Rebirth of Bayi Fishing and Hunting in the Northwest

Chapter 1423 The mountain people save lives again; someone is plotting something shady.

After seeing her classmates off, Li Juan helped her mother, Liang Yuemei, tidy up the new house.

After touring her new house, Li Juan asked with some doubt, "Mom, why did you make so many bedrooms? Five bedrooms, can so many people live there?"

As Liang Yuemei wiped the dust off the glass, she said, "Why can't we accommodate so many people? Your grandparents will have one room, your dad and I will have one, you and Qiangqiang will each have one, and there will be one room for guests. For example, if your boyfriend comes, there will be a room for him."

Li Juan blushed and said, "You've only talked about my boyfriend. What if Qiangqiang brings his girlfriend back with him when we come back? How will we stay then?"

"That's easy." Liang Yuemei finished wiping one window and went to the other, saying as she wiped, "With Qiangqiang's personality, he might not even be able to bring a girlfriend back after graduating from university. By the time he brings a girlfriend back, you should be married by now. Then you and your boyfriend can share a room, and Qiangqiang and his girlfriend can live separately, right?"

Besides, we only have 1.5-meter and 1.8-meter beds at home, so if it's really necessary, two people can share a room. If there are more people, the sofa in the living room can be pulled out to sleep on.

At that time, people valued practicality when buying furniture. The sofa that the Li family bought was the kind that could be flipped up to become a bed, with the main idea being "whether we use it or not, we just have to have it."

Seeing how thoughtful her parents were, Li Juan didn't say anything more.

The new house is very nicely done, painted all white, with a roof made of woven stripes and some gaps specifically for ventilation.

After all, the roof is made of wood and reeds, and if it's not breathable, it's easy for it to get moldy and mildewed.

Don't assume that the air in northern Xinjiang is always dry; it can still be humid when it's in season, just not as humid as some other provinces.

In the vegetable garden, Li Long was holding a basin and planting cabbages in front of him, while Li Jianguo was behind him, stomping the holes where he planted the cabbages flat.

As Li Long ordered, he asked, "Brother, when are you planning to move in?"

"By the end of the year, the yard will be finished and people can move in. But we can't manage all those tractors, so we'll have to find a place for them to settle down," Li Jianguo said. "Everything here is good, except that there isn't as much space around here as there."

The yard is surrounded by neighbors; at most, one or two tractors can be parked there, and there's no room for any more farm implements.

Li Long then suggested to his elder brother: "Brother, you could actually submit an application to the team and say that you want to set up an agricultural machinery cooperative. You could apply to the team for a piece of land specifically for building tractors. Our village only has less than sixty or seventy households. If we expand the residential land by one or two alleys, that's the limit."

Further out, those saline-alkali lands could be used to apply for a large yard to store tractors. This way, they'd be close by yet have their own dedicated space, making management much easier.

Li Jianguo asked hesitantly, "Will this work? The tractors all belong to our own family, so how do we apply for a cooperative? Doesn't a cooperative require someone to invest?"

Li Long laughed and said, "Our two families have separate household registrations, right? Even if our two families become shareholders, Junfeng and Junhai can also become shareholders with their labor. Giving them some shares and dividends will definitely motivate them to work even harder."

Li Jianguo nodded and said, "That works too. Your construction team is here anyway. Once the land is approved, we can build the yard while we're at it."

He's been thinking about this issue for the past two days, but perhaps his thinking is limited, and he really hasn't thought of establishing a cooperative.

However, when Li Long brought up the idea, Li Jianguo thought it was really good. The people who invested in the cooperative were all family members. For the first two years, Li Junhai and Chen Qianjin were paid wages for their work.

Now that they have their household registration here and their own land, it's really not appropriate to pay them wages.

Giving them a symbolic share, allowing them to invest their own money, will definitely motivate them to work more diligently.

Of course, the shares cannot be given out too much. If they are given out too much and the employee refuses to work, that would be troublesome.

As for the restrictions in the terms of the shareholding agreement, we should think about them carefully and be upfront about them so that if any disputes arise in the future, we can refer to the terms.

After ordering the cabbage, Li Jianguo went inside to think about how to draft the terms and conditions. Li Jianguo had also been involved in the cotton cooperative, although he hadn't been involved in the later management, he was familiar with the terms and conditions of the cooperative when it was established.

