Reborn in 1979, with a female educated youth lying next to me.

"When did this happen? Haven't they found the suspect yet?" Liu Jia asked seriously, his eyes fixed on the old man selling melons.

"I don't know, we just heard that they don't allow people to go to the melon grove anymore," the old man selling melons said, then suddenly realized something, "Young man, are you going to buy these melons?"

"Buy it, just 15 cents a pound, weigh out a few for me."

Since Liu Jia was so efficient, the old man immediately became happy, "How many do you want?"

"These melons are quite big, let's take three, otherwise we can't carry any more."

Upon hearing this, Li Zhenhe's eyes widened in astonishment.

We're still quite a distance from my uncle's house. Although they're all young men, each watermelon weighs over ten pounds. Just carrying three watermelons home will probably make their legs weak.

"Brother, that's enough. Take two, we can't move three."

"Okay, these two will do!"

The old man quickly stopped the two large watermelons, and in a few moments picked up the steelyard balance, as if afraid they might change their minds.

At this moment, Liu Jia's mind was completely focused on the apple orchard, and he no longer cared about how much money he would make picking a few melons.

"Come on, give me a hand."

The old man put the watermelon in a cloth bag, and then picked it up and placed it on a shovel handle.

The old man carried one end on his shoulder, while Li Zhenhe carried the other end. Finally, they used the weight on the scale, which showed 39.5 jin (approximately 18.25 kg).

"Looking at the scale, it's too heavy to hold, it must weigh forty pounds, let's just say thirty-nine and a half pounds!"

"One cent and fifty cents a pound, thirty-nine and a half pounds, that's five dollars and ninety-five cents in total."

The old man muttered to himself as he did his calculations, and at the end, he dug out three more melons from the pile.

"Here's what we'll do: give me six yuan, and I'll keep the change. These three melons are yours, guaranteed ripe and sweet."

Upon hearing this, Li Zhenhe's gaze towards the old man changed somewhat.

That old man is shrewd; he really knows how to do business.

Whether it's watermelon or cantaloupe, he always insists on guaranteeing ripeness and sweetness—a typical businessman!

As Liu Jia took out the money and handed it to the old man, he asked again, "Grandpa, how do I get to Mao Village?"

"What's wrong? If this melon wasn't sweet, why would you have come to Mao Village to find me?"

As he spoke, the old man reached up and lifted his coarse cloth vest, raising his eyebrows in the process.

Knowing the old man was joking, Liu Jia laughed and explained, "How could that be? Look, this melon is a good melon. I was thinking that I'll come to your place to pick up some melons when I have time, but I'm afraid I won't find the right place."

“Oh, I see. Let me tell you, just follow this road east, and when you see the dirt road, turn south. Walk for about ten miles, and you can ask around for Miao villages. Everyone there will know.”

Liu Jia silently noted down the address, said a few words of thanks, and then turned around with the melon in his arms.

Li Zhenhe was completely bewildered until the melon-selling donkey cart had driven away, at which point he asked Liu Jia, "What are you thinking? Are you really going to get a cartload of melons?"

"I'd rather drive more than ten miles to haul a truckload of melons and make a profit than trade more baskets."

"Then why are you asking about other people's places? The more I listen, the more confused I get."

Liu Jia looked at Li Zhenhe, unsure how to explain it to him.

You can't just say that your intuition tells you the suspect who stole the things is related to Peng Tianliang's girlfriend, can you?

It's easy to say that, but to get someone to believe it is probably harder than climbing to heaven.

"The old man's explanation sounded so mysterious, even the watermelon fields and apple orchards were sealed off, so I wanted to hear what was going on."

"Nothing else concerns us. The most important thing now is to persuade my uncle. The rest is up to Caixia and me."

Mentioning Zhou Caixia brought a sweet feeling to Li Zhenhe's heart.

Liu Jia was speechless.

It must be admitted that the power of love is indeed great.

Throughout the journey, Liu Jia was absent-minded, his mind preoccupied with persuasion and clues.

The two people, each carrying a basket in one hand and a watermelon in the other, attracted the attention of many people even though they stayed close to the roadside.

Fortunately, the two big men took big strides and soon arrived at Peng Shunnian's house.

