“What kind of meat is in those buns? My meatballs are made of wild boar; they’re far more fragrant than any bun.”
As Li Zhi spoke, he waved a fist-sized Sixi meatball under everyone’s noses.
The rich aroma of the meat made many people unable to stop themselves from salivating.
“It’s just ten wen, I’ll buy one.”
An old woman gritted her teeth and said, “I’ll buy one for my grandson to eat.”
Although the meat Gan Tian had exchanged was plentiful, it was still limited.
Seeing one meatball sell, others grew anxious.
“I want one too.”
“Me too.”
In the end, the entire pot of Sixi meatballs was sold clean.
Gan Fanren counted the money; they had made a full half-tael of silver.
Li Zhi didn’t hide a single penny for himself, handing it all over to Gan Fanren.
Although they hadn’t been together long, Gan Fanren already had some understanding of Li Zhi.
Li Zhi was honest and upright, not the type to harbor schemes.
He was a man who could be trusted.
After eating, they washed the pots and bowls. Li Zhi hoisted his elderly mother onto his back, and she, in turn, proactively carried the pot as they set off.
Li Zhi was incredibly strong. Even with a person and a pot on his back, he didn’t feel tired.
He adjusted his mother on his back and said, still savoring the meal, “Having just eaten meat, I’m brimming with strength. Never mind one mother, I could carry two more if I had to!”
Gan Tian sighed silently in her heart: 【What a truly ‘filial’ son.】
The brothers who had been tied up yesterday saw the Gan Family collecting their things and let out muffled cries from their throats, hoping someone would remember them and give them a bite to eat.
“I almost forgot about you lot.”
Gan Fanren pulled out a few coarse grain pancakes. “Ten wen each. Want some?”
The leader of the men was defiant. “Why the hell is this crappy pancake worth ten wen?”
Don’t think he hadn’t seen it earlier—a meatball that large only cost ten wen. These few lousy pancakes weren’t even worth a single wen.
His face showed a hint of disdain, and his eyes were full of contempt as he looked at the pancakes.
Suddenly, a sharp pain shot through the back of his head.
Li Zhi raised his hand and delivered a heavy blow.
“How dare you talk to my Big Brother like that?”
“If my Big Brother says it’s ten wen, it’s ten wen. You got a problem?”
“No problem.”
“No problem at all.”
Ten wen it was.
“That’s not right. Each of you owes me five hundred wen, so that’s five hundred and ten wen total,” Gan Fanren said, holding a fan and smiling gently.
“You, named Gan, don’t talk nonsense! We don’t even know you. Since when did we owe you five hundred wen?”
“Because of you, none of us got a good night’s rest. Charging you five hundred wen each isn’t too much, is it?”
“Oh, I almost forgot. Your sneak attack yesterday left me deeply traumatized, making me feel despair toward the world. You ought to compensate me for that.”
“And the ropes on your bodies—my wife twisted these ropes herself. Her hands were chafed raw just to make them. You should provide some compensation for her hard work as well.”
“I, Gan, am kind-hearted and will only charge you the cost price. Each of you just needs to give another tael of silver.”
Gan Fanren smiled gently, but his words were lethal.
The brothers were stunned by Gan Fanren’s shamelessness.
Seeing this, Li Zhi threw a punch with a heavy thud.
“What are you dazed for? Hurry up and thank my Big Brother!”
If their reaction was even a second too slow, they would receive a slap from Li Zhi.
Other people committed robbery, and so did they.
Other people made money from robbery, but they were losing money.
Losing money was one thing, but they had to endure beatings too.
The brothers ate the hard-to-swallow coarse grain pancakes, tears streaming down their faces.
They were all crying, but while Li Zhi had cried from the happiness of eating meat, they were crying out of heartache for their lost purses.
They actually would have been fine without the pancakes, but Li Zhi was unreasonable.
Without even waiting for their consent, he had just reached in and snatched their money.
Since the money was already gone, they might as well eat.
But that was only the beginning.
Along the way, no matter what they did, as long as there was a chance to squeeze money out of them, Gan Fanren would find a reason to collect a fee.
He even charged a “supervision fee” for them to go to the latrine.
Blackhearted!
Too blackhearted!
Gan Fanren was more unscrupulous than a county magistrate!
At least when they spent money at the yamen, they got some modicum of care; spending money here only got them slaps.
In the end, the men knelt down and begged Li Zhi to send them to the yamen.
After leaving the county yamen, Li Zhi borrowed money from Gan Fanren to buy two axes and a dilapidated pushcart.
Once they left the city, he found two thick old trees and chopped them down.
He used the axe to split the trees into wide, sturdy planks and reinforced the pushcart.
After the reinforcement, he had everyone get on. Even with so many people, he could pull it with one hand.
Gan Tian was dumbfounded.
【I used to think I was a corporate slave, but now I finally understand what a true beast of burden is!】
【He eats less than an ox but has more strength than one. Keeping Li Zhi around is no loss at all.】
It was more than just “no loss”; it was a massive bargain.
Gan Fanren knew Li Zhi was capable, but he hadn’t realized he was this capable.
His gaze toward Li Zhi became a few degrees friendlier.
Fortunately, he could hear his daughter’s inner thoughts; otherwise, he might have missed out on such a powerful assistant.
With Li Zhi, the journey became much easier.
Whether it was rice, flour, grain, oil, or pots and pans, everything was placed on the pushcart.
Li Zhi had modified the cart to be very large. Everyone could lie on it, and there was still extra room for supplies.
Hui Niang laid out the old bedding, making it thick and comfortable to sit on. When they were tired, they could lie down and rest.
Li Zhi had originally wanted Gan Fanren to get on the cart too. In his words, Gan Fanren wasn’t even as heavy as the old sows in their village, but Gan Fanren refused.
Although he was a mere scholar, he was still a man, and he had his dignity!
How could he sit on a cart with the women!
Gan Fanren insisted on walking side-by-side with Li Zhi as they pressed forward.
Before nightfall, they finally found a village to stay in.
The village was dark and deserted, with dilapidated houses everywhere.
Clearly, there was hardly anyone left in this village.
They found an abandoned house, tidied it up briefly, set up the pot, and started cooking.
Just as the pot was set up, someone arrived.
It was an old woman with a face full of sorrow. Her clothes were extremely tattered, filthy, and covered in patches.
“I want to borrow some rice from you.”
The old woman’s eyes welled with tears. “Our family is poor. Neither the adults nor the children have had a full meal in days. Please, have pity on us and give us something to eat.”
Many people had seen them selling Sixi meatballs that morning.
Gan Fanren wasn’t at all surprised that someone had come to borrow grain.
He pulled out two coarse grain pancakes.
“Auntie, we have the elderly and the young here; we have many mouths to feed. We don’t have much to spare, so please take these two pancakes.”
The old woman took the two pancakes and thanked them repeatedly, but she showed no intention of leaving.
Her gaze kept darting into the house, trying to see what Hui Niang was cooking.
She had seen it during the day.
This family was very wealthy. They had made half a tael just from selling meatballs, and they had several bags of rice, flour, grain, and oil.
Their family was so rich; how could they have the nerve to only give her two coarse grain pancakes?