Carrying a Jurassic on me
Chapter 718 - 357: It’s Hard to Ask for Help_1

Chapter 718: Chapter 357: It’s Hard to Ask for Help_1

The sun wasn’t even up yet, and Chen Liqiang was cycling down a country road not far from Sancha River, sweating bullets. Truth be told, if he had the choice, he would not want to save a few bucks on transport by riding this shabby bicycle. Pedaling this thing around various nearby counties was utterly exhausting! Only he who rides it knows how tiring it could be.

When was the last time he had ridden a bicycle? From his pocket, he took out a handkerchief, wiped the sweat off his face and then his somewhat blurred eyes. That memory was so distant that he barely remembered it. Regardless, he felt it was a long time ago.

Chen Liqiang’s family condition was not bad. From childhood, his life had been smooth sailing; from school to work, especially when he first graduated and got assigned to a pharmaceutical factory, his family bought him a new motorcycle. Actually, his family also had an old motorcycle from his dad’s commute to work. The model was just a bit outdated, and his mom didn’t want her son to ride something so old on his first job, so they decided to purchase a new one.

However, all of these changed after he met that girl.

His family strongly disapproved of his marriage. They thought the girl he knew was from the countryside, her education was not very high, and that she simply was not a good match for their son. Chen Liqiang, who was always obedient to his family, stood his ground this time to defend his love. Consequently, he lost not only his motorcycle but even the pocket money that his mother used to give him frequently. He could only rely on his meager salary for living expenses.

In a huff, he made a decision - one he now slightly regretted - to move out and rent a place near the factory.

If not for unexpected event, his salary might not be enough to prepare for a wedding, but it should have been sufficient for two people’s living expenses. The girl had a small income, and they were able to save some money together.

Besides, he was raised in the city. His parents, one a salaried worker and the other a business person from earlier years, were not stubborn when it came to matters other than "defending love". While holding down his job, he had also planned to make some extra cash on the side.

Originally, everything was moving in the right direction, and he was filled with confidence about the future. Yet, life is unpredictable, and accidents always happen unexpectedly. The two who had privately promised each other a life together were preparing to get married when his girlfriend met with an accident.

The country girl who his parents disdained worked part-time at a local pharmacy in the city. That was her source of income. This time fate was against her - she was hit by a speed-demon on a motorcycle while riding home from work. Not only did she break her leg, but she unfortunately hit her head on a curb when she fell.

It was unfortunate that the person on the motorcycle ran away after the accident. It was fortunate, though, that hospital examination revealed that there were not any serious injuries to the girl’s head. Despite a significant loss of blood, it was just a mild concussion.

However, there was a problem, the girl’s family was in financial straits. She was abandoned when she was a child. Now her adoptive father is a single man, suffering from leprosy and living in dire conditions. Naturally, he couldn’t find a wife. He considered finding a girl a blessing.

But that was not all, there was also a frail old grandmother at home.

Medical expenses, no matter the era, are high expenses compared to ordinary people’s incomes. The girl’s family lived in a dilapidated house of three rooms which, if sold, would not bring any buyers. Besides, even if they sold the house, where could a fifty-something bachelor and an old woman of seventy or eighty live?

When Chen Liqiang turned to his family for help, their offer was to pay for the girl’s medical treatment. However, once she was better, he would have to marry a wife arranged by them. What was even more infuriating was that his parents told family and friends not to lend him any money. The worst part was that his parents knew the families of all of his childhood friends. Thus, they completely blocked his every escape route.

So Xiaochen bit the bullet, "I will earn money myself!"

Previously, earning extra money was a delight. It was for their marriage, to "defend their love", and for their upcoming blissful life. But now, earning money was pure agony for him. The girl lying in the hospital needed money. The phrase "one penny can be the death of a hero" which he had never experienced before has now become a harsh reality for him.

He wiped his sweat again. Glancing at the sun just peeking out in the east, he felt that his life was utterly pitiful. In the past, he never got out of bed during weekends. Now he got up before dawn and rode his bicycle out. Utterly pathetic, it simply can’t get any worse.

However, there was something even worse. In a while, he was going to plead for help, from people he is not familiar with...

Upon reaching the large bridge, he looked behind him to see if there were any cars and quickly moved to the left side of the road. Then he turned into a small path. After a short while, he saw a bamboo grove.

Beside the bamboo grove, a truck was parked. The surrounding melon field was bustling with people picking ripe watermelons, placing them in baskets, and loading them up.

When two young guys carrying baskets walked past him, one of them saw Chen Liqiang who had just arrived and shouted, "Brother, what can I do for you?"

