Chapter 2: A Life of Poverty

  Under the gaze of everyone, Zhang Yi gathered his spirits, slowly lifted his head, and scanned Li Xiaoqi's body with his eyes before struggling to prop himself up on his arms and crawl back up from the ground.

  "Thank you, I'm fine."

  Li Xiao Zhi waved his hand and sneered, "Don't mention whether there's anything or not. Qin Da Biao, you injured my little brother, how are you going to settle this account? Are you planning to kneel down and apologize, or just pay some compensation to make up for it?"

  Qin Dabiao can now be certain that Li Xiaozhi absolutely does not know Zhang Yi, and at this time he jumped out, obviously just to pick a fight.

  He is afraid of Li Xiaozhi.

  It's not just Li Xiaoqi's identity background. Even if both families are in the electric vehicle business, their family's business scale is much worse than Li's.

  He was afraid of Li Xiaoqi mainly because Li Xiaoqi was ruthless, arrogant and cold-blooded. After all, who would be so crazy as to risk his life in a fight?

  Thinking of his father's plan, Qin Dabiao secretly sneered in his heart and forcibly suppressed a mouthful of bad breath, asking in a low voice: "How much money?"

  Li Xiaoqi rolled his eyes and said in a bored tone, "Damn it, I thought you'd last a bit longer! Who would have thought you'd cave so easily. Alright, alright, 20,000 yuan, get lost."

  His demeanor was arrogant and overbearing, with an air of invincibility, his gaze at Qin Dabiao was also tilted.

  Qin Dabiao turned his head and said: "Go get 200,000 yuan from the car and give it to him."

  "I'm saying two hundred thousand for five people, ten million yuan, not a single cent less."

  "You..."

  Qin Dabiao's face turned angry, and his fists clenched in an instant.

  Li Xiaoqi smiled slyly: "Not satisfied? Want to practice?"

  Qin Dabiao's heart skipped a beat, and he shouted at his younger brother beside him: "Go get the money."

  The little brother beside him also looked at Li Xiaoqi with reverence and hastily nodded before rushing towards the parking lot.

  A total of 100,000 yuan in cash was handed over to Zhang Yi. After that, Qin Dabiao and his four companions seemed not to want to stay here for a moment, and quickly left.

  "Here's the money, it's yours."

  Zhang Yi handed over the one million cash in his hands to Li Xiao Zhi, with a flash of gratitude at the bottom of his eyes.

  Li Xiaoqi rolled his eyes and turned around to walk away: "This money is for your medical expenses."

  Zhang Yi's face changed, and he quickly pulled out two bundles of 100-yuan bills, totaling 20,000 yuan. He swiftly stuffed them into Chen Feng's hands, then rushed forward to block Li Xiaoqi, saying in a deep voice: "My dad taught me from childhood that a gentleman loves money, but takes it in a proper way. The money that belongs to me must be earned by my own abilities; the money that doesn't belong to me, I will never take."

  He needs money, especially recently, his girlfriend's family asked for 80,000 yuan in betrothal gifts, which almost made him breathless.

  What a lot of money!

  He can't have it!

  Li Xiaoji's eyes flashed with a strange color, he looked at the 100-yuan bill that Zhang Yi pushed in front of him, then turned his head to look at Chen Feng who was holding two stacks of money, looking somewhat at a loss. A smile appeared on Li Xiaoji's handsome face, and he patted Zhang Yi's shoulder with his hand, saying "Take the money and leave" as they brushed past each other.

  A young man following Li Xiao Zhi gave Zhang Yi a thumbs up, then took the 80,000 yuan and smiled: "Brother, not bad."

  After finishing speaking, he turned around and chased after Li Xiao Zhi.

  A storm ended in a way that no one had expected.

  Zhang Yi's gaze returned from the backs of Li Xiao Zhi and his two companions, wiped away the fresh blood on his forehead, turned around and walked to the front of Lee Hong Chen, the boss of the car dealership, and said in a low voice: "I resign, pay me two months' salary."

  Li Hongchen's lips moved a few times, and he said bitterly: "Alright alright, I'll settle the bill for you right away."

  At this moment, he has already seen through that Zhang Yi and Li Xiao Zhi are not sworn brothers at all, but he still chose to compromise on the principle of being careful for a thousand years.

  "I'm quitting too."

  Chen Feng took big strides forward and said with a firm face.

  Afternoon hours.

  The patter of the rain, enveloping the entire world, a gentle breeze stirs, and the willow trees sway with their slender waist-like branches in a vibrant green hue.

  In the dilapidated farmhouse, Zhang Yi stood upright, his hair tips wet from the rain and mist, while two lines of clear tears slid down his quite handsome face.

  In his dim and tearful eyes, there was a middle-aged man who looked slightly older, hunchbacked, with a face full of sorrow.

  "Son, your father is useless. All these years, we haven't saved much at home. Xia Qiu's family wants 80,000 yuan as a betrothal gift, but our family really can't afford it. We've borrowed from all our relatives and now, adding up our savings, we only have 36,430 yuan."

