Chapter 6: Can't Help It

  After turning his head for less than three minutes, Ding Shi said to Jin Hu from the stairs: "The boss has time to see you, follow me up!"

  Damn! You guys are so intimidating, making it seem like I'm begging you. Jin Hu stood up from the sofa and followed Ding Shi upstairs to a room door. Ding Shi lightly knocked on the door twice, and a low male voice came from inside: "Come in!"

  Ding Shi pushed open the door and made a welcoming gesture to Jin Hu, waiting for him to enter before closing the door behind him.

  The man behind the desk was clearly visible, and Jin Hu almost wanted to take back what he had just thought in his heart. The man in front of him didn't look like a pig at all; on the contrary, compared to this person, he himself looked more like a pig. His black hair was neatly combed back, with two thick eyebrows below a pair of big eyes, a high nose bridge, and a square-shaped face. He wore a light gray suit, with his shirt slightly unbuttoned inside, and his smile made people feel as warm as spring breeze. It was indeed a refined and elegant appearance.

  "You must be Jin Hu! I'm Xu Mao!" Xu Mao made a gesture to Jin Hu, inviting him to sit in the chair in front of the desk. As Jin Hu sat down: "Would you like something to drink?"

  "It's all right," Jin Hu said with a wave of his hand.

  Xu Mao smiled and said, "Relax, I'm not going to eat you. A little red wine is good for the body when there's nothing wrong!" After finishing speaking, he stood up and walked to the small table beside his desk, where he lightly popped open a bottle with a soft "pop" sound.

  "Then let's have some, I've never had red wine before." Jin Hu tried to save face, if not it would be too depressing, making Jin a bit uncomfortable.

  Xu Mao's hand, which was pouring wine, paused for a moment at an imperceptible speed before quickly recovering: "Good!". He poured two cups of wine and walked back, placing one cup on the table and gently pushing it in front of Jin Hu: "Try it, the top-level red wine from Jinyu Lingyu Winery, which ordinary people can hardly get".

  Jin Hu picked up his wine cup, took a big gulp, and then a bitter expression spread across his face: "Not as good as the old village chief's five-block wine!" But in fact, this flavor didn't quite suit Jin Hu's rustic taste.

  "Haha!" Xu Mao laughed and said, "It should be drunk like this." He then explained to Jin Hu. Seeing Jin Hu staring at his movements with wide eyes, he smiled knowingly: "Drinking red wine is all about the ritual, it's best suited for two friends to drink together." After finishing speaking, he closed his eyes, looking intoxicated. Jin Hu imitated him and took a sip, but still felt that it tasted like bird droppings, without any change.

  Two people drank a cup of wine for almost ten minutes, and Xu Mao finally put down his wine glass: "Today's wine is delicious." Seeing Jin Hu looking at him in confusion, he smiled and explained: "Now the people who can drink with me are either uncomfortable themselves or others feel uncomfortable, or everyone is uncomfortable, and their minds are not on the wine, wasting this good wine, what a pity."

  "Why?" Jin Hu asked involuntarily, "It's uncomfortable and you're still drinking this crappy wine."

  Xu Mao looked at Jin Hu and smiled: "You don't understand, okay! We've had enough to drink, let's talk about the main thing." He put down his wine cup on the table and said to Jin Hu: "I invited you here this time because I want to ask for your help with something. I have a batch of goods that need to be transported to Shanxi Province, but I'm having some trouble with my own people here."

  "Do I have a choice?" Jin Hu looked at Xu Mao and asked.

  Xu Mao shook his head and smiled, saying: "No! From the moment I set my eyes on you, you had no choice!" This sentence was so domineering that if Jin Hu wasn't the oppressed one, he would have almost applauded.

  Since that's the case, Jin Hu nodded and didn't waste his breath asking why, instead asking directly: "In a few days' time, what goods need to be delivered?"

  "The day after tomorrow night is the departure, if everything goes smoothly, it will take five days. The goods are over 20 million in cash! Once we arrive at the designated location, someone will come to pick it up and hand it over to the person receiving the goods."

  As soon as he heard the cash was over 200 million, Jin Hu was stunned. From young to old, Jin Hu had never seen even 1 million together, let alone 200 million. After thinking for a few moments, he asked: "Transporting cash? Isn't it better to transfer through bank? And are you not afraid that I'll embezzle the 200 million?"

