"Young brother, where are you from? Have you eaten yet?"
"The world is very unsafe these days. Carrying such a big silver ingot around is dangerous."
"How about this: let me keep the silver ingot safe for you. Once we drive off the bandits, I'll return it to you, alright?"
Zhang Jingyang rubbed his hands together, his eyes fixed intently on the silver ingot in Liu Tiezhu's hand, barely stopping himself from snatching it. A silver ingot this big was worth over three hundred yuan—how could he not be tempted?
Liu Tiezhu understood exactly what Zhang Jingyang meant. Once that silver ingot fell into his hands, it would be like a meat bun thrown to a dog—gone forever.
But his purpose in coming here was precisely to give Zhang Jingyang the silver.
"Brother Zhang, I came here to hand this silver ingot over to you for safekeeping."
Zhang Jingyang was taken aback, then quickly took the ingot and stuffed it into his pocket, afraid Liu Tiezhu might change his mind.
"Young brother, you're really something."
"Li Minghai, what are you standing there for? Hurry up and get a bowl of wine for the young brother!"
The burly man beside him immediately fetched a bowl and filled it with wine for Liu Tiezhu.
Zhang Jingyang raised his cup: "Young brother, from today on, you're my brother, Zhang Jingyang's brother."
"From now on, if anyone dares to bully you, I'll be the first to blow them away."
Seeing this, the others also raised their wine bowls and called Liu Tiezhu "young brother."
Liu Tiezhu naturally didn't believe a word of Zhang Jingyang's nonsense. After a few cups of wine, Zhang Jingyang urged him to eat some dishes. An hour later, everyone had drunk quite a bit.
Only then did Zhang Jingyang remember he didn't even know Liu Tiezhu's name or where he was from.
"Young brother, what's your name, and where are you from?"
"Tell me, so we can look out for each other in the future."
Liu Tiezhu said, "Brother Zhang, I'm from Liujia Village, and my name is Liu Tiezhu."
"I had some misunderstanding with your father-in-law before, so I came today especially to apologize."
At these words, the lively atmosphere instantly fell silent. Just moments ago, Zhang Jingyang had been shouting about killing Liu Tiezhu to avenge his father-in-law. He never expected Liu Tiezhu to come knocking so soon.
Everyone's eyes fixed on Zhang Jingyang's face. The moment he gave the order, they would act and seize Liu Tiezhu.
Zhang Jingyang froze for a few seconds, then roared, "Damn it, you're Liu Tiezhu?"
"You beat my father-in-law so badly last time, and now you're telling me it was a misunderstanding?"
"Since you've come to me today, it saves me the trouble of hunting you down."
"Li Ming, hold this kid down. Today, I'll make him know the consequences of hitting my father-in-law!"
Liu Tiezhu was stunned. He hadn't expected Zhang Jingyang, that bastard, to flip faster than a boat capsizing. One second he was calling him brother, the next he wanted him dead. Sure enough, anyone who managed to get a position in these times was no good person.
But he had come prepared for such a sudden turn. Just as Li Ming was about to make a move, Liu Tiezhu quickly stepped back a few paces.
"Brother Zhang, wait. I forgot to tell you something very important."
"Tell me nothing! Li Ming, kill him!" Zhang Jingyang snapped.
Liu Tiezhu hurriedly said, "About these silver ingots, I know a place where there are many more."
At this, Zhang Jingyang immediately signaled Li Ming to stop.
"You're telling the truth?"
Liu Tiezhu replied, "Of course it's true. I found this silver ingot at that place."
No one could say no to money. And Zhang Jingyang, who loved money as much as his life, was no exception. This was why Liu Tiezhu dared to come alone.
Sure enough, hearing this, Zhang Jingyang's expression changed instantly. His gloomy face broke into a smile.
"Brother Tiezhu, since your beating my father-in-law was a misunderstanding, I'll let it go."
"But as a trade-off, you have to take me to where the silver ingots are."
"That's no problem, but how can I trust you won't settle the score later?" Liu Tiezhu said.
Zhang Jingyang frowned. "Brother Tiezhu, what do you need to believe me?"
"Unless you swear a solemn oath, even if you kill me, I won't take you there."
Liu Tiezhu deliberately put on a foolish expression as he spoke.
Zhang Jingyang was furious enough to spit blood. Though he didn't believe in karma, having to follow Liu Tiezhu's lead in front of so many subordinates infuriated him.
"You son of a bitch, go ahead and gloat for now."
"Once I get the silver ingots, I'll find a way to slowly kill you."
Zhang Jingyang cursed inwardly, but kept his face calm. "What kind of oath do you want me to swear?"
"If you cause me trouble again, you'll eat shit," Liu Tiezhu said.
Zhang Jingyang's face twisted in disgust, his eyes nearly spitting fire. But for the silver ingots, he forced down his rage and raised two fingers.
"I swear, if I cause Liu Tiezhu trouble again, I'll eat shit."
Zhang Jingyang gritted his teeth, each word dripping with icy menace.
"Brother Zhang, I believe you now."
"Let's go to that place right away."
Liu Tiezhu's face showed no emotion, but inside he was laughing his head off.
Zhang Jingyang didn't waste time and ordered Liu Tiezhu to lead the way immediately.
The group walked for two hours before reaching the spot where Liu Tiezhu had previously hidden the pearls and silver ingots. Seeing the waist-high weeds and deadwood, Zhang Jingyang frowned instantly.
"Liu Tiezhu, are you messing with me? Can you really find silver ingots here?"
"Brother Zhang, I wouldn't dare mess with you even if I had ten times the guts."
"I found both silver ingots here," Liu Tiezhu said.
"Both silver ingots?" Zhang Jingyang was startled. "Where's the other one?"
"I spent the other one."
"But there really are silver ingots here. If everyone splits up and searches, we'll definitely find more," Liu Tiezhu said.
"You'd better not be playing me, or the consequences will be severe."
Zhang Jingyang threatened, then ordered Li Ming and the others to form an encirclement and close in on the weeds.
Half an hour later, Li Ming picked up a pearl the size of a thumb and shouted in surprise.
"Damn, there really are treasures here!"
Zhang Jingyang was overjoyed and told everyone to search carefully.
Another forty-plus minutes passed, and someone else found a silver ingot. Now Zhang Jingyang fully believed Liu Tiezhu and ordered the group to expand their search area.
Dozens of people searched from morning until night, turning over the surrounding weeds several times before stopping. After more than ten hours of searching, Zhang Jingyang's men had dug up all the treasures Liu Tiezhu had planted earlier.
In high spirits, Zhang Jingyang paid no more attention to Liu Tiezhu. He told Liu Tiezhu to go home, then lit a fire, set out dried meat, and brought out liquor to celebrate.
Liu Tiezhu's face was expressionless. Only after walking dozens of meters away did a cold smile spread across his face.
"Go ahead and gloat, you idiots."
"Soon enough, I'll make you realize these treasures are hot potatoes."