Chapter Four: Li Baotian, You Just Wait

After saying this, Li Baotian stood there with a look on his face, his eyes constantly darting toward Lou Yanru.

"Weidong, what are you making a scene for? How can you gamble with something as important as grain? Apologize to Director Li immediately."

Wang Jianguo knew exactly what kind of person Li Baotian was. That man was a total piece of trash—the kind who would kick down a widow’s door or desecrate a family’s ancestral grave. Liu Weidong was blinded by anger and saying whatever came to his mind, which was no different from jumping headfirst into a pit.

"Secretary Wang, don't try to mediate. I am seeking justice for all the commune members of the Second Team. Either I drag Liu Weidong and Lou Yanru to the commune office, or he produces the grain. No amount of pleading will change that."

Wang Jianguo widened his eyes, about to retort, but Liu Weidong stopped him.

"Don't worry, Secretary Wang. Since I've said it, I'll see it through even if I have to crawl on my hands and knees. But the grain won't come for free; I have one more condition."

Li Baotian let out a smug chuckle. "Asking for money or grain coupons, are you? If the team had any, would we still be starving?"

Liu Weidong couldn't even be bothered to waste words with Li Baotian. He looked at Wang Jianguo and said, "Uncle Jianguo, when I was coming back, I saw that the plot of land below Daqingshan had been washed out by a mudslide."

Wang Jianguo frowned. "That’s a waterlogged piece of wasteland. Nothing grows there. How do you have the heart to care about land at a time like this?"

"Uncle Jianguo, the commune central school has experimental fields, right? I want to request that this waterlogged land be allocated to the Qingshan Primary School. I’ll lead the teachers and students in farming it, and from then on, I’ll cover all the teachers' expenses and the students' lunches."

"Hahaha..."

Before Wang Jianguo could even speak, Li Baotian burst into loud laughter.

"Secretary Wang doesn't need to agree; I can promise you that on behalf of the village. If you bring the grain back, everything is negotiable. But if you can't..."

Liu Weidong spoke with ironclad certainty: "If I don't bring back ten thousand jin of corn within three days, I’ll go to the commune and sit in a jail cell myself."

A buzz went through the surrounding commune members; they began whispering to one another.

Seeing Liu Weidong move to leave with his cart, Li Baotian grew anxious. "Secretary Wang, he’s trying to run! The ginseng is still in his wife’s pocket; he just wants to go and sell it on the sly!"

Liu Weidong moved to kick Li Baotian, but Wang Jianguo shouted him down.

"Weidong, stop this nonsense! Leave the ginseng with me. I’ll go ask the commune leaders how to handle this. Don't be a hero about the grain."

Li Baotian was getting desperate. "That won't do! Liu Weidong bragged in front of everyone; he can't just get away with it! This is a classic case of speculation and profiteering. I’m going to the commune right now to find the militia and have him arrested."

As Li Baotian turned to leave, Liu Lao-nian was terrified and at a loss for what to do, and Wang Jianguo stood there frowning, unsure how to handle the situation.

Liu Weidong spat on the ground. "Li Baotian, go ahead and report me wherever the hell you want. I’m not handing over the ginseng. Do what you like."

But no one expected that, at this moment, Lou Yanru would suddenly take off her medicine basket.

"Uncle Jianguo, I’ll give you the ginseng. If Weidong doesn't sell it, does that mean it’s no longer considered speculation? I believe Weidong can get the grain. I’ll take on this bet for him."

Li Baotian, who had been keeping his distance, hadn't expected Lou Yanru to do this and came back with his eyes wide open. "Secretary Wang, there’s definitely something fishy going on here. I suspect Lou Yanru is still hiding something good on her person. I need to search her."

As he spoke, he stepped closer to Lou Yanru.

A flash of cold light—Liu Weidong’s hatchet struck the ground less than half a foot from Li Baotian’s "dog paws." Li Baotian let out a shriek and scrambled away, clutching his head.

Liu Weidong raised the hatchet, ready to chase him, but Wang Jianguo grabbed his arm.

"Weidong, keep it down! Everyone saw clearly: the ginseng is with me. Since Lou Yanru voluntarily handed it over, it no longer has anything to do with speculation. That should stop people from making a fuss about it. Li Baotian, don't keep harping on this. Since the ginseng is turned in, we’ll wait for the commune leaders' decision regarding the grain."

Li Baotian had been convinced Lou Yanru was hiding something, and although he was reluctant to let it go, seeing the murderous look on Liu Weidong’s face, he dared not approach again.

"Secretary Wang, these are two separate matters. Liu Weidong and his wife made a promise in plain sight; how can they back out? Whether they handed over the ginseng or not, they still stole collective property. If he doesn't bring back the grain, I’m reporting him regardless."

