The Second Batch of Goods, Costing 21,000 Yuan (Requesting Monthly Tickets)
Fang Bai left Dagangyou Solid Waste Recycling Company and found a nearby hotel to check into.
Back when he had no money, he had no choice but to pick shabby, unsanitary inns, and he had never dared use the toiletries inside.
If the sheets and quilts were unclean, lying on them made him feel uncomfortable all over.
Now that money was no longer an issue, he found a hotel with better hygiene.
There were not many hotels these days, and they were not cheap either. Some hotels were not even open to the public.
At eight o'clock the next morning,
Fang Bai went to Guoyun Convoy to rent a truck. The price was the same as before—500 yuan. He found the same driver from last time, Zhang Guoping, who happened to have no assignment that day.
After completing the paperwork, the two drove to the Porter Hiring Ground to recruit movers.
A half-day job cost four yuan, cheaper than last time. Fang Bai hired four men and provided lunch.
They drove to Dagangyou Solid Waste Recycling Company. Fang Bai settled the remaining balance, bought the motorcycles and refurbished parts he had picked out the previous afternoon, and had the movers load them onto the truck.
Then they went to Yaming Electronics Recycling Company, where he had bought televisions last time, and followed the same routine of selecting used TVs.
After more than three hours, Fang Bai had selected five hundred televisions, including four hundred color TVs.
The total cost came to around 21,000 yuan.
After paying and loading the goods, everything was packed up half an hour later.
It was noon by then. After Fang Bai paid the movers, he treated them and the driver to lunch.
After lunch and a short rest, he and the driver set off for Wen City.
Under normal circumstances, they could reach Wen City by four in the afternoon.
Fang Bai had been busy all afternoon the day before and had not taken a nap at noon. Sleepy and exhausted, he sat in the passenger seat and fell asleep shortly after the truck started moving.
In his daze, he did not know how long they had been driving. When Fang Bai woke up, he found that the truck had stopped.
"Brother Zhang, where are we now?"
"Yandang Mountain, Zhongzhuang Village. We're halfway there." Zhang Guoping frowned. "Boss Fang, I heard a pop just now. A tire might have been punctured. The truck feels different while driving, so I'll get out and check."
Hearing this, Fang Bai had a bad feeling, as though a dark cloud had settled over him. His expression turned serious. "All right. I'll get out and take a look too."
He checked the time. It was already past two in the afternoon.
The weather in Jiangnan Province was mild at the end of October, and winter arrived relatively late.
Mountains surrounded them, with only a few scattered farmhouses at the foot of the hills.
They were on National Highway 104, but this stretch of road was pitted and difficult to travel. There were not many vehicles on it.
The two unbuckled their seat belts, opened the doors, and got out. After circling the truck, the driver found that one tire on the rear axle had gone flat. A closer inspection revealed that it had been punctured by an irregularly shaped Triangle Nail.
Fang Bai checked it with his Golden Finger and confirmed that the tire had been punctured.
Truck tires were fairly thick. Under normal circumstances, even if they ran over a nail, they would not be punctured. But this nail was thick and had gone right into the gap in the tire tread, piercing the inner tube directly.
Seeing this, Fang Bai frowned. This return trip had been far too unlucky.
The area around them was rural, and the town ahead was still several kilometers away.
Fortunately, the rear axle had dual tires. With only one tire flat and their speed low, the truck would not overturn.
Otherwise, if the truck really did overturn, the televisions on board would be finished, and the losses would be severe.
Zhang Guoping checked the area and found another nail tossed by the roadside more than ten meters ahead. He immediately picked it up and threw it into the weeds by the road. Fury burned in his eyes as he cursed loudly:
"Damn it, these pieces of trash deliberately scattered nails here. What an ugly way to make money. Fuck them..."
Hearing the driver curse, Fang Bai, who had lived for decades in his previous life, quickly understood what Zhang Guoping meant.
