The sky collapsed, and in the blink of an eye, I found myself transported to Nanluoguxiang.

In the early hours of the morning, Li Kaixin appeared in the black market that Hu Laoliu had recently taken over.

This time he prepared more than 250 chickens, more than 250 ducks, more than 300 rabbits, plus more than 2,000 catties of chicken and duck eggs.

Some of it was given to Feng San in Haicheng last time.

Arriving at the corner of the black market, I stopped in front of Hu Laoliu's stall, my figure just blocking Hu Laoliu's view as he was tidying up his things with his head down.

"Brother, want to exchange some tickets?" Hu Laoliu noticed someone and subconsciously looked up to greet them.

Upon seeing Li Kaixin, his face immediately lit up with a smile: "Brother Zhou, you've finally arrived! What good stuff have you brought this time?"

After saying that, he stepped over the stall and came to Li Kaixin's side.

Li Kaixin didn't beat around the bush: "Brother Hu Liu, this time we have more than 250 chickens, more than 250 ducks, more than 300 rabbits, plus more than 2,000 catties of chicken and duck eggs."

"This portion is quite large; I wonder if you can finish it?"

"Look at what you're saying! I can eat as much as you have." Old Hu patted his chest, looking excited.

"Alright. Brother Hu Liu, go and prepare now."

Li Kaixin nodded, then reminded him, "By the way, this time we need to change the location for the transaction. I'll wait for you here."

But Hu Laoliu didn't move. He hesitated for a moment, his lips moved as if he wanted to say something but couldn't.

Seeing that he didn't move, Li Kaixin asked in confusion, "What's wrong? Brother Hu Liu, is there some difficulty?"

"Brother Zhou..."

Hu Laoliu finally made up his mind and tentatively asked, "My boss wants to meet with you. Would that be convenient for you?"

Li Kaixin fell silent, his mind racing as he considered whether or not to meet the boss. He was worried that this leader might be like Feng San from Haicheng, breaking the rules.

After a long while, Hu Laoliu saw that Li Kaixin had not answered and was about to speak.

Li Kaixin spoke first: "Let's go, Brother Hu Liu. Take me there now."

He finally decided to meet with them, since they would be dealing with each other for a long time, and it wouldn't do to keep avoiding each other.

If Hu Laoliu, that boss, really doesn't follow the rules, he wouldn't mind getting more blood on his hands.

However, when Hu Laoliu heard Li Kaixin agree, he didn't seem very happy. Instead, his expression became more complicated.

What he actually meant was that it's okay not to meet.

The boss's instructions to him were simply to mention this Brother Zhou next time he came, and he wasn't required to personally invite him over.

The reason is simple: the boss has more than just this one black market stall under his control. If Li Kaixin starts trading directly with the boss in the future, he won't get the lion's share.

Seeing that Hu Laoliu was still standing there without moving, Li Kaixin asked with some impatience, "Brother Hu Liu, what's wrong with you now?"

"Oh, Brother Zhou, I'll take you there right away."

Hu Laoliu sensed the urging in his words and quickly composed himself: "Please come with me."

As he spoke, he led the way.

Following Hu Laoliu through a maze of twists and turns, they stopped in front of a large courtyard deep within the former black market.

Hu Laoliu told Li Kaixin to stand at the back for a while, then stepped forward and rhythmically knocked on the door a few times.

The people in the courtyard responded immediately and opened the door quickly.

Then, a dark-skinned, muscular man who looked like he was a trained fighter appeared behind the door.

He glanced at Hu Laoliu first, then his gaze fell on Li Kaixin, who was wearing a mask behind him, and his eyes immediately became wary: "Laoliu, who is this brother behind you?"

"This is Brother Zhou, whom I've traded with a few times. The boss gave me some instructions beforehand," Hu Laoliu quickly explained.

The burly man didn't ask any more questions after hearing this, and stepped aside to make way for him, clearly having already informed him.

Seeing this, Hu Laoliu turned back to Li Kaixin, a smile plastered on his face: "Brother Zhou, let's go in!"

"Alright, Brother Hu Liu, lead the way," Li Kaixin said calmly.

Upon entering the courtyard, Li Kaixin immediately spotted a middle-aged man sitting by the stone table, slowly turning a pair of walnuts in his hands with his eyes closed.

Hu Laoliu brought Li Kaixin closer, jogged over, and whispered a few words in the middle-aged man's ear.

As soon as he finished speaking, the middle-aged man opened his eyes.

He put down the walnuts in his hand, stood up, and smiled warmly: "Welcome, Brother Zhou, to my humble abode. I am Guan Yue."

As he spoke, he extended a hand towards Li Kaixin.

"Hello, Boss Guan, I am Zhou Xiaoqi." Li Kaixin followed suit and shook hands with Guan Yue.

Seeing Li Kaixin's expression, Guan Yue chuckled and gestured for him to sit down: "Brother Zhou, please sit down. Let's sit down and chat."

Li Kaixin didn't stand on ceremony and sat down directly on the stone bench nearby, getting straight to the point: "I wonder what brings Boss Guan here today?"

Guan Yue didn't rush to answer. He first turned to Hu Laoliu and gestured, "Xiao Liu, go make Brother Zhou a cup of tea."

Then, turning back to her, she said in a gentler tone, "Brother Zhou, I wouldn't call it giving you pointers. I just wanted to see you; I hadn't been able to find a suitable opportunity before."

Li Kaixin knew perfectly well that there had been plenty of opportunities for the deal in the past, but he had only shown up now.

He guessed that it was probably because of the large quantity of goods they had last time that this Boss Guan had truly taken notice.

However, he didn't say anything, but just waited quietly for the other party to continue.

Sure enough, after Hu Laoliu brought the tea, Guan Yue spoke again: "I wonder what good things Brother Zhou has brought this time?"

"Boss Guan, I've already reached an agreement with Brother Hu Liu." Li Kaixin said calmly, without revealing any specific details.

Guan Yue looked at Hu Laoliu with a questioning expression.

Seeing this, Hu Laoliu immediately stepped forward and leaned down again to whisper a few words in his ear.

Immediately, a surprised smile appeared on Guan Yue's face.

He picked up his teacup and gestured to Li Kaixin: "Brother Zhou, you're really generous."

He then turned to Hu Laoliu and instructed, "Xiao Liu, what are you still doing here? Hurry up and get ready, don't delay the important matters."

"Yes, boss, I'll take care of it right away."

Hu Laoliu quickly responded, nodded to Li Kaixin, and then turned and left the courtyard.

After he left, the courtyard fell silent for a moment.

Guan Yue slowly took a sip of tea, a gentle smile on his face: "Brother Zhou, this is no small sum. Looks like you have quite a few connections!"

"Brother Guan is joking. I'm just trying to make a living and earning a meager living." Li Kaixin also picked up his teacup, his tone neither humble nor arrogant.

Upon hearing this, Guan Yue's smile deepened, and he continued to probe:

"I wonder if Brother Zhou has any more of this kind of goods on hand? If so, why not bring them out as well, so I can take them all?"

"Yes, we do have some, but we'll have to wait a while to gather the next batch."

"Alright, alright! Then I'll eagerly await Brother Zhou's next good news."

Guan Yue knew when to stop and didn't press the matter further. He then refilled Li Kaixin's teacup.