mesbooks Chapter 38 Ceasefire
Chapter 38 Ceasefire
"Big brother, Qiang and Haozi are back."
Upon hearing his younger brother's words, Zhao Xueming stood up from the stool and watched the two lively and energetic people walk in.
He was just worried about the two of them. If something really happened to them, he, as the older brother, wouldn't be any better off.
"Qiang, Haozi, are you both alright?"
The two looked at each other and shook their heads.
"The health center did a simple check-up, and everything was fine."
Hearing this, Zhao Xueming's heart finally settled down, but he was still shaken by what had happened that morning.
"Brother, what do we do next? We can't just let this go unpunished, can we?"
Zhao Xueming knew, of course, that this matter needed to be addressed.
If they really swallowed it down like that, the opportunists on Jiefang Road would only think they were weak and incompetent, and their future sources of income would be completely cut off.
"Alright, starting tomorrow, A-Qiang, you and Haozi will take some men to the outside of Beichuan Department Store and scare those who want to go in and buy things."
Upon hearing this, Ah Qiang's legs went weak as noodles.
"Big...Big brother, isn't this...aren't we being a little unsafe?"
What happened this morning has left A-Qiang with psychological trauma. He completely doesn't understand how Zhang Beichuan managed to do it.
Without lifting a finger or hitting anyone, he can simply touch someone and instantly knock them down, rendering them unable to move or break free.
"Brother, I think we should report it to the police and say that Lan Baojun and his gang assaulted someone, and make them pay for medical expenses and lost wages!"
Hit someone?
When Zhao Xueming took Aqiang and the others to the health center, he had already examined them. The two of them had no injuries, only some redness on their abdomens and waists.
"Are you fucking an idiot? Let's go report this to the police. Did the birthday man hang himself? Are you tired of living?" He smacked his underling on the head. "We didn't tell you to go inside his shop, you're just outside, what are you afraid of?"
The mouse glanced at him, then muttered something to itself.
"If you're not afraid, then why don't you go?"
Seeing their older brother's angry expression, Qiang and Haozi didn't want to go, but they had no choice.
In the following days, Zhang Beichuan naturally didn't tolerate them and called them one by one.
However, this time he didn't use the maximum power; it would be too scary to just knock them out with an electric shock. He used the second power, which made these thugs tumble and crawl.
A young man saw Zhang Beichuan approaching and was so frightened that he wet himself, leaving a bright yellow puddle that soaked the bluestone pavement, making it particularly conspicuous.
"You...you...you've gone too far!"
"Alright, stop making a fool of yourself here." Zhang Beichuan waved his hand. "Go back and tell your boss that if anyone tries to cause trouble again, I'll take care of them!"
After saying that, he turned and went back into the shop, leaving A-Qiang and his group standing at the door not far away, unsure whether to leave or stay.
The younger brother leaned close to Ah Qiang's ear and whispered.
"Brother Qiang, how about...we...we go back first?"
A-Qiang glanced at Zhang Beichuan, who was chatting and laughing in the shop, and then at the passersby pointing and whispering around him. He gritted his teeth.
"Let's go back first! We need to discuss this with my older brother!"
The group slunk away, while the onlookers were overjoyed.
This was the first time in so long that they had seen Zhao Xueming and his gang, who were known for their bullying and monopolistic practices, suffer such a great loss.
But then they realized that Zhao Xueming wouldn't give up so easily, and everyone started to worry about Beichuan Department Store.
Inside the shop, Lan Baojun watched the group of people walk away and couldn't help but laugh out loud.
"Xiao Chuan, hahaha, that's hilarious! That kid scared me so much I peed myself."
Unlike Lan Baojun, Zhang Dequan's face was full of worry.
"Youngest brother, if we confront them so openly, they definitely won't let it go."
"Don't worry, Third Brother. Zhao Xueming won't dare to cause trouble in a short time since he hasn't figured things out yet."
Zhang Beichuan spoke lightly, but he knew in his heart that this feud had been brewing for a long time, and that constantly making trouble like this was not a solution.
We need to come up with a foolproof plan and take everything from them.
Just then, a few customers came in through the door.
Everyone saw the farce just now. Many people are curious about how Zhang Beichuan did it, while others came to buy things.
