Chapter Seventy-Four: The Car Started

“What? Twenty thousand?” Village Chief Zhang was stunned when he heard the number, then let out a wry smile. “Comrade Xu Fei, do you realize that you’ve almost collected all the millet from our village and the neighboring ones?”

Xu Fei nodded.

“Village Chief Zhang, I really need you to help me out here.”

“Alright.” Village Chief Zhang closed the ledger and said, “It’s getting late anyway. Don’t go anywhere tonight. I’ll visit some other villages overnight and see what I can arrange for you.”

“Alright.” Xu Fei headed for the truck.

Before coming, he had bought two cartons of Da Shengchan cigarettes. When he handed them to Village Chief Zhang, the chief was so delighted he couldn’t stop grinning.

“This, this…”

“Oh, come on, Chief! No need to be polite. These cigarettes didn’t cost much, just a little token of appreciation from me.”

Village Chief Zhang nodded and said, “Alright. Here’s what we’ll do: tonight, you’ll stay at my house. I’ll have my wife cook a chicken, and we’ll have stewed chicken with potatoes for dinner. I’ll join you for a drink.”

Xu Fei nodded and followed Village Chief Zhang to his home.

The chief’s wife was a large, robust woman, taller and broader than her husband, with a cheerful disposition. Xu Fei knew her as well.

As soon as Xu Fei and Old Third An entered, the chief’s wife was bustling about outside—slaughtering a chicken and preparing dinner. She even made dumplings for them.

Xu Fei glanced at the sky.

“Chief, no need for you to go out tonight. Let’s just have a drink, and tomorrow you can work on the millet arrangements.”

Village Chief Zhang agreed. “Alright, the millet isn’t going anywhere. Tomorrow we’ll head out together and load up once you’ve bought it.”

So it was settled.

The chief’s wife brought out the stewed chicken and potatoes, steaming hot.

Xu Fei and Old Third An, accompanied by the chief, climbed onto the kang.

The three of them began to drink.

Soon, the moon rose high above Little Zhang Village.

Not far from the chief’s house, beneath a large willow tree, Li Dabiao and his wife, Sister Zhang, cast a glance at Old Third An’s truck.

“So this is where they’re getting their millet. Well, wife, what do you think? Any ideas?”

Sister Zhang glanced at Li Dabiao. “Looks like they’re not collecting the millet until tomorrow. We can’t let them succeed. Got any plans?”

Li Dabiao grinned maliciously and looked at Old Third An’s Liberation truck. “Wife, do you see that?”

“What?”

“The truck.”

“What about it?”

Li Dabiao shook his head. “Women—always so clueless.”

“Cut it out! Stop pretending. Just spit it out, already.”

Li Dabiao nodded with a sly smile. “Look—this truck is for hauling the millet. If something happened to the truck, how would they move the millet?”

“Obviously, if the truck’s broken, they can’t haul a thing!” Sister Zhang’s eyes suddenly lit up. “So you’re thinking we should sabotage their truck?”

“Exactly! As long as the truck’s out of commission, even if they buy the millet, how are they going to haul it away?”

“Right, right! Husband, go mess up their truck.”

Li Dabiao nodded. “Leave it to me.”

Taking advantage of the night, Li Dabiao quickly made his way to Old Third An’s truck.

First, he let the air out of the tires.

Then, he found the crank handle. Without it, the truck couldn’t be started.

Carrying the crank handle, Li Dabiao ran back.

“What are you doing with that? Didn’t I tell you to break the truck?”

Li Dabiao just laughed and tossed the crank handle into the river nearby.

“Wife, without this, there’s no way they’ll get that truck started.”

“Really?!”

“Of course. Just wait and see.”

…

The next morning.

Before Xu Fei even got out of bed, Village Chief Zhang and his wife returned from the fields, their arms full of wild treasures—fresh mushrooms, all kinds of wild herbs, and a wild rabbit the chief had just caught.

“Xu Fei, this morning we’ll stew rabbit.”

Potato and rabbit stew—this dish was even better than last night’s chicken.

With all those wild ingredients, Xu Fei and Old Third An enjoyed another hearty meal.

After breakfast, the chief led them outside.

But as soon as Old Third An reached the truck, he noticed the crank handle was missing.

“Third Brother, look!”

Xu Fei, who was discussing the day’s route with the chief, saw that one tire was flat. Walking around the truck, he realized every tire had been deflated.

“Who did this?” Village Chief Zhang was worried. He glanced at Xu Fei. “Could it be the village kids? Those little rascals…”

Old Third An waved a hand. “Chief, kids might let the air out, but they wouldn’t steal my crank handle. Someone’s definitely trying to sabotage us.”

“Sabotage?” Village Chief Zhang frowned. “But you haven’t made any enemies here in the village…”

Xu Fei nodded. “Exactly, Third Brother. Who would be out to get us?”

Old Third An looked around. “Xu Fei, maybe it wasn’t someone from Little Zhang Village.”

“You mean…” Xu Fei was struck by a thought.

Someone must have followed them here.

He pulled the chief aside. “Chief, could you ask around and see if any strangers came to the village yesterday?”

“You think—?”

Xu Fei shared his suspicions.

“Alright, I’ll go right now.”

The chief hurried off.

Xu Fei climbed into the truck. “Third Brother, it’s not a big deal without the crank handle.”

“Oh? You have a solution?”

Xu Fei nodded. “Let’s wait for the chief to come back.”

They waited for a while.

Soon, the chief came jogging back.

“Well?”

The chief nodded. “Xu Fei, you were right. A man and a woman did come into the village around dusk yesterday. But from what the villagers said, they didn’t stay long and left soon after.”

“So they must’ve taken the crank handle,” Xu Fei said, now certain the culprits were outsiders. He told the chief, “Chief, could you please go to the primary school and gather the students, and also find a few strong young men?”

The chief nodded and hurried off to the school.

Meanwhile, Xu Fei and Old Third An fetched a pump.

The two of them took turns refilling the tires.

Before long, about twenty students and a dozen young men arrived at the truck.

Village Chief Zhang brought a few more pumps.

With so many people, they quickly reinflated all four tires.

“Comrades, the truck was sabotaged by evildoers. Now, Comrade Xu Fei and I are in a hurry to collect millet, so please follow his instructions, alright?”

“Understood!”

Xu Fei motioned for Old Third An to get in the driver’s seat.

Old Third An now understood what Xu Fei had in mind.

He put the truck in first gear.

“Everyone, listen to me. When I give the word, push the truck!”

Xu Fei raised his hand.

The crowd gathered around.

“Ready!”

“One!”

“Two!”

“Push!”

With everyone’s combined effort, the truck began to roll forward.

As the momentum built, Old Third An released the clutch.

The Liberation truck hesitated for a moment, then the engine rumbled to life.

The truck had started.