So setting up a cooperative isn't difficult for him; his main concern is the detailed share allocation.

My mother, Du Chunfang, is also in the vegetable garden. She's cleared a small plot of land and plans to plant some perilla. After all, she's lived in her hometown for most of her life, and some habits are hard to break, like adding perilla to eggs or garlic when they're lacking.

Actually, they already have some catnip growing in their yard, enough for their needs. But the old folks think the land is just sitting idle anyway, so they might as well plant something. And if they're going to plant something, they'll naturally plant what they like.

After Li Jianguo returned to the house, Li Long continued tidying up the land where he was planting Chinese cabbage. Du Chunfang called out, "Xiao Long, come help me plant some catnip."

Li Long chuckled and went over to help his mother. He hadn't worked in the vegetable garden for a long time, and while helping his mother plant catnip, he was occasionally criticized, but Li Long didn't mind; he just planted it.

Catnip grows quickly and yields fast, similar to cilantro; both are short-growing vegetables that can be harvested very soon. At this time of year, it's too late to plant other seasonal vegetables, so we're planting short-term ones. Besides Chinese cabbage, this vegetable patch also contains some scallions, cilantro, and celery.

The soil in the vegetable gardens on these two plots was already quite fertile, and the grass grew rather lushly. When the houses were being built, the workers had already cleared the grass. After the yards were finished, Li Long and his group went to Old Ma's place and hauled several cartloads of post-harvested cow and sheep manure to the fields. Planting the vegetables there would make them grow even faster.

Li Junhai and Chen Qianjin followed suit. Anyway, there was plenty of manure on Old Ma's side, so they just kept adding more.

Now that this vegetable garden is done, I can bring my family over from my hometown in the fall and earn some praise.

In both courtyards, everything in the rooms has been tidied up. All the furniture is brand new, the boiler has been tested, and the bedding is also brand new.

In short, everything is brand new. Liang Yuemei originally planned to move some things from the old house over, but Li Long said that since no one was moving, there was no need to get everything new. If they wanted the old things later, they could use them to fill the empty house; if they didn't want them, they could either give them away or throw them away.

As he spoke, several family members scolded him for being a spendthrift, but there was nothing they could do, since everything had been ordered in bulk and moved in and organized. It was too late to object anymore.

After planting the vegetables in the garden, Li Long returned to the county. Liu Gaolou called from the purchasing station saying he'd be coming in the next couple of days; he still had to wait.

During this period, Li Junfeng's father, Li Andong, would send fish to the Li family every day, making Li Jianguo feel a little embarrassed. Liang Yuemei was fine with it, never getting tired of eating fish every day. But Li Jianguo couldn't stand it, so he privately said to Li Andong, "Stop sending them. Sending them every few days is fine, but sending them every day is making us sick of fish."

Li Andong said, "Since Xiaolong has already said what he wanted to say, I figured I'd just catch some fish myself and give some away."

Li Jianguo said, "Listen to me on this. You don't need to deliver it every day."

Li Andong then gave up, sending fish every two or three days. He knew the Li family's preferences, mainly sending crucian carp. If five fish turned black, he would leave two.

Li Junfeng also told his father to chase away any fishermen who didn't follow the rules. So Li Andong helped watch over the small lake and keep an eye on the fishermen. He would intervene if he wanted to, and leave the fishermen alone if he didn't. But if they were fishing for crabs or were breaking the rules, he would just chase them away.

Liu Gaolou's trip mainly involved hauling used cars. Now that Kazakhstan has broken away from the Soviet Union, the domestic car market has flourished, and there are still quite a few wealthy people who can afford to buy cars.

The variety of used cars has also increased. In addition to the original Mercedes-Benz and Volga, there are now other brands, including American cars like Ford. There are ten used cars. One truckload of antelope horns, two truckloads of leather, and two truckloads of copper ingots.

In the meeting room, Liu Gaolou informed Li Long about the status of the goods. Afterward, he told him about some other things.

He said, "My second uncle rescued two more people this time. They left on their own when they got to the border. Another person was killed there because he didn't have any identification information, so he was buried there."

Hearing Liu Gaolou's words, Li Long sighed. Doing business in the past was truly difficult. There were even times when one faced life-threatening danger!