Zhang Beichuan certainly wouldn't tell these people how he did it, and he would brag to them that he was taught by a qigong master.
When everyone realized he wasn't telling the truth, they all laughed, shook their heads, and left the shop.
"Boss, do you have nylon stockings here? I heard they're really good quality!" a customer asked as he came to buy something.
"Yes, yes, yes! Comrade, look, we have all kinds of colors!"
Zhang Dequan greeted them with a smile, and Lan Baojun quickly greeted the guests as well.
Soon, the store returned to its usual bustling state.
After closing the shop at night, Zhang Dequan and Lan Baojun took inventory of the goods and checked the accounts.
These past few days, due to the trouble caused by Zhao Xueming and others, business has declined compared to the previous days, and we can only sell a little over 400 a day.
"Xiao Chuan, here are today's accounts. Look, we've sold over a hundred less a day these past few days compared to before."
This broke Zhang Dequan's heart. The money he lost in five or six days was more than he could earn in a year. At the same time, he felt even more disgusted with Zhao Xueming and his ilk!
Zhang Beichuan looked at the account book his grandfather handed him, pushed it back, and said with a smile.
"Third Brother, I trust you to handle things. It's normal for business to decline a bit; it should gradually recover in a few days."
Lan Baojun nodded. Zhao Xueming was a cunning man. He had been thwarted by Xiao Chuan for several days in a row. He probably wouldn't come back until he came up with a new plan.
"Brother-in-law, don't look so gloomy. That's how business is; it's never smooth sailing."
Zhang Dequan nodded, looked at Zhang Beichuan, and began to discuss another matter with him.
"Xiao Chuan, judging by the time, the rice harvest should start in the next few days. Your sister-in-law can't manage all the work by herself. I was thinking that I'll go back the day after tomorrow and stay for a few days. You and Baojun should be fine here."
Reminded by him, Zhang Beichuan calculated the time.
The 20 days agreed upon with Zhang Dezhong are almost up.
I'll go back to collect the accounts and also pick up some free-range chickens and eels from the village to bring back to 2026 to try.
"Yes, I do need to go back." He turned to Lan Baojun. "Baojun, how about I go back with Third Brother in a couple of days to work on things? Could you call Baoqiang and the others over to help out for a few days?"
The thought of hiring someone would cost extra money made Zhang Dequan reluctant; he could handle the chores at home himself.
"Xiao Chuan, you don't need to go back. Your sister-in-law and I can manage at home."
Zhang Beichuan naturally understood his grandfather's little scheme: he was reluctant to spend money to hire someone.
Although his income seemed to have declined a bit these past few days, he still made a fortune.
He spent some money on gold and wine a few days ago, but today he has earned back all that money. Now he has nearly 2100 yuan in his hands.
He certainly couldn't just stand by and watch his grandparents continue to suffer, harvesting rice in such sweltering heat.
"Third Brother, I'm not just going back to help out, I also have some important things to take care of. First, it's time to collect the debt from Eldest Brother, and second, I need to go back and get some eels or something, and then I'll go to the city in a few days to test the market."
Hearing that he had important business to attend to when he got back, Zhang Dequan didn't say anything more.
"Alright, let's go back together the day after tomorrow." As he spoke, he suddenly asked curiously, "Xiao Chuan, have you calculated how much money your brother should collect over the next 20 days?"
Distracted by his brother-in-law, Lan Baojun, who had originally wanted to ask Zhang Beichuan if eels could be sold for money, also looked at him curiously.
He went to visit his older sister in Shihe Village a few days ago and heard about this.
He couldn't understand how someone as shrewd as Xiaochuan could be so muddle-headed about this!
Seeing the two's curious expressions, Zhang Beichuan worried that if he told his grandfather in advance, the old man would feel burdened by the blood relation and just laugh it off.
"We'll calculate the exact amount in front of everyone later. But I definitely won't be at a disadvantage."
Seeing that he didn't seem inclined to say anything, Zhang Dequan didn't press the matter further.
Lan Baojun saw that it was getting late and got up.
"Alright, I'll head home now. I should also stop by Baoqiang's house to let them know I'll come help out in a few days."
"Okay, drive carefully." Zhang Beichuan stood up and said this, then saw the person to the door.