Wang Jianguo was so angry he felt like cursing.

Liu Weidong pointed his hatchet at Li Baotian. "Listen, Li Baotian, you bastard, you’re the type who won’t shed a tear until you see your own coffin. Just wait for me to bring back that grain, and then you’ll see how I deal with you."

Seeing Liu Weidong take the bait, the onlookers sighed in frustration. Liu Weidong was truly reckless; he might even lose his home just to win an argument.

Seeing his goal achieved, Li Baotian left with his people, slinking away in defeat.

"Wife, I’ve wronged you." Liu Weidong finally found a moment to comfort her.

"What wrong? Forget about jail; I’d follow you even if you were to be executed. You were a real man today, husband..."

Lou Yanru reached out to brush the stray grass from Liu Weidong’s hair, her gaze filled with such tenderness that it made Liu Weidong’s heart melt.

"Uncle Jianguo, you all keep talking; I’m going to go boil the medicine for the folks..."

Once Lou Yanru left, Wang Jianguo pulled Liu Weidong aside with a grim face.

"You really are a fool. Li Baotian is deliberately setting you up. If you can't bring back the grain, how will you get out of this? And what do you want that land for? Do you really want to plant castor beans? What are those even for? Will the grain depot take them?"

Liu Weidong couldn't help but laugh.

"Uncle Jianguo, don't you worry your head over it. Just keep that ginseng safe and don't let Li Baotian swipe it. Even if I weren't betting with him, I’d still find a way to get the grain for your sake."

Wang Jianguo took a deep drag of his cigarette and slapped his thigh.

"Fine. If you can really bring back a cart of corn, the land is yours. If you can't, we’ll sell the ginseng to buy grain. You won't have it in your pocket, so Li Baotian won't be able to pin the charge of speculation on you."

Seeing Wang Jianguo nod, Liu Weidong smiled and held out his hand.

"Uncle Jianguo, Yanru and I going to the city counts as official business. About the travel expenses..."

"Get lost, you brat! I don't have a penny..."

Wang Jianguo emptied all four of his pockets, managing to scrape together one yuan and sixty cents, along with two jin of local grain coupons.

"This is all the production team has left. If you don't bring back that grain, I’m going to stew you alive..."

Wang Jianguo walked away from the school, hands behind his back, grumbling all the way.

A triumphant, mischievous smirk appeared on Liu Weidong's face.

After everyone had finished their medicine, Lou Yanru pulled Liu Weidong into the classroom on the west side and secretively pulled a handkerchief bundle from her pocket. Liu Weidong took it, and his eyes widened as he touched it.

"Holy—! Wife, you really are clever. You had the ginseng with the 'child' root hidden away all along?"

"Keep your voice down!" Lou Yanru glanced out the window. "Did you think I was as foolish as you? I was planning to go find my mother tomorrow and have her help us find a buyer to sell the ginseng. That should be enough for you to buy the grain. I really want to see how Li Baotian ends this."

Liu Weidong was stunned. "So you didn't actually believe I could get the grain? You were planning to trade the ginseng for it?"

"I believe you, I believe you." Lou Yanru smiled and brushed the dirt off Liu Weidong’s clothes. "I believe my husband is an upright, strong man, okay? Go take a walk by the embankment; if you stay here too long, people will start saying you’re slacking off."

As she moved to leave, Liu Weidong grabbed her. "There are so many people on the embankment, they won't miss me. There's no one here, give me a kiss first..."

In his previous life, after his wife died, Liu Weidong had never remarried. Reunited with his late wife after his rebirth, the anticipation and excitement were impossible to suppress. He bit her lip, his large hand slipping inside the collar of her shirt, quickly leaving Lou Yanru breathless and flushed.

"Oh, you’re terrible, it’s broad daylight..."

Lou Yanru pushed him away, face bright red, and ran off in a fluster.

Watching her thin back, Liu Weidong felt a mix of emotions. In his past life, Lou Yanru’s greatest wish had been to go to college, but after they married, she was dragged down by the burdens of their home and eventually became nothing more than a rural housewife.

Since he had been reborn, he was determined to make her college dream come true.

He walked a lap around the embankment, but aside from Wang Jianguo and the commune members on guard, he didn't see Li Baotian anywhere—he had likely gone off to slack somewhere else.

Taking Wang Jianguo’s tobacco pouch to roll a cigarette, Liu Weidong squatted down beside him. "Uncle Jianguo, I have one more thing to ask of you."

Wang Jianguo immediately clutched his pockets and stood up. "What are you after now? My pockets are cleaner than my face—I truly have nothing left."

Liu Weidong quickly pulled him back down. "Uncle Jianguo, I don't want money or coupons. I want to ask you to help Yanru become a formal community-run teacher..."