Chapter 107: The Trouble That’s Been Spread

Fang Yuan wasn’t annoyed at all. She just grinned and said, “None of us are any good, so there’s no need to argue about that.”

Wu Hu rolled his eyes. Impressive—she could insult herself without even blinking. Clearly, she’d learned this from her brother-in-law, and he figured he should pick it up too.

Fang Yuan continued, “But it does matter. After all, this whole thing started with me and Wu Hu. If I didn’t agree to you getting involved, would he have agreed? Even if he did, if I didn’t, it wouldn’t work. So, Fourth Brother, you can forget about this.”

Wu Hu caught on—so Fang Yuan was the one calling the shots. “Impressive, you. Everything has to go through you, huh?”

Si Hu sneered. See, none of them were any good, all fighting to get involved, and none of them took him seriously.

But then Fang Yuan’s tone softened, giving a little and taking a little. “Fourth Brother, don’t say I’m not looking out for you. It’s just not right for you to jump in halfway through. I can’t let your reputation take a hit.”

Si Hu snorted. Reputation? Who cared about that—he wanted to make money.

Fang Yuan tugged at Wu Hu, signaling him to bring the conversation back on track.

Wu Hu snorted inwardly. He’d already thought this through. Better to let Fourth Brother go annoy Big Brother: “Fourth Brother, I know what you’re capable of. How about this?”

Si Hu raised an eyebrow. No way he’d let them brush him off so easily.

Wu Hu said, “Fourth Brother, we’re both getting on in years. If we find the right girl, we’ll get married, but we can’t just wait for Dad to give us a house.”

Si Hu hadn’t expected Wu Hu to bring this up. “What do you mean?”

Si Hu went on, “Dad built houses for Big Brother, Second Brother, and Third Brother. Why can’t I count on him when it’s my turn?”

Wu Hu replied, “How Dad handles things depends on your abilities, Fourth Brother. But I’ve brought back enough building materials for both of us to build houses.”

Si Hu’s expression softened. Since when was Wu Hu so generous? This was a good move.

If he had his own place, he’d have to be careful—Second Brother had been eyeing the courtyard wall just the other day.

But Si Hu didn’t believe Wu Hu would just give him building materials for free. “Wu Hu, don’t beat around the bush. Just say what you mean.”

Wu Hu said, “I don’t have time to handle this. The materials for your house are the main thing, and I’ve got them. You take care of building it. However much you spend, if you can save, that’s your skill. But I want three big, bright rooms.”

How could Si Hu not be happy? Big Brother, Second Brother, and Third Brother didn’t put in money—they just had to pitch in.

Plus, he could probably squeeze some money out of Dad. With the labor costs covered, he wouldn’t have to spend much himself.

Si Hu said, “Don’t say I’m taking advantage of you.”

Wu Hu replied, “No way. We’ll split the property deeds. What’s yours is yours, what’s mine is mine.”

Si Hu slapped his thigh. Even though he couldn’t make money with Wu Hu, getting a house out of it was a good deal. “Deal.”

Fang Yuan saw the brothers had finished talking and hurriedly jumped in. “Wait, wait, what about me?”

Si Hu frowned. She was the definition of burning bridges after crossing them. “What’s it got to do with you?”

Fang Yuan said, “How could it not? I’ve got my materials ready too. You don’t have to pay, just help organize the building.”

Si Hu wasn’t about to indulge Fang Yuan’s habits. “Go ask your husband.” He wasn’t about to do something that didn’t benefit him.

But Fang Yuan knew exactly what her Fourth Brother was like. “If you won’t do it, I’ll go to Dad. And don’t think you’ll get any money out of him.”

Fang Yuan was a step ahead. She knew Si Hu never planned to spend a cent on building the house.

Si Hu’s face turned green. Fang Daleng would do anything for his daughter, but not much for his sons.

But Si Hu could bend when needed. “It’s not a big deal. You’re my sister, after all. I can’t help with much else, but I can help organize things.”

Fang Yuan said, “Exactly. If Fourth Brother can pull off this house, he’ll be famous. Who in the village would go to anyone else to build a house after that?”

Si Hu’s expression changed. He hadn’t thought it through before, but now he realized—this was a real opportunity. If people saw that Fang Si Hu was just as capable as Big Brother, he’d get half the jobs in the village, and wouldn’t have to ask anyone for favors.

He could strike out on his own and be on equal footing with Big Brother.

All he was missing was a platform to show off his skills.

Wu Hu wanted to treat Si Hu to a meal, but Si Hu didn’t stick around—he hopped on his bike and left. No time to waste when there’s money to be made.

Of course, before leaving, he signed a contract with Wu Hu. Even among brothers, accounts had to be clear—everything was spelled out.

Old Man Lu, who had watched the whole thing, was amazed. “Fang Yuan, you’re really going to build?”

Fang Yuan said, “It’s a great opportunity. Don’t worry about the money. If we’re short, I’ll cover it for now, and Xiao San can pay me back later.”

Old Man Lu replied, “No need, no need. Your mother has over a hundred yuan, and if we sell some grain and save up more in the fall, we should have about three hundred. That should be enough.”

He added, “In my whole life, I never thought building a house could be this easy. It’s all thanks to you and Lu Chuan for getting all the expensive materials ready.”

Fang Yuan said, “That’s good then. We’re all family, no need to fuss about it. We’ll cover our own labor costs.”

Old Man Lu said, “No, no, don’t argue about that. Your mother and I have money, so we’ll pay. If we didn’t, I’d be embarrassed. We didn’t help when Second Brother went to school, so listen to me on this.”

Wu Hu chimed in, “Just hearing this makes my heart ache—Fourth Brother’s getting a great deal. The materials are the main thing.”

Old Man Lu replied, “That’s not quite right. It takes time and effort. How much could you make here anyway?”

Wu Hu was pleased—his uncle made a good point.

Plus, Wu Hu had managed to drive a wedge between Big Brother and Fourth Brother without lifting a finger. Big Brother’s influence in the village was now split in two.

While Wu Hu and Fang Yuan were checking out the next project, Si Hu was already at home, bustling around getting ready to build.

He really was capable—he got all the Fang brothers together to lay the foundation, including Fang Yuan’s family.

Si Hu said, “You’ve all got wives now. Wu Hu and I are building houses, not asking you for money, but you should at least pitch in some labor.”

As for Fang Yuan’s side, Si Hu didn’t say he was being forced. He just said, “My brother-in-law and sister aren’t home, so we brothers have to show up and support them.”

No matter how busy Fang Da Hu was, he had to go. Even if he didn’t make money, he had to show up. Otherwise, it wouldn’t look good. Being the eldest isn’t easy.

With siblings like these, Fang Da Hu really had it tough—no wonder he couldn’t act like the big boss.

And because of this, Si Hu’s standing with Fang Daleng improved. Whenever he asked for money, he got it.

His popularity soared—he was building his own house and still thinking of his sister’s family. That kind of person couldn’t be bad.

More and more people came to the Fang family to propose marriage to Si Hu. Only his brothers knew what he was really like. Building his own house? Yeah right—it was all calculations.

Other people spent money to build houses; Si Hu was making money building his.

Of course, the money was Fang Daleng’s. If it weren’t for Wang Cuixiang’s shrewdness, Si Hu would have talked Fang Daleng out of everything he had.

Behind his back, Wang Cuixiang told Fang Daleng, “Just watch, your Fourth will end up with no one willing to deal with him. Even his own brothers won’t bother.”

But Fang Daleng didn’t want to hear it. “Fourth is really something!”"

"Chapter 108: Which End of the Salt Is Salty