Newborn 1927

They arrived with nine men and nine horses; on their return, they had twenty-one men, twelve horse-drawn carts, two donkeys, and sixty-eight goats, with the donkeys carrying black beans and other livestock feed. They had truly returned laden with spoils. Overjoyed, Hou Fei and the others couldn't help but sing a heroic song. Wang Dali, Chen Ergou, and the others, captivated by the song, joined in and began to sing along.

Yang Jiefang and Zhao Changgui rode in the same carriage. Yang Jiefang asked, "Brother Changgui, what do you do for a living in Qingdao? Is Qingdao a prosperous city? How is life there?" Zhao Changgui answered one by one, saying, "Qingdao is a big city after all, full of Western-style buildings, it is indeed very prosperous. People there are naturally more respectable than us in the countryside, but most people still live a hard life. I used to work as a porter in a Japanese-owned textile factory, doing manual labor. Later, I became familiar with a rickshaw driver and learned to drive a rickshaw from him. Now I drive a rickshaw while unloading goods, and my wages have increased a bit. I was planning to come back to propose to your sister and then take her to Qingdao, but who would have thought this would happen?" As he spoke, his expression darkened again.

Zhao Yuanbao, standing to the side, exclaimed, "Nephew, that's impressive! You've even learned to drive a rickshaw! That's a skill that can make you a lot of money. Could you teach me sometime?" Among these people surnamed Zhao, he was the most senior but the youngest, having followed Zhao Changgui around since childhood. Zhao Changgui laughed, "I'll definitely teach you if I have the chance. In Qingdao, those who make big money are those who can speak foreign languages. I've also been thinking of learning a few words of Japanese, but unfortunately, I haven't been to school and can't learn it."

Yang Jiefang said, "So, Deska, yoshi!" Zhao Changgui stared at Yang Jiefang and said, "Little Yang, you can speak Japanese?" Yang Jiefang smiled and said, "Whether it's Japanese or Western language, I can speak it. Once we settle down in Qinglong Village, I'll teach you to read and write. If you're interested, I can even teach you some foreign languages." Everyone cheered.

The journey had been relatively smooth so far, but the pace had slowed considerably. As night fell, the group arrived at a place called Longwangzhuang, still dozens of miles from Qinglongzhai. It was too dark, and the road was bumpy and difficult to travel, so traveling through the night was impractical. They had no choice but to seek lodging in Longwangzhuang. There was a small inn in Longwangzhuang for travelers, which happened to be empty. Yang Jiefang and the others booked it all. The cart was unloaded and pushed into the inn, while the horses, donkeys, and goats were herded into the courtyard and looked after by Ma Shangfei, Hou Fei, and others. Wang Dali and Chen Ergou went to the kitchen to boil water and cook soup. The group drank the hot soup and ate the dry rations they had brought. Zhao Changming wanted to arrange for someone to keep watch at night, but Yan Donglai refused, saying that the people of Qinglongzhai were more experienced in this task.

Yang Jiefang took out the bedding he'd brought from the Zhao family and spread it out to sleep. He really didn't want to squeeze in with those smelly men. The night passed uneventfully. The next morning, at the crack of dawn, everyone got up to pack their things. Suddenly, a gunshot rang out, shattering the morning's tranquility. Everyone was startled, exchanged glances, and knew something had happened. They immediately dropped what they were doing, grabbed their weapons, and rushed out. They had seized four pistols, ten rifles, and over a thousand rounds of ammunition from Zhao Family Village, all of which they brought with them. Now everyone had a gun and some extra. Yang Jiefang had originally intended to leave a few guns for Zhao Changfu, but he refused. Sometimes having guns wasn't a good thing. Yang Jiefang actually needed more firearms and ammunition.

