The Two Moneysexual Brothers

Bai Yao automatically ignored the question from the twin brothers Xiang Qian and Xiang Hou. Right now, their offer to pay him back with their bodies was less interesting than the juicy gossip about Dong Aiguo.

As for Xiang Qian and Xiang Hou, neither thought there was anything wrong with what they had just done. What village didn't have cases like this? The educated youths were the same.

Whether they liked men or women mattered less to them than staying alive.

Of course, the main reason was that neither of them found the idea repulsive. After seeing what happened between Dong Aiguo and Zhang Dashu, the two of them had come face-to-face with that sort of thing.

But would the two of them be getting the short end of the stick by choosing Bai Yao?

They hadn't considered it. After all, Bai Yao was the best choice available to them now.

At first, Bai Yao hadn't known what the brothers were thinking, but as he learned more about them, he came to understand the difficulties they now faced.

Xiang Qian and Xiang Hou were the third and fourth children in their family. Above them were two older twin brothers, and below them were two younger twin brothers and twin sisters.

All Bai Yao could say was that the Xiang family's twin genes were truly powerful.

But for the Xiang family, the good reputation that came with having twins wasn't enough to put food on the table or clothes on their backs. Having so many children had even made them a well-known poverty-stricken household.

So, as far as the Xiang parents were concerned, the only child they valued was their eldest, who could support them in their old age, with the second son thrown in for good measure.

As for the remaining children, whatever happened to them was fine, as long as they didn't die.

They didn't care about those children's futures. In the Xiang parents' words, children and grandchildren had their own blessings.

Simply put, once Xiang Qian and Xiang Hou were old enough to understand, they knew they had been given up on.

In those days, if you weren't in school and didn't have a job, going to the countryside was the only possible outcome. It was also the only path to survival the brothers could see, so they signed up.

Although the two brothers had fulfilled their family's quota for going to the countryside, their family hadn't prepared any luggage for them. Instead, their parents had taken half their resettlement allowance, saying it was the money the brothers would pay to support them for the rest of their lives.

Or, rather, the price of severing family ties.

Life without money was hard. Even though expenses in the countryside weren't as high as in the city, after the brothers bought a few necessities, only a few mao of their resettlement allowance remained.

A single coin could stump a hero. Those words were true.

So throughout their year in the countryside, the brothers had pinched every penny. Yet even with all that frugality, their lives hadn't improved, and they were still in dire straits.

That was why they loved money. Only with money could they live better.

But earning money was too hard, and living a little better was too hard as well.

After a full year of backbreaking work, the money they received wasn't enough for the two of them to live like human beings.

Even this time, though they hadn't eaten meat in over a year, they couldn't bear to keep so much as a taste of the meat they had hunted.

Under those circumstances, they felt they could see the end of their lives at a glance.

Perhaps the next time they went hunting for money would be the end of them.

"The venison we sold you, the two of us risked our lives to bring it back. But the money we got for it isn't even enough to buy all the thick bedding and other things we need for the winter," Xiang Qian, the older twin, said flatly as he pedaled the bicycle.

Bai Yao listened without speaking.

He wasn't a good person. He was quite selfish.

Still, he had a little kindness for people who hadn't provoked him.

From their words, Bai Yao could hear their numbness toward life and their despair for the future.

It was the despair of seeing no way out.

Bai Yao even thought that if they hadn't still had each other to worry about, the two of them would probably have broken the law by now.

All right, when it came down to it, Bai Yao thought the brothers were pretty decent. He could keep them around for the time being and observe them. If their character passed muster, he would take them on as his two underlings.

After all, Kong Wu was his business partner. He had to think about the future.

"You two want to follow my lead?" Bai Yao asked.

Paying him back with their bodies was just another way of saying they wanted to follow him.

As for the twins' alternative service, would Bai Yao be tempted?

Obviously not. He didn't like relationships without feelings.

Simply put, he had the heart of a thief but not the nerve, and he was something of a psychological clean freak.

"Yeah, following your lead is fine, and paying you back with our bodies is fine too. We just want to live a good life."

Bai Yao: ...

What was this?

Did they have to bring up paying him back with their bodies?

Was he coveting their good looks, or were they coveting his?

If they really did pay him back with their bodies, wouldn't they be the ones taking advantage of him?

"Forget about paying me back with your bodies. Doing that without feelings is called rape," Bai Yao replied. Not wanting to discuss the subject any further, he changed it.

"Can you tell me why you two chose me instead of the other educated youths? The other newcomers have plenty of money too."

At that, the twins fell silent for a while before saying, "They're... troublesome."

Bai Yao: ???

"How are they troublesome?" Bai Yao asked, curious.

"Educated Youth Gu has been in contact with the people in the cowshed. Educated Youth Jiang has been in contact with the town's hooligans. Educated Youth Hu... is pretty innocent."

As for why they hadn't mentioned Kong Wu, that went without saying. Over the past two days, they had already noticed that Kong Wu followed Bai Yao's lead.

Bai Yao: ...

Good grief. The brothers looked so antisocial, so how did they know everything?

He himself had only just learned about Jiang Rou, yet they already knew?

Honestly, Bai Yao thought the brothers had been born in the wrong era. If they had been born a few decades earlier, they would have done very well for themselves.

But...

"Doesn't that give you leverage over them? With that in your hands, it would be easy to get money out of them," Bai Yao continued to probe.

"We wouldn't dare." As he spoke, Xiang Qian stopped the bicycle and switched places with Xiang Hou, who took over pedaling.

Once he was settled, Xiang Qian, the older brother, continued, "My brother and I aren't exactly good people, but we have our own principles. We just want to earn money through our own efforts, without stealing or robbing. We can spend money like that with a clear conscience."

Those words made Bai Yao see them in a new light. He was already quite satisfied with that bottom line.

Just then, Xiang Qian spoke again, this time with a hint of laughter in his voice.

"And the most important thing is, we're afraid that if we really did threaten them, we'd end up dead in the mountains one day. From Dong Aiguo, we learned how easy it is for a smart person to set someone up. And for rich, well-connected people like you, it's even easier to hurt someone."

"If I can, I still want to see Xiang Hou get married."

Xiang Qian's final, heartfelt words moved Xiang Hou so much that his voice trembled as he called out, "Brother."

Bai Yao rolled his eyes. "You were just dragging your little brother along to pay me back with your bodies. If you really did that, fat chance your brother would ever get a wife."

"Educated Youth Bai, we'd only be paying you back with our bodies. It's not like we'd be living our lives with you. Why couldn't we get wives?"

Bai Yao: ...

Good grief. He had been overthinking it. He had thought they really wanted him, but it turned out they only wanted his money.

Moneysexual. That was fine.

When Bai Yao fell silent, genuine shock flashed in Xiang Qian's eyes, followed by hesitation.

A few seconds later, Xiang Qian asked quietly, "Educated Youth Bai, how about I follow you, and you leave Xiang Hou out of it? Would that be all right?"

Bai Yao immediately rolled his eyes and cursed, "Get lost. You're still being picky? I don't even fancy either of you. You want to follow my lead? Fine. First pay me back the meat you owe me, and then I'll help you both make money. Let me make this clear: I only want chickens and rabbits."

The brothers were delighted and immediately agreed.

Perhaps he was too happy, because Xiang Qian once again spoke in a frivolous tone. "Then... Educated Youth Bai, how about I pay you back with my body? I guarantee you'll think it's more than worth the money."

"Get lost and shut your mouth!"