Chapter 20 Before the Second Battle

  Everyone was still talking about what had just happened, each and every one of them was excited and thrilled, with a sense of satisfaction that came from the heart. Although I hadn't had enough of this warm and fragrant embrace, I couldn't stay there forever, after all, the play would have to end eventually. "Get up!" Ling Jie said, her voice filled with anger, but after lying down for a while, she felt better, it was nothing. As I reluctantly got out of Ling Jie's arms, feeling like I hadn't stayed long enough, "Don't move," she said, not letting me go, and reached out to touch my forehead with her soft and warm hand, which carried her body heat, and I lost myself again! This feeling was really great!

  At this time, everyone also gathered around, "Xiao Qiu, why are you so angry? It's not worth it with that kind of person, is everything okay? Didn't you see that guy beating them up?" Everyone was advising and caring for me in a cacophony of voices, some even vividly describing the scene from just now, thinking I hadn't seen it. What a simple and kind group of people! They were sincere and had no ulterior motives, showing understanding and concern for my earlier fainting spell, without suspecting any secrets behind it. I love you all to death! Yun Fei and Yun Peng squeezed in, "Uncle Qiu, we didn't get to fight enough earlier! With this thing happening, we're going up!" These two little rascals reenacted their heroic feat from earlier, like a monkey showing off its treasure, and everyone burst into laughter again. This time, these two kids are going to make a name for themselves, and when they return to the village, it'll be another sensational effect! "Good job, not bad! But next time, be careful, don't take the lead on something you're not sure about, Uncle is here!" After praising and affirming them, I reminded them, which should help young people grow up. Geez, it seems like you're talking like an old man in his seventies or eighties, what's with that? Aren't we their elders?

  "It's nothing," "Really, it's nothing?" Ling Jie still had some doubts and didn't dare to lie in her arms again with everyone watching. She got up, brushed off the snow on her body, gave me a profound look, and flashed a captivating smile that was like sunshine. Wow! It was too lethal, the people around us gasped in shock, their teeth aching. Was it really necessary? Those few girls were even more extreme, as if they were about to faint? On the other hand, Ling Jie seemed pretty normal, but a red flush rose to her cheeks, and her sparkling eyes stared at me fiercely without avoiding my gaze. Her eyes were filled with happiness and tenderness. It seemed that the emotions hidden in her heart had been brought out by me after what happened today, or rather, had been ignited by me. In her mind, our relationship was now clear-cut, no longer needing to be concealed. An unexpected gain - my love bird had arrived!

  "Look, the fire is almost out," I said, diverting everyone's attention. It couldn't be like this, it was a bit ambiguous. There were more important things to attend to. Indeed, everyone's attention immediately shifted to the fire, and they rushed over to add firewood, some picking up fish that had been cooked on the fire. I gave Autumn Brother a signal with my eyes, and he came over to my side. The two of us went aside and quietly discussed my previous analysis. After listening, Autumn Brother's face turned gloomy, and he remained silent for a moment. "What you said is right," he said finally. "That little brat will definitely come again. I've heard about his character and behavior - he's not someone who can take a loss. This time, he must have brought many people with him. Little Autumn, you'd better think carefully about this matter. You're the leader of everyone here, and they all listen to you. You're brave, meticulous, and clever. Don't worry, no matter what you do, I'll support you!" Autumn Brother said seriously after a moment of silence.

  With the full support and cooperation of the team's second-in-command, things became much easier. "Brother Qiu Sheng, let everyone hurry up and finish lunch, then we'll set off immediately. After lunch, I'll tell everyone about this matter and listen to their opinions," I asked, "How far is San Cha River from here? How long will it take for a round trip?" "About 30 miles away, and considering the time spent finding people and preparing the sleds, it should take at least four hours," Qiu Sheng replied decisively, then walked towards the fire pit. I intentionally fell behind to sort out my thoughts, thinking about what to say and how to arrange things next. This was the first battle, and there couldn't be any mistakes. If that kid brings some gunmen and someone gets hurt, it wouldn't be good. Losing the first battle would damage our military prestige and also affect the morale of the troops. I had to think carefully. As I walked slowly, a complete combat plan gradually formed in my mind. Yes, this was what we should do!

