Chapter 61: Playing Dumb

  Cao Yan's body was trembling with anger, and the poverty she experienced in her youth had left a psychological shadow on her. After marrying Qin Fengyang, although she had become rich from being poor, she couldn't help but have a nouveau riche mentality, and what she couldn't stand most was others using the word "money" to provoke her.

  A small-time medicine peddler suddenly appeared, actually daring to mock her for having no money and ridiculing her for pretending to be rich. How could she tolerate it? Naturally, she blew up without any surprise.

  "Who says I don't have money? Which eye of yours saw that I didn't have money on me? One of my bags alone can top several months of your salary, and you're not even qualified to mock me." Cao Yan couldn't care about the smell that made her almost unbearable anymore, pointing at Cao Yao Shi and scolding loudly with wide eyes.

  "Then why don't you take out the money? You can't even afford it, what's with the pretentious rich lady act." Cao Yao Shi puffed up her golden fish eyes and scornfully swept a glance over the LV handbag in Cao Yan's hand, coldly sneering: "Hmph, just that bag of yours, one look and you can tell it's a street stall product. You have the nerve to bring it out and pretend it's something, I'm embarrassed for you."

  "And you..." Cao Yao Shi's tone became more and more intense, pointing his spearhead at Zhu Gang Lie, "Look at your suit, who knows where you got it from, it's clearly not tailored for you, yet you still have the nerve to wear it out and show off. For people like you, I only have three words: Bah! Bah! Bah!"

  Cao Yan and Zhu Ganglie's faces suddenly turned as black as a pot bottom.

  Especially Zhu Ganglie, as if he had been exposed, his eyes began to emit a fierce light.

  Perhaps adhering to the principle of "one size fits all", Cao Yao Shi did not give up, and instead turned his gaze to Qin Lang and Hao Wei, sneering in a summarizing tone: "As for you two, there's no need for me to say more. You've already been sent away, yet you insist on coming back, refusing to recognize the favor that was done for you. What's going on? Do you think bringing a couple of accomplices who are on the same level as you can slap me in the face? Come on, my face is right here, come and hit it!"

  In the end, Cao Yao Shi swung his face back and forth, with a "asking for a slap" arrogant look.

  Qin Lang narrowed his eyes, the anger in his heart almost uncontrollable, wanting to slap that swaying head with a loud smack.

  However, he eventually restrained himself. Although Cao Yao Shi's arrogance made him angry, after all, he was different from the likes of Liu Tao Hua and Qian Da Bing. If he had really slapped him, it would have been a relief, but his self-esteem couldn't take it. Even if he wanted to hit someone in the face, he had to do it openly and fairly, not relying on temporary brute force.

  Brute force can't solve problems, nor can it get him the medicine, and even less can it truly slap him in the face.

  After calming down, Qin Lang stared at Cao Yao Shi and said lightly: "Don't worry, I've decided to punch this face of yours today."

  When he said that, he had already thought it through. As the saying goes, a good man needs three helpers. Now Qin Lang can't even solve his physical problems, let alone have the leisure to make money. Since that's the case, why bother holding on to that bit of pride in his heart and swallow his face to ask his father for help.

  It's only natural for a father to raise his son and for the son to support his father. He acknowledged this body, calling out that one word "Dad". Then he shouldn't be distant with his own father anymore. If Qin Lang lost face outside, his father would also lose face. So he secretly decided that if Cao Yan couldn't come up with the money, he would call his father.

  "Right, you're asking for it, how can I not fulfill your request. I'll definitely hit hard, hit until you're satisfied." Hao Wei chimed in. Although he was a bit confused because of Cao Yan's unclear attitude towards him, he still remembered his original intention and knew that he had to follow this young master's footsteps closely.

  "A fight, it must be a fight, this tone of voice I just can't swallow." Cao Yan also made a statement at the first time, she no longer cares whether Qin Lang was deceived or not, nor does she care about those 200,000 yuan anymore. What she cares about is her own face, what she cares about is that extremely sensitive self-esteem in her heart.

