sinovels Chapter 1747 Zhao Jun Commands His Troops to Head to Hebei Again
Chapter 1747 Zhao Jun Commands His Troops to Head to Hebei Again
Chapter 1747 Zhao Jun Commands His Troops to Head to Hebei Again
There is a saying in the book "Cai Gen Tan": "An eagle stands as if asleep, and a tiger walks as if sick; this is precisely the way they seize and devour people."
This statement can be interpreted as a philosophy of life, and it also demonstrates the survival wisdom of apex predators in nature.
When a tiger walks in the mountains, it may appear sickly and listless, but in reality, it is concealing its sharpness and gathering its strength.
The One-Eared Tiger, the Black Tiger, and the Crossing Tiger who fought the Black Bear Monster at night were all once majestic and invincible. But in the end, two died and one was imprisoned, and the most tragic Crossing Tiger didn't even have a complete corpse left.
The giant insect traveled unimpeded, stumbling and crooked, until it reached the rocky cliff where the tiger spirit was entrenched, where it gazed towards the direction of the Dawn Forest.
It can smell the scent left by its own kind, but it doesn't mark its territory with claw marks or urine; instead, it walks down the hillside.
Judging from its movements, it really looks like it's sick. It moves slowly down a rocky cliff, as if an elderly person is struggling to go down stairs.
And so, the tiger slowly made its way down the mountain, and two hours later it entered the territory of the Shuguang Forest Area.
Tiger continued forward, and whether unintentionally or intentionally, the tiger avoided the Shuguang Forest Farm and its residential area.
Suddenly, the tiger stopped, and the tiger smelled a hint of tobacco and the smell of grease on a person in the wind.
"Roar...woo..." A tiger's roar echoed, and two mountain runners carrying guns three hundred meters away turned pale and trembled.
In the Shuguang Forestry Farm's residential area, only a very few dogs dared to stand in the yard and bark; most of the dogs had their tails tucked between their legs and hid. Some dogs were even more frightened, with urine dripping from their tails between their hind legs.
Wei Xiaoguang, the secretary of the Shuguang Forestry District, who was speaking at the meeting, was stunned when he heard the tiger's roar.
It hasn't been long since the black tiger wreaked havoc in Shuguang, and now Shuguang is plagued by tigers again.
Wei Xiaoguang hurriedly ordered the security chief to lead the security guards in two groups, armed with guns, to protect the forest farm and the family quarters.
Amidst the trepidation throughout the entire Shuguang Forest Area, an hour later, the giant insect passed through the Shuguang Forest Farm and disappeared into the deep mountains and forests.
……
Zhao Jun was unaware of what had happened at Shuguang Forest Farm. That day, he stayed at home, collected seven fox pelts and eight grey pelts, and also sold an air rifle.
Zhao Jun saw his client off, waving goodbye in a friendly manner. As soon as he turned around, he saw Zhao Youcai.
Seeing Zhao Youcai staring at him with his small eyes, Zhao Jun quickly asked, "Dad, is something wrong?"
"Son," Zhao Youcai said with a kind smile to Zhao Jun, "You see, with you at home, our business gets more customers. If you ask me, from now on, I'll go up the mountain, and you can stay home."
"Hehe..." Zhao Jun chuckled upon hearing this, and strode into the courtyard. Zhao Youcai quickly followed, asking, "Son, are you sure you're okay?"
"Dad," Zhao Jun frowned and glanced at Zhao Youcai, "you've only been well for a few days, and you still want to go up the mountain?"
After saying this, Zhao Jun pointed to the front of his house and said, "Go ask my mom. As long as she agrees, that's fine."
Hearing Zhao Jun's words, Zhao Youcai fell silent.
The father and son entered the house one after the other, and saw Wang Meilan, Jin Xiaomei and several other women tidying up the hides they had just collected at the table.
Wang Meilan is somewhat obsessive-compulsive when it comes to work. The hides she collects must be dry and clean. She rolls up the ones that can be rolled up, and if they can't be rolled up, she straightens them out.
Seeing the father and son enter the house, Wang Meilan smiled and said, "Look, Zhang Laibao and the others haven't affected our business, have they?"
Ever since the fight, Zhang Laibao has hung a sign outside his door advertising high prices for bear bile and animal hides. But in the days since, he hasn't made a single sale.
