The Little Life of a Big Landlord

Chapter 147 Provocation

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"Sister Sun, isn't your house a new one? You should have some empty rooms, right?" Wang Xiaoman felt sorry for Gu Pan and said.

Gu Pan immediately looked at Sun Fangfang with hopeful eyes.

"We have empty rooms, but no beds! We haven't even had time to build a traditional earthen bed, and the heating can only cover two rooms at most..." Sun Fangfang said helplessly.

"It's okay, it's okay, as long as we don't end up sleeping on the streets..." Gu Pan cried tears of joy.

"Sister Sun, why don't we get two benches and two door panels to make a makeshift bed?" Wang Xiaoman said.

"Okay..." Sun Fangfang nodded.

"Thank you, sister..." Gu Pan thanked Sun Fangfang repeatedly.

"Hehe, don't be so polite. Haven't eaten yet? Come on, let me take you to eat..." Sun Fangfang said with a smile, pulling Gu Pan out of the brigade and heading towards Yang Ming's house.

"What's going on today? Why are there so many beautiful girls?" Wang Xiaoman muttered to himself as he saw the two women off at the gate, watching their departing figures. But in his mind, he was thinking of the baby-faced girl in the short skirt.

As soon as Yang Ming entered the house, Xiao Bao'er immediately jumped up excitedly. Yang Ming hugged her tightly and kissed her little face repeatedly: "Did you miss Daddy?"

"I miss you, Daddy. Where did you go today? You've been gone since this morning..." Little Bao hugged Yang Ming's neck and giggled.

"Dad went out on something. Have you had dinner yet?" Yang Ming asked with a smile as he put Xiao Bao'er on the kang (a heated brick bed).

"I'm eating! Auntie made boiled milk and boiled eggs, it's so delicious..." Xiao Bao'er said.

It is said that the chickens raised by Yang Ming's family have grown exceptionally fast due to the optimized space on the farm, and they have been laying eggs for half a month.

"Your aunt is really lazy..." Yang Ming was speechless. Boiling milk and eggs, isn't that a bit too simple? Generally speaking, these two foods are the favorite foods of lazy people.

"Hehehe, I wouldn't dare say that Auntie wants to tickle me..." Xiao Bao'er chuckled and said seriously.

"Hehehe..." Yang Ming tapped the little guy's nose, "Have fun at home, I'm going to call your mom and godmother..."

"Oh..." Xiao Bao'er responded and curled up on the head of the kang, where the Little Tyrant learning machine that Yang Ming had bought for her was placed.

Yang Ming went out through the back door and entered the back garden, heading towards the hot spring valley. The hot spring valley was muddy due to the torrential rain, and only the narrow path paved with bluestone was passable. The misty fog had been largely wiped away by the rain, leaving only a faint haze that told people that it was a hot spring.

Yang Ming braved the rain to reach the small wooden house. The house was pitch black inside, and there wasn't a sound at all.

Yang Ming entered the wooden house, turned on the light, and called out to the inner room, "Qingqing..."

There was no response from inside.

"Qingqing..." Yang Ming called out again, pushed open the door to the inner room, and turned on the lights. The scene inside made Yang Ming freeze instantly.

There was nothing erotic inside the room, only two beauties sleeping side by side, forehead to forehead, like two beautiful lotus flowers blooming side by side.

"Hey... wake up... have you eaten yet?" Yang Ming called softly.

"Oh, you're back..." Aunt Liu, who was sleeping on the inner edge, opened her eyes groggily. When she saw Yang Ming looking down at them, she mumbled something, pulled the blanket up a little, turned her back, and continued to sleep. Her milky white back reflected a bright white light under the lamp.

"I..." Yang Ming wanted to say something, but they didn't give him a chance to speak at all.

"We've all eaten, so you can get something to eat yourself..." Wei Qingqing said groggily.

"It's damp and cold here, hurry home and go to sleep..." Yang Ming said.

"Go away..." Wei Qingqing muttered, turned over, and hugged Liu Sao.

Yang Ming was helpless. Liu Sao was here too; he couldn't very well turn off their blankets, could he? He had no choice but to leave the cabin. However, Yang Ming still turned up the temperature of the solar-powered thermostat, at least to 30 degrees Celsius, so that they wouldn't feel cold while sleeping.

Yang Ming left the hot spring valley and returned home. Sun Fangfang was in the east room, cooking eggs for Gu Pan with an induction cooker. The induction cooker was on the kang table, and Xiao Bao'er was lying on the side watching, swallowing his saliva repeatedly.