They had deliberately scattered iron nails, and Triangle Nails at that. Vehicle tires could easily be punctured, and then they would charge people to repair them?
If there had only been one nail, it would have been hard to tell whether it had been intentional. But two nails, both Triangle Nails—it was obvious they had set a trap for truck drivers.
Zhang Guoping walked farther ahead for a while. Only after finding no more nails did he return.
Fang Bai tossed him a cigarette to help him calm down.
Zhang Guoping felt through his pockets, took out a match, and lit the cigarette. After exhaling a puff of smoke, he continued cursing.
Fang Bai was angry too, but he had seen plenty of storms and remained more composed. He calmly asked Zhang Guoping, "Can we repair it ourselves?"
"We can't. We don't have all the tools. It would be easier if we were traveling with a convoy.
I don't even have a spare tire anymore. After using the original spare, I never replaced it. Who would've thought something like this would happen? Damn it.
I heard from others in the business that someone deliberately scattered nails on this stretch of road. Who knew my truck would be the one to get hit? Damn it." Zhang Guoping cursed. He only ran short-distance routes and had not thought much of it, so he had not brought all his tools.
Besides, there was only a small jack on the truck. With so much heavy cargo on board, how could they jack it up?
Even if they took the tire off, there was no spare to replace it with. They could only patch it.
Luckily, the puncture was on the tread. If it had been on the sidewall, they could only replace the tire with a new one.
What bastards!
"Looks like we can only let those assholes repair it."
"Yeah, it's their territory. Our truck got punctured, so we can only accept our bad luck. It just depends on how greedy they are.
This is already not too bad. At least they didn't stop us and rob us outright. In more remote places, that might really happen. I wouldn't dare go there without a convoy. Damn it, what rotten luck.
I'd rather they stopped us and demanded a toll."
"Should we slowly drive to a repair shop, or call someone over to fix it?"
"The cargo is heavy, and the road ahead isn't great. This is a single rear axle. If it had dual rear axles, or if the punctured tire were the inner one, I'd drive directly to the next repair shop and refuse to let those bastards make a cent.
But now it's the outer tire that's flat, so the two sides are unbalanced. We should be safer and stay put."
"Mm, then I'll watch the truck. You go find a mechanic. I still have an unopened pack of cigarettes—take it. When you're out here, endure what you can." Fang Bai tossed the driver an unopened pack of cigarettes. Zhang Guoping accepted it without ceremony, since it might come in handy, and reminded Fang Bai not to cause trouble.
"All right. Stay in the truck."
After saying that, the driver walked toward the front, still cursing under his breath.
Fang Bai watched the driver's retreating figure, deep in thought.
He did not want to take risks. Even though he had lived several more decades, Zhang Guoping had driven for many years and had more experience dealing with this kind of situation.
If the driver had suggested causing trouble, Fang Bai definitely would not have let him go.
This was not their territory. They could not outplay the locals. Having been reborn, Fang Bai did not want to act recklessly.
If something happened to him, Qin Shuyu and his family would be the ones suffering in this life.
Transportation was not safe in this era either. Some places had a more violent local culture, and stopping vehicles to collect tolls was not uncommon.
Gold was everywhere, but public security was not very good.
Fang Bai had to watch out for such things with every step he took now. He would rather earn less money than get involved with the underworld.
Of course, if someone provoked him, he would have to be ruthless when the time came.
Half an hour passed, but Fang Bai still had not seen Zhang Guoping return. He began to worry.
Damn it, don't let anything happen to him. That would be troublesome.
Another ten minutes passed, and Zhang Guoping still had not returned. Fang Bai's frown deepened.
"Damn, he didn't get his kidneys stolen, did he?"
He was only joking. They probably would not steal his kidneys, but there might be some conflict.
Before leaving, though, the driver had said he would not cause trouble, even if he kept cursing.
Thinking of that made Fang Bai even more worried.
Brother Zhang, keep your temper under control and don't get into a fight. I still have cargo in this truck.
Before you continue