Back to 1984: I built a chicken farm on a barren mountain.

Seeing Qin Xiaofen's pale face, Li Cuie asked:

"Xiaofen, what's wrong with you?" She glanced at Han Laosi, who was busy at work, and asked:

"Han Laosi didn't bully you, did he?"

Qin Xiaofen said shyly:

"No, he didn't bully me. I was just too hungry today."

"You've been starving for too long. Are you running a fever? Why are you so hungry for no reason?"

Seeing Li Cuie's curiosity, Qin Xiaofen finally recounted what had happened that morning. Li Cuie covered her mouth with her hand, coughed a few times, and said:

"It's probably retaliation."

Qin Xiaofen said weakly:

"Why would anyone come here for revenge out of the blue?"

Hearing Qin Xiaofen say this, Li Cuie smiled and said:

"Who do you think will retaliate?"

"Chen Wenfeng!"

"Guess again."

"..."

Seeing that Qin Xiaofen couldn't guess, Li Cuie closed the door and lowered her voice, saying:

"If you ask me who in Chenjiazhuang doesn't hate Han Laosi, I can name a few; but if you ask me who in Chenjiazhuang hates Han Laosi, there are countless people."

Qin Xiaofen knew that Han Laosi had a mediocre reputation, but she never expected it to be this bad.

As the two were talking, Han Laosi pushed the door open and came in, carrying a bowl of white rice porridge with some pickled vegetables in it. The moment he entered, Qin Xiaofen and Li Cuie stopped talking.

Han Laosi placed the bowl of porridge on the table and said:

"Xiaofen, drink some quickly. This is what's left over from lunch, and there are two fried eggs too. It'll be ready in a bit."

Qin Xiaofen was indeed starving. She picked up the bowl of porridge and started drinking it without even using chopsticks.

Li Cuie watched from the side and said indifferently:

"Fourth Brother, you really know how to take care of people."

Han Laosi was a little embarrassed when Li Cuie said something to him. He saw that Li Cuie was as beautiful as ever. In terms of looks, almost every man in Chenjiazhuang, young and old, had been interested in this woman, and Han Laosi was no exception.

Despite her appearance, Han Laosi never liked Li Cuie's temperament. He found her pretentious and mean, just like her mother. He couldn't understand why such a difficult woman was so devoted to Chen Shouxin, that penniless wretch.

He rolled his eyes at Li Cuie and said:

"What is Chen Laosan busy with these days?"

"You say we keep our word? He wasn't in Chenjiazhuang for a while, he was doing some business, and he only came back these past two days."

Han Laosi absolutely refused to believe that Chen Laosan was involved in business, but he didn't want to confront him directly, so he said:

"That's great! I'll ask my third brother to introduce me to some business opportunities later."

Whether Li Cuie failed to grasp the hidden meaning in Han Laosi's words, or whether she deliberately ignored it, Li Cuie simply said:

"Shouxin's been a bit busy these past few days. He'll come looking for you once things settle down. He even mentioned that he hasn't come to visit your soy sauce factory since it opened!"

"He's welcome anytime; I'll have good cigarettes and alcohol ready for him."

After saying that, Han Laosi went outside and got two more fried eggs. He put the fried eggs on a small plate, stacked them together, and they smelled delicious.

The chubby boy outside the door said to Hou Laizi:

"Hey bastard, that Han Laosi is bullying us rotten! He made us fry eggs for that slut, and the smell alone is making my mouth water."

Hou Laizi swallowed hard and said:

"He's really craving it. Han Laosi is usually such a stingy guy, but he's really willing to spend a lot on this woman. The oil he uses to fry two eggs could be used to cook several dishes at my house."

"Who can argue with that!"

"Fatty, stop complaining. You keep an eye on Han Laosi, and I'll keep an eye on these two women. Once we're done, I'll take you out for something nice to eat."

"What's a good meal?"

"Go up Jiming Mountain."

"Wow, you treated me to a nice meal? It was Brother Feng who treated us to a nice meal."

"Alright, enough nonsense. Keep a close eye on things. Besides, would you be able to work for Brother Feng without me?"

......

"Fourth Brother, if you don't have anything else to say, could you let us talk alone?"

Li Cuie fiddled with her slender fingers and saw Qin Xiaofen finish eating the two fried eggs and then slowly wipe her mouth with a handkerchief.

Han Laosi was staring intently at Qin Xiaofen when Li Cuie called him, and said:

"Am I in your way?"

"It's really in the way. When we women have a private conversation, how can a rough old man like you understand?"

Qin Xiaofen also said:

"President Han, let me speak with Sister Cui'e alone."

When Han Laosi heard Qin Xiaofen say the same thing, he left the house reluctantly, thinking to himself, "This is my factory, and now I've been kicked out by that slut Li Cuie. Where can I go to complain?"

He didn't go back to his office immediately, but wandered around the factory. Most of the workers had already left; he only saw Hou Laizi and Fatty. He thought that after Li Cuie left, he would have to find Qin Xiaofen, and finding the two of them a nuisance, he said:

"Why aren't you two off work? Go home if you have nothing else to do!"

Upon hearing Han Laosi's words, Fatty was at a loss for what to do. He could only tilt his head and look at Hou Laizi, who, with an indifferent expression, said:

"Fourth Uncle, we'll be leaving soon. Now that everyone's gone, let's check the yard inside and out one last time, just in case anyone comes to cause trouble again!"

Hou Laizi's answer greatly pleased Han Laosi. He thought, "These are the workers who have good judgment. If all workers could consider the factory's needs like this, how much less trouble I, the boss, would have." He said with great satisfaction:

"That rascal is pretty good. He can help look for them sometimes, and we'll add two more dogs to the factory."

"Okay, Fourth Uncle!"

Hou Laizi readily agreed. Seeing Han Laosi return to his office, he said to Fatty Xiao:

"If you're really craving one, go to Jiming Mountain first and tell Brother Feng about the situation here. Also, tell him that Han Laosi wants to get two more dogs."

"Can you keep an eye on it yourself?"

"What's wrong with that? Besides, they're inside, so we can't hear anything. I'll have to think of something later. The two of them are too conspicuous. You go ahead. I'll ask Brother Feng to fry you two eggs too."

Upon hearing about fried eggs, the chubby boy's stomach started to rumble with cravings. He gave up and went to Jiming Mountain alone.

Seeing that Han Laosi had left the house and wouldn't return, Li Cuie closed the door again, this time locking it with the bolt. Then she slowly turned around and sat down in the chair, saying:

Where were we?

"Speaking of who might come to the soy sauce factory to cause trouble."

"Yes." Li Cuie breathed a sigh of relief. Having grown up in Chenjiazhuang, she knew Han Laosi's reputation best. Furthermore, Chen Shouxin had been close to Han Laosi for a time, so she was very clear about Han Laosi's character and background. Thinking of this, she said:

"Han Laosi's stinginess is secondary; his humanity is truly appalling. You've met Li Dahua; although she's a bit rough, she's been with Han Laosi for so many years, managing everything inside and outside the home. Han Laosi forgets about her as soon as he sees you. Aren't you afraid that you'll end up being outsmarted by Han Laosi instead of scheming against him? Besides, Han Laosi isn't like the rich people in the county; he doesn't have that much money."

Qin Xiaofen listened to Li Cuie scolding her and reluctantly said:

"Cousin, what should I do?"