Sha Zhu's Rebirth in the Courtyard: Starting with Hitting Someone in the Head

Chapter 307 The Liu Family's Turnaround

In early April, Beijing finally felt warmer in the air. The locust trees in Qianmen Hutong sprouted tender buds, their vibrant green leaves standing out starkly against the gray alleyway.

Liu Guangfu, carrying a bag, rode his tricycle through the alley and arrived at the entrance of Damao Supermarket. He locked the tricycle and went inside.

Xu Damao was sitting in his office looking at the account books when he heard a knock on the door. He looked up and saw that it was Liu Guangfu. He closed the account books and said, "Guangfu is here. Have a seat."

Liu Guangfu sat down, unzipped his faux leather bag, and took out stacks of banknotes. He pushed the money in front of Xu Damao: "Brother Damao, please count it, it's 21,000. This 1,000 is a token of our gratitude. We didn't know what to buy, but you have everything here."

Xu Damao glanced at the stack of money. "So fast? Take this thousand back. You're paying interest every month, so I won't take it."

Liu Guangfu stood up. "No, that won't do. I know you don't need this money. Your willingness to lend us money this time is like saving the Liu family. We're just offering this as a token of our gratitude. Please accept it."

Xu Damao smiled and nodded, took the money and counted it out, then took out the IOU from the drawer and handed it to him.

"That's settled, Guangfu. Contact me again if you need anything next time."

Liu Guangfu took the IOU and bowed, saying, "Brother Da Mao, thank you. Our Liu family will remember this kindness."

"No need to thank me, we're all neighbors." Xu Damao waved his hand. "Go back and work hard."

Liu Guangfu returned to the recycling station at the front gate and slammed the IOU on the table. Liu Guangtian, who was doing his accounts, took it, glanced at it, took out a cigarette and handed it to Guangfu, lit one for himself, and burned the IOU with a lighter.

Liu Guangtian flipped the ledger to the last page and pushed it in front of him: "After paying off the debts, there's still over three thousand left. If you work another month, you'll have at least nine thousand."

Liu Guangfu looked at the line of numbers, exhaled a puff of smoke, and said, "Brother, what's our next step?"

Liu Guangtian closed the ledger and placed it on the corner of the table: "Starting tomorrow, raise the purchase price to one cent higher than the Yan family's."

"Then our profit margin will be thin."

"So what if we're thin?" Liu Guangtian said shrilly. "The sanitation department is stable; we don't rely on unlicensed goods for a living. Yan Jiekuang can pressure us, so why can't we pressure him?"

He flicked off his cigarette ash, his voice softening: "We have the sanitation department's supplies to keep us afloat, while he relies entirely on tricycles to collect loose goods; he has plenty of capital. If this drags on for a few months, he definitely won't be able to hold on and will go bankrupt. Guangfu, don't you want revenge?"

Liu Guangfu slammed his hand on the table. "How could that be? I even considered killing Yan Jiekuang back then. Brother, should we hire another helper? With just the four of us collecting the goods, we can't handle the bulk shipments."

"Please. Post job advertisements tomorrow. Also, buy a tricycle and beat the Yan family to a pulp."

At the recycling station near Beixinqiao, Qin Huairu and Huaihua were sorting recyclables. Banggeng sat beside them doing the accounting, while Huaihua squatted opposite him, tying a bundle of old newspapers tightly with hemp rope and stacking it in the corner.

The brother and sister sat across from each other at a table, each doing their own thing, neither saying much. After a few months, they got used to this silence. Huaihua made tea for Banggeng every day and washed his clothes every few days. Banggeng accepted it, his attitude neither warm nor cold, and they could work, eat, and pack up together.

Qin Huairu looked at the two of them working, smiled, and said nothing.

"Mom," Huaihua looked up, "Is Yan Jiekuang still fighting with the Liu family?"

Qin Huairu patted the dust off her hands. "The Liu family is rich and confident, so they raised the price. Yan Jiekuang had no choice but to follow suit."

Huaihua's hands didn't stop moving. "Does the Liu family still want to carry it?"

