My Gold Rush Career Begins in 1984

Chapter 61 No Bloodshed, No Prosperity
As soon as Peng Yuanchao returned to the dugout, the first thing he did was stick his head into the bucket and gulp down a mouthful of icy water.

Zhou Jingming, who was outside, peeked into the dugout and laughed: "Brother Peng, you're panicking!"

"Nonsense, we've practically stormed into a dragon's den!"

Peng Yuanchao seemed to be holding his breath for a long time. After drinking enough cold water, he exhaled heavily: "I was over there with them just now, listening to that bastard say those things. To be honest, I really wanted to jump out and kill him, but there were so many of them... I was so angry, but I didn't dare to. Later, I even started to doubt whether I could come back."

As he said this, he looked at Zhou Jingming and Wu Yang: "The way they looked at us, like they wanted to devour us, didn't you see?"

These words may sound cowardly, but they are the most genuine thoughts.

In that situation, Peng Yuanchao's willingness to refuse was already quite commendable in Zhou Jingming's opinion.

"So fierce? I really didn't notice."

Zhou Jingming handed the lamb leg he was carrying to Wu Yang, while he took out the offal from the bag, pulled out his knife, first picked out a sheep intestine, cut it into small sections, and tossed it to Jin Wang.

It must have been a sheep that was slaughtered overnight last night. The intestines and stomach were only squeezed to remove the filth inside, and were not cleaned at all.

If prepared properly, they can all be delicious and edible.

However, I ate a lot of mutton this morning, so I don't want to think about it now.

I remember watching Animal World in my past life, and they said that herbivores have probiotics in their intestines that are good for carnivores. Feeding Jinwang with these bacteria must be a good thing.

Wu Yang put the lamb leg into the dugout and hung it above the earthen stove. He then followed Peng Yuanchao out and said, "Brother Peng, in a situation like that, panicking is the most useless thing. On the contrary, the more panicked you are, the less they will take you seriously."

Zhou Jingming agreed with this statement.

Peng Yuanchao sighed: "I know that, but it's easier said than done."

He looked at the two of them and said, "Brother, sometimes I wonder if you're a geologist. You seem more like a seasoned gold miner."

Those who haven't experienced fighting and killing wouldn't be so calm. If you work in geology, you probably won't have many opportunities to experience such a scene.

And Wu Yang, you really kept your composure; no wonder you're a reconnaissance soldier.

Zhou Jingming glanced at him: "Brother Peng, stop guessing. You're making it sound like we're going to harm you at any moment. I'm not lying to you. Speaking of which, when you were with Boss Tang, I pulled you up, and you shook my hand off. Were you angry with me then? Did you think I was going to betray you?"

"That's not true, absolutely not!"

Peng Yuanchao shook his head repeatedly: "You blew into my eyes on purpose, didn't you? The saliva you spat out hurt my eyeballs!"

Zhou Jingming rolled his eyes at him: "You still have the nerve to say that? Why were you touching my thigh?"

Peng Yuanchao grinned: "I'm showing you a gun!"

Zhou Jingming snorted: "You obviously just want to touch... Brother Peng, you're going too far. Let me make it clear beforehand, I don't have that kind of fetish, so stay away from me in the future."

"I……"

Peng Yuanchao was momentarily speechless, finally managing to utter a single word: "Damn!"

Wu Yang, who was listening from the side, found it amusing: "Brother Zhou, stop teasing Brother Peng... Let's get down to business. Do you think that group of people surnamed Tang will cause us any more trouble?"
To be honest, I felt really frustrated today. If you had just given me a look, I would have done something awful!

"What's there to be upset about? Before we even went, I already guessed it might be a trap. It was expected. We were there to find out their secrets, so I was mentally prepared."

Besides, making a move in someone else's tent with so many people watching, even the best fighter might not come out on top. There's no need to be so reckless.

Zhou Jingming gave a definitive answer: "They will cause us trouble again, and it won't be long before the trouble comes."

Peng Yuanchao's expression turned serious again: "What do you mean?"

"Although the riverbed below is an old riverbed and a rich mine, there is not much water right now because the silt below is frozen and it is the dry season. When it gets to May, the weather warms up, the snow and ice on the high mountains melt, and with the rain, the river will rise higher and higher. At that time, that riverbed will be flooded, and they will not be able to pan for gold."

