking in the yard, a calculating glint flashing in her eyes, and a barely perceptible sneer curled at the corner of her lips.
When Su Tangtang came out with the money, she happened to catch Wu Xiaojia's subtle expression. When Wu Xiaojia saw her come out, she immediately put on a stern face and hid behind Zhao Zhiyi.
Su Tangtang snorted inwardly, feeling more and more that lending them money was really not worthwhile.
She carefully wrote the IOU in front of the two of them, and asked them to sign and put their fingerprints on it to prevent them from defaulting on the debt later.
After completing the formalities, the two hurriedly left with the money. Su Tangtang watched their departing figures, a strange unease welling up in her heart.
-
At three o'clock in the afternoon, Su Tangtang and the other person took out the soaked seeds, filtered out the water with gauze, and gently rubbed the mucus on the surface of the seeds.
Then they were placed on a clean plastic sheet to dry.
They observed the sun-dried food as they dried it.
Once the seeds were no longer sticking together, they wrapped them in a wrung-out, non-drip gauze and placed them on a seedling tray.
Then she brought it into the kitchen. To maintain the temperature, Su Tangtang found an electric heater and placed it in the kitchen, turning it on from time to time to keep the temperature at the required level.
"Finally finished with all the work, now I just have to wait for the seeds to sprout," Su Tangtang stretched her arms and gave a big yawn.
Huo Yizhou gave a faint "hmm".
“We’ll have a bit more free time for the next two days,” Su Tangtang said, patting the dirt off her hands. “Once the seeds sprout, we can plant them in the ground.”
After exchanging a few words, the two walked out of the kitchen one after the other. The sun was setting, and it was already dinnertime.
The production team then sent a message saying that they had prepared a big meal for everyone and asked everyone to go to the dining location.
After receiving the message, Su Tangtang and her companion tidied their clothes and prepared to head to the dining location arranged by the production team. Just as they were about to leave, Su Tangtang suddenly stopped. "By the way, do we have a lock?"
Huo Yizhou pondered for a moment, "There should be a few in the drawers of the main room."
Upon hearing this, Su Tangtang turned and walked into the main room. She took out two brass locks from the drawer of the old-fashioned wooden table, weighed them in her hand, and said, "Lock the doors to the main room and the kitchen, just in case something goes wrong."
“Okay,” Huo Yizhou replied briefly, taking one of the locks.
The two carefully locked the door and headed towards the dinner location provided by the production team.
The dinner was held in the square in front of the village committee. A long wooden table was set up with food neatly arranged on it. The program crew, the village chief, the village party secretary, and several village representatives were already waiting.
Su Tangtang and Huo Yizhou were the first group of guests to arrive. They had barely stood still when they saw Shen Yingying and her group walking towards them from afar.
Unlike the two who looked clean and tidy, the other guests had just finished farm work and arrived with mud on their clothes, their trousers rolled up unevenly, and their hair slightly messy.
As she walked, Shen Yingying brushed the dirt off her sleeves, muttering under her breath, "This job is really hard."
Seeing Su Tangtang and Huo Yizhou standing there looking refreshed, everyone was taken aback at first, then their expressions subtly changed. A subtle emotion floated in the air, a mixture of envy, doubt, and perhaps a little bit of resentment.
Why are these two always one step ahead of them and do everything so well? It's probably because the director is biased and gives them special treatment.
Seeing that everyone had gathered, Director Han Yang held up a megaphone and announced loudly, "These are all authentic farm dishes that the villagers have specially prepared for us. Let's first thank them for their warm hospitality!"
As soon as they finished speaking, the guests immediately turned to the surrounding villagers and thanked them in unison. The simple and honest villagers smiled warmly and waved their hands repeatedly to say that they were welcome.
The director then announced, "Everyone, eat, drink, and have fun tonight. Recharge your energy so we can keep working hard tomorrow."
He paused, then suddenly changed the subject, "But I must remind you all, this may be the last ready-made meal for you for a while."
