Song Zhiguo immediately refused. “Others may do as they please, but I have my own principles. In this line of work, stealing someone else’s business is taboo. We can’t break the rules.”

The man cursed him under his breath for being foolish, and Jiang Wanting overheard it.

Amid the crowd waiting at the bus station, Song Zhiguo found Jiang Wanting and approached her, asking, “How long do you plan to keep buying these?”

Jiang Wanting replied, “For now, I’ll be buying every day, barring any special circumstances.”

“Then don’t go to the farmers’ market anymore. Let’s meet right here at the station. I’ll bring the lingzhi directly to you, so I won’t have to pay next month’s stall rent.”

Jiang Wanting considered his harvesting capacity and agreed, “Fine, I’ll buy directly from you. So you’re giving up the stall for good?”

Song Zhiguo’s dark complexion made it hard to see his troubled expression. “Yeah, my wife’s been in poor health this year. Before, I used to travel village to village collecting lingzhi, but now I can only gather them at night. During the day, I have to take care of her—no time for buying anymore.”

This tough man had a tender heart, and Jiang Wanting’s impression of him improved. “Alright, same time every day, same price—but the quality can’t slip, and no broken pieces.”

Song Zhiguo couldn’t help but let out a dry laugh. The two reached an agreement, and he left feeling reassured.

Jiang Wanting’s money had dwindled from forty-six yuan and seventy cents to just one yuan and seventy cents. Fortunately, their bus tickets only cost fifty cents.

Following yesterday’s arrangement, Jiang Wanting first went to Jinyang Restaurant to find Zhou Weidong.

Zhou Weidong came out quickly and led her to the back of the restaurant, where he surreptitiously inspected the seven lingzhi she had brought.

“Is this a private purchase?” Jiang Wanting sensed something was off.

Zhou Weidong answered vaguely, “Ah, I’ll take one back first to see how it is. If it’s good, I’ll place more orders.” His eyes never left the lingzhi as he spoke.

After careful selection, he picked the largest one and handed her thirty yuan. “If you come back tomorrow, look for me first. I won’t know until tonight whether I’ll need more.”

“No problem,” Jiang Wanting agreed readily.

She watched as Zhou Weidong carefully wrapped the lingzhi in oiled paper and headed back into the restaurant. Then she turned and made her way to Binhu (Lakeside) Restaurant.

At the back door, Jiang Wanting asked someone to call for Zhang Shengli. Soon, the plump figure appeared at the entrance, his face beaming with a bright smile.

“Manager Zhang, I’ve brought the lingzhi—six today, all freshly picked last night.” She shook the bamboo basket in her hand.

“Impressive!” Zhang Shengli’s eyes gleamed. “You’re really something, managing all this as a young woman.”

“Thanks to you, Manager Zhang. Our village was quite poor, but when they heard you were buying, everyone went out at night to gather these six. You’ve really helped improve our lives.” Jiang Wanting smiled warmly.

“That’s wonderful! If this little venture brings sweetness to everyone, then it’s definitely a good business. By the way, yesterday’s lingzhi were used to make lingzhi cream mushroom soup. After an internal tasting, everyone loved it. We’re officially launching it tomorrow—you should come try it if you have time. If the response is good, rally your villagers to gather more, sell more, and earn more!”

“Absolutely!” Jiang Wanting’s heart swelled with joy.

Zhang Shengli took the six lingzhi inside and soon returned with one hundred and fifty yuan.

Jiang Wanting counted the money happily. “Looks like everyone in the village can have a meat feast tonight.”

Zhang Shengli suddenly felt a sense of responsibility. “If your village has any other specialties, bring them for me to check out. Maybe we can source some goods.”

Jiang Wanting thought for a moment. “Besides lingzhi, we have the usual crops. In a month or two, it’ll be harvest season. I’ll bring you some then—homegrown produce tastes much better than store-bought. No charge, just for you to try.”

“Hey! I’ll hold you to that. If you don’t deliver, I’ll come asking!”

After saying goodbye to Zhang Shengli, Jiang Wanting took out twelve yuan and fifty cents and handed it to Cuini. “Here’s your share. Your lingzhi sold for twenty-five, so half for you—twelve-fifty.”

Cuini clutched the money in both hands, her mouth agape. “Th-this much! Sis, I don’t dare keep it. You hold onto it for me.” She carefully picked out fifty cents and stuffed the rest back into Jiang Wanting’s arms. “I’ll just take fifty cents home today. You keep the rest.”

“Alright, I’ll hold onto it for you. Mission accomplished for today!” Jiang Wanting was thrilled. It wasn’t even noon, and she already had one hundred and sixty-nine yuan and twenty cents in hand.

“Are you familiar with the villages around ours?” Jiang Wanting asked Cuini.

“Of course! I’ve been to all of them when I used to beg. I know which families are kind and which to avoid.” Cuini spoke proudly.

Jiang Wanting felt a pang of sadness hearing this. “It’s too early to go back now. How about you take me to the next village? I’ll give you an extra fifty cents for your help.”