That area had been dug up before. I don't believe no one knew it was the old riverbed. The reason they didn't dig further down was most likely because of the location—too flat and too low-lying. Building drainage ditches would be too much work, time-consuming, labor-intensive, and unprofitable. They'll come back to us to 'discuss cooperation' when they can no longer pan for gold.”

As Zhou Jingming spoke, his expression turned serious: "I couldn't see it yesterday, but I can see it clearly today. That guy surnamed Tang is capricious, his temper changes faster than turning the pages of a book, and he's ruthless. He's definitely not someone to be trifled with."

Wu Yang nodded: "Indeed!"

Zhou Jingming snorted coldly: "In the Gold Rush Valley, there's always been a saying: No bloodshed, no gold prosperity."

Gold has always been stained with blood.

If you honestly pan for gold and have a bit of luck, without encountering any problems, you're pretty good if you can earn three or four thousand dollars after half a year of hard work.

But is it possible to avoid encountering anything?
Those who truly make big money all consider other avenues; they are all predatory.

In the river valley, fighting and killing are very common.

The place was remote, far from the reach of the emperor, and hardly anyone cared about these matters.

I've got my eye on the water pump and the Eagle Rabbit brand shotgun; they have a pretty complete set of equipment.

"Damn it, if that Tang guy can mess with us, of course we can mess with them too. It's not unreasonable!"

Upon hearing this, Wu Yang became excited: "I understand!"

Peng Yuanchao was somewhat surprised: "Brother, from what you're saying, you want to fight them? With these few scoundrels I've recruited, I'm afraid it won't work... Don't you want to think of any other methods?"

"What, scared?"

Zhou Jingming asked with a smile.

“If you’re a cultured person and you’re not afraid, why should I be? Don’t look down on me. The gold rush in the West Sea is even more chaotic than here. It’s not like I haven’t been in a fight before.”

Peng Yuanchao tore open his shirt: "I'm someone who's been around in the West Sea. Look at this knife scar on my chest. It's from when someone came to take my territory while I was panning for gold. If I were scared, I wouldn't have gone down the path of gold panning."

If they really come to seize it, I'll be at the very front, even if it means my death.

It was a knife wound that cut diagonally down the left chest, more than a foot long. After the wound healed, it left a red mark, which looked somewhat ferocious.

Peng Yuanchao didn't open his shirt, so Zhou Jingming really didn't know.

"That's good!"

He took a deep breath, then exhaled slowly, and looked at Wu Yang: "Brother, what do you think of those guys?"

"The others were unremarkable, but there were only four or five of them with a fierce glint in their eyes; they must have been involved in some kind of criminal gang."

Wu Yang smiled and said, "There are only a few of them. They're easy to deal with. Give me the gun, and I can take care of them when I have a spare moment."

Peng Yuanchao glanced at Wu Yang in surprise, wondering how this young man could speak so arrogantly.

"No rush... There's gold to be found now, so they shouldn't do anything to us for the time being."

Why did we come to the Gold Rush Valley? For gold!
Let them loot for now. We'll deal with them when they come looking for us, and then we'll collect their principal and interest. Just be vigilant in the meantime.

Zhou Jingming wasn't in a hurry. After thinking for a moment, he said, "Brother Peng, don't tell them about what happened today. They're a bunch of newbies who haven't seen anything big. If they know someone is trying to harm us, they'll easily panic and won't feel at ease while panning for gold."

Peng Yuanchao nodded slightly: "Okay!"

"I thought it would take a lot of time to help people find Jin Miao, but now I've gotten a good meal. Let's hurry up and get to work and try to get the pole and windlass ready as soon as possible."

Zhou Jingming took out the Da Zhong Jiu cigarette, took out three packs of cigarettes, threw one pack to Peng Yuanchao, handed one to Wu Yang, and put one pack in his own bag. He took the rest back to the dugout and put them in his canvas bag. This was a rare delicacy in the mountains, so he had to save it and enjoy it slowly later.

　Thank you to the following readers for their generous donations: Black Aniu, Wheat and Soybean, Tianya Zhiyin, Daodaodaoye, and Guangkaituwang!
　　Please read it!
　　
　
(End of this chapter)