"Director, what do you mean by that?" Shen Yingying immediately asked, her brows furrowed with unease.
Director Han Yang gave a meaningful smile, "Starting tomorrow, everyone will have to fend for themselves for their own meals."
This news was like a bucket of cold water poured over them, and the expressions on the faces of the guests instantly became quite varied. Thinking about the day's hard work in the fields, sweating profusely, and then having to drag their exhausted bodies to start a fire and cook, someone couldn't help but mutter under their breath, "This is going to kill us!"
Seeing this, the director added with a smile, "Don't worry, the production team is careful and won't really exhaust everyone."
Everyone: "..."
The silence among the crowd spoke of doubt.
After taking their seats, Qu Xian picked up his chopsticks first and laughed heartily, "Since we're here, let's make the best of it and fill our stomachs first! The food will get cold if we don't eat it soon. How long has it been since we've had such a sumptuous meal?"
Gu Qingke nodded in agreement, "That's right, eat as much as you can now, because you'll have to rely on yourself starting tomorrow."
Wu Xiaojia rested her chin on her hand, sighing with a worried expression, "It's all I know how to cook, like instant noodles and dumplings."
Shen Yingying hesitated for a moment before reluctantly replying, "I do know a little, but my skill level is limited."
Wu Xiaojia's eyes lit up, and she immediately took her arm affectionately, "Can I come to your house for a meal?"
Shen Yingying's smile froze slightly. She was very unwilling inside, but she still maintained a gentle expression. "My cooking skills are really not good. I'm afraid I'll make you feel bad."
Wu Xiaojia persisted, "It's okay, I'm not picky about food!"
Shen Yingying: "..."
After spending a few days together, Shen Yingying felt that Wu Xiaojia was a bit stupid, and she really didn't want to talk to her anymore.
Su Tangtang picked up a piece of bright green wild vegetable with her chopsticks and put it in her mouth. Her eyes lit up instantly. She turned to the village chief with surprise and said, "Village chief, what kind of vegetable is this? It tastes so unique!"
“This is noodle vegetable, a common wild vegetable around here,” the village chief explained with a smile, the wrinkles at the corners of his eyes smoothing out. “Springtime is when it’s at its freshest.”
"It's so delicious! Where can I find this kind of vegetable?" Su Tangtang asked with great interest.
The village chief pointed to the distance and said, "There's a small grove of trees at the east end of the village. Wild vegetables grow everywhere this season. If you're interested, you can go and take a look."
"Great!" Su Tangtang turned to Huo Yizhou and winked. "Let's go pick some tomorrow, and I'll show you how to cook them."
Huo Yizhou raised an eyebrow slightly, his gaze carrying a hint of amusement. "You can cook?" His tone betrayed his doubt.
Su Tangtang then remembered the original owner's persona of never lifting a finger in the kitchen, and coughed lightly, "Although I haven't cooked much, it shouldn't be too bad?"
"Should I believe you?" Huo Yizhou asked slowly and deliberately.
Su Tangtang subconsciously patted his shoulder, "Don't worry, I've got your back!" As soon as she finished speaking, she felt Huo Yizhou's body stiffen noticeably, and then she remembered that Huo Yizhou hated being touched by others.
She quickly withdrew her hand, and a subtle awkwardness immediately filled the space between them.
This scene happened right before Gu Qingke's eyes. He clenched his fist, a mocking sneer curling at the corner of his mouth. In his eyes, Su Tangtang's behavior was clearly an act for him to see. In order to get his attention, she actually acted so convincingly with her fake boyfriend. It was disgusting.
"Qingke, these pork ribs are very flavorful, would you like to try some?" Shen Yingying's gentle voice interrupted his thoughts.
She thoughtfully placed a piece of pork rib into Gu Qingke's bowl, her gaze seemingly casually sweeping over Su Tangtang's side.
Gu Qingke immediately looked away and gave Shen Yingying a doting smile, "Okay, I'll try it."
He lowered his head and took a bite of the rib, but found it tasteless. His peripheral vision kept drifting in a certain direction.
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