Era: Starting with the struggle to refuse being taken advantage of

Chapter 49 Moral Kidnapping
Shameless, absolutely shameless.

After hearing the whole story, Wang Chengpeng realized that he had underestimated his uncle's shamelessness. His uncle had actually taken advantage of the fact that no adults were home to steal his bicycle.

If it weren't for Wang Meiyan's quick thinking, Wang Jinshan would probably have already tricked her into giving up the bicycle.

They traveled all this way to deceive the younger generation in their family; they have absolutely no shame!
Thinking this, Wang Chengpeng rode his bike even faster.

If this old man tries to act tough again this time, he shouldn't blame me for being ruthless.

Having a bicycle made things fast; the two of them rode to their yard in no time.

The moment Wang Jinshan saw Wang Chengpeng, he rushed over and loudly accused him:

"Cheng Peng, tell me what's wrong with your Mei Yan? She's so young, yet she's already learned to deceive adults."

"They have absolutely no manners. They just left me here and ran out. They have no respect for elders at all."

What a blatant case of the guilty party accusing others first! Wang Chengpeng was almost amused by Wang Jinshan's words.

Instead of answering Wang Jinshan's question, which was problematic no matter how you answered it, Wang Chengpeng directly changed the subject:
"I wonder what brings Uncle to our house today?"

"As for Meiyan's matter, I believe Uncle wouldn't hold a grudge against a child like that."

Upon hearing Wang Chengpeng inquire about the purpose of his trip, Wang Jinshan subconsciously rubbed his hands together and said:

“Good nephew, your uncle has come here today to talk to you about something.”

"We're all family here, so I'll just get straight to the point."

"Didn't your house get burgled recently?"

“I figured it wouldn’t be safe to leave the bicycle at your house. And I’m your uncle, so how could I just watch your bicycle get stolen?”

"How about this, I'll go through the trouble of taking the bicycle back and keeping it safe."

"As for storage fees, don't be shy. We're all family, why would I charge you?"

"Good heavens!" Wang Chengpeng exclaimed. "Wang Jinshan's skin is as thick as a city wall. He can say such shameless things."

It's likely that the other party had been eyeing my bicycle for a long time, and just happened to find an excuse because of this theft, so they couldn't wait to come knocking on my door.

Unfortunately, Wang Jinshan seemed to have some misunderstanding about Wang Chengpeng, and thought that Wang Chengpeng was just being used as a tool by Wang Tieshan at the family meeting.

Otherwise, he would never have said such shameless things to Wang Chengpeng.

Wang Chengpeng sighed slightly, thinking to himself that it was truly a case of sitting at home and having an idiot fall from the sky.

Even though they've already separated from each other, they still can't find peace. I really don't know what kind of outrageous trouble they could have caused if they hadn't separated.

Thinking this, Wang Chengpeng raised his voice eight octaves and said in an exaggerated manner:

"What? Uncle, you're saying our Wangjia Village has bad security?"

"This is no small matter. I need to report it to the security chief and the militia captain immediately, because it will damage the reputation of our entire Wangjia Village!"

Wang Jinshan stared wide-eyed at Wang Chengpeng in disbelief. He felt his brain throbbing and couldn't keep up with Wang Chengpeng's train of thought.

Didn't I just say I was going to keep the other person's bicycle safe? When did I ever say that the security in Wangjia Village was bad?

Moreover, Wang Chengpeng's immediate request to see the security chief and the militia captain startled Wang Jinshan.

To tarnish the reputation of the entire village? Wang Jinshan couldn't bear such a heavy burden, and immediately questioned loudly:
"Nephew, what do you mean by that? When did I ever say such a thing?"

"Everyone in the surrounding area knows that our Wangjia Village has the best security. You can leave your door unlocked at night and nothing will happen." Hearing Wang Jinshan's words, Wang Chengpeng pretended to be confused and said, "That's exactly what you just said, Uncle."

"If it weren't for the poor security in Wangjia Village, where you can't say that you won't get into trouble even if you leave the door unlocked at night, why would Uncle have offered to help keep the bicycle safe?"

“Since Wangjia Village is very safe, there will be no problem with my bicycle being parked at my house, and I don’t need my uncle’s kind help to manage it.”

Whether intentionally or unintentionally, Wang Jinshan felt that Wang Chengpeng seemed to emphasize the words "my" and "good intentions," as if he were hinting at something.

All he knows now is that the quick-witted Wang Chengpeng has led him into a trap with just a few words, leaving him unsure whether to respond or not.

He confirmed that Wangjia Village was unsafe and that Wang Chengpeng would report him to the village at any moment.

Since he had no reason to keep Wang Chengpeng's bicycle safe, he could only slink away.

Moreover, with Wang Chengpeng's loudspeaker assistance, a larger crowd of onlookers had gathered around.

It's fine to be tough on your own when you're just being yourself, but if others find out, you'll lose all face.

Caught in a bind, Wang Jinshan could only compromise, saying, "It was my fault for slipping up. Wangjia Village has the best security; there's no need for me to help manage the bicycles."

"Cheng Peng, actually I came here to borrow your bicycle. You wouldn't refuse such a simple request, would you?"

If force doesn't work, try a softer approach. Wang Jinshan believed he had a thousand schemes up his sleeve and would eventually manage to trick his way into getting the bicycle.

Once Wang Chengpeng borrows the bicycle, it's no longer up to him to decide when to return it.

When Wang Jinshan asked to borrow his bicycle, Wang Chengpeng recalled a time when he had asked the same person to borrow his bicycle.

Even though no one uses the bicycle at home, he insisted that he needed it immediately and refused to lend it to me.

Not only him, but even his parents could hardly borrow his uncle's bicycle.

In this situation, how could Wang Chengpeng possibly lend his own bicycle? He immediately smiled and said:
"Uncle, I really want to lend you my bicycle, but things just don't go as planned. I need to use it too."

"Why don't you try borrowing from someone else? There's bound to be someone who doesn't need a bicycle right now and is as kind as Uncle to lend it to."

Wang Chengpeng's first sentence was a complete repetition of what Wang Jinshan had said when he rejected him, except that Wang Jinshan had clearly forgotten his past behavior and said:

"Cheng Peng, is there something you can't put aside for now?"

"I'll only borrow this bicycle for a while, and I'll return it to you as soon as I'm done."

"You can't expect your uncle to walk around doing errands, can you?"

Wang Jinshan, being the elder, could say certain things that Wang Chengpeng couldn't, and directly resorted to moral blackmail against Wang Chengpeng.

Some onlookers even quietly advised Wang Chengpeng to lend the bicycle to Wang Jinshan first.

After all, Wang Jinshan is Wang Chengpeng's uncle. If Wang Chengpeng does something too outrageous, he will immediately be labeled as unfilial.

Seeing the situation tilting entirely in his favor, Wang Jinshan couldn't hide his smugness.

Trying to fight me? Young man, you're still too green.

However, just when everyone was watching and thought Wang Chengpeng would lend the bicycle to Wang Jinshan, Wang Chengpeng casually said:
"If I remember correctly, Uncle, you seem to have your own bicycle."

"You're so fixated on my bicycle, it's hard not to suspect you have some ulterior motive."

(End of this chapter)