sinovels Chapter 1826 The Jackal Pack Chasing Away Tigers and Leopards
Chapter 1826 The Jackal Pack Chasing Away Tigers and Leopards
Chapter 1826 The Jackal Pack Chasing Away Tigers and Leopards
Before coming, Zhao Jun had thought that he was attending the Ginseng King Conference as a newcomer, while the other attendees were all old acquaintances.
Therefore, Zhao Jun was mentally prepared from the beginning. Even if he wasn't familiar with these people and couldn't join in their conversations, he would patiently sit and listen. Then, he would gradually make new friends and expand his business network in the ginseng industry.
To Zhao Jun's surprise, the process of integrating into this circle was much smoother than he had imagined.
Moreover, after these people greeted him, the conversation revolved around him.
What surprised Zhao Jun even more was that their conversation had nothing to do with hiking; it was all about hunting.
Although Dai Chunhua and his group were from the ginseng gang, they all lived in the forest area. Even if they had never eaten pork, they had seen pigs run. Even if they had never hunted themselves, they had heard others talk about hunting. So, when these people talked about hunting, they had a lively and engaging conversation with Zhao Jun.
After his rebirth, Zhao Jun was a low-key, reserved, and humble person when no one provoked or offended him.
During the conversation, Zhao Jun mostly listened to what others had to say. When it was his turn to give his opinion, Zhao Jun didn't talk about his past achievements, but only subtly mentioned his experience and techniques for hunting wild animals.
This situation continued until Wu Baoguo's men brought news that it was time to eat, at which point everyone rushed downstairs.
At this time, the six tables on the first floor were already filled with food and drinks.
Wu Baoguo hosted a lavish banquet, featuring local wild vegetables, river fish, stewed chicken, stewed meat, stewed ribs, and braised pork hock.
The liquor is Fusong Bai, a local brand from Fusong. It is said that there is a century-old winery in Fusong with two storage tanks for the liquor.
The pool has stood for a century, and even without wine inside, its aroma still wafts through the air. However, one pool was destroyed during a period of chaos twenty years ago, leaving only this one, which is what gives rise to the unique Fusong Bai liquor.
There's a saying in Fusong: "They don't recognize Moutai, they only recognize Fusong Bai."
Shao Tianpeng and Shao Zhiqiang pulled Zhao Jun to the main table, where they sat with Zhao Jun, Wu Baoguo, Pang Zhendong, Yu Wanshan, Dai Chunhua, and Li Zhenjiang, the gang leaders.
The other five tables of food and drinks were prepared for the members of each gang. Wang Qiang and his six men sat together with the five members of the Shao family gang.
After everyone was seated, Wu Baoguo, as the host, said a few polite words and then invited everyone to start eating and drinking.
Although the income of the ginseng gang is considerable, there are none like the Zhao family gang who eat and drink all day long.
Seeing a table full of delicious food, the ginseng diners didn't stand on ceremony and started eating with gusto.
In contrast, the six members of the Zhao family gang were much more reserved.
At that moment, at the table where the leaders were seated, Wu Baoguo opened a bottle of Fusong Bai wine and was about to pour wine for the leaders.
When it was Zhao Jun's turn, he politely declined, saying, "Chief Wu, I don't drink. You guys drink."
"You can't drink?" Wu Baoguo was taken aback. Yu Wanshan, Dai Chunhua, and Li Zhenjiang, who were at the same table, also looked at Zhao Jun in surprise.
Many women in Northeast China can drink a couple of glasses, and these days there are few men in Northeast China who don't drink, and even fewer mountain runners who don't drink.
“Old Wu,” Shao Tianpeng said, speaking up for Zhao Jun, “Zhao Jun really doesn’t drink, he never does.”
At this point, Shao Tianpeng smiled and then added, "He had never drunk alcohol before his wedding. When he toasted us, the cup was just plain water."
Shao Tianpeng's words made everyone laugh, but then no one urged Zhao Jun to drink anymore, and Wu Baoguo even had someone bring Zhao Jun some soda.
