Chapter 12: The Water is Shallow and the Rocks Appear (2)

  "Dad, Mom. I'm going to the donkey farm."

  Shanyong stretched his neck and said to his busy parents in the kitchen, after resting for a few days, he went down from the attic of his home in Zhongma Village for the first time.

  As soon as they heard the name, their parents' faces changed color and exchanged a glance. When they were about to persuade their son, Dan Yong smiled and said: "It's okay, Dad, I'm going to pay back the money. I couldn't let the Shi family pay the fine for me... They've been so much trouble for me, how can we not say anything? I've been there for several years, and the people of Shi Jia Village have treated me well."

  "It's okay." Teng Hongyu stopped washing vegetables, looked at her son whose eyes were a bit dull and had been weak for days, wiped her hands, and walked over. She knew she was going to go back to the house to get money, but Dan Yong blocked her way: "No need, I've saved some, selling the car will almost be enough."

  At this, Dan Yong didn't say much, but Hong Yu's eyes welled up with tears as she hugged her son and called out to her husband, wanting to go with him. However, Dan Yong forced a smile and comforted his parents, saying: "Mom, what are you doing? It's nothing, they just don't want me to do this business trip, so I won't do it. What trouble can they still cause me? I'll just stay at home and take care of the two of you."

  The son is so considerate, but it makes Hongyu and her husband feel heartbroken. The old mother wiped away tears and said: "Take two jars of wine brewed by your father to Old Master Shi, they are good people, we can't owe them this favor."

  Hongyu said, went to the back of the house to fetch something, Changqing walked to the door and sat down on the threshold with his son, silently stroking his son's shoulder, softly saying: "Yong, be open-minded, we ordinary people are just destined for this life, don't compete with the rich or fight against officials, being safe and sound is a blessing. Dad has also experienced those things, what's most difficult to understand is the viciousness of human hearts, you can't tell who might be plotting against you in secret, it's better to be an ordinary person who doesn't seek to contend with the world."

  Looking at his father's white temples and the deeper wrinkles on his face, Shanyong comforted him: "I know, Dad... Give me a break, Mom, you guys are busy, I'll stay in Lüzhuang tonight, hang out with Genwa, Dabiao and them, the hot pot shop is closed too, they must be feeling bad inside."

  Dan Yong said, forcing a smile to reassure his parents, carrying a jar of wine and an old backpack, taking three steps at a time and waving goodbye. He waited on the road for a ride down the mountain, still able to see his parents standing in the doorway from afar. His father waved goodbye, while his mother wiped away tears.

  Parents can't put their hearts at ease is the son, but the son can't put his heart at ease either, after all, isn't home where the heart is? On the mountain road, as Shan Yu turned his head back, he let out a long sigh. This trip may end up hurting the family more than himself.

  "Where are you going?" asked the driver, a neighbor of Zhong Ma Village.

  "I'm going to the Da Fang repair shop," said Shuang Yong. "The car is there."

  "Is your wound healed?" asked the neighbor.

  "Alright." Danyong smiled slightly and rubbed the spot on his chest that still hurt.

  "I've heard about your situation, those bastards are in the dark. You just graduated and don't know the ropes of this business, there are unwritten rules everywhere. If you want to make a small stir, no one will pay attention to you, but when it's time to make a big splash, someone will come out and strangle you. It's not easy to get ahead in that line... By the way, what do you plan to do next? Why don't you just help your parents with their farmhouse inn? You can earn a pretty penny that way..." The neighbor advised.

  "Hehe, I think so too." Dan Yong said with a friendly smile to his neighbor.

  After getting off the mountain and entering the city, I got off at the entrance of the repair factory in Dafang and went into the repair factory to ask about my car. The doorman made a phone call and led me directly to the door of a messy garage upstairs, pointing and saying: "That's... wait a minute, wait for our boss to come and say something, sign a signature to take it away. The police dragged it here, didn't say who repaired it or whose it was, who knows if it's yours? And you still have to pay the towing fee."

  He turned around and left, and Shanyong entered the garage, looking at his beloved car. The glass was almost gone, the body was dented in several places, and there were scratches all over it, giving off a pitiful sight. It wasn't until today that he realized the 110 had been towed here. He sat down in the driver's seat, and the large canvas cover was still on, but after not being cleaned up for days, it already had a foul smell. Shanyong looked at all of this with an expressionless face, as if he could still recall that night's intense battle.

  Flickering light, club shadows, mournful cries, blood color, intertwined before my eyes. Every time I think about it, he subconsciously strokes the newly scarred wound on his chest. The memory of that one knife swung in front of him still makes his heart palpitate. All the hard work and dreams have been reduced to fragmented memories, like a beloved car, battered and bruised.

