Crossing the Western Tianshan Mountains

He also said that someone saw that it was the construction team who brought the sheep and killed and ate them.

This kind of thing happened one after another, and Wu Yongjie didn't dare to say that there was no sheep. He could only ask people to look for the sheep, but just like the previous times, they couldn't find them.

And Su Binghe was not in the camp this time, so who was stealing the sheep?

Or was it that no one was stealing the sheep? Or were these herders mistaken?

Wu Yongjie told the two herders that no one had stolen the sheep and that the sheep were not with the construction team. However, the two herders refused to believe him. They mocked him, saying, "Of course you can't find them now, but in a few days, sheepskin and bones will be found. Now they have hidden the sheep and are wearing sheepskin gloves and hats."

What kind of logic is this?

But such a situation had indeed happened before, and Wu Yongjie felt he had no way to defend himself for a moment.

The two herdsmen said confidently, "One sheep costs 3,000 yuan, three sheep costs 9,000 yuan, so you can give us 10,000 yuan."

Let’s not talk about how the account was calculated, just look at the price. Three thousand for a sheep is too expensive. It is calculated based on the price of a big sheep, and Wu Yongjie really didn’t see a single strand of their wool.

Moreover, he has begun to suspect that these herdsmen may have heard some rumors and come here specifically to extort money.

Sure enough, while they were discussing the matter, Ayala rushed over and started cursing at them, "You are so shameless! Didn't you just hear that Hanati's sheep was lost and the people in the camp compensated you? Are you jealous? You come here to extort money. Do you know that extortion is a crime? You will be arrested by the police!"

Those people looked nonchalant. "What are they catching? They couldn't even catch Su Binghe. We're just looking for our sheep. What crime could we have committed?"

They talked and even laughed out loud.

Nurlan happened to overhear their conversation. He had been coming to the camp quite often recently, just to look for Su Binghe. Hearing these people's ridicule, Nurlan immediately became angry and said sarcastically, "What are you laughing at? Su Binghe can't be found. Did you hide him? Be careful about the safety of the women at home."

Nurlan's words also angered the three men. They all looked at him, and one of them sneered, "You can't live in an unbuilt yurt, and you can't say anything without basis. You say that, as if we've hidden Su Binghe. Nurlan, I know you feel ashamed now that something like that happened to your family, but you can't just accuse others without permission."

"A living person wouldn't just disappear out of thin air. If he's alive, I want to see him. If he's dead, I want to see his body. Let me know which of you is hiding him, and I'll take care of you too."

"You are very capable, come and try it!" The three men were not polite either.

Seeing that a fight was about to break out, Wu Yongjie hurriedly said, "We don't want a fight here. I will have our workers arrest you and take you to the police station."

The three men ignored Nurlan and continued to bring the topic back to the sheep. "Anyway, our sheep are gone, and you Han people must compensate us."

Ayala suddenly said, "You said your sheep is lost. Which sheep is it? What does it look like? Describe it so Captain Wu and the others can help you find it. If they can't find it, you can ask them to compensate you."

Wu Yongjie quickly agreed when he heard it, "Ah, right, right, tell me your numbers."

In fact, Wu Yongjie didn’t know that the sheep in the flock were numbered, nor did he understand how the herders counted and recognized sheep, but he knew that Ayala was a very kind woman.

She must have a reason for saying that, he just needs to follow Ayala's footsteps.

The three herdsmen looked at each other, seeming a little awkward, but after a few seconds, one of them spoke up, "Ayala, don't meddle in other people's business."

Ayala said, "Then I'll shut up and let Captain Wu talk."

Wu Yongjie said quickly, "I think this is a bit illogical. You say you lost a sheep, but I don't even know what kind of sheep you lost or what their characteristics are. How can we find them? You should report the sheep's number, otherwise we won't admit you lost a sheep."

The three of them looked at each other again, and finally one of them said, "Our sheep are indeed numbered. The one we lost was the red sheep numbered 18."

"My family is also red sheep number 27."

"My green sheep number nine."

Wu Yongjie had them write down the numbers carefully, then added, "It'll be easier now that we have the numbers. We need to go to your sheep pen first and see if sheep number 18, 27, and 9 are there. Maybe you made a mistake when you were counting the sheep, or maybe your eyes were blurry. They might be in the pen. We have to make sure you lost the sheep before we can look for them."

When the three heard this, panic flashed across their faces. "Don't bother with that. If we say it's lost, it's lost. How could we possibly lie to you?"

"How can I know if I don't take a look? Besides, I don't know you. What if you really are a liar? This is our first meeting and we're not familiar with each other at all. Why should I believe what you say? You say you lost your sheep, so I don't believe you. We must go to your sheepfold and check. If we really can't find the sheep you mentioned, we will admit it and compensate you for the sheep."

Ayala nodded in agreement to Wu Yongjie. Captain Wu was very quick-witted. She had just given him a hint and he grasped the key point.

Wu Yongjie saw the herder's expression and realized they were indeed extorting money. He said disappointedly, "How morally corrupt the world is! I've heard that the herders of the Western Tianshan Mountains are the most honest and admirable people. I never thought they would try to extort us."

The three of them were completely at a disadvantage at this point, but they didn't want to admit defeat. They stubbornly said, "Our sheep is indeed lost, but it's dark now. Let's go check the sheepfold tomorrow."

Ayala laughed. "If we kill these three sheep, they'll disappear in an hour. Where will we find them after a night? You guys should stop doing this. It's embarrassing for the herders of Western Tianshan."

The three of them were ultimately defeated and left in disgrace. However, as they passed by Ayala, one of them said to her sinisterly, "You woman, you're so disloyal. You're not on our side. Could it be that your heart has already flown to another man? Hanati won't let you go."

His words made Ayala shudder.

Wu Yongjie was also a little worried about Ayala and said, "You're helping us like this, and I'm afraid it'll be hard to explain when you go back. Is there anything we can do for you? Just ask."

Ayala shook his head silently. "My Hanati is very powerful. All the herders in this area respect him. You'd better not offend him."

Before today, Wu Yongjie still felt that Ayala was ungrateful and had let down the people who helped her, but at this moment Wu Yongjie suddenly understood that Ayala might have other concerns in her mind. She did not want the people involved in the West Tianshan Tunnel construction project to come into conflict with Hanati.

If a conflict occurs, it will obviously be detrimental to the construction of the West Tianshan Tunnel Project, because the herdsmen can be regarded as the local tyrants here. As the saying goes, a strong dragon cannot defeat a local snake.

For example, today, these three people might have been instigated by Hanati.

Ayala asked again, "Is Secretary Ling feeling better?"