Gu Pan sat properly on the edge of the kang (a heated brick bed), her eyes fixed on the boiled eggs on the induction cooker. Her throat was moving constantly, and her stomach was rumbling from time to time, clearly indicating that she was starving.

"Cook a few more, I haven't eaten yet..." Yang Ming took off his damp coat and hung it on the clothesline.

"Daddy, where are my mom and godmother?" Xiao Bao'er stood up and asked in a clear voice.

"The two of them are sleeping in the wooden cabin tonight..." Yang Ming took off his shoes, climbed onto the kang (a heated brick bed), and sat on the edge of the kang.

Little Bao snuggled into Yang Ming's arms, sat on his lap, and looked up at him, saying, "Daddy, I want to sleep with you tonight. I want to watch Pleasant Goat and Big Big Wolf until midnight..." On TV, cartoons don't finish airing all at once, but it's different on a computer. You can just play whichever one you want to watch.

"Hehe, okay..." Yang Ming chuckled. He doted on Xiao Bao'er and almost never refused any of her requests.

"Brother, if Aunt Liu finds out you let Bao'er watch cartoons all night, you'd better watch out, she'll be furious with you..." Sun Fangfang said with a smile.

"Who told her not to come back? Since she's not coming back, our Bao'er has to listen to me. I agree to let her see..." Yang Ming said with a smile, holding Xiao Bao'er.

"Yay, Daddy's the best..." Little Bao'er almost jumped up with joy.

"What's so good about it? You bad guy..." Gu Pan muttered under her breath.

"Hey, Miss Gu, I don't think I've offended you, have I?" Yang Ming said, looking at Gu Pan.

"I don't know why, but I just find you annoying. You don't seem like a good person..." Gu Pan's mouth was incredibly sharp.

"Likewise..." Yang Ming said irritably.

"You're not a good person, I don't like you..." Xiao Bao'er pointed at Gu Pan, her little cheeks puffed out. The little girl idolized her father the most, and she would get angry with anyone who dared to talk about her father.

"I..." Gu Pan pouted, tears welling up in her eyes. She held back; she couldn't possibly argue with a child, could she?

"Bao'er, don't talk nonsense with your sister..." Yang Ming pretended to scold his precious daughter, but his smiling eyes revealed his smugness.

"Brother, you're really mean..." Sun Fangfang rolled her eyes at Yang Ming, and tears finally rolled down her cheeks.

When Xiao Bao heard her aunt say that her father was bad, she was about to raise her cannon and bombard him, but then she realized that her aunt was not someone she could just attack. So she pouted and shrank into her father's arms, her big eyes darting around.

"Have you arranged accommodations yet?" Yang Ming asked.

"She's staying at my house. I only have two heated rooms, and since it's for the elderly and children, I'm afraid she'll have to make do..." Sun Fangfang said.

"Sigh! Your sister-in-law isn't back yet, and it's not convenient for a grown man like me to keep her here. Otherwise, she could stay in our west room..." Yang Ming said politely.

Yang Ming's words earned him another eye roll from Gu Pan.

"Brother, this afternoon, an official brought a Japanese man to your house. I don't know exactly what they wanted to do..." Sun Fangfang said.

Liu Zhengfeng, a retired official with a keen political sense, felt it necessary to remind Yang Ming about the sudden appearance of the Japanese. So he told Sun Fangfang that he would use her to give Yang Ming a heads-up.

"Japanese?" Yang Ming's brow twitched involuntarily. "What are they doing?"

"I don't know. I guess he must have invested in the county. Otherwise, why would officials accompany him?" Sun Fangfang said.

That's how pragmatic officials are. If you're beneficial to them, they'll fawn over you; if you're unrelated to them... sorry, I'm busy, please excuse me...

"Oh..." Yang Ming nodded, but ultimately said nothing, though he became wary.

"Alright, alright, the eggs are cooked..." Sun Fangfang said, turning off the induction cooker, scooping a basin of cold water from the outer room, taking the cooked eggs out, and putting them in the cold water to rinse.

It's said that putting boiled eggs in cold water to chill them makes them easier to peel.

The freshly peeled eggs were as white as jade, delicate and fragrant. Yang Ming ate four in a row, and even Xiao Bao'er, who had already eaten dinner, ate two. Gu Pan couldn't stop eating. Only Sun Fangfang watched the three of them eat eggs with a satisfied look on her face: Who said I can't cook? Who said my cooking is bad? Open your big, round eyes and take a good look. Aren't these three of them enjoying their food?

"Alright, I won't keep you any longer..." After the meal, Yang Ming began to see the guests off.