  Among the four people who were commented on by Cao Yao Shi at the same time, only Zhu Gang Lie did not speak.

  Although his face was very dark, he didn't have the guts to utter harsh words. He could only mutter to himself in a low voice: "What can I use to slap my face? Who's going to give me 200,000 to slap my face? If someone gave me 200,000, I'd rather offer my face for them to slap, anytime."

  Cao the medicine master burst out laughing as if he had just heard a great joke, "Haha, you bunch of country bumpkins are going to laugh me to death! I'm putting my words on the line here, today if you guys can take out the money, no need for you to hit me in the face, I'll slap myself right in front of you. Come on come on, I can't wait any longer, hurry up and take out the money, haha!"

  Cao Yan hummed and nodded her head at Cao Yao Shi without saying a word, then turned to look at Zhu Gang Lie.

  Zhu Gang didn't know when, but he shrank his head and body to hide behind several people. However, even so, he couldn't escape Cao Yan's gaze. When he found out that Cao Yan was staring at him, his heart skipped a beat, and a bad premonition emerged... Damn it, this woman wouldn't be thinking of making me take out my wallet, would she?

  Indeed, what you fear most will come true.

  Cao Yan looked at Zhu Ganglie and suddenly said: "I don't have enough money on me, can you lend me some? I'll pay you back later."

  In her opinion, Zhu Ganglie has already lived a successful life with luxury cars and mansions, so twenty thousand yuan is nothing to him. Previously, this man was willing to give his heart and soul to her, dedicating everything, now she asks for a loan of twenty thousand, it shouldn't be a problem at all.

  But the fact was beyond Cao Yan's expectation. Just when she thought Zhu Ganglie would immediately take out his wallet, without saying a word, and generously hand over 200,000 to slap Cao Yao in the face, she suddenly found that Zhu Ganglie's face turned very ugly, with a look of difficulty and entanglement.

  "This, this..." Zhu Ganglie stuttered.

  Cao Yan's face turned cold, "It's just 200,000, it doesn't mean anything to you. You help me pay for it, and I'll return the money to you once I get it."

  "This, this is of course not just 200,000, I had a meal with a big client and it didn't stop at that... um, not just that amount of money." Zhu Gang nodded stiffly, and stammered: "Just that, just that..."

  Cao Yan saw this and naturally misunderstood.

  Not to mention her, even Qin Lang and Hao Wei couldn't help but start doubting when they saw Zhu Ganglie's behavior. This guy who looks like a human but is actually a beast, could he really be a fake goods with a good appearance just like Cao Yao said?

  Cao the medicine master burst out laughing, convinced that this group of people in front of him were just acting. He pulled over the older medicine master beside him and said with a smile: "Old Yang, did you see? I told you so! Old Cao may not have any other skills, but my judgment of people is absolutely never wrong. Ha! This bunch of people can't even afford to pretend to be rich, yet they're still putting on an act in front of me - it's like brandishing a big knife in front of Lord Guan, how ridiculous, too ridiculous!"

  Old Yang frowned, leaned in close to Cao's ear and whispered: "I think you should be careful, I'm looking at these people and they seem a bit off, don't let them be a group of swindlers trying to scam us. It's better to call the security of the building later."

  "Never mind, never mind, let them play first. Anyway, we're bored here too, watching a bunch of monkeys jumping up and down, just to pass the time."

  As he spoke, he picked up his teacup again, savoring the tea while smiling at the comical antics of the people in front of him.

  At this time, Cao Yan was already full of disappointment and shame. She stared with her eyes wide open, her chest heaving violently, her gaze fixed on Zhu Ganglie as if trying to recognize him again.

  "Alright, very good, it seems you're not willing to pay this money." After a long while, Cao Yan finally sneered and nodded, "Earlier when I heard what you said to me, I thought you had really changed for the better. Now it looks like you haven't changed at all. Luckily I found out early, otherwise I would have been cheated by you again, you heartless thing. Get out now, get out far away, and don't appear in front of me again."

