American Farmers: Facing a Cutoff at the Start

"What is this...?"

"Could it have been Lyra who put it there?"

Roy muttered something, a hint of doubt in his eyes, and took the envelope.

The envelope wasn't sealed, and with a slight tilt, several photos slipped into my hand.

Roy turned on his phone's flashlight and looked at the photo in his hand by the light.

In just one glance, the drowsy intoxication in his eyes vanished instantly, and his face and neck flushed red with anger.

……

Meanwhile, Fett was lying in bed replying to messages.

A picture pops up on the screen: a meme of a kitten wrinkling its nose.

The message above is from Lyra: "The piglet's poop smells really bad, almost as bad as the other day Johnny smelled."

Fett's lips twitched, his thumb hovering over the screen as he typed: "Haha, you'd better stay away, lest you get pickled and turn into 'Old Johnny'."

Just after I sent it, Lina's message popped up:

"Have today's accounts been sorted out? Since the IRS has come once, they will definitely come again. They are already watching us, so don't let them find any fault with us."

Now that Fett had the help of the "Basic Tax Avoidance Guide," he felt confident and replied, "Don't worry, the accounts are very clear; they absolutely won't find any fault with them."

After replying to their messages and saying goodnight to each other, Fett put down his phone and fell into a deep sleep.

The next morning, just as dawn was breaking, a layer of white frost had formed on the windowpanes.

A loud "bang" came from the living room as the door slammed shut.

Old Frank was carrying a coffee pot out of the kitchen when he saw the person standing at the door and paused for a moment.

Roy stood there, his face somber, his eyes bloodshot, as if he hadn't slept well.

"Roy?" Old Frank glanced at the clock on the wall. "Didn't we agree that you'd wait for my call before coming over? What time is it?"

Roy didn't reply, nor did he find a place to sit as usual. He simply asked curtly, "Where's Fett? I need to talk to him."

Old Frank frowned, sensing something was off about his old friend's tone: "He's still asleep inside. What happened?"

Before he could finish speaking, the door was pushed open again.

Leila came running in, panting, her hair a little messy, and one of the buttons on her coat was fastened wrong.

She glanced at Roy, who had a stern face, then at the closed bedroom door, her expression somewhat flustered.

Fett was awakened by the noise outside.

He rubbed his sleepy eyes and pushed open the bedroom door, only to see Roy standing in the middle of the living room, his back to the light from the doorway, his face as gloomy as the sky before a storm.

Old Frank stood to one side, wanting to say something but not knowing how to start, looking troubled.

Leila huddled in the corner of the sofa, head down, her fingers nervously twisting the hem of her clothes.

"Uncle Roy? So early?" Fett yawned, not quite awake yet.

Roy ignored his greeting and pulled out a few crumpled photos from his pocket, slapping them onto the coffee table with a "thud".

"Found it at the gate of my farm yesterday!"

"See for yourself."

Fett paused, then walked over and picked up the photo.

The photo was blurry and poorly lit, but that didn't stop him from recognizing the main subject.

In the photo, he and Lina are embracing in front of the car; the atmosphere looks undeniably ambiguous.

?

Who took the picture?

"Fett, I treated you like my own child." Roy's voice was low, but it carried a hint of disappointment and anger. "Tell me, what happened?"

He pointed to Lina's back in the photo: "I know she's that bank clerk, and I know she's helped us a lot. You two have a good relationship."

"But that's no excuse for treating Leila like this!"

Roy took a step forward, his gaze sharp as a knife as he glared at Fett: "You're having an ambiguous relationship with Layla here, and then you're hugging and cuddling with this woman over there."

"If you're not interested in Leila, don't string her along!"

Fett opened his mouth, instinctively wanting to ask where the photo came from, but out of the corner of his eye he noticed that Lyra, who was curled up on the sofa, trembled slightly on the shoulder.

He swallowed back the words that were on the tip of his tongue.

At this point, dwelling on the source of the photo only makes him appear to be avoiding the issue and shirking responsibility.

He took a deep breath, raised his head, and looked directly into Roy's eyes with an open and honest gaze.

"She did hug me," Fett admitted frankly, without any attempt to hide it, his eyes showing no sign of guilt.

"But things aren't what you think, Uncle."

Pointing to the photo, he explained, "She came to pick up her car that day and even helped me and Leila with our plans. It's only right and proper that I see her off."

"As for this hug..."

Fetter paused, then said sincerely, "She's all alone here with no relatives or friends, and she's under a lot of work pressure. She gave me a hug on her own initiative, and I think it was just a friendly gesture of comfort."

"All I want right now is to make money to save the farm; I have no other intentions."

Roy stared at him for several seconds, seemingly trying to determine whether what he said was true or false.

The living room fell silent for a moment, with only the occasional crackling of the flames in the fireplace.

Roy, still with a stern face, was about to say something when Lyra, who had been huddled in the corner of the sofa, suddenly stood up.

She didn't look at Fett, but walked straight to the coffee table and picked up the photos.

"Dad, can't you see?" Leila asked calmly, flicking the edge of the photo with her finger. "This is definitely old Johnny's scheme."

Roy was taken aback and turned to look at his daughter.

Leila threw the photo back on the table and spread it out: "He failed to report us yesterday, so he deliberately put this photo on the door so you would find it."

"He just wants to see our two families argue."

"They want to see us fall out, lose business, and make a fool of ourselves to vent their anger."

"It was definitely him!"

"Even if it's him..." Roy frowned, his anger subsiding somewhat, but he still pointed at the photo: "But..."

"What's wrong with giving me a hug?"

Lyra looked up, her gaze falling on Fett:

"Fett is excellent, that's a fact."

"He was able to protect me from wild boars like that, he could come up with ways to help the family pay off their debts, and he could still make the business so successful."

"It would be strange if a man like that didn't have other women eyeing him."

She tidied her slightly disheveled sideburns, her voice soft but resolute:

"Lina is beautiful, rich, and smart; she's definitely capable."

Lyra looked at Roy, her eyes showing no trace of grievance, but rather a stubborn refusal to admit defeat:

"Fett didn't hide anything and openly admitted it, so he's not wrong."

"Dad, I'm not angry, so please don't be angry either."

"Since someone wants to take it, let's have a fair competition."

"I grew up with Fett, do you think I'm afraid of her?"

She paused, then added, "Besides, Fett never said he liked her!"

"Don't worry about this! The important thing is not to let old Johnny get his way!"