My sister broke off her engagement to marry someone richer? My older sister married me and became in

Three days later, the factory was on the right track.

Lu Qingshan has not been at the factory for the past few days.

The downfall of Deputy Director Gao revealed many things about the forest farm, and he had been busy at the forest farm all along.

I only had time to come back today and give Lin Xiulan some guidance at the factory.

Just then, Old Master Lu stood with his hands behind his back, a decades-old pipe dangling from his mouth.

I strolled over to the factory.

He went straight to Lu Qingshan's office, his face full of worry, and asked his eldest grandson to come out.

"Sir, what brings you here? You didn't even tell me beforehand."

Lu Qingshan followed behind the old man, carefully observing his body.

The old man didn't answer, but simply raised his withered hand and pointed to the western sky.

The sun was about to set, and the horizon was ablaze with a magnificent orange-red sunset, a truly beautiful sight.

But strangely, the sky beneath that sunset was filled with a dark mass of circling birds.

Magpies, crows, sparrows, and even some forest birds whose names I don't know, were all mixed together, like a pot of boiling black porridge.

They let out anxious screams, circling around the edge of the forest, but none of them dared to fly into the western forest that was beginning to turn dark green.

Something's not right.

Grandpa Lu tapped the ash from his pipe, his brow furrowing into a knot.

"Look at Qingshan."

The old man spoke in a very low voice, which conveyed a sense of solemnity.

"Those birds in the sky are just like Big Yellow from the entrance of our village. If a stranger comes, it might squawk a couple of times; but if a real, deadly creature comes, you'll see it doesn't dare utter a sound, it'll take off running as far as it can!"

He pointed with his pipe at the dark mass in the sky.

"It's almost dark, the time when birds return to their nests. Look at them, not a single one dares to go back! This is called 'birds not returning to their nests,' and as the old saying goes, it's eerie!"

"What does this mean? It means that a tough nut has been cracked up in our mountains that they're afraid of!"

Lu Qingshan's breath hitched, and he began to have some guesses.

"Grandpa, where are the people from our village's herb-gathering team?"

The old man's cloudy eyes finally revealed an unconcealable worry.

"Sigh, isn't that why I came here?"

"That brat Erniu, before dawn today, led more than a dozen of the village's best young men into the mountains."

"He told me that the weather has been nice these past few days, and the medicinal herbs in the mountains are growing plump. He's thinking of going to make a big profit and give it as a decent gift for the opening of your new factory..."

Lu Qingshan's fist clenched tightly in an instant.

He stared at the desolate forest to the west, the sound of Old Master Lu's hoarse cough ringing in his ears.

"Sir, besides Erniu, who else has gone into the mountains?"

Lu Qingshan's voice was calm, without a trace of emotion.

"They're all those half-grown boys from the village, trying to earn money to get married. They're all as strong as calves."

Grandpa Lu tapped his pipe hard on the sole of his shoe again, and spat out the ashes with a "pui" sound.

"Those are all good lads from our village."

Lu Qingshan nodded slowly, then turned and walked towards the factory office.

His steps were not fast, but each step was firm, as if he were measuring something.

Grandpa Lu stared at his grandson's retreating figure, opened his mouth, but in the end only let out a sigh. He refilled his pipe and squatted in the corner, smoking silently.

He knew that his grandson was so stubborn; once he made up his mind, not even ten oxen could pull him back.

……

The office door slammed shut with a loud bang, the latch clicking crisply as it went off.

Lin Xiulan was doing her calculations when she was startled by the commotion. She looked up and saw Lu Qingshan's ashen face.

"What happened?"

Lu Qingshan didn't answer. He walked to his desk and pushed all the neatly stacked ledgers and receipts, along with the brand-new financial seal from the drawer, in front of Lin Xiulan.

"From now on, you will be in charge of all matters, big and small, at Xiushan Industrial."

"Not a single penny may be touched without your signature, whether it's for external payments or internal wages and bonuses for all workers."

Lin Xiulan's fingers were still resting on the abacus. She looked at the man in front of her, whose eyes, which always held a hint of warmth, were now filled with only cold decisiveness.

She didn't ask why, but silently moved the abacus to the side and reached out to pick up the top shipping manifest.

"The first batch of mountain products transported to the provincial capital, after deducting the share given to Director Guo and the fuel consumption and wear and tear of the trucking team, yielded a net profit of 93,800 yuan."

"The next shipment will be dispatched no later than the day after tomorrow, and I already approved the advance payment this morning. As you suggested, I've set aside 30,000 yuan in working capital to prepare for renting a shop in the provincial capital next month."

Her voice wasn't loud, but every word clearly reached Lu Qingshan's ears.

Just then, a commotion came from outside the door, mixed with the fawning laughter of several experienced drivers.

"Is Director Lu here? Sister-in-law, didn't the brothers do a great job? The director promised a bonus..."

"Bang, bang, bang." A knocking sound rang out on the door.

Lin Xiulan didn't look up, but simply dismissed him indifferently.

"Captain Wang, according to factory rules, bonuses and wages are paid out in a unified manner at the end of the month. You've had a hard day's work, so I've asked the canteen to add some dishes and stew some meat. Go and eat."

The sounds outside the door instantly fell silent.

A few seconds later, a man's voice, tinged with embarrassment, rang out: "Alright, whatever you say, sister-in-law."