Most people probably go normally and return safely. However, a very small minority encounter robbery or kidnapping, and for these people, the probability of misfortune is 100%.

However, the pursuit of wealth often comes with risks, and it cannot be said that these people disregard their own safety. After all, most people only hear stories of wealth creation, and very few know about kidnappings. Moreover, most people have a sense of wishful thinking, believing that they themselves are unlikely to be the ones kidnapped.

Liu Gaolou continued, "So every time I go there, I contact my second uncle in advance and ask him to send some people over. We always travel in a convoy."

When a convoy passes by, the locals usually think twice before robbing it. They're also worried the convoy members might be armed. After all, these people are after money and generally won't engage in direct combat.

This is the advantage of having power. Li Long also thought that if he were to go there, he would have Liu Gaolou bring people over beforehand; otherwise, he wouldn't go himself. The country is so safe; there's no need to go abroad.

To be honest, even if you combined his two lifetimes, he wasn't particularly interested in the so-called scenery and culture abroad. He hadn't even traveled all over Xinjiang, let alone within China. So, he'll stay here for now.

It was quite hot outside, but very cool inside. Liu Gaolou ate watermelon and talked about his experiences along the way. He also remarked that he only felt truly at ease after arriving here.

After all, there were relatively few Han Chinese at the border, and even fewer people to talk to or play cards with. Moreover, after the two countries started trading, a lot of foreigners would come to the border from time to time, and Liu Gaolou was too lazy to deal with them.

So he planned to have the convoy take the canned goods and sugar back first. He would then spend two days exploring Shichengma County before driving back.

After resting for a while, seeing the convoy still unloading supplies outside, Liu Gaolou went to Li Long and said, "You guys keep busy, I'm going to the county hotel to rest first. I'm quite tired from the journey. I'll get a good rest today and have a good look around tomorrow."

Li Long waved him off. He knew this place very well and didn't need anyone to accompany or take care of him.

Every time Liu Gaolou came over, the middlemen gossiping outside got excited because they could see the goods being brought in from the border again. Although they couldn't afford most of the cars, at least they could feast their eyes on them. These men even started to take pride in remembering the most car logos they could.

When Li Long saw Liu Gaolou off, these middlemen were there, identifying the license plates on the vehicles being unloaded from the trucks.

"This is still a Mercedes, right? The interior is shaped like the Chinese character '人' (person). Foreigners also value human rights."

"What brand is this? There's an English word inside."

Some people didn't recognize it, and after asking around, no one knew. Then Li Long casually said, "It's from the American side, it's Ford, and it has relatively high fuel consumption."

Some people ask, "Why is the fuel consumption high, but the power is very strong?"

Li Long joked, "The Americans don't lack oil."

At that time, domestic oil prices were not high. Although they were much higher than when Li Long and his friends first bought their small four-wheeled tractor, they were much cheaper than the seven, eight, or nine yuan they would pay in later years.

After Liu Gaolou left, some middlemen asked Li Long about the situation at the border. Li Long then told him about the matter Liu Gaolou had raised, saying that two people had been rescued from there, and another had died in a foreign land. These middlemen were all quite saddened; not to mention feeling sorry for each other, they at least felt that it was rather unfortunate for their compatriots to die in a foreign country.

One of them blinked and asked Li Long, "Boss Li, do you know what the name of that person who died in Kazakhstan was?"

Li Long shook his head and said, "When they rescued the person, he was already dead. They didn't find any identification information, so they buried him there. If they had found any identification information, they would have sent him back to contact his family."

After chatting for a couple more minutes, Li Long went to the backyard. The workers unloaded the car body panels, antelope horns, and other materials, then began storing them in the warehouse; these items would be processed later.

The scrap copper is piled up in the corner of the backyard wall, and people from the recycling station will come to collect it in the afternoon. This stuff is considered a scarce scrap metal and is in high demand.

Li Long was discussing the distribution of supplies with Liang Shuangcheng when the middleman who had asked him about the Kazakh victims earlier came around. Upon seeing Li Long, the man immediately smiled and approached him, saying, "Boss Li, there's something we can discuss."