  A car has arrived, and Shanyong turns around, thinking it's someone from the repair factory. As he watches a van and a Santana drive up, he sees a pair of legs wearing shiny leather shoes getting out of the car. In an instant, Shanyong seems to know who it is, and instead becomes calm.

  It wasn't just one person who got off the bus. The leader, a man in his forties, was followed by several young men wearing blue work uniforms with "Xiyuan Cold Storage" printed on their chests. A group of seven or eight people, all with unfriendly eyes, stared at Dan Yong.

  Shan Yong didn't move, not even a hint of expression on his face. His eyes were fixed on the man in front of him, who was 1.8 meters tall with a slightly chubby body that showed signs of being well-fed and pampered. The man's gaze had an air of superiority, looking down on Shan Yong for a while before breaking the silence with a sudden laugh, pointing directly at Shan Yong: "Not bad, no wonder you were able to take down those bald men. Youngster, didn't expect me to be waiting for you here?"

  "I don't know you." Dan Yong said calmly.

  "That's all right, we'll get to know each other later." The man walked a few steps forward, looked at Dan Yong with a few glances, as if observing the appearance of livestock, and then looked at the dilapidated car and asked with a smile: "Why don't you fix the car? You've just arrived today, we've been waiting for some days."

  "I'm broke." Danyu said another sentence, which made those followers burst into loud laughter.

  "Go, go back." The man waved his hand and the workers got on the bread truck behind him. They looked at Shanyong for a few more seconds before one of them handed him a business card with a flourish. Shanyong didn't take it. "I don't know you," he said in an indifferent tone, "and I'm not interested in knowing you."

  "Haha, quite a character, I like it. My name is Zhao Hongqi, manager of Xiyuan Cold Storage. Our boss said that if you have nowhere to go, come here, there's business to be done and fights to be fought. This is my phone number, feel free to come anytime." Zhao Hongqi stuffed his business card into Dan Yong's pocket and smiled, looking quite pleased with himself. At this point, Dan Yong also smiled and said: "I've already quit the donkey meat business, does your boss still want to kill me off?"

  "What are you going to do then?" Zhao Hongqi asked with a smile, as if this was expected.

  "He sold his car and was also fined and had to pay for medical expenses," said Shanyong.

  "Haha, how much is this broken car worth? ... And then... " Zhao Hongqi asked with his head stretched out, very surprised that Dan Yong could be so calm.

  "Haven't thought it through yet, let me just collect the debts others owe me first. But I'm a free and easy person, probably not very good at working for others." said Shan Yong.

  Calm words, but made Zhao Hongqi feel cool, in the eye contact, Zhao Hongqi found that this young man's eyes were calm without any fear or anger, all of them were subdued by the police, even if there was no evidence, the police would go to Xiyuan Cold Storage for investigation, and with Lei Chengguan's connections, it wouldn't be possible to hide the fact that Xiyuan Cold Storage was behind this. Thinking of this, Zhao Hongqi became straightforward and said:

  "Don't be resentful, kid. I'm not afraid to tell you, you seem like a sensible person. Even if you know who it is, you don't have any evidence, right? If you keep going on like this, at the very least, you'll have to hand over all your earnings to the police and the national treasury, right? The western part of the market is mostly under our boss's control. You're causing trouble in the market, making it hard for several of our affiliated meat factories to operate. It won't work if we don't do anything about it. That old guy Shi Baquan has been trying to get into the city for a long time now, and you've become his pawn... To be honest, our cold storage facility really needs someone with your drive and initiative. Like I said before, there are plenty of opportunities here for you."

  "Thank you, I'll definitely go when I have time, but I'm afraid you won't welcome me then." Shanyong said, his eyes flickering as if hiding something. Zhao Hongqi just thought that Shanyong was showing weakness, and laughed, patted Shanyong's shoulder, and left with a wave of his hand.

  Two cars, returned by the original road, Zhao Hongqi got on the back seat. The two bosses recognized this person without being too far or too near. Kong Xiangzhong in the back seat turned his head to look at Dan Yong who was still standing still and asked Qin Junhu in the front seat: "Junhu, what are you doing? Came all the way just to see this poor guy?"

  "Yes, I'd like to see him. I'm curious about someone who can take down a group of bald men. Such an arrogant person won't stay so honest for long, will he?" Qin Junhu felt a bit strange. As someone from the same humble background, he had some understanding of how these people operated, but what he saw was surprisingly very honest, with not even a hint of trouble. He asked his subordinate, Zhao Manager, in surprise: "Hong Qi, what do you think?"

