My Gold Rush Career Begins in 1984

Chapter 165 Demobilized Soldiers and Childhood Friends
The house construction is proceeding in a lively and bustling manner.

Zhou Jingming built a shed next to the house and lived in it, mainly to keep an eye on the materials and prevent them from being stolen.

When building a house, he would always point out areas for improvement according to his own requirements, and add features that rural families would hardly consider these days.

Zhou Detong's daily task of ferrying people across the river was something he couldn't shirk after he took over; he could only help out when there was no one else to ferry people across.

Shen Fengqin and Zhou Xingyao would prepare the meals every day and deliver them over.

There were more than ten people who came to work. They were from neighboring villages, so we had to provide them with food; otherwise, it would seem unfair.

The old house was demolished and turned into a pile of firewood. Every day, their meals had to be prepared and delivered from Zhou Xingyao's house. There were also things to do, like feeding the pigs and chickens, which kept them busy.

During the off-season for farming, Liu Jianfeng, who already had little to do, also came to help.

The house began to change every day on the original foundation.

In those days, most families built houses with earth and wood structures. Very few people had the ability to build brick houses, let alone elaborate courtyard houses.

Without him saying a word, the news spread quickly. People from the village and surrounding villages would often wander over to see what was going on, and some even came together in groups, making quite a stir. At times, there could be more than a dozen people watching from the surrounding area.

As Wu Yang said, building a house is a big deal, and it is the best form of publicity in itself.

Needless to say, they knew that the family that built the house was wealthy.

They would want to know how they made their money and whether they could make their own money in the same way.

As expected, people began to try to find out and speculate how Zhou Jingming could have so much money to build such a big house.

At first, they thought it was money Zhou Jingming had accumulated over the years while working in the geological team.

But soon, some astute people did a quick calculation and discovered that, based on the salary information they knew, Zhou Jingming's salary over the years was only around five or six hundred yuan a year, even if he didn't eat or drink anything. Over six years, he would earn at most three thousand six hundred yuan.

But Zhou Jingming couldn't possibly have no expenses at all; aside from everything else, he also frequently sent money home.

A rough estimate suggests that Zhou Jingming could only earn about two thousand yuan after working for several years; it's absolutely impossible for him to have that much money to build such a large house.

Some people began to speculate whether Zhou Jingming had made a fortune, while others began to wonder if he had embezzled money through his job...

All sorts of strange rumors and speculations would inevitably reach Zhou Jingming's ears.

Zhou Jingming acted as if he hadn't heard anything.

He wasn't actually trying to show off his wealth; rather, he felt there wasn't much to do at home, so he thought he might as well take this opportunity to provide his parents with a better living environment.

Zhou Jingming knew very well that among those who came to watch the excitement, ask all sorts of questions, and make all sorts of suspicions, some were just jealous, some didn't have the courage to take the risks and were content with the status quo, and some were just gossipy people who loved to join in the fun.

Therefore, Zhou Jingming simply smiled and remained silent when those tried to probe the situation indirectly.

He had no intention of spreading the news of his fortune in the gold rush.

Not everyone is suitable to be led to the Gold Rush Valley.

He didn't plan to bring many people with him; he only intended to take one person with him on this trip.

As for the manpower to work in the gold pans, you can easily recruit a large group in Altay.

Zhou Jingming never believed that banding together with fellow villagers would guarantee a worry-free life.

Old Liu, who lives in Haxionggou, is best exemplified by his youngest son, who was killed by his fellow villager.
There are many instances where people are sabotaged by their fellow villagers in exchange for gold.

Therefore, when you go to the gold panning field, your safety depends on yourself. Human nature is not something that can be guaranteed just by saying you're from the same hometown.

This is also why he persisted in practicing the Black Dragon Eighteen Hands.

Another reason is that Huluzui is where Zhou Jingming's family lived.

Unlike ordinary migrant work, gold mining doesn't pose much of a threat to one's life.

Take any group of people with you. Whoever dies in the gold rush must be held accountable to their family. Even if an explanation is given, there will always be people who keep nagging and complaining.

Zhou Jingming himself doesn't care much about things outside, but his parents, sister, and brother-in-law will probably find it hard to have any peace and quiet anymore.

If nothing goes wrong, all is well. But if something does go wrong, it will bring disaster and trouble to the family, and the harmonious and peaceful days will be completely shattered.

As the saying goes, quality is more important than quantity in warfare.

To put it bluntly, Zhou Jingming needs people who can help him solidify his position and deal with risks, not a bunch of "burdens" who bring trouble to his family.

The more familiar you are with someone, the harder they are to manage.

Zhou Jingming has no desire to be a philanthropist.

His situation is different from that of Wu Yang and Bai Zhishun.

Many people from Wuyang and Bai Zhishun's hometown have already been to the gold panning site. They know that gold panning is dangerous, so they can spread the word and recruit people at will.

In Haichao Town, in Zhou Jingming's memories of his previous life, he was one of only two people who frequented the gold panning area, and the other one was someone he had led there.

Some things are better known to as few people as possible.

Although he told his parents, sister, and brother-in-law about his gold panning trip, he also asked them to keep it a secret and not tell anyone.

He didn't know if his casual remark would cause trouble in this place.

He didn't want his fighting and killing in the Gold Rush Valley to become public knowledge, thus attracting more "Wu Fushengs".
He hopes this place will always be a sanctuary in his heart, and also a form of protection for his loved ones.

That afternoon, Zhou Jingming was carrying sand and bricks for the bricklayers on his own land, as usual, when a voice suddenly called out from the bluestone path leading to the riverbank: "Zhou Jingming?"

The voice was clear, but more than that, it was uncertain. Zhou Jingming looked up and saw a person carrying a bag walking quickly up the bluestone path.

