Reborn 73 years later, he takes his mother-in-law hunting in the mountains.

Xilian was also stunned when she saw it.

I crawled over and watched.

Zhang Mazi usually cleans his gun without her knowing.

Zhang Mazi only said that he had been a soldier and fought bandits, but he didn't say that he was a bandit.

Tell her that you're keeping the gun as a souvenir.

Those bullets were for emergencies.

She knew that this gun was Zhang Mazi's treasure, even more so than she was.

I always slept with it under me, and now I'm left with an empty nest?

Without saying a word, Zhang Mazi jumped down and ran to the chicken coop outside.

He reached inside and rummaged around for ages, getting his hands covered in chicken droppings, but still couldn't find the bullet.

Zhang Mazi became famous overnight.

He turned back into the house and slapped Xilian, who was putting on her shorts, to the ground.

Riding on the chest and pressing down on the neck:

"You bitch, where's my gun?"

Before she could answer, she was slapped twice across the face.

Xilian also looked aggrieved:

"My lord, I didn't know either! You know I'm loyal to you. How could I steal from you!"

Zhang Mazi also felt that Xilian would never collude with outsiders to take his gun.

Question: "Has Tuwazi come by in the last few days?"

"No, I swear to God, he's still a child. How could I possibly have anything going on with him!"

"I didn't say you and him were having an affair. I just want to know who took my gun and bullets! Tell me, has anything unusual happened these past few days? If you don't tell me..."

I'll strangle you!

"No, no..."

Xilian's words lacked any confidence.

Zhang Mazi roared, "You slut, all you ever think about is that kind of thing! I'll make you feel good today!"

As he spoke, he reached out and picked up the rolling pin from the table next to him.

Xilian was so frightened when she saw this that she quickly clenched her legs together.

"No, husband, do you want to kill me?"

"Then tell the truth!"

Now that things have come to this, Xilian has also realized the seriousness of the situation.

He quickly told Zhang Mazi that Ding Mei had come on the evening of the fourth day of the lunar new year to exchange ginseng for bullets.

Zhang Mazi's mind is far superior to that of Xilian, a simple country housewife.

I sensed something was amiss as soon as I heard it.

Could it be that Ding Dahu sent Ding Mei?

But it was immediately rejected.

It's common knowledge that Ding Dahu and Tuwazi don't get along.

Eighty percent of the time, the gun is in the hands of the local boy.

That Ding Mei changing bullets might have been a pre-arranged scouting mission with Tuwazi.

But how did the country bumpkin know he had a gun, and how did he know where it was hidden?

The bullet hadn't moved for almost a year in the crack in the wall of the chicken coop.

I only clean my gun at night after blowing out the lights.

Never mind how you lost it, think about how to get it back!

Zhang Mazi, riding Xilian, fell into deep thought.

Go ask for it?

The country bumpkin will definitely not admit it!

Forcibly seizing it?

Then we might have to kill someone!

If someone is killed, this village will become uninhabitable!

Although he was poor, he was at peace and didn't want to kill someone and flee into the mountains.

No, let's observe first.

It's not so bad that Tuwazi only stole a gun, but if it's reported, he'll definitely be investigated because he can't explain where the gun came from.

The more Xilian looked at him, the angrier he became, as she stayed in bed all day and refused to wear clothes.

Then I picked up the rolling pin.

"Oh dear, you're so cruel, husband!"

Xilian let out a scream.

Zhang Mazi released her, turned around, and went straight to Lu Yao's house.

Xilian cursed as she slowly pulled out the rolling pin from inside the house.

It didn't hurt as much as I imagined when I tried it...

Zhang Mazi returned to Lu Yao's house.

I was thinking of asking Lu Yao if no one else was around.

You have to use both soft and hard tactics to get your precious item back.

But when he returned, he heard that Lu Yao had actually beaten Ge Sanwang so badly that he was begging for mercy.

And right now, he's actually chatting with the county's armed forces minister.

He was stunned.

Does that country bumpkin have connections?

He didn't dare go in.

Standing outside the wall, looking into the house, he pondered how to confirm that it was indeed Lu Yao who had taken his gun.

How do we get it back?

Suddenly, they saw Ding Dahu also loitering outside.

While everyone else's attention was on the wolf meat, Ding Dahu's eyes, like his own, were fixed on the newly pasted window paper at Lu Yao's house.