  "If you can bank the money, why would I still look for you? I like smart people. Two hundred million is a bit painful for me, but it's still bearable if you want to swallow it. However, if you do, you'd better run to a place where no one can find you, because I'll put up a bounty of ten million plus your photo and have someone bring me your head. Whoever finds you can keep the money you swallowed, which means the sooner they find you, the more money they'll get. Moreover, I'll also send other people to protect you." Xu Mao looked at Jin Hu with a smile on his face, clearly very satisfied with Jin Hu's expression when he heard about the two hundred million.

  Jin Hu thought for a moment and also felt that it wasn't worth it, so he nodded slightly.

  "I think you're a clever person" Xu Mao looked at Jin Hu for a moment: "And I have high hopes for you, after this trip is over, follow me and work together. It's been a long time since I've met someone I look up to! The last person I looked up to was Ding Shi, you know him? Now, the life you see, is only under one person - me."

  "What kind of pay can I get?" Jin Hu asked. Under you? It's not even being a dog, but a dog that can't even speak, under you I'd rather go back to my hometown and be a porter for the village head, following you in this underworld has no future at all, if you were the personnel department of Somali pirates I might consider it, selling some white powder, collecting protection money from prostitutes, then I'd be considered a human being. A man from Tunshan wouldn't stoop to that.

  "Fifty thousand, when it's time to split, Ding Shi will give you a share!"

  I heard it was 50,000. Jin Hu let out a sigh of relief in his heart, this price is not outrageous, if it were 500,000, Jin Hu would have run back to his hometown tonight, delivering goods worth 500,000, he must be prepared to kill and silence, now he's not running but waiting for the knife on his neck? Only a fool wouldn't run.

  As for Xu Mao going to Jin Hu's hometown to catch people, Jin Hu can only spit on his face. The neighboring village had a murder case, and more than 200 armed police officers with live ammunition were needed to take the person away. Underworld? Are you awake?

  If Jin Hu hadn't been preparing to be a big man, he would have lived out his own life! He dared to call back and invite several fellow villagers to cheat Xu Mao's 20 million. As long as they brought the money back to Kaozhai Mountain, others would praise Jin Hu for being a hero, having the style of their ancestors, and daring to cheat so much money. As for the underworld rascals, wait until you have the courage to rob the county town before talking about it. Out of 100 people, it's not bad if two can be found to criticize him, including Jin Hu's father, Jin Guangfu.

  In the nearby villages, every 500,000 yuan invested will immediately bring over a hundred men with bows and fire guns to Jin Hu's side. The entrance to the mountain is sealed off, and outsiders are kept out at first glance. Even if you manage to get close to the village, the Chinese rural dogs in the village, which even recognize the local children who drink milk, will not recognize an outsider like you. What about sniper rifles that can blow Jin Hu's head off with one shot? Not to mention whether it's feasible or not, but even if Jin Hu is killed, Xu Mao will probably have to flee too. Sniper guns kill people, and which government would dare cover it up? It'll let you experience what's called the iron fist of dictatorship. You really think this world belongs to your underworld, forgetting how your predecessors escaped in '49. Daring to confront the government isn't called a black society, that's called a rebel army.

  Xu Mao only said that someone was protecting him, which would have been fine, but by adding a threatening tone to make Jin Hu think twice about taking action, he ended up belittling himself. A kid who crawled out of an old bandit's den is going to be afraid of you, a black society? That's a joke. Someone who doesn't even dare to eat from the same bowl as other blacks, how can they live up to Jin Hu's grandfather's expectations and become a qualified bandit?

  But this way, Jin Hu will have to figure out how to spend at least ten years in the mountains. His youth was wasted in the village, and when he has money, it's not comfortable to spend it, what's the use? Can't even go to the outside world!

  "How is it?" Xu Mao still smiled and looked at Jin Hu, his face continued to be calm and composed, with an air of authority.

  Jin Hu raised his head again, feeling that the pressure Xu Mao gave him was even greater than before. Looking at Xu Mao, he no longer felt inferior in his heart. The thought of "letting a pig knock over a cabbage" arose again in his mind. He immediately nodded and said, "Alright!"

