Chapter 29: Meeting Cao Tianma Again

Lu Fan's worries were not without reason. Once the five Le brothers and two sisters gathered at Langcha Village, it was naturally quite lively. The Le family, with their flourishing lineage, was a true powerhouse in the village.

As the siblings chatted, a remark from the second brother, Le Xueyi, caused everyone to fall into thought.

"That Lu boy, I don't know what path he took, but he actually entered the system. If I hadn't stopped it, he would have been assigned to the Government Office! Now, he's been sent off to Baishu Bay."

After a while, the fourth brother, Le Xuezhi, cursed, "The way that son of a bitch looked at me, it was like he wanted to eat me alive. Second brother was wise; a person like that is definitely a disaster!"

Seeing the eldest brother, who was a Vice Mayor, remain silent, the old man spoke up: "You brothers need to be careful. Wildfires cannot be extinguished completely; they grow again with the spring breeze. Kindness to an enemy is cruelty to oneself. You must root out evil completely; never let him have a chance to turn things around! However, this is a society ruled by law, so you must abide by the rules and regulations. You absolutely must not cause any deaths."

The eldest brother, Le Xueren, said, "It's hard to accomplish anything at Baishu Bay. Just keep an eye on him; there's no need to make a mountain out of a molehill. We must be cautious in our actions and leave no evidence behind, lest we attract unwanted attention! Second brother, why was Han Xuyang arrested?"

"That? He was arrested for corruption; that's perfectly normal!"

"I'm warning you, if you want to go far, you must act openly and honestly. Focus on overt strategies; don't spend all day playing dirty tricks behind people's backs. Han Xuyang has already been moved to the Earthquake Bureau; he can't stir up any more trouble. There was no need to get him locked up. Acting recklessly like this will only make people despise you! In officialdom, competition is normal, but one should always leave a way out for others so you can meet again in the future. Don't burn your bridges. Don't think what you did was subtle; sometimes suspicion is enough—you don't need evidence. You can't expect to be prepared for everything, can you?"

"Eldest brother, what should I do then? Should I stop?"

"Fool! How can an arrow turn back once it's been fired? Since you've already made a move, you must strike true and ensure he never has a chance to rise again. Remember, if you don't kill the snake, you'll suffer from its bite. Leave this matter to me; Han Xuyang must go inside. He has an older brother who is a Deputy Director at the Provincial Department, but it's a peripheral department, so it shouldn't be a big problem."

Old Man Le praised, "The eldest is still the most meticulous. You all should learn from him!"

Unexpectedly, the fifth brother, Le Xueliang, stood up and said, "Lu Fan has already dropped out of school!" With that, he turned and left.

After entering the twelfth lunar month, every household had to visit the graves. The forest farm had to increase patrols, but the staff and forest rangers were far from sufficient. Every year, they had to hire temporary workers, so Lu Fan simply hired Du Wenlong and Su Xiaoyi to let them earn some pocket money.

That night, Lu Fan took Du Wenlong and Su Xiaoyi out on patrol, having rented Li Yifeng's car.

Watching Li Yifeng drive with such familiarity, finding every nook and cranny, Lu Fan laughed, "Yifeng, I didn't expect you to be so familiar with the terrain!"

"Director, I used to be a model youth, full of passion for the work. But Old Li is too selfish; he guards against everyone in everything he does. Yulong and I just quit and went home to do some small business. It actually suits Old Li's wishes; otherwise, would he have given us time off?"

After crossing a small hill, the car entered the forest area. Li Yifeng suggested, "Director, the road ahead is the only way out of the forest area. We can lie in wait there."

This was Lu Fan's first time patrolling the mountains, so he naturally followed the advice of this "veteran employee."

After parking the car by the side of the road, they turned off the lights and the engine, and the four of them got out to smoke.

Lu Fan asked, "Yifeng, how much money can one usually make from transporting a set of coffin materials?"

Li Yifeng thought for a moment and said, "It depends on the thickness. Good ones can sell for twenty thousand, and the cheapest ones go for eight thousand. The craftsman's fee for making a coffin is about ten thousand. People around here like to prepare their 'longevity wood' in advance and keep it in the storeroom; it gives them peace of mind."

Du Wenlong interjected, "Brother Fan, Old Liu from our village just had two coffins made. I heard it cost 40,000, and it seems it came from your place."

Li Yifeng said, "It must have been Old Li who moved it out. He loves to check the materials in the middle of the night to save himself the trouble of cutting them. Or he's sleeping with women. It's only a matter of time before he gets into trouble; he has too much money to burn!"

Lu Fan laughed, "Since he's still lying in the hospital, let's not gossip behind his back. I heard he got over twenty stitches; he finally managed to save his life!"

Su Xiaoyi said, "I heard that the person who did the cutting turned himself in. Was he a teacher?"

Li Yifeng laughed, "Seems so. He was messing around with someone else's wife and got jealous, even resorting to cutting someone. I really admire him to the ground!"

As they were gossiping, they suddenly heard the sound of a tricycle, and soon, a faint light appeared not far away.

Lu Fan gave the order: "Get ready to work!"

The three of them immediately took out their gear from the car. Except for Li Yifeng, everyone else felt quite excited.

The "ta-ta-ta" sound grew closer. As they walked, they suddenly saw the car lights ahead turn on. Cao Tianma panicked and said to his father, "Should we run?"

"The monk can run, but the temple can't. You want to abandon the tricycle? At worst, they'll confiscate the materials and fine us a bit; it won't kill us. I heard that old donkey Li Yongji got cut; I don't know who is in charge of the forest farm now."

