If Xie Sui were present, he would surely admire the old lady's wisdom; this was encouraging them, his cousins, to collude in business and government!
With that scolding, Xie Dajiang's mind cleared. It was true, Xie Sui was making money. If nothing else, he could definitely borrow money from him and work in his factory. Fifteen yuan a month, wasn't that great?
It was all the fault of his own short-sighted wife, being jealous without looking at who. Wasn't it good that his nephew was successful?
The strange looks in the village now made Xie Dajiang feel ashamed just thinking about it. They surely didn't understand why he was being so hesitant. His nephew was doing well, and he was drawing a line between them. How foolish!
"Mother, you're right, it's my fault. I'll go help now."
Grandma Xie nodded with satisfaction. "You're not completely stupid."
She then glared at Wang Qiuju. "And you?"
"I, I'll go too!"
Was Wang Qiuju going to stay and get beaten by the old lady?
In this era, it was still the mother-in-law who held the power. Wives weren't as pampered as in the past, divorcing at the slightest grievance. Mothers-in-law had to appease their daughters-in-law, otherwise the betrothal gifts would be wasted.
Divorce was a shameful thing. Unless it was absolutely necessary, people would endure it for a lifetime.
So, even though Wang Qiuju was somewhat displeased with her mother-in-law, she never thought of divorce. She only occasionally courted death and got scolded, which had now escalated to a beating.
Xie Sui's home was bustling with activity. Xie Dahe was handing out cigarettes, Zhao Xiue was pouring water and greeting everyone. Children who tried to touch the tractor were chased away.
Who would pay if it was damaged?
"Doudou, Dingding, you two watch our tractor. You can look, but you can't touch!"
Zhao Xiue decisively assigned the two children the task of guarding the tractor.
Lin Wanwan said, "Mom, don't be like that. Touching it once won't break it. It's just a big iron lump. You can't teach children like this; they'll easily become vain and selfish.
Doudou, Dingding, you two maintain order. Touching is fine, just don't bump into anything. They are guests too. You are the little hosts, you should take good care of the guests, understand?"
The two children were confused for a moment, then felt that Lin Wanwan was right. They were all their little buddies who followed them around. If they didn't let them touch it, wouldn't that be too stingy? Who would want to play with them in the future?
"Understood, Mom?"
One of them watched as their friends touched the tractor, while the other arranged them in a line. They did it in a proper manner, which amused the adults greatly.
Zhao Xiue was a little unhappy, but considering that Lin Wanwan controlled the family's finances and they needed her help with accounting for their business, she didn't dare to lash out.
Xie Sui finally had some peace after sending everyone away. He patted the tractor, smiling proudly.
"Xie Sui, isn't this a bit underhanded? We could have just earned the money to buy a tractor. Cheating people is wrong."
Xie Sui finally noticed that Lin Wanwan had been unhappy, her small face all wrinkled like a steamed bun.
"You think I cheated them? That my methods were too dirty?"
"Weren't they?"
Xie Sui sighed and pulled her to sit down. "If it were someone else, and they beat me because of a misunderstanding, it would be over once we clarified. I've been beaten before!"
Lin Wanwan: "..."
Is being beaten something to be proud of?
Xie Sui chuckled. "If you can't beat them, run. We men can bend and stretch, it's not shameful. That thing, let's talk about the Zhao family. He's been tripping us up repeatedly, from snatching our canned food business at the beginning to later trying to get close to me. While I'm handsome, they can't take advantage of me!"
Lin Wanwan looked at him intently, wanting to see how thick his skin was.
"Only my wife can take advantage of me. My heart for my wife has always been pure and steadfast."
Xie Sui took the opportunity to pledge his loyalty, earning a roll of Lin Wanwan's eyes.
"Let's get back to the point. Even if I were magnanimous this time and let the Zhao family go, they would only think I was afraid, not that I was generous. Since they are enemies, we must use all means to defeat them, to the point where they have no ability to harm us.
We've only just started to live a good life. I can't let anyone ruin my good fortune."
Lin Wanwan was persuaded. "What you said makes some sense. I just think it's too much. A tractor costs several thousand..."
A huge sum of money, she was afraid Xie Sui would suffer a loss because of it.
"He bought it for a thousand yuan back then. It's not that much now. He took advantage of public property. If word got out, his family would be in the wrong."
Lin Wanwan felt more at ease. This was like a chivalrous hero, taking ill-gotten gains that should be taken, and in the future, he would use it to help the poor, like a Robin Hood.
"Can you drive it?"
"Let's try. It should be okay."
Xie Sui was eager to try. He had driven countless vehicles, but this was his first time driving a tractor. He found the crank and started shaking it vigorously. His posture wasn't awkward at all, and thankfully, it was quite effective.
Haven't seen a pig run just because you haven't eaten pork?
"Put-put-put..."
A puff of black smoke billowed out, and it started sputtering. The tractor trembled. Xie Sui climbed onto the driver's seat, fiddled with it a few times, and slowly moved out. "It's moving, it's moving! I'm a genius! Driving a tractor is a piece of cake!"
Before he finished speaking, the tractor lurched, and then it stalled.
"Haha... Xie Sui, this incident teaches you a lesson: a person should be humble and low-key."
Xie Sui: Is this what they call the old saying, "Pride comes before a fall"?
He got down to inspect it. "It's out of gas. I'll go to the county town today to buy some fuel and a trailer. Soon, we'll be car owners too."
Although it was just a tractor, it ran on gasoline, not grass. They would take it step by step.
"At this hour, why hasn't Zhang Wenfeng arrived yet?"
It was almost nine o'clock, and Xie Sui finally remembered that Zhang Wenfeng was late.
"I'll go take a look."
Xie Sui arrived at Zhang Wenfeng's house. Just as he was about to enter, he heard voices from inside and stopped.
"What did I tell you? Make plans early. Heaven and earth will destroy those who are not selfish. Old sayings say so. You talk about loyalty with people, but who will care about your life or death? Now that he has a tractor, will he still care about your mule cart?"
"Now it's good, you're at home drinking the northwest wind. Are you going to do that thing or not?"
This was Zhang Wenfeng's wife, Yang Yumei's voice. Xie Sui had met her a few times. She was a plump, young wife, but her eyes were too shrewd, and he didn't like her much.
However, she wasn't his wife, and Xie Sui kept his distance from women now, never provoking them.
Xie Sui didn't continue listening. He had already guessed Yang Yumei's intentions. It was nothing more than that matter of going solo. He had encountered too many such people in his previous life; he was used to it.
"Is Wen Feng at home? Why didn't he come to work today? Is your mule sick or are you sick?"
Xie Sui walked in with a smile, as if he hadn't heard anything.
Yang Yumei looked embarrassed and stood up. "Xie Sui, please sit down. I'll get you some water."
"No need, I'm in a hurry to go to town. I've been waiting for him for a long time. Isn't it inconvenient?"
"No, Brother Xie, I'm sorry. I had diarrhea. I'll leave now."
Zhang Wenfeng hitched up the mule cart and accompanied him to town.