Surviving in the chaos of war begins in the wilderness.

Chapter 108 The Disheartened Little Jie

During the subsequent banquet, everyone ate and drank, and many of the officials who held temporary posts got to know each other and made friends. In the end, they all received generous rewards from the He family.

The He family was one of the most successful families this time, making a fortune. Therefore, the head of the He family not only doubled the reward to 100 taels of silver for Zhou Ye, but also gave him many other gifts.

This left Zhou Ye slightly speechless. After receiving those two large cartloads of goods, he had already inquired about the latest market situation in the county town.

Due to the intense fighting, a large amount of spoils flowed out, leading to an oversupply of most goods and a sharp drop in prices for almost everything. Some items were even becoming undesirable to pawnshops.

Fortunately, Zhou Ye didn't rely on this. He decided to put all the goods and gifts into the warehouse and sell them slowly later.

In fact, if it weren't for the fact that bulk commodity transactions are often quite sensitive, with people fearing exposure, Zhou Ye would have wanted to buy a batch of goods whose prices had plummeted to rock bottom, hoping to buy low and sell high.

Relatively speaking, mountain running is better. Although it's more dangerous in the mountains, it won't attract envy from others. Why don't you go mountain running yourselves if you're so capable? Anyway, there are plenty of good things in the mountains—

After returning from the banquet, Zhou Ye rested for the night at his home at the dock. The next day, he changed back into his humble attire as a lowly mountain dweller and headed to his home outside the city.

Regardless, we still need to check on that family's situation. After all, that night was incredibly chaotic.

However, once inside the alley, Zhou Ye immediately relaxed. Perhaps this place was indeed too dilapidated to be a target for anyone. Even a battle royale like that night could be won without incident.

He greeted his neighbors along the way. Zhou Ye would occasionally stop to chat with them, smiling. By the time he reached his doorstep, it was already fifteen minutes later.

But as Zhou Ye was about to open the door, he suddenly froze, his entire body tensing instantly. The hidden markings on the door had vanished, clearly indicating that someone had tampered with it.

Zhou Ye hesitated for a moment, but quickly made a decision. He carefully opened the door and then immediately closed it.

He drew his knife and began to carefully observe the entire courtyard.

To be honest, it's not surprising that a few petty thieves would have broken in during this chaotic situation. After all, he's often away from home, and the place is rather remote. Zhou Ye didn't want to cause a big commotion; he just wanted to search the area for peace of mind.

Even if he lost some property, he didn't care at all.

To be honest, apart from daily necessities and some stored food, there's nothing of value here.

To be honest, the most valuable thing is actually the several thousand kilograms of charcoal piled up in the yard, but it doesn't seem to have decreased much. Oh, and there's still a small half-bag of copper coins left in the room. And to this day, that money hasn't been spent yet.

Zhou Ye had already placed the more valuable items at his home at the dock; the more valuable items were placed in his small home in the mountains; and the most precious items were buried in a hidden location near his small home.

In addition, there's the money. Besides burying 5000 taels of silver notes in his small garden, he also carried 1300 taels of silver notes with him, along with some loose change. If you include the reward from the He family this time, it should be less than 200 taels of silver, right?

However, just as Zhou Ye was on high alert, a familiar voice suddenly came from the storage room: "Brother Ye, be careful, don't make a sound. It's me! It's Xiao Jie!"

"???"

A short while later, Zhou Ye met Xiao Jie with a strange expression. However, he looked extremely haggard, as if he had encountered some unexpected event.

Xiao Jie looked apologetic: "Brother Aye, I've been hiding at your house for over a day and have eaten some food from the kitchen."

Zhou Ye chuckled: "Eating and using a little bit is fine. But Xiao Jie, why didn't you go home? What happened?"

"I—I don't know how to say it. But I'm afraid to go home, I really have nowhere to go. In the end, I thought of your house. Don't you often go hiking in the mountains? There's usually not anyone at home."

"Don't mention that, I don't mind. Just tell me what it is."

"I really don't know what to do? Er Shun and San Shun are dead, and even Niu Zi was beaten to death by them—"

"Um?"

-

Through Xiao Jie's rambling narration, Zhou Ye finally got a general understanding of Xiao Jie's situation.

So Xiao Jie was with the Hao Yi Brotherhood? They took advantage of the Flower Snake Gang's misfortune and beat them while they were down. They not only killed several of Black Six's men and stole a lot of valuables, but also seriously injured Black Six?

But fortunes change. With the complete annihilation of the Black Iron Gang, the Black-Clad Gang suddenly lost its backer. And the Flower Snake Gang, miraculously, rose from the dead?

With the resurgence of the Flower Snake Gang, its leader has also reappeared, gathering all the key members, including Black Six, together. A full-scale revenge is inevitable. Besides completely crushing the Black-Clad Gang, they also intend to deal with the youths of the Hao Yi Brotherhood.

