Chapter 67: Be a Good Person

  Although he didn't stay on the island for long, Zhang Lei felt that he had gained a lot. The sweet potatoes, yams and corn in his hands were powerful boosters to improve people's lives. No matter how much money you have, if grain production doesn't increase, it will never be enough to satisfy the growing number of people's hunger.

  As usual, it was the same person who sent himself to the island and back, but this time he was alone and didn't bring anything with him, so there was only this small boat. As usual, they didn't speak all the way, until they reached the shore, Zhang Lei finally spoke up: "Thank you."

  The man just nodded and then turned around, shaking his small boat as he left.

  Zhang Lei carried the three large sacks of goods and was preparing to hire two strong men at the dock to carry them back. He placed the goods in front of a shop, gave the owner a few coins to watch them, and then headed towards the dock where he would unload his cargo.

  Suddenly, a figure plunged down from the high-rise building with a loud splash, and then a loud scream was heard. An old woman nearby shouted loudly: "Someone jumped into the water! Someone jumped into the water!"

  "Whoa, that's intense." Zhang Lei turned his head and looked at the person not far away, who was sinking down like a stone, and muttered to himself: "Oh, so he's looking for death. I was going to go save him, but now it seems unnecessary... Ah damn, who pushed me..."

  Just as he was about to leave, his waist was violently bumped, and then he who was standing on the bluestone road by the shore was undoubtedly knocked into the water.

  Then there were splashing sounds as several people entered the water. In just a short while, several good swimmers had already reached the person who jumped into the water and were dragging him towards the shore with all their might. The man's eyes were closed, looking like he was dead, but because he inhaled a lot of water while breathing, his belly gradually swelled up.

  Zhang Lei crawled ashore, wet and bedraggled, and couldn't help but curse those who were blind to the situation. Then he saw a man with a deathly pale face being carried up. The man looked to be around forty years old, with an ordinary appearance similar to that of a regular sailor, probably someone who made a living on the ship. A person like this would absolutely not be a landlubber, and Zhang Lei became even more convinced that he was determined to die.

  They laid him flat on the ground, and after a while, seawater began to trickle from the corners of his mouth. Someone suggested: "Look, he has so much water in his belly, let's get a few people to lift him up by his legs and let the seawater flow out."

  "It's not good this way, why don't we press his belly and wait for all the water to come out?"

  ……

  Listening to these people's gossip, Zhang Lei really couldn't bear it. If they went on like this, the man would probably die even faster. He didn't bother with so much, walked over and said: "Make way, make way, I'm a doctor, let me take a look."

  In order to gain everyone's trust as soon as possible, Zhang Lei had no choice but to tell a lie. As expected, upon learning that Zhang Lei was a doctor, everyone took a few steps back, although Zhang Lei looked too young and didn't seem reliable, but under the current circumstances, they could only give him a try.

  Zhang Lei made a great effort to recall the steps for rescuing drowning people from his past life, and then slowly squeezed out the water from the middle-aged man's chest and abdomen. In his heart, he secretly thought: "If you want to die, you should have jumped in the middle of the night. Since heaven doesn't want you to die, you'd better come back to life for me. Otherwise, I, a temporary doctor, will fail..."

  After bustling about for a good half day's work, he suddenly started coughing violently and spat out several mouthfuls of seawater before slowly coming to.

  "Wow, can't tell by looking at him, this young man is not very old, but his skills are quite impressive."

  "Yes, there are two sons, and in the future, they will surely have a great future."

  ……

  Zhang Lei stood up gloomily and was about to hurry home to change his clothes, but the person who had just been rescued said: "Sir, please stay."

  "......" Zhang Lei could only stand silently. Others saw that the matter was settled and dispersed to do their own things. Zhang Lei turned around and said, "What? Do you have anything else?"

  The man struggled to get up and said: "Thank you, sir, for saving my life. I have no way to repay...".

  Zhang Lei interrupted him and said, "If you have nothing to report, then don't report it. If you're going to say such nonsense, I don't have time to listen. I still need to go home and take a bath. Running into you is really my bad luck."

  "...it seems Mr. Yan is somewhat angry..." The man hesitated for a moment before saying in a low voice.

  "Alright, fine. Seeing you like this makes me angry. As a young and capable man, you're thinking of seeking death? Honestly, I didn't plan on saving you because someone like you isn't even worth saving. You say you're not afraid to die but are afraid to live on? Even if you've encountered setbacks, don't you have hands and feet that can start anew? Who does this behavior serve? Who benefits from it?"

  That man was said to be stunned, and he muttered: "You don't understand the situation. I'm now a lone, destitute person who has gone bankrupt. What's the point of me living on?"

