Linxia

Chapter 91, Happiness (5-in- k chapter)

The next day.

When Grandma Man got up early in the morning and found Chuntao was not there, she went to the kitchen to cook.

Last night's fake death and resurrection made her think a lot. Her son has reached his current state because of the indulgence of him and his wife. But when her son scolded her, "Didn't you spend the money you won in gambling?" and "All you do is eat and sleep," she had no way to refute.

Yeah, isn't there anything wrong with me?

She begged her son not to gamble, and Chuntao also begged her to treat her better; her son almost strangled her to death, so how could she ever be soft-hearted towards Chuntao?
It is hard to say that all this is not retribution or that it is what we deserve.

So, Grandma Man figured it out. Since she asked her son to change and stop gambling and live a good life, shouldn't she change as well?

When the meal was ready, Chuntao still didn't get up. Grandma Man couldn't help but want to scold again. The words were almost on the tip of her tongue when she blurted out - habits are something that can't be completely changed in a short period of time.

However, she finally held back and knocked on the door: "Gensheng, Chuntao, get up!"

Man Gensheng came out quickly and asked, "Mom, isn't Chuntao cooking outside?"

When he saw Chuntao was not in the house, he thought she was cooking outside. This was the case every morning after their marriage, day after day, and he had long been accustomed to it.

At this time, the mother and son had not realized the problem until they could not find Chuntao inside or outside and discovered that the small bag of silver was missing, as well as the hair that was left behind.

"Could Chuntao have run away?" Mr. Man, who was smoking a pack of cigarettes at the door, came in and said this.

Man Gensheng was stunned when he heard this, and couldn't believe it: "No! I told Chuntao last night that I would stop gambling and live a good life in the future, and she agreed to it!"

"This bitch!" Grandma Man was convinced and started to cry, "She is a traitor and she actually ran away with the money. We can't live like this anymore. Someone, come and give us some justice!
When people encounter problems, they always tend to use their familiar methods. The psychological preparation she had made last night was ultimately broken by this sudden change, and she resorted to her old trick of throwing a tantrum.

……

Next door, the Fang family was having dinner when they heard the ghostly howling of the grandmothers and grandmas.

"Why are they making trouble again?" Father Fang frowned.

"Yeah, there's no end to it day by day." Fang's mother also sighed.

"Dad, Mom, let's go and take a look!" Tian Xuan put down the bowl immediately and sat upright, like a little student in school.

"My sister Xuan!" Fang Lin understood very well. Although Tian Xuan's tone was calm, he could sense the expectation of watching the fun behind it, and he couldn't help but laugh in his heart.

However, there is not much entertainment in this era, and watching the fun and gossip are indeed the cheapest pastimes for most ordinary people. And real dramas with familiar characters like the Man family are even more exciting than watching a play.

When the Fang family arrived, many people had already arrived, such as Xin You from the Xin family, who came with a hairy head and a steamed bun in his mouth.

"What happened to the old Man family?"

"It seems that Chuntao is missing, taking with her all the old man's and grandmother's retirement money, which was originally intended to pay off gambling debts."

"Did he run away with the money?"

……

"Brother Lin." Tian Xuan looked over after hearing this.

Fang Lin nodded slightly, knowing in his heart: this was the concentrated impact of Sister Guihua and Tian Xuan.

It has to be said that Chuntao's running away with the money was undoubtedly a stab in the back, making the Man family's situation even worse.

Madam Ou pulled Grandma Man aside and said, "Don't worry, maybe Chuntao has gone back to her parents' home!"

But these words are just consolation. Chuntao's brother went to brothels and ruined the family business, which made her mother angry to death. Her father is a drunkard and cannot be relied on at all. He didn't go back even though he was tortured so badly in the past. How could he go back now?

What's more, Chuntao took all the money from the Man family this time.

When people are in despair, they will grab at any straw they find. The whole family held on to this hope and asked a fast-running child to go and ask. Chuntao's parents' home was not too far away, and the child came back quickly and said that Chuntao had not returned.

This almost confirms that Chuntao ran away with the money.

"Chun Tao!"

Man Gensheng couldn't help it any longer, he squatted down, lowered his head and looked at the hair, lost in thought, muttering: "Why, why, we agreed yesterday that after paying off the debt, we will live a good life..."

