Chapter 86 - 87: Lao Xu Steals Vegetables

Chapter 86: Chapter 87: Lao Xu Steals Vegetables

Early one morning, Li Yang heard a dog barking outside.

He immediately leaped out of bed, terrified the big dog had gotten loose and bitten a villager.

When he went outside, he found the big dog had somehow chewed through its rope and was chasing a man through the wild scallion patch, snapping at his heels.

"Damn dog, get away from me!" The man, clutching a handful of wild scallions, was scared out of his wits. His voice trembled on the verge of tears as he tried to shoo the dog away.

But the big dog paid him no mind, barking furiously as it gave chase.

"Help me!" the man screamed, his terror reaching its peak.

Li Yang had to laugh when he saw who it was. ’So it’s this guy.’

The man was none other than Lao Xu. He’d somehow found out where Li Yang lived and had actually come over to steal his wild scallions.

"Over here!" Li Yang called out, beckoning to Lao Xu.

When Lao Xu saw Li Yang standing there, he yelled, "Call off your dog, or I’ll call the police!"

"Go ahead, be my guest!" Li Yang laughed at his foolishness. "You’re the one stealing my scallions, and you think you’re in the right?"

Lao Xu was seething. "If it weren’t for you, Boss Shang and I would never have had a falling out."

Just then, while he was distracted, the large dog lunged forward and knocked him to the ground.

"Don’t bite me!" Lao Xu shrieked, scared witless.

Li Yang stepped forward and pulled the large dog away.

Only then did Lao Xu’s panic begin to subside.

"You’ve got some nerve," Li Yang said, looking at Lao Xu coldly. "Daring to come here and steal my wild scallions. I guess you’re looking for trouble."

Lao Xu scrambled to his feet, a pathetic sight, but he was still clutching the handful of wild scallions he’d picked.

"You... How on earth did you do it?" Lao Xu asked through gritted teeth. "I tried transplanting them so many times, but it never worked. This stuff is supposed to only grow in the wild. How did you manage to transplant it successfully?"

"Why should I tell you?" Li Yang chuckled. "I’m calling the police!"

"Don’t call them!" Lao Xu looked mortified. "I... I just wanted to see how you managed to grow them."

"How I managed to grow them?" Li Yang laughed out loud. "You really think I’d believe you ’just’ wanted to see how I do it? Then what’s that in your hand?"

"I..." Lao Xu was speechless. After a moment, he said in a rush, "I have two kids to support, and my mom’s sick in bed. It all costs money. I was just so frustrated, that’s why I followed you here..."

Li Yang watched him.

He looked sincere as he spoke, and beads of sweat had even broken out on his forehead.

"Weren’t you supplying wild scallions to the manor nearby?" Li Yang asked.

"I was... but the season is almost over, so there aren’t many left to gather. I just saw how well your scallions were growing, so I thought..." Lao Xu said, his head lowered.

Li Yang sighed. "So you decided to steal them?"

Lao Xu gave a hollow laugh and said nothing more.

"How about this? I’ll offer you a job. Do you want it?" Li Yang asked after a moment of thought.

"What kind of job?" Lao Xu asked, looking baffled.

"Deliver vegetables for me," Li Yang said simply. "I can pay you a wage."

"How much?" Lao Xu asked immediately, his interest piqued.

"Three thousand!" Li Yang stated the figure. "Three thousand a month. I’ll provide a small pickup truck, and you’ll be in charge of delivering my produce to restaurants in the city. Right now, there are mainly two locations: one is Hidden Dragon Manor, which you know, and the other is the Grand Golden Pavilion Hotel. Will you do it or not?"

Lao Xu hesitated. "Isn’t that a little low?"

"I could just call the police instead," Li Yang replied with a smile.

"I’ll do it! I’ll do it!" Lao Xu said with a hollow laugh. "I’ll handle all your deliveries from now on."

"Good," Li Yang nodded. "Once my operation gets bigger and we’re all making good money, I’ll expand production, and I’ll give you a raise then. I can’t promise you’ll get rich right away, but you should at least be able to earn enough for your family’s daily expenses."

Lao Xu nodded. Since his supply of wild scallions had dried up, he had no other income.

"Can you drive?" Li Yang asked.

"I can," Lao Xu nodded. "I used to drive for a living, but I got into an accident and had to pay out all my family’s savings. Otherwise, I never would have started picking wild scallions to sell."

"Then that’s settled. I’ll head into the city later and buy a pickup truck for you to use for the deliveries."

"Okay!"

After sending Lao Xu on his way, Li Yang looked at the large dog. "You’re quite the dutiful guard dog, aren’t you? You really know how to scare someone off."

The large dog looked at Li Yang timidly.

After washing up, Li Yang went to Ye Xiu’s house.

Ye Xiu had the day off and was at home washing clothes.

"Aunt Xiu," Li Yang called out, approaching with a wide grin.

"What do you want?" Aunt Xiu frowned. "What’s with that shifty grin?"

Li Yang chuckled, his eyes darting to her ample chest.

"You brat, are you tired of having eyes?" Aunt Xiu glared at him.

Li Yang rubbed the back of his head and took out a bank card. "Aunt Xiu, I’ve saved up the money for renovating the school."

Aunt Xiu froze. "You’re not messing with me, are you, kid?"

Li Yang opened his mobile banking app and showed her the screen. "See for yourself. This is my balance. It’s one million, forty-five thousand!"

Aunt Xiu was completely stunned.