  "What's the point of living? Alright, let's just say that you think there's no point in living, then tell me what's the point of dying like this? Who made you go bankrupt, who caused your family feud, and yet you're thinking of dying instead of seeking revenge? You have such little backbone?" Zhang Lei was even more infuriated, unable to stand a grown man having no sense of masculinity, always resorting to death.

  When it comes to revenge, the man's dull eyes suddenly burst out with a fierce light, which actually scared Zhang Lei, and then he heard him say: "Yes, why am I so spineless? Why do I want to seek death? I want to take revenge, I want to take back everything that belongs to me."

  Zhang Lei saw him like this and felt relieved, saying: "Good, you think about it and go do it, don't just think, thinking won't produce results."

  "Ah, indeed, hearing your words is better than reading ten years of books. Only now do I understand why I should continue living on. Thank you, sir. I didn't expect someone as young as you to have such insight, it's truly admirable. I am Cai Zhonghe, may I ask for your esteemed name?"

  "My name is Zhang Lei, alright, don't call me Master An anymore. I didn't want to save you at first, but now that you're safe, it's a good thing. Saving one life is better than building a seven-story pagoda, and it counts as accumulating some good karma."

  "Sir, today is a wake-up call for those who are still dreaming. If possible, I'd like to share my story with you and tell you why I'm doing this. It's also a way for me to put an end to my past life. From now on, Cai Zhonghe will start anew."

  "Alright, if you want to talk, go to my place and say it. I need to go back and take a shower. By the way, can you help me move something?"

  "Call Cai Zhonghe to help move all the seeds into the house. Zhang Lei then called out after washing up, 'Alright, speak.'"

  Cai Zhong finally told Zhang Lei the whole story, it turned out that Cai Zhong was a sea trader, but because he encountered the despicable and cruel Japanese pirates, his fleet went bankrupt, owed a large debt, and for a time couldn't think of anything else, so he took such action.

  When he found out that he had actually reached America, Zhang Lei was very surprised: "You've actually been to such a faraway place?"

  Cai Zhonghe was taken aback by Zhang Lei's words, and then said: "Venturing into the sea, of course, is going to any place, however, alas, bad luck."

  Zhang Lei suddenly stood up and said: "I don't know how much debt you owe?"

  "Why did you suddenly ask this?" Cai Zhonghe also stood up.

  Zhang Lei suddenly burst out laughing, still too excited, he gestured to Cai Zhong and sat down, then said: "I'm also very interested in the ocean, you've actually been to such a faraway place, you must have had some remarkable abilities, why not work for me from now on, when the time is right, I'll sponsor your navigation!"

  "Really?" Cai Zhonghe was thrilled to hear that Zhang Lei was willing to fund his next voyage, but after thinking for a moment, he shook his head and said: "Forget it, I'm afraid I'll disappoint your expectations. Besides, I owe thousands of taels in debt, and you probably...". The rest of the sentence remained unspoken, but both parties knew what he was going to say next.

  Zhang Lei suddenly said: "What do you think of this house?"

  "Great, luxurious." Although he didn't know what Zhang Lei meant by saying this, Cai Zhonghe still replied.

  Zhang Lei said: "All of this is what I earned in a year... Alright, never mind, you don't have to worry about the money, as long as you're willing to hang out with me, I guarantee that you won't lack any of these things. I believe that with your bravery and skills, you will definitely achieve great things." He took out a 10,000 taels silver note and said: "Not to mention several thousand taels, this 10,000 taels in cash is also available. I think highly of you as a talented person, so I've decided to take you in, do your best."

  Cai Zhonghe finally dispelled his doubts, stood up and clasped his hands: "The favor of saving my life is still not enough to repay, now again with double favors... Cai is willing to sell himself as a slave, at the disposal of Mr. En."

  Zhang Lei symbolically patted his shoulders and said, "Alright, alright, let's not talk about those things. The most important thing is to do a good job and make progress. Take a good rest for a few days, and when there's work to be done, I'll instruct you to do it. I have high hopes for you."

  Someone arranged for him to have a place to stay, Zhang Lei returned to his own study. Being able to blend in on the American continent was no easy feat. Not to mention other things, these corn and potatoes he had just brought back were originally from America. At present, America is basically still independent of the rest of the world. If one could take a step ahead to explore...

  It just so happened that he met Cai Zhonghe again, and Zhang Lei was now finally glad that this person had not died. In the future when opening up America, he would necessarily be an indispensable role.

  But thinking that for this one person, he himself had again spent several thousand taels of silver for nothing, he couldn't help but sigh, being a good person is really not easy.