Wu Qian glanced at Liu Chunsheng and perfunctorily called him "Uncle."
Liu Chunsheng didn't pay much attention to her impolite behavior, merely responding with a smile.
He then grabbed his hoe and headed to the peanut field to weed.
Liu Yifeng quickly said, "Dad, it's too hot outside. Go later in the afternoon!"
"It's fine, Dad isn't afraid of the heat. I'm just idle at home anyway," Liu Chunsheng replied, then walked out of the living room. He figured he shouldn't butt in on the young people's conversation.
"Yifeng, didn't you raise crayfish? Hurry and show me," Lu Fei said impatiently.
Liu Yifeng took out the watermelon that had been cooling in the well water, cut two large slices for Lu Fei and his girlfriend, and said, "What's the hurry with the crayfish? I'll take you later. It's too hot outside."
Lu Fei ate the watermelon with great satisfaction. "Watermelon is the perfect companion for summer."
This watermelon was bought by Liu Yifeng. The watermelons he grew were already over twenty catties each, but they still had room to grow and weren't fully ripe yet, so Liu Yifeng hadn't touched them.
Just then, Tongtong accidentally spilled watermelon juice on Wu Qian's clothes. She immediately became angry. "What's wrong with you, kid? You've stained my clothes!"
Seeing how fierce this auntie was, Tongtong quickly apologized in fright, "Auntie, I'm sorry, I didn't mean to."
But Wu Qian didn't appreciate it and remained displeased. "If saying sorry fixed everything, why would we need police? Do you know how expensive these clothes are? Your dad wouldn't even make enough selling a hundred catties of crayfish to pay for it."
She only knew Liu Yifeng sold crayfish but not how much he sold them for, or she wouldn't have said that.
Lu Fei felt a bit awkward. He tugged at Wu Qian's clothes and whispered, "Why are you being so fierce? The child didn't do it on purpose. The clothes can be washed if they're stained."
After speaking, he looked apologetically at Liu Yifeng. "Don't take it to heart, Qianqian is just saying that, she doesn't mean anything else."
Before Liu Yifeng could reply, Wu Qian's voice rang out, "You're always playing the good guy. This is my favorite piece of clothing, and now it's stained with watermelon juice. If it doesn't wash out, can you buy me another one?"
"Yes, I'll buy you one, okay?" Lu Fei quickly agreed.
"All your money is with me, how can I afford to buy another one?"
"How much is this dress? I'll pay you," Liu Yifeng said, not wanting Lu Fei to be in a difficult position.
"It's not very expensive, just a thousand yuan, but do you even have it?" Wu Qian said proudly, not believing Liu Yifeng could afford to pay. Although a thousand yuan wasn't much, looking at Liu Yifeng's living conditions, he wouldn't spend it frivolously. Her intention in doing this was precisely to prevent Lu Fei from associating with Liu Yifeng, thinking such a friend was not worth keeping. Therefore, she didn't really care if Liu Yifeng could afford to pay or not.
"What are you doing? It's just a dress, is it that serious?" Lu Fei was also getting angry.
"You're yelling at me?" Wu Qian looked at Lu Fei incredulously.
"No, I'm not, I just..." Seeing his girlfriend's hurt expression, Lu Fei quickly tried to explain, but she interrupted him before he could finish.
"You say you're not, but I see you clearly now. You have your brothers, and I, your girlfriend, have to take a backseat. Let's break up!" Wu Qian said, then turned and walked outside.
Seeing this, Lu Fei quickly chased after her. "Qianqian, don't be angry. I spoke poorly just now, but I really wasn't yelling at you."
Liu Yifeng also walked out and blocked Wu Qian's path. "I'm truly sorry for staining your clothes. Here, take this thousand yuan to buy a new one. Don't let this affect your relationship."
Saying this, he took out a thousand yuan in cash from his pocket and handed it to Wu Qian.
Wu Qian hadn't expected Liu Yifeng to actually pay a thousand yuan. However, it was free money, so she was about to reach out for it when Lu Fei's voice rang out.
"What are you doing? Are you slapping my face? Take the money back quickly, it's not a big deal. I'll get paid in a few days, and then I'll take Qianqian to buy another one. Besides, you're just starting your business, and you don't have much spare cash. How can you afford to pay this? You're not treating me as a brother at all."
Liu Yifeng helplessly put the money back. He knew that if he insisted on giving it, their brotherhood might be over. However, this incident was bound to affect their relationship, which made him feel somewhat guilty.
In the end, Lu Fei didn't get to see the crayfish and had to rush to appease his girlfriend.
In the evening, Liu Yifeng went to the vegetable patch. Tomorrow was market day, and he planned to pick some more vegetables to sell and see how they fared. He wondered if he would have many returning customers.
A light rain fell in the middle of the night, and the morning air was refreshing. After breakfast at home, Liu Yifeng drove his father and Tongtong to the town. As for the crayfish, he had fully entrusted his third uncle with managing them and hired two villagers to help, paying them a thousand yuan each per month, which saved him a lot of trouble. The money from selling the crayfish was directly transferred to Liu Yifeng's account by Du Ziheng.
Upon arriving in town, the vendors were still numerous. The spot where Liu Yifeng had set up his stall last time was already taken. He had to find another location. To his surprise, as soon as he laid out his vegetables, an old woman walked up and asked about his prices.
Liu Yifeng recognized this old woman. Last time, she had bought a bunch of water spinach and three tomatoes from him. It seemed his vegetables had won her over. Thinking this, he interrupted his father's reply and stated the prices: "Water spinach is five yuan a jin, tomatoes five-fifty, cucumbers five yuan, and beans six yuan."
"So expensive! Last time I came, the most expensive vegetable was only two yuan a jin. You've increased it by three times! Aren't you being too greedy?" the old woman complained.
Liu Chunsheng was also shocked by his son's prices. These were seasonal vegetables, available everywhere. Even if his vegetables were better, a slight increase of one or two yuan would be understandable. But Yifeng had tripled the price. At such a high price, who would be willing to buy them, no matter how good they were?
Liu Yifeng calmly replied, "Auntie, my vegetables are all-natural, with no pesticides sprayed on them. Not only is the taste superior, but their nutritional value is also several times higher than other brands. If you think it's too expensive, you can buy from elsewhere. I'm not forcing you to buy."
The old woman was left speechless by Liu Yifeng's words. Indeed, the prices were clearly marked, and she wasn't being forced to buy. However, her grandson, ever since eating his vegetables, had been craving them. Before that, her grandson hardly touched vegetables, which had worried the family greatly for fear of nutritional deficiencies. The last time she bought vegetables from Liu Yifeng, despite his boasting about his produce, she had bought some on a whim. At the time, her family had chided her for spending money on vegetables when they grew their own, thinking she'd lost her mind. However, when the dish was cooked, the aroma alone made one's mouth water. Her grandson, for the first time, took a bite and couldn't stop. The adults tasted it too and found it very delicious, but they had bought too little. Seeing how much the child enjoyed it, they reluctantly gave him more, savoring only a bite themselves. Later, she thought Liu Yifeng's vegetables had cured her grandson's picky eating habit.