My Gold Rush Career Begins in 1984

Chapter 252 Let's Take Action Together

Gold is found on shady slopes, and gold prospectors' mining sites are almost all concentrated on shady slopes.

The Qingshan team, naturally, followed the shady slope and drove straight in.

Zhou Jingming had considered his choice of the sunny slope.

First, there are almost no gold mining sites on the sunny slope. Second, the Haiertes River is quite wide, and Liang Mazi's group cannot cross it on horseback. If they want to come over, they must detour through the ferry. By the time they arrive, Zhou Jingming and Wu Yang will have had enough time to leave.

What we need to do now is find a secluded and convenient shooting location and prepare to fire.

The two followed the gold rush valley upstream.

In fact, neither Zhou Jingming nor Wu Yang deliberately concealed their identities, because there was no need to.

The gold prospectors at the river valley mining site were chased away in a chaotic manner by the clearing team. Not wanting their gold to be confiscated, the prospectors had no choice but to scatter and flee.

Among them were many gold prospectors who, out of desperation, jumped into the river and ran towards the sunny slope.

As the two walked upstream along the sunny bank of the river, they encountered several gold prospectors, their clothes soaked through, hiding in the woods and watching the mining sites on the opposite bank. They would remain hidden until the Qingshan team left the gold-panning valley.

This is good; the existence of these people will only further confuse the public.

The Qingshan team charged ahead, riding horses at great speed. Zhou Jingming and Wu Yang couldn't keep up, as even with their own two legs, they couldn't keep up with the four-legged horses.

They were also aware of the Qingshan team's methods: they would chase the gold miners in, sometimes going back and forth along the river valley several times, trying to catch them as many times as possible. Once caught, they would confiscate the gold, impose fines, and only when the miners were about to leave would they set fire to their dugouts and the tools and supplies that the miners hadn't had time to take with them when they fled.

Without these things, gold prospectors would be unable to continue prospecting for gold.

Similarly, leaving these things temporarily in the dugout will attract gold prospectors to come back and retrieve them, increasing the chances of catching them.

So, when Zhou Jingming and Wu Yang had gone four or five miles into the valley, they waited in a poplar grove on the riverbank.

The valley at this location is relatively narrow, with the river about thirty meters wide. On the shady slope, there is a small path that has gradually formed over the years by gold prospectors, which is wide enough to push a cart. It is also the only way for the Qingshan team to enter and exit along the main river channel.

The distance was just right, and the large poplar forest behind them provided excellent cover. Once they succeeded, they could immediately disappear into the depths of the forest and vanish without a trace.

After choosing a location, Zhou Jingming and Wu Yang sat at the edge of the forest, behind a large poplar tree. They first ate some of the dry rations they had brought, and then waited in the forest, taking turns to rest and recharge.

They waited for more than two hours.

Zhou Jingming was sleeping behind a poplar tree when he suddenly heard Wu Yang call out softly, "Brother Zhou, wake up, they're here!"

Zhou Jingming immediately opened his eyes, shook his head vigorously, and peered upstream from behind the tree. He saw more than ten members of the Qingshan team riding horses in a grand procession from upstream.

Having been chased away once before, the dugouts and supplies had not yet been burned down. After a brief escape, many gold prospectors risked returning to their dugouts to retrieve supplies in order to continue panning for gold in the Gold Rush Valley.

The Qingshan team turned back, chasing many people away in all directions, creating chaos. While chasing the gold prospectors, there were occasional gunshots to intimidate them.

"Judging by their numbers, they must have split into two teams!"

Zhou Jingming carefully examined the group of people: "It seems Liang Mazi isn't among them..."

Wu Yang looked around for a while and said, "He's definitely not there."

"Just keep waiting, they'll come out eventually."

Zhou Jingming had enough patience to wait here for several days until Liang Mazi came out of the mountain. If the matter wasn't resolved, the mining site in Haxionggou would not be able to have peace.

The two watched from the poplar grove as the dozen or so members of the mountain clearing team chased them down the river. After more than an hour, they came up from downstream and disappeared after entering the valley.

They didn't come out until it was almost dark.

Meanwhile, the gold prospectors on the other side of the river began to cautiously peek out from the hilltops to check on the situation back in their dugouts.

Zhou Jingming and Wu Yang guessed that Liang Mazi and the others would spend the night in the mountains, so they stopped waiting and headed deeper into the forest.

At this time of year, the temperature fluctuates greatly between day and night. You can even see white breath when you breathe at night. If you don't light a fire for warmth, the nights will be very difficult to endure.

Lighting a fire on the riverbank would be too conspicuous, so they had to find another place.

The two ventured deep into the forest, and before it got completely dark, they quickly gathered some firewood and started a fire.

They tried to make the fire as big as possible so that it could warm the ground, which was gradually getting cold, and make it warmer to sleep on the ground fully clothed at night.

Just as the two were sitting around the fire smoking and roasting the steamed buns they had brought, a cracking sound suddenly came from the woods. It was the sound of a dry branch being broken by footsteps, followed by the sound of leaves being shaken.

Zhou Jingming and Wu Yang alertly grabbed the double-barreled shotgun that was leaning against a tree trunk and immediately pointed it in the direction from which the sound came.

At first, they thought it was some wild animal, but after waiting a while, they saw a dark figure emerge from the woods. Seeing that they were being targeted by a gun, the man hesitated for a moment, then cried out, "Don't shoot...don't shoot..."

Zhou Jingming asked in a cold voice, "What are you doing?"

The man hurriedly explained, “Brothers, I came here specifically because I saw a fire. This evening, I was chased by the Qingshan team, so I jumped into the river and swam to this side. My clothes and pants are completely soaked, and even the matches I was carrying in an oil paper bag got wet and I can’t start a fire. It’s getting cold tonight, so could you let me stay here with you for the night and warm up by the fire?”

