Rebirth in 1972: Redemption in Changbai Mountain

"It's not sold as a whole. You have to take it back, cut it open, and dry it in the sun. It will only weigh about ten grams. As for the teeth, they are used to distinguish between male and female. Males have fangs, while females do not."

Although this musk wasn't originally within the scope of our cooperation with Lu Cheng, there's no need for him to know, lest he become a target.

As Wang Zhen spoke, he gutted the musk deer, removing all its male characteristics.

Zhou Rui nodded, completely agreeing with Wang Zhen's philosophy. When cooperating with strangers, it's wise and prudent to keep some things to yourself; showing off everything is a recipe for disaster.

"Let's go back. Your gunshot scared all the little guys around here away." Wang Zhen reached out and picked up the musk deer, not throwing away its entrails, of course, to feed the dogs back home.

The musk deer wasn't big, only about twenty pounds. After removing the internal organs, it probably weighed less than twenty pounds. Luckily, we also caught a few wild rabbits, otherwise we wouldn't even have enough meat to eat that night.

The two returned to the poolside, where Lu Cheng saw that Zhou Rui and Wang Zhen had caught several rabbits and a musk deer in no time. Sure enough, he asked them all sorts of questions, but the two of them gave him vague answers.

After feeding the dog and the mule, Zhou Rui and the others finished their meal and soaked comfortably in the pool. Snow could still be seen in the distance, yet the group was naked in the water, enjoying a blissful experience.

Just as Zhou Rui was enjoying the natural hot springs in the mountains, an uninvited guest arrived at his home in Jiaolong Gorge.

Two dark figures arrived in front of Zhou Rui's courtyard, suddenly pushed open the door, and the wooden door slammed heavily against the fence. With a thud, snowflakes flew everywhere.

Woof woof... woof woof...

Inside the house, a chorus of barking could be heard; it was the sound of Mao Mao and several puppies.

"Dad, they keep dogs, and the adult one is especially big, while the other three puppies weigh several dozen kilograms each." A trembling voice rang out, carrying a hint of the hoarseness of a teenager going through puberty.

"It's alright. That little bastard Zhou Rui isn't home. I don't believe that little brat Zhou Ping would dare to unleash his dogs on us." A deep voice rang out, though the tone was somewhat filthy.

The shadowy figure pushed hard against the door, but it didn't budge, indicating that it was bolted from the inside.

The main gate of the house is not like the courtyard gate; it must be locked from the inside at night. The fence of the courtyard is only one meter high, so it doesn't matter whether the main gate is locked or not; anyone can climb over it.

The door wasn't opened, but the barking inside grew even louder, becoming increasingly irritating.

"Ruiwa, open the door, I'm your uncle." A gentle voice sounded from outside, like a relative coming to visit.

Another dark figure watched Zhou Dashan's performance silently, pretending to come to Zhou Rui's house even though he knew Zhou Rui wasn't home.

"You can leave now. My brother isn't home, we're going to sleep."

The barking of the dogs inside stopped, and Zhou Ping's voice rang out. His tone was stiff; he didn't even bother to address his uncle as "elder brother."

"Oh? Ruiwa isn't home? Well, it's the same if I look for you. Pingwa, open the door, I really have something urgent to tell you."

Zhou Dashan's tone became increasingly gentle, pretending to be a true elder, as if the Oscars owed him a Best Actor award.

"My second brother said that we don't have an uncle anymore, and you don't need to try to establish a relationship with us anymore. We don't acknowledge him."

Zhou Ping's voice was extremely cold, filled with intense hatred. He was still young and lacked Zhou Rui's cunning. If Zhou Rui were here, he could break someone's legs with a friendly smile.

Zhou Dashan was speechless, having encountered a clueless fool who wouldn't even let him through the gate. Zhou Dashan looked around; he considered himself very clever and thought it impossible for him to be unable to get through this gate.

After a while, Zhou Dashan whispered a few instructions to another dark figure, who nodded repeatedly.

"Pingdi, I am your second cousin Zhou Ji. I know that my father and his family were wrong a few months ago, but unfortunately I wasn't home, otherwise I would have stopped them long ago."

I apologize on their behalf to your family; please forgive them.

Inside the house, Zhou Ping was conflicted. He was too young, and his likes and dislikes about people and things were very strong. He hated Zhou Dashan's family, including his grandparents.

But Zhou Ji and his cousin Zhou Yun weren't home at the time, so the family matters really didn't involve them. Besides, Zhou Ji didn't bully him like Zhou Chen did when they were kids; he was even willing to play with him, so it was really hard for Zhou Ji to hate him.

"Second cousin, you can say what's on your mind outside the door. I'll remember what you said, and I'll tell my second brother when he gets back."

Upon hearing this, Zhou Ji stamped his feet in frustration, but had no choice but to patiently continue negotiating, though his tone and expression were quite inconsistent.

"It's a long story, and since we're talking through the door, our voices are inevitably a bit loud. It wouldn't be good if we woke the sleeping baby, what do you think...?"

After a while, the door opened from the inside, and Zhou Ping stood in the middle of the gate, holding an oil lamp in one hand. Beside him stood the imposing Mao Mao, and although the other three dogs were not visible behind him, three pairs of green lights gleamed in the dark corner.

When Zhou Dashan and Zhou Ji saw the door open, they immediately tried to get on their donkeys and squeeze into the room from the outside.

"Wait, let's talk outside." Zhou Ping blocked him with one hand, and Mao Mao bared his teeth and gave a low, threatening look.

Zhou Dashan and Zhou Ji stopped in their tracks and stumbled backward. Mao Mao was incredibly intimidating; it was even bigger than the wolf king, and a bite from it would probably cost them half a pound of flesh.

"It's like this, Pingwa. Your grandparents fell ill because of what happened to your eldest cousin last time, and they're recuperating at home now."

This family has no money left. They can't afford medicine, they can't eat properly, and they're on their deathbed.

Zhou Dashan tried to persuade Zhou Ping earnestly, pretending to be very filial, hoping to move the naive Zhou Ping.

"so what?"

Zhou Ping's voice was very calm, but his face appeared unpredictable under the flickering lamplight. Zhou Dashan felt uneasy, and glancing at him, he seemed to see a smaller version of Zhou Rui.

Zhou Dashan was unaware that Zhou Ping had experienced the pain of losing his father and brother at a young age, and then suffered the betrayal of his uncle and the indifference of his grandparents.

Until Zhou Rui woke up, he became a sturdy protector for the family, and life got better and better. Zhou Ping worshipped Zhou Rui like a god.

He usually tries to emulate Zhou Rui's way of doing things. Although he is still a bit naive, his personality is becoming more and more like Zhou Rui's, and he already has some of Zhou Rui's traits in his speech.

"So, could you lend us some money and some meat? It's not much, just about ten pounds of meat will do, and maybe three or five hundred yuan. The medicine at the hospital is really too expensive, and I'm afraid we won't have enough money."

When Zhou Ji heard Zhou Ping asking him questions, he assumed that Zhou Ping had softened his heart, so he couldn't wait to tell him the conditions they had agreed on, and even added some to the original terms.

Although Zhou Ji returned late last time and didn't see Zhou Rui's family's wealth, he had heard about it from his parents and the villagers.

There are hundreds of pounds of cured meat and thousands of yuan in cash at home. There are countless other valuable items such as cigarettes and alcohol, as well as valuable things like horse roe. I only want a few hundred yuan. It shouldn't be too much to ask for.