  After solving the big thing, my heart completely relaxed, but my nature is hard to change, and I'm attracted to food again. Looking around, everyone is gathered around the fire pit, roasting fish and hot rice, busy with excitement. How did they pull me down without saying a word? Not even a shout, isn't that too much? And what about those rabbits and wild chickens, has anyone moved them? Don't you know I'm hungry?

  I rushed to the bonfire and squeezed in without saying a word, coincidentally next to Mountain Tiger. That big plank was just enough for two people, I moved his shoulder and thought of squeezing in to sit down, but Mountain Tiger shrugged me off. What's wrong? Not even letting me eat? Isn't this murder? You know that?! "Your spot is reserved for you over there!" Mountain Tiger said to me with a nod. Autumn Brother laughed, "I saw you thinking about it, so I didn't let the others call you, go ahead, Little Ling has left a spot for you." Ah, true brothers! No need to say anything else, I'm all teary-eyed and moved!

  No, next to Ling Jie, there was an empty space with a sheepskin mat, luxurious private room, beautiful women accompanying, this treatment is at the boss level. Busy until I sat down beside Ling Jie, stretched out my hand to grab a fish and was about to take a bite. But I was really hungry, "slap" my hand was lightly opened, "Here, this one is roasted, you took the one that just put on fire, careless guy, didn't even look carefully," A small delicate hand handed over a roasted yellow tender and fragrant fish, it was Ling Jie, while also giving me a charming and reproachful glance. "Ah, ouch, my bones are broken," I didn't take it, holding my right hand in pain, Ling Jie laughed "pfft", "Making a fool of yourself, hungry? Eat quickly!" Also held my hand, lightly blew on it a few times, "Not painful anymore?" The warm and gentle breath made the skin on the back of my hand tingle, this feeling was like having several small bugs crawling inside, itching and slightly excited, wanting to tightly hug her and gently kiss those red lips. But I didn't dare, not yet at that step, besides, this is a secret affair, how can it be publicly expressed? As a modern young man, daring to perform zero-distance on the bus! The feeling of flirting with Ling Jie was so wonderful, making me infatuated, wanting to fly! How? Beautiful!

  The people around us saw our intimate behavior, and they were all staring at us with envy. Some guys even started howling like wolves, laughing loudly, and the joyful atmosphere was circulating around us. "What's wrong? I just care about Qiu Li, you can be jealous!" she said, while also brushing off the snow that had stuck to my head. She looked exactly like a little wife, staring at everyone with her big beautiful eyes, trying to look threatening but couldn't hide the smile in her eyes.

  As soon as she let go of her inhibitions, her true personality as a Northeastern girl took over, and she didn't care about other people's teasing. Everyone was even more amused by this, and two girls were even playfully scratching their faces at her. It was almost like they were going to start a fight.

  I couldn't believe my eyes - was this the same Ling sister I knew? She was usually so gentle and quiet, but now she was so fiery and wild. Her boldness and tenderness were combined in one body, and her confidence and charm were all mixed together. What a unique and beautiful girl! I absolutely loved it!

  So, I thought to myself, I can take further action now. For example, when we're walking on the streets of Tunzi, I can hold her small hand, and when no one is looking, I can get close to her face, her body, her lips... "Hehe", I was getting carried away with my thoughts. No way, who let me be so young? And now I'm not even allowed to have rainbow-colored dreams!

  "Hey, what about those two rabbits? Who embezzled them, I didn't see them there?" The old trick of diverting attention, becoming the focus, having pressure, keeping a low profile, although I have absolute confidence in myself, can't be too showy, right?

  "What's going on here, no one is moving, huh? You still want to eat rabbit, how long will it take to cook?" Mountain Tiger said loudly, casually tossing the rabbits over. "Little guy, haven't you seen this before? Let me show you a trick, guaranteed your mouth will be watering!"