So just yesterday, Xiao Jie and a group of friends were strolling down the street when they were surrounded by Hei Liu and his gang.

Outnumbered, Xiao Jie and his group were quickly overwhelmed. Xiao Jie then fought his way out, wanting to find Da Jin as soon as possible so he could lead the Brotherhood of Valor to their aid.

"Brother Ye, do you know what? When I got to Da Jin's house, the front door was locked from the inside." For some reason, Xiao Jie became agitated, his voice trembling slightly. "I called out a few times, but the people inside wouldn't open the door. I didn't think too much about it; saving lives was urgent! So I climbed over the wall into Da Jin's house. But do you know what I saw at Da Jin's house? Do you know what it was?"

"What is it?" Zhou Ye asked, equally curious.

"Da Jin—Da Jin still has Xinghua at home? How could this be? She's still lying on Da Jin's bed, and neither of them is dressed?"

(—)

To be honest, Zhou Ye was equally shocked. This plot twist was utterly absurd. Da Jin, the leader of the Haoyi Brotherhood, had actually slept with one of his own brothers' women?

"Brother Ye, my mind was in such a mess at the time, I didn't know what to do. But the other brothers were still in danger, and there was no time to deal with this. So I told Da Jin to quickly gather the other brothers, and I went to provide support myself—"

"And then?"

"Later—later—" Xiao Jie suddenly lost control of his emotions, wiping away his tears as he said, "Da Jin never came at all."

"Huh? How could that be?"

"That's how it is. In the end, a few of us died, and the rest escaped with me. When we got back, we found out that Da Jin and Xing Hua were nowhere to be found. They didn't notify the other brothers at all, and we don't know where they escaped to."

Zhou Ye: "————"

"Brother Ye, later we heard that the Flower Snake Gang wanted to take revenge on us, so in order not to implicate our families, we all ran away from home. I didn't know where to go. The only place I could think of was your house."

"That's alright."

Ultimately, Xiao Jie and his friends are still teenagers, and their minds are not yet fully mature. Suddenly encountering these troublesome events, it's inevitable that they would feel somewhat lost and confused.

Furthermore, no matter how much the Flower Snake Gang retaliates, they won't retaliate against him, and they certainly wouldn't expect that Xiao Jie is hiding in his own home.

Even if I knew, it wouldn't really matter. Take that Flower Snake Gang leader, for example; he's only at the late stage of the Qi Refining realm. He poses no threat whatsoever. To put it bluntly, I just can't be bothered with him; otherwise, I could kill the entire Flower Snake Gang.

"Brother Ye, how could this happen? We've already agreed on everything! I'm supposed to marry Xinghua during the New Year!"

Zhou Ye: ""

Once Xiao Jie had calmed down a bit, Zhou Ye quickly asked, "Xiao Jie, what are you going to do?"

"I don't know, I really don't know. I'm too ashamed to stay here any longer, I just want to leave. But I don't know where to go!"

"Are you really leaving? What will happen to your parents and family?"

"There's no other way, Brother Ye!" Xiao Jie tugged at his hair in anguish. "What if the Flower Snake Gang comes knocking on my door if I go home? I'm just hoping they won't harm my family, as long as I can escape!"

"Hmm—Xiao Jie." Zhou Ye finally made a decision. "You'll stay at my house for the next few days, and whatever you do, don't show your face outside."

"Brother Ye, I know that. I will never cause any trouble, and I won't even contact my parents."

"Alright! I'll go out and inquire about the situation. If possible, I'll try to find a way to help you leave the county town."

"Sure, sure. Actually, I've already reached the mid-stage of the Strength realm. I'll find a place where I can make a living eventually. Brother Ye, I'm counting on you. Given Da Jin's current situation, I don't dare ask any of the other brothers in the Brotherhood for help. Now I can only rely on you."

"Uh-huh."

"6

1

After giving a few instructions, Zhou Ye left Xiao Jie at home. But as soon as he left and stepped onto the street, he couldn't help but sigh.

It has to be said that Xiao Jie, this unlucky young man, is truly pitiful.

Actually, Xiao Jie is a loyal and sentimental person; he really didn't do anything wrong. But this world is so cruel. In the end, his woman ran off with someone else, and he was left unable to go home? Unable to trust anyone? His only option was to leave for a distant place?

Since that's the case, let's lend a hand—shall we?

Okay! Zhou Ye admitted that he seemed to be overwhelmed with sympathy again. But since Xiao Jie had chosen to trust him, he should at least live up to that trust, right?

Ultimately, Zhou Ye didn't have much compassion for the internal strife within the Haoyi Brotherhood, and he would never interfere casually. The only thing he would do was ensure Xiao Jie's safe departure from the county town.