Chapter 234 - 199: Strength in Numbers, Huh?

Chapter 234: Chapter 199: Strength in Numbers, Huh?

"Comrade Wendong, let’s discuss how we should trade for these pigs and chickens."

"Of course, Secretary Yang."

Zhao Wendong and Yang Wenxue began to discuss the details of the trade. Seeing Zhao Wenwu yawning out of boredom, Zhao Wendong waved at him.

"Second Brother, Second Sister-in-law, you guys go walk around for a bit. Just don’t go too far. I’ll come find you after I finish discussing things with Secretary Yang."

"Alright, let’s go, let’s go."

Zhao Wenwu happily urged Lin Zhiyin and the others to go on ahead. Watching the backs of Zhao Wendong’s family, Yang Wenxue sighed with a hint of envy.

"Comrade Wendong, you take very good care of your family."

"Haha, it’s the result of everyone’s hard work. Secretary Yang, flattering me is useless. You can’t rip me off on these pigs and chickens. You could say I’m making a contribution to our Commune here!"

"Hahaha, you! I won’t rip you off. How about this, let’s calculate it together. One sow with eight piglets, plus one rooster and four hens. We’ll count it all by meat weight. For the fish, we’ll do a one-for-one trade. You still have some of that venison, right? I want some of that too. Hmm, let me calculate it."

Yang Wenxue pulled a small abacus from his coat and began flicking the beads with a series of CLACKS. Zhao Wendong had wanted to do the mental math for him, but on second thought, he decided against it. ’I just decided to keep a low profile. It’s best to act like an illiterate farmer.’

"Alright, I’ve got it. The pigs and chickens come out to two hundred forty-three jin. Let’s round it down to two hundred forty. For two hundred forty jin, I want twenty jin of venison, forty jin of fish, and three hundred sixty jin of grain. How about it? Do you have it?"

"I have it, but I’ll have to go home and get it. Is coarse grain okay?"

Zhao Wendong thought for a moment. The amount of grain seemed a bit high, but it wasn’t a huge problem. Big Wang had said it wouldn’t be an issue to help him trade for several thousand more jin. Still, the sooner the better. After the New Year, grain supplies would dwindle, and even families with plenty of grain would likely become more cautious about trading it for meat.

"That’s fine. So, we have a deal?"

Yang Wenxue put away his abacus, looking immensely pleased. A satisfied smile spread across his face. Now he could answer to the staff at the Commune and the breeding farm, and everyone could have a good New Year.

Zhao Wendong nodded. Just as he was about to speak, an animal’s thought suddenly rang out in his mind.

’Enemies. Attack.’

The only animal within dozens of meters was Little Xiaobai. Zhao Wendong quickly looked up in the direction where Zhao Wenwu and Lin Zhiyin had disappeared. Sure enough, he could see a crowd forming and a commotion brewing.

"Fuck!"

Zhao Wendong swore, jumping to his feet and bolting toward the disturbance. Yang Wenxue froze for a second, then hurried after him, running toward the crowd from which shouts and curses were now emanating.

"Get ’em! Teach ’em to mind their own damn business!"

"Agh, where’d this white rat come from? Beat it to death!"

"Quick, call for more guys! This big one is really strong."

A circle had formed in the distance. Zhao Wendong pushed his way in with difficulty and saw Zhao Wenwu being restrained by five or six young men. Lin Zhiyin was hugging Little Tuanzi, with Jin Xiuying shielding them. Several other people were tangled in a brawl, making it hard to see what was happening. The little White Weasel was a flash of white lightning, darting nimbly through the crowd. However, its small claws were of limited threat unless they hit a face, and it had only managed to tear a few of their worn-out cotton jackets.

"Stop, all of you motherfuckers!"

Zhao Wendong’s furious roar drew the attention of a young, short-haired man across the way. Despite the freezing winter, the man had his cotton jacket wide open, revealing a red sweater underneath. When he saw Zhao Wendong’s officer-style wool coat, his expression shifted slightly, and he raised a hand toward the crowd.

"Hold up."

The two conflicting sides quickly separated. As Zhao Wendong reached Lin Zhiyin and the others, he saw Little Tuanzi looking down to comfort a boy sitting on the ground. The boy was about fourteen or fifteen, with thick eyebrows, large eyes, and handsome features, but there was blood at the corner of his mouth.

"My Third Brother is here! Don’t be scared, he’ll protect us."

Zhao Wendong’s gaze lingered on the boy for a moment before he walked over to stand shoulder-to-shoulder with Zhao Wenwu. He then looked at the few men getting up from the ground and was surprised to see the long-unseen Zhang Dadan and some ruffian buddies from another commune. On the other side, eight or nine men had gathered around the man in the red sweater.

"Dadan, what happened?"

"Brother Dong, you’re here! I don’t know! The two of us saw Second Brother start fighting with them, so we rushed over to help."

Zhang Dadan looked completely baffled; he had no idea why the fight had started either. Lin Zhiyin quickly spoke up to explain the situation to Zhao Wendong.

"Wendong, we were wandering around and happened to see that guy in the red sweater trading two bags of cornmeal for the half-bag of Forest Frogs this kid had. But it turned out their cornmeal was full of sand and dirt. The kid chased after them to get his Forest Frogs back, and they started hitting him. Little Tuanzi saw it and told them to stop, but then one of them cursed at Little Tuanzi and told her to mind her own business, so Second Brother started fighting them."

Zhao Wendong nodded, his gaze falling once more on the boy on the ground. ’So this is how he appears,’ he thought. ’The person from my past life who was beaten to death, the one I’ve been watching out for.’ His eyes shifted to the leader in the red sweater across from them. ’In my past life, they were the ones who killed this kid, weren’t they?’

"You swindle a kid like that, and you still have the nerve to show your face?"

"Fuck, which grandson forgot to tie his pants and let you slip out? You think you’re so damn tough wearing that officer’s coat? I’ve got several of those at home!"

"The kid didn’t check carefully when he made the trade. Can you blame us that he regrets it now? Who the fuck are you to step up? Is this any of your business? State your name, kid!"