When Li Wanhao asked the question, Hai Long shrugged his shoulders and said helplessly, "Have you forgotten what I used to do? I used to sell crabs at the village entrance. These sisters were my main customers. Whenever I caught more than ten crabs from the Devil Sea, I would set up a stall at the village entrance. Whenever they drove by and saw me, they would stop to buy my crabs, and they never haggled with me."
"The crabs from the Devil Sea were sold at 300 each. Every day, I could earn several thousand yuan, and over a month, I could make more than 200,000 yuan. My first pot of gold was earned thanks to them."
Li Wanhao hadn't expected this layer of connection. Seeing the dozens of women across from him, he patted Hai Long's shoulder and laughed, whispering, "I was planning to pave the way for you, but I didn't expect you to have such a good relationship with them already. It looks like you'll be able to establish yourself in Donghai City quickly without my help."
Hai Long hadn't expected to run into these sisters here either. He said helplessly, "I didn't expect these sisters to have such noble backgrounds, able to attend your banquet in the main hall."
Li Wanhao chuckled and said mysteriously to Hai Long, "The one with the lowest status among these women is the wife of a group company's chairman. The most noble one, the one leading them, is the wife of the Donghai City Party Secretary, Su Xiaomei. Don't underestimate their power. When they gather, they can be more terrifying than I am."
Hai Long asked curiously, "So the wife of the Donghai City Party Secretary is even more noble than the wives of the chairmen?"
Li Wanhao said mysteriously, "That's because her father's status is even more noble. I'll tell you more about it later. Let's continue toasting." Hai Long nodded.
For Su Xiaomei, the wife of the Donghai City Party Secretary, at 35, she was at her most elegant and cold. In various social circles, she was always the most attention-grabbing woman. Normally, if she received an invitation from a chairman's wife to attend a party, she would dress up beautifully and attend. However, today, Su Xiaomei didn't want to attend this banquet.
Recently, some issues had arisen at home, and Su Xiaomei needed to handle them carefully. However, her husband mentioned that some matters might be resolved with Li Wanhao's help, so Su Xiaomei decided to attend the banquet.
Bored, Su Xiaomei sat to the side, chatting casually with the surrounding chairman's wives about family matters, waiting for the banquet to end so she could find Li Wanhao for help. However, when Li Wanhao brought a young man to the center of the stage, Su Xiaomei suddenly felt that this young man looked very familiar.
At that moment, she heard one of the chairman's wives say uncertainly, "Isn't this the young man who used to sell us crabs by the sea?"
Hearing this, Su Xiaomei suddenly remembered. When Li Wanhao introduced him earlier, he mentioned that this person was called Hai Long. At the time, she had thought curiously, "There are so many people named Hai Long in Donghai City. It turns out the young man who sold me crabs had the same name. I didn't expect them to be the same person."
Since Hai Long had been letting Liu Yong'an handle the crab-selling business, he hadn't been to the wealthy neighborhood for several months. Su Xiaomei and the others had missed that sunny, handsome young man very much.
She remembered the time when, under the sunset, they had desperately tried to buy the last bag of crabs from Hai Long at the village entrance, but he refused to sell them, saying he needed to give them to his mother to nourish her body. Thinking of Hai Long's cute expression at that time, Su Xiaomei couldn't help but laugh, and her gaze towards Hai Long became even gentler. She thought to herself, "If I had a child like Hai Long, it would be so much easier."
Gradually, the other women also noticed Hai Long and began to discuss his various stories, especially his innocent expression when he first started selling crabs, which made everyone laugh heartily.
Su Xiaomei couldn't help but laugh as well, thinking, "This might be the only thing that has made me happy recently."
Soon, when Li Wanhao brought Hai Long to toast, they came to the group of women. After several months, these women missed Hai Long very much. On one hand, Hai Long's simplicity had left a deep impression on everyone, especially his insistence on giving the crabs to his mother rather than selling them for money. On the other hand, after several months of interaction, they had developed a deep friendship. After the initial unfamiliarity, everyone had started calling Hai Long "little brother," and he called them "sisters," becoming very close.
When they met again today, the noble ladies temporarily abandoned the etiquette and restraint expected at a banquet, leaving Li Wanhao to the side and gathering around Hai Long. Hai Long also missed these sisters, as they had helped him earn enough money. If not for them, Hai Long wouldn't have been able to earn the money needed for revenge so quickly.
However, just as he was about to greet them, he was surrounded by these women, each with a long-missed expression. Before Hai Long could react, they swarmed him. Hai Long had never seen such a scene before. Surrounded by dozens of women, one pinched his face, another rubbed his head, and the most outrageous even hugged him.
Occasionally, he was pulled into someone's embrace and rubbed vigorously, his face buried in their chest, smelling their perfume and feeling their softness, which made Hai Long very awkward. But these women, who were having a great time, didn't care about his discomfort. Su Xiaomei also joined in the teasing.
Li Wanhao watched with interest from the side. Many men at the banquet also recognized Hai Long, as these chairmen often accompanied their wives to buy crabs from Hai Long, especially at the beginning when they knew Hai Long's daily catch was limited, and they helped their wives or mothers-in-law buy crabs, thus getting to know Hai Long.
Especially at the beginning, the second person to buy crabs from Hai Long was a middle-aged man who looked like a civil servant. This talkative civil servant managed to persuade the determined Hai Long to sell the crabs, which he had refused to sell. Hai Long handed over the crabs, feeling helpless as he looked at the extra several thousand yuan in his hand, hearing the man's cheerful laughter as he drove away. Hai Long still didn't understand who had lost and who had gained.
This man was Li Zhenggang, the first secretary of the Donghai City Party Committee, who was just over 40. Not only him, but many others who recognized Hai Long also came over to watch the commotion. At this level of banquet and with this level of status, such a funny scene was rare.
At first, everyone was very angry, thinking, "What are you doing? At this level of banquet, you women are not giving us face, what are you pointing at?" But when those who knew Hai Long realized that the target of the teasing was Hai Long, they stopped being angry and began explaining the situation to their acquaintances. Hai Long's absence from the wealthy neighborhood for several months had made these sisters very resentful.
When others learned the story, they also laughed heartily, watching with interest as Hai Long was surrounded and teased by the women.
Hai Long had never imagined that women could be so fierce. At this moment, he had only one thought: mature women are terrifying. His outer coat, which cost several ten thousand yuan, was already missing, and he could only tightly hold onto his shirt to prevent it from being taken away. His face had been pinched by many, and his head had been rubbed by many, making his hair look like a bird's nest.
Fortunately, his belt was tight, or his pants might have been pulled down. Hai Long pleaded, "Sisters, I'm sorry, please don't bully me anymore."
He thought that by apologizing, the sisters would stop, but Su Xiaomei frowned and said angrily, "For not coming to see us for several months, you deserve a good scolding. How can we be your sisters if we don't teach you a lesson? Sisters, don't be shy, let's all go at him." Hai Long was speechless and helplessly submerged in the crowd of women again, watching as Li Wanhao, who was getting farther away, gave him a helpless look.