He almost strangled his own mother to death last night, and now his wife has run away with the money. The repeated blows have made him feel like he has lost his soul.

"Bitch, you ungrateful bastard..." Grandma Man cursed and cried, wanting to report to the police.

"Forget it. In the final analysis, it is our Man family that has let her down."

Man Laoguan stopped him, looked at Grandma Man, then looked at Man Gensheng, choked up and sighed, tears streaming down his face: "This is all retribution! Retribution!"

Not long after, the scar-faced man from yesterday brought people to block the door again to collect the debt. The family had no time to grieve as they had to deal with tigers, leopards, jackals and wolves.

……

Because Fang Lin was going to Xuan Mo Zhai today, the family did not stay to watch the fun and went back to continue eating.

Father Fang continued, "I didn't expect Chuntao to run away with the money. I usually watch her..."

"Isn't it because the Man family pushed too hard?" Fang's mother said something fair: "Her mother-in-law, Grandma Man, is not to mention, and her husband is a gambler. How can she not run away? Even if not for herself, she should think about the child in her belly."

"I'm not speaking for Chuntao. Chuntao has worked like a slave for the Man family for so many years. It's not like she has a guilty conscience to take this money. Don't you think so, Xiaoxuan?"

"Yeah!" Tian Xuan nodded eagerly, as if she had no influence on this.

Fang Lin saw this scene, smiled and shook his head.

……

Fang Lin heard news from the Man family again when he came back from Xuan Mo Zhai ten days later: "Mr. Man sold the land outside the city. He sold all the six or seven acres of land inherited from his ancestors. He got more than eighty taels of silver. He persuaded them to pay off the remaining money within a year, and then he sent those people away."

"The Man family lost their land, but at least they saved their house and have a sheltered place to live. Now, Man Laoguan and Man Gensheng have entered a factory, I think it's a porcelain factory... Man's grandmother has also started working, washing clothes for people... The whole family is paying off Man Gensheng's debt!"

This is what Fang's mother said. On this day, Sister Guihua, Su Xiaoqing and others were also doing needlework here.

"I don't know either. How is Chuntao doing now after leaving the Man family?" Fang Lin suddenly said without any context, as if he was talking to himself.

Beside her, Sister Guihua cut the thread for sewing the soles of shoes, paused for a moment, and then took over the conversation: "I heard that Chuntao has an uncle in Yingtian. I guess she went there! There are people to take care of her, and it is not difficult to get a household registration now. She is also hardworking, so I think her life will not be too bad..."

Fang Lin nodded and said nothing more.

Just like that, Chuntao disappeared in Xixiang Hutong and never came back.

……

During these days, Fang Lin and Dong Xiucai's partnership in feces business was also preparing to open.

……

Yuan Daniu is a dung collector. This morning, he collected three large buckets of dung. Instead of looking for dung dealers as he did in the past, he pushed them directly to the east of the city.

When I arrived at the manure site in the east of the city, I met many familiar manure men. I greeted them and they were all talking about this matter.

"It's better now. Before, after collecting manure, I had to negotiate the price with the manure merchants. Those greedy people lowered the price to the bone, and I was not good at talking, so I always suffered losses."

"Isn't it? In the past, you could earn two taels of silver a month if you were more, or one, five, or six taels if you were less. Now, you get two taels directly when you are hired, and there is also a bonus of one cent of silver a day."

"Boss Dong is a good man!"

……

While Yuan Daniu was talking to the dung men, it was his turn. He quickly stepped forward and pointed at the three large dung buckets and said, "The dung in these three buckets is one good, one medium, and one bad."

"Okay, pour them all into the corresponding pools!"

The person in charge of management was a former dung merchant who was recruited by Mr. Dong. He would record Yuan Daniu's work for a day and reward him one cent of silver for every successful classification.

"That's it? Great!" Yuan Daniu left happily, sighing in his heart: "It's really convenient. I hope Boss Dong won't lose too much money, so that I can do this for a longer time."

As he was thinking this, he saw Mr. Dong leading people to buy feces. He smiled and bent down to greet him: "Boss Dong!"

……

"Hey, do a good job!"

