Reborn:1983

Chapter 15: Targeted by Thugs!

With the backing of her maternal uncle, Xia Xiaolan and her mother lived quite comfortably.

Especially as the busy farming season arrived. Every rural household was scrambling to harvest their grain. The Xia family had more than enough work in their own fields; they truly had no time to come to Seven Wells Village to cause trouble for Xia Xiaolan and her mother. Xia Xiaolan, busy shuttling eggs into the city, got the hang of the business within a couple of days. She spoke briskly, was exceptionally beautiful, ran her business with principles, yet was extremely generous within those bounds. The workers at the Agricultural Machinery Factory and the Meat Processing Plant all knew that a veritable "Egg Xishi" had appeared outside their factories these past few days, selling remarkably fresh eggs.

She started by making one trip to Anqing County daily. Within just two days, she had sold nearly 2,000 eggs. Though the daily cycle of pedaling tirelessly between the countryside and the county town was exhausting, her efforts were highly effective, netting her an average of about 10 yuan a day. With little capital and no connections, Xia Xiaolan had a bellyful of money-making ideas but could only proceed step by step. While she wasn't satisfied with this meager daily profit, Liu Fen was quite pleased.

In the evenings, when Xia Xiaolan returned home, mother and daughter would count the day's earnings. They'd dump the money from the cloth pouch onto the table – mostly scattered small bills: one-yuan notes, five-jiao notes... the smallest were fen notes. Xia Xiaolan swore that in her previous life, the total amount of "fen"-denominated paper money she'd ever seen couldn't compare to what she'd handled in just these few days!

Liu Fen meticulously sorted all the money, feeling like she was in a dream:

"Was money really so easy to earn? Wouldn't everyone else know about it too?"

Liu Fen's question was a good one; it showed she was starting to think critically.

Xiaolan laughed. "Knowing it can make money doesn't mean just anyone can do this business."

Opportunities were indeed everywhere in the 1980s, but not everyone became a billionaire. When opportunity knocked, you needed both courage and luck! Take Xiaolan's business: people in Seven Wells Village were surely eyeing it covetously. For one, the grain in the fields demanded their labor; they couldn't spare the manpower. Secondly, even those with spare hands needed Xiaolan's kind of all-or-nothing courage – business inherently involved both profit and loss. Peddling eggs wasn't just laborious; it carried significant risks. What if the eggs didn't sell? What if they all broke on the road? A capital investment of nearly a hundred yuan could be wiped out in an instant.

Even if Xiaolan suffered a loss, she could simply start over. Having once climbed to an executive position in a multinational corporation, a little setback like this couldn't crush her.

But for a rural villager in 1983, losing nearly a hundred yuan – money that might take half a year to save – seeing it vanish just like that... how many such losses could an average family withstand?

Xiaolan put the money away. "The egg business won't be good for much longer either. Remember I asked Uncle to help collect eels? I want to try selling them in the provincial capital."

In the Liu family's paddy fields, catching dozens of jin of loaches, crucian carp, and eels was effortless. The countryside certainly wasn't short of them.

Loaches, if not cooked properly, had an earthy, muddy taste.

The crucian carp raised in paddies were highly prized in later generations, but who wanted to eat them now? They used too much oil, had too many bones, too little meat... they didn't even rank among the 'Four Major Fish Breeds', showing just how unpopular they were. And the common saying "as numerous as crucian carp crossing the river" hinted at their sheer abundance!

Eels were different. They were considered highly nourishing and commanded a good price anytime. Even now, their price was almost on par with pork, though they were hard to sell in Anqing County – unless you took them to the provincial capital.

Crucian carp and loaches sold cheaply. Xiaolan couldn't be bothered with the hassle, so she had Liu Yong spread the word in Lower Seven Wells Village: besides eggs, she was also buying eels. However, everyone was busy harvesting rice now. Apart from a few kids bringing small amounts to sell, there were no large transactions. She wasn't worried; eels could be caught right up until October.

Even the despised crucian carp and loaches, Xiaolan knew how to prepare.