  Looking at Jin Hu's calm expression, Xu Mao was slightly surprised and paused for a moment: "I'm starting to really like you, be careful on the road! When you come back, come to my place, follow me sincerely for two years, and you'll have everything you want - house, car, woman! Now you can leave, take the 20,000 yuan prepaid from Ding Shi." After finishing speaking, he waved his hand at Jin Hu.

  Jin Hu stood up from the chair, turned around and walked away without saying a word, leaving Xu Mao staring at Jin Hu's back as he left the door.

  As soon as he went out, Ding Shi let someone send Jin Hu back. He turned around and went upstairs, knocked twice at the door, heard the voice inside, pushed open the door and walked in, saw his boss Xu Mao, who was holding a cigar in his hand, staring at the car slowly leaving the entrance, without turning his head, said to Ding Shi: "Ding Shi! Do you know that this little guy today made me stunned several times?"

  "No need to ask Ding Shi for an answer, he himself spoke up: 'Three times! It's been a long time since anyone has given me this feeling. By the end of it, this little guy seemed to be unfazed by my pressure. When was the last time...?' He thought for a moment: 'The last time was when I met Qian Yulong, what a pity that he couldn't be used by me. How many people did we lose back then? I think it was eight.' If Xu Mao knew why Jin Hu felt no pressure, he might have spat out old blood from far away, and yet he himself was looked down upon by a young whippersnapper."

  "Eight! Boss, you're not wrong." Ding Shi nodded: "You overestimate this kid too much! Qian Yulong is far stronger than him. I tried his kung fu skills just now, he should know some basic punches and kicks, then there's a burst of brute force, really if we were to fight, I can easily take him down alone."

  What Ding Shi said is right, after Grandpa died at home, Jin Guangfu didn't teach the two brothers any martial arts, preparing to take it into the coffin. The old man thought that everything was caused by fighting and trouble, thinking that their ancestors were good at fighting and causing trouble with martial arts. If they didn't know martial arts, they could live a honest life, if someone bullied them, just shrink their heads and it's over, using knives and guns will only lead to death.

  Xu Mao returned to the edge of the table: "The work is worse than Qian Yulongs, but that energy is full ten points." He nodded his head: "This is not a place where Qian Yulong can compare with me. Until the end, he didn't give me an accurate message, come or not let me do things! I think eight out of ten this little guy wants to play tricks on me! After delivering this batch of goods, keep an eye on him."

  "Why don't we just have them take care of him when the goods arrive?" Ding Shi raised his hand and made a cutting motion.

  Xu Mao shook his head and smiled, saying: "No need! Let the little guy first learn from his mistakes, let's just watch the fun! Then he will come back to ask for my help himself. Training a tiger is an interesting job, if you can teach it for a few years, it will be a good hand." Training tigers is a majestic thing, like walking through fire rings and whatnot, but Xu Mao had forgotten that those were domesticated tigers, some of which were wild. If you stick your head into the cage of a wild tiger, it's no different from looking for death.

  "You're sending a few new people to escort the goods? Isn't that inappropriate? I know these people, to be honest they are all escaped convicts, I'm afraid it's not safe, what if something happens and it's hard to handle" Ding Shi was about to continue speaking when he was interrupted by Xu Mao.

  "A bunch of useless people, what's there to say? This time you just don't go, let others go, it's just these few days. You stay behind and prepare to enforce family law! This time I told three people each one route, only I and they know, whoever loses their goods is the traitor! When the time comes, we'll dig out the person behind and settle accounts properly." After finishing speaking, a cold glint flashed in his eyes, followed by an immediate sigh: "Ding Shi! Am I really not worth following? Or am I too petty, letting brothers eat poorly and dress thinly? Why would someone betray from within?"

  "Some people are never satisfied! Brother Mao, don't worry." Ding Shi gritted his teeth and replied: "I will definitely make this traitor suffer three cuts and six holes!"

  "Ah! You go out!" Xu Mao weakly waved his hand at Ding Shi and sighed: "I'll take a rest!".

  If Jin Hu saw Xu Mao's performance, he would definitely vomit. You're a gangster, what are you playing at with this deep and profound act? It's all sour and pretentious. Just find the traitor and kill them or punish them accordingly, why bother with all these unnecessary words? You want to be a prostitute and a hero at the same time.