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

Zhao Lei had been waiting in the bushes for quite some time, estimating that several minutes had passed and that the other party should have gone far away, before he walked out of the dense forest and stepped into the river.

After taking only two steps, Zhao Lei, standing in the open riverbed, suddenly felt a tightness in his chest. He looked up abruptly and saw several people staring straight at him from the opposite bank.

Zhao Lei felt a chill run down his spine; he had been discovered.

Ma Dali and the other two on the hillside stared intently at Zhao Lei, who was standing in the ditch.

Qiangzi exclaimed, "Holy crap! How the hell is there someone here?"

Dried cowpea chimed in, "I knew I'd felt like something was watching us from behind. Who is it? Could it have been following us all this way?"

Ma Dali's eyes darted around quickly, and he shouted loudly at Zhao Lei in the ditch, "Zhao Lei! You're really something, aren't you! You actually managed to chase me all the way here."

Seeing that his whereabouts had been exposed, Zhao Lei decided to stop hiding and shouted at the group, "Who are you? Do you know that what you're doing is illegal?"

Ma Dali was secretly delighted. He had only intended to try and trick them, but he hadn't expected to guess correctly.

In this remote, desolate mountain area, with no sign of human habitation, a man suddenly appeared dozens of meters behind him, wielding a machete and moving cautiously as he crossed the river. Ma Dali had already guessed that Zhao Lei had caught up with them, and this trickery was tantamount to the man admitting it outright.

Ma Dali sneered, "Hahaha, Zhao Lei, are you alone? You've got some nerve."

Although Ma Dali had never met Zhao Lei, judging from the figure and attire of the man in the river, he was clearly a hunter from the mountains, which matched his younger brother Ma Laosan's description: tall and handsome.

What Ma Dali feared most was that Zhao Lei wasn't alone; how could he possibly track down the child so far by himself alone?

Zhao Lei watched from afar, and upon hearing the other party's question, he immediately realized that they were testing and trying to trick him. His expression softened, and he smiled calmly.

"Don't even think about running! My fellow villagers, my brothers, and the security team are coming soon. They're right here in these mountains. I just need to shout, and they'll be right there to catch you all and bring you to justice."

Qiangzi shuddered violently after hearing this.

Ma Dali, frustrated and disappointed, raised his hand and slapped Qiangzi hard across the face with a crisp "smack".

"Damn! You've been doing this kind of work with me, and now you're scared?"

He stared at Zhao Lei, who remained motionless in the riverbed, and pondered to himself. "I think he's probably just trying to scare us. There hasn't been a sound behind him for so long. Even if there are people, they're far away. There's nothing to be afraid of."

Gan Jiangdou suggested, "Boss, why don't we just take him out? He's already seen through us. This guy's got some skills. Letting him go back would be like releasing a tiger back into the mountains."

Ma Dali's mind raced, and he inwardly groaned. Damn it, what bad luck! It's all because of his good-for-nothing brother. What started as child abduction has now turned into a heinous crime of murder.

But then I thought about it again, and the dried cowpea was right.

Zhao Lei was able to track them silently all the way to the deep mountains; his methods and connections should not be underestimated.

If they keep him around, the group won't get far and will be caught sooner or later.

In a flash, Ma Dali became completely determined and made up his mind.

He gritted his teeth and drew a dagger from behind him. Seeing this, Qiangzi also drew his bayonet.

Gan Jiangdou gently placed the baby carrier containing the child on the tree stump. All three of them were on high alert, ready to kill him to silence him.

Zhao Lei gripped the machete tightly and took two steps back.

He thought to himself, "These people are really desperate criminals."

If he is facing three opponents who are unarmed, he still has the confidence to fight back.

But these three men drew their knives without saying a word, and their attacks were ruthless and decisive, far superior to those of street thugs like Ma Laosan.

Zhao Lei knew that if he rushed in to fight rashly, these people would show no mercy, and he could lose his life if he was not careful.

Ma Dali suddenly shouted at Zhao Lei, "Zhao Lei, you can have your child back, but you injured my brother..."

Ma Dali suddenly stopped mid-sentence.

Oops, I let it slip.

This statement directly exposed their origins, and now the evidence is conclusive. No matter what, Zhao Lei cannot be allowed to live today.

However, there was still some distance between Zhao Lei and them, and it wouldn't be easy for the group to catch up with him.

Moreover, Zhao Lei is a hunter who goes into the mountains year-round. If they really fight in the forest, it's hard to say who will catch whom.

Ma Dali didn't rush forward rashly. Since his whereabouts had already been exposed, he continued to coax Zhao Lei: "Zhao Lei, you hurt my brother, so I have to retaliate. As long as you come over and get a beating from me, I'll give the child back to you, and we'll pretend this never happened."

Zhao Lei sneered inwardly. They thought he was a fool; all three of them had drawn their knives. If he rashly stepped forward, he would only be stabbed into a pincushion.

The current situation has put Zhao Lei in a dilemma.

He didn't know if Qin Bowen and Qin Dajun had arrived in Hongyan Town to set up roadblocks. Deep in the mountains, he was now all alone. He couldn't advance, he couldn't retreat; he was trapped on both sides.

Zhao Lei decided to stall for time and wait for Qin Dajun and Bowen to arrive with their men.

Even if the other party rushes over, he can turn around and escape into the mountains and forests.

Zhao Lei replied, "I don't want to make a big deal out of this, and you don't want to go to jail. Getting beaten up is nothing. Give me back my child first, and then we can discuss things."

Ma Dali suddenly burst into laughter. "Zhao Lei, now it's you begging us, not the other way around. Think carefully about your situation. I'm telling you to come over right now, or I'll use a knife on your child."

In this desolate wilderness, even if we said the child was taken by a wolf, who could trace it back to us? Even if you saw it with your own eyes, without any evidence, the sheriff wouldn't believe you based on just a few empty words.

Zhao Lei's heart sank. His biggest worry was that the other party would use the small stone to blackmail him.

He knew in his heart that this matter could not be resolved peacefully.

His feet were in the icy stream, and the chill helped him regain his composure as he continued to feign agreement.

"Okay. As long as you release my child, we can discuss anything."

Although he verbally agreed, Zhao Lei didn't move an inch.

Ma Dali waited for Zhao Lei to cross the river, but seeing him still standing motionless in the ditch, he immediately became annoyed. "Zhao Lei, do you think I'm joking?"

After saying that, he gestured to Gan Zhuangdou with his eyes and took Zhao Yufeng out of the backpack.

Little Stone took the sleeping pills but remained fast asleep.

The moment Zhao Lei saw the child, he was terrified and couldn't help but shout, "Stop! Don't hurt the child! Do whatever you want to me!"

"Alright, Zhao Lei, come here, let's have a proper talk."