Reborn at 80: From Village Scoundrel to Billionaire

Several villagers were squatting under the old locust tree.

"Holy crap! Isn't that Liu Bei?"

"What...what was he riding?"

"Is it a Forever brand 28-inch motorcycle? Or is it brand new?"

"This thing must cost over a hundred, right? Where did the Liu family get the money to buy this?"

Soon, Liu Bei rode past the group of people.

"Damn it, has Liu Bei struck it rich?"

"Just a few days ago they were dirt poor, not even willing to put a bowl of lard in their food, and now they're riding a bicycle!"

"They know how to hunt! I heard they caught a wild boar and two deer a couple of days ago."

The group of people looked at each other, speechless.

I was envious, but a sour feeling welled up in my throat.

Ignoring the murmurs behind him, Liu Bei rode to the fork in the road in the middle of the village, just about to turn and go home, when he suddenly heard a faint cry coming from the other side of the stream ahead.

"Let go of my daughter!"

"Is that Yuehe's voice? What's going on?"

Liu Bei's face darkened, and he pedaled towards the river.

Under the willow trees by the river, Su Yuehe sat on the ground, her left shoe missing, her ankle twisted, and her face pale with pain.

Niannian's mouth was covered from behind by a thug. The little girl's face was covered with tears, and she desperately tried to pry open the big hand with her two little hands.

Surrounding them were Fan Ergou and his henchmen.

Fan Ergou squatted in front of Su Yuehe, holding a foxtail grass in his hand, his face full of wrinkles as he smiled.

"Moon Lotus, what's the point of you following that good-for-nothing Liu Bei? He can't even support his own wife, and he's got three others. Look at me, I may not be as lucky as him, but I'm a loving brother. If you follow me, I guarantee you'll—"

"Don't come any closer!" Su Yuehe shrank back, her hands scraping against the gravel, her eyes red and bloodshot.

"Hey, she's got quite a temper." A skinny guy behind Fan Ergou chuckled. "Brother Gou, this little chick is shy, you'll have to coax her a bit."

"Yeah, look how red her face is—"

"Ring ring!!!"

Suddenly, a bicycle bell rang from behind.

Fan Ergou turned around and his smile immediately froze on his face.

Liu Bei jumped off the 28-inch bicycle, which swerved to the side and crashed to the ground.

"Liu... Liu Bei?" Fan Ergou subconsciously took a step back, then stopped and forced a smile. "Brother, don't misunderstand, we were just chatting with your wife, nothing more."

"Bang!"

Liu Bei punched Fan Ergou in the nose.

"puff--"

Fan Ergou's nosebleed splattered onto the willow trunk, and he staggered back two steps before falling heavily to the ground.

"What? Have you forgotten what I said last time so quickly? Let go of my daughter now!"

Liu Bei turned his head and roared at the thug who was covering Nian Nian's mouth.

The thugs paused for a second before releasing their grip.

"mother!"

Niannian burst into tears and scrambled towards Su Yuehe, throwing herself into her arms.

"Damn it! My nose is broken, get him! Get him!" Fan Ergou yelled at the two men beside him as he got up from the ground, clutching his nose.

"Bang bang bang!"

However, before the other thugs could make a move, Liu Bei suddenly acted.

A few seconds later, all the thugs were lying on the ground.

Fan Ergou: "..."

They stared in disbelief, their throats churning uncontrollably.

Liu Bei turned around and walked towards Fan Ergou.

Fan Ergou covered his nose and crawled backward, "Liu Bei... Liu Bei, please... please don't be impulsive! I'm surnamed Fan, you're an outsider, you can't hit me, you can't—"

"Bang! Bang! Bang!"

Liu Bei grabbed his hair and slammed his head against the willow tree trunk next to him.

"ah--"

Fan Ergou's forehead was torn open, and blood flowed down his eyebrows.

After Liu Beisong released his grip, Fan Ergou collapsed onto the tree roots like a lump of mud.

"Fan Ergou." Liu Bei squatted down and patted his face. "Do you particularly enjoy flirting with other people's wives?"

"No...no...I am..."

"Then I'll make sure you can never adjust it again."

"What...what else do you want to do?"

"Crack!"

As soon as he finished speaking, Liu Bei stood up and kicked Fan Ergou in the crotch.

"Aww!!!"

Fan Ergou let out a scream that was inhuman, curled up into a ball, and rolled on the ground, clutching his groin.

The other thugs were so terrified by what they saw that they knelt on the ground and kowtowed repeatedly.

"Brother Bei, spare us! Brother Bei, spare us! We'll never dare to do it again!"

Liu Bei glanced at them and said, "Go back and tell everyone in the village that if anyone dares to lay a finger on a hair on my family again, I'll fight them to the death."

"Yes, yes, yes!"

