?49: Chapter 49: Craftiness 49: Chapter 49: Craftiness Sun Ke walked over to the hollow dead tree with a scale in his hand and suddenly started shouting as if stepping on an accelerator, “Oh!

    Listen here, Hunzi, what kind of mushrooms are these?

    Green and glossy, they look just like turtles.

    I’ve never seen them before!

    Look at this, what kind of mushrooms are these?”

    While speaking, Sun Ke grabbed a handful of moss and said as if looking through a stereoscope, “A new variety!

    This must be a new variety.

    Hunzi, why don’t you introduce this new variety to everyone?”

    “I tell you, Sun Ke, are you blind or just plain stupid?

    Did you forget to take your meds this morning?

    That’s moss, not mushrooms!

    You don’t even know what a mushroom looks like, and you’re trying to bet on it!” Wang Dajiao couldn’t help but curse while looking at Sun Ke’s foolishness.

    The nearby villagers who understood the situation burst into laughter, as Sun Ke had intended to mock Liu Hun but ended up being taken literally by the dense Wang Dajiao, making a complete fool of himself.

    Sun Ke’s face turned from red to green with embarrassment, and he angrily threw the moss on the ground and then said to Ye Canghai, “Village chief!

    Hurry and certify this, Hunzi didn’t produce any mushrooms, and the money must be all mine!”

    The surrounding villagers couldn’t laugh anymore.

    This was a real demand for money, with tens of thousands possibly going to Sun Ke.

    With no mushroom harvest and the houses damaged by the mountain torrents, how were they supposed to survive?

    “Hunzi!

    Think of something!

    Why aren’t you speaking?

    Look, Sun Ke is about to take the money away.

    Do your earlier promises of leading us all to prosperity still count?”

    “Yeah!

    Hunzi, you gotta say something!

    Just a few days ago, the mushrooms were looking good, how come they disappeared in the blink of an eye?

    Wasn’t there someone guarding them every night?

    What is going on with your plan?”

    “You all stop nagging.

    Hunzi doesn’t have that much capability or power!

    We need to look for other ways.

    Relying on Hunzi is hopeless now.”

    “...”

    Ye Canghai had to speak up at this point, “Hunzi, did you pick the mushrooms?

    If you picked them, just show them to us.

    Look, you even signed and fingerprinted the agreement...

    What are we going to do now?” He couldn’t say much more, stuck between Fen Ran and having to maintain justice, truly stuck between a rock and a hard place.

    Liu Hun, smiling broadly, stepped forward and said to the crowd, “Everybody, hear me out, there definitely are mushrooms.”

    “If you have them, just bring them out and stop beating around the bush!

    I don’t have time to waste here,” Sun Ke waved his hand impatiently at Liu Hun.

    Although he didn’t know what Liu Hun was really up to, he was sure that he was going to get the money today.

    “Don’t act tough here, Sun Ke.

    If the money is meant for you, it won’t slip away.

    If it’s not meant for you, you won’t get a penny,” Liu Hun glanced coldly at Sun Ke, then continued speaking to the villagers, “Before we weigh the mushrooms, there’s something I need to tell everyone.”

    “We’re all on edge here, what is there left to talk about?

    The mushrooms!

    The most important thing is to bring out the mushrooms...

    oh, my mouth!

    I’ll shut up!” Ye Canghai got pinched hard by Fen Ran again, really getting anxious on Liu Hun’s behalf.

    “Hunzi, whatever it is, say it, we’re all listening!” Fen Ran said to Liu Hun after pinching Ye Canghai.

    Liu Hun nodded and spoke straightforwardly, “Many of you must be wondering, where have the mushrooms on these dead woods gone?

    They were here a few days ago, and now they’re gone.

    Last night, when I got up to pee right here by the corner of the wall, I suddenly saw a shadow...”

    “Hunzi!

    Stop feeding us BS and farting around!

    Are you just trying to say that you grew the mushrooms but someone destroyed them last night?

    Don’t act like those street storytellers, get to the point, do we have mushrooms or not?” Sun Ke rudely interrupted Liu Hun, not caring about anything but the money.

    “Sun Ke, can you let Hunzi finish speaking?

    You haven’t seen money before, have you?

    Even a dog sniffs before eating shit, but you just jump right in!” Qin Yue looked disdainfully at Sun Ke, refusing to give him any face.

    “Fine!

    Hunzi, keep making up your stories, I want to see what fantasy you can spin for me today!

    I really don’t believe your nonsense that you could produce five pounds of mushrooms!” Sun Ke looked eager for a good show, like watching a fire from the safety of City God Mountain.

    Liu Hun smiled slightly and continued, “I saw the shadow and felt it was up to no good, and when I caught him and asked, it turned out not to be the case!”

    “Brother Hunzi!

    If he wasn’t up to no good, then what was he there for?

    Just spill it!” Gazi was really hooked now, eagerly waiting like a greedy dog for a bone.

    The villagers around were also eager for Liu Hun to continue, even the usually talkative Sun Ke stayed silent.

    “Everybody must be wondering, if that person wasn’t there to do harm, then what was he there for?” Liu Hun shifted his tone and said, “He was there to help!

    He came especially to warn me that someone was going to sabotage my mushrooms and told me to be cautious.”