  Zhang Yi's white teeth bit her lower lip, and tears finally fell like broken pearls, rolling down in large drops. Her straight body also slowly knelt down in the rain.

  "Dad, I'm not getting married."

  Zhang Pinchao's body trembled, and tears welled up in his eyes.

  *sigh*...

  A deep and long sigh, as if it had expressed all his helplessness and heartache.

  A wall separated the neighboring small courtyard, where Situ Wenyan held a embroidered umbrella, her slender figure standing in front of the wall, her fragrant shoulders slightly trembling, and her beautiful eyes filled with dull expression.

  The voice from next door was heard clearly by her.

  Although invisible, she can imagine in her mind that the father and son who are almost suffocated by life in the drizzle will be what kind of scene.

  "Come in."

  A faint sound, as if it was there but also wasn't, came from the house and into Situ Wenyan's ears.

  When the embroidered umbrella was lightly lifted, on Si Tu Wenyan's stunning face that could topple cities and states, a sorrowful expression was retracted, only then did she take heavy steps, striding into the room.

  In the dimly lit house, Mo Wenhua's old body sat cross-legged on a straw mat, his bright eyes shining down at Situ Wenyan:

  "You've been here for two whole months now? It's time for you to leave. Pack your things and go!"

  Situ Wen's delicate body trembled, and a complex expression flowed out of her beautiful eyes. She said: "Teacher Mo, I haven't learned much following you yet. If I leave now... my master will say that I'm not serious."

  Mo Wenfeng said calmly: "To learn from me, you need a calm state of mind. Your heart is in turmoil and it's no longer suitable for you to stay. I'll talk to your master about this."

  "But..." said Situ Wenyan hastily.

  Mo Wenfeng slowly closed his eyes and said, "Go pack your things!"

  Situ Wen's lips moved a few times, but in the end she swallowed back what she wanted to say.

  She admitted that her heart was really messy, and the source of this messiness was a young man in the neighboring courtyard.

  Two months ago, she brought her master's letter of recommendation from the capital to this rural area in Fengcheng County, Peng City, Subei Province, and followed the reclusive Chinese medicine master Mo Wenfeng to learn the way of nourishing life.

  Two months, she didn't learn anything from Mo Wenfeng, but instead learned a lot of things from that diligent and studious young man next door, and her heart also slowly imprinted his shadow in the process.

  She likes to see his sunny and radiant smile, likes to see his serious and focused face, likes him...

  Next door courtyard.

  With a despondent face, Zhang Pinchao wanted to say something, but looking at his son kneeling in the drizzle, with tears streaming down his face, his heart felt as if it had been cut by a knife, and his complexion turned pale.

  Bang...

  The old courtyard gate was kicked open with one foot, and a fat woman with a pearl necklace around her neck and thick makeup on her face walked in from the outside, carrying an embroidered umbrella. Behind her, a girl of about twenty years old, with a cold expression, followed closely.

  "What did I just hear? Not marrying? Can't afford to marry? With your kind of trash, in the future when my daughter marries into your family, she'll only suffer along with you. Hmph... The old man is useless, and his son won't amount to anything either." The fat woman raised her chin slightly, with an air of superiority, looking at Zhang Pinchao and Zhang Yi's father-son duo with a tilted gaze.

  Zhang Pinchao's frail body swayed a few times, and if it weren't for the withered big hand holding onto the door frame, he might have fallen to the ground. Intense grief and indignation filled his chest, and the color in his eyes also turned into dull gray.

  Zhang Yi suddenly got up from the ground, his eyes filled with tears instantly turned red, his fists clenched, glaring at the fat woman and shouting loudly: "You can humiliate me, but you can't insult my dad!"

  The obese woman rolled her eyes and sneered, "Oh, I didn't expect you to be so useless, yet you still know how to defend your equally useless father! What's wrong with humiliating you? I'm telling the truth, you two are a pair of good-for-nothings, can't even come up with 80,000 yuan for the betrothal gift. I don't know how much shamelessness costs per kilogram."

  "Shut up."

  Zhang Yi was like a lion that had been enraged, staring fiercely at the fat woman and roaring loudly.

  In his heart, his father was not very capable, but he was the closest and most loving relative in this life.

  He is kind, he is honest, he is brave.

  He would sacrifice everything for himself.

  He wouldn't let anyone humiliate his own father, even if it was the mother of this girl he deeply loved.

  The fat woman was furious, pointing at Zhang Yi and shouting: "What did you say? You little bastard, what are you talking about? Dare to tell me to shut up? Who do you think you are? I'll scold this useless old man, how dare you stop me? Come on, hit me if you have the guts!"

  The girl with a delicate appearance behind her also showed a few points of anger, walked quickly to Zhang Yi's face and shouted loudly: "Zhang Yi, what attitude is this? How dare you speak to my mother like that?"

  Zhang Yi's body shook violently, his angry fire burning fiercely in his chest. His bright red eyes slowly moved to the face of the beautiful girl, and his voice was filled with a few trembles, a few doubts, as he loudly asked: "Wang Xiaoqiu, is it your mother who humiliated my father? Didn't you hear?"

  "Is what my mom said wrong?"