Her cooking skills were average, but she'd seen a lot! To entertain clients, what cuisine, north or south, hadn't she tried?

The loaches and crucian carp Liu Yong had brought home earlier had been left to purge their mud. She'd drip a bit of rapeseed oil into the wok, pan-fry the crucian carp over low heat until golden brown on both sides, then add water and simmer gently for a long time. The fish meat would disintegrate into the broth – it just took time and care. Xiaolan made sure everyone in the household drank the fish soup. She focused especially on Liu Fen and Taotao. Liu Fen was as thin as an African refugee, and if Taotao didn't get enough calcium supplements, his height would tragically follow the Liu family's genes.

The loaches she'd braise with chili sauce, add some tofu, and throw in some garlic sprouts just before serving.

The Liu family meals were arranged splendidly, and Aunt Liu Fengmei was utterly delighted with Xiaolan.

However, for the next couple of days, Liu Fen couldn't accompany Xiaolan into the city. Since mother and daughter were living here, they couldn't let Liu Yong and his wife shoulder all the field work; Liu Fen had to help too.

"Be careful going into the county town alone," Liu Fen cautioned as Xiaolan prepared to leave. Liu Fen herself was heading to the fields to cut rice stalks before the sun grew fierce, followed by the laborious task of threshing the grain, all done manually without machinery.

"I know, Mom! Don't work too hard yourself."

Xiaolan pedaled her bicycle towards the county town. Over the past few days, she had almost saturated the egg market at the two factories. It wasn't possible for people to buy so many eggs every single day. Carrying over 400 eggs at a time, making two trips to Anqing County daily, today during her second sales round at the Agricultural Machinery Factory, she waited a long time but still had over a hundred eggs left.

Xiaolan decided to try a different location.

She usually avoided shortcuts, but today, delayed by slow sales, she rode her bike through a small alley.

She didn't know that after selling eggs in the county for several days, the reputation of the "Egg Xishi" had spread. Her striking beauty, coupled with the daily cash she carried, had attracted the attention of some shady characters plotting against her.

Xiaolan had perhaps grown a bit complacent. After all, she'd been carrying her large scissors for several days without encountering a single ruffian.

The alley opened onto a main road ahead. She pedaled hard, but suddenly someone grabbed the basket on her bike:

"Hey little sister, what's the rush? We wanna buy some eggs!"

The abrupt stop nearly threw her to the ground. The basket on the rear rack slammed down heavily. Xiaolan's heart clenched – how many eggs had just shattered?!

One man quickly darted in front, blocking her path.

Two others held onto her bicycle. Xiaolan straightened up, the large scissors already concealed in her sleeve, gripped tightly in her hand.

The situation looked grim. Three leering young men, radiating thuggishness, eyed her up and down. Even though she wore long sleeves and pants against the sun, their obscene gazes made her feel naked... It seemed unlikely this would end peacefully. Unlike a typical frightened girl, Xiaolan didn't freeze. Without wasting words, she opened her mouth and screamed:

"HELP!! Someone's assaulting a woman! HELP! They've got me trapped in the alley!"

Xiaolan's voice was piercingly sharp, startling the three thugs.

One rushed to cover her mouth. She thrust the scissors viciously. The man yelped in pain:

"You b***h! Think we didn't check your background? You two, grab her! Damn b***h, daring to stab me with scissors!"

Xiaolan pressed her back against the wall, slashing wildly with the scissors in her hand. Her screams didn't stop: "Assault! HELP!" The bicycle blocked the way in front of her. For the moment, no one could get close.

One thug lost patience and yanked the bicycle aside.

Xiaolan screamed and shouted, but also let out a cold laugh. When one lunged for her wrist, she aimed straight for his eyeballs.

He recoiled fast, but the scissor tip grazed his eyelid. Hissing in pain, he grabbed Xiaolan's braid, hauling her forward. The other thug seized the chance and knocked the scissors from her hand.

"You b***h! Playing the chaste martyr? Who doesn't know you're a loose woman? Xia Xiaolan from Dahe Village!"