Chapter 59: Counting Money in Public!

Tang Jiancheng glanced at Huang Tianyue, never expecting that beneath the latter's mature and seasoned exterior lay such a childish heart.

Since Huang wanted to play along, Tang Jiancheng decided to humor him. After all, both during this period and for the foreseeable future, he would need to rely on Huang's help for many matters.

"Very well, let me count it."

Tang Jiancheng took the money and proceeded to count it bill by bill right in front of everyone.

Some of the villagers even joined in, counting along with Tang Jiancheng. Their voices merged into a chorus that suddenly carried a strange, imposing momentum.

"Ten! Twenty! Thirty! ... One hundred!"

"One hundred ten, one hundred twenty, one hundred thirty ... Two hundred!"

"Nine hundred ten, nine hundred twenty, nine hundred thirty ... One thousand!"

"Seventeen hundred ten, seventeen hundred twenty ... Eighteen hundred!"

It took a full dozen minutes to finish counting. Tang Jiancheng's throat felt a bit dry, while the villagers watched in awe. Before this, they had only thought that eighteen hundred yuan was a huge sum, but seeing it counted out bill by bill allowed them to truly grasp its magnitude.

One by one, they stood there with dazed expressions.

This was precisely the effect Huang Tianyue wanted. He laughed heartily and asked, "Is that correct?"

Tang Jiancheng slapped the stack of cash against his palm and smiled wryly, "Spot on. Eighteen hundred, not a single cent missing!"

"Alright, then I'll be off."

With a smile, Huang Tianyue told the tractor driver to start the engine, and they towed the wild bull away.

Once the tractor had rumbled far into the distance, Tang Jiancheng turned around to find that all the gathered villagers had yet to disperse, their eyes still fixed squarely on the money in his hands.

At this time, nearly everyone in the village lived in poverty. Suddenly, someone came into a large sum of money and counted it out in public—one could easily imagine what was going through the villagers' minds.

Since ancient times, people have worried less about scarcity than about inequality. Coupled with a prevalent flare of jealousy, it was hard to say whether the villagers might do something irrational!

However, Tang Jiancheng had anticipated this scenario the moment he decided to play along with Huang Tianyue. Therefore, he immediately raised his voice and called out, "Linbao, Big Brother, Second Brother, Third Brother, Fifth Brother, Sixth Brother, time to split the money!"

"There are eighteen hundred yuan in total here. Including all of us and my dad, that makes eight people. But since Tang Linbao also contributed a matchlock gun, that counts as an extra share, making nine shares in total."

"Each share comes out to exactly two hundred yuan!"

"Linbao, come over here and take your four hundred yuan!"

"Big Brother, here is your two hundred yuan!"

"Second Brother..."

"Third Brother..."

"Fifth Brother..."

"Sixth Brother, you can collect Dad's share as well. That's four hundred yuan too!"

Before long, the eighteen hundred yuan had been completely distributed.

Another wave of commotion rippled through the villagers.

Although they hadn't received a share of the money themselves, they understood one fundamental truth: working with Tang Jiancheng meant actual, tangible earnings!

In an instant, the way everyone looked at Tang Jiancheng changed completely.

After dividing the money, Tang Jiancheng led Jiang Lingen and the others back home. He chose to ignore the villagers' discussions and thoughts for the time being.

"Jiancheng, to be honest, I was strongly against you counting the money in public, and I was very worried. You must know that the saying 'do not flaunt your wealth' applies everywhere and at all times," Jiang Lingen said. "However, when I saw you distribute the cash on the spot immediately after, my impression of you completely turned around!"

"You are simply too clever! Did you plan to split the money in public all along?"

Tang Jiancheng chuckled, "Actually, I only had a flash of inspiration after seeing the villagers' expressions."

Jiang Lingen didn't believe him.

Who could just have a flash of inspiration and give away eighteen hundred yuan like that? It must have been the result of careful consideration, after all, it wasn't a small amount.

