Reborn at 80: From Village Scoundrel to Billionaire

When Liu Bei, Lin Wanqiu, and Zhao Chunyan arrived in town, it was just dawn.

The factory gates were not yet open, but Zhao Chunyan had been waiting for a long time.

"Liu Bei, you're too slow! Can't you hurry up? Will you die if you're slower?"

Zhao Chunyan complained with great dissatisfaction.

Liu Bei: "..."

Touching her nose, she said, "Is it good for a man to rush? Of course not! It definitely needs to be slower, the slower the better!"

"You're still touching your nose? What's there to touch? What's so interesting about it?"

At the entrance of Zhao Chunyan's finger machinery factory,

"See that? You haven't even arrived yet, and people have already started setting up stalls!"

Liu Bei and his two companions stared intently at it.

There really were people setting up stalls at the entrance of the machinery factory.

Both stalls sell breakfast; one specializes in steamed rice cakes, and the other sells guokui (a type of flatbread) and youtiao (fried dough sticks).

The man selling steamed rice cakes was a middle-aged man in his forties.

Wearing a straw hat, he was calling out to passersby. He looked very shrewd. As soon as he saw Liu Bei and his two companions appear, his eyes immediately turned to them warily, lingering on Liu Bei for a full ten seconds.

The woman selling guokui (a type of flatbread) and youtiao (fried dough sticks) was a plump woman in her early thirties with round eyes, a round face, a round mouth, a round chest, a round bottom, round arms, and round legs.

Unlike middle-aged men,

When she saw Liu Bei arrive with Wanqiu and Yuehe, she acted very kindly and smiled at them.

"Yes, I see. Let's set up the stall!" Liu Bei instructed after turning his gaze away.

"Hmph! You'd better sell it, otherwise, hehe..."

Zhao Chunyan imagined herself lying in bed that night, with Liu Bei massaging her legs.

And then,

Liu Bei, Lin Wanqiu, and Su Yuehe unloaded the grasshoppers one by one from the pedicab and placed them on the ground.

Following Liu Bei's instructions, Lin Wanqiu unscrewed a lid.

A unique aroma of grasshopper sauce wafted out and quickly traveled far and wide.

The man selling steamed cakes sniffed the aroma, his brow furrowing slightly, but he didn't say anything.

The plump woman selling guokui (a type of flatbread) and youtiao (fried dough sticks) was very curious and took the initiative to speak up: "Hey, young man, three ladies, what are you selling? It smells delicious!"

"This is grasshopper sauce!" Liu Bei smiled, then showed Lin Wanqiu and Su Yuehe two more grasshoppers, letting them each grab two as samples. "Would you like to try some, big sister?"

"Oh dear, this...this is so embarrassing..."

The fat woman spoke very politely, but her right hand had already reached out.

She put two fried grasshoppers in her mouth and chewed them; her eyes immediately lit up.

"This...isn't this a deep-fried grasshopper?"

"Yeah, it's deep-fried grasshoppers. What? Have you tried it before?"

"I've tried it. I bought a pound at the supply and marketing cooperative a few days ago. It tastes exactly the same as yours, brothers!"

"How does it taste?"

"Delicious, of course it's delicious!"

"Sis, since it's delicious, try this one too!"

Lin Wanqiu handed over the salt and pepper grasshoppers.

The plump woman took it and chewed a few more times, her eyes shining even brighter. "Mmm. This tastes good too. No, it's just as good as fried grasshoppers. Delicious, so delicious!"

As she praised him, the fat woman's gaze fell again on the grasshopper sauce in Liu Bei's hand.

"Hey bro, what's that grasshopper sauce you're talking about—"

"Sister, have some too!" Liu Bei picked some out with his chopsticks and handed it over.

The plump woman took another bite, her mouth immediately gaping open as she exclaimed, "This...this...it's so delicious! The taste is amazing, absolutely amazing! How much is it, sir?"

"Salt and pepper grasshoppers and fried grasshoppers are two cents a pound. Grasshopper sauce, on the other hand, is three dollars a bottle!"

"What? Two cents a pound? Cheaper than the supply and marketing cooperative? Not expensive at all! Brother, give me two pounds of fried grasshoppers and salt and pepper grasshoppers, and as for the grasshopper sauce... just one bottle!"