Zhou Jingming thought for a moment and said, "Then come over here!"

That was true, but neither he nor Wu Yang put down their guns until the man came closer. By the firelight, they could see that he was a middle-aged man in his forties or fifties, and he wasn't carrying any firearms. Only then did they lower their guns. The middle-aged man squatted down by the fire, warmed his hands over the flames, and then rubbed them vigorously. "Were you also chased out by the Qingshan team?"

Seeing that he was soaking wet, Zhou Jingming didn't think he was lying, so he chimed in, "Who else could it be but them? We're a bit better off than you. When the Qingshan team came into the mountains, we were in the river getting our nets and fishing. We saw them from afar and quickly ran away. There are fewer people here, so the Qingshan team usually doesn't come over. That's why they came here."

“I was quite unlucky. When the Qingshan team came, I ran away. After they went upstream, I went back to my dugout to collect my things. But then I ran into them coming back. I didn’t have time to run up the mountain, so I had to jump into the river. I was at the upstream mining site and was swept down quite a distance by the river. I’m not a good swimmer, and I almost died in the river. It was a lot of trouble before I finally managed to climb out.”

"Look at my head, it got smashed when the river swept me up and I hit a rock in the river."

The middle-aged man sighed and muttered, and naturally couldn't help but curse a few times: "I really wish they would fall off their horses and die, or fall into the latrine and drown."

Zhou Jingming laughed when he heard this.

He shone his flashlight on the middle-aged man's head and saw a pool of blood above his right ear, the blood sticking his disheveled hair together: "You're badly injured!"

"What can we do? Gold prospectors are cheap lives, they can only endure it."

The middle-aged man was filled with resentment: "Tell me, why hasn't anyone killed that bastard Liang Mazi? I understand the mountain clearing team's actions; it's the government's order. I also know that what we're doing is illegal mining and non-compliant..."

But isn't this just because they couldn't make ends meet back home that they came here to seek their fortune?

If life were easy, who the hell would come to a place like this to risk their life?

Furthermore, if the people at the gold purchasing stations had raised the price of gold, who the hell would risk smuggling gold on the black market? Wouldn't it be better to just exchange the gold they found for money peacefully? What would the Qingshan team have to do with that?
The way they do it, with their layers of exploitation, they leave no way for anyone to survive.

Wu Yang interjected, "Just because Liang Mazi is dead, does that mean the Qingshan team will stop clearing the mountains?"

The middle-aged man shook his head: "There's an old saying: a cowardly soldier is cowardly, a cowardly general is cowardly, and a cowardly general will make a whole army cowardly. What kind of captain you have determines what kind of team you have. Liang Mazi is too ruthless. What I mean is, if we had a different one, would things be a little better?"

His idea coincided with that of Zhou Jingming and Wu Yang.

The Qingshan team has branches in various counties in Altan. Anyone who comes to pan for gold will inevitably have to deal with them.

Actually, the people above weren't unaware of what Liang Mazi had been doing in the valley; they simply needed someone like Liang Mazi.

Only those with a ruthless heart can scramble for more gold from the prospectors. Those in power who turn a blind eye and a deaf ear are also beneficiaries. With their protection, Liang Mazi and his gang can run rampant and do whatever they want in the Gold Rush Valley.

Zhou Jingming was actually taking a considerable risk by coming here to deal with Liang Mazi. If things weren't handled properly, it would be like stirring up a hornet's nest, leading to endless trouble and possibly forcing them to go on the run.

The reason he persisted in doing so was that the closer someone like Liang Mazi was to the higher-ups, the more he would make them hesitant to act, and a thorough investigation and a large-scale manhunt would have far-reaching consequences.

Nobody wants to get involved.

Therefore, the matter will most likely be suppressed, handled simply, and not made a big fuss.

To put it bluntly, Liang Mazi was just a tool pushed to the front by some people. Once the tool is gone, they can just replace it. Nobody wants to turn down gold.

The two chatted briefly with the middle-aged man and shared some of his dry rations with him. The three of them then spent the night by the fire, half-asleep and half-awake.

The next day, because of the appearance of this middle-aged man, Zhou Jingming decided to change locations as a precaution.

The two set off and left in the morning while the middle-aged man was still fast asleep.

As fate would have it, when they were heading upstream towards the Chagou River Valley where the small peninsula was located last year, the two saw the Qingshan team, led by Liang Mazi, coming out from upstream and heading into the Chagou.

Zhou Jingming and Wu Yang were more familiar with this side ditch.

After a brief discussion, the two quickly decided to ambush the enemy in a fir forest.

Because the ravine was relatively small, the two waited in the fir forest for less than two hours before they saw Liang Mazi leading his men out, burning their dugouts along the way.

Across from the woods where Zhou Jingming and his group were, there was a mining site, about forty meters away.

When Liang Mazi and the others arrived, they all dismounted. While the others carried the firewood piled up next to the dugout into the dugout and lit it, Liang Mazi smoked a cigarette and watched everyone busy at work.

Zhou Jingming and Wu Yang would never miss such a good opportunity.

"Brother, once you've got the aim right, let's all go at it together. Aim at Liang Mazi, you only have one shot... fire and then leave."

"it is good!"

Zhou Jingming hid behind a tree, leaning against the trunk, and raised his gun to show off: "I'll count to three... one, two... three!"

As soon as he finished speaking, his finger immediately pulled the trigger.

"Bang, bang..."

The two gunshots rang out almost as one, echoing throughout the valley.

Liang Mazi, who was standing by the dugout opposite, fell down with a thud.

The next second, Zhou Jingming and Wu Yang turned around and ran wildly into the fir forest.

(End of this chapter)