Judging from his eyes, the old bandit knew that Ding Dahu was also filled with hatred.

He, Ge Sanwang, and Yang Shouye were birds of a feather. Now that Ge Sanwang had been dismissed, he was probably feeling a sense of shared sorrow, and he also hated Lu Yao.

Zhang Mazi was a loner and didn't want to form cliques.

Seeing Ding Dahu's reaction, he withdrew instead.

They watched from a distance.

Even after Lu Yao escorted Ju Zhenghua and Ju Wen out, he didn't dare to approach them.

With so many people watching, he had no choice but to give up for the time being.

Go home for dinner and wait for the right opportunity.

The country bumpkin is not the same country bumpkin he used to be; we can't easily resort to force now.

Lu Yao invited Ju Zhenghua and his daughter to stay for dinner, but the two refused no matter what they said.

Lu Yao escorted them out.

He then had Gou Shengzi cut off a few pounds of wolf meat, rolled up a wolf skin, and give it to him.

Let Ju Zhenghua take it back to tan and refurbish the hide; then it can be used to make a mattress or something.

Ju Zhenghua was a cadre and refused to accept gifts.

Lu Yao managed to squeeze him into the back seat:

"What are you afraid of? You're my godfather! Cadres aren't allowed to have relatives visiting, are they? I'll still be having dinner at your house when I go to the city next time, won't I?"

Ju Zhenghua thought about it and realized it made sense.

Since Lu Yao didn't ask for favors, this couldn't be considered bribery of the official.

So he took it and rode away with Ju Wen on their bikes.

Although Ju Wen didn't exchange many words with Lu Yao throughout the entire process, she observed the young man from the sidelines.

He speaks in a well-organized and measured manner.

She remained composed and dignified even when facing her own father and daughter.

Let alone in the countryside, it would be difficult to find a young man under twenty in the city with such insight and confidence.

After leaving the Lu family, he praised Lu Yao highly.

Ju Zhenghua looked at his daughter and smiled:

"What, you've taken a liking to Xiao Lu? He's from a rural area and doesn't have a job!"

Ju Wen suddenly became shy and hesitant.

"Oh, Dad, what are you saying? They're just looking at things from a work perspective, why are you bringing personal feelings into this!"

Ju Zhenghua smiled: "I was afraid you'd be letting your personal feelings influence your judgment. Xiao Lu is very talented, but he's still a country boy after all."

"So what if he's from the countryside? It's just an address issue. Besides, if you want to make him a city dweller, it's just a matter of a word; just bring him in."

"Team, can't we just get a household registration transfer done?"

Ju Zhenghua wasn't as impulsive as his daughter, and shook his head, saying:

"That's against the rules. Besides, he has to take care of his mother and sister, and he doesn't want to join the army. If he wanted to join the militia, I could just say the word."

Ju Wen nodded, but fearing her father would misunderstand, she didn't tell him to ask him to promote Lu Yao.

Tomorrow I'll be accompanying County Chief Hao to a meeting in Lincheng. That'll be it.

County Magistrate Hao is a man who values ​​talent; perhaps he will…

She had her own agenda, because she genuinely admired Lu Yao.

The father and daughter had a very good impression of Lu Yao.

Meanwhile, Ding Dahu watched as the Minister of Armed Forces walked out.

They didn't dare to make things difficult for Lu Yao themselves.

After getting my bicycle from home, I headed straight for Shuiling Town Commune.

At this time, Yang Shouye, the commune director, was still in the commune and had not returned.

Recently, more than half of the 12 subordinate brigades have applied for grain subsidies.

They're all spending more than they earn.

The food rations distributed in the fall were all eaten up before the New Year.

Many families are already struggling to feed themselves and have turned to the government for help.

However, the commune's grain reserves were limited and simply could not provide relief to so many farmers.

Should I request assistance from the county government?

That won't do.

In the autumn, I submitted a report to the county stating that Shuiling Town had a bumper harvest this year.

He also received a special commendation from County Head Hao Limin, and the certificate is still hanging on the wall.

Then you say half the population is starving?

Wouldn't that be a slap in one's own face?

The only way was to mobilize the members to rely on their own efforts and find their own solutions.

Just then, Ding Dahu, the captain of the Jiapigou brigade, rushed in on his bicycle.

Upon seeing him, Yang Shouye was reminded of the beating his son received in Jiapigou, and his face immediately fell.