  Zhu Ganglie really wanted to roll over, as long as rolling away could waive those 200,000 yuan, he would be more than willing. But seeing Cao Yan's appearance, he knew that if he really rolled over, all his previous efforts would have been in vain. Most importantly...

  He suddenly remembered the real purpose of his return to find Cao Yan, and was immediately inspired, hurriedly saying: "Yan Yan, don't be in a hurry to get angry, I am sincere and genuine with you, without any falsehood. Heaven and earth can bear witness, the scars on my hands can also prove my heart. It's just... twenty thousand may not be much, but there is no need to be cheated with one's eyes open."

  Cao Yan stared at Zhu Ganglie, expressionless, and said: "I won't mention borrowing now, I just ask you one question, are you willing to help me pay this money? Or, can you not afford this money at all? What client, what mansion, what luxury car, what hard work and accumulation finally succeeded, were all just your bragging?"

  Zhu Ganglie was even more unwilling to pay the money as soon as he heard that Cao Yan had said it. By saying so, Cao Yan had completely shut him down, and now he had no choice but to pay, whether he wanted to or not.

  "Never mind, can't have the cake and eat it too. Let's just consider these 200,000 as an investment for future returns, a little bait to throw out." Zhu Ganglie gritted his teeth, making up his mind.

  "Bearing the heartache, Cao Yan forced a smile and said: 'Yan Yan, you're really hurting my feelings by saying that. Alright, I won't say anything more, my actions will show you my sincerity.'"

  He rummaged through his pocket and pulled out a wallet, which was full of cards when opened. However, only he knew that most of the cards were just for show, and there was only one card with real money on it.

  He slowly took out that card, his face couldn't help but twitch with pain, and his hand was slightly trembling.

  "Hehe, this is the card with the least amount of money in my wallet. There's 300,000 yuan on it, which I use for small expenses." Zhu Ganglie smiled dryly and explained to Cao Yan, fearing that when he swiped his card later, it would reveal that there wasn't much money on it at all, which wouldn't match the successful image he was trying to project.

  Cao Yan saw Zhu Ganglie finally willing to pay, and his face looked a bit better, "Go pay."

  Zhu Gang nodded vigorously and handed the card to Cao Yao, saying with a hint of unease: "Don't swipe incorrectly, I have 300,000 yuan on this card, just swipe 200,000 yuan will do. If you dare to swipe one more cent, don't blame me for being impolite."

  These three hundred thousand are "hard-earned" for him, and wasting twenty thousand is like cutting his heart out. Every extra penny makes him feel more pain.

  But as soon as he finished speaking, he suddenly realized that his words sounded too petty, and he secretly glanced at Cao Yan, adding: "For you kind of scoundrels, not a single penny can be given to you. Humph, if it were someone else, I would have easily given them thousands in tips."

  Pfft, with your appearance, you're still asking for thousands of dollars in tips, and even a single cent can make you feel like dying! Cao Yao Shi didn't dare to scold openly this time because the group of country bumpkins in front of him actually took out money, forcing him to face his previous words.

  Fortunately, he had already made up his mind to change his words, so he didn't even blink and blocked the card that was handed over, coldly smiling at Zhu Ganglie: "Two hundred thousand is not enough, if you want to pay, you have to consider the price of the medicine carefully, it's a total of three million."

  Zhū Gāng Liè's hands shook for a second when he heard the price change from 200,000 to 300,000. The next second, he jumped up and cursed: "Who are you trying to cheat? One minute it's 200,000, the next minute it's 300,000. Are you quoting based on the 300,000 in my card? You think I'm an idiot?"

  "When did I say 200,000? Did I ever say that? I absolutely didn't. You guys misheard me, I've always said 300,000." Cao Yao Shi's face turned red as he started to play dumb, and he even turned to the older pharmacist beside him and said: "Old Yang, you can be my witness, those two medicinal materials were indeed priced at 300,000."

  Old Yang didn't want to get involved in this muddy water, so he just smiled wryly and said nothing.