It was dark, and there were several bonfires lit in the barren mountain valley. The aroma of barbecue wafted through the air. More than a dozen chickens were roasted by the second company next to the fires. Oil was oozing out of them and dripping into the charcoal fire, making a sizzling sound.
There were seventy or eighty people in the Second Company who had been hungry for two or three days. On average, five or six people shared a chicken. It was not enough to fill them up but it was still a big meal. Thanks to the unlucky Ninth Class, they were in a very good mood at the moment.
A few dozen meters away from those bonfires, a separate fire was lit, and six people, five adults and one child, sat quietly around it. They all had sad faces and were motionless. They were naturally Class 9, and they could only rest by the campfire and drink cold water.
The second company had more people and more power. After the chicken coop was torn apart, more than a dozen chickens ran all over the mountains and fields, screaming. There was no way the ninth squad could grab them. They didn't save any chickens and could only watch helplessly. After watching the second company catch chickens, they watched the second company kill chickens, and then watched the second company roast chickens. If you continue watching, you will see the second company eat chickens.
Xiao Hongying threw the twig in her hand into the fire with all her strength: "These bastards are the ones who are playing rogue. It's obviously a draw!"
Luo Fugui, with a bruised face and nose, kept twisting his neck and shaking his arms. He frowned and squinted in pain, and echoed: "Gao Yidao, this shameless guy, was clearly knocked out by me, but he still grabbed my collar and refused to let go. Isn't this a rogue? He should be the loser."
Liu Jianqiang rolled his eyes at Luo Fugui and said nothing.
Ma Liang laughed, "Mule, be content. Gao Yidao almost went crazy when he got up. If the squad leader hadn't stopped him, he would have eaten you right there!"
"I called it deception in war. He didn't stipulate that you can't deceive people on the field. You are willing to be a fool, who can you blame?"
"Have you all rested enough?" Hu Yi suddenly spoke: "Mule, how are you?"
"I'm fine, but my body hurts all over. Boss Hu, do we still need to go?"
Hu Yi looked at Luo Fugui and said, "Why, are you still planning to watch them eat? Get ready and leave!"
Hu Yi's words were right. This time, they had nothing to eat. They had to go hungry for dinner. If they stayed here any longer, they would be pissed off by the greasy Second Company. Could they bear to watch this? Several people started to pack up and prepare on the spot. Ma Liang asked on behalf of everyone, "Squad leader, then, where are we going?"
Hu Yi had been thinking about this question just now. He didn't know where to go. Now that Class 9 was out of food again, he had to make a decision as soon as possible. It would not work to continue wandering around blindly. The chickens were gone and he could not afford to delay. There seemed to be only one fastest solution, and that was Li Youde, the chairman of the Luoye Village Maintenance Association. Although he was reluctant and embarrassed, compared with the courage of Captain Wang, what did it matter
Hu Yi stood up, put his rifle behind his back, and said calmly: "Go back to Luoye Village."
Everyone was stunned when they heard this, but Luo Fugui's eyes lit up: "Great! Great! As expected of Boss Hu, let's strike back. We've already blackmailed him, so why not blackmail him again!"
…
Hu Yi has always been a little puzzled, and couldn't guess what Li Youde was thinking. He should have guessed his identity, but he left a contact method before leaving. Now he wants to find him again, but Hu Yi doesn't plan to blackmail him again. After all, Li Youde is very straightforward, so he really can't be mean to him. So this time, Hu Yi plans to learn from the third company commander Hao Ping and go to discuss with Li Youde. To put it nicely, he hopes that he will donate some money, but to put it bluntly, beg!
The people in Class Nine didn't know what Hu Yi was thinking. They just thought that he was trying to blackmail the landlords again. Hu Yi didn't explain to them that it was not a glorious thing and he just kept it to himself.
In the dark of night, Class 9 arrived outside Luoye Village again. Instead of entering the village, Hu Yi led the team around it. Following Li Youde's instructions, they went three miles north of Luoye Village and saw a lonely, dilapidated house.
"Sergeant, aren't you looking for Li Youde? Why are we here instead of going into the village?" Only Hu Yi knew the contact method, so Ma Liang asked suspiciously.