"Sis, how about this? My kid really likes guokui (a type of flatbread) and youtiao (fried dough sticks). How about we swap?"

"Swap them? Of course!"

Soon, the plump woman switched places with Liu Bei and his group. She smiled, carrying four pounds of grasshoppers and a bottle of grasshopper sauce, "Brothers, three ladies, you two get busy. I need to get busy too."

"Um!"

Liu Bei smiled slightly and took out a piece of cardboard that he had prepared beforehand, placing it in front of him.

The sign read: Fried grasshoppers and salt and pepper grasshoppers are 20 cents a pound, grasshopper sauce is 3 yuan a bottle, free samples are available, and you don't have to pay if you don't like it.

Soon, the workers from the machine factory arrived one after another.

At first, the workers didn't notice Liu Bei and his group.

Because they were already used to buying steamed rice cakes, flatbreads, and fried dough sticks, they were somewhat distrustful of the new stall.

"Liu Bei, we haven't bought a single one! What should we do?" Su Yuehe was very worried.

Lin Wanqiu didn't speak, but her arched eyebrows furrowed slightly, clearly worried that all her efforts would be in vain.

"Hmph! It's going to fail, isn't it? I told you the machinery factory was doomed, but you insisted on coming. But it's fine this way, Liu Bei is definitely going to give you a leg massage tonight!" Zhao Chunyan was overjoyed.

In her opinion, if they can't be sold, they can't be sold.

Anyway, Liu Bei can still make money by selling fish and hunting.

As long as I can massage her legs properly and make her feel comfortable, that's fine.

But Liu Bei didn't seem to be in a hurry at all.

He pulled the cloth off all the remaining salt and pepper grasshoppers and fried grasshoppers to let the aroma spread further.

Then, he took the initiative to grab a few salt and pepper grasshoppers and fried grasshoppers and stood behind the cardboard sign, holding the salt and pepper grasshoppers in his left hand and the fried grasshoppers in his right hand. He didn't shout, but just stood there quietly, letting the aroma spread further and wider.

This tactic proved effective.

In a short while,

A middle-aged man riding a bicycle stopped in front of the stall.

The middle-aged man, dressed in a Zhongshan suit, wearing a hat, and carrying a briefcase, was clearly an official.

He took a sniff, then leaned closer. "Isn't this the fried grasshoppers sold at the supply and marketing cooperative? They smell almost the same. Did you make them?"

The middle-aged man looked at Liu Bei and asked.

"Yes. I made it. Would you like to try some? It's free, no charge!"

"It's free! Okay, let me try two!"

"Okay!"

The middle-aged man took the two fried grasshoppers, put them in his mouth, chewed them, and his eyes lit up. "Hmm. They taste exactly the same as the ones from the supply and marketing cooperative. How much?"

"Er Mao!"

"What? Two mao? Even cheaper than the supply and marketing cooperative by one mao?"

"Yes. Would you like to buy some, brother?"

"Buy, of course I'll buy. Give me five pounds. Oh, by the way, what's that?"

"New dish: Salt and pepper grasshoppers and grasshopper sauce!"

"Let me try them all!"

"Okay!"

After tasting each one, the middle-aged man's eyes lit up and his face lit up with joy.

"Delicious. Everything is delicious."

"As long as you like it, that's fine, brother."

"Okay. Give me five pounds of salt and pepper grasshoppers too, and as for the sauce, good things come in pairs, two bottles, please!"

"Thank you for your help, brother. Late Autumn, Moon Lotus, Spring Swallow, what are you waiting for? Quickly greet your brother!"

"Oh, okay, sure!"

Lin Wanqiu, Su Yuehe, and Zhao Chunyan finally came to their senses and quickly began to get busy.

Watching the three women busily working, each with a stunning figure, the middle-aged man swallowed hard, his eyes lighting up. He leaned close to Liu Bei's ear and asked, "Brother, who are they to you?"

"Ex-wife!"

"Huh? Ex...ex-wife? Three of them?"

"Um."

"Brother, there's something I don't understand. You're both divorced, so why are they still helping you sell things? They seem to get along quite well?"

"Because we're divorced but still living together!"

"Huh?" The middle-aged man was utterly astonished. "Brother...brother, you're amazing! How did you do that? Can you tell me about your womanizing techniques?"