Take Arada back to the past

Chapter 823, On the Importance of a Foreign Language

After exiting, you'll find yourself on the street. The area in front of the train station is bustling with people.

Most of them are here to pick up goods.

Tractors, mules, carts, porters... and even a few old-fashioned trucks.

There are all sorts of transportation methods available.

Even though the road in front of the train station is quite wide, it still feels a bit congested.

Yang Xiaole glanced at the direction of the crowd; most of them were heading northwest. Without lingering there, they walked towards the border crossing.

It's definitely much colder here than inland areas.

The temperature in inland is around ten degrees Celsius, which is already quite cold, but here it has already dropped below zero.

The train station is about four kilometers away from the border crossing.

The houses along the road are mostly warehouses, and many people are chatting there.

Not everyone has the means to transport things there.

Many people bring their goods here and hand them over to people with connections here for transport, while others sell them directly.

After walking two kilometers, Yang Xiaole felt as if he had arrived at a farmers' market.

Very lively.

There are almost always queues at the phone booths and other places where you can make a phone call.

Yang Xiaole watched for a while and then quietly left, after all, he just wanted something new.

With my ID, I passed through the checkpoint directly.

Similarly, the market area opposite is only four or five kilometers away from the border.

The markets in Manzhouli are legitimate, but many people there are doing illegal business, and the international middlemen turn a blind eye.

After all, these foreign exchange reserves must be exchanged before entering the mainland.

It cannot be used directly.

But the Russians are much stricter than we are here.

Most of the people walking around were Chinese, and it seemed that many of them were carrying weapons.

He didn't come here solely for fun.

They came here to find someone, not to look for someone else.

He told Ivanka to wait for him in Moscow, but he also had her arrange for people to be stationed in Manzhouli, Heihe, and Suifenhe.

After all, he will need to transport people and supplies from Russia in the future.

He will consider all three routes: sea, land, and air.

It would be a real problem if one of the lines went down.

"Son of a bitch!"

Lost in thought, I heard shouts and curses coming from afar.

Five young men were about to clash with several soldiers, but the leader was stopped by the others.

Several Russian soldiers, looking rather smug, carried the things away.

As for the young men, they still dared not make any move.

It was obvious that they were being bullied by these Russian soldiers; this kind of thing happens all too often.

"Aku!"

As Yang Xiaole approached, he called out with a smile.

The other person was a very strong young man.

It was Aku, the cheap apprentice, who was with me when I went to buy horses back then.

The other party was also taken aback for a moment.

She quickly realized what was happening and hurried over, saying, "Teacher! What brings you here?"

Yang Xiaole chuckled and said, "Oh, it's nothing. Isn't it common for middlemen to operate here? We just came to join in the fun. What brings you all here?"

Aku was overjoyed, then said, "We also sell things, teacher, do you remember them?"

He spoke while glancing at the people around him.

Yang Xiaole glanced at them and then laughed, "Aguza, Kuli, I really can't recognize the others."

Aguzha was the first child he rescued after he arrived.

The others were probably also children from the tribe.

So many years have passed, and we've all grown up now.

The other person didn't speak much Chinese, but greeted him with a smile: "Teacher! Thank you!"

Yang Xiaole smiled and nodded.

Then, watching the departing figures of the bears, he asked, "What happened?"

Aku was filled with resentment upon seeing this: "Those are locals; they need to pay to sell things here..."

Then I explained the general situation.

There are only designated areas where you can buy and sell things. You can do it in other places too, but the security isn't very good.

However, the prices for selling things in the designated areas are just too high.

Minimum rental period is one month.

The lowest price is 10,000 to 20,000 yuan a month, and the area is about 20 square meters.

Moreover, they only accept goods of equivalent value.

They often get into trouble selling things outside; sometimes it's locals who rob them, sometimes it's soldiers from here, and sometimes it's even people from other parts of China.

Yang Xiaole did hear quite a bit about what was happening here along the way.

The high rent is one particularly alarming figure.

Two shipping containers; the annual rent here is 500,000.

Of course, those who can afford to rent it don't care about such a small amount of money.

It's mainly those retail investors.

He glanced at the trading area not far away and laughed, "Let's go, I know someone here, let's see if we can get the stuff back."

He knows very well what kind of people Ivanka has mentored over the years.