"This is all thanks to Li Ruhai." Zhao Jun praised Li Ruhai because Li Ruhai had controlled public opinion these past few days, downplaying the matter of Zhang Laibao's family buying mountain goods in Yong'an Village. To this day, Yongsheng, Yongfu, and Yongli still don't know about it.
Moreover, the fact that the Zhao Family Chamber of Commerce was able to make a name for itself so quickly last year was all thanks to Li Ruhai.
"Huh?" At this moment, Wang Meilan realized that she hadn't seen Li Ruhai all day. She hurriedly said to Jin Xiaomei, "Sister-in-law, Ruhai hasn't been home all day."
In the past, Jin Xiaomei would have said, "Sister-in-law, don't worry about him." But now, Jin Xiaomei subconsciously glanced out the window and said, "I wonder what kind of beating this child has received."
"Sister Li, don't worry," Zhao Ling comforted Jin Xiaomei. "When Baoyu came back the other day, he said he saw Ruhai, so he should be fine."
"Auntie," Zhao Ling said, and Li Tongyun continued, calling to Jin Xiaomei, "If you're still not satisfied, I'll go and give Zhang Laibao another beating!"
No sooner had Li Tongyun finished speaking than Xie Sunshi slammed her hand on the table: "Xiaoyun, let's go, mother and daughter!"
"Sister, please stop this." Wang Meilan stopped Xie Sunshi and said, "The children are fighting, they can do whatever they want, but we adults can't get involved."
“I don’t care about that,” Xie Sunshi exclaimed. “I’m just an old woman, why would I care about that?”
Suddenly, a few scattered barks sounded outside, and Li Ruhai, dressed in a wool suit, returned.
The clothes were really nice, but they were freezing in this weather. Li Ruhai had been running around outside all day and his nose was running from the cold. He even sneezed twice after coming inside.
"Ruhai's grandpa!" Wang Meilan said to Zhao Youcai as soon as she saw this, "Quickly get two painkillers for Ruhai."
Immediately afterwards, Wang Meilan said to Li Ruhai, "Ruhai, hurry up and go up to the house, get on the kang (heated brick bed) and warm up."
"Here you go, my son." Jin Xiaomei handed the steaming teacup to Li Ruhai and said, "Have some hot water."
"Mom," Li Ruhai asked, taking the teacup, "my brother and sister-in-law haven't come back yet?"
Before anyone could stop talking, just as Li Ruhai finished speaking, the sound of dogs barking came from outside again. It was Li Baoyu and Liu Mei returning.
As soon as the young couple entered the house, they looked at Li Ruhai with a strange expression.
Li Ruhai thought he had a runny nose again, so he subconsciously raised his hand to wipe his lips, and then asked Li Baoyu and his wife, "Brother, sister-in-law, why are you two looking at me like that?"
"Ruhai," Li Baoyu asked Li Ruhai tentatively, "you were the one who spread those rumors about Zhang Laibao, weren't you?"
“I didn’t pass it on,” Li Ruhai said with a smile. “I just mentioned it to Aunt Qi and Mrs. Liu.”
Upon hearing Li Ruhai's words, Zhao Jun asked, "Which Mrs. Liu?"
“Just bound feet.” As soon as Li Ruhai mentioned Mrs. Liu’s nickname, Wang Meilan laughed and said, “That old lady was quite a troublemaker when she was young.”
"Yes, that's right," the old lady agreed, adding, "That woman with bound feet was never home when she was young."
"What's she doing? Why isn't she home?" Xie Sun asked in surprise. The old lady replied, "She's out there talking nonsense, she's practically drooling."
Upon hearing the old lady's words, Xie Chen exclaimed "Hey!" and then pointed at Li Ruhai, saying, "Why does this sound just like Ruhai?"
The crowd burst into laughter, and Li Ruhai raised his hand as if to hit Xie Chen.
"Hey, son." After the laughter subsided, Wang Meilan asked Zhao Jun, "After the New Year, with all these hides and bear gallbladders we've collected, are you going to Hebei again?"
"Tsk!" Zhao Jun smacked his lips and said, "I really don't want to move. I'm thinking of waiting until winter to go, and then I'll sell all the wild clubs I've caught."
Zhao Jun had only been married a few days and was still very much in love with Ma Ling, so he didn't want to go out.
But at this moment, Zhao Youcai said to Zhao Jun, "Aren't you going to make a move? There are still a lot of bear gallbladders and hides waiting for you to collect from the Yongxing Brigade."