  Ling sister and everyone looked at me with puzzled eyes, saying no need, action is the best language. I took the two rabbits, skewered them on a fork, and had someone set up a makeshift grill made of two wooden stakes in the shape of a cross. Done! I pulled out my knife and evenly cut several slits on the rabbit's body. A bit frozen, no problem, doesn't affect the craftsmanship.

  I took out chili powder and fine salt from my pocket, Ling sister opened her eyes wide with excitement, carefully watching every move I made. How about it, want to learn? Later do it for me to eat, right? Also true, to capture a man's heart, first need to capture his stomach, countless practices have proven this.

  I evenly applied the seasonings on the rabbit meat, put it on the grill and started roasting, occasionally turning it. The aroma was perfect, after a while, the rabbits were cooked soft, I applied more seasonings inside and outside, just right, wild rabbit roasted over natural wood fire, absolutely matched! A moment later, the fragrance wafted through the air, making people drool.

  Droplets of oil dripped onto the fire, "sizzling" sounds made the aroma even stronger. Tiger son came closer, "Little Autumn, you're tired, take a rest, I'll take over." Huh? Weren't you suspicious just now? Now you're trying to get close?

  "Not tired, think this is carrying rice sacks? Not your turn!" Not considered revenge, right? This guy got even closer, his nose twitching, staring at the rabbits like a wolf that hasn't eaten for three days.

  Constantly adding seasonings, non-stop turning the skewers, after a while, the roasted rabbits were golden brown, fragrant and tender. I was a bit hesitant at first, why? Because there were too many wolves and not enough meat, it seemed that monopolizing the food was out of the question. Alright, let's all have some! This is called selflessness. Using a sharp knife, we cut the meat into small pieces, each person getting a share. Today was just a small test, tomorrow we'll go on a big hunt and feast again. For now, let's just make do. Of course, Tiger and Cloud Flying, Cloud Soaring got bigger pieces of meat. No choice! I walked up to Ling Jie and said "Here, yours!" Is this considered favoring beauty over friendship? She accepted it graciously, took a small bite, and then offered it back to me, "You eat too!" Wow, beautiful woman feeding me, this is the life! I couldn't help myself, opened my mouth and took a big bite. Who cares about being polite? It's delicious, isn't it? Besides, what logic is there in not eating when she's offering? In the end, most of the rabbit meat ended up in my stomach. This atmosphere, this way of eating, had a special flavor to it! But this little bit of meat wasn't enough to fill my belly, so I ate several roasted fish as well, which were also delicious. Unfortunately, my stomach was full and couldn't take any more. Too bad those few wild chickens didn't get roasted, they were frozen solid and the feathers wouldn't come off. Never mind, next time we'll figure out a way to roast them, won't that be even better?!

  Everyone finished eating, taking advantage of the break, it's time to get down to business. I glanced at Brother Qiusheng, he nodded knowingly, "Everyone quiet down, Xiao Qiu has something to say!" Brother Qiusheng gathered everyone around me.

  "Is that so? Didn't we just chase away that little brat with the surname Gou?" "Yeah, we did. And he still doesn't deserve a beating? What's wrong?" Everyone looked at me with some confusion, as if to say, "Is this what you wanted to talk about?" "I'm sure everyone here has heard of that kid's behavior. He's a real scoundrel, and his family's influence is obvious. This matter isn't over yet. He lost face in front of us, he won't let it go. Later, he'll definitely come back with people to find us. What should we do about this?" I paused for a moment, intentionally observing everyone's reaction. It was okay, no one showed any fear, they just quietly looked at me, as if to say, "What do you think we should do?"

  "His family's power is not something we can afford to mess with, they have money and influence, and are also doing business with the Japanese. Their connections are solid, so I've thought it over carefully, and this matter... we should just swallow our pride and admit defeat. When Young Master Guo arrives, I'll represent everyone and apologize to him, and we won't take the fish either, let's give it all to him as compensation for hurting his underlings. Since ancient times, ordinary people don't fight against those in power, can't we just avoid this trouble? Hurry up and pull in the nets! Ling sister, you girls leave now, and the rest of you, finish pulling in the nets quickly and follow them. I'll stay behind alone! Let's just beg Young Master Guo to spare us!"

