Reborn at 80: From Village Scoundrel to Billionaire

Liu Bei jumped down from the tree.

He walked quickly to the two intertwined corpses, squatted down, and examined them carefully.

The hind half of the large red snake's body was horribly eroded by the toad's venom.

The big red toad wasn't much better off; its body was severely deformed by the snake's constriction, and its bulging belly was mostly deflated.

"What a pity." Liu Bei clapped his hands and stood up.

If the product is damaged, the price will definitely be lowered when sold to a herbal medicine shop.

But this is free money, pure profit, so why not take it?

"Brother Bei, this...this is dead?" Fan Ha'er slid down the tree trunk, peering at the enormous creature on the ground, and swallowed hard.

Li Dazhuang and the others also landed and formed a circle, their eyes filled with shock.

I've never even heard of a red toad weighing over 30 kilograms or a thick snake that's three or four meters long, let alone seen one.

"Dead. All dead. Dazhuang, Tan Si, go cut down two sturdy tree branches. Ha'er, find some thick grass and vines. We'll tie these two things together and carry them down the mountain."

"Alright!" The group snapped out of their daze and quickly got to work.

Half an hour later, a simple wooden stretcher was ready.

The large red snake and the large red toad were tightly bound to it, and Li Dazhuang and Tan Si carried it one in front and one behind.

"Let's go back to the village." Liu Bei shouldered his hunting rifle and walked at the front.

The group hurried back along the mountain path.

It was just getting dark when they reached the entrance of Fanjiacun Village.

At this time, the villagers had not yet rested, and the occasional barking of dogs could be heard.

"Look! What's that!"

Several villagers who were enjoying the cool air watched in the dim moonlight as Li Dazhuang and Tan Si carried their prey and exclaimed in surprise.

"Let's go take a look!"

Immediately, many villagers gathered around.

"Hiss~"

The next moment, the villagers gasped in shock.

"My God, what a huge snake! It must be a spirit!"

"Is that a toad over there? Holy crap! It's bigger than my newborn dog, Wangcai!"

"Liu Bei, where did you get this monster from?"

……

The villagers were immediately abuzz with discussion.

Soon, Zhao Da'e and the others also rushed over upon hearing the news.

"Xiao Bei! This...this thing is poisonous, isn't it? Are you alright?" Zhao Da'e was startled and very worried after seeing the terrible state of the big red snake.

"Mother, I'm fine. Don't be fooled by the snake and toad's miserable state; it was caused by them killing each other. We just picked them up casually!"

"Thank goodness, thank goodness!"

Lin Wanqiu looked Liu Bei up and down, and only felt relieved after confirming that there was no blood on him.

Zhao Chunyan stared at the large toad, but her words were sharp: "Oh, so that's why you haven't come back for so long. Turns out you went to collect scraps. Can you even exchange this junk for food?"

Liu Bei: "..."

Just then, the village party secretary's authoritative voice rang out:

"Why are you all gathered here so late at night instead of sleeping?"

Soon, Fan Sanyuan came over, shone his flashlight on something, and was so frightened that his hand trembled violently.

"This...this red snake is so big?!"

Fan Sanyuan's eyes widened as he stared at the giant snake.

These days, snake meat is considered a highly nutritious food, especially old snakes from deep in the mountains. Soaking them in alcohol can cure rheumatism, and eating the meat can strengthen muscles and bones.

"Xiao Bei, can you sell me ten catties of snake meat? I'll take it home and soak it in liquor..."

As he spoke, Fan Sanyuan reached out to touch the snakeskin.

"Secretary, don't touch it. This snake has toad venom on it; eating it will kill you."

"What?"

Fan Sanyuan was taken aback and looked down for a closer look.

Sure enough, the snake was covered in venom.

He was so startled that he quickly withdrew his hand, looking regretful: "Alas! What a waste of such a good thing."

Liu Bei turned to Li Dazhuang and said, "Dazhuang, go and bring your second uncle's hand tractor over. We're going to the county town."

"Go now?" Li Dazhuang was taken aback.

"Yes, right now."

"Okay! I'll go right now!" Li Dazhuang turned around and ran home.

A short while later, Li Dazhuang drove over in a tractor, towing it along.

Liu Bei directed several people to lift the stretcher onto the truck bed.

"Mother, Wanqiu, I'm taking Ha'er and the others to the county town. I might be back late tonight, so you should go to sleep early and don't wait for me."

"Drive carefully!" Zhao Da'e instructed.

Liu Bei climbed onto the tractor, which billowed black smoke and drove out of Fanjiacun amidst the villagers' awe and envy.

……

When Liu Bei and his group arrived in the county town, it was already 8:30 p.m.

The streets were deserted, with hardly anyone in sight.

Li Dazhuang drove his tractor and parked it in front of the largest medicinal herb purchasing station in the county.

