Chapter 32

In the following days, business at the convenience shop was great, and no one came to cause trouble.

Li Yan quit her job at the clothing store and started running the shop full-time.

She complained that Cao Yang opened late and closed early every day. She wanted the two of them to run the shop 24 hours.

But Cao Yang had no intention of keeping it open around the clock. His plan was simple: if she stayed up, he’d play; if she went to sleep, he’d close up.

Li Yan held a watermelon knife, slicing up melons. The shop only sold snacks, instant noodles, and sodas, but she saw others selling chilled watermelon, so she copied them. A whole watermelon cost three yuan, but cut into pieces it could sell for eight—five yuan profit. She valued even that much and wished she could earn every penny in the world.

Cao Yang ate a piece.
Li Yan shot him a look.
He ate a second piece.
She glared harder.
He ate a third piece.
She raised the knife. “Eat, eat, eat! That’s all you know how to do! I haven’t even started selling and you’ve nearly eaten it all!”

“Stingy! I’ll pay, okay?”

“Well, aren’t you amazing now that you’ve got money? Even your tone’s gotten tougher!” she mocked sarcastically.

Cao Yang chuckled. “Not only is my tone tougher, but certain other parts are pretty tough too. Want to try?”

Li Yan rolled her eyes. She was starting to feel a little afraid of him. Lately, he had gotten bolder—touching her all over, even trying to kiss her. If this continued, sooner or later, she’d end up in his hands.

Not that she didn’t want it. In fact, part of her was expecting it—she even dreamed about it at night. But since they were neighbors who had grown up together, something about it still felt awkward.

Just then, Cao Yang’s phone rang. A Sichuan number. It had to be Lei Dian.

“Hello.”
“It’s Lei Dian.”
“I know it’s you, brat. How’s home?”
“Same as always.”

They chatted briefly, then got to business.

“My sister found a buyer. I’m planning to sell those electronic chips.”
“Nice! Have her come pick them up then,” Cao Yang said casually, munching watermelon.
“She’ll come later to take a few samples for the buyer to check and negotiate the price.”
“Alright.”
“I want you to go with her. She’s just a girl, it’s not convenient for her alone.”
“Don’t worry. I promised you half after selling, and I’ll keep my word.”
Cao Yang smiled. “Come on, we’re brothers. Your sister’s my sister too—I won’t let her take risks alone.”

As he said that, Lei Yu’s pretty face popped into his mind, and his thoughts wandered.

An hour later, Lei Yu arrived at the shop. She frowned slightly at the crowd gathered around the slot machine.

“Over here, sis!” Cao Yang waved with a grin.

Li Yan immediately grew unhappy. He only ever called her “Sister Yan,” but he called this woman “sis”?

“Who’s she?” Li Yan asked sharply, pointing at Lei Yu.

“A friend,” Cao Yang replied while changing clothes, ready to head out with Lei Yu.

“What friend? Stop mixing with shady women outside!” Li Yan grabbed his arm, refusing to let him leave.

“Who are you calling shady?!” Lei Yu’s face turned cold. This woman had hostility written all over her from the first moment, and her tone was downright rude.

“You. What about it?”
“You—”
“Enough, enough, both of you, don’t fight.”

Cao Yang quickly stepped in. Then he whispered in Li Yan’s ear, “She’s Lei Dian’s sister. I’m going with her to sell the chips. Once we sell them, I get half—I’ll share some with you.”

Li Yan sneered. “The brother steals, the sister sells, and you call yourselves decent people.”

“You bitch, say that again!” Lei Yu snapped, stunning Cao Yang. He’d thought she was the quiet type—didn’t expect her to curse like that.

“You’re the bitch! Shameless! Seducing my brother! Don’t you have your own brothers?!”

The two were about to come to blows when Cao Yang rushed between them. “Please, I’m begging you, let’s just do business.”

He really couldn’t understand—first meeting, and they were already ready to fight!

“Give me the goods,” Lei Yu said, holding out her hand.

Cao Yang pulled ten chips from his bag and handed them over.

She took them and left immediately. Cao Yang hurried after her.

“Cao Yang, get back here!” Li Yan stomped her foot in anger.

Cao Yang clasped his hands in apology, begging her not to make a scene.

At the village entrance, they waited for a taxi. The air was awkward, so Cao Yang tried to start a conversation.

“Sis, do you know how much these chips are worth per piece?”
“I don’t know,” Lei Yu shook her head. “I just asked my boss. He said bring a few for the client to check. If it’s what they expect, it’s worth a lot.”

“And also, I’m not your sister. Stop calling me that.”
“I’m brothers with Lei Dian. You’re his sister, so naturally you’re my sister too.”

They arrived at a tea restaurant in the city to wait for the buyer.

Soon, two figures appeared at the door—a tall, thin man with glasses smiled at Lei Yu. That was her boss, the middleman.

The buyer was a balding man in his forties.

They sat down.

“Xiaoyu, President Qi is here. Show him what you’ve got.”

Lei Yu placed a chip on the table. The fat man picked it up, studied it carefully, then pulled out professional equipment to test it. After fiddling for a while, he set it down with a smile.

“How many of these do you have?” he asked, speaking fluent Hong Kong-accented Mandarin.

“How much can you buy, and at what price?”

“The more, the better. A few pieces aren’t worth buying. But if you’ve got over a thousand, I can give you a hundred apiece.”

Lei Yu and Cao Yang exchanged glances. They had six thousand chips. At a hundred each, that was six hundred thousand—huge money for them.

But they weren’t stupid. If he offered a hundred right off the bat, the true value had to be much higher.

“Can you raise the price a bit? We’ve got a lot.” Cao Yang raised six fingers.

“Six thousand?”
He nodded.

The fat man chuckled. “Six thousand I can take. But the price stays at a hundred apiece.”

“We’ll think about it,” Lei Yu said, ready to haggle.

But President Qi was a seasoned player. He knew exactly what the two youngsters were thinking.

“Ah boy, ah girl, don’t bother thinking. You’re outsiders—you don’t understand this business. You can only sell to me. No one else will take it.”

The two looked puzzled.

“These goods are hot, right? I’m taking a risk buying them. So of course it’s reasonable for me to make a little profit.”

In one sentence, he revealed the truth—the chips weren’t clean. Normal chips wouldn’t end up in the hands of clueless kids like them.

“And don’t think about holding out for a better price. Electronics update fast. A tiny tech breakthrough and what you’ve got becomes junk.”