Yang Jiefang arrived at the front yard, where Gui Liqiu, who was on duty, reported, "There are over fifty men here, all armed. We don't know what kind of gang they are. After I fired a shot, they stopped about two hundred paces away." Yang Jiefang said, "Let's observe first. They're not in uniform, so they must be gangsters. But we don't know which gang they belong to. Brother Sun, Brother Yan, what do you think?" Yan Donglai thought for a moment and said, "There aren't many forces that can muster over fifty guns at once. In this area, only Tian Yisan has that kind of power. His Yang'er Mountain isn't far from here, so it must be Tian Yisan's men." Yang Jiefang laughed, "What a coincidence! We've run into the two biggest forces in Laiyang County, Tian Yisan and Xu Zishan. Let's go see what their purpose is."

The courtyard gate couldn't be opened, and the courtyard wall was quite high, so the group found ladders or benches to lean against it. Yang Jiefang, standing on a bench, poked his head out over the wall and called out, "Which group are you from, friends outside? We're just passing through and asking for lodging. If we've caused any disturbance, please forgive us. We'll be leaving now." A young man opposite him stood up and replied, "Seeing that you're not from the government, we won't hide it. I'm Tian Dan from Yang'er Mountain. I noticed that your goods are too heavy and you're having a hard time traveling, so I wanted to lighten your load." Yang Jiefang laughed heartily, "So it's Brother Tian from Yang'er Mountain! What a coincidence! I'm Yang Jiefang from Qinglong Village. I made an appointment with Brother Xu Zishan the day before yesterday to meet up at Yang'er Mountain, and I didn't expect to run into you today." Although Tian Yisan from Yang'er Mountain and the Black Widow from Qinglong Village weren't far apart, they didn't have much contact. Their relationship wasn't particularly good or bad, and they usually kept to themselves. Tian Dan clearly hadn't expected the other party to be from Qinglong Village, especially since they were transporting so much grain. Grain was precious these days, and even from Qinglong Village, they would still act if necessary. However, since the other party had mentioned Xu Zishan, he felt compelled to say a few more words, so he asked, "Do you know Chief Xu?" Yang Jiefang replied confidently, "Of course. It's not very convenient for us to talk like this. Why don't I go outside, and we can have a proper chat?" Tian Dan nodded in agreement.

He opened the courtyard gate and walked out alone, standing between the two. Tian Dan also came out and stood about ten steps away. Yang Jiefang spoke first, asking, "Brother Tian, ​​you also have the surname Tian. I wonder what your relationship is with Master Tian Yisan?" Tian Dan replied, "He's my cousin. Since you know Master Xu, you must be able to describe what he looks like?" Yang Jiefang smiled and said, "That's no problem. Brother Xu is short and stocky, with dark skin, a full beard, phoenix eyes, and a black mole below his left ear." Tian Dan nodded in agreement. The black mole below Xu Zishan's left ear was indeed difficult to notice without close inspection. Yang Jiefang added, "Brother Xu has a capable lieutenant, Brother Zheng Sandao, who is also a close friend of mine. He even gave me some pointers on swordsmanship." At this point, Tian Dan was convinced that Yang Jiefang truly knew Xu Zishan. However, it was of no use. He then said, "Since that's the case, I can't refuse to give Chief Xu face. Let's take one-tenth! Leave a cartload of grain, and I'll let you pass smoothly."

"Wow, Xu Zishan really has a lot of influence," Yang Jiefang shook his head and said, "Brother Tian, ​​you're being a bit too polite. I just said that in a few days I'll be going with Brother Xu to Yang'er Mountain to visit Master Tian, ​​planning to pool our resources for a big heist." Tian Dan said expressionlessly, "Tell me about it." Yang Jiefang said, "I've already tasted success with Brother Xu this time. If the three of us join forces, wouldn't we be unstoppable in Laiyang County? Taking Laiyang County wouldn't be impossible. Then, we'd have as much grain and silver as we wanted!" But Tian Dan was unmoved, snorted coldly, and said, "If you're looking for death, don't drag me down with you. Take Laiyang County? How many lives do you have to pay for that? Hmph, if you have nothing else to say, then let's do it the rules!"

