62: Chapter 62 Methods 62: Chapter 62 Methods “Takin’ advantage?

Our good oranges are already sellin’ for just a buck fifty, that’s already hella cheap.

What more do you want?

Hand ’em out for free?” Bai Lian couldn’t make heads or tails of Liu Hun’s words.

Liu Hun stopped beating around the bush and pointed to the several baskets of oranges on the ground, then said to the three women, “Listen up, everyone.

Now we’re gonna split into four teams.

Sister Yue, Sister Bai Lian, and Sister Qin Yue each lead a team to the market to find a spot to sell, while I’ll stay here with Teacher Du and sell.

You all take fewer oranges with you.

Sister Yue sells for three yuan per pound, Sister Bai Lian for two fifty, Sister Qin Yue for two, and Teacher Du and I will sell at the original price.”

“Will this really work?” Qin Yue, straightforward in both personality and thinking, didn’t quite catch on.

But Du Yueling, upon hearing Liu Hun’s plan, was silently cheering him on in her heart.

“Don’t worry!

It’ll work for sure!

Just do as I say!” After Liu Hun had given instructions to the women, he arranged everything according to his own plan.

Fen Ran and the others took some oranges and left.

After nearly half an hour, there still wasn’t a sign of brisk sales at Liu Hun’s stall.

Just as Du Yueling was about to say something, suddenly someone started making a fuss.

“Oh!

So you’re sellin’ oranges here too?

How much per pound?” A big aunty with a basket squeezed over to Liu Hun’s stall, her basket clearly holding three oranges.

“A buck fifty!

Selling cheap!

Today and no more tomorrow, you leave this village and you won’t find this shop!

What do ya say?

Three pounds?” Liu Hun bellowed.

“Good heavens!

I’ve been had!

I bought these oranges for two a pound, thinkin’ I got a good deal!” The aunty with the basket slapped her own thigh, regretting her purchase.

“What?

My oranges are fifty cents cheaper?” Liu Hun joined in the act, feigning surprise.

“Ain’t it the truth!

I’m lookin’ at your oranges and they even seem better than the ones over there!” The more the big aunty looked, the more she felt she had been cheated, and the more she felt cheated, the better Liu Hun’s oranges seemed to her.

“That won’t do!

My oranges are this good!

These are Wanbao Village’s top-notch honey oranges!

I can’t be at a loss here, time for a price hike!

A price hike!

Gotta sell for at least two, am I right or not?” Liu Hun waved his hand grandly to the crowd around him, his performance growing more and more animated.

“Right, what right!

I’m just about to buy here, and you talk about raising prices all of a sudden?

What happened to honesty in business?

I’ve got my money ready right here, give me five pounds before you raise prices!

Otherwise, I won’t stand for it!” A big momma who had been hesitating until now quickly pulled a plastic bag out of her pocket as she saw the impending price hike.

“Hey!

Fifty cents cheaper per pound!

That’s a big bargain!

If we don’t grab it, it’s a loss!” A young man next to the big momma pulled someone over and shouted, turning his head to yell at Liu Hun, “I’ll take ten pounds!

A buck fifty, right?

I’ve been waitin’ this whole time, the price hike doesn’t apply to me!”

“What’s that about raising prices?

See my old arms and legs, I’ve been wantin’ to buy and just couldn’t squeeze in.

I want ten pounds too, and it’s gotta be a buck fifty!” An old woman grasping a cloth bag wobbled from right to left as she forced her way through the crowd, seemingly unaware of her claimed frailty.

“…”

When people heard about Liu Hun wanting to raise prices, they immediately got upset.

Those who had been hesitating hurried forward to buy.

Liu Hun couldn’t have been happier.

Just as they had sold off a whole basket, he suddenly heard someone say that some stands were selling oranges for two fifty or even higher.

That struck like a spark to a fuse, igniting the crowd’s desire for a bargain.

Everyone who wanted to buy, who hadn’t wanted to buy, or who didn’t even like oranges all crowded in.

They pulled out all sorts of bags and containers in a desperate flurry to snag that deal!

After Liu Hun and Du Yueling had busied themselves for half an hour, they finally managed to sell off the four large baskets of oranges they had brought, except for a few that were crushed beyond presentability.

“Finally all sold out.

Time to taste the joy of a bountiful harvest,” Du Yueling said with a smile, the corners of her eyes curved like crescent moons, clear and bright.

Her delicate fingers picked up a slice of orange and held it to Liu Hun’s mouth.

With a goofy smile, Liu Hun was about to take a bite when suddenly his eyes widened, he reached out to wrap his arm around Du Yueling’s waist, pulling her to his side, and kicked backwards.

“What happened?” Du Yueling brushed her hair from her face and leaned into Liu Hun’s embrace, turning her head to see a fierce-looking mongrel kicked aside by Liu Hun.

“Whose dog is this?” Liu Hun glared fiercely around the crowd, but no one dared to respond.

The crowd, which had been enjoying the orange buying spectacle, all shivered, sensing that the man in front of them was not the same jovial vendor who had been selling oranges just moments before.

As Du Yueling was still in shock, suddenly a whistle sounded from within the crowd, and the mongrel Liu Hun had kicked, showing its teeth and growling, lunged at him again.

“Beast!

You’re askin’ for it!” Liu Hun shielded Du Yueling and suddenly raised his leg, energy coursing through to his legs, and the sturdy sole of his shoe met the mongrel’s face with a thump.

