Zhou Dazhu interrupted him impatiently:

"Village Chief, please stop beating around the bush and just speak frankly!"

The village chief glared at him and continued:

"You all know what the situation is like in our village right now. Every household can't even afford to eat, and the children are emaciated with hunger. We sent this yellow sheep, but we ourselves have nothing to eat. This..."

The village chief didn't finish his words, but the meaning was already very clear.

Chen Changyuan immediately understood that this old fox wanted to trick them into cheating, underreporting the number of prey, and leaving the extra mutton meat to the villagers.

Chen Changyuan thought to himself that this was a good suggestion.

On the one hand, it can solve the problem of food and clothing for the villagers, and on the other hand, he can also make a profit from it.

Zhou Dazhu obviously understood what the village chief meant. He snorted coldly:

"Why are you interested in us? There are so many strong and young men in this village. Why did you choose us two?"

The village chief smiled and said:

"Dazhu, how could I possibly lie to you? Everyone in this village knows that your Zhou family is the most powerful in this area. Besides, Changyuan is a top-notch hunter. I'm most confident leaving this matter to you two."

The village chief paused, then lowered his voice and said:

"At this point, I'm not going to hide it from you. The targets from above are completely unreasonable! They only care about the numbers, not whether we villagers can have enough to eat. If we honestly follow their targets, we'll be hungry all winter!"

Zhou Dazhu touched his chin, as if weighing the pros and cons.

Chen Changyuan observed the expressions of the two people calmly.

"Then...how much can we keep?" Zhou Dazhu finally asked.

The village chief held up three fingers:

Thirty percent! Let's keep thirty percent and report the rest. How about that?

"30%?" Zhou Dazhu curled his lips. "It's a bit low, isn't it? How about 50/50?"

Chen Changyuan secretly cursed Zhou Dazhu for being greedy. This was a risky thing to do. Thirty percent was already a lot, and he wanted a fifty-fifty split?

The village chief also frowned:

"Dazhu, don't be too greedy! This 30% is already a lot, enough for the whole village to eat meat for several meals. If the higher-ups find out, we will all be in trouble!"

Chen Changyuan originally thought that Zhou Dazhu would continue to bargain, but he didn't expect that the boy would roll his eyes and agree without hesitation.

"Okay, 30% is 30%! It's settled!"

Chen Changyuan was a little surprised. This guy agreed so readily. He must have some tricks up his sleeve.

However, the most important thing right now is to solve the problem of food and clothing. His eyes rolled and a plan came to mind.

"Village Chief, I have no problem cooperating with you, but this doesn't necessarily have to be with Zhou Dazhu, right? You know, our two families..."

Chen Changyuan paused deliberately and looked at Zhou Dazhui meaningfully.

The village chief took a puff of his pipe and slowly exhaled smoke rings, a gleam of light flashing in his cloudy old eyes.

He naturally knew about the grudge between the two families. Back then, Chen Changyuan's mother had kindly adopted the abandoned Zhou Dazhu and raised him.

But Zhou Dazhu had just found his biological parents, and he immediately turned against them and took over the few wives that the Chen family had.

"well,"

The village chief sighed, his intention only to conceal his mistake. "What I mean is to form a team. You can discuss the specific rules among yourselves."

Chen Changyuan strikes while the iron is hot:

"Village Chief, I think we should form a team from each of our two families. When the time comes, we'll report the exact number of gazelles we've hunted to you and we'll distribute them all. What do you think?"

When the village chief heard this, his eyes narrowed into slits with joy.

"Okay! That's a good long-term idea! Let's do as you say!"

Zhou Dazhu had no objection, but just glanced at Chen Changyuan coldly.

Zhou Dazhu's eyes rolled around, a fake smile appeared on his face, and he rubbed his hands and said to the village chief:

"Village Chief, I have no choice but to take responsibility for this 30% of the work! But..."

He deliberately prolonged his voice, his eyes drifting towards the worn hunting bow in the corner.

"Hunting is impossible without a good weapon. Look, I've been using this bow for years, and I'm afraid it won't last much longer."

Chen Changyuan sneered in his heart. It turned out that Zhou Dazhu was up to no good and was waiting here.

Zhou Dazhu continued:

"If the village could buy us two high-end hunting rifles, our efficiency would definitely increase dramatically! Don't you agree?"

As he spoke, he made a "bang" gesture with his hand, a smug look on his face.

Chen Changyuan almost laughed out loud. This kid asked for such a high-end hunting rifle?

This thing is considered high-end even in wartime. How could he, a hunter, be qualified to own it?

The village chief was stunned for a moment, took a puff of his pipe, and a trace of embarrassment flashed in his turbid old eyes.

"Advanced hunting rifle? This thing is not easy to make..."

"Oh, village chief, please don't refuse! For the sake of food and clothing for the villagers, you can definitely do this little thing!"

Zhou Dazhu continued to instigate, and he added seriously:

"I was reading a newspaper in the city before. The best one is a 7.62mm caliber. It has great power and long range!"

Chen Changyuan cursed in his heart, Zhou Dazhu, you have such a big appetite!

A 7.62mm hunting rifle, that's military grade. What's he trying to do? Rebellion?

The village chief frowned and was silent for a moment, as if weighing the pros and cons.

Finally, he gritted his teeth and slapped his thigh hard.

"Alright! The village will pay for it! If that doesn't work out, I'll pay for it myself! I happen to know a few people who deal in this stuff!"

When Zhou Dazhu heard this, he immediately smiled happily, and his previous hypocrisy was swept away, revealing his greedy nature.

"Thank you very much, Village Chief! Don't worry, with the hunting rifle, we are sure to complete the mission!"

The village chief coughed twice again and added:

"But let me make this clear first. This hunting rifle is only lent to you two. You have to return it after this matter with the yellow sheep is over! This thing is precious, you can't lose it!"

"Of course, of course!" Zhou Dazhu agreed readily.

The matter was settled, and the two got up and left.

When he reached the door, Zhou Dazhu deliberately bumped into Chen Changyuan and threatened in a low voice:

"Chen Changyuan, I'm warning you, don't let me know that your Chen family has no conscience and is hiding prey, otherwise I will report it to the higher-ups!"

Chen Changyuan was not to be outdone and sneered:

"Zhou Dazhu, after all, my mother raised you for so many years, and as soon as you went back to recognize your biological parents, you completely forgot about her! When it comes to being heartless, you, Zhou Dazhu, are the most heartless person in this area!"

Zhou Dazhu's face darkened and his fists clenched until they made a creaking sound. In the end, he said nothing and turned away.