"Xiao Pan, let's go..." Sun Fangfang stood up and called to Gu Pan.

Gu Pan glanced at Yang Ming, her eyes filled with a vicious glint: This scoundrel, he's a real jerk, he doesn't know how to be polite at all...

Gu Pan was, after all, a girl, and girls are usually reserved. How could she possibly cling to someone and refuse to leave? She had no choice but to leave with Sun Fangfang.

"Daddy..." Little Bao'er giggled, looking up at Yang Ming with her little face.

"Heh heh, go get the notebook..." Yang Ming chuckled, tapping the little guy's forehead with his index finger.

"Hehe..." Xiao Bao quickly got off the kang (a heated brick bed), opened the wardrobe, took out the notebook bag from inside, and then quickly climbed back onto the kang and handed it to Yang Ming.

"Hehe..." Yang Ming took the bag, took out the laptop, turned it on, clicked on Pleasant Goat and Big Big Wolf, and started playing it. Little Bao'er immediately snuggled into Yang Ming's arms and watched intently.

The lights in the room were turned off, and the father and son huddled together watching cartoons, occasionally bursting into laughter.

Suddenly, a series of dog barks came from outside.

"Excuse me, is anyone home?" A rather imposing male voice came from outside.

"Bao'er, keep an eye on things for a bit. Daddy's going outside to check..." Yang Ming said, putting on his shoes and getting off the kang (heated brick bed) to go outside and see who it was.

"Oh..." Xiao Bao responded, her eyes never leaving the screen.

"Who is it?" Yang Ming put on his clothes, turned on the light in the courtyard, pushed open the door and went out of the house. His eyes swept across the outside of the gate and he saw two dark figures standing outside the dark gate.

"Excuse me, are you Yang Mingyao? I am Zhao Weida, the deputy county magistrate of Yunggu County. I have come to visit you with some Japanese friends..." It was Zhao Weida who spoke.

"Oh, it's County Chief Zhao? Please come in..." Yang Ming quickly invited.

"Hehe, I am Asahi Ichiro, representative of the Asahi Group inspection team, and I extend my greetings to Mr. Yang Ming..." The old Japanese man bowed 90 degrees to Yang Ming and said with extreme humility.

"Hmm..." Yang Ming was much colder towards the old Japanese man, and simply nodded.

Yang Ming did not usher Zhao Weida and Asahi Ichiro into the east room, but led them into the west room. He didn't even prepare fruit, tea, or plain water for them, and went straight to the point: "I wonder what brings you two here so late at night?"

"Hehe, Mr. Asahi, please state your requirements. I think that as a supplier, Mr. Yang Ming would not refuse to export vegetables to your country..." Zhao Wei said with a smile.

"Oh?" Yang Ming smiled slightly. "I'm afraid County Chief Zhao will be disappointed. I have agreements with Yingning Hotel and many other hotels, and we will not sell vegetables, fruits, or other agricultural products to any hotels or individuals outside of these agreements..."

"Oh, that's a real shame. We Chinese people value integrity above all else, and we certainly can't do things that break our promises, otherwise we'll become a laughing stock for our international friends..." Zhao Weida nodded in understanding.

"Hehe, thank you for understanding, County Chief Zhao..." Yang Ming said with a smile.

"Of course, of course... We were the ones who were being presumptuous, we're really sorry to bother you so late at night..." Zhao Wei laughed.

Asahito Ichiro was so frustrated that he couldn't get a word in edgewise. He glanced at his watch; it was only a little past seven. Was this already the middle of the night? But he wouldn't do something so uncouth, so he could only nod repeatedly in agreement with Deputy County Head Zhao.

"Oh, then I won't see you off..." Yang Ming got up to see the guest out.

This time, even Zhao Weida was a little annoyed: I don't think I said I was leaving, right? Why am I seeing him off?

They'd already asked them to leave, so how could they possibly stay and stubbornly refuse? So, Zhao Weiwei and Asahi Ichiro slunk away from Yang Ming's house.

After seeing the two men to the gate, Yang Ming frowned as he watched them leave. He had clearly gleaned the hidden meaning from their conversation. Deputy County Head Zhao had indeed spoken on his behalf, leaving the old Japanese man speechless. What did that mean? It meant the old Japanese man's ambitions were far more than just the so-called high-quality vegetables… So, what did they know?

"What happened? How did the Japanese manage to sneak in?" Yang Ming didn't go back to his house, but went straight to Aunt Liu's house.

