Chapter Ninety: Li Ying Arrives

Xiao Li had sprained her ankle and could not walk home.

"Brother Le'er, could you carry me home, please?"

Xiao Li looked at Le'er with teary eyes. Tao You-neng nudged Le'er with his shoulder, but Le'er just frowned.

"Are you unwilling to carry me?" Xiao Li tried to struggle to her feet, but stumbled and fell back down. "Ouch, it hurts so much. You guys go on ahead, don't worry about me."

"Le'er, you bastard, how can you have no sympathy for a girl at all?" Tao You-neng feigned anger. "Has your heart been eaten by a dog?"

"Uh... then why don't you carry her?"

"Me... the fact that you can even say that shows you really are a blockhead."

"Brother You-neng will carry me." Lili immediately jumped onto Tao You-neng's back. "Right, Brother You-neng?"

"Yeah, I'll carry Lili... haha, let's go."

With that, Tao You-neng carried Lili away, her happy laughter drifting through the overgrown grass. Xiao Li's eyes turned red, and she tried to stand up again.

"Fine... I'll carry you..."

Watching Tao You-neng and Lili head off into the distance, Le'er sighed, crouched down, and let Xiao Li climb onto his back. As she settled in, a sly smile appeared on her face.

"Le'er, am I very ugly?" Xiao Li whispered, leaning against his back.

"Not at all, you're very pretty."

Le'er felt flustered carrying such a beauty. He was no saint, and certainly not a man of iron-willed virtue; the feel of her soft body against his back was stimulating his senses. She wasn't heavy, and carrying her was effortless, but the sensation made him break into a sweat. In particular, the way his hands had to cup her buttocks and upper thighs was agonizing.

The problem was that Xiao Li wasn't sitting still. She wrapped her arms around his neck, stretched her head forward, and pressed her delicate cheek against his. Her girlish scent left him dizzy and distracted, and his lower regions reacted strongly, straining against his trousers.

"You don't seem to like me very much, then." Xiao Li breathed softly, her voice like an orchid.

"It's not that I don't like you, it's that I don't dare to." Le'er was already feeling pent up, and her constant chatter didn't help. "Damn it, can you stop moving?"

Le'er couldn't help but curse. Although it was their usual way of speaking, he was always careful not to use coarse language with a town girl. Instead of stopping, Xiao Li wiggled upward, giggling. This movement caused her breasts to rub against his back, and the pressure on his abdomen sent a rush of hot blood through him; he almost lost control.

"I will move. Why, are you going to drop me?"

She hugged him tighter, pressing her face closer. Annoyed, Le'er started to jog, bouncing her as he ran, but Xiao Li only laughed all the more. By the time they reached home, many people had watched them with strange expressions on their faces. Le'er blushed, but Xiao Li seemed completely oblivious, laughing and enjoying herself the entire way.

Feeling genuinely provoked, Le'er let his hands, which were supporting Xiao Li's weight, roam freely over her thighs. He traced the curve of her buttocks, moving toward the most sensitive place.

"Ugh..." When her most intimate spot was touched, Xiao Li, still a virgin, instantly felt a burning heat. Overwhelmed by shame, she blushed to the roots of her ears. "Sha Le'er, where are you touching!"

She bit down on his ear.

"Ugh..."

"Dare to touch me again, and I'll bite you to death."

Xiao Li was both ashamed and furious, and she bit down hard enough to leave tooth marks on Le'er's ear. Le'er had to behave himself, though he was secretly delighted, and all sorts of wicked thoughts began to stir in his mind.

"If you dare to mess around again, see if I don't deal with you properly." Le'er smirked. "Hehe... such a soft spot."

"You wouldn't dare..." Xiao Li was mortified. "You bad thing, you big jerk, if you touch me again, I'll bite your ear off!"

The two of them bickered until they reached home. When Le'er set Xiao Li down in a chair, she unexpectedly stood right back up.

"Hey, my foot doesn't hurt anymore."

Xiao Li's eyes twinkled with mischief, her face full of triumph.

"You... were you playing me?" Le'er realized he'd been tricked. "Damn it, you didn't even sprain your ankle, did you?"

"Uh... it was sprained at first, but it's better now." Xiao Li smiled charmingly. "You carried a great beauty, yet you act like you were the one who lost out. Are you trying to have your cake and eat it too?"

Le'er was speechless, forced into a wry smile. These girls were becoming more cunning by the day; he felt like he couldn't keep up with the times. Watching Tao You-neng and Lili acting affectionately, he shook his head, thinking that having never spent time in high school, he really couldn't understand the minds of modern girls.

After finally sending Tao You-neng and the others off, he thought he could breathe a sigh of relief, but then Tao Haiying showed up.

"Uh... Tao Haiying, what brings you here?"

