Chapter 35 Gratitude from the Neighbors
“That foreign force cannot be underestimated.” The leader said with a faint smile. “If we bring them to the capital, it will be a headache. The most important thing is that we still have a lot of troubles to solve ourselves. That kid in Ozin has nothing better to do anyway. Let him help us solve some problems and consider it as practice.”
“You’re such an old fox!” Donald glanced at him and continued, “If that kid finds out you’re plotting against him, be careful he might come straight into your office for revenge. Don’t come crying to me then!”
“Maybe he’ll thank me later on. Alright, let’s leave it at that. You take care of that kid.”
Meanwhile in Ozin, Billy and Casey drove over to Harleen’s house with several toys in tow after finishing breakfast.
“Daddy!” Tasha ran over as soon as they entered the door.
“Did you have breakfast yet?” Billy asked as he picked her up into his arms.
“Yes! Grandma made breakfast and it was delicious!” Tasha nodded vigorously.
“Did you say thank you?” Billy smiled at her response.
“Of course I did!” Tasha replied proudly before turning towards Casey. “Uncle Casey bought all my toys! Thank you Uncle Casey!”
“You’re welcome sweetie.” Casey replied warmly. “Tasha, would you like to play with me for a bit?”
“Really? That’s great!” Tasha jumped out of Billy’s arms.
“Good morning, Mr and Mrs Knight.” Billy greeted Fletcher and Sharon.
“Good morning, Billy!” Felicia called out with a smile.
“Morning, Felicia!” Billy responded with a smile before asking her, “Are you working now or still in school?”Content from NôvelDr(a)ma.Org.
“I’m studying in Enssea. I have one more semester left before graduation. It’s summer break now but I’ll be going back to school soon.” Felicia replied cheerfully. “Billy, didn’t you say that you know a lot of people? When I graduate can you help me find a good job?”
“You’re still in school?” Billy paused for a moment before saying confidently, “Don’t worry about it. It’s on me.”
“Thanks, brother-in-law!” Felicia giggled happily.
“Felicia, if your mouth keeps running wild like that I’ll shut it up for good.” Sharon glared at her and said.
“How am I being wild? This is what Harleen admitted yesterday herself!” Felicia stuck out her tongue playfully.
“Felicia, stop messing around.” Harleen gave her an annoyed look then turned to Billy and said, “Can you spend some time with Tasha today? We plan on leaving for Cloud City this afternoon.”
“So soon?” Billy was slightly surprised by the sudden announcement.
“There isn’t much left to do here in Ozin and besides I need to go back home to look for work. Grandpa won’t let me work at the company again.” Harleen explained calmly.
“Um…” Billy knew they still didn’t believe what he said yesterday, so he paused for a moment before continuing, “Let’s leave a little later then!”
“Uh-huh, spend more time with Tasha.” Harleen thought Billy was reluctant to leave his daughter.
“Okay.” Billy didn’t explain further.
“Daddy, come play with us! Uncle Casey bought this toy and it’s so much fun!” Tasha turned her head and called out in a childish voice.
“Okay!” Billy smiled and walked over.
“Sharon! Are you home?” Soon after, a shout came from downstairs. “Come down quickly!”
“Hmm?”
A few minutes later, Billy and his group all went downstairs. When they arrived at the entrance of the building, they saw a large crowd of people standing in the empty space. Each face was filled with joy.
“Sharon, thank you so much!”
Everyone downstairs knelt down at the same time.
“Mrs Zhang, what are you doing? Get up quickly!” Sharon hurriedly helped the old lady in front of her up. Then she looked back at the people behind her and shouted, “Everyone get up! What happened? What’s going on?”
“Sharon, you helped us all out so much today. We don’t know how to thank you enough!” Mrs Zhang stood up with tears streaming down her face after being helped by Sharon.
“Mrs Zhang,” Sharon continued to ask, “Can you tell me exactly what happened?”
“Well Sharon,” an older woman spoke next, “Obodon’s people went door-to-door early this morning looking for us. They not only compensated us for the price difference, but also gave us an additional 200, 000 as compensation for emotional distress.”
Sharon exclaimed in shock, with Fletcher and Harleen equally stunned. The four of them couldn’t help but turn to look at Billy. They all remembered him saying yesterday that he would take care of this matter with his friends. Could it be him who did it?
Billy caught a glimpse of their gaze and pretended not to see, squatting down to play with Tasha.
“How did you know we helped?” Fletcher asked Mrs Zhang.
“The developer’s people told us that they did this entirely out of respect for your family’s reputation and asked us to thank you.” A middle-aged man responded.
“Fletcher, Sharon, we are truly grateful to you. With this money, we will never be homeless again.” An old man looked at the two of them gratefully.
“Don’t mention it. We’re just doing what neighbors should do.” Fletcher took a deep breath before responding.
“For you guys it may have been easy but for us it was our lives!” The old man said as tears streamed down his face.
There were many elderly people living in this community; some were even childless seniors. They had thought they would have to sleep on the streets from now on until suddenly there was such a big reversal in their situation. They were overjoyed.
“Sharon, this is just a small token from the neighbors, please accept it without hesitation.” A middle-aged man handed Sharon a woven bag he was carrying.
“What is this?” Sharon took the woven bag and looked inside.
She immediately gasped, seeing that it was full of bundles of cash. She estimated there were at least several hundred thousand in there.
“I can’t accept this,” Sharon said, hesitatingly returning the bag.
“Sharon, this is a little something each household has contributed. You must take it.” Mrs Zhang spoke up.
“Thank you for your kind gesture, but we cannot accept this money.” Fletcher declared loudly after glancing at the woven bag.
“We appreciate everyone’s kindness, but please take it back.”