“Crack!” A sharp sound, as if someone’s rotten bamboo had fallen, echoed, leaving the surrounding crowd as stunned as if they’d seen a ghost in broad daylight, rubbing their eyes over and over again, almost to the point of popping them out.

“What…

what happened here, how did it just get squashed?

That’s…

that’s a dog, isn’t it?

Ain’t there somethin’ wrong with my eyes?”

“Is that dog dead or what?

Looks dead to me, the blood’s spillin’ out, how did it just die like that?

How come it didn’t bite someone?”

“Are my eyes deceiving me or what?

Just now…

did you see it?

That whoosh, like a scene from a play, just…

just like that!

And it got squashed dead!”

“…”

The onlookers stared dumbfounded, none of them had anticipated that Liu Hun could kill such a large earth dog by stomping on it with one foot, especially when it lunged at him, crushing its head into a pulpy mess.

Ten seconds earlier, everyone had thought Liu Hun was surely going to end up at the health clinic, his earnings from selling oranges doomed to be surrendered there.

Ten seconds later, everyone’s mind went blank, unable to think of anything.

“Ah!” Du Yueling turned her head to see the earth dog Liu Hun had crushed and screamed in fright, quickly turning back to ask, “You…

you’re not hurt, are you?”

“It’s just a dog, no big deal.

Let’s pack up and head back to the village,” Liu Hun said to Du Yueling in his arms with a smile.

“Head back to the village?

Go back to what village?

Where are you going?

You think you can just walk away after killing my dog?” A voice cried out from the crowd, and the surrounding people turned to look, only to see two men with cigarettes dangling from their mouths, looking every bit the ruffians, approaching Liu Hun.

“Oh no!

Why did it have to be these two troublemakers!

We need to stay as far away as possible, these ancestors are not to be messed with.”

“It’s just Lin Degui’s two leg breakers, what’s so terrible about that?

What can they do?

I reckon this fruit seller is going to make mincemeat out of the pair of them.”

“Hey!

Today we got both oranges to eat and a good show to watch.

This trip to the market was worth it!

Just look, neither side here is an easy opponent.”

“…”

The two swaggering figures approaching were none other than the Huang Qing and Huang Qiang brothers, who had been thrown into the police station by Liu Hun last time.

Liu Hun hadn’t expected them to be released so soon and figured they must be here for revenge.

Sure enough, Huang Qing feigned surprise when he saw Liu Hun and exclaimed, “Yo!

I was wondering who had the guts to kill my dog, turns out it’s you, kid!”

“What’s the matter?

Not satisfied last time, so now you’re coming right back for more?” Liu Hun coldly eyed the brothers, thinking that this time he’d thoroughly take care of both of them.

“Ha!

You guessed right, I’m here to settle both the new and old scores!” Huang Qing said, pointing to the earth dog crushed by Liu Hun, “My rare and valuable dog was killed by you.

Tell me, what are you going to do about it?”

“What do you want to do?” Liu Hun asked Huang Qing.

Huang Qing placed his hands behind his back and lorded over the area like a county magistrate surveying his domain, then looked over at Liu Hun’s empty bamboo baskets and said, “You made quite a bit of money today.

Here’s what we’ll do: leave your earnings from selling oranges with me, and I’ll let you off cheap for killing my prized dog.

We’ll call it even.”

“What prized dog, it’s just an earth dog; eating crap is more like it.”

Someone from the crowd couldn’t help blurting out that comment, which made Huang Qing immediately point at the crowd and shout, “Who?!

Who the hell just said that?

Stand up if you have the guts!”

“Smack!” With a fierce stomp, Huang Qiang crushed a rotten orange into mush, then turned to the spectating villagers, “Whichever fool keeps yapping will end up like this orange.”

The villagers were angry but dared not speak out, looking between the crushed orange under Huang Qiang’s foot and the dog’s head under Liu Hun’s, their eyes filled with disdain for the Huang brothers.

“Listen up, you two, I’m only going to say this once: get the hell out of here right now.

Otherwise, you’ll regret ever being born,” Liu Hun said, while positioning Du Yueling protectively behind him.

“Qiangzi!

What’d he say?

What’d he say?

He gets lucky and kills a dog by mistake and now he’s showing off in front of me?

Today you’re the mouse that licked the cat, looking for trouble!” Huang Qing said, gesturing behind him, and seven or eight burly men roughly pushed through the crowd to stand in front of Liu Hun.

“Forget the nonsense!

Attack!

Beat him dead like a dog!” Huang Qiang, rolling up his sleeves, charged at Liu Hun.

At Huang Qing’s shout, the seven or eight strong men also charged towards Liu Hun.

In that instant, there was chaos, with chickens flying, dogs jumping, ghosts wailing, and wolves howling.

The villagers, both worried about getting blood on themselves and eager to watch the drama unfold, scurried backwards while craning their necks forward, looking as bewildered as geese eying food.

“Hit ’em!

Yes!

From behind!

Pound those two scrawny runts!

Good!

That’s how you do it!

It’s thrilling!”

“What kind of moves are these?

I’ve never seen anything like it, not even the Lin Family theater troupe has many actors this fierce!

Oh!

That punch looked solid, it even hurts me to watch!”

“Great!

Impressive!

This guy protects a girl and still fights off ten men, he must be trained!

Look at him go!

He’s getting fiercer!

They’re cowering!

Cowards!

The Huang Family’s dimwits are cowering!

The orange stomper can’t beat the dog killer, what a loss of face, just showing up to be humiliated!”

“…”