Tao Haiying’s expression was sour, as if she were angry with someone.

"I heard Xiao Li came to look for you? And you carried her?"

"Yeah... what do you mean by that?" Le'er looked at her. "That doesn't seem to have anything to do with you, does it?"

"It doesn't have anything to do with me, but how can you even look at a slut like her?" Tao Haiying’s face went pale. "She’s had at least a whole platoon of boyfriends. She’s the biggest tramp in our school."

"Whether she's a tramp or not, what does that have to do with me?"

"If it doesn't concern you, why did you carry her?"

Tao Haiying rolled her eyes at him, looking a bit happier.

"She said she sprained her ankle, what's the big deal about carrying her for a bit?" Le'er teased. "How about you sprain your ankle, and I'll carry you too?"

"Go to hell." Tao Haiying finally laughed. "I'm not like that tramp, she has no shame. Who knows how many boys have carried her before."

After finally seeing Tao Haiying off, Le'er muttered to himself, thinking these girls were all acting crazy. It was fortunate that Luo Yinxiang had gone to Guangdong, or there would have been even more trouble.

In the following days, he discussed the land lease with Feng Shuya. Party Secretary Tao joined them, and they went to Snake Coil Mountain twice to survey the area. There were several plots of land at the foot of the mountain that the villagers had reclaimed privately, which would need to be reclaimed. There were also three ponds, originally dug for water use by the brigade's garden, with a small stream flowing nearby that could be used to fill them. The ponds were abandoned but seemed to contain fish; it was unclear if someone had stocked them, but if so, that would also need to be resolved. Secretary Tao took charge of these matters.

Secretary Tao and Director Feng held a meeting with the village group leaders to discuss the plan.

"Le'er, you wild kid, you're doing something big this time. You're going to make a fortune."

"Yeah, you wild kid, don't forget us when you get rich."

Le'er just smiled. The land lease was essentially finalized; Le'er would have free use of this barren mountain for fifty years. Although some people were jealous and had different opinions, Secretary Tao mentioned it was the suggestion of Secretary Huang from the town, so those with complaints dared not voice them. Once decided, the contract had to be signed.

Secretary Huang from the town arrived to witness the signing in person.

"Le'er, work hard." Secretary Huang patted Le'er's shoulder warmly before turning to Feng Shuya and Secretary Tao. "This poverty-alleviation project was initiated by Director Feng herself. It will become a landmark enterprise for our county's poverty relief efforts. Old Secretary, you must support Director Feng's work. I offer you my congratulations."

"Don't worry, Secretary Huang, I will definitely provide my full support."

"With Secretary Huang's concern and Secretary Tao's support, I am confident this project will succeed and contribute to the poverty alleviation of this region." Feng Shuya smiled calmly. "Of course, the protagonist is Sha Le'er. We can only support him; whether it succeeds or not depends entirely on him."

Le'er didn't speak, just smiled honestly.

Just then, his mobile phone rang. It rarely rang, and few people knew his number—only Secretary Huang, Feng Shuya, and Director Xie of the police station, Xie Dapao. Le'er quickly took out his phone; it was an unfamiliar number.

"Le'er, who is calling you?" Feng Shuya asked, sensitive to the situation. "Is it your sister from Guangzhou?"

"I don't know, I haven't seen this number before."

Le'er shook his head. He hesitated to answer, but fearing it might actually be Li Ying, he pressed the receive button.

"Le'er..."

Hearing that voice, Le'er froze. It was a very familiar voice, a very affectionate voice, and one he had dreamed of hearing.

"Sister Ying... is that you?"

"Of course it's me." Le'er heard Li Ying's laughter. "Come and pick me up, I can't find the road to your village."

"Where are you?"

Le'er was so excited his hand holding the phone began to tremble.

"I'm in your Shuangqiao Town." The voice on the phone was beautiful. "I'm driving. Is there a road to your village?"

"Yes... I'll come to pick you up right away."

Le'er’s face was flushed with excitement. He hung up and looked at the excited Feng Shuya beside him; she seemed even more thrilled than he was.

"Le'er, is it really your sister from Guangzhou? Go pick her up quickly."

"Yeah... I'm going."

"Le'er's sister..." Secretary Huang didn't know about this, and only Feng Shuya knew that Le'er had a foster sister in Guangzhou who was an expert in snake farming. However, seeing the expressions on Le'er and Feng Shuya's faces, Secretary Huang realized that this was an important person and quickly turned to his driver. "Little Huang, drive Le'er to town."

"Secretary Huang, I'll go along to pick her up, too. Please wait for a while."

Feng Shuya was also desperate to meet Sha Le'er's sister. This snake farming project wasn't just about her own future, but also tied to her father, Secretary Feng. Having an expert in snake farming would significantly increase the chances of the project's success.