Chen Liqiang quickly got off his bicycle and jogged over, "I am looking for Boss Yan Fei!"

The young man gestured towards the truck and said, "He is busy on the truck, please wait a moment!"

As Chen Liqiang went around the front of the truck, he realized that this loading process was quite imposing. An incredibly strong man, whose arms were as big as Chen’s thighs stood below, and as the surrounding crowd dump their baskets of watermelons, he picked up the watermelons from the basket and tossed them up onto the truck.

If they simply tossed a twenty-pound watermelon straight up, it would definitely smash. Therefore, Boss Yan, who looked younger than himself, was still standing in the truck, catching watermelons one after another and placing them on the truck.

It wasn’t just one person throwing either; people on the other side of the truck were also tossing watermelons, and Boss Yan was impressively catching from both sides.

He’d seen people tossing bricks like this when building houses in the countryside, but not often with watermelons. These huge round watermelons weren’t easy to catch without breaking. He hadn’t seen anyone selling watermelons in the city yet, so these big ones were probably expensive.

Chen Liqiang was internally grumbling, thinking if Boss Yan could make a little fortune selling a truckload of melons today, maybe he’d agree to his unreasonable request?

Boss Yan was stuck; he had so many watermelons, but he wasn’t in the watermelon business regularly, so he didn’t have enough baskets. The only option was to load the truck in this inefficacious way.

Chen wanted to help, so he picked up a melon to try, but his face turned red and he didn’t dare to throw.

The fierce-looking strong man laughed a little: "Just set it down, bro. These things are damn heavy; they’re not easy to toss."

Chen Liqiang’s face turned even redder. Fortunately, he was already hot from biking here, his face was already red, so nobody noticed. He wanted to help pick the ripe ones, seeing that others judged the ripeness by looking at the stalk and tapping it before loading, but he didn’t have doing this, so he didn’t dare to.

He was standing while others were working, and he still wanted to ask others for help later. The waiting time was indeed unbearable.

Luckily, it didn’t take long to fill the truck with watermelons.

After the truck was loaded, Boss Yan didn’t need to give instructions. Apart from the driver, Old Ou, some men started the truck and drove away. Boss Yan then had the time to ask the tormented Chen Liqiang, "You’re here already? Sold all the earthworms?"

When Chen nodded, Yan Fei quickly walked towards the hut, "I’ll get your worms first. I have to head to the city shortly, and then to the Provincial City for some business. You can settle the account with Heizi later, whatever needs you have, you can tell him. He can take the decision."

All the words Chen had prepared were stuck in his chest as he watched Yan Fei walk into the house, retrieved two bags, put them at the entrance, and instructed a young man named Heizi before riding off on his motorbike.

Old Ou was leading a group to the city to sell watermelons. They didn’t know anybody there, so Yan Fei had to go. His plan was to send part of the watermelons to the wet market of the Xiang brothers, if there were leftovers, they would drive around the city and see if anyone wanted to buy wholesale. If not, they would sell them retail. It was certain they could sell them, but it might take some time.

Besides going to the city, he also had to go to the Provincial City. The Sixth Miss Guo and her party were finally bidding farewell, planning to return by the plane from the Provincial City. Xu Xiaoyan hadn’t been to school for so long that she should report back now. Thus, she was also leaving with them.

Originally, Miss Guo said it was busy at home and suggested Yan Fei shouldn’t escort them, but Yan Fei wasn’t assured. He proposed that they leave first and he would catch up later.

Actually, she had already contacted her dormmates. The recent uproar at the school had settled down. The family who planned to take revenge on her was misfortunate enough to encounter some strange disaster. Although the news wasn’t clear, it was said to be pretty serious. After all, the child hadn’t reappeared at school until now.

Otherwise, Miss Guo wouldn’t have advised Yan Fei not to come with her to school.

Yan Fei left in a hurry, leaving Chen Liqiang dumbfounded. He still had things to say!

Following Yan Fei, Old Gao and the mute rode on another motorcycle, they were returning to the cattle ranch. Heizi shouted, "Get Old Cheng to maintain order here when you go back, I have to return soon too!"

When Old Gao waved at him, Heizi called out to Chen, "You’re the one who sells earthworms, right? Give me the money from last time, and when we get to the cattle ranch, you can weigh these and take them."

Instinctively, Chen didn’t want to deal with people like Heizi. He had always been the good kid that teachers and parents liked while Heizi and the other fun-loving young people who were working hard weren’t his type. Despite their hard work, they still had that hooligan air about them, which, like the pollution in the nearby river, couldn’t be rid of in a day or two.