Chapter 89: Yu Deng and I, It’s Mutual Consent
There were four trucks in the shed in total, but judging by the shed’s size, there should have been a few more.
The trucks came in two sizes. One was exceptionally large, and the other was a bit smaller. The large ones were generally used by factories or construction sites.
Zhou Yuejun pointed at the smaller one. “For a short-term rental on this kind, how much is it per day?”
Lao San kicked away a wolfdog that had run over and was barking madly at He Yuan. “Settle down. How many days are you renting for?”
Zhou Yuejun’s appearance was cold and sharp, the tips of his narrow phoenix eyes like blades. “Three or four days. No more than five at the latest.”
The goods source was near the coast. A round trip would take about three days.
He had discussed a partnership with the garment factory last time. There shouldn’t be any issues going this time, and he could discuss autumn clothing while he was at it.
Furthermore, he could look at other goods, such as shoes and small accessories.
He also had to make time to bring some things back for Yu Deng.
Lao San considered it, glancing a couple of times at Zhou Yuejun and He Yuan. “What are you renting the truck to transport? Is it safe?”
He Yuan circled the truck. “It’s safe. We’re just going to—”
“Doing business, selling some clothes. Going to Lucheng. Not near the border, and not all the way to the coast.”
He Yuan was interrupted by Zhou Yuejun. He quickly clamped his mouth shut, his not-so-alert eyes glancing sideways as he listened to Zhou Yuejun negotiate.
Lao San nodded in understanding. “This small one is thirty-five a day.”
“Thirty-five?!”
He Yuan couldn’t hold back and exclaimed in shock.
His eyes nearly bulged out. Holding up three fingers, his gaze toward Zhou Yuejun trembled.
Zhou Yuejun nodded slightly, signaling to He Yuan that there was no problem.
Lao San: “You were called here by the guy who used to work at the construction site, so you should be clear that short-term and long-term rentals are different.”
Short-term was expensive, long-term was cheap. The large trucks the construction site rented long-term before were thirty a day.
“Also, you have to pay a deposit—twelve hundred—and we have to see your IDs.”
Twelve hundred… how much less inventory would they be able to buy?
He Yuan couldn’t calm down. He walked over and yanked Zhou Yuejun’s arm. His gaze and grimacing expression screamed three words: Is this reliable?
Twelve hundred was no small sum. Handing it over to someone else, he wouldn’t even dare to close his eyes.
Facing the skepticism, Lao San wasn’t surprised. He didn’t get angry, sticking to his usual pitch.
“It’s legitimate. We have a company seal, and we’ll sign a contract and stamp fingerprints with you.”
Zhou Yuejun had already asked Wu Da. Wu Da had always rented trucks from this company for three or four years.
Besides, he had just looked. The tires on those trucks all had mud on them—old mud and new mud. It was clear they were frequently driven out.
Zhou Yuejun patted He Yuan on the shoulder. “I’ll cover the deposit. You go test drive the truck.”
He Yuan wasn’t the kind of person who only shared blessings but shrank from hardships.
“Half and half!”
He had absolute trust in Zhou Yuejun. He was just being overly cautious, afraid of being scammed by others.
But in business, the bold die of overeating, and the timid die of starvation.
Zhou Yuejun made the final decision. “Pay proportionally.”
It would save He Yuan from having too little principal on hand, making splitting the profits difficult to calculate later.
A group of four arrived at the truck lot. Seeing Zhou Yuejun and He Yuan, they enthusiastically came forward to greet them.
“Are you two brothers also going to transport goods? Where are you heading? Are we going the same way?”
“If we’re going the same way, we can catch a ride. Splitting the cost will be cheaper than doing it alone.”
He Yuan was test-driving the truck. His mind was clear now: when Zhou Yuejun was negotiating, he didn’t need to run his mouth. Zhou Yuejun had his own ideas; he just needed to listen.
Lao San’s expression wasn’t great, but for the sake of business, he couldn’t tear off his face and lash out.
Zhou Yuejun cast a dark, detached glance, so cold it kept people at bay. “No need. The truck is small; it can’t fit anything else.”
Zhou Yuejun naturally carried a hint of fierce menace, and his cold, hard attitude made it clear he wasn’t someone to mess with. Seeing that negotiations had failed, the group dropped the idea.
After finishing negotiations with Lao San’s group, Zhou Yuejun settled on the rental time. He would pay the deposit when he came to pick up the truck next week.
Leaving the truck lot, He Yuan still couldn’t accept it, his mouth running like an open faucet.
“Thirty-five a day. A day with this truck is worth seven days of my work at the welding factory!”
Prices in a small county couldn’t compare to the city. He Yuan had just come out. Although he had made some money, his mindset was still rooted in the small county, always comparing the two.
Zhou Yuejun held his patience. “That’s just the price. Machines are more expensive than manual labor right now.”
Three workers at the construction site barely equated to one large truck.
He Yuan was full of misgivings. “Then will they take the money and run? Look at them…”
To be cautious, He Yuan even looked back, grabbing Zhou Yuejun’s shoulder to whisper.
“They don’t look like good people.”
Zhou Yuejun’s eyes darkened. He paused for a moment before his thin lips moved. “I tested the waters just now. When he heard about going to the coast, he was even more resistant than we are.”
It seemed they had long since washed their hands of the underworld and had absolutely no desire to get involved in any dirty business.
He and He Yuan were paying the deposit proportionally. He Yuan was paying less. Even if someone really absconded with the money, he could afford to compensate him.
“Then why didn’t we go stock up with that group just now? They’re also heading to the coast. Back and forth, we could have saved a lot of money.”
He Yuan was only half a year older than Yu Deng and a year younger than Zhou Yuejun. Plus, unlike Zhou Yuejun, whose parents had passed away, he was ignorant of many of society’s twists and turns.
Since Zhou Yuejun was going into business with He Yuan, he naturally had to explain the dangers clearly to him.
“A chance encounter isn’t safe. If you don’t judge people clearly, it’s very easy to be set up and suffer a huge loss.”
“Those looking fierce and wicked won’t necessarily harm you, and those greeting you with a smile aren’t all good people either.”
Zhou Yuejun’s appearance was a bit fierce and ruthless. He Yuan felt this deeply.
“Alright, I’ll definitely keep a sharper eye out in the future.”
He Yuan had habitually rested his hand on Zhou Yuejun’s shoulder. Suddenly realizing it, he yanked it back in a panic, a look of terror on his face.
“Should I keep my distance from you now? You are a man with a family now, after all.”
Zhou Yuejun had already told He Yuan that he and Yu Deng were together—they were a couple, and lived like husband and wife.
When He Yuan found out about this, he was so anxious he could have jumped.
He was worried about two men being together and having their spines poked by gossip, and he was also afraid that Yu Deng was scamming…
No, wait. Yu Deng was so well-behaved. Even though he had a bit of a temper and bossed Zhou Yuejun around, he was beautiful and lively, even prettier than the little fox spirits on TV.
He knew exactly who was taking advantage of whom.
“You punk, you’re not using the excuse of paying for his university to force him to be with you, are you?”
He Yuan felt it was nine times out of ten true. After all, Zhou Yuejun wasn’t some good guy; he was secretly wicked, his belly full of dirty tricks.
Zhou Yuejun only had a few words: “It’s mutual consent.”
Nonsense, they were true love.
In the end, He Yuan accepted it.
Yu Deng was a university student with a limitless future. Who wouldn’t want a beautiful and promising wife… husband?
No wonder. No wonder the two of them were living together and wouldn’t let him move in. If they actually let him live there, it would have been a huge mess.
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