"Brother Bei, it's closed." Fan Ha'er scratched his head.

"Just wait." Liu Bei jumped out of the car, took out a cigarette case, gave one to Tan Si and one to Li Dazhuang, and lit one for himself. "We'll wait here until dawn."

Soon, several people were squatting at the doorway, puffing away on cigarettes.

Coincidentally, a figure walked by at that moment.

"Hey, isn't this Brother Liu Bei?"

"That voice... sounds familiar..."

Liu Bei looked up.

Coincidentally, the visitor was Boss Ma from the black market.

"Boss Ma, still wandering around outside so late?"

"Huh? What does it taste like?"

After sniffing, Boss Ma became somewhat curious:

"Brother, what good stuff have you gotten your hands on to sell to the herbal medicine shop this time? But they're all closed at this hour. If you wait here until dawn, the stuff might go bad, and once it goes bad, it won't be worth anything. Why don't you lift it up and let me take a look?"

"OK!"

Liu Bei thought for a moment and then gave Li Dazhuang a look.

Li Dazhuang walked over and pulled off the white cloth.

"Hiss~"

Immediately, Boss Ma gasped.

Absolutely top-notch! Absolutely top-notch!

Although its appearance is a bit ruined, extracting the venom and using it in medicine, then reselling it to pharmaceutical factories in the south, would definitely make a fortune.

He suppressed his overwhelming joy and sighed dramatically.

"Brother, this thing of yours... it's big, but it's been damaged way too much."

"Look at this snake. Its skin is corroded by venom and is unusable, and its meat is inedible. We can only take out some tendons and bones. The same goes for this toad. Its bones are all broken, and its internal organs are probably rotten mush."

He shook his head as he spoke, looking very troubled.

Liu Bei exhaled a smoke ring, coldly watching his performance: "Boss Ma, let's not beat around the bush. Just tell me how you want to collect?"

Boss Ma held up two fingers: "Since we're acquaintances, I'll take the risk. I'll buy the snakes for 1.5 yuan per jin. As for the toads, 1 yuan per jin. That's the most I can offer."

"What? One dollar and fifty cents? One dollar?"

Upon hearing the price, Li Dazhuang and Tan Si exchanged a glance and both frowned.

Liu Bei threw his cigarette butt on the ground and stomped it out, then smiled and said, "Boss Ma, have you had too much to drink tonight? Da Zhuang, cover him up with a cloth."

"Hey, hey, don't rush!" Boss Ma quickly stopped him. "We can discuss the price! Besides, at this hour, who else in this county would dare to buy your stuff besides me? Don't you think so?"

"No need for you to worry about that, Mr. Ma. Let's wait until the herbal medicine shop opens tomorrow before we sell it."

Upon hearing this, Boss Ma's face darkened.

He had been in the black market for so many years and had always been able to easily manipulate these country bumpkins, but tonight that didn't work at all.

He gritted his teeth: "Fine! I'll add another fifty cents! Two dollars for the snake, one dollar and fifty cents for the toad! Liu Bei, this price is already very fair. Don't be stubborn, or you'll regret it. If this stuff sits overnight, when the herbal medicine shops open tomorrow morning, you won't even get fifty cents for it!"

"Still not selling. Hey, show them out."

Fan Ha'er stepped forward, glaring with his bull-like eyes: "Did you hear that? My brother Bei said he's not selling! Get out of here!"

Boss Ma looked at Fan Ha'er, pointed at Liu Bei, and sneered, "Fine, you've got guts. Let's see what kind of astronomical price you can get tomorrow! Don't come begging me when it's rotting in your hands!"

After saying that, Boss Ma flicked his sleeves and turned to leave.

Just then.

"Squeak~"

The tightly closed wooden door of the herbal medicine station suddenly opened a crack.

A chubby man with messy hair poked half his body out, yelling impatiently, "What are you doing, howling like a ghost in the middle of the night? Can't a person get any sleep?"

Liu Bei's eyes lit up, and he immediately stepped forward: "Boss, I'm so sorry to disturb your rest. We came all the way from Fanjiacun Village. We had some urgent goods on hand and were afraid they would spoil, so we had to deliver them tonight."

The chubby boss rolled his eyes: "Urgent shipment? What urgent shipment can't wait until dawn? Hurry up and get out of here!"

"A 30-pound red toad from the deep mountains, and a four-meter-long mutated red snake. Boss Ma at the black market just offered two yuan a pound, but I couldn't bear to sell it. Do you want to take a look?"

"What?"

The fat boss's sleepy eyes widened instantly.

He pushed open the wooden door and rushed down the steps without even putting on his shoes properly.

"Um?"

Mr. Ma, who had just walked a short distance, turned around abruptly after hearing the noise.

"That fatso actually opened the door? Fine, I'll see what price he's willing to offer."