When Tao Dabao came to Li Baoyu's wedding that day, he said that the mountain runners in Yongxing had handed over the bear gallbladders and hides they had hunted after the New Year to the brigade, all waiting for Zhao Jun to collect them.
They didn't sell to the city's supply and marketing cooperative; they were waiting to sell to Zhao Jun, and Zhao Jun couldn't afford to delay too long.
In this situation, even if he didn't go to Hebei, he would still have to go there to bring those things home.
With so many goods stored at home, Zhao Jun was worried about attracting thieves and also about the difficulty of maintaining the pelts, which would lead to insect infestation.
Thinking of this, Zhao Jun said, "Then I'll make another trip and sell all these things. I'll just keep some fox pelts for the family."
Upon hearing Zhao Jun's words, Li Ruhai threw the teacup he was holding onto the stove, turned around, clasped his hands in a fist salute to Zhao Jun, and said, "Brother, you have led three campaigns in Hebei. I am not capable, but I am willing to accompany you!"
Upon hearing Li Ruhai's words, Zhang Yuanmin and Xie Chen both stood up.
Before they could speak, Zhao Jun said to Li Ruhai, "Ruhai, I won't take you this time. You can stay at home."
"What?" Li Ruhai's expression changed swiftly, instantly turning sorrowful as he stammered, "Brother, your journey is fraught with peril and danger, how could I, Li Ruhai, be left behind?"
As soon as Li Ruhai finished speaking, he was slapped by Jin Xiaomei.
"How can you talk like that, child?" Jin Xiaomei said irritably, "What hardships and obstacles? What nonsense are you spouting?"
"Mom, I was just saying that," Li Ruhai explained. "I exaggerated a bit."
“Ruhai,” Zhao Jun said solemnly to Li Ruhai, “Listen to your older brother, stay home. The family needs you too. Why do I say this? Because things are different now than before. Look how much Zhang Laibao’s family is jumping around now. Just like you said, you have to hold the line.”
"Brother!" Li Ruhai hurriedly said, "Ruhai isn't here, and you have no reliable people around you..."
"What are you saying, Ru Hai?" Xie Chen, who was watching the commotion, quickly retorted to Li Ru Hai when he sensed something was wrong, saying, "Your brother Chen is skilled in both literature and martial arts, isn't he better than you? If Brother Jun tells you to stay home, then you should just stay home quietly."
“I…” Li Ruhai glared at Xie Chen, thinking that he should ignore this uncultured man, and immediately tried to persuade Zhao Jun to take him to Hebei.
But at this moment, Zhang Yuanmin called out to him, "Ruhai, look at me, your brother Zhang is just like Han Xin, I follow my lord on his campaigns."
You, on the other hand, are like Xiao He; you're in charge from the rear, so you deserve the most credit. Don't you understand that?
"I...you don't know anything." Li Ruhai glared at Zhang Yuanmin, then clasped his hands in a fist salute to Zhao Jun and said, "Brother, if it weren't for my wholehearted assistance during your second campaign in Hebei, how could you have achieved such great success?"
Li Ruhai meant that if Zhao Jun hadn't gone to Hebei to do business after the New Year, the leopard-skin quilt wouldn't have sold for such a high price.
But Zhao Jun couldn't understand any of this and immediately asked, "What about me?"
No sooner had Zhao Jun finished speaking than a muffled thud was heard from the side. Zhao Jinhui slammed his hand on the table and stood up, pointing his short, thick finger at Li Ruhai, saying, "Li Ruhai, what kind of attitude is this? You're just being arrogant because you've done something wrong!"
Li Ruhai was taken aback. He looked at Zhao Jinhui in surprise, thinking, "How did you suddenly appear?"
Just as Li Ruhai was in a daze, Zhao Jun said to him, "Ruhai, listen to your elder brother. You stay home and continue to control public opinion."
After saying that, Zhao Jun added, "If the Japanese come again, or Zhang Laibao causes trouble again, I won't feel at ease with you not at home."
Hearing Zhao Jun's words, Li Ruhai sighed helplessly.
At this moment, Zhang Yuanmin asked Zhao Jun, "Brother, I have to go, I have to give you some advice."
"Okay, brother, you go." Zhao Jun responded, and seeing that Jie Chen was about to say something, Zhao Jun quickly said, "Xiao Chen, you don't need to say anything, you go too."
