"Old Liu, why are you getting so worked up? We were just joking around."
"Yeah, and it's not like we made it up. Guo Longzhi was the one who said it."
"..."
Speak of the devil.
Guo Longzhi, who had spent the whole night at the town's internet café, walked into Ergou's gambling den with a cigarette dangling from his mouth.
The moment the others saw him, they immediately asked, "Longzhi, tell us—didn’t you see the news in Bright Pearl City? Wasn’t there a report about some young rich woman named Liu Yutong?"
Hearing this, Guo Longzhi perked up. It was time for another one of his tall tales. He nodded eagerly.
"It’s true! I saw it with my own eyes when I went to Bright Pearl City a few days ago to collect my wages. How the hell did a girl that young make so much money? I even heard her net worth is over a billion. If you converted all that to cash, you’d need a damn truck to haul it."
"........"
"Uncle Liu, at first I almost thought she was your daughter."
"But hey, if she really was, wouldn’t you be rolling in money every day?"
"Hahaha..."
"..."
On the surface, Liu Jianyi acted annoyed at their teasing, but deep down, he couldn’t help but wonder—what if she really was his daughter?
If it were true, he’d be feasting on lavish meals every day, throwing money around in the gambling den without a care. Those bastards wouldn’t dare mock him then—hell, they’d probably be kissing up to him.
Then he remembered how his old man had been picked up in a Mercedes-Benz. Something about it felt off, like someone was deliberately keeping him in the dark.
Sure, he was a bit of a scoundrel, but he knew his father’s background. How could some wealthy relative or friend just pop up out of nowhere?
Something wasn’t right.
Just then, Guo Longzhi’s phone rang.
He immediately put down his cards and answered, his face lighting up as he listened.
"Great! Great! I’ll be right there!"
The others, curious, asked, "Longzhi, what’s the good news?"
Guo Longzhi smirked. "Nothing much. Just got my wages. Last time I went, they didn’t pay up, but this time I’m finally getting what’s mine."
Someone sighed enviously. "Longzhi, what kind of job do you even have? You don’t have to work, yet you still get paid every month."
Guo Longzhi didn’t hold back. "It’s nothing special. Just a buddy of mine in Bright Pearl City set up a company and let me be the legal representative."
"Legal representative? What’s that?"
"You don’t know? On TV, they say the legal rep is the boss of the company."
"But how’d Longzhi become one?"
"Yeah, yeah! Longzhi, how’d you pull that off? You’re not even as handsome as me!"
"Piss off!"
In this era, information traveled slowly, and knowledge was scarce. None of them understood what it really meant to be a legal representative.
Even in later years, plenty of people remained ignorant about the risks of being a nominal legal rep—let alone these barely educated villagers.
"Honestly, it’s no big deal. Just met a good guy in Bright Pearl City who hooked me up. Doesn’t pay much—just three grand a month." Guo Longzhi’s tone oozed smugness.
Three grand for doing nothing? Just a monthly trip to the city? It was like money falling from the sky.
Three grand!
The others’ envy deepened.
Some of them had worked in factories out of town, slaving away for a measly one or two thousand a month. Yet here was Guo Longzhi, collecting three grand without lifting a finger. How could they not be jealous?
Especially for these gambling-addicted layabouts who couldn’t be bothered to find real jobs, the appeal was irresistible.
Free money for no work? Sign them up.
A few of the gamblers crowded around him, one even offering his prized cigarettes.
"Longzhi, does your buddy need more legal reps? Can you put in a word for me?"
"Yeah, help a brother out."
Guo Longzhi feigned reluctance. "It’s not that easy. I just got lucky."
"Anyway, enough about that. I gotta go."
Though green with envy, they had to let it go.
As Guo Longzhi left the gambling den, Liu Jianyi’s eyes gleamed, and he hurried after him.
Still burning with curiosity about who had taken his father away, he asked Guo Longzhi to dig around in the city for him.
Guo Longzhi, in high spirits, agreed without hesitation.
Soon, he flagged down a three-wheeled motorcycle taxi, paid two bucks, and rode off.
When Liu Jianyi returned to the gambling den, Ergou dealt the cards with a meaningful smirk. "Uncle Liu, you’d have better luck buying a lottery ticket in town. Who knows? You might hit the jackpot."