Zhao Jun ate his food and drank his soda, chatting with his tablemates about hunting in the mountains.
After several rounds of drinks and dishes, the ginseng enthusiasts started chatting. Surprisingly, Wang Qiang, Zhang Yuanmin, and four others sitting with the Shao family were asked about hunting by the ginseng enthusiasts from the Wu, Yu, Dai, and Li families at the next table.
It must have been when they went downstairs that the leaders of each ginseng gang gave instructions to their subordinates, which is why these people seemed to be showing great curiosity about the hunt.
Seeing this, Zhao Jun sensed something was wrong. Which forest area doesn't have hunting? Why are these gang members so curious about hunting?
The Zhao family members weren't stupid; they all sensed something was wrong. But given the opportunity to prove themselves, Zhang Yuanmin and Li Baoyu didn't care about anything else.
They weren't like Zhao Jun; they didn't know what it meant to be discreet. Upstairs, they couldn't easily interrupt, but now, instead of sitting at the same table with the leaders, and with other members of the ginseng gang asking questions, these two started chatting freely.
Then, after a short while, the two of them went to other tables to chat.
First, Li Baoyu sneaked into the table of the Pang and Yu gangs. Ignoring the disgust of Pang Gaoming and the other four members of the Pang gang, he told the four members of the Yu gang a story about his bravery in stabbing a black bear with a gun, leaving the four of them dumbfounded.
The four were probably surprised, wondering how such a crazy person could exist.
Meanwhile, at the table where Dai and Li were serving as ginseng, Zhang Yuanmin was recounting his story of how he outwitted a black bear.
This reveals the difference between Zhang Yuanmin and Li Ruhai. While Li Ruhai was eloquent, everything he said was based on facts. Zhang Yuanmin, however… was less pragmatic.
In the past two years, all of Zhang Yuanmin's unsuccessful ingenious plans and schemes have been turned into success stories in his mouth.
Burning and freezing the black bear's barn, stabbing the bear to the ground and piercing it with bamboo skewers... one exciting and thrilling little story after another not only stunned the eight ginsengers from the Yu and Dai gangs, but also attracted the eight people from the Wu family gang's table.
After Zhang Yuanmin and Li Baoyu's commotion, only Wang Qiang, Xie Chen, Zhao Jinhui, and Li Ruhai remained at the table originally occupied by the Zhao and Shao gangs. The Shao gang members who had been sitting at the same table had gone to listen to the story.
Wang Qiang was older and of higher seniority, so he wouldn't mess around with the younger generation. But at this moment, Xie Chen and Zhao Jinhui became restless.
But one of them was bad with words, and the other had just joined the Zhao family gang, so they didn't have any exciting experiences or much to say.
However, Zhao Jinhui noticed Li Ruhai drinking soda on the side and immediately laughed, "Ruhai, why don't you tell them a story?"
“That’s right, Ru Hai!” Xie Chen chimed in, “You go!”
The two men lacked eloquence and experience, but Li Ruhai did.
Upon hearing this, Li Ruhai smiled and, under the watchful eyes of Xie Chen and Zhao Jinhui, got up and walked to the table next to him.
That table originally belonged to the Wu family gang, but after the eight members of the Wu family gang went to listen to Zhang Yuanmin's detonator explode in Xiongcang, only a small old man who was nearly fifty years old remained on the table.
Previously, when Li Ruhai asked Lin Youli about the managers of the various gangs, Lin Youli said that this old man was Wei Songbo, the manager of the Wu family gang.
As Li Ruhai approached, Xie Chen and Zhao Jinhui exchanged greetings with Wei Songbo. Then, Li Ruhai sat down, and after a brief exchange of words between him and Wei Songbo, the two began chatting and laughing.
The gathering lasted until after 9 p.m. before the gang leaders and their men dispersed.
The rooms of the Zhao, Shao, and Pang families were next to each other, and they walked together toward the southwest corner of the factory. However, the Zhao and Shao families were in front, while the Pang family followed at a distance.
