Chapter 38: The Strength Fang Yuan Gave

Fang Yuan thought Lu Lao’er lacked ambition. When it came to making money, of course you should go after more: “Don’t you know how to compare? Why are you so unmotivated?”

Lu Lao’er thought to himself, Hey, I even got into college. In the future, will I be able to wield a big shovel? What’s the point of that kind of ambition? That’s not a proper career.

Besides, if I could wield a big shovel, could he get into college? You’re always looking at other people—can’t you have a little vision? This woman’s brain just doesn’t work right.

But there was no reasoning with Fang Yuan, so he could only stew in silence.

Still, there was a benefit: holding in that frustration while working made the shovel in his hands feel a lot lighter.

Lu Lao’er thought sourly, I guess this counts as Fang Yuan giving me strength.

Fang Yuan, for her part, wasn’t happy looking at Lu Chuan either. He didn’t even have as much strength as the others shoveling sand—what could you expect from him?

At lunchtime, though, Lu Chuan noticed something: “I see there isn’t even anyone selling food around here, and when it’s hot, there’s not even anyone selling popsicles.”

Fang Yuan looked around too. This guy actually had a bit of a brain—letting him rest his mind for a night wasn’t a total waste.

But making big money off this wouldn’t be easy: “I could sell popsicles, sure, but how many people are there here? The money from a few popsicles isn’t as much as you’d make working. Cooking? I can’t do it—can you?”

Lu Lao’er shook his head and answered honestly, “I can barely cook for you. Selling to others? These people might not even give me the time of day.”

The couple exchanged a glance, both at a loss for words. They just couldn’t make money off this idea.

Fang Yuan sighed, “So all that brainpower was wasted?” Her eyes were full of resentment—last night’s good rest had gone to waste.

Lu Lao’er paused, finally understanding what Fang Yuan’s look meant: “Let’s keep looking. It’s only been half a day, no rush.”

Fang Yuan, ever impatient, retorted, “There’s not even two months left before you go to school. ‘No rush after half a day’? Are you going to observe for two months? No way. You’d better just buckle down and earn money—learn from those guys with the big shovels, at least that pays like skilled labor.”

Lu Chuan felt like he couldn’t even swallow his food. This woman was really something else.

Meanwhile, the Fang brothers watched the couple discussing things and whispered among themselves: “Little Sis and her husband seem to get along pretty well—she even comes to move bricks with him.”

Big Brother Fang glanced over and said, “They just got married, the novelty hasn’t worn off yet. Fang Yuan isn’t really the clingy type. Don’t you guys go making a fuss.”

Fifth Brother Fang nodded—he knew Fang Yuan best, after all.

He eyed his brother-in-law sideways. No wonder he got into college; he was a bit sly. How did he manage to keep their sister in check? They could even sit and have a proper chat together!

Fifth Brother Fang wondered, “I just don’t get it—what do a college student and our sister even talk about? Can they really see eye to eye?”

Big Brother Fang gave him a kick: “Now that we have a brother-in-law, act more mature. Don’t let him look down on us.”

The brothers all agreed—Big Brother had absolute authority in the family; they’d all been straightened out by him since they were kids.

Still, they edged closer to the young couple, clearly wanting to eavesdrop on what they were talking about.

Fang Yuan said, “Why don’t I help you move bricks? Two people earning is better than just you.”

Lu Chuan answered honestly, “If our whole family came out to move bricks, how much could we make? How much in two months? Would it even be enough for half a year of my schooling?”

Fang Yuan frowned, not liking his vague answer. “What do you mean? Speak plainly.”

Lu Chuan’s face darkened. “We don’t need the little bit you’d make moving bricks. Having you help doesn’t make a difference.”

Fang Yuan had never seen someone so useless yet so cocky—he was even more arrogant than her dad.

She picked up her lunchbox and walked off. “Fine, if you’re so capable, then forget it.”

Lu Chuan wasn’t in a great mood either. Back home, even though they were poor, he did well in school—his tuition was waived, and he even got scholarships, so he hadn’t cost the family much.

But now, college required money. Even Lu Lao Da knew that, and used it as an excuse to split up the family.

Now he had a wife too—he couldn’t expect his parents to help support her.

He was a married man now; he knew he had to support his family. That’s why, when it came to making money, Lu Chuan was always looking for any opportunity—because he needed it.

Meanwhile, the Fang brothers had watched the whole argument unfold.

They’d been fine just a moment ago, and suddenly they were fighting—so fast!

Fourth Brother Fang was worried. “So, who should we side with? Should we go beat up our brother-in-law?”

Fifth Brother Fang was more sensible. “Are you stupid? Or do you want to see our bratty sister moving bricks with us? Is this the time to take sides? With brother-in-law’s attitude, we have to support him.”

Fourth Brother Fang said, “So we just let him make our sister angry?”

The brothers looked to Big Brother Fang, all conflicted. “Big Brother, what do you think? We need to take a stand, or brother-in-law will look down on us.”

Big Brother Fang glared at them. “Don’t butt in, or people will say the Fang brothers are bullies.”

In other words, stay out of it.

Fourth Brother Fang, ever the open book, asked, “So if he upsets our sister in the future, we just ignore it?”

Big Brother Fang kicked him. “Are you stupid? We’ll deal with that when it happens.”

They’d pick their side based on the situation. Fifth Brother nodded—after all, it only mattered if their sister cared about her husband.

As they were talking, the workers who’d finished lunch started making a commotion. Lu Chuan ran over to his brothers-in-law—he’d never seen anything like this before.

Big Brother Fang reassured him, “Don’t worry. Happens every few days—they’re just demanding their wages.”

Lu Chuan craned his neck to look. “Aren’t we worried? Should we go demand our wages too? Is our pay not secure?”

Big Brother Fang said, “What’s there to worry about? Not many people dare to owe us brothers money.”

He was confident about this—no need to join the commotion.

Lu Chuan glanced at his brother-in-law a few times. This was a real advantage.

Fifth Brother Fang added, “If things really get out of hand, work will stop and we’ll all have to take a break. The main thing is, it delays us from earning money.”

Lu Chuan watched the scene, still curious. “Why does it look like just that one guy is making all the noise?”

Big Brother Fang explained, “That’s Old Sun, the foreman. He’s the one who hired us all—he’s holding onto our wages. He also has deals with the client, taking a cut from both sides. He’s a middleman. Otherwise, there wouldn’t be this kind of fuss. It’s not that there’s no money—it’s just a way to put pressure on the client.”

Lu Chuan said, “If there were proper procedures, there wouldn’t be this kind of trouble. Wouldn’t it be better to just follow the rules?”

Big Brother Fang snorted—this brother-in-law was definitely a bookworm. “What procedures? This is just how it is. If you can do the job, you do it. If not, you take your people and leave. It’s not a big project.”

Lu Chuan nodded—so nothing was very official. He chatted with Big Brother Fang: “You know all these workers?”

Big Brother Fang said, “We all talk. Our brothers want to move up to skilled work too—you can’t just move bricks forever.”

Lu Chuan understood now—no wonder everyone aspired to wield the big shovel. No wonder Fang Yuan kept watching them.

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