Liu Jianyi blinked. "What’s that supposed to mean?"
Ergou sidestepped the question. "If you don’t lease your old man’s land to me, I’ll have to collect the money you owe me. If I remember right, after deducting the land, you still owe me thirty-seven thousand."
Liu Jianyi scowled. "I never said I wouldn’t pay. Quit bringing it up."
"No reason. Just a friendly reminder."
Ergou continued, "Actually, Uncle Liu, you don’t have to pay it back."
"Little Tong’s eighteen now, right? In our village, that’s old enough to marry."
Liu Jianyi knew exactly what Ergou was hinting at.
The guy had been dropping not-so-subtle hints for a while.
The only reason he’d played dumb wasn’t out of fatherly concern—it was because Ergou’s dowry offer was insultingly low.
Who wanted to pay back debts? Besides the owed money, there should at least be some extra in it for him.
But Ergou wasn’t even willing to throw in a little extra. No way he’d agree.
Liu Jianyi stalled. "Little Tong’s still in college. At least wait till she graduates."
Ergou’s face darkened. "Uncle Liu, don’t play dumb. What’s college got to do with it? She can marry now and still go to school. I’ll even cover her tuition."
"Just say it straight—are you trying to welch on your debt?"
As he spoke, the village loafers around him stood up—all of them Ergou’s lackeys, sharing his surname and some distant family ties.
In Duan Village, the Wang and Duan clans dominated. The Lius and other surnames were outsiders who’d settled there generations ago.
The village was split into front and back hamlets—the front mostly Duans, the back mostly Wangs.
Ergou alone had over forty cousins in his generation, making his family a formidable force.
Add to that his father being the village chief, and Wang Ergou strutted around like he owned the place.
In the village, if you needed people, there were people; if you needed money, there was money... In short, even though Liu Jianyi was technically a generation older than Ergou, he didn’t dare cross him.
“I... I do want to pay you back, but you’ve got to give me some time. If nothing else, I’ll go out and work to earn the money right now—how about that?”
But Wang Ergou wouldn’t budge: “Uncle, what if you leave and never come back? Where would I even look for you? Just agree to my marriage proposal with Little Tong, and I’ll give you another thirty thousand.”
He pointed to his little shop and added, “And from now on, anything you want to eat or drink here is on the house. After all, we’ll be family, won’t we?”
If Liu Yutong had been plain-looking, Ergou wouldn’t have bothered being so polite to Liu Jianyi.
Truth be told, he was only doing this for Liu Yutong’s sake.
Out of the hundreds of families in Duan Village, among all the girls, Liu Yutong’s beauty was unmatched. Even as a child, she’d been called a “budding beauty,” with fair skin rare among village girls at the time—most were tanned from years of sun and farm work.
Liu Yutong was an exception, partly because her grandfather never let her work the fields. Even during the busiest farming seasons, she only had to cook and wash clothes at home.
And as she grew older, her figure and looks became even more striking—enough to make Ergou’s soul practically leap out of his body.
He wasn’t the only one, either. Many young men in the village had their eyes on her, but since Ergou had spoken up first, the others had no choice but to back off.
Besides, in their village, it wasn’t unusual for girls to marry as young as eighteen.
Liu Jianyi knew that if he didn’t give a firm answer today, things wouldn’t end well. Gritting his teeth, he held up a hand. “Fifty thousand. Give me fifty thousand for the betrothal gift, and when my daughter comes home for New Year’s, we’ll have the engagement!”
Wang Ergou didn’t hesitate for a second. He slapped the table. “Deal!”
Thirty thousand had just been his opening offer—his real limit was eighty. Getting a young, beautiful wife for fifty? Worth it.
As for the money Liu Jianyi owed him, most of it had been won back in gambling anyway, so he could let that slide.
Once the deal was struck, Wang Ergou’s attitude toward Liu Jianyi did a complete one-eighty. He eagerly offered him cigarettes, lit them for him, and even canceled his debt—all while calling him “Dad” with the warmest affection.
Liu Jianyi lapped it up, accepting every bit of it.
And so, this “match made in heaven” played out a heartwarming scene of fatherly kindness and son-in-law devotion.