The camp has always used an elimination system.

Their combat power will only get stronger.

To put it bluntly, as long as it's not against heavy weapons, in small-scale battles, a platoon can easily take down an entire enemy company.

He believed that the people Ivanka brought would definitely be able to gain a foothold here.

Seeing this, Aku hesitated and said, "Forget it, this place is different from ours. It's very chaotic here. If it really doesn't work out, let's just give up!"

"Alright, come with me!"

He had just seen the people in the trade zone; they were wearing special badges on their chests.

They belong to the peripheral personnel.

He even suspected that this place was established by people brought by Ivanka.

Aku hesitated for a moment upon seeing this, but after thinking about it, he agreed to go with them.

They were carrying goods, so naturally they couldn't go in.

Now that I'm empty-handed, I can go in.

As long as you don't do business inside, it's fine.

They then hurried inside.

When they arrived at the gate, these people just looked at them and didn't stop them.

However, Yang Xiaole did not go in.

Instead, he took something out and handed it to the other person, and they communicated in Russian.

Aku was initially puzzled.

But he was startled to see that the other person was actually saluting him.

These are ferocious demons!
I never expected to salute Yang Xiaole.

After a brief exchange, one of them quickly left.

Yang Xiaole had a brief conversation, then left without lingering, taking his belongings with him.

"Teacher, do you really know these people?"

Aku could hardly believe it.

Yang Xiaole nodded slightly: "Yes, I used to know a few friends, but I don't know if they still recognize me."

That is indeed the truth.

Many people at the base know him, but he has rarely been there in recent years; those who know him are mostly veterans.

Many people have been eliminated.

Akku followed behind in surprise.

Upon entering the trade zone, there were many buildings and shops made from shipping containers. There were also quite a few people setting up stalls.

There are relatively more Russians among the street vendors, while the shops are mostly run by Chinese.

After all, only Chinese people have so many supplies.

The powerful Russian bear, once it has a lot of goods, will simply put them on trains and sell them all along the Trans-Siberian Railway.

Of course, this is now. In two years, when the port of Manzhouli opens, these people's goods can also be sold along the Trans-Siberian Railway.

"Yang Xiaole?"

Lost in thought, a surprised voice came from inside a shop.

Yang Xiaole turned his head to look.

A middle-aged man dressed in a fine fur coat and wearing sunglasses came out of the store.

Taking off his glasses revealed a familiar face.

"Yu Wenbin? What are you doing here?"

He did scan it, but he only glanced at it and didn't examine it carefully.

After all, he was looking for people from the Siberian training camp.

Yes, the name was originally Siberian Training Camp, but the headquarters is in South Africa.

Yu Wenbin looked noticeably older at this time.

There's nothing I can do; I've reached that age.

They're all forty years old, even though he himself is 38 this year.

They were the oldest of the three classes of students who graduated from high school in 1966; most of them were around thirty years old when the college entrance examination was relaxed.

Yu Wenbin was two years older than him.

His face was covered in stubble.

Yu Wenbin is no longer as arrogant as before. Perhaps life has smoothed out his edges, or perhaps he has reached a certain age.

Looking at Yang Xiaole, he sighed, "I've been doing business here, and you haven't changed at all!"

"Hehe, maybe it's because I don't look old! How come you're doing business here?"

Yang Xiaole said with a smile.

Yu Wenbin sighed.

He then said, "My dad got into trouble, and I got dragged into it too. We all have to make a living, so I came to get some things. I've been here for so long, and I haven't seen you! Is this your first time here? Didn't you take the college entrance exam?"

With Yang Xiaole's grades, there's no reason why he shouldn't have gotten into college!

"Yes, this is my first time here. I just came to take a look! I didn't take the college entrance exam."

Yu Wenbin nodded slightly, glanced at the people behind him, and smiled, "You brought quite a few people with you! What kind of goods are you carrying? Do you want me to help you sell them? I'm familiar with this place, don't worry, I won't rip you off."

Yang Xiaole smiled and shook his head: "I didn't bring anything with me this time, I just came to take a look."

"Oh, that's how it is!"

Seeing this, Yu Wenbin didn't say anything.

"Okay, you go ahead with your work, come over for a couple of drinks sometime!"