  As soon as the words fell, there was a loud "boom" and it exploded. "What's wrong with you? You think you can bully people just because you have money and power? This Songhua River isn't even his family business!" "Look at that behavior of his, and what he said to Xiaoling and the others, he's just asking for a beating!" "Beating him is exactly right, this kind of person, the more you fear him, the more he'll bully you, and he'll even ride on your neck and take a dump!" "Xiaoqiu isn't usually like this, what's wrong with her today?" Shantou jumped up to me, his eyes wide open like copper bells, his eyebrows exploding upwards, his dark face flushed bright red, and he yelled at me with his neck stretched out: "Xiaoqiu, I didn't think you were this kind of person! Usually, you seem pretty capable, but when something small happens, you become a coward! I, Shantou, was wrong about you. You can go fawn on that crippled son and add fuel to the fire, that's your business, don't drag me into it. From now on, my fists won't recognize people!" After finishing speaking, he panted heavily, "Uncle, how could you be this kind of person? What are you saying? I look down on you!" Yunfei's small face was bright red with anger, almost yelling at me, Ling Jie's big eyes were shining brightly, staring straight at me, her gaze filled with strangeness, sadness, doubt, and shock, and also a hint of unbelief. It seemed like I saw a faint glimmer of tears in her eyes, and my heart ached. I looked over at Qiusheng Ge, who was smiling and watching me perform from the back of the crowd.

  This spark, too successful, think about it, this group of children born on the black land of Kanto, who is the master of being bullied? Originally fearless and daring, with a set of fist and footwork, can be afraid of things. My words are like a match thrown into a barrel of gunpowder, exploding immediately, bursting out the bloodiness and ferocity of Kanto men, good, the fighting spirit has been ignited, add another spark, guaranteed to be a group of fierce tigers going down the mountain!

  "Everyone knows what kind of person I, Tang Qiu, am. Am I afraid of trouble? I'm considering everyone's safety, can he come without bringing his henchmen? What if something happens, how would I explain it to your parents? Those aren't just family treasures, can we let the elderly worry? I'm doing this for everyone's good, what do you think we should do?"

  "Shut up, Xiao Qiu! If you keep talking like that, no one will recognize you anymore. What are we going to do? We'll fight them when they come, we can't be bullied! If you're scared, then leave first, but we won't back down. Let's see what he can do to us!

  Well said! The saying goes 'rather than yield, die and be reborn', this is the essence of military strategy! This speech has made our stance clear, revealed the relationship between benefits and harm, and redeemed our previous bad image. It's really impressive!

  It seems that passion has been ignited, hot blood is boiling, and it's destined to be an extraordinary day!"

  "Are you not afraid to come with a gun?" Still have to point out the danger, let everyone recognize the danger and the basic situation of the opponent, do not fight unprepared, "What are you afraid of? The gun is not held by people? When the time comes to deal with the person holding the gun, it's settled," You say, what to do, if you don't have a plan, we'll think of a way ourselves!

  "Alright, since everyone is not afraid, Tang Qiuli is not a coward either. Let's have a good fight with this bastard today and let him see the men of the Tang family's humble abode, okay?" "Okay!" Everyone responded in unison, their emotions stirred up, eager for battle. "Since we're going to fight him, everyone must listen to my arrangement. Whoever is told to do what, just do it, no negotiating, must strictly follow the plan, obey orders. Without my command, even if the sky falls, don't move, can you do that?" "Can do! We'll definitely listen to you, we're used to it, you just arrange it!" Everyone responded in unison, this group of good fighters, once they heard they could fight, were like eating dumplings, this is called passion, and it's one of the basic elements of a team!

  Alright, I'll make specific assignments below...

  （）