  As she spoke, she threw a few pieces of cheap jewelry onto the ground.

  "This is what you bought for me before, I'll return it all to you."

  Zhang Yi looked at the jewelry on the ground, covered in mud, his body trembling violently. He had no money, and these pieces of jewelry were bought by him with the money he saved from eating plain food and being frugal for her, but now...

  Looking up at Wang Xiaoqiu, Zhang Yi's expression suddenly changed to shock. It was only now that he discovered Wang Xiaoqiu was wearing a very beautiful long dress, with a white gold necklace hanging from her neck and a crystal bracelet on her wrist, which looked extremely dazzling.

  Zhang Yi's face suddenly lost all its color, and his pale complexion took on a few more shades of sorrow. As someone who was familiar with Wang Xiaoqiu's family situation, he immediately understood the reason.

  "King Xiaoqiu, did I misjudge you? The vows we made when we were together, were they all nonsense? The other day, you said you didn't care about material things and would follow me no matter how poor or difficult life was, were those lies?"

  Wang Xiaoqiu's eyes dodged slightly, facing Zhang Yi's angry questioning voice, she was also tongue-tied and couldn't speak for a while.

  She asked herself in her heart, she loved Zhang Yi.

  For this boy who used to take care of himself meticulously, she felt reluctant and unwilling to face such a situation.

  But!

  Since she graduated from vocational school, she has had enough of the embarrassing life of struggling to make ends meet for work, living expenses, beautiful clothes and jewelry, and delicious food.

  She doesn't want to be poor anymore.

  There's an old saying: Men fear entering the wrong profession, women fear marrying the wrong man.

  She admits that Zhang Yi is good to her and she also admits that she has feelings for Zhang Yi.

  However!

  Zhang Yi cannot provide her with a life of wealth and luxury free from worries about food and clothing.

  The 80,000 yuan betrothal gift was proposed by her mother, and she also agreed to it. She wanted a rich life, so under the circumstances that Zhang Yi's family could not afford the 80,000 yuan betrothal gift, she planned to use this method to break up with Zhang Yi and make him give up on her.

  The obese woman looked at her daughter's appearance, and the anger in her eyes became more intense. She stretched out her hand to push Wang Xiaoqiu away, turned around, and viciously shouted at Zhang Yi: "What you said are all things of the past. My daughter likes you because you look handsome, but looking handsome can't fill your stomach. I've asked someone to introduce my daughter to a man from a wealthy and influential family in Jingnan City. Compared to your family, yours is simply trash."

  Zhang Yi's eyes turned red with rage as he shouted: "Get out, get out of my house!"

  The stout woman sneered: "Ashamed into anger? Haha...... What I said is all true. Take a good look at my daughter, dressed in gold and silver, how beautiful she looks! If she followed you, she would never be able to wear such finery for the rest of her life. Humph...... They've already met, and the other party is very satisfied with my daughter, so from now on, don't bother my daughter again."

  Wang Xiaoqiu, trying to cut ties with Zhang Yi, endured the heartache and said loudly: "Zhang Yi, did you hear what my mom said? From now on, you go your own way, I'll go mine. We won't interfere with each other's lives, let's just pretend we never knew each other before."

  Zhang Yi angrily shouted: "Have you said enough? Get out of here!"

  Wang Xiaoqiu's breath caught, although she thought that using this method to draw a clear line with Zhang Yi was her own fault, but he actually had such an attitude, which made her quite angry in her heart, and with a few points of anger, she shouted: "What are you yelling about? You only know how to yell at women, I think you're born to be a coward, just like your dad..."

  "Bang..."

  A crisp slap rang out, Zhang Yi endured the heart-wrenching pain and roared loudly: "You dare to humiliate my dad again, I'll tear your mouth apart."

  The obese woman's face changed greatly, the umbrella in her hand was quickly closed, and she pounced on Zhang Yi with a loud curse: "You damned little rascal, how dare you hit my daughter? I'll beat you to death, I'll beat this useless trash to death..."

  A heavy fist, a very heavy umbrella, at the moment when the fat woman was tearing Zhang Yi's long hair, she was hitting him hard.

  "Let go of my son!"

  Zhang Pinchao rushed forward with a swift step, using force to push open the fat woman, propping up his arms and blocking Zhang Yi behind him. Those eyes burning with anger glared fiercely at the fat woman.

  The obese woman beat Zhang Yi a few times, venting some of the evil air in her heart. Looking at Zhang Pinchao's somewhat ferocious face, she secretly trembled with fear, and a hint of dread crept onto her face.

  With a hint of resentment, she said angrily:

  "Hmph... dare to bully my daughter, I'll make sure you guys pay for it. Daughter, let's go, marrying a useless person like him would be your downfall. I'm telling you, with his cowardly attitude, no woman will want to marry him in the future, he's doomed to be single forever."

  In the misty rain, the beautiful and breathtaking Sutu Wenyan appeared at the gate of the courtyard with a gift in her hand, her clear and cold voice ringing out:

  "Who says no woman is willing to marry him? Who says Zhang Yi will be a bachelor for the rest of his life? If he's willing, I'm willing to marry him!"

  *

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