Chapter 2.30 Fantasy (Extra)

Little Brother Zhang gave Snake Ancestor a rough idea of what they had been doing in the forest. The scene that popped into my head was the one where the alien was watching Arnold Schwarzenegger in the movie “Predator”. The heavily armed Big and Little Brother Zhang were wrapped up in the tree branches, using the tall trees as camouflage while they watched every move the American expedition made down below.

They had probably discovered that the Americans were catching the cherished poisonous insects and taking them outside the forest. Anticipating that an emergency might arise, they gave up their work, followed them to the village, and saw everything.

This was their way of doing things, which was clear and simple. If we were still in Jiutou Yandai’s group now, then the whole thing would have still been a mystery, but here, we had started leisurely drinking tea.

“If you were here watching things happen, why didn’t you stop them beforehand?” Snake Ancestor asked: “You look capable of saving people.”

“Because people are too arrogant. They’re arrogant even as they’re suffering, and don’t believe that there are people in the world who can save them.” Pampered Guy said. “Xiang Yu (1) slit his own throat by the Wujiang River. Why do you think he did that?”

Snake Ancestor contemplated it, but after thinking for a long time, he sighed and asked, “Who is Xiang Yu? It sounds familiar, is it your relative?”

“Drink more tea, drink more tea. It’s good for your health.” Pampered Guy laughed. “Xiang Yu is my dad.”

“Isn’t your surname Zhang?”

“Zhang Xiang Yu, Zhang Xiang Yu. We Han people like to call each other directly by our first names and make out. Right, Snake?”

Snake Ancestor was skeptical: “Will you still go back to the forest after this?”

“Well, our patriarch has replaced the map that the Bimo brought back. Smoker and the others will come in and take the map back to the Americans. When the Americans go in to find the bugs again, the fake map will lead them to the west side of the forest. The road there is difficult to walk, and will soon be full of miasma because of the rainy season. While they’re bogged down on this road, we’ll go back to the forest. Things haven’t been settled yet. Going back and forth like this has wasted a lot of time.”

“If you tell me this kind of thing directly, and it’s not in line with the rules, aren’t you afraid I’ll tell Smoker?” Snake Ancestor got nervous, suddenly looked at the tea, and immediately put it down: “You don’t want to kill me, right?” After saying that, he clutched his throat and went to spit the tea out.

Pampered Guy sighed, and without looking at Snake Ancestor, said, “This tea is very expensive. Why are you so stupid? You can go and talk to Smoker. He’ll probably head right back to get the silver dollars once he has the map. Even if you tell him it’s fake, do you think he’ll believe you? I just told you so much, yet you didn’t understand any of it.”

Snake Ancestor looked at Pampered Guy, who stood up and looked at the water. The sky was already starting to get lighter.

“There’s no doubt that Smoker is arrogant. With so many people from the underworld being invited to the mountains at such a high price, he may remember that he suffered losses. You’re so arrogant, Little Snake, do you think the others will believe what you say? If you talk too much, he’ll be the one who wants to kill you.” He lit a cigarette. “Either follow Smoker and go back to receive the reward, or follow us into the forest. You can make money anywhere, and we work so well together.”

Snake Ancestor looked at Poker-Face, and then looked at the water outside. The morning light slowly formed a blue halo behind the mountain. He thought for a long time and said, “I only took the down payment from Smoker, so if you want me to go with you, you’ll have to pay me the rest of the money Smoker owes me.”

“It’s not a problem.” Pampered Guy took out a wedge. It was a small stick full of inscribed words, which was the lama’s voucher. Half of it was the family’s, and half was the partners’. If the lama had an accident, then the family could use this to get the money. If the iron chopsticks didn’t honor it, then the bamboo stick could prove who had been cheated.

Ordinary wedges were made of bamboo, but this one was covered in ivory and gold. The wedge alone was worth a lot of money. Each piece represented a certain amount of money, so Pampered Guy took out a dozen and put them in front of Snake Ancestor. He then told Snake Ancestor to place his fingerprints in his account book.

“How long do you think you have to look in the forest? What are you looking for?” Snake Ancestor asked.

“We don’t need to look for it. We already know why we couldn’t find it before.” Pampered Guy smiled slyly and showed Poker-Face the ledger: “Patriarch, aren’t I right? It was difficult to finish the job at the beginning, but you see, we have one more buddy. I told you, with me, the Zhang family will definitely make a comeback.” He then said to Snake Ancestor: “From now on, your surname is Zhang and your name is Zhang Xiaoshe (2).”

Snake Ancestor had been counting his wedges and froze for a moment. The rising sun made the whole pool down below look like it was on fire.

“They’re coming.” Snake Ancestor said. He walked to the part of the hall overlooking the water and saw a black snake floating up. Then, Phoenix’s head breached the surface and she started cursing the snake for swimming too fast.

Snake Ancestor retreated, and saw that Pampered Guy and Poker-Face had already grabbed their things. “Let’s go.” Pampered Guy said, and three men disappeared into the village depths.

<Extra 2.29> <Table of Contents><Extra 2.31>

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TN Notes:

(1) Xiang Yu the Conqueror (232-202 BC), warlord defeated by first Han emperor.

(2) Xiaoshe means “Little Snake”. Pampered Guy is so original lol