Li Long felt the man looked familiar, but couldn't place his name. After all, it was his father, Li Qingxia, who worked behind the counter, and Li Qingxia knew all these people. Li Long hadn't dealt directly with these people in a long time. Most of the familiar faces had gone to do business at the border, and while he saw these new faces occasionally, he rarely knew their names.

Li Long looked at him suspiciously, and the man immediately introduced himself: "My name is Ma Qiang. I collect fritillaria bulbs in Nanshan. The old man knows me. He values ​​integrity the most in business."

Li Long then asked him, "What do you want to discuss?"

Ma Qiang said, "A friend of mine who does business said that there is a person in Beiting who does business at the border who has been missing for a month. He can't be contacted by phone. It is said that he went to Kazakhstan."

His family offered a reward of at least ten thousand yuan for finding him, dead or alive. I was thinking, is the person you mentioned who was arrested and died him?

Li Long shook his head and said, "How can we confirm something like this?"

Ma Qiang immediately said, "I'll get a photo of that person from a friend and have your friend help you identify them. If it's them, how about we split the profits 50/50?"

Moreover, this kind of business can definitely be done long-term. After all, you have the connections to bring people back, and I can contact the families of those missing persons. This is a sure-fire way to make money.

Li Long immediately shook his head and said, "No, I don't do this kind of business. First of all, my friend wasn't specifically there to rescue these kidnapped people; he just happened to come across this situation."

Furthermore, if we were simply helping someone out, neither my friend nor I would ask for money. Firstly, we don't need the money, and secondly, there's no need or energy to do it specifically.

Li Long mainly considered another trend that could potentially worsen the situation. If rescuing people became a business, wouldn't some people deliberately kidnap others and profit from it?

Like the birds that help bison get rid of parasites on the grasslands, they eat the parasites off the bison and then find the blood from the wounds caused by the parasites to be quite palatable, so they deliberately puncture the bison's hide to drink that blood.

The nature is the same.

Li Long is not a saint; he wouldn't dare gamble on other people's humanity. If he encountered such a situation, he would suggest that Liu Shanmin go to the rescue, but he wouldn't deliberately do it himself.

Seeing that Li Long was rather stubborn, Ma Qiang said, "Let's put aside the idea of ​​partnering up for now. At least let's see if this person matches up. I'll go get some photos first. Your friend isn't leaving these next few days, right? If not, I'll get the photos as soon as possible and have your friend take a look, okay?"

Li Long thought this was a feasible idea. After all, returning to one's roots and having one's remains returned home is a longing cherished by older generations of Chinese people. If he were buried in a foreign land, his family might miss him for the rest of their lives.

Eager to earn that 10,000 yuan, Ma Qiang immediately left the backyard after finalizing the deal with Li Long, got on his bicycle, and rode away.

Liang Shuangcheng listened to the whole story from the beginning and then asked Li Long, "I think this is something that can be done. There's no need to make saving people seem so morally noble; you should still charge money if necessary." Since Liang Shuangcheng was one of their own, Li Long explained the situation to him. After all, Liu Shanmin's rescue was just a side job; his real purpose was to consolidate his power and expand his influence in the underworld around Almaty.

Of course, under the influence of this real purpose, there may be fewer and fewer cases of kidnapping domestic businessmen along the way, since those who actually kidnap these people are basically involved in organized crime.

Then there was Li Long's own concern. After all, most of Liu Shanmin's men were Kazakhs. If they were really asked to do things for money and rescue hostages, one of his subordinates might have the idea of ​​kidnapping people and then taking the money.

After all, the lives of most ordinary people there are not good, and even Liu Shanmin's men are not necessarily much better off than those here. An extra income is a huge temptation for them.

Upon hearing this, Liang Shuangcheng understood that it was indeed impossible to do. Li Long then asked Liang Shuangcheng to cut some more watermelons for the people in the front yard. The purchasing station had always maintained the tradition of having hot tea outside the yard in winter and watermelons and mung bean soup in summer.

There are fewer middlemen chatting here now, so the consumption isn't high, but it's still a popular story. Occasionally, someone comes over to freeload on watermelons, and they're not chased away. After all, watermelons were only a few cents a kilogram at that time, which was incredibly cheap for a major supplier like the purchasing station.

To Li Long's surprise, Ma Qiang was very efficient and brought the photos in the afternoon. Li Long took the photos to the county guesthouse to find Liu Gaolou.

