Lu Fan was in no hurry, enjoying the scenery as he drove. Three days later, he finally arrived in Yuecheng. Glancing at his fuel gauge, Lu Fan looked for a gas station by the roadside and slowed down.
Suddenly, a trembling old lady with a cane walked towards him from not too far ahead. Lu Fan quickly slowed down, waiting for the old lady to pass. *Bang...* The old lady suddenly threw away her cane and collapsed onto the ground.
What was going on? Lu Fan, worried that the old lady might be having a medical emergency, quickly got out of the car and walked over.
“Grandma! Are you alright?” Lu Fan asked as he approached.
“Alright? You hit me so hard, and you’re asking if I’m alright? Young man! Have you no conscience? Hurry up and give me money!” the old lady said directly.
“Damn it... you can be knocked flying from dozens of meters away, and my car can even hit you through the air? Grandma, you’re a professional scammer, aren’t you?” Lu Fan immediately understood that he was in trouble.
“Young man! It’s easier to talk when you understand. I’ve been scamming for twenty years, supporting my whole family. I have villas and BMWs. I uphold my professional ethics; I won’t extort less than two thousand.
I can tell from your license plate you’re from out of town. Consider the two thousand yuan as a toll fee. Don’t waste my time, I have other targets to find! Hurry up and give me the money!” The old lady, who was excellent at writing elementary school essays, spoke clearly and concisely, reaching out her hand for money.
“Wow... Grandma! You’re truly amazing! At your age, you’re still shouldering the burden of supporting your family; it’s not easy. However, I’ve always been the one asking for money, never been asked for it myself. So, we’re in the same profession! How about you do me a favor and let me pass?” Lu Fan was amused, the old lady was truly displaying her skill in leveraging her age to the fullest.
“You’re a scammer too? Then you’re even better than me. Your car is much more impressive than mine!” The old lady suddenly sat up, looked at Lu Fan’s car with envy, and then suddenly extended a hand. “Five thousand! You’re not leaving without five thousand.”
“Why? We’re in the same profession, why are you raising the price?” Lu Fan asked, looking at the old lady in surprise.
“Hmph, you’re so young, and you come from thousands of miles away to steal my business! Hmph! No matter how skilled you are at scamming, I’m still the local boss. Besides, haven’t you heard that competitors are enemies?” The old lady sat cross-legged on the ground, adopting the posture of a senior.
“Then… alright! I happen to have a card here with five thousand yuan on it. But, Grandma, I can’t give it all to you. I still need to fill up my tank. Otherwise, my car won’t be able to go. How about this, I’ll go to the gas station next door to fill up, and you can have the rest. What do you say?” Lu Fan said, a sly look in his eyes.
“Fine! Consider it a discount. But don’t you dare lie to me! If you try to trick me, you won’t get out of Yuecheng!” The old lady stood up from the ground.
“Alright! Let’s go get gas!” Lu Fan smiled slightly and drove into the gas station next door. The old lady wasn’t stupid either; she stood directly in front of the car, clearly indicating that he wouldn’t leave without paying.
“Attendant! Fill up the tank!” Lu Fan shouted.
The gas station attendant immediately came over to start fueling. Lu Fan got out of the car and approached the old lady, handing her the card. “Grandma! Take this card. After you’re done fueling, help me pay. You’ll get the rest anyway.”
“Hmm! That’s more like it!” The old lady nodded, seeing Lu Fan’s sincere expression. She took the card and went to the attendant.
“Brother! My grandma is paying, don’t cheat her! Don’t let her age fool you, she’s sharp!” Lu Fan said to the fueling attendant with a smile.
“Don’t worry! Our gas station is honest. It’s 345 yuan now. Let me round it up for you, make it 350 yuan!” the attendant said quickly.
“Alright!” Lu Fan chuckled and got into the car.
Seeing Lu Fan get into the car, the old lady’s eyes suddenly darted, and she said to the gas station attendant, “Attendant, I have a membership card, how much can I save?”
“Grandma! Membership can save you over twenty yuan. And today is member day, there are gifts too; for every hundred yuan spent, you get six eggs!” the attendant said eagerly.
“Then fine! Use my card!” The old lady was delighted upon hearing this and took out her membership card.
“Heh heh!” Lu Fan chuckled and waved at the old lady. “Senior! I forgot to tell you, I used that card to pay for all the tolls along the way. Take a look at the balance! See you around!”
Lu Fan stepped on the gas and drove away.
The old lady suddenly remembered something and immediately handed Lu Fan’s card to the attendant. “Attendant, can you check the balance for me?”
“Sure!” The attendant responded, picked up the card, and swiped it… “Grandma! The balance is twenty cents!”
“You little brat! Come back here! You scammed me out of over three hundred yuan!” The old lady chased after him, her small feet moving swiftly, running quite nimbly.
Lu Fan couldn’t help but want to laugh. It was really difficult to deal with people who relied on their age. You couldn’t hit them or scold them, and even if you called the police, it would be troublesome, possibly taking half a day to resolve. So, most people just paid to settle it. What else could they do?
Lu Fan drove around the city for a while and saw a decent-looking hotel, the Purple Bamboo Pavilion, nearby. He drove into the hotel parking lot and then entered the hotel. He found an empty seat by the window in the lobby and sat down.
“Sir, hello! What would you like to eat?” A server approached and handed him a menu.
Lu Fan casually ordered two small dishes and sat there waiting. Before the food arrived, four or five burly men walked in from the entrance. They looked around, and upon spotting Lu Fan, they walked over aggressively.
“Kid! Feeling good, huh? Why aren’t you drinking?” one of the burly men said to Lu Fan with a sneer.
“I’m driving, and I don’t drink and drive! Heh heh! Gentlemen, is there something you need?” Lu Fan asked with a smile.
*Slap...* One of the burly men slammed the table and said, “Do you know you’ve caused trouble? Do you remember what you just did?”
“I know! I wanted to hit someone just now, but I held back. However, I’m finding it hard to hold back now!” Lu Fan nodded.
“You want to hit someone? And you can’t hold back?” The burly man thought he misheard and looked at his companions in confusion.
*Bang...* Suddenly, a fist slammed into the man’s eye socket.