Chapter 58

“Yes, yes, yes.” Zhou Fengshou quickly echoed. Although he had never met Shen Yiyi, he had heard from Chen Qiang that Li Chen deeply loved his wife.  

Among the three of them, two were staring at Li Chen.  

Li Chen pondered for a moment before asking Zhou Fengshou: “Are you sure this is reliable?”  

Zhou Fengshou nodded. “That old Hei may be ugly and fierce-looking, and his temper is terrible, but I think he’s someone we can trust!”  

Li Chen nodded in agreement. “Tomorrow, I’ll go find him.”  

Zhou Fengshou and Chen Qiang immediately grinned. Zhou Fengshou said: “Brother Chen, as long as you can borrow the money, you’ll take fifty percent, I’ll take forty, and Qiangzi, you get ten percent. Is that okay?”  

Chen Qiang naturally agreed. In fact, this business could have been done by just the two of them—he was merely being carried along.  

With that, the decision was made!  

Each of them went home. By the time Li Chen returned, Shen Yiyi and the Three Baos had already washed up and were on the heated bed, playing around.  

Li Chen stood outside for a while, listening with a smile before heading off to freshen up.  

The next morning, Li Chen woke up at three o’clock. Without disturbing anyone, he washed up and left the house.  

Shen Yiyi woke up at seven. Not seeing him around, she assumed he was up early making breakfast. But when she got out of bed and went to the kitchen, there was still no sign of him.  

Just as she was wondering, she saw him coming in from outside.  

“Where did you go?” Shen Yiyi grumbled in dissatisfaction. “It’s so cold—couldn’t you have slept a little longer?”  

Li Chen explained: “I couldn’t sleep, so I went out for a walk.”  

Shen Yiyi nodded. She had just woken up and was still a bit groggy.  

“Do you want to wash up? I’ll heat some water for you.” Li Chen asked considerately.  

“Yes!” Shen Yiyi replied, sniffing slightly. “Make egg porridge for breakfast, I’m hungry.”  

“Alright.” Li Chen replied with a doting smile, then headed toward the kitchen.

Shen Yiyi followed behind him and stepped forward to wrap her arms around his.  

Li Chen tried to pull away. “I’m cold.”  

Shen Yiyi shook her head—she just wanted to lean on him.  

Seeing this, Li Chen let it be. He liked how naturally affectionate she was with him.  

When they reached the kitchen, he rinsed the rice and started cooking the porridge.  

Li Chen tended the fire while Shen Yiyi leaned against him, closing her eyes for a light nap. She murmured: “I need to go to the county town today.”  

Knowing she was just chatting with him, Li Chen followed along. “What for?”  

“I sent a letter to my mother and the others earlier. It should have arrived by now, so I need to check on it.”  

Li Chen nodded. “I’ll go with you. I have a friend to visit.”  

“Mm~” Shen Yiyi mumbled sleepily and dozed off.  

Li Chen adjusted his posture slightly, making it more comfortable for her to rest.  

Shen Yiyi only slept for a short while before waking up. By then, the porridge was ready, and after washing up, the Three Baos were also awake.  

After the family finished breakfast, Li Chen took Xiao Bao over to Mother Li’s place.  

Since Shen Yiyi’s last trip to town, Mother Li had returned the thirty cents Shen Yiyi had given to Dahua and even said that if they ever went to the county, she could take care of Xiao Bao for free.  

Shen Yiyi figured that even if she brought fresh eggs to Mother Li, she might not accept them, so she simply had Li Chen bring her two boiled eggs instead.  

Mother Li accepted them and, upon learning that Li Chen and Shen Yiyi were heading to town together, smiled warmly. This young couple had such a good relationship now.  

When Er Bao found out that his parents were leaving him and his brothers behind to go to town, he whined, insisting that he and his older brother wanted to go too.  

Li Chen effortlessly lifted him out of the way with one hand.  

Not giving up, Er Bao turned to his mother, putting on a pitiful expression. Shen Yiyi almost gave in, but in the end, she struggled and firmly refused.  

It was clear that Li Chen had business to take care of in town. As for Shen Yiyi, besides checking on the letter, she also planned to find Zhou Fengshou to see if he still wanted the goods. Bringing Da Bao and Er Bao along would be inconvenient.