Hu Yi observed the surroundings and said, "Don't ask too many questions. Take them over there and keep watch. I'll go in later. As long as there's no gunfire, don't worry about anything."
Ma Liang led the others to hide far away. Hu Yi pulled out his pistol, loaded the bullet, walked quietly to the door, and knocked gently. After a while, a dim light came on in the house, and the door opened a crack. A panicked old man looked out of the crack into the darkness. Li Youde said that this man was dumb, but not deaf, so Hu Yi said directly, "Burn incense!"
Although it was dark at night, the place where Ma Liang and his men were hiding was not far from the house and could be vaguely seen. After Hu Yi went in, an old man came out and walked south into Luoye Village. After a while, he led a man back from the village quietly and entered the house again. The man who came out of the village was Li Youde.
We just broke up in the morning and met again in the evening. Is this fate
The room looked a bit shabby, but it was very clean, with a window, a bed, a table and two stools, and a small oil lamp on the table. The dumb old man placed two tea bowls, filled them with water, and then went to the outer room.
Hu Yi didn't know how to start. He had no experience in being servile, so he just followed his nature and answered the question first, so he asked, "Do you know who I am?"
Li Youde nodded slightly.
"If you know, why contact me?"
Although he had only been in contact with Hu Yi for half a night as a hostage, the experienced Li Youde could see that this serious Hu Yi was a soldier who liked to speak directly. There was no need to talk nonsense when communicating with him. All the small talk and euphemisms could be omitted. The best effect would be achieved by getting straight to the point.
Li Youde looked at Hu Yi in silence for a while: "If a man does not work for himself, he will be punished by heaven and earth, not to mention that my family is big and prosperous. I became the chairman of the maintenance association for this reason, and I contacted you for this reason."
Hu Yi suddenly smiled faintly: "You have the devils as your backers, and you have your own militia, is it necessary for you to come to our little temple to worship?"
Li Youde raised his hand and waved it slightly: "You misunderstood. Yes, I am willing to be the chairman of the maintenance association in order to ensure safety, but I am not looking for you for this."
Hu Yi looked at the other person quietly, not understanding what Li Youde was up to.
"I'm looking for you for profit."
Hu Yi was even more puzzled. He couldn't understand what benefit the impoverished Eighth Route Army could give to Li Youde. He immediately said, "Explain it clearly."
"Every spring and autumn, we have to pay grain to the Imperial Army. I, Li Youde, will be responsible for collecting grain from the villages around Luoye Village in the north of Mei County and temporarily store it in my Li family's hands. When all the villages have paid their shares, together with my Li family's share, the Imperial Army will transport them all to the county town."
After saying this, Li Youde paused and said, "The grain that should be delivered this season has been collected. Together with my Li family's 10,000 jin share, the total is 40,000 jin. As long as I send someone to report to the county, the imperial army will immediately come to escort it. Let's be frank. You are short of food, and I don't want to eat up all the food. This is the benefit."
Hu Yi finally understood that this was what Li Youde did for him, and he was the real "bandit".
"Tell me the details."
"I won't let anyone in the Li family know about this, so I'm only responsible for deciding the time to transport the grain, providing the route and information, and you're the ones who robbed the grain. After the mission is accomplished, we'll split the profits 50-50."
Hu Yi could not help but frown. To be honest, this Li Youde is really evil. He is not a landlord, but a profiteer and a gangster. The price of grain is like gold now. I underestimated this man. It's incredible.
"Since the Li family won't participate, how can I give you half afterwards? If the grain is transported back to the Li family, aren't you afraid..."
"I will give you a location when the time comes. After the deal is done, you just need to leave half of the food there. The food will be taken away directly by the buyer. I don't have to worry about these, and neither do you."
"… "
Hu Yi had nothing to say. If the plan succeeded, Li Youde would have nothing to do with it and would have made a fortune out of thin air. If the plan failed, Li Youde would have suffered no loss and would have done his duty to the imperial army. The Eighth Route Army was currently short of food and could not be hidden from such a discerning person, so there was no room for bargaining. It was also because of this that Hu Yi believed that everything Li Youde said was true and there was no need to doubt it...