Reborn in 78, I made my fortune by working in the mountains, supporting three families on my own.

Zhang Sangong pondered for a moment, then said, "I know, isn't it Ma Laosan from Liushugou in Hongyan Town?"

Despite the pain, Qin Bowen nodded repeatedly: "It's him."

Zhao Lei turned to Zhang Sangong: "Sangong, have you heard of this person?"

Zhang Sangong slowly began to speak: "This Ma Laosan's real name is Ma Guohua. A while ago, when I took Zhang Lin and Zhang Sheng to Hongyan Town to work on building houses, some of my familiar coworkers on the construction site talked to me about him."

This Ma Laosan is no pushover; he's practically a local tyrant in Hongyan Town, spending his days gathering a bunch of idlers to loiter and cause trouble.

Zhao Lei frowned: "Third Master, so you're saying he's just a good-for-nothing?"

"That's right, a real scoundrel. He's in his thirties and doesn't have a proper job. He's ruthless and doesn't follow any rules. Many locals are afraid to mess with him and try to avoid him."

Zhao Lei grew suspicious: "But according to you, he wasn't a hunter, so why would he go deep into the mountains?"

Zhang Sangong held his pipe, took a few puffs, shook his head, and couldn't figure out why.

Jiang Xinyue had already helped Qin Bowen sit on the stone stool at the entrance of the courtyard.

Granny Zhang brought over a basin of clean water, and carefully used a cloth strip to wipe the blood off Qin Bowen's face.

Two little children, Zhao Yuyuan and Zhao Yufeng, stood by, their little faces downcast, looking at their disheveled uncle with eyes full of heartache.

Seeing this scene before him, Zhao Lei's anger burned even brighter.

Zhang Lin pondered for a moment, then said, "Lei Zi, could it be that they heard you made money hunting in the mountains and even built a small red-brick house, so they're thinking of going up the mountain to make some money too?"

Zhao Lei was taken aback upon hearing this, then nodded.

"That's actually quite possible."

Recently, he has had a very successful hunting trip in the mountains, and news of his new house being built has spread throughout the surrounding villages. Many villagers are envious and are following suit by going into the mountains.

Hunting in the mountains requires experience and skill, and most people make several trips without catching anything.

Zhao Lei gritted his teeth and let out a cold snort.

"That damn Ma Laosan, he really doesn't know his own limitations. He actually dared to mess with me. He's obviously here to cause trouble."

Zhang Lin chimed in, "Lei Zi, they themselves aren't skilled hunters. They're specifically targeting the mountain paths you frequent, looking for traps. In my opinion, they're after you."

Zhao Lei turned to Qin Bowen and asked urgently, "Bowen, are Ma Laosan's gang still on the mountain?"

Qin Bowen shook his still swollen and aching head: "I don't know, brother-in-law. When they chased me down the mountain, they were still searching for the traps we had set."

"Okay, I understand. You stay here and recover. I'm going out for a bit."

"Brother-in-law, where are you going?"

Jiang Xinyue's heart tightened, and she quickly said, "Sanshi, what are you thinking? Don't be impulsive."

Everyone present panicked, fearing that Zhao Lei might lose his temper and go up the mountain to confront them head-on, so they all tried to dissuade him.

"Lei Zi, you now have a family and a career, you absolutely cannot mess around with these hooligans."

Zhang Sangong also chimed in, "Yes, you have a wife and children, and life has just started to get better. It's not worth risking your life against these barefoot thugs. In my opinion, you should just report it to the police."

Zhao Lei shook his head slightly: "Reporting to the sheriff won't be of much use. The fight happened deep in the mountains, there are no witnesses around, and they'll deny it to the death. Even if you confront them, there's not much you can do about it."

Qin Bowen was filled with rage and struggled to stand up.

"Brother-in-law, I can't let this beating go unpunished! I'm going back to find my older brother and get the militia to deal with them!"

"Stop messing around!" Jiang Xinyue reached out and pressed him back onto the stone stool.

"Sister-in-law, but I really can't swallow this."

Jiang Xinyue sighed softly, "Calm down first. Leave this to your brother-in-law; he'll know what to do." She then looked up at Zhao Lei.

Zhao Lei's expression had calmed down, and he nodded to everyone present.

"Don't worry, everyone. I won't act rashly and risk a lose-lose situation by fighting them. But I have my own ways of dealing with these kinds of scoundrels."

Jiang Xinyue frowned slightly: "What do you plan to do?"

"I have plenty of ways to deal with thugs. Bowen, you stay here and rest until I get back. I'm going out for a bit."

As soon as he finished speaking, Zhao Lei stood up, turned around, and walked out.

Zhao Lei bid farewell to everyone, quickly left Zhang Sanpo's house, and went straight back to his own new house.

He went inside, grabbed his old-fashioned hunting rifle, and quickly slung his hunting bag over his shoulder and hung his hunting knife at his waist, donning his full hunting gear. At the other end of the courtyard, Zhang Sangong, Zhang Lin, and the others watched his swift movements from afar, their faces filled with barely concealed worry.

Granny Zhang muttered to herself, "Don't be impulsive. Lei Zi is usually a steady kid, but no one would be able to swallow this."

Zhang Sangong slowly shook his head: "Don't worry, Leizi is meticulous and never does anything foolish without being sure of success. He won't act recklessly or head-on."

Zhang Lin sighed: "In the end, it's still a case of 'people are afraid of becoming famous, just like pigs are afraid of getting fat.' Brother Lei made his fortune through hunting, built a new house, and his life got better and better. He became too famous, and people have been eyeing him for a long time. These people are just jealous and deliberately picking a fight."

Several people stood in the courtyard, sighing softly, their hearts filled with helplessness.

On the other side, Zhao Lei, preoccupied with his own thoughts, hurried towards his private plot outside the village.

It was midday, and the sun was shining brightly.

Qin Dajun was bending over, weeding in his private plot.

When he looked up and saw Zhao Lei walking over, he was initially delighted, but when he saw that Zhao Lei was fully equipped with hunting gear and had a serious expression, he immediately perked up.

He assumed they were going to take him up the mountain to hunt and earn money.

"Brother-in-law! What brings you here?" Qin Dajun straightened up, his face full of excitement.

Wang Xiaoli, Qin Dajun's wife, was also squatting on the ground pulling weeds by the edge of the field.

Ever since Qin Dajun followed Zhao Lei on a business trip and earned a huge sum of over a hundred yuan, she completely changed her opinion of her husband.

Now she is convinced from the bottom of her heart that following Zhao Lei is definitely the right thing to do and has a promising future.

Upon seeing Zhao Lei, she immediately greeted him with a sweet smile, "My cousin-in-law is here!"

Zhao Lei didn't exchange any pleasantries, only giving Qin Dajun a look.

Qin Dajun immediately understood and turned to his wife, instructing, "Xiaoli, go home and boil some water. I need to talk to my cousin-in-law about something."

"Okay, you guys chat." Wang Xiaoli replied, got up, and obediently walked home.

After everyone had gone some distance, Zhao Lei stepped forward and said in a serious tone, "Dajun, something urgent has happened. You need to come up the mountain with me right away."

Qin Dajun's expression turned serious: "What's wrong, brother-in-law? Tell me what happened!"

"Bowen went up the mountain to collect snares today and got beaten up."

"What? Bowen got beaten up?" Qin Dajun's eyes widened instantly, his face filled with astonishment. "Ma Laosan? That name sounds familiar!"

"That's Ma Guohua from Hongyan Town, nicknamed Ma Laosan."