Era: Starting with the struggle to refuse being taken advantage of

Chapter 325 Sold for a Good Price
Wang Fucheng's ruthlessness was exactly what Wang Chengpeng expected. This man had been the production team leader in Wangjia Village for many years, so how could he be a kind-hearted person?

However, after only a few words, he continued to pronounce a death sentence on Luo Wenbin's life.

However, this cannot be blamed on Luo Wenbin; Wang Fucheng had already given him a chance.

If he hadn't been so unrepentant and refused Wang Fucheng's arrangements, he wouldn't have ended up in such a state. It was all Luo Wenbin's own doing.

Luo Wenbin ultimately didn't dare to stop Wang Fucheng for too long. He gritted his teeth and was about to kneel down and apologize to Wang Fucheng when Wang Fucheng quickly pulled him back.

Wang Fucheng squinted, forcing a smile, and said:
"Comrade Luo, what are you trying to do?"

"You're not planning to kneel down and apologize to me, then force me to forgive you, are you?"

"I must say, you educated youth from the city really know how to use your methods."

"From initially framing Xia Zhiqing to now coercing him, this old man is really finding it hard to cope."

Wang Fucheng's words immediately froze Luo Wenbin, who was about to force himself to kneel down. Wang Fucheng's words had completely blocked his way out.

Even if he were willing to sacrifice his dignity now, it would absolutely not make any difference.

Finally, as if he had figured something out, he turned around, ran to Xia Mingyue, and slapped himself hard across the face.

While fanning himself, he also apologized to Xia Mingyue:
"Xia Zhiqing, it was all my fault today. Please forgive me."

"I was blinded by greed and acted stupidly, doing something so shameless."

"If you're still not satisfied, feel free to slap me hard, and I won't say a word against it."

At this point, Luo Wenbin still felt it wasn't enough and continued:

“It is already extremely difficult for the village to forgive a sinner like me, so I should naturally repay the village’s kindness.”

"I'm willing to clean the toilets in Wangjia Village for a year, and then not take the college entrance exam for three years. What do you all think?"

As he spoke, Luo Wenbin slapped himself hard, so hard that he quickly turned himself into a pig's head.

The masses are easily swayed. Seeing Luo Wenbin's earnest words and willingness to accept punishment, even going so far as to slap himself until his head turned into a pig's head, they immediately felt a pang of pity.

Several kind-hearted aunties, feeling sorry for Luo Wenbin, even pleaded for him.

Only Wang Chengpeng, who had been observing Luo Wenbin closely, keenly saw a hint of ruthlessness in Luo Wenbin's eyes. Clearly, he had not truly realized his mistake as he appeared to.

Once again, Xia Mingyue was put under immense pressure by everyone, especially Luo Wenbin, who was slapping himself repeatedly.

This scene made her subconsciously look at Wang Chengpeng standing to the side, silently asking for help with her eyes.

With a sigh, Wang Chengpeng finally stepped forward and said:
“If Comrade Luo truly recognizes his mistakes, Xia Zhiqing, it’s not a big deal for you to forgive him.”

Such a major event did not occur in Wangjia Village last time. Wang Chengpeng understood that this was a butterfly effect caused by his rebirth.

Therefore, both morally and logically, he must properly help Xia Mingyue resolve this matter; it is his responsibility.

Having received Wang Chengpeng's approval, Xia Mingyue secretly breathed a sigh of relief and repeated Wang Chengpeng's words, saying:

“If Comrade Luo truly repents, then I will not dwell on such a trivial matter and am willing to forgive you.”

Having received their forgiveness, Luo Wenbin immediately turned on them, excitedly rushing to Wang Fucheng and shouting:
"Captain Wang, they have all forgiven me, and I have realized my mistake. I hope you will be magnanimous and forgive me for this transgression."

Unless absolutely necessary, Wang Fucheng didn't want to escalate the matter to the town level, because if he did, it would only make Wangjia Village lose face.

Since Wang Chengpeng had already forgiven Luo Wenbin, there was no need for him to hold a grudge, so he immediately agreed, saying:

"If everyone still gives me, an old man, a little face, then let's just let this matter go."

"Luo Wenbin will clean the toilets in Wangjia Village for a year as he just said, and he will be barred from taking the college entrance examination for three years."

At this point, Wang Fucheng's sharp gaze swept over the educated youth who had acted as accomplices, and he said:
"As for you, considering that this is your first offense and that you have shown remorse, you will be punished by being barred from taking the college entrance examination for one year."