He didn't recognize the person at first, but felt that the person was very familiar, but the name was like something stuck in his throat, and he couldn't say it.

Seeing Zhou Jingming's strange reaction, the man frowned: "What, it's only been a few years, and you don't know who I am?"

"You are……"

"You've disappointed me so much. I should have just walked away with my head down, pretending I didn't know you, and it wouldn't have been so awkward... I'm Zhao Li."

Upon hearing the name, Zhou Jingming finally recognized it: "It's you... Isn't it normal that I didn't recognize you? Tell me, how long has it been since we last saw each other?"

Zhao Li was from the same village as Liu Jianfeng, and was three years younger than Zhou Jingming. They attended the same primary school.

"It hasn't been that long, and you don't recognize me anymore? Or is it that now that you have a job, you've started to forget important people?"

"If that's how you put it, there's nothing I can do. Let me ask you, can you still name all the classmates from your elementary school class?"

"Why not? Listen carefully..."

Zhao Li started reading the names one by one, but after only seven or eight, she couldn't read any more.

Zhou Jingming immediately laughed: "Can't say it? It's normal that I can't remember your name. Look at yourself, you've gotten much darker and stronger than before, you're like a different person."

It wasn't that Zhou Jingming was forgetful; for him, decades had passed, so it was perfectly normal not to remember the name immediately.

He looked at Zhao Li in his military green uniform and asked, "Did you go to join the army? Are you back to visit family now?"

"He went to join the army and served for three years in the snowy region!"

Zhao Li sighed: "I've been discharged from the army and gone home."

Zhou Jingming knew in his previous life that the allowance for soldiers serving in snowy areas was much higher than that for soldiers serving in other places, sometimes even double. The reason was simple: the place was chaotic and the conditions were extremely harsh, which was not something an ordinary person could endure.

In later years, when conditions improved, there was a surge in people joining the army in snowy areas, many of whom were drawn by the high salaries and benefits.

To be honest, Zhou Jingming didn't have much contact with Zhao Li in his previous life; they were just acquaintances.

He spent a lot of time away from home and rarely returned. In addition, his family had suffered such a great tragedy in his previous life, so he had no time to care about these things.

He didn't even know that Zhao Li had joined the army, let alone what he did after his discharge, because he had never seen Zhao Li again after he came out of the labor camp.

And now that he has actually encountered it, it is something that he finds quite unexpected.

"He was doing well in his post, so why was he discharged?"

Zhao Li raised his left hand, and Zhou Jingming saw that he only had three fingers left; his little finger and ring finger were missing.

“When I was on patrol, I got into a fight with a group of Bharata soldiers. During the fight, my finger was hit by a stone and later froze, so I had to have it amputated.”

"So you consider this a meritorious deed?"

"What nonsense about meritorious service? It's no big deal. Some of my comrades who went with me were much more seriously injured than me. I transferred the credit to them. They need it more than I do."

"Have you arranged a job after your discharge from the military?"

"No, I haven't gone to the county government yet. There's such a shortage of jobs right now, I'm afraid it'll be difficult to find someone. I guess I'll be more likely to stay home and farm... Anyway, your house is so big, you must have made a fortune?"

Zhou Jingming thought for a moment, then smiled and said to him, "I've managed to get some money."

This was different from his answer to others because he felt that Zhao Li might be a good candidate to go to Altay to pan for gold, just because he had served in the army in the border area, which made him better than many others.

Of course, he also knew that if Zhao Li had a good job offer, he might not be interested in gold panning.

He told Zhao Li about getting rich, just to test the possibility.

"What did you do to make your fortune? You don't even look after your brother here..."

Zhao Li was just saying it casually, but he didn't expect Zhou Jingming to actually tell him that he had made a fortune, so he became somewhat interested.

Zhou Jingming only wanted to lay the groundwork first, and didn't want to talk about this in front of others: "I can't tell you this for now... You've come back so travel-worn, and haven't even stepped into your own home yet. You should go back first, and we'll talk about it when we have time."

"You still can't tell me... why are you being so mysterious?"

Zhao Li looked at Zhou Jingming with a strange expression, but still nodded: "Alright, it's rare to run into you. I'll come find you another day. Bye."

Zhou Jingming nodded at him and watched him leave along the main road with his luggage on his back.

If Zhao Li really wants to go, he can bring her along.

Of course, Zhou Jingming already had someone in mind. He even wanted to take him with him when he went to Altay at the beginning of the year. However, he himself was not clear about the specific situation in Altay, so he did not go to him but went to pan for gold alone, which was equivalent to going to explore the situation.

This person was one of only two, and also the one Zhou Jingming most wanted to take with him. He was his childhood friend, Li Guohua, with whom he had grown up together. They had always had a close relationship.

His situation was rather unique; he was raised by many families. When he was very young, his father went to the mountains to chop firewood and was bitten by a poisonous snake. He died before they could even carry him home. His mother felt she couldn't make a living like this, so she cruelly abandoned him and remarried, disappearing to who-knows-where. He had always lived with his grandfather.

Unfortunately, his grandfather was also a sickly man, and the hardships they faced were unimaginable. He passed away when he was twelve years old, leaving him as the only son.

At that time, he was begging for food and drink and suffered a lot of scorn and humiliation. Shen Fengqin and Zhou Detong were both kind-hearted people who helped him a lot. They often brought him food and drink, and Shen Fengqin also helped him sew and mend his clothes and luggage.

It can be said that his relationship with Zhou Jingming and Zhou Xingyao was as close as that of siblings.

But the more wild and untamed a person is, the more extraordinary their vitality becomes.

He looked unremarkable, perhaps because he had seen too many subtle cues, but he was also a man with a fierce heart, and he was the most protective of Zhou Jingming.

(End of this chapter)