Volume 1 Chapter 6: Mastering Everything

Chen Yang knew how to play the guitar, but he lacked any real talent for songwriting. This song, "Ten Thousand Years a Day," was a track by a singer he had admired in his past life, which he now used to show off.

Judging by the reactions of the crowd once the song ended, the display had been a success. It was hardly surprising; he possessed thirty years of memory that they lacked. If he couldn't show off with that kind of advantage, he might as well have been reborn as a chicken and died with his head tucked away.

"Little brother, that's how you play a guitar!"

With that, he tossed the instrument back to Ma Junkai, who was still standing there in shock. He then walked over to Huang Zhiyao and said, "Wife, make sure you eat well. I didn't have much experience yesterday, so I was a bit rough. Drink plenty of that chicken soup to build up your strength."

What kind of brazen, tiger-wolf words were these?

Huang Zhiyao’s face flushed red instantly, the scene from the previous day flickering in her mind. Even though she had been slightly intoxicated at the time, she still remembered the intensity of the encounter. As Chen Yang had said, she had expended quite a bit of energy. Her legs had been aching as she walked to work today. But how could he say such things in front of everyone? What would they think of her if they heard this?

"You... you hooligan!"

Huang Zhiyao turned red, struggling for a long time before blurting out what she considered to be her most imposing insult.

"If a man isn't a hooligan, he’s not a real man! Heh, be a good girl and listen. Two days from now at this time, dress up beautifully; I’ll bring people over to propose. By the way, this is no small matter. Do you want to tell your family? Let your parents come and witness this historic moment? You know, the mandates of parents and the words of matchmakers!"

Chen Yang knew that Huang Zhiyao did not have a good relationship with her parents; in his previous life, they hadn't seemed particularly grieved after her suicide. Why their relationship was so strained, however, Chen Yang did not know.

"There's no need. Do you have anything else? If not, then leave!"

As expected, the mention of her parents made Huang Zhiyao’s expression darken. Seeming to want no further conversation, she issued an order to leave. Chen Yang was anxious to get back and see how the mushroom harvesting was going, otherwise, he would have lingered to tease her a bit longer. He took this opportunity to step off the ledge she had provided.

"I’m heading back now. Think of me!"

He turned and prepared to board the bicycle driven by Li Cheng.

"Chen Yang, do you think you can just leave like this? What do you take me, Ma Junkai, for?"

Just then, Ma Junkai blocked his path. He handed his guitar to another educated youth, looking murderous.

"Who do you think you are? Get lost, I'm busy!" Chen Yang said impatiently. This loser wanted to pursue his wife? In his dreams.

"You stole my guitar, you snatched my lover—is there no justice? No law? Chen Yang, I’m going to fight you one-on-one!"

*Thwack!*

Before he could finish his sentence, Chen Yang delivered a swift kick to his crotch. The poor educated youth clutched his private parts and collapsed to the ground, howling in agony.

"One-on-one? Fight your mother! Do you really think you're a cowboy from the Wild West? Moron!"

Spitting on the ground, Chen Yang hopped onto the back of the bicycle. With Li Cheng pedaling hard, the two bumped and rattled away from the youth settlement.

"How has this little brat changed so much?" Chen Ying knew her brother best, but the Chen Yang she just saw felt like a stranger. He was the same person, but his temperament and the way he handled things had become utterly unfamiliar. Furthermore, since when did he know how to play the guitar? He carried himself with an unusual air of dominance.

"That's your brother, don't you know him?" Huang Zhiyao shot a glance at Chen Ying. She didn't even look at Ma Junkai, who was still clutching his crotch on the ground, and turned to walk toward the dormitory. Inside, however, she felt a sweet warmth. What kind of surprise would this guy bring her in two days? She found herself actually looking forward to it.

"Brother Yang, hitting someone while they're not looking isn't something a real dog would do! A loser like Ma Junkai, I could take him twice over with one hand. You should have just let me beat him up; why the sneak attack?" Li Cheng asked while pedaling.

"I don't have time to waste on him. Right now, I only have one goal: make money. I want to marry Zhiyao in style, everything else is just nonsense. Let's hurry back and see how the mushroom picking is going. We have to head to the county early tomorrow."

Chen Yang didn't have the time to deal with idiots like Ma Junkai. His mission was to hustle for money. With only two days left, time was tight and the task was heavy.

"Brother Yang, take me to the county tomorrow, won't you? Let me broaden my horizons!" Hearing they were going to the county, Li Cheng immediately forgot about Ma Junkai. In this era, a trip to the county seat was a luxury, and Li Cheng longed for it.

"Not in the next few days. Your real job is to get me more mushrooms. After I successfully propose, I'll take you to the county to have a good time. By the way, tell your father I need the horse cart again tomorrow."

He had told them to pick mushrooms quite late today, so he wasn't sure how much they would get. Tomorrow, he planned to have Li Cheng and the others start earlier.

"Brother, you use the horse cart every day. Even if my dad lets you, the production team won't agree, right? This is going to be hard to manage," Li Cheng said, sounding troubled. If it were just a day or two, it would be fine, but long-term, others would surely have complaints. Even his father, Li Zhiquan, wouldn't be able to quell the public anger. He felt it necessary to warn Chen Yang.

"Don't worry, I'll make the production team lend us the cart willingly," Chen Yang said with a smile. The members he had hired to pick mushrooms were all children of the production team’s minor officials. Once he gave them some money tomorrow, these brats would surely go home and show off. When their parents saw that even these layabouts could make money, wouldn't they be thrilled? Forget borrowing a horse cart; they’d probably lend him their own wives if he asked.

In these times, women were treated like men, and men were treated like beasts of burden. The production team not having a cart wouldn't make a huge impact. So, there was nothing to worry about. If one yuan per person didn't achieve the desired effect, he would offer two. That was a "huge sum" of money, and by then, the cart would be as good as his own.

From the moment of his rebirth, Chen Yang had been prepared to take control of everything.