Liu Sao's house is no longer what it used to be. The house is clean and tidy, and there are calendars with cute train models on the walls. On the cabinet, a 42-inch rear projector is playing the most popular TV series, "The Wife". A group of women are sitting on the kang (a heated brick bed), watching it with great enthusiasm, and occasionally commenting on the characters in the show.

"Nan Nan, you'll be going to school next year, right?" Zhou Yun said while cracking sunflower seeds.

These sunflower seeds were brought by Zheng Dayong. They are a type of sunflower seed that is extremely small but very plump. These seeds produce a lot of oil and are especially fragrant after being roasted.

"Hmm..." Liu Nannan stared at the TV, stuffing segments of orange into her mouth, responding unconsciously.

"You must study hard, after all, you've already wasted half a year..." Zhou Yun said.

"Yes, thank you, Aunt Zhou. I've been reviewing all along..." Liu Nannan's eyes never left the television.

"Tingting, tell Mom, what do you think of Zheng Dayong?" Zhao Yu whispered in her daughter's ear as she drank a glass of milk.

Li Yueting was drinking goat milk when she heard her mother's words. Her face immediately turned red, and she said shyly, "That's good, she has a kind heart..."

"Mom thinks Zheng Dayong is pretty good. Why don't you give him a try?" Zhao Yu whispered.

"No, maybe we shouldn't? We're not a good match..." Li Yuting was so embarrassed that her head drooped to her chest.

"What's inappropriate about it? They come to see you every day and bring you delicious food every day. If you really don't have feelings for them, then why do you accept their gifts?" A smile appeared in Zhao Yu's eyes, but Li Yuting had her head down and didn't see it.

"He said... he didn't say it was for me, he said... he said it was for us to try, we... and you and Aunt Zhou too..." Li Yuting's face was burning hot.

"Oh, really?" Zhao Yu felt it was best not to tease her daughter any longer and tried to brush it off vaguely. However, Li Yueting, with her sharp ears, was particularly interested in this girl whose name differed from hers by only one character and always wanted to tease her. She said, "It's best if that's the case, don't get involved. That Zheng Dayong kid doesn't look like he'll live a long life. Look how skinny he is, like a stick, not a muscle in him. If you marry him, you'll be a widow..."

"What did Dayong do to you? Why are you cursing him like that?" Li Yuting was particularly unhappy to hear this. She glared at Li Yueting with her beautiful big eyes and huffed. After two months of getting along, Li Yuting had developed a special fondness for Zheng Dayong. She felt that this young man had a heart of gold.

"I'm doing this for your own good. Zheng Dayong is not good-looking and has no education. He says he earns a salary, but in reality, he still has to dig for food in the soil." Li Yueting said.

"Zhang Hong, from today onwards, I will never speak a word to you again..." Li Yuting turned her head away angrily, refusing to look at Li Yueting again.

"What? You're not talking to me anymore because of that short-lived boy? Tell me, have you fallen for him?" Li Yueting pretended to be angry, her tone quite accusatory.

"Only a ghost would like him, don't make false accusations..." Li Yuting pouted, her face flushed alluringly, and said coquettishly.

"It's not that I just like him, but this Zheng Dayong is the one I've set my sights on. Don't try to take him from me..." Li Yueting breathed a sigh of relief and said.

"..." Li Yuting's little mouth really pouted this time, and tears welled up in her big eyes.

"I don't agree with what you're saying..." Zhao Yu, being a shrewd old fox, immediately saw through the absurdity of Teacher Zhang, who had once held a martial arts contest to elect class monitor, as a joke to his daughter. Amused, she couldn't help but follow Li Yueting's lead and retorted, "You and Dayong are nothing to each other. Who Dayong will ultimately marry is still uncertain, and you've already 'snatched' him? Aren't you being a bit too domineering?"

"Domineering, huh?" Li Yueting felt that Zhao Yu was really quite sensible. A smile appeared deep in her eyes. "I don't think so. I just like Zheng Dayong. If anyone dares to compete with me, I'll beat them up..." As she spoke, she shook her little fist vigorously.

"I..." Zhao Yu cooperated perfectly, and was so frightened that she trembled and quickly hid behind her.

"You want to hit someone? Go ahead and hit me..." When Li Yuting saw her mother being threatened, she felt very intimidated and confronted Li Yueting with her head held high.

"Oh ho? It seems you really like our Zheng Dayong..." Li Yueting squinted her eyes, her fists clenched so tightly they cracked.

"So what if I like him? I like him, so what? Hit me, hit me..." Li Yuting shouted at Li Yueting.

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(End of this chapter)