After hanging up the phone, Chen Chongshan moved a stool and sat down in front of the wood-fired stove to start a fire and cook. Although electricity has become widespread in rural areas, Chen Chongshan still insisted on cooking with firewood in order to save money.
He often went hunting in the mountains, and even when there was no prey, he would not return empty-handed. He would gather a few bundles of firewood, which would be enough for the two brothers to burn for several days.
However, preoccupied with his own thoughts, his once-skilled fire-starting technique failed him, and he couldn't get the dry firewood to ignite for a long time. Frustrated, Chen Chongshan simply tossed the firewood aside and leaned against the earthen wall, lost in thought.
The news brought by Professor Jiang's phone call was not bad; on the contrary, it could be described as very good news.
American medical experts will personally perform surgery on Chen Chongming, which will undoubtedly greatly increase his chances of recovery.
However, with only about two months left, Chen Chongshan needs to raise 500,000 yuan within these two months. And this is a conservative estimate, since this is only the cost of treatment. The recovery process after treatment may be a long one, and the expenses during this period will not be small.
Right now, Chen Chongshan only has 160,000 yuan at most.
In two months, Chen Chongshan needs to raise at least 340,000 yuan for medical expenses. Even in a normal family with all members, this is not a small amount or a small problem.
Chen Chongshan was just a boy under nineteen years old, yet he had to bear all of this alone.
Chen Chongshan had no way out, but he also had no direction forward. He didn't know where else he could raise money.
Thinking of money, Chen Chongshan thought of Yuan Yuan again. His already somewhat unsettled heart became even more restless. He had a deep-seated resentment that he could not quell, but had nowhere to vent it.
For several days in a row, there was really no news from Yuan Yuan. The two of them might really become strangers and go their separate ways.
The setting sun slowly sank into the distance, staining the dilapidated earthen walls with a blood-red hue. After a long period of solitude, Chen Chongshan's heart finally began to calm down.
He started a fire again to cook, and this time the process went smoothly. He skillfully steamed the crabs and then made braised prawns. Meanwhile, in the large pot on the other side, the aroma of beef bone soup began to waft out.
Ah Huang followed the aroma into the kitchen. Upon seeing Ah Huang, Chen Chongshan smiled knowingly, scooped a beef bone out of the soup, and tossed it to Ah Huang.
Ah Huang excitedly took the bone. Although the wild game in the mountains was also delicious, Ah Huang preferred this kind of well-cooked, salty food.
Ah Huang gnawed on a meat bone, occasionally barking at Chen Chongshan as if it were being affectionate.
Looking at Ah Huang, Chen Chongshan's heart suddenly became firm. Ah Huang was a brother to him and Chongming. Now, the three brothers seemed to have no way to retreat, so they could only move forward bravely.
"One month from now, Peach Blossom River, Ah Huang, let's fight together. We have no other choice but to fight for Chongming."
Chen Chongshan stroked Ah Huang's broad, strong shoulders and said softly, and Ah Huang let out a howl at the right moment, as if it understood Chen Chongshan's words.
"Goodness." Chen Chongshan smiled and praised Ah Huang. This big dog was spiritually intelligent, a belief Chen Chongshan had always held.
…………
The next day, Chen Chongshan went to find Huang Maosan. Now that he had decided on this path, he would not hesitate any longer. He had to make preparations as early as possible and make Ah Huang as strong as possible when he went to Taohua County.
Although Huang Maosan was somewhat excited by Chen Chongshan's arrival, he wasn't too surprised, as he seemed to have already anticipated that Chen Chongshan would come looking for him.
He knew about Chen Chongshan's situation. Although the guy was very arrogant, he really needed money, and it seemed that he had no other way to go.
"Chen Chongshan, have you thought it through?"
Huang Mao San looked at Chen Chongshan and said with a light smile that ever since he came out with Chief Liu from the police station to apologize to Chen Chongshan, he has always been very polite to Chen Chongshan, as if he has forgotten about the past.
Of course, only he himself knows whether he has truly let go of the past.
“Yes, since your third brother thinks so highly of Ah Huang, then I’ll take it with me to see what it’s like.” Chen Chongshan nodded and replied.
"That's great."
Huang Mao San laughed, then looked behind Chen Chongshan and asked, "What? Didn't you bring your dog?"
"I'm recuperating at home."
Chen Chongshan replied that Ah Huang did not have any serious injuries, but it did have some minor wounds, so Chen Chongshan did not take it with him when he went out.
Huang Mao San nodded and said, "Chen Chongshan, to be honest, Ah Huang is indeed very strong, but it also has a fatal weakness."