Zhao Jun and Shao Zhiqiang helped the slightly tipsy Shao Tianpeng. As they walked, Zhao Jun asked Shao Tianpeng, "Brother Shao, since Chief Wu is treating us like this, shouldn't we throw him some money before we leave?"
Upon hearing this, Shao Tianpeng smiled and whispered to Zhao Jun, "Zhao Jun, you don't need to worry about this. I'm the one who asked you to come this time, and I'll cover your expenses."
Interpersonal relationships are reciprocal. Zhao Jun and the Shao family tried to sell the stone dragon twice. The first time, they tried to sell the damaged stone dragon they had brought out to a major client in Beijing, but the client refused to buy it.
Although the money was confiscated, Zhao Jun's character and vision during that business deal earned the admiration of Shao Tianpeng, a seasoned veteran.
Later, Zhao Jun used his connections to find a market for the stone dragon. The stone dragon, which originally had a market price of around four thousand, was sold by Zhao Jun for five thousand yuan.
Zhao Jun could have earned the extra thousand yuan himself. But he didn't; he once again chose to split it equally with the Shao family.
Everyone would want to be friends with someone like Zhao Jun.
As a seasoned veteran, Shao Tianpeng knew that when making friends, one cannot simply take advantage without giving anything in return.
"Master Shao, that won't do." Zhao Jun quickly said, "I'm already very grateful that you asked me to come. How could I let you spend money?"
"Alright, it's nothing, just leave it at that." Hearing Zhao Jun say this, Shao Tianpeng waved his hand, then lowered his voice and said to Zhao Jun, "Zhao Jun, these groups of people have been talking to you about hunting today. I guess they all have something they need you to help them resolve."
"Hey, Master Shao, I know that," Zhao Jun whispered in agreement with Shao Tianpeng. Ever since they arrived here today, from the moment Shao Tianpeng mentioned that Zhao Jun had helped him carry the stone dragon out of the old ditch, the four gang leaders, Pang, Yu, Dai, and Li, had begun to test Zhao Jun.
Later, the members of the four gangs tested Zhang Yuanmin and his group again. Li Baoyu's words were not reliable, but Zhang Yuanmin's ingenious schemes and plans sounded incredibly impressive at first glance!
Zhao Jun could guess pretty much what those ginseng gang members were thinking when they probed him.
It seems they encountered a similar problem to the Shao family gang, one that ordinary hunters couldn't solve. They just happened to run into me, the Tiger General, today, which is why they had the idea of asking me to come and help.
But these days, transportation is inconvenient, and there are highway robbers and bandits, so it's not easy to travel to other places. Therefore, you can't just hire anyone; you have to hire someone with real skills.
Therefore, it is not surprising that they would try to probe with words.
At this moment, Shao Tianpeng whispered in Zhao Jun's ear, "With your great abilities, you don't need to think about anything else. Just go to their place, solve their problems, and don't rush back."
After saying this, Shao Tianpeng cautiously glanced around. At this moment, he, Shao Zhiqiang, and Zhao Jun were walking ahead, and the members of the Zhao and Shao gangs were still some distance away from them, not to mention the Pang family gang members.
So, Shao Tianpeng said to Zhao Jun with peace of mind, "I don't know about that one-meter-long clod of earth that Dai Chunhua mentioned. But the situation over there for people like Lao Wu, Xiao Yu, and Xiao Li is similar to what my family used to be like. They all have something next to the old embankment that they can't solve."
If they come to you, make your demands. After you help them solve the problem, go with them to that old man's place. Find out who's really in charge, and you two split the money.
At this point, Shao Tianpeng gently patted Zhao Jun's arm and said, "They haven't been to that old place for many years. If you go with them, you're sure to find something good."
Zhao Jun nodded slightly upon hearing Shao Tianpeng's words.
If you really have to go to other places to help your colleagues solve these problems, then you'll definitely reap the benefits.
After all, he was leaving his family and business behind and taking risks. But regarding Shao Tianpeng's suggestion to go trekking in Lao'anzi with the local ginseng gang, Zhao Jun was concerned about the qualification to enter the local ginseng-raising area.