Dong Xiucai nodded to Yuan Daniu, pulled some people over, and said to the leader: "Fan Cunzheng, come and take a look at these feces, they are still fresh and hot... The price is what we agreed on before, one hundred coins..."

"Boss Dong, are you sure this is the price?" Fan Cun asked confidently.

The price was not high, but too low, almost 70% to 80% of the price they had previously purchased from dung merchants.

"Yes, let's not talk about it, okay?"

"Okay, then give us six... no, eight big buckets." Fancun seemed to be afraid that Mr. Dong would go back on his word, so he asked someone to pay the money and quickly took the goods away. As he left, he was still saying, "Boss Dong, we will come back in a few days. If you keep this price, leave us this much..."

"Don't worry, the price will be the same in the future." Dong Xiucai said with a smile.

Fan Cunzheng left with satisfaction. At the door, he met Cunzheng from another village. He was still muttering to him, "That pale-faced scholar doesn't look like a businessman. How can he make money with such a low price? Go buy it quickly! If you buy it, you will make a profit!"

When the villager heard the price, his eyes lit up and he rushed in with his people, buying the feces as if it were a robbery.

When they left, these people all had smiles on their faces, muttering in their hearts: "Such a silly... no, such a generous boss, I hope he can last a little longer!"

……

Dong Xiucai was so busy that he had to wait for Fang Lin to come over before he asked someone else to help and pull him into the house.

"Brother Dong, how is business?" Fang Lin knew that the business would open today, so he took a day off and came over and asked.

"Very good!"

Dong Xiucai invited Fang Lin to sit down, poured him some tea, and said with a smile: "Brother Fang's calculations were conservative at the beginning. According to today's situation, I'm afraid there will be a net profit of nearly fifty taels of silver in January. This is just the beginning... I really didn't expect that a small feces business would be so profitable after such integration and opening up of the links!"

The feces in the city are collected for free, with basically no cost; hiring a dung collector is just a labor fee, and these people have a low self-perceived value, only slightly more expensive than the dock porters; most of the dung merchants were half-dead in the past, and recruiting them is only slightly more expensive than the bookstore clerks.

In summary, the product has no cost, just the site, tools, and organizational structure. The cost of manure is extremely low. If it is sold to villagers who grow crops outside the city, it is still profitable at 70% to 80% of the previous price... And because of small profits but quick turnover, it sells quickly and the storage cost is greatly reduced...

In short, after changing the model and integrating resources, there is only one word to describe it: make money!

"Brother Fang, let me tell you, you don't know that the dung merchants used to exploit us too harshly, and now the villagers are buying dung like they are getting a bargain..."

“That’s not surprising.”

Fang Lin laughed and said, "In the past, when the dung merchants bought the dung from the dung farmers, they would haggle over every penny. How could they be willing to sell the dung at a low price? If the price did not reach their psychological level, they would rather not sell it and dry it in a cellar."

"Even if there are people who want to make small profits but quick turnover, it's not cost-effective for one person to sell at a low price, and there's not enough manure to sell at a large quantity at a low price, so it's not sustainable."

"So Brother Fang is really amazing. He saw this point and figured out a way to integrate them." Dong Zugao gave him a thumbs up and praised him sincerely.

"It's also because of Brother Dong's good management. No matter who manages it, it can reduce costs by 20% and increase profits by 20%."

"No, no, other people can do my job, but what Brother Fang does is irreplaceable. To be honest, Brother Fang is my benefactor!"

"Haha, Brother Dong, stop flattering each other. We are mutually accomplished and a perfect match."

The two shook hands and smiled.

"Brother Fang, the investment cost is not that much. It cost about 80 taels. So, it will pay off in more than a month... The investment cost is not gone, but it can continue to be used..."

For example, when renting a house, you sign a one-year contract, and various tools can be used for at least two to three years due to wear and tear and depreciation.

"Brother Fang, please check these accounts."

"How can I not trust Brother Dong?" Fang Lin didn't look at it and pushed it back: "Brother Dong, don't think I'm a hands-off boss. Just wait for the money to be divided."

"How could that be? Don't worry, Brother Fang. I will not let you down."

Dong Zugao had no objection. He accounted for the majority of the work, so it was reasonable for him to put in more effort.

Besides, it doesn’t take much effort. At most, you just need to check the accounts regularly. For the rest, the architecture has been set up and can run on its own.

