Rebirth in 1972: Redemption in Changbai Mountain

Hearing the old lady's loud shout, a young woman at the counter next to her came over.

"Aunt Hua, do you know this young man? Why are you trying to introduce him to someone? Your own son isn't even settled yet!" The girl had a thin face and spoke rather harshly.

Aunt Hua glanced at the girl. This vixen was really annoying. She couldn't tell her that the young man could make money.

"I know him. He's a really nice person. Honest, hardworking, capable, and family-oriented. He's a good match for my niece."

Aunt Hua showered Zhou Rui, whose name she didn't even know, with compliments that seemed to go on and on, yet also seemed to reveal nothing at all.

"Is that all? You don't have any skills? Being honest and hardworking doesn't help." Seeing that she couldn't get any useful information, the girl rolled her eyes and turned to leave.

Zhou Rui bought two bottles of face cream from another counter, the Friendship brand. He didn't know why he bought two bottles, even though he only had one younger sister.

Then they bought a few more bundles of firecrackers and shared them with Gu Shaofeng, mainly because these things were so useful. After buying them, they left without daring to pass by Aunt Hua's counter.

As they approached the village, Zhou Rui spotted Chen Datou in the distance. Zhou Rui couldn't believe how he could stand being outside in such freezing weather. He was huddled in the snow, clutching a bundle of straw, shivering.

"Chen Datou, what are you doing here instead of staying home in this cold weather?"

Chen Datou turned around, saw Zhou Rui, and happily got up, his body still covered in straw.

"Ruiwa, you're back? We've been waiting for you."

"Waiting for me? What's up?"

Chen Datou held up two fingers. Zhou Rui took out a cigarette and placed it between Chen Datou's fingers. Chen Datou eagerly lit a match and took a deep drag. He hadn't had such good cigarettes for days; he'd finished all the ones Zhou Rui had given him before.

Seeing this, Zhou Rui didn't urge him on, and also took out a cigarette to smoke with him. The main reason was that Chen Datou smelled strongly, and even in such a low temperature, it couldn't be masked.

"Ruiwa, we have news from Zhou Chen."

Chen Datou's eyes gleamed with smugness, as if he had received some incredible news.

"Oh?" Zhou Rui paused, the cigarette he was about to offer to his lips. After waiting for so long, there was finally news.

"The casino started targeting Zhou Chen and his friends a few days ago, ripping them off several times. Now everyone's drowning in debt. Qian Fulai is the only one with less debt; he seems a bit timid."

"Do you know exactly how much money you owe?" Zhou Rui's voice grew increasingly low.

"Zhou Chen owes more than eight hundred, and Da Biao and Er Biao together owe six hundred. Qian Fulai doesn't seem very willing to gamble, but Zhou Chen forced him to borrow fifty."

Zhou Rui was somewhat surprised. He had only asked casually, but Chen Datou had actually given him an answer.

Zhou Rui took a deep drag of his cigarette, letting the smoke swirl around in his lungs. His mind raced, trying to figure out how to take advantage of this opportunity.

"Is there a happy occasion in the village these days? I'd like to go over and have a meal there."

Chen Datou looked up at Zhou Rui, somewhat puzzled. They were talking about Zhou Chen losing money gambling, so why the sudden invitation to a banquet? However, he didn't refuse; providing information was fine as long as it brought him benefits.

Chen Datou thought for a moment: "Chen Zhi's family will be finalizing the engagement tomorrow and getting married next year. They'll probably invite the bride's family to dinner."

Zhou Rui shook his head. He wasn't familiar with Chen Zhi, and since he was having dinner with the woman's family, he couldn't sit at the table.

"And Chen Dali, he's getting married the day after tomorrow, he'll definitely be having a banquet."

Zhou Rui continued to shake his head. He knew Chen Dali; he was the one who bought the house from him. The house was originally intended for his marriage, but unfortunately, he didn't have much of a relationship with him.

"Is there any more?" Zhou Rui thought to himself, feeling annoyed. What if there weren't any more? That would be a waste of this opportunity.

"And then there's Zhao Changhai. Didn't his eldest son give birth to a big, healthy grandson? He's having his first birthday celebration tomorrow."

Zhou Rui's eyes lit up. Here it comes! He and Zhao Changhai had a good relationship and had drunk together a few times. Besides, given Zhao Changhai's status as a village clinic doctor, it wouldn't seem deliberate for him to go and offer a gift to curry favor.

"Okay, I'll take my family to Uncle Changhai's house for drinks tomorrow noon, so there will definitely be no one at my house."

Chen Datou scratched his forehead, not understanding what it meant, and could only continue listening.

"I bought a mule a while ago, right? The mule got sick, and Uncle Changhai took care of it. It had surgery, and they removed a whole bag of horse bezoars. It's worth several thousand yuan, isn't it? No, to be precise, it's worth two thousand yuan."

Chen Datou's heart skipped a beat. Was this Ruiwa really that lucky? He even managed to get a horse's antler? A while ago, there were rumors in the village that Zhou Rui was stupid, spending a lot of money to buy a sick mule, but unexpectedly he made a fortune in silence.

"Also, I went hunting with my master, Wang Pao from Wangjiatun. We just got back from town today. You saw us at the village entrance; we bought a lot of good stuff. You know what to say, right?"

Chen Datou pieced everything together and began to understand.

So he tentatively said, "I chatted with someone near Zhou Chen, and they said the mule you bought got a gallstone, worth two thousand yuan. You haven't been home these past few days; you went hunting with Wang Pao. When you came back, you bought a lot of good stuff. You must have caught something good and sold it for a good price."

"Also, Uncle Changhai's family is having a first birthday party for his grandson tomorrow, and they sent you an invitation to your family. There definitely won't be anyone home tomorrow, right?"

After Chen Datou finished speaking, he looked at Zhou Rui, wondering if there was anything wrong with his understanding.

Zhou Rui looked up and stared into Chen Datou's eyes: "I don't care how the news got to Zhou Chen's ears. Just two things: my family is rich, I have valuable horse babies, and no one will be home tomorrow at noon."

"The bait has been cast. As for whether any fish will bite, that depends on how greedy this fish is. Maybe no one will bite! What do you think?"

"Alright, you've been out long enough. Don't catch a cold. Go home early. I couldn't buy any cigarettes today, but I have half a pack left. You can have it all." Zhou Rui said, slapping the cigarette pack into Chen Datou's hand.

Zhou Rui walked for a while before Chen Datou turned around. Zhou Rui's eerie voice still echoed in his ears, and a chill ran down his spine.

Ruiwa is going to send Zhou Chen and the others to labor reform. It's worth several thousand yuan, they'll probably get ten or eight years in prison.

As for whether they're greedy or not, that's not even an issue. Anyone caught up in gambling is bound to be greedy. Chen Datou believed Zhou Rui wasn't setting a trap; Zhou Chen and Chen Dabiao were basically lambs to the slaughter, no doubt about it.

The cigarette butt burned his finger, and Chen Da cried out in pain as the butt fell onto the snow. Ruiwa was too ruthless; he must never offend him again. No, I need to have another cigarette to calm down.

Chen Datou opened the cigarette box, pinched out a cylindrical match, and was about to light it when he suddenly extinguished it. Unfolding it, he saw a black ten-yuan note; he wondered when Zhou Rui had slipped it into the cigarette box.

"Ruiwa is meticulous, just you wait and see, I'll definitely get this done for you." Chen Datou muttered, his heart burning with excitement. He even stopped smoking, wanting to use the money to buy some more alcohol.