  "It's hard to say, but it doesn't seem like he's very afraid anymore. However, at this point, it's probably impossible to do anything." Zhao Hongqi said, and those disobedient eyes paid extra attention, feeling that indeed didn't seem like fear.

  "Alright, alright, no need to fight, the police have already intimidated them enough. They were fined hundreds of thousands for medical expenses and fines, who wouldn't be heartbroken?" said Boss Kong.

  "It's not like that, if you're afraid, it's all because of the bald-headed group being afraid. I just thought, if there were ten or eight people like this going to the warehouse to sit and guard for me, I wouldn't have to worry. Shi Laoji really knows how to get things done, directly paying off the fines on someone else's behalf. Now it's probably too late to try to win them over.

  Qin Junhu said, perhaps with a hint of admiration for Shan Yong, he really didn't expect him to be this kind of person. Otherwise, the strategy could have been changed, there was no need to come out so aggressively, leaving no room for retreat."

  "Cut it out, even Lao Liu's old donkey can't take much more of this. He's just a descendant of a donkey, after all. Haven't you investigated this family before? They're a family of jinxes. Old Tao's restaurant was snatched from his father's hands back in the day. If the father is a hero, the son is a good man; if the father is a dog, the son is a coward. With such a temperament, what can they possibly achieve?"

  Kong Xiangzhong said with disdain. However, when it came to this point, he couldn't help but admire Qin Junhu's vision again, and praised the fact that he had united the big sales households to squeeze out Shi Jiacun. To say that it was formidable, it was these bloodless methods that were formidable. Old Kong proudly counted on his fingers, just thinking about the goods in Shi Lao's hands, if he couldn't sell them, he would be impoverished, and if he sold them, he would be bankrupt. Whether he calculated it beforehand or afterwards, he would still be calculated to death. With such a move, he might not be able to turn over a new leaf even in his next life.

  For this salesperson's usual trick of bullying farmers, Qin Junhu smiled and didn't say anything else, but he always felt that something was off, and... right, he rubbed his eyes, it was his eyelid jumping inexplicably.

  ……………………

  ……………………

  Watching the two cars leave, Dan Yong's eyes were very calm, just like seeing a group of unrelated passersby, without even a hint of anger.

  After paying the towing fee, he was also slaughtered by the police and the repair shop, and the towing alone cost 600. Dan Yong just responded with a grunt, threw down the money, got back in the car, sat in the driver's seat, looked at the time and found it was still early, started the car and left the repair shop. The broken-down car rattled along, shaking and swaying, stopped by the side of the road, bought a pack of cigarettes. These days had been spent in loneliness and melancholy, stewing in his own juices, smoking and drinking to excess, but his overly sensitive sense of smell still couldn't adapt to this taste, he was choked, rubbing his chest violently coughing, stuck his head out the car window, suddenly felt a chill on his head, looked up, and saw that the gray sky had brought down pea-sized raindrops.

  Before long, the raindrops blurred the view, and the car with broken front and rear windshield glass was flooded. Sheets of rainwater poured in, and in an instant, Danrong made a decision to abandon the car on the side of the road and ran to the eaves of a store on the street to avoid the rain.

  The rain is so heavy, and in no time the long street was washed clean. Everywhere, thin streams of water were flowing together. The cars that had been speeding by slowed down, seeking shelter under the eaves to avoid the rain. Occasionally, a pedestrian would stomp their feet, shivering with cold, as they watched this gloomy weather with discontent. In fact, he had been waiting for this kind of weather all along, but unfortunately, he forgot that his car was not suitable for driving in such conditions, with its four sides leaking wind and rain. If only he had left the car at the repair shop and not driven it today.

  The phone rang, and Shanyong took a look at the number. To his surprise, it was Simu Xian's call. On the phone, he asked where he was and wanted to find Lao Da to sit down for a while. He knew it was definitely a comforting reassurance. However, Shanyong brushed him off, saying he was repairing a car outside and couldn't return for a while. They made an appointment, and he hastily hung up the phone. Just as he hung up, the phone rang again. This time, the number on the screen was the one Shanyong had been waiting for. He answered it, and Lei Dapeng's voice came from the receiver:

  "Xinan Gas Station, caught one, hurry up and come..."

  Shan Yong listened clearly, speaking as he walked, not noticing the strong wind and heavy rain, rushing straight to the car that was leaking wind and rain from all sides, driving it directly towards his destination, his face changing from calm to resolute in an instant.