Although the punishment Wang Fucheng mentioned was nothing short of a nightmare for these educated youths who were full of expectations for the college entrance examination,
However, Luo Wenbin had already shown them the tragic consequences of disobeying Wang Fucheng's orders, so they had no choice but to grit their teeth and endure it.

With the intervention of multiple parties, the turmoil that swept through the educated youth settlement was finally brought under control.

Seeing that there was no excitement to be had, everyone left.

Only Wang Chengpeng didn't leave immediately; instead, he started helping Xia Mingyue move the books.

It has to be said that Xia Mingyue has a lot of books. Even though Wang Chengpeng is strong, it took him several trips to move them all.

Seeing Wang Chengpeng drenched in sweat, Xia Mingyue felt a little guilty and immediately poured him a glass of cold water.

She sat down and started eating the cornbread she had made herself—after being delayed by various things, she was finally able to eat.

Taking advantage of Xia Mingyue's meal break, as if intentionally, yet also unintentionally, Wang Chengpeng made a pointed suggestion, saying:
"Xia, with the college entrance exam just around the corner, in order to ensure your study efficiency, I recommend that you go to the village and find a family to stay with temporarily for a while."

Although Wang Chengpeng didn't spell it out clearly, Xia Mingyue wasn't stupid and immediately understood what he meant.

Nodding, Xia Mingyue agreed with Wang Chengpeng's point of view, sighed, and said:

"After this incident, it seems we can no longer stay at this educated youth settlement."

Seeing the melancholy in Xia Mingyue's eyes, Wang Chengpeng gently comforted her:

“Xia Zhiqing, you don’t need to be sad. This matter was not your fault.”

"If these educated youth hadn't been so greedy and insatiable, how could what happened next have occurred?"

"By the way, I'm a little curious, why didn't you tell the whole story back then? That way you wouldn't have had to endure all the criticism for no reason."

Faced with Wang Chengpeng's question, Xia Mingyue stood up somewhat excitedly and said:

"Comrade Wang, how could I possibly say such a thing?"

"But they know those people. You lent me so many precious books for no reason, who knows what they might say about you."

“It doesn’t matter to me, a sent-down youth who doesn’t know when I will leave, being gossiped about is nothing, but you are from Wangjia Village, and you just broke up with Liu Yanran.”

"You lent me the book out of kindness. If this kind of thing affects your reputation, I would be willing to die for it."

"Besides, since I'm going to get a bad reputation anyway, why should I drag you down with me?"

Shaking his head slightly, Wang Chengpeng smiled and said, "We have nothing to fear if we are upright, so why should we care about the opinions of others?"

"Besides, in the end I still told everyone what happened, and in the end nothing came of it, right?"

"Don't worry, this matter will eventually be resolved, and neither of our reputations will be affected." "Alright, I won't continue to damage each other's reputations here, so I'll be leaving now."

"Just remember what I said: move away from the educated youth settlement as soon as possible. This will definitely be a good thing for you."

Faced with Wang Chengpeng's repeated instructions, Xia Mingyue nodded vigorously.

She decided to go ask around the neighborhood later to see if there was anyone who could take her in temporarily.

Although she did not make any mistakes in this matter, human nature is so unpredictable, and many educated youths will definitely have opinions about her in the future.

Rather than feeling uncomfortable staying at the educated youth settlement, it's better to leave sooner rather than later.

Even if it costs some money, as long as you can find a safe place, it's worth it.

This time, I was only able to get things resolved thanks to Wang Chengpeng's help. If he hadn't stood up for me, this matter might not have been resolved so satisfactorily.

Even if she were to risk everything and sell Wang Chengpeng, given Luo Wenbin's cunning and treacherous nature, he might still find a way to turn the tables.

But when Xia Mingyue was about to find Wang Chengpeng to express her gratitude, Wang Chengpeng was nowhere to be found in the room. He had already left.

Not long after leaving Xia Mingyue's room, before Wang Chengpeng had even left the educated youth settlement, he saw someone coming to greet him.

This person was none other than Song Sixi from the educated youth settlement.

After a slight hesitation, he finally asked Wang Chengpeng:

"Comrade Wang, I have something I'd like to ask you."

"I wonder if you have any extra textbooks at home. If so, I would like to ask if you could lend me some."