Liu Gaolou spread his hands and said, "I've never seen this person before. My second uncle told me about it, and only he and his men have seen him. But sending photos over there is quite troublesome now, and we probably can't solve it."

Li Long thought he might as well call Liu Shanmin to confirm, since he had the man's photo and could at least describe him. Moreover, the man's facial features were quite distinct in the photo; one ear was higher than the other. Ma Qiang also brought the information the family had mentioned: the man had a mole on his neck.

Li Long made a long-distance call to Liu Shanmin from the county. Hotels like this offer international long-distance service, but it costs extra. Liu Shanmin happened to be online and answered the phone. He was somewhat surprised to hear Li Long asking about it, and jokingly scolded him:

"It must be that kid Liu Gaolou who can't keep his mouth shut."

However, there was no point in keeping this a secret. After all, it was something that went smoothly for Liu Shanmin, but it was a good thing for the Chinese people. Li Long showed the photo and described the person, asking Liu Shanmin to confirm if it was indeed him. Especially when he mentioned the mole on the neck, Liu Shanmin confirmed that it was indeed him.

Ma Qiang, who had followed along, became quite excited.

Li Long discussed it with Liu Shanmin.

Liu Shanmin meant that since the body had already been buried, it would be difficult for them to retrieve it. Therefore, it would be best for the deceased's family to complete the necessary procedures and go to the scene as soon as possible. In this hot weather, if too much time passed, the body would decompose and become unrecognizable.

Li Long thought this was acceptable, so he told Ma Qiang to quickly discuss it with the deceased's family.

Ma Qiang was very enthusiastic, after all, he was almost certain he would get the reward money. He quickly went to the bus station to catch a bus to Beiting City.

It was almost lunchtime. Li Long and Liu Gaolou decided to have dinner at the county guesthouse. The food at the county guesthouse was quite good, with local specialties all available.

Liu Gaolou rarely praised the local mutton, saying that it tasted even better than the mutton from the river valley. Li Long proudly replied, "After all, they were raised on alkaline grass, so the mutton isn't as gamey. Don't think that just because the sheep in the river valley eat grasslands and fresh grass, they won't be gamey. Actually, they are still quite gamey, but the locals are used to it."

Liu Gaolong and Li Long were on good terms, so he said without any mercy, "You're getting all worked up just because I said you're fat. Actually, the mutton over there is quite good, with a good balance of fat and lean meat. It's really delicious when you eat big chunks of meat."

Li Long laughed and said, "It must be when it's hot. If you let the mutton cool down, does it smell a bit gamey? Look at the mutton here, even when it's cold, it's not that gamey."

At this time, they are mostly grass-fed sheep, without all the problems associated with sheep fed commercial feed, and at least they taste quite good. Li Long said that because he's a local, he's bound to have some prejudice or preference for the food from his own region.

After they finished their meal, Li Long went to the recycling station, but it was already locked. So he drove back to the compound, and just as he reached the gate, a van stopped him. To Li Long's surprise, Ma Qiang was in the passenger seat.

The van's side door opened, and an elderly couple, a young man, a woman, and a child got out. Upon seeing Li Long, Ma Qiang immediately said to them, "This is Boss Li. Without him, you wouldn't have been able to find your Wan Anping."

Then the woman, with her child, suddenly knelt down in front of Li Long. Li Long was startled and quickly helped her up. He then realized that these must be the deceased's family members.

The couple wore sorrowful expressions, while the young man looked at Li Long with suspicion and a hint of wariness. The child, about seven or eight years old, seemed bewildered. The woman's face was streaked with tears; she must have been crying all the way.

Li Long hadn't expected that their whole family would come so late. But since they were already there, he couldn't say anything, so he simply gave them a brief explanation of the situation.

The commotion outside alerted the police officer on duty at the police station across the street and Gu Xiaoxia in the courtyard. Guo Tiebing, who was on duty at the police station, came out to check the situation. After seeing Li Long, he asked Li Long what was going on.

Li Long briefly explained the situation. Just then, Gu Xiaoxia came out from a side door and heard what had happened.

Guo Tiebing sighed and said, "This has really come to this. It's better to be safe and sound in China." He then told the elderly couple his condolences and went back to the police station.

