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

Li Kaixin, Zhou Mingqiang, and Zhou's mother sat down at the table, chatting and laughing.

Zhou Mingqiang opened one of the bottles of Fenjiu that Li Kaixin had brought and poured a glass for both Li Kaixin and himself.

Seeing that Zhou Zhiming hadn't come inside yet, she turned and instructed, "Honey, go out and see why Zhiming hasn't come in yet. We're just waiting for him."

Zhou's mother nodded and smiled apologetically at Li Kaixin: "Master Li, please continue eating. I'll go call Zhiming."

As he spoke, he got up from his seat and walked outside.

"Come on, Master Li, don't worry about them, let's have a drink first." Zhou Mingqiang, who was standing next to him, raised his glass with a smile.

Li Kaixin immediately raised her glass and gently clinked it with his.

The two of them downed their drinks in one gulp, and Zhou Mingqiang quickly greeted them with a smile, "Master Li, have some food, have some food, try my wife's cooking."

"Uncle Zhou, then I won't stand on ceremony."

After Li Kaixin finished speaking, he picked up a piece of vermicelli with his chopsticks and put it in his mouth. After swallowing, he couldn't help but give a thumbs up in praise: "Auntie's cooking skills are really authentic. The vermicelli is stewed so well and is really flavorful."

"Master Li, this is delicious, you should eat more today!" Zhou Mingqiang said as he poured more wine into their glasses.

Just then, a loud argument broke out outside.

Both Li Kaixin, who was eating, and Zhou Mingqiang, who was pouring wine, paused in their actions.

Amidst the arguing, Zhou Mingqiang heard the voices of his wife and son.

He immediately forced a smile: "Master Li, please continue eating. Excuse me for a moment, I'll go out and take a look."

Before he finished speaking, he hurriedly stood up and rushed outside.

Li Kaixin followed closely behind; he had just heard Zhou Zhiming's anxious voice as well.

In the courtyard, Zhou Zhiming was holding Li Kaixin's bicycle, locked in a standoff with a young man in his twenties.

Zhou's mother stood aside, anxious and at a loss for what to do.

The courtyard was surrounded by neighbors, but no one stepped forward to intervene; they all just watched the spectacle.

The young man, with a nonchalant expression, tilted his head and said, "Zhiming, can I borrow this bike for a couple of days? It's not like I'm not going to return it."

"No, Brother Zhou Yi! This car belongs to my master." Zhou Zhiming immediately shook his head and refused.

Upon hearing this, Zhou Yi's face lit up with a mocking smile: "Your master? I think he's just a brat who hasn't grown up yet. Just tell him the car was borrowed?"

"What did you say!" Zhou Zhiming immediately flew into a rage and raised his hand to strike.

"Oh! You want to fight?" Zhou Yi leaned forward casually, pointing to his head. "Come on, hit me here."

Zhou Zhiming was young and impetuous, and he couldn't stand such provocation. Without saying a word, he slapped Zhou Yi on the head.

"Ouch!" Zhou Yi cried out, clutching his forehead, then glared angrily at Zhou Zhiming:

"You little brat, you actually dared to lay a hand on me! Don't forget, your family still owes me a hundred yuan!"

Upon hearing this, Zhou Zhiming felt as if his soft spot had been hit, and he didn't know what to do.

His family does indeed owe Zhou Yi's family one hundred yuan.

The job at the transportation station cost 800 yuan, but the family managed to scrape together 500 yuan. The remaining 300 yuan was borrowed from several neighbors, including Zhou Yi's family.

Seeing Zhou Zhiming's hesitant expression, Zhou Yi's eyes darted around, and he resorted to a shameless act:

"Since you hit me, this can't just end like this. That kid is your master, right?"

"Perfect, give me this bicycle as payment, and we'll call it even!"

After saying that, he stepped forward and reached out to snatch the bicycle.

The onlookers were stunned by his words.

This bicycle looks brand new, and with the bicycle ticket, it's worth at least two hundred yuan. Trying to get away with a hundred yuan after being slapped is a really shrewd calculation.

However, no one stepped forward; they remained on the sidelines watching the spectacle.

Zhou Zhiming refused to listen, gripping the handlebars tightly with both hands: "We'll definitely pay you back! You can't move this bike!"

"Yes, Xiao Yi, we'll raise the money and pay your family back in a couple of days, don't worry," Zhou's mother quickly advised from the side.

"Return it? Sure! Now you'd better hand over the money!" Zhou Yi said jokingly, pulling hard on the handlebars. "Otherwise, this bike is mine."

He paused, then added, "Oh, and by the way, have that kid get the transfer paperwork done for me later!"

"Stop!" A sharp shout came from the entrance of the Zhou family's house.

Zhou Yi paused, turned his head and saw Zhou Mingqiang striding over with a sullen face.

"Hey Yi, what are you doing? Robbing me in broad daylight?" Zhou Mingqiang walked up and stood in front of the bicycle.

"Uncle Mingqiang, you're not right," Zhou Yi said, loosening his grip, crossing his arms, and tilting his head.

"Zhiming just hit me with his free hand. I can't let that slap go unpunished, can I? Besides, your family has been in debt for a while now, so it's only right that I use this car to pay off the debt."

"We will definitely pay you back, not a penny less," Zhou Mingqiang said firmly. "The car belongs to Master Li, don't even think about it."

"Hey, Uncle Mingqiang, that's not very nice of you." Zhou Yi raised an eyebrow. "How about this, you just take out a hundred yuan right now, and I'll leave immediately without saying another word."

Zhou Mingqiang was speechless for a moment after hearing this, as his family really couldn't come up with a hundred yuan in cash right now.

Although Zhou Zhiming had previously received several tens of yuan and dried fish, the total amount came to only 150 yuan, which he had already used to pay off his other neighbors.

Seeing this, Zhou Yi's smug expression deepened: "Uncle Mingqiang, you see, it's not that I'm being unreasonable, is it?"

Then his hand reached for the handlebars again.

Just then, a calm voice sounded from behind Zhou Mingqiang: "Uncle Zhou, they owe you a hundred yuan, right? I'll pay it for them first."

Everyone looked over at the sound and saw that Li Kaixin had somehow appeared next to Zhou Mingqiang.

Zhou Yi paused again, turned to look at Li Kaixin, and recognized him as Zhou Zhiming's young master.

His face immediately broke into a playful grin:

"Zhiming's mentor, right? You've come at just the right time. Didn't you just say you'd pay off Zhiming's debts?"

"How about you give me this car as collateral, and we'll be even?"

The onlookers were all curious and wanted to see how Li Kaixin would handle the situation.

"No need for that trouble."

Li Kaixin pulled out a wad of banknotes from his pocket, counted out ten ten-yuan bills, and handed them over: "This is one hundred yuan, count it."

"Master, you don't need to pay this money..." Zhou Zhiming said anxiously, trying to stop him.

Li Kaixin raised her hand to interrupt: "Don't say anything, I'll handle this."

When Zhou Yi saw the money, his face immediately turned ugly, and he did not reach out to take it.

"What, isn't this a hundred yuan? Aren't you going to take it?" Li Kaixin waved the bill in her hand, looking directly at him.

The atmosphere in the courtyard fell silent in that instant.