Yang Xiaole smiled and said, "Okay, we'll talk about it later!"

He wasn't interested in dealing with people unless they provoked him, since it was all just youthful impulsiveness.

Between thoughts.

Then we saw several trucks driving towards us.

The people on the bus were looking around, as if they were looking for someone.

This immediately silenced all the merchants.

When the leader saw him, his eyes lit up, and he parked the car right in front of Yu Wenbin's shop.

A group of fierce and menacing people.

It terrified everyone around.

Yang Xiaole smiled when he saw the leader. He had seen this person before, but he didn't know his name.

After all, there are so many people.

"Sir!"

The other person came over, saluted, and greeted them in Russian.

Yang Xiaole smiled and then communicated with them in Russian as well.

Which brigade do you belong to?

“Reporting to the commander, I am Pamela Black, the squad leader of the 1st platoon of the 3rd company of the 6th battalion, in charge of this trade zone.”

Yang Xiaole nodded slightly: "Okay, take me to your office first. I need to contact Ivanka. Oh, by the way, my friend was robbed of some things outside, so I'm having them delivered."

After saying that, he looked at Aku beside him and said, "Aku, what did you lose? Tell me."

Aku stammered, "I...we lost beef jerky and canned goods, so...maybe we should just forget about it!"

He was a little scared.

After all, these are a group of people who are armed to the teeth!
He heard their conversation, but he couldn't understand it.

However, he knew that the people outside all had vested interests, and since Yang Xiaole knew people, it wasn't easy for him to interfere in this matter.

Yang Xiaole ignored him and explained the situation to Blake.

Someone nearby immediately made arrangements, and they ran away.

……

Yu Wenbin was startled by the other party's fierce appearance.

They knew a little bit of Russian, but their conversation was so fluent that the other two couldn't understand a word.

They communicate here using very simple, basic Russian.

It's still Chinese-style Russian.

The Russians were naturally taken care of as much as possible, and communication was mixed with sign language.

I only vaguely heard something.

These people are from a large group; something was stolen, and they want to get it back.

Yu Wenbin exchanged a few words with the person next to him and said, "This kid probably lost something and then reported it to these people, right?"

The person next to him also looked bewildered: "I don't know! I feel like it's because this kid is really bold! What are these people? They're from the Siberian training camp. You forgot, when these people first arrived, they fought a battle with the people here, and the people here were routed."

He then quickly said, "Binzi, you have to distance yourself from him! If he thinks you two know each other, you're doomed."

Yu Wenbin nodded in agreement.

However, he still hesitated and said, "But that person saluted just now! He even seemed to call out 'Sir,' I must have heard correctly."

"How could that be? He's not from the mainland! Even if we knew him, how could he be our superior?"

Seeing this, Yu Wenbin nodded slightly. When he saw these people questioning him, he quickly went over to explain.

……

"Sir, are these people your friends?"

Yang Xiaole glanced at Yu Wenbin beside him.

Speechless. It's true what they say, a leopard can't change its spots!
Before he could speak, Yu Wenbin hurriedly said, "I... I don't know him... this is the first time I've met him..."

Blake nodded slightly.

Seeing this, Yang Xiaole said, "I really don't recognize them. Let's go to your office and throw these people out. Don't let me run into them at this port again."

Seeing this, Blake agreed.

Just ask him to get in the car.

The car drove away immediately.

Just as Yu Wenbin was wondering what was going on, he saw someone coming over to take him away.

……

"Hey, I paid! What right do you have to kick me out? My goods! That person has nothing to do with me!"

Yu Wenbin explained haltingly.

Not everyone here is unfamiliar with Russian; some are fluent in it.

He said regretfully, "Can't you understand what I'm saying? Can't you see what's going on? That person clearly has a high status here. Just now, when that person wanted to see their superior, didn't you see how polite those soldiers were to him?"

"Yeah! Everyone else is rushing to curry favor with him, but you, on the other hand, say you don't know him. Who else is going to suffer if not you!"

"Exactly! You may not understand what they say, but you can't be blind to the situation!"

People were talking about it there.

Yu Wenbin was stunned upon hearing this.

He had truly misunderstood, and quickly turned around and shouted, "Xiao Le, brother, help me!"

Unfortunately, the car had already driven far away.

(End of this chapter)