1848 Great Qing Charcoal Burners

Chapter 25 A Different Way of Life
“Brother Qi, since you can’t really get the younger guys in the group to do anything, why don’t you talk to Brother Sanshui about it? Let Brother Sanshui be the leader of our second group, and you be the deputy leader,” Zhang Ze said, offering his suggestion.

“Brother Sanshui is a Hakka, so the group members from Qishixu will listen to him more or less. You can also continue to be a small leader in our group. What do you think?”

"The members of the Qishixu group might listen to Chen Sanshui, but what about Huang Dabiao?" Li Qi pondered this in his heart. Zhang Ze's words made sense, but he still couldn't bear to give up the group leader position that Peng Gang had given him.

"Huang Dabiao only respects those who are better at fighting than him. Chen Sanshui can't beat Huang Dabiao."

Observing people's words and expressions and guessing what they are thinking are Zhang Ze's survival instincts. How could Zhang Ze not see through Li Qi's little schemes?
When it comes to fighting, Chen Sanshui is indeed no match for Huang Dabiao.

If Chen Sanshui can't beat Huang Dabiao, does that mean you, Li Qi, can?

In the entire Honglianping area, it's estimated that only the owner, whose physique is similar to Huang Dabiao's, can rival him.

However, I heard that the master went to a private school at a very young age and never learned martial arts. Perhaps even the master can't beat Huang Dabiao, who has been training for several years.

“Brother Da Biao is just straightforward, but he’s reasonable. I’m confident I can persuade him,” Zhang Ze said.

"It's up to you."

"You really know how to bring up the most awkward things." Li Qi felt a little embarrassed that Zhang Ze had seen through his little scheme, so he didn't respond directly to Zhang Ze.

As the two were talking, Hu Daniu, who was on good terms with Zhang Ze, walked over to him and handed Zhang Ze a piece of smoked dried fish.

"Aze, you've never had this before, have you? Here, have a piece." Zhang Ze raised his little head and stared at the smoked dried fish in Hu Daniu's hand. The fishy and salty smell of the smoked dried fish blatantly entered his nostrils.

He felt his stomach rumbling with hunger.

Zhang Ze swallowed hard, suppressing his craving, and shook his head to decline Hu Daniu's offer: "Brother Daniu, you're so kind, but this is dried fish you earned after working for more than a day. I can't take it. You should keep it for yourself."

"Ungrateful," Hu Daniu muttered discontentedly, and left in a huff.

Li Qi looked at Zhang Ze with great surprise. Zhang Ze actually refused the smoked dried fish that was offered to him. It was a piece of smoked dried fish that weighed five or six ounces and was sprinkled with a lot of salt.

Li Qi couldn't help but lick his lips, which were practically bland. Was this still the Zhang Ze he knew?
"Aze, back in the days at Qishi Market, you could talk yourself hoarse over a piece of dried fruit the size of a finger, but you wouldn't even take the smoked dried fish that Hu Daniu offered you for free?"

“That’s all in the past.” Zhang Ze smiled bitterly and said, “If I had accepted Hu Daniu’s dried fish, what would my team think of me? How would I be able to get along with them in the future?”

“That’s right. If you accept Hu Daniu’s dried fish, you’re a traitor to our group.” Li Qi was taken aback and said, “Aze, I didn’t expect you to think so far ahead and be so ambitious. Well done. We don’t accept handouts.”

The food that came?

Zhang Ze didn't know what "food offered with contempt" meant, but he could tell it wasn't a nice word.

A hint of guilt flashed across his face.

He knew Hu Daniu's character well. Hu Daniu was an honest and straightforward man. Because he stuttered and often farted, even his peers in the village didn't like him very much.

Zhang Ze is one of the few peers who doesn't look down on Hu Daniu and is willing to talk to him.

Hu Daniu shared the dried fish with him purely out of friendship, without any ulterior motives.

"Brother Qi, actually I also really want to eat meat, but I want to prove myself." Zhang Ze's eyes were a little moist.