When Peng Shunnian saw Liu Jia and his nephew arrive, he couldn't stop smiling.

"Look at you two, so honest! You came all this way, but you brought so much stuff. Aren't these two watermelons heavy? And what's with this basket? You bought me two baskets?"

If Liu Jia and Li Zhenhe brought some snack boxes and fruit, that would be perfectly acceptable, since it's customary to visit relatives empty-handed.

Seeing that the two of them were carrying a basket in each hand, Peng Shunnian couldn't understand it at all.

“Uncle, this is a long story, we need to go inside and talk about it slowly. Didn’t you say you wanted to get your car repaired in our area? I think that’s going to fall through.”

Li Zhenhe began by giving Peng Shunnian a heads-up.

"Why did it fall through? Don't you believe in your uncle's skills? Let me tell you, in the entire machine factory, there aren't many people who can surpass my skills in repairing cars."

Peng Shunnian was unconvinced and started arguing even before entering the house.

Liu Jia hadn't expected Li Zhenhe to be so direct; it was like giving Peng Shunnian a blow on the spot!

So, he quickly stepped in to smooth things over.

"Master, don't worry, that's not what Brother Li meant. We have a other business deal we'd like to discuss with you."

Upon hearing Liu Jia's words, Peng Shunnian's expression finally softened somewhat.

Taking the watermelon from Liu Jia with both hands, Peng Shunnian tilted his head and asked, "What kind of business? Can I do that too?"

"Of course we need you, Master! Otherwise, why would we have made such a special trip? Master, you have a very important matter to attend to!"

Before anyone could explain what had happened, Liu Jia had already started flattering Peng Shunnian, praising him to the skies with just a few words.

Li Zhenhe blinked, thinking about what he had just said, then looked at Liu Jia, and suddenly understood something.

The same thing, but everyone has their own way of doing it.

Look at what Liu Jia says, his words are so captivating.

Upon further reflection, Li Zhenhe seemed to understand why Liu Jia was so popular with girls.

That kid has a really sweet tongue, he knows how to talk!

"Zhenhe, soak the melon in your hand, then cut it open in a bit."

Peng Shunnian instructed his nephew, and then led Liu Jia into the house.

When Li Zhenhe came back into the house after soaking the watermelon, Liu Jia and Peng Shunnian had already discussed the placement of the baskets.

"So, my brother and I came to find our master, just to hear what he has to say."

"If Master is free, please don't leave Qingcheng and help us, okay?"

“You see, we don’t trust anyone else either. The main reason is that our master has experience, and we’re not confident in him.”

In just three short sentences, Peng Shunnian was already full of fighting spirit.

"Alright, Sanzi, stop talking. Why are we being so polite about our own affairs? I would consider this even if it were an outsider, let alone you."

"Uncle, do you mean this is settled?"

Li Zhenhe stared at Peng Shunnian in disbelief, his mouth agape.

Peng Shunnian raised his head.

"Of course it's settled! You've all come over, I can't possibly refuse. Besides, I think what Sanzi said is feasible, I'm optimistic about it!"

"Oh my, Uncle, I never expected you to be so insightful. I've really broadened my horizons today."

Li Zhenhe was so happy he almost jumped for joy.

What I just said wasn't boasting at all; it came from my very heart.

If my uncle's problem can be resolved, it means they can go back sooner. So what's left? It's just about me and Zhou Caixia!

In an instant, Li Zhenhe felt his whole body become light and airy.

"Okay, let's settle this then. I'll urge them in the next few days, and I'll transport them over once we have enough baskets. We'll also need to trouble the craftsman to find a warehouse."

"Why look for a warehouse? Don't we have a house right now? It's just sitting empty anyway, we can use it to store baskets!"

"Then we need to discuss the cost of renting the venue; we can't just take it for free."

When it comes to business, Liu Jia is extremely cautious. He doesn't talk about profits or losses; his main concern is that Peng Shunnian shouldn't lose money. That's the most important thing.

Li Zhenhe listened from the side, occasionally interjecting with a comment.

Half an hour later, everything had been discussed, and Peng Shunnian urged Li Zhenhe to open the watermelon.

Just as I put it on a plate, there was a sudden knock on the door.

"Who?"

Peng Shunnian stood up as he asked the question.