Su Li and her two friends' tofu rice business at the dock was booming, but trouble was also inevitable.

At first, the other vendors were envious and often picked fights with them.

Seeing that Su Li and her two companions were still setting up their stall as usual, completely ignoring their provocations and threats, several fierce-looking vendors surrounded Su Li's stall.

The burly man with a face full of scars stretched out his large, fan-like hand and slammed it heavily onto the cart, the force of which almost made the cart fall apart.

"You bunch of stinking women who crawled out of the mountains, you've only been here a few days and you've already stolen so much of our business. Don't you know the rules?!"

He's body trembled violently, and she almost fell to the ground, but she still gritted her teeth and forced herself not to back down.

These men, all tall and burly, with crooked eyes and mouths, stood in front of their stall, forming a veritable human wall.

If they really start attacking them later, she'd better grab her little sister and Peach Blossom and run, otherwise, today will be a very dangerous day...

Su Li's expression remained unchanged.

She nonchalantly continued with her work, righting up each of the spilled spice bottles, before calmly raising her eyes to survey the people before her:

"Brothers, we all do business based on our skills and the recognition of our customers. How is that breaking the rules?"

"You brat, you dare talk back to us?" The man frowned, his face growing increasingly grim. "Believe it or not, we brothers will turn your place upside down today!"

As he spoke, the men behind him began to rub their fists together, ready to rush over and smash the cart.

"Little sister, let's go quickly, don't get entangled with them..."

He felt a sinking feeling in her chest. She grabbed Tao Hua and Su Li with each hand, and quietly took a step back with one foot.

The three of them were outnumbered and outmatched. Against these strong and burly men, they would only suffer losses. They could accept earning less money, but they absolutely could not afford to get hurt.

"Li'er, let's... let's go!" Peach Blossom stared at the fist the size of a sandbag, her voice trembling slightly.

If someone gets punched, they won't be able to get out of bed for at least ten days or two weeks, and who knows, it might even lead to someone's death!

Su Li frowned. Although her feet didn't budge an inch, she quickly thought of a solution.

They definitely couldn't win in a fight. Even with their eldest brother joining them, the four of them would be like a mantis trying to stop a chariot in front of these vendors.

However, she believed that harmony brings wealth, and she didn't intend to confront them head-on.

Su Li looked up at Manager Yu, who was directing the crowd, and felt a little more at ease.

Turning her head, a smile spread across her face, and she said calmly:

"Brothers, this dock is bustling with people and customers. We're just getting a small slice of the pie. You've been operating here for a long time and have a solid foundation. How could we possibly steal your business?"

Seeing that the expressions on their faces had softened slightly, Su Li's heart stirred, and she continued:

"They say competitors are enemies, but I see that each of your stalls has its own unique charm. Why don't we join hands? If my tofu rice is paired with freshly baked sesame flatbread, it'll be a perfect balance of dry and moist, and customers will definitely love it. Or, if it's paired with the braised dishes from the guy at the alley entrance, the savory and bean-scented flavors will blend together, which will surely attract even more customers!"

"Wouldn't it be better for everyone to make more profit this way than to argue like this? Harmony brings wealth!"

Seeing that the crowd was wavering, Su Li glanced at Steward Yu in the distance, lowered her voice, and leaned closer to the group.

"As you all know, this dock is a mixed bag, and the manager has always had a headache dealing with order. It's already difficult enough for us to set up a stall and sell some food. If things really get out of hand, it will probably cause trouble for the manager, which won't benefit any of us..."

After a series of attempts to persuade her, Su Li stood firmly in place, quietly waiting for everyone's response.

Since she has already paid her taxes, it is only natural for her to set up a stall at the dock. No matter what others say, Su Li will not leave easily.

As Su Li had expected, the group dispersed, and no one dared to threaten to smash her stall anymore.

After all, at this dock, Manager Yu is the one who has the final say, and who would dare to cause him trouble for no reason?

Although the storm has temporarily subsided, Su Li and her two companions' business has gradually become quieter as a result.

Ultimately, it was these newcomers who took away the business from other vendors. Taking a step back was acceptable, and it was still within Su Li's tolerance range, as long as she could make money peacefully.

However, just two days later, Su Xiangyang returned home with his body covered in wounds. The blood at the corner of his mouth had already dried, but his arms and back were covered in bruises.

Seeing this, Su Li rushed over, feeling both heartache and anger, "Brother, what happened to you? Who beat you up like this?"

Su Xiangyang, his face filled with resentment, gritted his teeth and said:

"It's all because of those two bastards who work at the docks! Today, when I was unloading cargo, they deliberately picked a fight with me and made sarcastic remarks. I couldn't stand it and said a few words back, and that's when they started hitting me."

Su Li clenched her fists, her eyes blazing with anger: "How could they do this! Is there no law anymore? I'll report this to Manager Yu tomorrow!"

"We are outnumbered and have no foothold here at the dock. What can we do?"

Su Xiangyang quickly grabbed her, shaking his head with a wry smile:

"They're just taking advantage of our vulnerability. If you report this to the manager, you might face retaliation. But it's nothing serious, just some minor injuries. Don't worry about me."

Su Li suppressed her anger. She knew that acting impulsively would not help, but now that her older brother was being bullied, she would never sit idly by.

As for worrying about retaliation, the only way is to fight back fiercely so that those cowardly bullies won't dare to mess with them.

While pondering how to find out more about the two people at the dock the next day, Su Li walked to Aunt Zhang's house and knocked on the gate.

"Aunt Zhang, are you home? I've come to collect some beans."

This year, Aunt Zhang's family harvested a lot of soybeans. The couple always doted on their children and wanted to leave them more soybeans to roast as snacks, so they never forgot to sow more seeds every year when planting.

Su Li had bought all those beans from Aunt Zhang.

She greeted her as usual, but Aunt Zhang slammed the door open and looked at her coldly:

“Li’er, it’s not that Aunt Zhang doesn’t want to help you, but these beans are hard to come by now. Shouldn’t we raise the price a bit? We agreed on ten coins a pound before, but now you have to charge me twenty coins a pound.”

Su Li was taken aback. "Aunt Zhang, why did it suddenly go up so much? Weren't we always paying the same price before?"

Aunt Zhang turned her head away, her tone tinged with mockery:

"Your business is booming now, everyone in the village knows that. What, you've made so much money, can't we even raise our prices a little? It's nothing to you, is it really necessary to be so stingy?"

Su Li gritted her teeth inwardly; Aunt Zhang's ability to change her expression was truly remarkable.

When she first went to the village to buy beans, Aunt Zhang begged her to buy her beans, saying that her beans were the best in the whole village and that she could have as many as she wanted, and said a lot of nice things.

How many days have passed, and they've already turned their backs on us?

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