"You all think I have a mouth that's as sweet as honey, and that I'm good at talking, but actually all those auspicious words I said before were against my will. I just didn't want to starve to death."

Those people at the Qishi Market who offered me food, do you know how they looked at me?

That's the look they give monkeys and dogs. Every time I pick up something they throw at me from the ground, I have to smile at them like a dog wagging its tail.

"If I had the chance to earn a living honestly through my own efforts, I would like to change to a more dignified way of life." "Were all those auspicious words you spoke insincere?" Li Qi asked thoughtfully, putting down the ceramic bowl.

“The auspicious words I said to the employer were sincere,” Zhang Ze said, wiping his eyes. “When the employer fed us, he held the food in both hands and stuffed it into our hands. The employer treated us like human beings.”

Zhang Ze recalled the afternoon he met Peng Gang at the Qishi Market more than ten days ago.

That afternoon, Zhang Ze, as usual, carried a wooden bowl and approached well-dressed people, saying auspicious words in hopes of getting some food.

However, as the number of beggars in Qishi Market increased, fewer and fewer people were willing to give them a bite to eat.

Zhang Ze talked until his throat was dry, but he didn't even get a single scrap of food.

Until he met Peng Gang, who stuffed two warm corncobs into his hands and asked him if he wanted to come with him and live a different life with dignity.

From that moment on, Zhang Ze vaguely understood what self-respect meant.

“When the employer gives us food, he certainly doesn’t throw it on the ground for us to pick up.” Li Qi stood up, patted Zhang Ze on the shoulder, and seemed to have come to a realization.

“You’re right, we have to stand up for ourselves. I’ll go find Chen Sanshui and talk to him about this right now.”

After drinking two bowls of porridge, Chen Sanshui, who was urinating against the tree roots, was startled when Li Qi suddenly appeared behind him. He tightened his belt and cursed, "Didn't you bring your own penis? If you want to see a bully, go see your own!"

Li Qi was not annoyed and patiently explained his purpose to Chen Sanshui.

"Really? You're going to give me the team leader position?" Chen Sanshui looked at Li Qi in disbelief.

Although they hadn't spent much time together, Chen Sanshui knew that Li Qi was extremely arrogant and obsessed with saving face. Why would he voluntarily give up the team leader position to him?

“As long as you can get meat for our group, why not give up the group leader position to you?” Li Qi said.

“We can’t make that decision; only the owner can,” Chen Sanshui said.

"If you really want to give me the team leader position, come talk to the boss with me about it when he has some free time later."

The boys were having a meal, and Peng Gang was also having a meal. He was sharing a rat snake stewed with mushrooms with his younger siblings and three uncles.

In his previous life, he ate rat snake a few times when he was studying at university in Xiangshan, and he doesn't feel any discomfort when he eats it now.

Unfortunately, the ingredients he had at hand were not as plentiful as in later generations. Although the rat snake meat was firm and delicious, the taste was always a little lacking.

The fishy smell of rat snake is actually quite mild, but spices are too expensive, so Peng Gang couldn't bear to use too many spices, resulting in a rather strong fishy smell.

"Those kids in Group Two don't get along. Why did you have to group them up like this?" Xiao Guoda said, gnawing on snake meat while observing the two boys in Group Two complaining and sulking to each other.

"Young people are competitive and unwilling to admit defeat. Letting them get angry and stimulating their competitive spirit won't do any harm," Peng Gang said, wiping his hands with a few leaves after finishing his meal.

“The second group is mostly made up of young Hakka people. I really don’t know what you were thinking, making a Tujia young man the leader of the second group. Don’t forget, you also speak Hakka,” Xiao Guowei interjected, revealing his deep-seated prejudice and hostility towards the Tujia people.

“Third brother, say less. This mountain area belongs to A-Gang. He has his reasons for making these arrangements,” Xiao Guoying said, nudging Xiao Guowei’s arm.

"He can read. There are some things that only literate people can do."

Peng Gang opened the wooden box, took out two rosters bound by the Qishi Market Committee, and called the group leader and deputy group leader over.

(End of this chapter)