The thugs scrambled away.

By this time, a number of villagers had already gathered to watch the spectacle, and some had already run off to call the village secretary.

Not long after, the village secretary arrived with several people. The old man looked at Fan Ergou, who was howling on the ground, and then at Liu Bei.

"What happened?"

Liu Bei recounted the whole story.

The village secretary, his face ashen, pointed at Fan Ergou on the ground and cursed, "You shameful wretch! Harassing someone's wife in broad daylight! You've completely disgraced the Fan family! Carry him up and take him, along with his accomplices, to the town police station!"

Fan Ergou: "..."

His face was ashen, and he looked as if he had lost his parents. Soon, he was pushed and shoved by several villagers and walked out of the village.

"Serves you right!"

"They should have been sent to the police station long ago!"

"that is!"

The villagers pointed and whispered behind them, not one of them showing any sympathy.

Liu Bei turned around and squatted down in front of Su Yuehe.

Su Yuehe sat on the ground holding Niannian, tears still on her face, her lips bitten until they turned white. When she saw Liu Bei squatting in front of her, her tears fell even more fiercely.

"Can you move your legs?"

Su Yuehe shook her head, her voice hoarse, "I sprained my ankle..."

Liu Bei slipped one hand under her knees and supported her back with the other, lifting her up in his arms.

Su Yuehe was startled and instinctively wrapped her arms around his neck. "You... so many people are watching..."

"Let them watch if they want."

Su Yuehe's face flushed red to her ears. She opened her mouth but couldn't say anything, so she buried her face in his shoulder.

Niannian followed beside Liu Bei, tugging at his trouser leg, and looked up at him with her little face, asking, "Daddy, is that metal cart yours?"

"Yes. It was bought by your dad. How about I take you out to play on my bike every day from now on?"

"Really?" Niannian's eyes lit up instantly, and she skipped and hopped to the fallen bicycle to touch the bell.

"Ding-a-ling~"

"That sounds so good! Daddy is amazing!"

Liu Bei helped Su Yuehe onto the crossbar in front of the bike, then helped Niannian onto the back seat. He straddled the bike himself, holding Su Yuehe's waist with one hand and gripping the handlebars with the other, and slowly rode towards home.

The news quickly spread throughout the entire Fanjiacun village.

Before they even reached their doorstep, Zhao Da'e, Lin Wanqiu, Zhao Chunyan, Panpan, and Liu Bao all rushed out.

Zhao Chunyan was the first to rush up, her eyes immediately locking onto the bicycle frame, her eyes wide with disbelief. "This...this is permanent? New?"

"Yes. Bought in the county town."

"How much?"

"two hundred."

Zhao Chunyan gasped and reached out to touch the paint on the frame, as if touching gold.

Lin Wanqiu stood to the side without moving, but her gaze remained fixed on Su Yuehe's ankle.

When Zhao Da'e saw Su Yuehe being held in Liu Bei's arms and heard what had happened, her expression changed repeatedly. In the end, she only said, "Let's go inside first."

Zhao Chunyan was still touching the bike frame when she looked up and asked, "Can I ride it for a couple of laps?"

Liu Bei lifted Su Yuehe off the car. "Let's ride."

Zhao Chunyan took the bicycle, jumped on, pedaled hard, rang the bell, and rode around the gate of the yard three times, grinning from ear to ear.

Lin Wanqiu's lips twitched slightly, then she turned and went inside to boil water.

Liu Bei carried Su Yuehe into the house and placed her on the bed. He then went to the kitchen to fetch the hot water that Lin Wanqiu had just boiled and wrung out a towel to cover her swollen ankle.

Su Yuehe lowered her head and watched him squatting in front of the bed to apply a compress to her feet. His rough fingers gently supported her ankles, and his movements were even more careful than when he treated the Ganoderma lucidum.

The only sound in the room was the dripping of water into the basin.

After a long time, Su Yuehe reached out and gently took Liu Bei's finger.

He looked up.

Her face was flushed, and there were still traces of tears in her eyes. Her voice was so soft it was like a mosquito's hum, "Thank you."

Liu Bei placed a packet of brown sugar beside her, then stood up.

"Drink this. Take good care of yourself and don't go out into the ground."

He paused when he reached the door.

"With me here, you don't need to be afraid anymore."

"Bang!"

The door closed.

Clutching the bag of brown sugar, Su Yuehe listened to the bicycle bell outside the door and Zhao Chunyan's laughter. Her heart pounded heavily and warmly.

In the courtyard, Zhao Da'e leaned against the door frame, watching Zhao Chunyan ride her bicycle away, then looked back at the direction of Su Yuehe's room, a slight smile curving her lips.

Just then, Fan Shuanzhu's voice came from outside the courtyard.

"Xiao Bei! Is Xiao Bei home?"