"I don't know," Qin Huairu said. "If it were me, I wouldn't raise the price any further. If we dragged it out for a few months, we could bankrupt the Yan family."

That evening, Xiao Dang came over to complain.

Seeing her gloomy face, Qin Huairu said, "Huaihua, pour your sister a cup of tea."

Xiao Dang's voice was muffled: "Jie Kuang looked terrible, and he barely ate anything for dinner. He said he wanted to report the Jiaodaokou Sanitation Station, but Jie Di and I persuaded him to stop."

Qin Huairu was stunned. "Is he brainless? He actually dared to think of something like this. Does he not want to continue in this industry?"

"Mom, Jie Kuang was just angry and impulsive. He's now trying to figure out how to use his connections at the sanitation department, so he asked me to ask you if you know anyone at the Beixinqiao sanitation department? Or even someone at the cleaning station."

Qin Huairu shook her head: "I don't know him. Jie Kuang wants to collect recyclables at the sanitation department? Where would he get the money?"

"He's planning to borrow it from Ma Qiang in the east wing of the front yard." Xiao Dang lowered his head and his voice grew softer and softer. "He told me to go and get on good terms with Ma Qiang."

Qin Huairu was furious. "Xiao Dang, don't go. If Yan Jiekuang wants to borrow money, just let him go by himself. Ma Qiang won't do anything to you, since his master He Yuzhu is there. I'm afraid if you ask, Yan Jiekuang will make you go and entertain the leaders of the sanitation department later."

Banggeng jumped up. "Xiaodang, that bastard Yan Jiekuang has ulterior motives. You should divorce him; people like him are twisted."

"Banggeng, calm down, it's not that serious. I'm just guessing." Qin Huairu swayed Banggeng down to sit, then turned to Xiaodang and said, "Didn't you listen to what Mom told you last time?"

"What we talked about last time? Saving money?"

"Yes, have you deposited any money?" Qin Huairu stared into her eyes.

"Saved."

"How much have you saved?"

"Jie Di and I saved a total of over six hundred."

Qin Huairu breathed a sigh of relief, "Then you can continue to save. If Jie Kuang needs to borrow money or pull strings, let him do it himself."

Xiao Dang wanted to say something, but looking at her mother's expressionless face, she swallowed her words back.

Qin Huairu softened her tone: "Don't think your mother is heartless. Jie Kuang is blinded by greed now, and no one can persuade him otherwise. He borrowed money to buy a van to haul goods from the sanitation department; if he manages to pull some strings, that's fine. But what if he spends the money and still doesn't get the business? What will you do then?"

Xiao Dang didn't reply, but nodded with red eyes. She drank some tea for a while, and after recovering her composure, she went back.

Huaihua said, "Mom, don't worry too much about my sister."

"I'm afraid she's not thinking clearly and will end up losing all her savings with Jie Kuang."

Huaihua didn't speak again. She sat next to her mother. A few months ago, she had just returned to Beijing, and the house was still drab, dilapidated, and heavy. But many things were different: there was hot food in the pot, and the numbers on the bankbook were rising. Her brother hadn't forgiven her, but he hadn't held it against her either. She was quite satisfied with her current life.

That evening, He Yuzhu sat on a stone bench in the courtyard, drinking tea. The pomegranate tree had sprouted new leaves, their tender green gleaming under the lamplight. Xu Damao came over after dinner, sat down on the bench next to him, and offered him a cigarette.

"My dear in-laws, the Liu family paid off the debt a few days ago."

He Yuzhu took the cigarette and lit it: "I overheard Liu Guangfu bragging about it to someone at the gate of the courtyard."

"The Liu family has started a price war." Xu Damao lit a cigarette and took a puff. "Yan Jiekuang won't last long."

"No, I've already spoken to Ma Qiang. We'll lend Yan Jiekuang the money then." He Yuzhu exhaled a puff of smoke. "Now we're just waiting for Yan Jiekuang to speak up."

Xu Damao chuckled, "Brother Zhu, you really know how to play this game. This is much more interesting than a movie. I wonder how it will end up."