After Liu Yushan ran off, the old man gradually calmed down. He then cupped his hands toward the gathered villagers and said apologetically, "Sorry for making a scene in front of everyone. It's a family disgrace to have such a useless troublemaker. Let’s all disperse—nothing more to see here. My Tongtong’s two friends haven’t even eaten yet."
The neighbors finally began chattering as they slowly scattered.
However, news that the Liu family’s granddaughter had returned in a red sports car, accompanied by friends driving a luxury vehicle rumored to be worth ten Mercedes-Benz sedans, quickly spread throughout Duan Village, becoming the talk of the town.
Naturally, the news soon reached the ears of Liu Jianyi and Wang Ergou, who were drinking heavily at a restaurant in town.
Wang Ergou had specifically driven Liu Jianyi to the finest restaurant in town to get him drunk and sound him out. With Liu Yutong’s return imminent, he needed to know whether this gambling-addicted old man intended to back out of their deal. If Liu Jianyi still honored the agreement, Wang Ergou wanted to push for an engagement as soon as possible.
Liu Jianyi, being a scoundrel at heart, had grown bolder since learning that the card in his possession held a million yuan.
Every time Wang Ergou brought up the engagement toward the end of the year, Liu Jianyi would dodge the topic with vague responses, refusing to give a straight answer. It wasn’t that he’d suddenly developed a conscience and cared about his daughter—he just realized she was now worth more.
After all, if his daughter had a million to her name, not counting his gambling debts, was Wang Ergou really expecting to marry her off for a measly fifty thousand? That was downright insulting!
At the very least, he should cough up another three or five hundred thousand!
Though Wang Ergou could guess Liu Jianyi’s scheming, he suppressed his fury. If not for his fear of the engagement falling through and missing his chance to marry a beauty like Liu Yutong—a top student with an icy yet alluring charm—he would’ve already had Liu Jianyi beaten to a pulp.
The more he imagined Liu Yutong’s delicate, untouchable beauty, the more his mind wandered. If they’d already settled the engagement, couldn’t he have "boarded the train first and bought the ticket later"?
The thought alone made his skin itch with anticipation.
To ensure Liu Jianyi wouldn’t back out today, Wang Ergou had brought along a few smooth-talking cousins as backup.
After several rounds of drinks, Liu Jianyi’s face glowed red, and he hadn’t stopped grinning.
Once they were sufficiently drunk, Wang Ergou finally steered the conversation toward the main topic.
"Uncle, we’ve had enough to drink—how about we talk heart-to-heart?"
Liu Jianyi squinted, letting out a tipsy burp. "Go ahead, Ergou, no need to hold back with me."
Wang Ergou: "Uncle, I’ll be blunt. Ever since we agreed on this marriage, I’ve considered Yutong my own. Now that she’s coming back, shouldn’t we pick an auspicious day and make it official? It’ll put everyone at ease. Don’t you think?"
As soon as he finished, the drinking companions chimed in.
"That’s right, Uncle Liu! Brother Dog’s feelings for Yutong are genuine!"
"Better to settle it sooner..."
"Exactly! Once engaged, we’re family! Uncle, anything you need in the future, just say the word!"
"........."
Though thoroughly drunk, Liu Jianyi remained sharp in certain matters. Seeing their enthusiasm, he inwardly scoffed but put on a troubled expression.
"Ah, Ergou, it’s not that I’m going back on my word. You know I only have this one precious daughter—raised like a jewel in my palm, afraid she’d shatter if I held her too tight, afraid she’d melt if I kept her too close. Now, well... she’s different. A proper university student, seen the world in the city. Don’t you think a dowry of just a few thousand is a bit... beneath her? If word got out, where would that leave my dignity? People would say I sold my daughter! I do have a reputation to uphold!"
Wang Ergou nearly smashed his glass into Liu Jianyi’s face.
This old bastard was really trying to hike the price!
And now he had the nerve to talk about dignity and reputation?
What reputation did Liu Jianyi even have in the village?!
If he cared so much about face, why had he agreed to the marriage for just fifty thousand in the first place?
But no matter how furious he was, Wang Ergou had to swallow it. At least until Liu Yutong was his, he had to endure. Once the rice was cooked, once she belonged to the Wang family, he’d have plenty of ways to deal with this old dog!
"Uncle, you’re right. If I’m marrying Yutong, the dowry can’t be lacking. How about this—I’ll add another hundred thousand!" He gritted his teeth and threw out another number.
Yet Liu Jianyi didn’t respond, leisurely sipping his drink instead. His calm, unhurried demeanor made Wang Ergou’s heart sink.
Clearly, a hundred thousand still wasn’t enough to satisfy this gambling addict’s greed.
"Uncle, just give me a straight answer—how much do you want?!"
Liu Jianyi raised a hand and made an outrageous demand: "Five hundred thousand! Not a penny less!"
"What?! Five hundred thousand?!"
Wang Ergou lost control, slamming his hands on the table as he shot up.
But before he could explode, his phone on the table rang.
Annoyed, he snatched it up and barked, "What? Spit it out!"
The voice on the other end, however, was excited. "Brother Dog, big news! Your fiancée, Liu Yutong, is back! Holy hell, guess what? She drove back in a sports car—a red Ferrari, flashy as hell! And there’s another black luxury car, damn thing’s worth ten Mercedes! The whole village is buzzing!"
"What the hell?!"
Wang Ergou thought he’d misheard. "A sports car? Liu Yutong drove a Ferrari? You drunk or seeing things?!"
The caller insisted, "Dead serious, why would I lie? Aren’t you coming back to see for yourself?"
Wang Ergou’s face darkened. "We’ll see!"
He hung up in irritation.
Liu Jianyi, having caught snippets of the conversation, pressed urgently, "Ergou, what was that? Yutong... drove back in a sports car? One worth ten Mercedes?!"
In his eyes, a Mercedes was already the pinnacle of luxury. A car worth ten of those? What kind of fortune was that? And his daughter was driving it?
Hell, why was he still sitting here haggling with Wang Ergou?!
"Ergou, we’ve eaten enough—I’ll head back first. You all take your time." Liu Jianyi couldn’t wait any longer and hurried out of the restaurant.
Not only did he want to see this legendary car for himself, but he also needed to get the bank card password to unlock that million yuan.
Watching Liu Jianyi’s frantic departure, Wang Ergou’s expression turned stormy.
Without hesitation, he made another call, his voice icy. "Yeah, it’s me, Ergou. Tonight, I’m setting up a game. Bring as much cash as you can—at least a million! Borrow if you have to, just make it look real. Yeah, there’s a fat pig ready for slaughter."
After hanging up the phone,
Wang Ergou sneered coldly: "Liu Jianyi, you greedy bastard, never satisfied, huh? Fine! Tonight, I’ll make sure you lose everything—down to your last penny. You’ll be coughing up your daughter and those two cars too!"
Though he doubted the cars actually belonged to Liu Yutong, it didn’t matter anymore.
The money—he’d take it. The girl—he’d have her too.