    “Give me a break, Hunzi, you can really spin a yarn.

    If he came to warn you to be careful, then why are the mushrooms completely gone?

    I think you’re just lacking some common sense!” Big Hao’s mom burst out frustratedly.

    She had planned to work with Hunzi on this, but things had gone wrong on the first cycle, and even after being warned.

    “Look, Auntie Cui Hua, I’m not a fool!

    I’ve got an extra crafty mind,” Liu Hun said as he walked to the hollow deadwood, bending down to touch it while addressing the villagers, “All thanks to that person’s warning, so...”

    Suddenly!

    While he was speaking, Liu Hun fiercely tore open the hollow deadwood, and with a crisp snapping sound, a heap of white objects tumbled out.

    “Mush...

    mushrooms!

    Hey!

    My goodness!

    It’s really mushrooms!

    Look what Liu Hun has managed to wrangle up!

    Nicely done, buddy!

    Thumbs up to you!

    From now on, we’re following you!”

    “Wow, that really blindsided me, I had no idea Liu Hun could actually pull something off like this!

    From now on, we really should follow Liu Hun!”

    “I tell you!

    Don’t listen to some people’s nonsense; I just missed the boat!

    Happened both times, Liu Hun really has some great luck with people tipping him off in the middle of the night!”

    “...”

    Liu Hun casually picked up a mushroom and approached Sun Ke with it, asking, “Hey Sun Ke, recognize what this is?” Hearing Liu Hun’s words, Sun Ke was so agitated he couldn’t utter whether it was or wasn’t.

    Liu Hun, holding the mushroom, loudly asked the villagers, “Everyone, tell this blind guy what this is!”

    “Mushrooms!” The villagers unanimously called out, the chorus reverberating off the rooftops.

    “Hey!

    Fantastic!

    Look, Teacher Du, look!

    Here’s our village’s hero and savior!

    I told you he would make it!

    You agree, right?”

    Du Yueling nodded incessantly, her ponytail swinging vigorously, her dimples showing her captivating smile.

    She no longer cared to ponder why mushroom scraps could produce mushrooms or how such dense mushrooms could grow inside a hollow deadwood.

    She discarded all reasoning in her mind, only wanting to revel in the incredible joy this man brought at the moment.

    Sun Ke instantly panicked like someone with corns on his feet and boils on his buttocks, overwhelmed by how quickly Liu Hun had entirely turned things around, with the villagers of Wanbao Village rallying behind him so uniformly.

    “Not right!” Sun Ke suddenly realized something, his eyes fierce as he turned around and grabbed a lackey behind him, saying, “You double-crossing bastard!

    I told you to destroy the mushrooms, and you dared to tip off Liu Hun, telling him to watch out and hide them in the tree hole!

    Do you really have a death wish swirling in a cesspool?”

    “Brother Sun!

    No, no, no...

    I didn’t!

    I...

    I personally destroyed all the mushrooms as you ordered.

    I didn’t even see Liu Hun last night!” The lackey, terror-stricken with a pale face, told Sun Ke, shaking all over.

    “Look at you, dumb as a donkey, Liu Hun was fooling you!

    You fell for the bait without it even being fully laid out, with your stupid act, you even paid him and lost face here!” Bai Lian stood up at this moment, her face unable to hide her amusement.

    Qin Yue was puzzled where Bai Lian had been until she pulled her aside and learnt about last night’s events.

    And today, Liu Hun was cautious she might accidentally spill the beans, which would fail to lure out Sun Ke’s cunning nature.

    “Liu Hun!

    You damn tricked me?” Sun Ke, angry and frustrated, released the lackey he was holding and pointed at Liu Hun furiously.

    Liu Hun slightly smiled and said, “Yeah I damn tricked you, what’s it to you?

    You can’t win in a fair game, and you can’t play dirty either.

    Aren’t you just like a dogshit whip, neither smellable nor usable?”

    “I’ll destroy you!” Sun Ke, eyes bulging with anger, reached out to grab Liu Hun’s neck.

    There was no way Liu Hun would tolerate Sun Ke, this little worm, raising his voice at him.

    Qi Force surged into his hand, and he promptly grabbed Sun Ke’s wrist, twisting it fiercely.

    “Crack!” Bones distinctly snapped.

    The pain shot straight to his forehead.

    Sun Ke just opened his mouth to howl, but Liu Hun quickly moved, displacing Sun Ke’s jaw, “Shut your trap!”

    “Ouch, that twist sounded like twisting dough, that crispness is eerily discomforting!” Wang Dajiao couldn’t help but shiver, grateful Liu Hun had never been harsh with him.

    “Woo woo woo!” Sun Ke held his wrist, absolutely unable to shriek, only managing to hop agitatedly in place.

    “Hey!

    Look, the one who threw the first punch ended up getting handled.

    Everyone, doesn’t Sun Ke look just like a grasshopper?” Qin Yue smirked, having been quite scared by Sun Ke’s initial move.

    “Sun Ke, aren’t you just looking for trouble as if searching for it with a lantern in daylight?

    Let me tell you, our Brother Liu Hun can take on ten!” Gazi was brimming with excitement, just talking about it wasn’t enough.

    Eyeing Sun Ke’s rounded rear, he felt a ticklish urge in his foot and followed with a solid kick right there.