dognovel Chapter 37 The Village is in Chaos
Chapter 37 The Village is in Chaos
cough cough...
cough cough...
Upon hearing that a fishmonger had been arrested, Liu Jianguo, who was lying down pretending to be sick, started coughing violently again.
Li Xiangyang quickly patted his back, and couldn't help but sigh in his heart, "He's really good at pretending!"
But this time Liu Jianguo wasn't faking it; he was genuinely coughing.
And it was from being scared!
If Li Xiangyang hadn't acted decisively and thrown away the fish and the scales, they would be the ones being arrested now...
Now that they had no proof or permit, the market management team had no reason to stop them from leaving, so Li Xiangyang swaggered away in his horse-drawn carriage.
Before leaving,
The young market management team member reluctantly pointed out the way to the town's health center to him.
Once he felt the carriage had gone far away, Liu Jianguo dared to sit up, still panting heavily, and said:
"Brother-in-law... just now... oh, oh, that scared me to death! I thought we weren't going home today."
Li Xiangyang turned his head and smiled: "It's okay, I'm here, they can't catch us."
"Mmm... thank goodness my brother-in-law threw away the fish and scales beforehand, otherwise..."
As Liu Jianguo spoke, his mood became somewhat low: "I'm sorry that my brother-in-law lost so much money on our first outing together."
"It's none of your business. From the very first day I started selling fish on the black market, I was prepared to get caught someday. Besides, you can only be more careful with these things; there's no escaping them."
"Hmm." Liu Jianguo fell silent. He knew that Li Xiangyang's words, though seemingly directed at him, were actually teaching him the principle that risk and benefit go hand in hand.
After a while, Liu Jianguo, still angry, muttered something again.
"It's just... a bit of a shame about those fish and that scale; they cost a lot of money!"
"No regrets!" Li Xiangyang said decisively, "One scale plus 15 jin of fish, 4 yuan to get the two of us out of trouble."
It's worth it!
If we get caught, not only will the scales, the fish, and all the money we have from selling the fish be confiscated, but we'll also have to pay at least forty yuan in fines, otherwise we won't be able to get out until the New Year.
"Huh...?" Liu Jianguo wiped the cold sweat from his forehead. "So the consequences of being arrested are this serious!"
This was something he hadn't expected.
He also didn't expect the debt to be settled this way, and he felt that the trip was worthwhile.
"I wonder which fishmonger got arrested?"
Liu Jianguo suddenly asked again.
"Could it be him...?" Li Xiangyang suspected it was Li Xiangqian, his second uncle's eldest son had been arrested.
"Brother-in-law, do you know two other fishmongers?"
"Don't know him, let's go!" Li Xiangyang didn't want to continue the conversation.
It's upsetting.
I calculated that I made 29.5 yuan from selling fish today. After deducting the loss of the scale, which was 2 yuan, I have 27.5 yuan left.
Not a lot.
Moreover, if a fishmonger is arrested today, regardless of who it is, there will be one less competitor tomorrow, and the fish will naturally be easier to sell.
Of course, it would be best to arrest Li Xiangqian. He's not a saint. His second uncle has made things difficult for his family time and time again. He can't fight back now, so why should he wish for his well-being?
That's wrong!
A moment later,
Li Xiangyang drove the carriage to the front of the supply and marketing cooperative and stopped. He took out four yuan from his pocket and handed it to Liu Jianguo.
"Here, this is your wages for today."
Liu Jianguo looked at the four gleaming one-yuan bills for tractor workers that Li Xiangyang handed over.
Somewhat surprised!
Today I almost got my brother-in-law arrested along with me. I didn't blame him, and I even gave him money, and... so much of it.
Four yuan is more than he earns in a week farming at home.
Although Li Xiangyang didn't blame him, he was still self-aware:
"No...no need, brother-in-law, I can't accept this money! If I hadn't been so slow and been caught by the market management team, you wouldn't have had to take the fish and the scale..."
"One thing at a time, this can't be blamed on you. Take this and go to the supply and marketing cooperative to see if there's anything you want to buy."
Li Xiangyang's tone was forceful.
Liu Jianguo was just following him to sell things; he was his employee. Bringing him to the black market to sell fish was already against regulations.