……

Because I have my own business and I make quite a bit of money. Even though it's not very decent, it's still worth celebrating.

On the way back, Fang Lin bought a big goose. In a slightly remote area, when he was almost reaching Xixiang Hutong, he was stopped by a man covered in blood.

But this person is...Song Kai? !

……

"Song Kai?"

Fang Lin looked at the man with blood on his body, his heart alert and his body tensed up.

"Don't worry, I mean no harm."

When Song Kai saw Fang Lin, his eyes were complicated. To show his sincerity, he did not approach him, but took out a letter from his arms: "Fang Lin, if you see my parents in the future, please give this letter to them for me."

"Okay, put it on the ground." Fang Lin looked at Song Kai, was silent for a moment, and agreed.

At first, the conflict between the two started with asking for food; later, on the way to the city, Song Kai stood up for Bai Bao and beat the other party up; after that, the other party instigated to let go of the Fang family and argued about whether to take the shortcut; after arriving in the city, he just mocked and ridiculed them verbally.

There is a grudge, but it cannot be said to be a deep hatred. It is not too difficult to pass on a letter, and it is not impossible to help.

Of course, the more important reason is that Song Kai is not in the right state at the moment, and refusing may anger the other party. Although he is confident in defeating Song Kai, why should he gamble on something that can be avoided?

"Thank you, thank you, Fang Lin... I have been so sorry to you before!"

Song Kai stared at Fang Lin, and when he saw that he agreed to let bygones be bygones, his tense body relaxed all of a sudden, and he retracted the blood-stained dagger in his sleeve, and spoke incoherently.

Perhaps he had finally let go of his last worries, and his suppressed emotions burst out, nearly out of control; or perhaps he just wanted to find someone to talk to, so he squatted down, choking and saying, "Bai Bao took me to gamble... I lost, and owed a lot of money... Those people were dishonest, my wife was forced to commit suicide, and my daughter was kidnapped. My Song family is ruined, ruined!"

When Song Kai said this, he suddenly burst into tears, crying like a baby.

"Bai Bao deserves to die!" He cried, but suddenly stopped, with a ferocious expression on his face: "There were too many people in the gambling house, I, I couldn't beat them... So, I killed Bai Bao... He was the one who dragged me to gamble, it's his fault, it's all his fault..."

"So that's how it is." Fang Lin had a complicated expression.

All the results of today are the result of the causes planted yesterday.

He thought of that day when he saw Bai Bao taking Song Kai to Changlefang. What happened that day laid the groundwork for today.

As for Song Kai, who was once extremely cowardly and abandoned his wife and children and ran away when faced with robbers, how could he have the courage to kill Bai Bao?
Actually, if you think about it carefully, it’s not surprising.

"Song Kai is also an impulsive person. Didn't he fight with You Chaodong just because of a quarrel? It's not surprising that he killed Bai Bao, the culprit of the tragedy, when he was pushed to that point and got angry." Fang Lin thought to himself.

"Fang Lin, remember to give this letter to my parents and tell them that I'm sorry and that they should just pretend they don't have a son like me."

Song Kai also thought about asking someone else to pass the letter, but his best friend, Bai Bao, was killed by him. Zheng Yu, who was somewhat of a relative, had long since distanced himself from him out of disgust. When he went to look for him before, Zheng Yu refused to come out. Finally, after much thought, he thought of Fang Lin.

Yes, although Fang Lin had conflicts with him, the Fang family was recognized for their honesty and good reputation. He was not a good person, but they also acknowledged this point - just like when they rented a house before and followed Fang Lin to rent a house in the nearby Baishun Hutong.

Before leaving, Song Kai left a last message: "I still remember that day in Xiaohe Village. The sun was very strong. My wife was peeling peanuts at the door, I was holding my daughter, and my mother was drying sweet potatoes in front of the house. That day, the three most important women in my life were all there... If I hadn't come to the capital, it would have been so much better, so much better..."

Fang Lin looked at Song Kai's back, sighed, and went back.

When he returned home and saw the sunlight filling the entire house, Mr. and Mrs. Fang had not aged yet, and Tian Xuan came up to him with a beautiful smile. At this moment, he seemed to have a deeper understanding of happiness.

……

(End of this chapter)