The footsteps faded into the distance.

Lin Xiu-lan then raised her head, looked at Lu Qingshan, and a very slight smile appeared on her lips.

"I can manage this family."

Lu Qingshan's taut jawline finally softened a bit.

He walked over to his wife, took out his thick, brick-like mobile phone and a half-foot-long horn knife from his pocket, and placed them on the table.

"Take this for self-defense."

He pointed to the dagger.

"This contains the phone numbers of Director Wang, Director Li, and a few other reliable people. Call them if there's an emergency." He patted the mobile phone.

"I'll be fine after my trip into the mountains. If I'm not back by tomorrow morning, go directly to Director Wang."

Lu Qingshan paused for a moment, then made up his mind to make the trip.

Lin Xiulan hugged him tightly.

"I'm waiting for you."

……

Let's rewind to this morning.

Just as dawn was breaking, Li Erniu excitedly ran into the factory compound, carrying a bamboo basket about half his height on his back.

"Brother Qingshan!"

He had a loud voice and a kind smile on his face.

"I figured that since it rained these past few days, all the good stuff in the mountains must have started to sprout up."

"I'm taking a few brothers to the old forest for a bit, to gather some valuable medicinal herbs. When we get back, we'll give you and your wife a big congratulatory gift for your new factory!"

Lu Qingshan was practicing boxing in the courtyard when he heard this and stopped.

He walked to the wall, pulled out a hand-drawn map of the forest area, and spread it on the ground.

He dipped his finger in the red soil on the ground and drew a heavy line around an area marked "Laoyagou" on the west side of the map.

"Erniu, listen carefully."

Lu Qingshan's expression was very serious.

"Things have been unsettled in the mountains lately. This red line is your lifeline."

"You can wander around outside this line as you please. But once you cross this line, whether you see a hundred-year-old ginseng or stumble upon a gold nugget, you'd better turn around and leave."

"Anyone who dares to cross this line, I'll break their legs myself when I get back!"

Li Erniu was startled by his imposing manner and scratched his head, nodding repeatedly.

"I got it, bro! Don't worry, we'll just wander around outside, we definitely won't go in!"

Lu Qingshan was still worried, so he took out a special red arrow and handed it to him.

"Don't act rashly no matter what happens; pull back this arrow."

"Scarface Liu and the others are at the factory; they'll go directly there."

Li Erniu looked through it for a while and nodded excitedly.

"This stuff is great!"

Lu Qingshan also smiled.

"I just made one, and I'll make one for each of you later."

……

The memories faded away.

In the deep mountains and forests, the dampness mixed with the smell of decaying leaves seeped into people's noses.

Li Erniu wiped the sweat from his face and looked at his dejected brothers behind him, feeling somewhat worried.

They had been in the mountains for almost five hours, and in their medicine baskets, besides some worthless Bupleurum and Polygonatum, they hadn't even seen a decent Codonopsis.

"Brother Erniu, this trip was probably a waste of time."

A young man named Gousheng plopped down on a rotten log and said dejectedly, "I can't even earn back the money I made for straw sandals."

"Yeah, I should have just stayed home and slept in."

Just as Li Erniu was about to speak up to boost morale, a villager who was leading the way suddenly let out a startled exclamation in a low voice.

"Quick...come look!"

Several people immediately surrounded them.

On a sunny, gently sloping hillside covered in moss, a plant topped with a cluster of bright red seeds sways gently in the breeze.

That unique ginseng aroma could be smelled from more than ten meters away.

"It's wild ginseng!" Gou Sheng's eyes widened.

"Judging from this rootstock and ginseng seeds, it must be at least twenty years old!"

The breathing of the group of people became heavy.

Li Erniu's heart was pounding.

But he recognized it at a glance; the location of that gentle slope was exactly beyond the red soil line that Brother Qingshan had drawn that morning.

That area was already within the territory of Laoyagou.

"No, we can't go over there." Li Erniu's Adam's apple bobbed. "Brother Qingshan said that crossing the line will break our legs."

"Hey, Erniu, let's just dig up this one!" Gousheng exclaimed anxiously. "We'll leave right after we're done, without anyone noticing. How could Qingshan possibly know?"

"Yes, this is real money! With this, I can get married in the second half of the year!"

"Just one, just one..."

Li Erniu looked at the red ginseng seed swaying in the wind, then at the expectant eyes of his brothers behind him, and was torn between his own feelings and his inner turmoil.

Ultimately, the desire for money outweighed the respect for rules.

"Fine!" he gritted his teeth. "Just this one! We're leaving immediately after we're done, and nobody's allowed to take another step!"

He patted his chest and took the lead, stepping on the slippery stones to cross the invisible red line.

he does not know.

It was in a thicket of bushes about 100 meters behind the gentle slope.

A man with only one eye showing is lying on a spot with excellent visibility.

The man's lips curled into a cruel smile.

Li Erniu raised the short-handled hoe in his hand and shouted excitedly to the people behind him.

"Watch closely, I'm about to show you my amazing skill in 'inviting guests'!"

He took a deep breath, aimed at the soil around the wild ginseng root, and dug down with a shovel!

"Click".

A very faint sound, like the triggering of some mechanism, rang out in the silent grass.

Almost at the same time.

A hundred meters away, a hint of cat-and-mouse playfulness flashed in that single eye.