When they arrived home, Yuan Yuzhu had already prepared dinner.

Everyone gathered around the table, eating, drinking, and chatting merrily.

During the meal, Jiang Lingen and Jiang Chengfa showered Tang Jiancheng with praises, making him feel rather embarrassed.

After dinner, Jiang Lingen and the others boarded the tractor and left.

Everyone felt that this trip to Daping Village had been worthwhile; not only had they learned a great deal about Tang Jiancheng's situation, but they also understood what kind of person he truly was.

They all resolved to visit more often whenever they had the opportunity.

Even four-year-old Goudan kept turning his head to stare back at Tang Jiancheng's house, thinking to himself, *Sister Qidan, I will come back again!*

After sending off Jiang Lingen and the others, it was quite late, and the village gradually grew quiet.

Tang Jiancheng had been busy all day and felt thoroughly exhausted, but he could not sleep just yet. He first carried a basket of fishing nets over to his parents' house, and whispered to Tang Genshui and Tang Jianbing, "Dad, Jianbing, make sure you get some sleep soon. At three o'clock in the morning, I'll come wake you up, and we'll go catch fish at Haoshan Reservoir together."

Tang Genshui was startled. "Isn't Haoshan Reservoir frozen over? How are we supposed to catch fish?"

Tang Jiancheng replied, "Don't ask for now. Once we get to the reservoir, I'll explain. I'm going back to sleep."

With that, Tang Jiancheng returned home, washed up briefly, and lay down on the bed.

He was truly exhausted. The moment his head hit the pillow, he began to snore within three seconds.

As Liu Fangfang watched him, it was impossible not to feel a pang of sympathy. Yet she also knew that a man supporting a family had to endure hardships, especially with such a large household to feed.

Fortunately, in another five or six days, her month-long postpartum confinement would end, and she would be able to help Tang Jiancheng provide for the family.

Around three o'clock in the morning, Tang Jiancheng woke up with uncanny precision.

There was no alarm clock, and no one called out to him; Tang Jiancheng simply woke up on his own—perhaps because he had a task weighing on his mind and hadn't slept deeply, or perhaps because his rebirth had made him much more sensitive to time.

In any case, he jolted awake.

He then prepared to get out of bed as quietly as possible, but Liu Fangfang was still awakened by the disturbance.

"It's pitch black outside. Where are you going?" Liu Fangfang asked softly.

Tang Jiancheng replied, "I'm going to wake up Dad and Jianbing to go fishing at Haoshan Reservoir."

"Fishing?"

Liu Fangfang was stunned.

"Never mind that, go back to sleep. I'm heading out," Tang Jiancheng said.

He put on his thick, tattered cotton-padded jacket, grabbed a hoe and a firewood chopper, and shouldered a carrying pole with two baskets. As he stepped out the door, he saw that Tang Genshui and Tang Jianbing were already waiting outside.

"Dad, you take a pair of baskets too. Jianbing, carry the fishing nets."

Once the two of them were ready, Tang Jiancheng whispered, "Let's go."

The night was deeply dark, illuminated only by the faint, shimmering reflection of the snow. Fortunately, all three of them had sharp eyesight, so they managed to avoid tumbling into any ditches along the way, though they still stumbled a few times.

After walking for nearly forty minutes, the three finally arrived at Haoshan Reservoir.

The nighttime temperature was even lower, and the water of Haoshan Reservoir was indeed covered in a thick layer of ice.

"Jiancheng, this is all thick ice. Where are any fish?"

Tang Genshui glanced across the frozen surface, utterly unable to fathom how anyone could catch fish in such an environment.

Tang Jianbing was equally puzzled.

However, he had one great virtue: he was obedient and didn't talk back. Whatever his fourth brother told him to do, he did without asking for reasons.

Tang Jiancheng paid no heed to his father's question, keeping his head down as he searched the surrounding area for a suitable spot to cast the fishing nets.