“Why pay me? You’ve already covered my bus fare and meals.” Cuini waved her hands. “I know not to be greedy.”

Jiang Wanting ruffled her hair. “Take it when it’s given. If you keep refusing, I won’t sell your lingzhi anymore.”

Cuini immediately covered her mouth.

Jiang Wanting rolled up the large stack of bills and tucked them securely into her pocket before heading to the bus station with Cuini.

Bus stations were always chaotic—crowded, noisy, and full of jostling. Jiang Wanting kept a firm hand over her pocket, afraid of being robbed.

Fortunately, she made it safely to the county town. The station there was less crowded than the provincial capital’s, and she finally relaxed a little.

Following Cuini’s directions, the two headed toward the nearest village outside the county town.

When they first left the bus station, the streets were still crowded, and Jiang Wanting didn’t sense anything amiss. But as they reached a quieter path with almost no one around, an uneasy feeling crept over her.

Two men had been following them at a distance, neither too close nor too far. Jiang Wanting didn’t know when they had appeared behind them, so she couldn’t tell if they knew about the large sum of money she was carrying.

But one thing was certain—they were being tailed, and they were in danger.

Jiang Wanting leaned close to Cuini and whispered, “Don’t turn around. Listen—when we stop by the roadside, I’ll say ‘run,’ and we’ll split up. Shake them off, then meet back under this tree once it’s safe.”

Cuini tensed up. “Got it!”

Jiang Wanting and Cuini stopped walking and pretended to rest under a tree by the roadside, wiping sweat from their brows while secretly watching the two men’s movements.

The men seemed momentarily confused, exchanged glances, then gave up pretending. Hands in their pockets, they swaggered toward Jiang Wanting.

Damn it. They’re definitely after us.

Jiang Wanting shouted, “Run!” She and Cuini bolted in opposite directions.

The two thugs cursed. “Shit! One each!” They split up to chase them.

There was no way Jiang Wanting and Cuini could outrun them. In no time, both were caught.

They were reunited under the same tree—but not as planned. This time, their wrists were tightly gripped by the men.

“Where’s the money? Hand it over, or I’ll take it myself,” the man holding Jiang Wanting growled.

“B-brother,” Jiang Wanting stammered, “we’re just kids. We don’t have any money.”

“We’re broke!” Cuini added desperately.

“Lying to me?” The man sneered. “I’m only not hitting you because you’re girls. But if you keep playing dumb, I’ll beat you anyway!”

This is bad.

Jiang Wanting glanced around—no one was nearby, not even a shadow of a passerby. The men seemed to have knives tucked in their belts. She couldn’t risk her life for money.

“Brother, you have to let go of my wrist so I can get the money. I can’t reach it like this.”

The two men exchanged glances before loosening their grip slightly. “Hurry up. And no funny business.”

Jiang Wanting tried to stall, hoping for a chance to escape, but it was useless.

She pulled out the rolled-up cash and clutched it tightly. “Brother, can you at least leave us half? I need some for restocking. Once I sell more, I’ll make up the difference later—”

Before she could finish, the money was yanked from her hand, and the man kicked her to the ground. “Shut up and hand it over!”

As she lay on the ground, Jiang Wanting thought she heard the distant rumble of wheels—a car approaching?

“Brother, just leave us ten yuan… I can’t work without capital…” She scrambled up and clung to the man’s pant leg, refusing to let go.

Cuini wailed loudly, “Uncles, please! Just ten yuan! If we go home empty-handed, we’ll be beaten to death!”

The two men tried to flee, but the girls held on stubbornly. No matter how hard they shook their legs, they couldn’t break free.

Just then, the roar of an engine grew louder—a vehicle was approaching fast.

If they’re caught, it’s over.

Without hesitation, the two men pulled out knives from their belts and slashed at Jiang Wanting and Cuini’s hands.

Jiang Wanting shut her eyes in terror. Cuini screamed.

“Clang! Clang!” Two metallic sounds rang out—the men suddenly released their grip, howling in pain as they collapsed, clutching their wrists.

A military-green Dongfeng truck screeched to a halt nearby. Two men jumped out, carrying thick ropes.

The would-be robbers were quickly tied up.

“There’s a wad of cash here—damn, that’s a lot,” one of the rescuers muttered as he searched the thugs. “Lu Yuan, what do we do with these two?”

The man named Lu Yuan bent down, picked up the dropped knives, and weighed them in his hand. “Ask if it belongs to the girls first.” He pressed a blade against one robber’s throat. “Talk. Any accomplices?”

The robber shrank back, terrified. “N-none! We were just messing around! You’ve got the wrong idea—let us go!”

“Wrong idea? You think I’m blind?” Lu Yuan didn’t waste words—he kicked the man hard in the ribs.

The robber groaned in pain.

“Nothing you say matters. The girls will decide your fate.” Lu Yuan turned to Jiang Wanting. “Hey, how do you want us to handle them?”

Jiang Wanting stood up, dusting off her clothes, but kept her head lowered.

“Take them to the police station.”

When she finally looked up, her face was streaked with tears.