Old Chen has become addicted to stealing bricks these days, treating it as a way to get rich, and he gets more energetic as the night goes on.
Judging that it was already midnight, he stood up and glanced outside the door. "The second son's family should be asleep. I should go get to work."
"Wait for me, old man." Old Mrs. Chen put on her clothes and shoes. "I'll go with you."
"It's dark at home, and that thing is so heavy. If you twist your back, that would be so painful."
Grandma Chen patted her lower back and said, "Don't worry, I'll take it easy."
As he spoke, he pulled a cloth bag out of the cabinet. "I prepared this. Carrying it on my shoulders and back will do just as well as carrying it by hand."
"Okay, but don't push yourself too hard. If you overwork yourself, you won't even have enough money to cover your expenses, and that would be a huge loss."
"Don't worry, I won't do more. One trip is enough to exchange for two sesame cakes with the bricks."
"Okay, let's go then."
At this moment, Chen Zhanshan and Erdanzi were by a pile of wood not far away, blending into the darkness.
Chen Qingqing and Xiaoyu hid behind a pile of blue bricks, their eyes wide open, watching everything around them.
Suddenly, two figures, one in front of the other, slowly walked over from the Chen family's old house.
The two tiptoed around, looking all around...
Wu Baoan was also called over by Chen Qingqing. When she told him that she was there to catch a thief, he didn't believe her at first. But when he saw the two people not far away, he couldn't help but frown. This old couple was hopeless.
Just as Xiao Yu and his companion were about to rush over, Chen Qingqing grabbed his hand, signaling him not to rush. "Catch the adulterer in the act, and catch the thief red-handed; now is not the time."
Although it was pitch black, Old Man Chen knew the way well and easily arrived at the place where the blue bricks were piled up.
Old Mrs. Chen was getting impatient. She picked up a brick and was about to put it into her cloth bag when Old Mr. Chen quickly stopped her. "Old woman, don't rush. Let me see where Erdanzi is first. If he finds us, we won't be able to escape."
"Okay, I understand."
Old Mrs. Chen had no choice but to gently put the brick back. After a while, Old Mr. Chen still showed no sign of making a move, and she was getting a little impatient.
"Old man, if no one's watching, let's get started!"
"Don't worry, something seems off."
Grandma Chen was startled by her anxious appearance. "What's wrong, old man? Is something the problem?"
Old Chen frowned. "Every day at this time, Erdanzi would carry a lantern and patrol from east to west, and then from south to north, but I looked for a long time and couldn't find him. Don't you think something's wrong?"
"You're being too cautious. Don't you know what kind of person Erdanzi is? He only does things for a short time, and he's too lazy to bother with anything. He's probably already fast asleep right now."
Don't scare yourself. This is a golden opportunity. Let's get started and try to steal half a house tonight.
“Okay, come with me.” Old Chen thought it made sense and stopped worrying. But when he took two steps forward, he suddenly stopped. “Stop, old woman. Don’t make a sound. Something seems really wrong.”
Old Mrs. Chen was startled again, her eyes widening in shock. Her heart skipped a beat. "What's wrong, old man? Is someone here?"
"No, listen carefully."
"What are you listening to? There's no other sound. What's going on?" Old Mrs. Chen's palms were sweating with anxiety.
Old Chen gestured with his chin toward the shack not far away, "It seems like no one is inside."
Upon hearing this, Old Mrs. Chen nearly fainted on the spot. "You old fool, I came out here to keep you company, why are you scaring me like this? If you keep this up, I'll hit you with a brick."
"No, no, no, old woman, don't be angry. I'm just being cautious and keeping a close watch on things!"
"Be wary my ass! Your weirdo behavior will scare me to death sooner or later."
“I’m not kidding you. There really seems to be no one in that shack. Usually, when Erdanzi is asleep, he snores loudly, like a series of farts. But tonight, there’s not a sound. I feel something’s wrong. Why don’t we go back first and come out again later tonight?”
"Look at you, such a coward, what can you possibly do?" Old Mrs. Chen gave Old Mr. Chen a disdainful look. "Erdanzi is a good-for-nothing, who knows where he's off to find some young widow to amuse himself with. If you keep hesitating, the day will be over before you know it. Hurry up and get to work!"
Hearing her say that, Old Man Chen lost his previous tension and realized that this was a golden opportunity. He lowered his voice and said, "Old woman, I'll keep watch here. You hurry up and put it in your pocket."
"Okay, I understand."
Old Mrs. Chen couldn't wait any longer. She quickly took a few steps forward, and seeing the pile of blue bricks so close at hand, her heart pounded with excitement.
This is money!
If you bring all of these home, you'll never have to worry about food or money.
From now on, whenever I crave something sweet, I can just take out a few pieces and exchange them for a big sesame seed cake.
Thinking to herself, she couldn't help but lick her lips and click her tongue. She made up her mind: if she didn't act, she wouldn't act; but if she did, she would act ruthlessly.
She started stuffing the pieces into her pockets, one from the left and one from the right.
Old Chen quickly grabbed a stack of them, and the two of them, feeling that was enough, hurriedly went back into the house. Not long after, they came back out to continue what they had been doing.
Seeing that the time was right, Chen Qingqing quickly walked up behind Old Man Chen and gently patted his shoulder.
Old Chen was already feeling very uneasy, and when someone suddenly patted him on the back, he was almost scared out of his wits.
Looking back, he saw Chen Qingqing standing behind him with a smile. He was so frightened that he stood there dumbfounded, unable to utter a sound.
Old Mrs. Chen was still stuffing things into her pocket when she suddenly felt a kick in the buttocks. She ignored it, only muttering a curse under her breath.
"You good-for-nothing old man, when did you start kicking people's butts? Instead of doing this, hurry up and come help me. I can hardly fit any more people here."
As soon as she finished speaking, she was kicked in the buttocks again. Old Mrs. Chen still didn't turn around, but instead chuckled softly.
"I think you're getting all cocky again. Stop being so arrogant and get down to business. Let's try to move this whole pile of bricks home tonight, and I'll get you some big sesame cakes tomorrow. I've been telling you this for ages, so hurry up and come over here!"
As she spoke, Old Mrs. Chen suddenly turned around, screaming "Oh my god!" Her eyes widened instantly, her face filled with disbelief. "You, you, you, what are you doing behind me? You scared me to death!"
Chen Qingqing chuckled coldly, "How was it? Was stealing exciting? Did you feel like you were about to die of fright?"
Old Mrs. Chen was truly terrified, but she quickly calmed down and, with trembling hands and a strained voice, retorted, "You, you, you, don't make false accusations! Who the hell stole anything?"
"Exactly, we just went out for a stroll, how did we become thieves? What's the use of this broken brick? Can you eat it or chew it?"
Old Chen also started to deny it, but he forgot that he was still holding a stack of blue bricks in his arms...
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