Yang Jiefang sighed and said, "I thought Brother Tian was a real man, but he's nothing special! Fine, I'll give you a cartload of grain. Tian Dan, what a disgrace to such a fine name! From now on, you should just call him Tian Song (meaning 'cowardly')." He turned to leave, but Tian Dan flew into a rage and shouted, "Stop! Explain yourself, or you won't leave here today!" Yang Jiefang turned back and said, "Heh, you're not convinced? Who gave you the name Tian Dan?" Tian Dan frowned and said, "My third uncle gave it to me, what's the problem?" Yang Jiefang replied, "It seems you're an uneducated person who doesn't understand history! Tian Dan was a famous general of the State of Qi during the Warring States period. When Qi was on the verge of collapse, he single-handedly defeated the Yan army and recovered more than seventy cities. Your third uncle gave you this name, which shows he had high expectations for you! And you don't even dare to dream of a small county like Laiyang. Do you think you deserve this name?" Tian Dan fell into a brief moment of thought and retorted, "My third uncle did indeed have high expectations for me, and I've never disappointed him."

Yang Jiefang said, "You think it's enough that you didn't disappoint him? Let me ask you, why did Master Tian gather his followers at Yang'er Mountain?" Tian Dan replied, "Isn't it because of the chaos of war, making it impossible for ordinary people to survive? If there were any other way to live, we wouldn't have become outlaws." Yang Jiefang said, "You know we live in a chaotic era. Any idealistic and passionate man should strive to achieve great things, to quell this chaos, and restore peace to the world! Master Tian named you after a famous general from the Warring States period; his expectations for you are self-evident." Tian Dan blushed, clearly agreeing with Yang Jiefang's words, but he couldn't swallow his pride and stubbornly said, "So, you're a man with ideals and capable of great things. How come you've joined Qinglong Village as a subordinate of a woman?" Yang Jiefang said, "That's why I'm going to join forces with Boss Xu and Boss Tian to do big business. If you don't believe me, just listen to what the brothers behind me have to say!" Then he turned around and shouted loudly, "Brothers, what are our ideals?"

The group wasn't far apart, and they had all clearly heard Yang Jiefang and Tian Dan's conversation. When Yang Jiefang asked a question, they immediately answered in unison: "We must not let the hardworking be poor, the kind be bullied, the rich be powerful, the powerful be arrogant, or the influential be corrupt; we must ensure the strong abide by the rules and the weak have dignity." Everyone remembered these words clearly, or rather, it was precisely because of these words that they were willing to follow Yang Jiefang's orders. Their unanimous shout stunned Tian Dan, and his fifty-odd brothers behind him were also stunned, muttering to themselves, repeating these words. If the world were truly like this, why would they have become outlaws?

Tian Dan stared intently at Yang Jiefang, who remained calm. After a long silence, Tian Dan asked, "Did you say that?" Yang Jiefang nodded and said, "Yes, I did, and it will be my lifelong goal." Tian Dan took a deep breath and said, "You may leave now! I apologize for the offense today." He bowed deeply and added, "As for the alliance, it's up to my third uncle to decide. I will relay today's events and your words to him verbatim." Yang Jiefang replied, "It seems Brother Tian is also a passionate and idealistic man, that's excellent! This grain is urgently needed by the stronghold, and I cannot use it casually, so I won't leave it for you. However, we can't let the brothers come for nothing." He turned and called out, "Brother Monkey, go and get two hundred silver dollars for the brothers of Yang'er Mountain to treat themselves." Hou Fei agreed and quickly brought two hundred silver dollars. Tian Dan didn't refuse; returning empty-handed wouldn't be good, and these two hundred silver dollars would be enough to explain things away.

Tian Dan cupped his hands in greeting and quickly led Yang'ershan away. Yang Jiefang and the others continued packing their things and on their way. No one objected to his decision to give away two hundred silver dollars. Firstly, it acknowledged Yang Jiefang's status; secondly, judging from the situation today, it seemed that things wouldn't have ended well without Yang Jiefang's intervention.