sbdcsierra Chapter 509 Then let's wait and see.
Chapter 509 Then let's wait and see.
After a busy morning, Li Xiangyang looked at the mountains of goods piled up in the purchasing station, his feelings complicated. Although business was booming, the theft last night still lingered in his mind.
"Xiangyang, we need to go to town," Wang Ergou said, wiping his sweat. "We can't delay this theft prevention any longer."
“Okay,” Li Xiangyang nodded, “Anyway, Wei Ping and the others are at the station, let’s go buy some security grilles.”
The two drove the Jiefang truck straight to the hardware store in town.
"Mr. Li, what kind of security grille do you need?" The hardware store owner greeted him warmly.
Li Xiangyang carefully examined the various sizes of wire mesh: "It needs to be sturdy; it must be installed on windows and doors."
"Look at this one, the wire is thicker, the mesh is smaller," the shopkeeper explained. "It's just a bit pricey, eight yuan per square meter."
Wang Ergou gasped, "So expensive?"
“You get what you pay for,” Li Xiangyang waved his hand. “Safety is more important than anything else. Let’s calculate the total price based on our dimensions.”
The shopkeeper took out his abacus and started clicking away: "The doors and windows together will cost fifteen square meters, that'll be one hundred and twenty yuan."
Li Xiangyang didn't haggle and paid on the spot: "Deliver it to the village first thing tomorrow morning. Installation fee is separate."
On the way back to the village, Wang Ergou felt a pang of heartache: "This cost over a hundred yuan in one go; the thief didn't steal this much last night."
“Prevention is better than cure,” Li Xiangyang said, gripping the steering wheel with a determined look. “Besides, we're handling about a thousand yuan worth of goods every day, so this investment is worthwhile.”
When Li Xiangyang got home that evening, he told Li Xiaoyun about buying the security grilles.
“I’m willing to spend any amount of money,” Li Xiaoyun said worriedly, “but I’m afraid those thieves will hold a grudge against you, what if…”
"Don't worry, the sky won't fall," Li Xiangyang reassured him. "We'll install security bars tomorrow and arrange for someone to stand guard tonight. Everything will be fine."
The next morning, the hardware store technician arrived with the security grilles. He worked for most of the day, installing the security grilles on all the doors and windows of the recycling station.
"Now that's great, not even flies can get in," Zhang Weiping joked.
Li Xiangyang, however, remained vigilant. He knew that once there was a first time, there would be a second, and passive defense alone was not enough.
That night, Li Xiangyang and Wang Ergou took turns working the night shift at the purchasing station.
Late at night, Li Xiangyang was dozing off at the station when he suddenly heard a slight noise outside.
He quietly got up and looked out through the crack in the window. In the moonlight, several dark figures were wandering around in the courtyard.
"Here we go again," Li Xiangyang thought with a cold laugh, tiptoeing to the back door.
Three masked men were examining the security bars on the windows. One of them whispered, "This thing is sturdy; it won't be easy to deal with."
"Stop talking nonsense," another gruff voice said. "They succeeded so easily last time, they'll definitely be more careful this time. Let's just break in."
Li Xiangyang recognized the voice; it was Er Laizi from the neighboring Dongshan Village, a lazy bum who had a lot of petty thefts.
"Dream on," Li Xiangyang thought to himself, gritting his teeth.
He quietly pushed open the back door, went around to the back of the yard, and then shouted, "Who's there! Stop right there!"
At the same time, he turned on his flashlight and shone it directly at them.
The three thieves were blinded by the sudden light and hurriedly ran outside.
Li Xiangyang was prepared; he rushed forward and grabbed the last runner.
"Don't run!" He pulled hard, and the man fell face-first into the mud.
The other two, seeing their accomplice arrested, ran away without a second thought.
Li Xiangyang shone his flashlight on the face of the person who had been arrested, and sure enough, it was a stranger.
"Tell me, where are you from?" Li Xiangyang demanded.
The man trembled with fear: "Brother, spare us! We just...we just wanted to get something..."
"Stealing something? Stealing and you call it so elegant?" Li Xiangyang sneered. "Weren't you here the night before last too?"
The man stammered and dared not speak.
Just then, Wang Ergou, hearing the commotion, ran over: "What happened? Did they catch him?"
“We caught one, but two escaped,” Li Xiangyang said. “That kid’s stubborn and won’t tell the truth.”
Wang Ergou stepped forward for a closer look: "Hey, isn't this Little Ma from Xihe Village? I know you!"
The thief called Little Ma's expression changed: "Brother Er Gou, you...you've mistaken me for someone else."
"Still pretending?" Wang Ergou slapped him on the head. "Do you think I'm blind? Everyone in your village knows what kind of good deeds you've done!"
Seeing that he could no longer hide it, Xiao Ma had no choice but to confess: "Yes...yes, I am Ma Youtian from Xihe Village."
"Did you do what happened the night before last?" Li Xiangyang pressed.
Ma Youtian nodded vigorously: "Yes, it's us. Brother, please don't report us to the authorities, we'll return the goods."
"Where is the stuff?"
“It’s…hidden in my house.” Ma Youtian said with a mournful face, “I’ll bring it back first thing tomorrow morning.”
Li Xiangyang and Wang Ergou exchanged a glance, both feeling that there was something fishy about the matter.
"Just the three of you? No one else instructed you?" Li Xiangyang continued to ask.
Ma Youtian hesitated for a moment, then finally shook his head: "No, it's just the three of us who are envious of your business."
Li Xiangyang felt that he was lying, but he couldn't get any more information out of him for the time being.
“Okay, return the things exactly as they were tomorrow morning,” Li Xiangyang released him. “If even a single hair is missing, I’ll send you to the police station.”
Ma Youtian felt as if he had been granted a pardon and ran away as fast as he could.
"Are we just going to let him go like that?" Wang Ergou was somewhat unwilling.
“Let’s play the long game,” Li Xiangyang said thoughtfully. “I have a feeling this isn’t as simple as it seems. Let’s see what they bring back tomorrow; maybe we can follow the trail.”
The next morning, Ma Youtian indeed arrived with two other people, dejectedly returning all the stolen goods.
Li Xiangyang carefully checked and found that everything was indeed there and well preserved, clearly indicating that it had not been sold.
"Don't let me see you again," Li Xiangyang warned. "If I catch you again, hand you over to the authorities immediately."
The three nodded repeatedly and slunk away.
After seeing the three thieves off, Li Xiangyang was even more puzzled. Logically, shouldn't thieves quickly sell their stolen goods for money? Why were they left untouched at home?
"Ergou, do you think there's anything strange about this?" Li Xiangyang asked.
Wang Ergou scratched his head: "It is a bit strange. But who cares, as long as we get our things back."
Li Xiangyang, however, didn't think so. He always felt there was another reason behind it all, and that those three people were likely just being instructed by someone else.
Sure enough, the next day news spread through the village that someone was secretly inquiring about the purchasing station, asking all sorts of questions, which was very unusual.
“Xiangyang, we need to be careful,” Zhang Weiping whispered to him. “I heard there are some people in town who don’t want to see our business grow bigger and bigger.”
Li Xiangyang narrowed his eyes: "Really? Then let's wait and see who's so envious."
From that day on, security at the purchasing station became much tighter. Not only were security bars installed, but someone was also assigned to stand guard at night. Li Xiangyang secretly observed, trying to find the mastermind behind it all.