The losses caused by non-compliance... this debt cannot be attributed to him.
Liu Jianguo had a bad attitude towards his brother-in-law before, but that was because he had been too dissolute, neglecting his wife and daughter and spending all his time playing around outside.
That's what caused it.
But back then, his wife's family also helped them a lot. Liu Jianguo would often bring Xiulan some grain, oil, rice, and noodles under the pretext of seeing Dou Dou.
Now that he has the ability, he naturally wants to help his wife's family as well.
"Well... thank you, brother-in-law, I'll accept it."
Seeing Li Xiangyang's firm attitude, Liu Jianguo dared not refuse any longer.
I carefully folded the four yuan and placed it in the hidden compartment inside my cotton-padded jacket.
He doesn't plan to spend this money.
In the end, he didn't go into the supply and marketing cooperative with them. Li Xiangyang went in alone. Fortunately, at that time, buying scales didn't require coupons like buying grain, oil, rice, or noodles.
Li Xiangyang spent two yuan to buy a new 20-jin steelyard balance.
"Brother-in-law, are we going back now?"
"I'm back now. Oh right... I almost forgot, I need to go to the blacksmith before I go back."
"Go to the blacksmith's shop...?" Liu Jianguo asked, puzzled.
"I ordered a batch of wire sleeves, and I reckon they should be ready by now."
"A wire sheath? What's it for?" Liu Jianguo asked curiously.
"Used for trapping pheasants and rabbits."
"Brother-in-law, you can do this too?"
"Mhm." Li Xiangyang nodded.
Liu Jianguo suddenly realized that he admired Li Xiangyang.
He has good speaking skills, understands human relationships, is calm and decisive in handling matters, knows how to catch fish and deer, and can even set rabbit snares, which he makes himself.
Is this... still the same scoundrel brother-in-law he knew before?
Liu Jianguo suddenly felt that Li Xiangyang in front of him was a bit of a stranger.
……
The call about Li Xiangqian's arrest quickly reached the brigade headquarters. By the time Li Zhenhai received the news and rushed over, an hour had already passed.
Having worked in the brigade for many years, he was well aware of the consequences of being caught engaging in speculation and profiteering.
When he reached the brigade headquarters, his legs went weak: "Secretary Guodong, what do we do now? What did they say from Wuzhen Commune? Is Xiangqian alright?"
"How dare you ask? I don't even know what to say to you! As a brigade leader, do you know you're breaking the law?"
"I...I..."
Li Zhenhai was so rebuked that he stammered a little. His mind was a jumbled mess, like a tangled ball of yarn.
"Sigh... What do we do now? Xiangqian's mother fainted after hearing the news, and Xiangqian's wife is still making a scene at home."
The night before last, after the brigade left the Li family's house, Chen Guodong held a closed-door meeting with them.
The main point is that the whole country now adopts a semi-open attitude towards "private trade" from top to bottom. As long as it is not maliciously raising prices or reselling prohibited items, it will not be investigated.
After Li Zhenhai finished his meeting and returned home, he told Li Xiangqian to learn from Li Xiangyang how to catch fish and sell them. He knew that selling things at this time of year could make money.
As for why the eldest son was chosen to sell fish instead of the younger son, Li Xiangnan, it was because he wanted the younger son to take over his job in the brigade.
There must be no stains.
One went into politics, the other into business.
Unfortunately, despite his brilliant plan, Li Xiangqian was arrested on his very first day selling fish, and his eldest daughter-in-law immediately started making a scene upon hearing the news.
"Let's go, what else can we do? Did you bring the 40 yuan I told you to bring? If you did, come with me to Wuzhen Commune to pick him up. If we're late, Xiangqian will be beaten to a pulp."
Chen Guodong shook his head and sighed as he spoke.
The night before last, in front of so many people, he said that if someone got arrested for speculation, he wouldn't help them claim the money.
I didn't expect to be proven wrong so quickly.
Soon, news of Li Xiangyang going to Wuzhen to sell fish spread, and the villagers who were originally excited to go with him immediately backed out.
Upon hearing the news, Zhao Lijuan rushed home immediately, and the Li family was thrown into chaos.