Or rather, Zhao Jun was eyeing the ginseng kings in various regions.
Last year, Zhao Jun agreed to help the Shao family get rid of the Siberian tiger in Laoyingou, also in order to obtain the qualification to release animals in Lingnan.
However, until Zhao Jun's rebirth, there was no news of any ginseng king or rare treasure appearing near Zhang Guangcai Ridge.
Perhaps there are, but they are unknown to most. Just like the ginseng seedling hidden in the Zhao family at this moment, its weight is slightly inferior to the ginseng king in the Jilin Hall of the Great Hall of the People, but its quality is even better.
Zhao Jun knew roughly where the ginseng kings and rare commodities in places like Fusong, Tonghe, and Kuandian were located.
Although whether or not wild ginseng can be found is unknown, having this opportunity is better than not having it at all.
While they were talking, both groups had already returned to their dormitories.
Before parting, Shao Tianpeng instructed Zhao Jun: "Zhao Jun, after you get up tomorrow morning, go to the back of that building around six o'clock. Didn't I tell you that's the cafeteria? We'll all have breakfast there."
As soon as Shao Tianpeng finished speaking, Shao Zhiqiang pointed to the vegetable garden and said, "The hand pump is over there. If you need water, don't we have basins and buckets inside?"
The room not only contained basins and buckets, but also thermos flasks, and Wu Baoguo thoughtfully had boiling water filled into the thermos flasks.
Separated from the Shao family gang, Zhao Jun led Wang Qiang and the others through the middle door. The Shao family gang stood to their right, and the Pang family gang stood to their left.
After entering the room, they first turned on the lights, and then Zhao Jun, Wang Qiang, and Li Ruhai laid out the quilts on the kang (a heated brick bed).
Jie Chen and Zhao Jinhui each carried a bucket to fetch water, while Zhang Yuanmin and Li Baoyu, still excited from drinking too much, kept rambling on.
After Xie Chen and Zhao Jinhui brought back water, Zhao Jun and the others washed up and went to bed.
The next morning around four o'clock, Zhao Jun and the others were awakened by Zhao Jinhui's snoring.
Breakfast wasn't served until after six o'clock, so Zhao Jun and the others were free to move around in the courtyard.
The temperature in Fusong is several degrees higher than in the Yong'an forest area, and it's even higher in the county town.
At this time, the cucumbers in the garden had already started to climb. Zhao Jun and Wang Qiang were discussing their own fermented bean paste when Li Ruhai walked over.
"Big Brother." Li Ruhai leaned close to Zhao Jun, stood on tiptoe, and whispered in Zhao Jun's ear, "I found out that Wu's gang has a bunch of Red Dogs on their side, they're really nasty."
"Red Dogs?" Zhao Jun frowned upon hearing this. Red Dogs were jackals, and although the Zhao family gang had almost wiped out the jackals in the Yong'an forest area in the past two years, Zhao Jun knew that these guys were not so easy to deal with.
In particular, when Zhao Jun was venturing into the Far East, he heard from the locals that packs of jackals could fight and compete with Siberian tigers for territory.
Sure enough, Li Ruhai then said to Zhao Jun, "Brother, I was just chatting with Manager Wei of the Wu family gang, and this is what he told me. In their area, around Laoheishan, there's a pack of red dogs, more than thirty in total."
"How many?" Zhao Jun wasn't that he hadn't heard clearly, but rather that he couldn't believe it. More than thirty red dogs—that was incredibly strange.
“More than thirty,” Li Ruhai repeated, then said, “That area used to have big-clawed leopards, leopards, and lynxes, but now there’s nothing left. They were either killed by these red dogs or chased away by them.”
Upon hearing this, Zhao Jun blinked. At that moment, Wang Qiang asked Zhao Jun, "Nephew, bring our dog gang here. Can we kowtow to them and see if that's acceptable?"
Just as Zhao Jun was about to speak, he heard Li Ruhai whisper, "Brother, Wu the foreman is coming this way."
(End of this chapter)