Happy Little Farmer
Chapter 133: Refusing to Admit Death

Chapter 133: Chapter 133: Refusing to Admit Death

Yang Fan executed a sleek drift, parking the car perfectly in front of Old Zhou’s store.

Old Zhou extended his hand to wave away the dust that had been stirred up to his face and shouted loudly, "Fanzi, do you have any public manners at all? Are you parking or trying to give me a mud facial?"

Yang Fan pulled up the handbrake, jumped out of the car, and said with a laugh, "Your storefront is so clean, it’s like Tian Gaofei licked it clean. Where’s this dirt coming from? Speaking of which, weren’t you two supposed to be on a business trip? Don’t tell me your business trip was just holding teacups and sunbathing?"

"Don’t even start with me; we were doing it for your own good," Old Zhou scolded with a smile, "You know already?"

Yang Fan nodded. "You two were acting so weird yesterday; at first, I thought you were scared and planning to run away and hide. But when I asked about it, I ended up uncovering my own issues."

"Scared? Me?" Old Zhou scoffed disdainfully, slapping his chest with a resounding smack, and declared proudly, "I’m all courage. That guy doesn’t stand a chance against me—he’s way too green!"

"I think you’re all gallstones," Zhu Shanshan muttered under her breath. "Take it inside the shop instead of blabbering in the street!"

"Come on, come on, her highness at home has spoken. Let’s go inside," Old Zhou hooked Yang Fan’s shoulder and chuckled as they walked in.

Yang Fan, long accustomed to the couple’s habit of undercutting each other, just smiled and followed them into the shop.

Sitting down at Old Zhou’s rather sophisticated tea table, Yang Fan handed Old Zhou a cigarette and took the initiative to ask, "Heard any news today?"

"You give me some concrete information first, was it really you?" Old Zhou lit the cigarette, asking slyly.

Yang Fan looked perplexed and asked, "What did I do? I just came to get some intel. If things are looking bad, I’m ready to beat it at a moment’s notice. You, Old Zhou, are all guts, I’m all cowardice—I can’t afford to clash with people like that."

Old Zhou frowned and pursed his lips, "Hiding things from me? It’s not like I’d go blabbing it to others!"

"What am I hiding? I don’t even know what you’re talking about," said Yang Fan.

He hadn’t planned on telling anyone what had happened.

He had beaten someone up so badly yesterday that it was almost the end of Tian Gaofei.

Given the situation, if he wasn’t careful about what he said, it would only be a matter of time before trouble found him.

Although it’s said that no secret can be kept forever, as long as he could keep this one close to his chest, the walls would surely let less slip through.

Old Zhou watched Yang Fan intently for a moment, then suddenly burst into laughter, "Keep pretending, kid. I know it was definitely you. Who else could it be? Even though I intended to cover for you, I hadn’t thought of this."

Zhu Shanshan suddenly slapped her cell phone down hard on the tea table, barking angrily, "Zhou Weixiong, are you speechless now? Fanzi already said it has nothing to do with him. What’s the point in trying to pin it on him relentlessly?"

Old Zhou saw Zhu Shanshan was truly angry this time, and quite intensely so. His expression instantly froze, and he stammered, "I wasn’t trying to force blame, just... it’s just us here talking, right? It’s pretty obvious, isn’t it? I’m not wrong, am I?"

"Why couldn’t it have been one of Tian Gaofei’s other enemies? With that bastard’s track record, do you think he’d have a shortage of people holding a grudge? Why must it necessarily have been Fanzi’s doing?" Zhu Shanshan demanded angrily. "If you don’t have anything useful to say, then keep your mouth shut tight."

Looking sheepish, Old Zhou lowered his head, "Yes, I’m just talking nonsense, nothing happened."

Yang Fan could sense the tension in the air and said with a smile, "You two, don’t get all worked up over me. The moment you two start fighting, I feel like I’m sitting on pins and needles. This matter isn’t really related to me. I came here today to sniff out some information. I want to find out what Tian Gaofei is preparing to do to me and see if there’s any way to deal with it. If there’s no way out, I might really consider skipping town."

That was the response Yang Fan had prepared in advance, ready for anyone who asked.

Clearly, Old Zhou and his wife had their suspicions that he was behind it all.

But even if they suspected it, Yang Fan would never admit it, even if it killed him.

"The news is, that bastard Tian Gaofei got himself beaten into the hospital. Heard his injuries are pretty bad, he’ll probably have to lie in the hospital for a month or so, and even after getting out, he’ll need to use a wheelchair for a while," Old Zhou said indifferently.

Scolded by Zhu Shanshan with just a few words, it seemed he even lost his interest in talking.

"Really?" Yang Fan asked, pretending to be incredibly surprised.

Old Zhou lifted an eyelid, gave Yang Fan a somewhat speechless look, took a hard drag on his cigarette, and emphasized heavily, "Of course, it’s the truth. Now, you don’t have much to worry about, just keep making your deliveries. If there’s any news, I’ll inform you in time."

"That really takes a load off my mind. I was so scared last night that I couldn’t sleep a wink," Yang Fan shook his head and sighed, "Fear shortens the spirit, you know. Someone like me, without any power or influence, getting into a scrap with that kind of person, is like asking for trouble."

Old Zhou silently looked up, the corners of his mouth twitching involuntarily.

Zhu Shanshan was holding back a smile at the corners of her mouth but also seemed somewhat speechless.

"Hearing you say that, my pressure has been reduced by more than half, and I’ve got my mojo back. I feel like I could make three or four trips today. Hurry and check the goods, I need to go to the village to spread some joy and lift my spirits!" Yang Fan urged.

Old Zhou looked at Yang Fan with an expression of speechlessness and finally couldn’t help but say, "Enough is enough, okay?"

"Indeed, I shouldn’t be too relaxed; I still need to be careful," Yang Fan said earnestly.

Old Zhou immediately lost any desire to deal with Yang Fan. He suddenly stood up and said loudly, "I’m going to weigh the goods, damned rascal!"

Yang laughed it off and didn’t pay much attention.

It seemed that not getting a definite answer and getting scolded by Zhu Shanshan had left Old Zhou quite frustrated.

"Fanzi, do you still have this stuff today?" Old Zhou suddenly shouted from the door, holding up a small cloth bag.

Yang Fan walked over and saw that it was donkey hide gelatin. He nodded and said, "It’s still from that old man. Where else in the village can you find someone selling donkey hide gelatin? I haven’t heard of it. Lately, the old man seems to be in good spirits and boiled a few more pots. This little thing is my trump card for today; you better handle it with care."

Old Zhou tied up the cloth bag and handed it to Yang, whispering, "Keep this for yourself. You remember my shop, right? Take it there to sell to those ladies. If you increase the price by ten percent or so, I won’t take a cut."

Worried that Zhu Shanshan would hear, Old Zhou kept his voice so low that only the two of them could barely hear each other.

"Why so generous today?" Yang Fan joked.

"To hell with it, when have I ever been bad to you? I just happen to know they want it, so I’m skipping my cut and letting you earn it. If you’re not happy about it, give it to me. With genuine goods like these, am I afraid I can’t sell them?" Old Zhou said, exasperated.