Fearing that these people might say something he couldn't understand, Zhao Jun then said to Zhao Jinhui, "Jinhui, if you're willing to go, then you can come along."
"Hey!" Zhao Jinhui nodded emphatically with delight, but then the chubby boy was stunned. He blinked, recalling Zhao Jun's attitude just now. Why was he so casual?
Just as Zhao Jinhui was lost in thought, Zhao Weipeng said to Zhao Jun, "Nephew, this time you'll come with me."
“Yes, Uncle.” Zhao Jun nodded, then changed the subject, saying, “But after we finish shipping the goods, we have to head back. There’s still a lot to do back home.”
"No problem," Zhao Weipeng replied, then, remembering something else, asked Zhao Jun, "Jun, which route are we taking this time?"
"Huh?" Zhao Jun was taken aback, then heard Zhao Weipeng continue, "If you ask me, you should just follow me on the main road. It's a bit longer, but that's fine. If you take that road, you'll be robbed all the time."
"This..." Zhao Jun was also pondering Zhao Weipeng's words. He had encountered robbers both times he had made his business trips, which was giving him a real headache.
These days, killing a robber or highwayman isn't exactly a free crime, but it doesn't usually lead to any serious legal trouble. Besides, Zhao Jun has a militia escort certificate issued by the Yongxing Brigade.
But Zhao Jun and his men are all honest and law-abiding people. If they have to live with the death of someone on their shoulders, will they be able to get over it?
Not everyone is like Xing San. Some people are hard-hearted when they are young, but when they get old, the past comes back to them and they feel guilty.
In his previous life, Zhao Jun had met some old mountain runners who often lamented that they shouldn't have taken those lives back then.
If even wild animals behave this way, how much more so should humans?
Seeing that Zhao Jun remained silent, Zhao Weipeng pressed on, "Is it alright? Come with me, it'll take two more days to travel round trip."
"Two days..." Zhao Jun couldn't help but mutter to himself when he heard that it would take two more days.
His job is easy, but only if there's nothing to do. If something happens, he has to be there. Otherwise, what kind of situation would it be if the boss called and he was out for days?
Just as Zhao Jun was having a problem, Xing San came out of the house and said to Zhao Jun, "Kid, just go wherever you want."
Upon hearing this, everyone looked at Xing San, who then said to Zhao Jun, "This time, your Uncle will go with you."
As soon as Xing San finished speaking, Xie Sunshi and Li Tongyun's eyes lit up. The two of them stood up almost at the same time and said in unison, "I'll go too."
"Auntie, Xiaoyun, you two should stay home." Zhao Jun refused to take them with him no matter what. Jie Sunshi and Li Tongyun were a little disappointed. Zhao Jun asked Xing San, "Uncle, this isn't a leisurely stroll. It's quite tiring to travel by car."
"Hey, you're not afraid of hard work, are you?" Xing San said nonchalantly, "I'll go with you, let's see who dares to do anything!"
Zhao Jun smiled upon hearing this, but at this moment Li Baoyu spoke up somewhat awkwardly, calling out to Zhao Jun, "Brother, I..."
“Baoyu, you can’t go!” Zhao Jun waved his hand and said, “You just returned to my sister-in-law’s home today, what are you going to do? You should stay home.”
Li Baoyu breathed a sigh of relief, but said aloud, "Brother, how could I, Baoyu, be absent from your journey?"
"Alright, brother." Zhao Jun patted Li Baoyu on the shoulder and said, "What saddle and horse? We'll drive there, we don't need those. You can leave them at home."
Li Baoyu hadn't intended to go; he was just saying a few polite words because he was afraid everyone would laugh at him. But upon hearing Zhao Jun's words, Li Baoyu was somewhat taken aback.
"Brother Jun," Li Tongyun said to Zhao Jun, unable to bear it any longer, "My brother means he wants to follow you..."
“Miss,” Li Ruhai interrupted Li Tongyun, “Our eldest brother is just like that. That time I said I would serve him like a dog or a horse, but he said he didn’t need it, that he had plenty of dogs at home.”
Li Tongyun: "..."
I've been busy at home all day today. I wrote three chapters, and I'll post one tonight. Tomorrow night at 8 PM, I'll post two chapters of 4000 words each, plus an extra chapter.
With a draft in hand, I won't mess things up or need to take time off anymore.
From now on, updates will be at 8 PM every night, so any extra chapters will be posted at that time.
(End of this chapter)