"It doesn't have much combat experience. When it encounters an ordinary opponent, its powerful body might be able to cover up these weaknesses, but once it encounters an evenly matched opponent, this will be a fatal flaw."
"Yes." Chen Chongshan nodded, acknowledging what Huang Maosan had said.
"So, before we go there this time, we need to increase Ah Huang's fighting experience as much as possible and teach him more fighting skills with dogs. After all, fighting in the field is different from hunting..." Huang Mao San replied.
"Then what should we do?" Chen Chongshan asked, puzzled.
"Bring Ah Huang over tomorrow."
Huang Mao San smiled and replied, "I have a dog farm in the southern suburbs of the city with many dogs. You can bring Ah Huang there to test his skills and fight against different opponents."
"The dogs in that dog farm are all for breeding purposes. They are not strong fighters, so there is no need to worry about them hurting Ah Huang."
Chen Chongshan paused for a moment, then nodded. After a pause, he looked up at Huang Mao San and asked, "Huang Mao San, if I may ask, what benefit would it be for you if I took Ah Huang to participate in your dogfighting competition? You're so enthusiastic...?"
"Haha..." Upon hearing this, Huang Mao San laughed loudly and replied, "Don't worry, I mean no harm."
"You should know that I love dogs. Our previous conflict was caused by Ah Huang. Of course, there were also various misunderstandings involved, so let's not dwell on them anymore."
"The reason I invited you this time is because I really don't have any other dogs I can show off. I hope to borrow your Ah Huang's strength to help me make a good impression."
"I originally planned to bring Steel Cannon along, but unfortunately, it's been badly damaged by your Ah Huang..."
Huang Maosan's tone was somewhat helpless as he looked at Chen Chongshan, but his eyes were quite sincere.
Chen Chongshan was stunned. He didn't understand this world very well, and his more than ten years of life experience made it difficult for him to see through people's hearts. He didn't know if Huang Mao San was really like this, but he had no other choice.
Chen Chongshan remained silent, and Huang Maosan explained further: "Each fighting dog participating in the competition usually represents a kennel. I hope that when you bring Ah Huang, you can put my kennel's name on it. If Ah Huang can win the final championship, I will give you an additional private reward of 10,000 yuan. How about that?"
"so?"
Chen Chongshan nodded. He was most afraid that Huang Mao San was completely without any ulterior motives, because in that case, he would find it difficult to figure out Huang Mao San's purpose.
Now that Huang Mao San has revealed his purpose, it seems that everything will become much simpler if the two sides have common interests to bind them together.
"It's a small matter, no problem, anyway I don't have a kennel myself."
Chen Chongshan readily agreed, and breathed a sigh of relief.
"Haha, okay then."
Seeing that Chen Chongshan had agreed, Huang Maosan was quite excited. He nodded and said, "Then it's settled. Chongshan, bring Ah Huang to meet me tomorrow. I'll take you to my dog farm in the southern suburbs. A month is enough time for us to improve Ah Huang's strength to the next level."
"Okay." Chen Chongshan nodded in agreement.
...
The next morning, after settling things at home and preparing breakfast for Chongming, Chen Chongshan took Ah Huang and headed towards Huang Maosan's house.
Upon seeing Huang Mao San, Ah Huang once again displayed an unfriendly expression, but Huang Mao San had already warned Chen Chongshan yesterday, and Chen Chongshan had already noticed it.
He stopped Ah Huang from making any moves. Ah Huang looked at Chen Chongshan with a puzzled expression for a few moments before finally giving up the idea of attacking.
The human world is too complex; it doesn't understand why these two people, who had previously fought to the death, would now come together and seem quite friendly.
It couldn't fathom the truth that "all the world's hustle and bustle is for profit," so it could only choose to trust Chen Chongshan. In Ah Huang's eyes, its master's orders were always the right choice, and it would never disobey them.
Huang Maosan's dog farm is located in the southern suburbs of Meishan County. It's not far from Huang Maosan's home, about a fifteen-minute drive.
Huang Mao drove himself, while Chen Chongshan rode a motorcycle. Ah Huang sped behind the motorcycle. Since its body was no longer affected by other things, it didn't like sitting on the cramped back seat of the motorcycle.
Running on your own is a better choice, allowing your muscles to fully stretch with each leap, which generates more power.
A dozen minutes later, the kennel was in front of them. Chen Chongshan called out to Ah Huang and put a leash on it to prevent any accidents.
Ah Huang also became somewhat serious at this moment. It heard the various barks of its kennels coming from inside, barks that contained excitement, provocation, and threats...
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