"Of course, I won't lend you the book for free. I'm willing to pay you, and I guarantee the price will satisfy you."

"If all else fails, you can just sell it to me directly. I don't mind if the price is a little higher."

Wang Chengpeng did have some recollection of Song Sixi, who had stopped him. In his previous life, Wangjia Village had produced two college students; Xia Mingyue was one of them, and Song Sixi was the other.

This incident caused a huge uproar at the time and was even hailed as a good story.

If both of them hadn't been sent down to the countryside as educated youth and weren't locals of Wangjia Village, Wangjia Village might have even earned the title of "village of top scholars."

However, due to the butterfly effect caused by his rebirth, Song Sixi was unable to borrow the book from Xia Mingyue this time, and whether he could successfully get into university as he did in his previous life became an unknown.

It can be said that Wang Chengpeng's choice determined Song Sixi's fate in this life.

Instead of directly responding to Song Sixi's request to borrow books, Wang Chengpeng said pointedly:
“Song Zhiqing, you should know that the value of some things cannot be measured in money.”

"Most importantly, I am not a person who is short of money."

Upon hearing Wang Chengpeng's words, Song Sixi's face turned deathly pale.

Regardless of the actual value of those books, Wang Chengpeng's wealth alone makes it impossible for him to be tempted by the paltry benefits offered.

Song Sixi wasn't ignorant; he understood the meaning behind Wang Chengpeng's words and immediately said dejectedly:
"Comrade Wang, I understand what you mean. I was indeed a bit too abrupt."

"I'm sorry I took up your time."

As soon as he finished speaking, Song Sixi didn't argue and simply stepped aside from Wang Chengpeng.

Judging from his expression, he seemed somewhat regretful about missing the opportunity.

Seeing Song Sixi's distraught appearance, Wang Chengpeng smiled and said:
"Comrade Song seems to have misunderstood me. Actually, I didn't mean to refuse you. I just wanted to tell you about the value of those textbooks."

"Now that you understand the value of those textbooks, you need to think carefully about whether you still want to borrow my books."

Putting everything else aside, just because Song Sixi was willing to testify for Xia Mingyue and wasn't a member of the book-stealing gang, Wang Chengpeng was happy to lend him the book.

However, his purpose in collecting books was not to make money, so he naturally wanted to point out the key relationship to Song Sixi.

He was like a wealthy young lady in ancient times who invested in scholars traveling to the capital for the imperial examinations.
It's a bargain to win a scholar's unwavering loyalty with just a few insignificant gifts.

Let alone the possibility that someone might actually be grateful to you, get into university, and eventually become someone who can help you.

Even if all these investments were to fail, Wang Chengpeng would only lose a few insignificant textbooks.

Thanks to his relationship with Ji Yongyue, he collected these textbooks at almost no cost.

After hesitating for a moment, Song Sixi finally gritted his teeth and agreed to Wang Chengpeng's conditions.

Aside from borrowing books from Wang Chengpeng, he really couldn't think of any other way to get so many books in such a short time.

In this era where time is money, even a single day's delay can change one's destiny.

Moreover, Wang Chengpeng's willingness to lend him the book free of charge is itself a kindness, and it is only right that he repays the kindness, after all, he is not an ingrate like Luo Wenbin.

Thinking this through, Song Sixi decided to go all out and agreed:
"Comrade Wang is right. The value of some things cannot be measured by money, especially at such a critical moment."

"If you are willing to lend me a book, I will always remember your kindness."

Now that he had already sold himself, Song Sixi naturally wanted to know exactly how much he had been sold for, so he immediately asked:

"Comrade Wang, do you have any extra textbooks at home?"

"If you had told me sooner, I would have been able to think of a way to get the missing textbooks."

In this era of all-round development, being unbalanced in one subject is not a good thing.

Moreover, the difficulty of getting a perfect score in one subject is completely different from the difficulty of passing two subjects.

Faced with Song Sixi's question, Wang Chengpeng felt somewhat puzzled and asked in return:

What does it mean to have "excess textbooks"?

"I have any textbook you want, no matter what subject it is."

Upon hearing Wang Chengpeng's answer, Song Sixi was instantly stunned.

He was immediately overwhelmed with joy, feeling incredibly fortunate that he had agreed to Wang Chengpeng's terms; Wang had sold him for a good price.

With enough books, he believed that he could definitely get into university and change his destiny through his own abilities.

(End of this chapter)