Zhou Dazhu frowned: "What do you want to say?"
The beggar rubbed his hands and said cautiously:
"Brother Zhuzi, your old gun...the one you used to fight the Japanese..."
Zhou Dazhu's face changed, he stood up suddenly, pointed at the beggar's nose and cursed:
"Are you tired of living? That's my father's lifeblood, who dares to touch it?"
The beggar shuddered with fear and waved his hands quickly:
"Brother Zhuzi, don't get me wrong! I'm not trying to steal it, I'm just...borrowing it! When I'm done, I'll return it to you immediately, and I'll make sure nothing is missing!"
Zhou Dazhu stared at Laizi suspiciously, feeling torn between his conscience and his conscience.
That old gun is a treasure passed down from the Zhou family, and his father values it more than his life.
But Laizi was right. It was indeed unsafe to go into the mountains without any self-defense equipment.
What's more, if he could really get that precious medicinal material, let alone one old gun, his father would be willing to give him eight or ten guns!
"You can't catch a wolf without sacrificing a child!"
Seeing Zhou Dazhui hesitate, Laizi quickly added another sentence.
"Brother Zhuzi, think about it, that kid Chen Changyuan hangs around in the mountains all day long, he might have already set his eyes on this treasure! If we're slow, we'll get nothing!"
This sentence completely moved Zhou Dazhu. He gritted his teeth and nodded vigorously:
"Okay! I'll do as you say! But you have to do this cleanly and efficiently! If the news gets out, I'll skin you alive!"
That night, Zhou Dazhu specially prepared a table full of delicious food and wine and served Zhou's father and mother attentively.
The two elders were flattered. This was the first time they had enjoyed such treatment since Zhou Dazhu was recognized.
"Dad, Mom, I'm an unfilial child. I was ignorant before and caused you a lot of worry!"
Zhou Dazhu raised his glass and said with a guilty look on his face.
Father Zhou waved his hands in comfort:
"Dazhu, you're being so polite! You're our own flesh and blood, we love you so much!"
Zhou's mother also echoed:
"Yes, Dazhu, as long as you are filial to us in the future, we will be satisfied!"
Zhou Dazhu took the opportunity to urge Zhou's father to drink one glass after another until Zhou's father was dizzy.
While the two elders were drunk, Zhou Dazhui tiptoed into his parents' room and took out the old hunting rifle from the secret compartment under the bed.
Zhou Dazhu wrapped the old gun in oilcloth and buried it deep in the haystack in the yard under the cover of night.
He was thinking that tomorrow morning he would take the gun out under the pretext of hunting without anyone noticing.
When I get rich, I can buy a new one for my dad. Wouldn’t that be great?
The next day, as soon as it was light, Zhou Dazhu couldn't wait to run to the haystack.
He dug up the hay, but found it was empty, with only damp soil and a few voles fleeing in panic.
Zhou Dazhu was stunned. He rubbed his eyes and searched again, but still found nothing.
"Damn it! It's hell!" Zhou Dazhu couldn't help but swear.
His head was buzzing like a nest of rabbits, jumping up and down.
If this old gun is lost, his father will skin him alive!
He ran around the yard like a headless fly, overturning the chicken coop. The hens clucked and ran away, and the scene was in chaos.
But the old gun seemed to have evaporated from the face of the earth, disappearing without a trace.
Zhou Dazhu was so anxious that he was sweating profusely, but he didn't dare to say anything and could only swallow his bitterness.
He cursed the gun thief's ancestors for eighteen generations in his heart, but it was of no use.
Just then, the beggar came humming a little tune, holding a bulging rag bag in his hand, and no one knew what was in it.
When he saw Zhou Dazhu's absent-minded look, he was stunned for a moment and greeted him cautiously:
"Brother Zhuzi, good morning! I've prepared everything. When are we leaving?"
Zhou Dazhu was so angry that he had no place to vent it, and he became even more furious when he saw Laizi.
He grabbed the beggar by the collar and cursed with gnashing teeth:
"What a rotten idea you came up with! Now I have no gun! How do you expect me to get into the mountains? Are you going to use your stinky mouth to scare off wolves and tigers?"
Laizi was frightened by Zhou Dazhu's anger and trembled. The rag bag in his hand fell to the ground, revealing the contents - several thick wooden sticks, one end of which was sharpened and looked quite sharp.
"Brother Zhuzi, what happened to you? Why is your gun gone?"
Laizi asked stutteringly, his eyes flickering, not daring to look Zhou Dazhu in the eye.
Zhou Dazhu pushed the beggar away and pointed at the wooden stick on the ground and cursed:
"That's all I have? You want me to fight a wild beast with this broken stick? Do you think I'm stupid?"
The beggar explained aggrievedly:
"Brother Zhuzi, please don't be angry! This... this is without a gun. I thought, at least this stick can protect myself... Besides, we are mainly going to collect herbs, not to fight..."
"Gathering herbs? What do you use to gather them? Picking them with your hands?"
Zhou Dazhu roared, "The medicinal herbs grow on the cliffs. Can you climb up? What if you encounter wild animals without a gun? Are you trying to kill me?"
The beggar was so frightened that his face turned pale and he waved his hands repeatedly:
"Brother Zhuzi, I...I didn't...I really didn't expect the gun to be lost..."
Zhou Dazhu was so angry that he was gasping for breath. He kicked the wooden stick off the ground and pointed at the beggar's nose and cursed:
"Get out of here, kid! Don't let me see you again!"
Laizi was kicked by Zhou Dazhui and fell flat on his face. He couldn't get up for a long time.
He rubbed his buttocks, his eyes rolled around, and suddenly put on a flattering smile. He came close to Zhou Dazhu and said:
"Brother Zhuzi, calm down, calm down. This gun was lost, there must be a reason. In my opinion..."
He lowered his voice and pretended to be mysterious, "Maybe it was stolen!"
Zhou Dazhu was stunned and his anger subsided a little.
He scratched his hair irritably.
"Steal? Who would steal my gun? In this remote place..."
The leper's eyes rolled faster and faster, like two oiled balls.
"Brother Zhuzi, you don't know this. There are so many people in this village who are jealous and want to see you make a fool of yourself! Who knows which bastard sneaked into your yard in the middle of the night and took the gun?"
When Zhou Dazhu heard this, he thought it made some sense, but then he thought about it again and felt something was wrong.
"That's not right. Who knew I hid the gun in the haystack?"
Laizi chuckled, pretended to be embarrassed, and rubbed his hands.
"Well...Brother Zhuzi, think about it, who in this village is most likely to know about your family? Who is closest to your family? Who is in need of a good gun?"
Zhou Dazhu frowned and thought hard, when suddenly, a name flashed through his mind like lightning - Chen Changyuan!
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