Li Chen promised to bring them picture books and delicious snacks when he returned. He also gave Da Bao and Er Bao two pieces of White Rabbit Creamy Candy each, finally managing to pacify them.  

Then, he went to the village chief’s house to borrow a bicycle. Shen Yiyi carried a bamboo basket on her back and sat sideways on the rear seat while Li Chen pedaled. The two of them set off toward the county town.  

Upon arrival, Li Chen first took Shen Yiyi to the post office.  

At the entrance, Shen Yiyi casually said: “If I receive my mother’s letter, I’ll reply to it here right away, which might take some time. Didn’t you say you had a friend to visit? You don’t have to wait for me—just go. The post office isn’t far from the supply and marketing cooperative. I’ll head there afterward to buy some things. Let’s meet at the cooperative later.”  

Li Chen, harboring his own hidden agenda, nodded and left without hesitation.  

Shen Yiyi entered the post office, only to find that her mother’s letter had not yet arrived. Estimating the time, she figured it was probably still on the way and decided to check back in a couple of days.  

After leaving, she went straight to the supply and marketing cooperative. As expected, the broken brick wall had been patched up with a new brick.  

Finding a discreet spot, she entered her hidden space and disguised herself as Old Hei before heading to the agreed meeting place with Zhou Fengshou.  

When she arrived, Zhou Fengshou was nowhere to be seen. Just as she was about to leave, she spotted him hurrying back. The moment he saw her, his eyes lit up.  

“Brother Hei!” Zhou Fengshou greeted her enthusiastically, relieved that he had made it in time. If he had been any later, he would have missed her.  

Clutching the basket in his hands, he thought to himself—today was truly a lucky day.  

Shen Yiyi, however, remained expressionless, showing no sign of excitement. “Two?”  

As she spoke, she pulled out two wristwatches from the bamboo basket on her back.  

“No, no, no.” Zhou Fengshou quickly waved his hands.  

Shen Yiyi frowned. Could it be that he only wanted one this time?  

The next second, Zhou Fengshou’s fawning voice rang out: “Brother Hei, last time you told me you could supply fifty watches at a time. Does that offer still stand?”

Shen Yiyi was shocked. Had he gathered the money so quickly?  

Fifty watches meant 7,500 yuan—a significant sum that was not easy to come by in the current times.  

Especially for someone like Zhou Fengshou, who operated in this kind of trade, there was no telling what was going on behind the scenes.  

With that thought, Shen Yiyi became a little more wary of him. To make herself appear more intimidating, she kept her expression stern and deepened her voice. “That’s right!”  

Zhou Fengshou’s eyes lit up once again. He patted the basket in his hands, glanced around cautiously, and lowered his voice. “Brother Hei, I’ve brought the money!”  

Shen Yiyi discreetly glanced at the old basket he was holding. It was filled with dried vegetables and other items.  

Afraid she wouldn’t believe him, Zhou Fengshou carefully shifted the dried vegetables aside, revealing the corner of a thick stack of bills beneath, before quickly covering it again.  

Although it was only a brief glimpse, Shen Yiyi had clearly seen the neatly stacked Great Unity bills. Yet, even in the face of so much money, her expression remained unchanged, her brows still furrowed.  

Zhou Fengshou was secretly alarmed. This person was probably a ruthless character—it was best not to have any funny ideas. Forcing a smile, he said: “Brother Hei, I’ve got the money. When can you get me the goods?”  

“Right now.” Shen Yiyi replied, motioning for him to go inside.  

Earlier, when she hadn’t found Zhou Fengshou, she had taken the time to observe the place. She noticed that inside, there was only a simple kang bed—bare and empty, making it obvious that this was a temporary rental.  

It seemed safe enough to enter.  

Zhou Fengshou, upon hearing her words, hurriedly invited her in.  

Once inside, Shen Yiyi removed the large bamboo basket from her back, pulled away the cloth covering it, and revealed the neatly arranged small boxes inside. “There are fifty in here.”  

Zhou Fengshou was secretly astonished. The entire basket was filled with wristwatches! Fifty watches together weren’t exactly light, yet this person had carried them as if it was effortless.  

Looking at Brother Hei’s thin and wiry frame, Zhou Fengshou couldn’t help but wonder—was he actually trained in martial arts?