The Entire Mountain Is My Hunting Ground

Chapter 283: Chapter 239: Suppression by Force

"Honey?" Zhang Yuanmin made sure he wasn’t seeing things. A happy look spread across his face as he asked, "What brings you all the way out here to see me?"

"Get your things packed. You’re coming home with me," Yang Yufeng said bluntly, not mincing her words. Last night, the more she thought about it, the angrier she got. She had made up her mind: she absolutely couldn’t let Zhang Yuanmin get away with this any longer. Otherwise, something terrible was bound to happen down the line.

The journey here had been arduous, over mountains and through valleys. It made Yang Yufeng’s resentment simmer. ’That no-good Zhang Yuanmin,’ she thought, ’always up to no good. If it weren’t for him, I’d be sitting on my warm kang doing needlework right now, not suffering out here in the middle of nowhere!’

"What?" When he first saw Yang Yufeng, Zhang Yuanmin had assumed his wife came to praise him for taking down a Black Bear, maybe even bringing some tasty food from home as a reward. He never expected her to show up and immediately demand he go home with her.

Zhang Yuanmin, who was finally in his element at the Logging Camp, wasn’t about to agree. "You woman, always causing trouble," he grumbled. "My brother went through a lot to get me this job. I’m doing just fine here. What do you mean, ’go home’?"

Hearing this, Yang Yufeng sighed. She turned to Zhao Jun and said, "Brother, it looks like you all are busy. Please, go on with your work."

"No way," Zhang Yuanmin said, quickly blocking the way. "If you’re going after that Black Bear, you have to take me with you."

"You’re not going anywhere!" Yang Yufeng shoved Zhang Yuanmin back inside, blocking his exit.

Just then, Zhao Jun called out to Jiang Jinyou and the Li Brothers. The three of them sensed something was wrong and quickly followed Zhao Jun out of the shack.

As soon as they were out, Yang Yufeng followed. But she grabbed a rolling pin from beside the open door, went back into the shack, and immediately pulled the door shut behind her.

"What’s... what’s happening?" Jiang Jinyou grew anxious. He turned to Zhao Jun and asked, "Are those two about to go to war?"

Zhao Jun didn’t answer. He just waved at Jiang Jinyou, signaling for him to back away.

"We can’t, brother," Jiang Jinyou said, catching up to Zhao Jun. "What if they break all our bowls and basins? We still need to eat!"

"Yeah," Li Yuan chimed in from the side. "And the thermos!"

Just then, the sounds of Zhang Yuanmin’s wails and curses came from inside the shack. Zhao Jun waved his hand at the three men and said, "It’s fine. His wife knows what she’s doing. She’ll only hit him, she won’t break anything."

With that, Zhao Jun pulled Jiang Jinyou aside. "Brother Jiang," he said, "I’ve already spoken with Yang Leader at No. 78 Logging Camp. You can go over there tomorrow. He has someone for you to partner with, and you can start working in the mountains together."

"What about Elder Zhang?" Jiang Jinyou asked.

"Him?" Hearing Jiang Jinyou ask about Zhang Yuanmin, Zhao Jun laughed. "He can’t work here anymore. If he stays, he’ll run this whole Logging Camp into the ground."

Jiang Jinyou’s expression turned serious as he nodded in agreement. He’d been working as a hauler for several years, but he’d never met anyone quite like Zhang Yuanmin. The man was a special kind of troublemaker.

Zhao Jun then said to Jiang Jinyou, "Pack your things in a bit. I’ll take you over to No. 78 Logging Camp. I’ve already arranged everything. Someone will be there to get you started on work when you arrive."

Jiang Jinyou immediately understood Zhao Jun’s intention. He’d had a conflict with the two brothers, Du Chunjiang and Du Chunlin, before. Zhao Jun was worried that if he stayed at No. 77 Logging Camp, those two would give him trouble.

Realizing that Zhao Jun had arranged all this for him, Jiang Jinyou felt a warmth spread through his chest. "It’s alright, brother," he said. "It’s already the end of March. In a few more days, it’ll be time to tend to the fields anyway. Since Elder Zhang is going home, I’ll just pack my things and head down the mountain too. I’ll look for you again before winter, and you can help me find a Logging Camp job then."

"That works too," Zhao Jun nodded. "Then let’s go over to Du Leader’s shack together. We’ll get him to settle your account. I also need to talk to him about how to handle Brother Zhang’s pay for the last few days."

At this, Zhao Jun frowned and asked Jiang Jinyou, "He hasn’t really done much work these past few days, has he?"

"Nope," Jiang Jinyou nodded. "He’s been spending all his time figuring out how to hunt that Black Bear. He hasn’t been doing his actual job."

Hearing this, Zhao Jun sighed. "So he’s been holding you back from your work too, then?" he asked Jiang Jinyou.

Jiang Jinyou just smiled and said nothing.

"Don’t you worry, big brother," Zhao Jun reassured Jiang Jinyou. "Once the gall bladder from that Black Bear you all hunted is sold, I’ll have the money sent over to you."

"Technician Zhao, what about our share?" The words were hardly out of Zhao Jun’s mouth when someone else spoke up.

The two brothers, Li Yuan and Li Wei, hurried forward. The five of them had hunted that previous Black Bear together. Li Yuan and Li Wei were not about to give up their share of the money.

Zhao Jun glanced at the two of them. He had worked at this Logging Camp in his past life and knew this pair was the type to risk their lives for money. "Don’t worry," he said. "The money that’s rightfully yours won’t be forgotten. With me here, you’ll get what you’re owed. When you come up the mountain in the winter, find me, and I’ll give it to you then."

"Thank you so much, Technician Zhao."

"Now that you’ve said that, Technician Zhao, I feel much better."

Zhao Jun thought for a moment, then pulled four banknotes from his pocket. He separated them into two pairs and handed one to each of the brothers. "I heard you two flushed out a Black Bear yesterday by burning a tree. I’m going to take the dogs and hunt it tomorrow. Can’t let your hard work go to waste."

"Hey, we can’t take this," Li Wei said, refusing the money. "Technician Zhao, how could we take your money?"

"That’s right." Li Yuan, who had been about to reach for the money, quickly caught himself. "We didn’t even manage to kill that Black Bear. It doesn’t count as ours."

Zhao Jun pressed the money into their hands. "I heard you’ve been busy for days, searching all over the mountains for a Black Bear’s Den. That’s not easy work. Just take it."