1990, Reborn as a Beachcomber, From Rascal to Brilliant Guy

"Brother Shui, you're back!"

"Brother Shui, how's your wife? Is she alright?"

"It's nothing, what brings you here?"

Lin Shuisheng raised an eyebrow as he looked at Lin Jiancheng and Lin Yongxin standing in the courtyard in front of his house, and quickly stepped forward to greet them.

The two of them were not only his classmates, but also his cousins, and childhood friends who grew up playing in the mud with him.

In his past life, whether he wanted to own a shrimp pond and become a boss, or he was afraid to face reality and instead became a salted fish, they always took good care of him.

However, like him, they had never achieved much in their lives and each had a family to support, so even if they wanted to help him, they were powerless to do so.

"I heard that my sister-in-law gave birth, so I came to see her."

Lin Jiancheng scratched his head, his expression somewhat unnatural.

Lin Yongxin glanced at Lin Jiancheng, then stepped forward and asked in a deep voice:

"Brother Shui, did you really donate this year's ship stock dividends to Fang Li?"

"That's right! You all know that lending a boat to someone to have a baby is as taboo as lending a house to someone to have a baby. If I don't donate the dividends from my boat shares to the house, who will lend me the boat?"

Lin Shuisheng nodded, his expression very calm.

"Well, your sister-in-law didn't give birth on the ship! I'll go with you to find Uncle Dong now and clear things up. We can't let you suffer such a big loss for nothing."

Lin Yongxin stomped his foot hard and grabbed Lin Shuisheng's arm.

"Alright, a man's word is his bond. Since you've already donated, there's no going back."

Lin Shuisheng grabbed Lin Yongxin's hand, feeling both amused and touched.

"Ugh!"

Lin Yongxin paused for a moment, then finally sighed softly.

"So what are your plans next?"

Upon hearing this, Lin Shuisheng did not reply immediately.

He glanced at Lin Yongxin, whose face was etched with worry, then at Lin Jiancheng, who seemed hesitant to speak. Suddenly, something occurred to him, and a look of realization flashed across his face.

"Your wives must have sent you here, right?"

Upon hearing this, Lin Yongxin and Lin Jiancheng both froze, then hurriedly shook their heads and denied it.

"No, how could that be? We just wanted to come and see for ourselves."

"Are you kidding me? When have you ever seen a man go to visit someone who's in postpartum confinement? Besides, you didn't even go inside my house, you clearly know the rules. Do I have to keep going?"

Lin Shuisheng glared at them, his face full of disgust.

Seeing that Lin Shuisheng had already said so much, they stopped being stubborn and lowered their heads.

"Brother Shui, we really didn't mean to lie to you, we just didn't know how to bring it up."

"Go away, we're all brothers, what's there to be shy about? Just say it."

Lin Shuisheng rolled his eyes and urged him earnestly.

Lin Yongxin and Lin Jiancheng exchanged a glance, raised their chins, and gestured for the other to speak first.

After a while of back and forth, no one spoke first.

Lin Shuisheng felt a surge of anger, and pointed directly at...

"Ah-Xin, you go first."

"that..."

Lin Yongxin glanced at Lin Shuisheng, hesitated for a long time, and finally gritted his teeth and confessed:

"My wife asked me to come and ask if we can pay back the 2000 yuan by the end of the year?"

"That money was borrowed from her older brother. Her sister-in-law has been urging her several times to pay it back by the end of the year at the latest. She had no choice but to ask me to come and inquire."

Me too.

Seeing that Lin Yongxin had already spoken, Lin Jiancheng immediately chimed in:

"Of the 2000 yuan I lent you, 1500 yuan came from my wife borrowing from her parents. Her younger brother is getting married at the end of the year, and she was too ashamed to keep putting it off."

At this point, noticing that Lin Shuisheng's expression was somewhat off, he quickly waved his hand and began to explain:

"Don't get me wrong, we're not trying to force you to pay us back. We just want to ask what your plans are."

If you're really having trouble making arrangements, we'll think of other solutions. There are still several months until the end of the year!

"That's right, Brother Shui, please don't misunderstand. We're just here to go through the motions and give our wives an explanation."

Lin Yongxin nodded, his expression very serious.

"Ha! What if I don't plan to pay it back?"

Lin Shuisheng chuckled and asked with great interest.

Lin Yongxin's expression froze upon hearing this, and Lin Jiancheng's gaze also became somewhat fixed.

Then, before they could say anything, Lin Shuisheng waved his hand and said earnestly:

"Alright, I know you all have your difficulties. Don't worry, I promise I'll pay you back every penny of the money you lent me before the end of the year."

"Brother Shui, that's enough. Don't worry about the money. I'll think of something when I get back."

Lin Yongxin stared straight at Lin Shuisheng, his eyes filled with guilt and worry.

"Yeah! Brother Shui, we can go back and think of a solution ourselves. Don't put too much pressure on yourself."

Lin Jiancheng nodded, his voice sounding somewhat anxious.

"Aren't you afraid your wives won't let you sleep with them when you get home?"

Upon hearing this, Lin Yongxin and Lin Jiancheng's expressions froze once again.

Then, they looked at Lin Shuisheng with puzzled expressions, not understanding what was wrong with him.

How come you seem like a completely different person after only a few days?

In the past, whenever they talked about the money they lost from managing shrimp ponds, Lin Shuisheng would bristle like a cat whose tail had been stepped on.

Now, Lin Shuisheng not only acts naturally throughout, but he can also joke around with them.

Could it be that, as the villagers say, Mazu has appeared to us?

"Alright, I've said everything I needed to say. If there's nothing else, you can go back now!"

Lin Shuisheng felt a little uneasy under the gazes of Lin Yongxin and Lin Jiancheng, and hurriedly waved his hand to shoo them away, to prevent them from asking any unnecessary questions later.

Seeing that he had walked into the house after speaking, Lin Yongxin and Lin Jiancheng did not dare to follow him in. They could only exchange glances, suppress their doubts, and start thinking about how to tell their wives when they got home.

As for Lin Shuisheng's claim that he would return every penny of the money by the end of the year, they didn't believe it at all.

After these years of ups and downs, they've come to realize that Lin Shuisheng is all talk and no action; when it comes to actually doing things, he's lacking in ability.

Moreover, Lin Shuisheng owed not only them money, but also several hundred yuan to the feed store in town and two or three thousand yuan to his family.

With an average monthly salary of 180 yuan, even if Lin Shuisheng found a job and didn't eat or drink anything by the end of the year, he could only save a thousand yuan at most, which wouldn't be enough to pay them back.

Let's go back and think of a solution!