Hearing his father's words, Lu Fan's image immediately appeared in Cao Tianma's mind.

After the people from the forest farm drew near, Cao Tianma suddenly realized that the person leading them really seemed to be Lu Fan, so he said to his old man, "I think I know him? Dad, under normal circumstances, how much money does it take to settle this?"

"If it were Li Yongji, it would be at least five thousand. That son of a bitch is rotten to the core!"

"Did you bring money?"

"How could I not?"

"Give it to me, quick!"

Taking the money from his father's arms, Cao Tianma jumped off the tricycle, covered the distance to Lu Fan in a few strides, and said in a low voice, "Brother Fan, it's me, Xiao Cao, Cao Tianma!"

Lu Fan remembered him; he was the brother who had invited him to eat mutton on his first day at Baishu Bay. He took Cao Tianma to the side and asked, "You've got some nerve, stealing timber in the middle of the night!"

"There's no other way, my old man just makes coffins. Brother Fan, can you cut us some slack?" After saying this, he tried to stuff the five thousand yuan into Lu Fan's arms.

Lu Fan hurriedly pushed him away and said in a low voice, "Brother, you leave quickly. Don't let this happen again!"

Cao Tianma hadn't expected that Lu Fan, whom he had only met by chance, would be so easy to talk to. He was completely stunned—could they really just leave like this?

"What are you still standing there for? Go, quick!"

"What about the timber?"

"I didn't see anything!"

"Brother Fan, a great kindness is beyond words. I'll come find you tomorrow."

Seeing Lu Fan take the three men to the side to smoke, Cao Tianma hurriedly ran to the tricycle, told his father to drive fast, and accelerated away from this unavoidable path!

"Tianma? Did you give him the money?"

"No, that's my Brother Fan. He let us off the hook!"

"He didn't want a single cent? Wait, you said his name is Lu Fan?"

"That's right, my Brother Fan!"

"I heard the new farm director is named Lu Fan, a young guy. You son of a bitch actually know such a big shot?"

"Dad, don't look down on people. Brother Fan and I are iron brothers; otherwise, would he have let us go without taking a cent?"

"I'm telling you, Tianma, this money can't be saved. We make our living this way; if it needs to be spent, it must be spent. Tomorrow you go to the forest farm, even if you give him a bit more, it's fine. This connection cannot be broken."

"Dad, I'm only helping you this one time. After the New Year, I have to go sell oil; that's the real big business!"

"Are you rebelling? My words don't count anymore?"

"They count, they count. I'll go to the forest farm tomorrow, and it'll be a good chance to chat with Brother Fan."

From beginning to end, Li Yifeng didn't say a word, as if that tricycle had never appeared. In such matters, the leader has the final say.

Su Xiaoyi said in a low voice, "I think I've seen that kid before. He's an oil rat, now driving an 'Er Dan' vehicle to sell oil."

Since they were already out, they couldn't return empty-handed. After lying in wait until midnight, they finally caught two groups of "timber traffickers" and seized five loads of timber.

Both groups were from Baishu Bay. They didn't resist and obediently hauled the "timber" back to the forest farm, planning to find someone to pull strings once it was light.

After working all night, Lu Fan slept until ten o'clock and still hadn't gotten up.

Cao Tianma had arrived long ago, but the forest farm staff wouldn't let him disturb the director's rest, so he squatted in the courtyard and waited.

After Lu Fan had slept his fill, he opened the door to wash up and saw Cao Tianma at a glance.

"Brother Fan, I'll go fetch water for you!"

"No need, it's just two steps away. I've always used cold water to wash my face."

Returning to the office, Cao Tianma took out the envelope again. Lu Fan's face darkened, and he said, "Take it back, or don't ever come here again."

Cao Tianma said awkwardly, "Brother Fan, I know you're helping a brother out, but there are others."

Lu Fan thought for a moment and said, "Then buy three cartons of cigarettes and send them to them. You don't need to do that for me."

After the serious business was finished, the two began to reminisce. Cao Tianma started bragging, saying he was a big shot in the oil zone and that after the New Year, he would definitely be able to grow big and strong!

Lu Fan asked casually, "Ever heard of Le Xueren?"

"Everyone who sells oil has heard of him. He's very badass. He has a Land Rover clearing the way in front, and a row of oil tankers behind, selling oil openly. Even the police station doesn't dare stop him. He even dares to deal with the police, and nothing ever happens to him. I heard he's setting up some kind of waste oil mud treatment company, and then he'll be able to sell oil completely legally!"

This was the real, tangible gap. During this time, Lu Fan had already learned the basics of the Le family. The more he learned, the more discouraged he felt. Trying to move against them was like an ant shaking a tree—overestimating one's own strength.

Right now, the forest farm was Lu Fan's only resource and advantage. Lu Fan didn't plan to rely on it to make money, but he could utilize it to the maximum to accumulate connections for himself.

Therefore, just trafficking "timber" was far from enough. It would be better to see a good deed through to the end—directly turning the timber into high-quality coffins. That way, the favor would be greater, and the risk would be smaller.

"Tianma, I remember you saying your dad's coffin-making skills are pretty good?"

"Brother Fan, I'm not bragging to you, but within a radius of several dozen miles, if my dad dares to claim second, absolutely no one dares to claim first. If you don't believe me, go ask around!"

"I have some work here. Go back and ask your dad if he's willing to do it. It's not for free; he'll earn what he's supposed to earn."

"If there's money to be made, why wouldn't he be willing? I'll agree to it on behalf of the old man!"

"Go back and ask first. If your dad is willing, have him come find me."

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