Li Long then told the Wan family, "You should stay at the county hotel for today. Once we decide who will go to Kazakhstan to pick up the person, they can go with my friend's convoy to complete the formalities at the border. I'll tell my friend to have the convoy stop at the border. It'll be safer for the whole convoy to go there."

Li Long had arranged everything quite thoroughly. The Wan family expressed their gratitude without saying much more. As they were about to leave, the young man couldn't help but ask, "Mr. Li, how much do you want?"

Ma Qiang couldn't help but pat him on the shoulder: "Didn't we agree on ten thousand yuan?" He glanced at Li Long again, unsure of what Li Long would say.

The young man said, "Mr. Li has made such detailed arrangements, surely 10,000 yuan isn't enough?"

Li Long thought to himself, "This family is really honest." He waved his hand and said:

"I won't charge you for this. Let me make this clear. Mr. Ma Qiang, you've gone to so much trouble for this, so please thank him however you wish. As for the paperwork, you can handle it yourselves; you can ask around at the border."

Bring your identification documents and everything else; you can go there and complete the formalities as usual. Go with my friend's car. You can give them a token amount for the trip, or you can buy them something if you don't want to pay. Of course, you can also leave without buying anything; my friend won't mind because of me.

But I think you don't lack the money. Then go and pick them up. If they really are your people, you can ask my friends over there how much it costs and see what they tell you.

I won't get involved in these things. I'm just providing information, not making money from it. It's not easy for Chinese people to do business over there. I'm doing this out of consideration for them, and it just so happens that this opportunity came up. If it weren't for that, this wouldn't be my responsibility.

Seeing that Li Long's attitude was consistent, Ma Qiang was quite relieved, since Li Long hadn't tricked him. The Wan family members' expressions changed constantly as Li Long explained the matter so clearly.

Finally, the elderly couple thanked Li Long again, and then asked Ma Qiang to take them to the county guesthouse. Li Long told Gu Xiaoxia and drove off as well.

After all, he needed to explain this to Liu Gaolou. Making a phone call would be disrespectful; after all, the deceased should be respected. Gu Xiaoxia urged him to go quickly, saying that this was something he should do, as a way to accumulate good karma for the two children.

Upon arriving at the county guesthouse, Li Long knocked on Liu Gaolou's room door, but he wasn't there. He then asked the front desk, who said Liu Gaolou had gone to sing karaoke. At this time, karaoke was beginning to become popular in the area.

After asking for directions, Li Long took the young man from the Wan family there.

Liu Gaolou was quite surprised to see Li Long and pulled him aside to sing together. Li Long waved his hand, saying he had things to do at home, and introduced the young man from the Wan family to Liu Gaolou, saying they were planning to go to Kazakhstan with Liu Gaolou.

Liu Gaolou said, "Tomorrow I will tell the team that they will go with the team, but I will not go myself."

Li Long then explained his previous plan: to have the convoy stop at the border to prevent the convoy from leaving before their paperwork was completed, which would put the two men in danger.

Yes, the Wan family decided that Old Wan and Young Wan would go together.

Xiao Wan was a little reserved when he greeted Liu Gaolou. Liu Gaolou suggested that the Wan family should hire a translator after they arrived, otherwise communication would be difficult, since they couldn't always talk to Liu Shanmin, who was also very busy.

Xiao Wan said he understood and they would take care of it after arriving at the port. Li Long didn't bother with it anymore, said goodbye to Liu Gaolou, and left.

Having experienced and learned of numerous kidnappings in the past two years, Li Long had become somewhat indifferent to them. After returning home, he told Gu Xiaoxia about it. Gu Xiaoxia sighed, saying that this money was truly hard-earned. And that was the end of it.

The next day, after breakfast, Li Long went to the purchasing station and his father, Li Qingxia, specifically asked about the matter. Li Long then told him what had happened. Today they were loading canned sugar for the convoy, and they wouldn't set off until tomorrow, so they hadn't seen the Wan family all day.

Ma Qiang came over and told Li Long about the follow-up: "The Wan family gave me two thousand yuan for the initial expenses, saying that they would give me another thousand yuan after they brought the person back, and the remaining seven thousand is intended to thank you and Boss Liu."

Li Long waved his hand and said, "I already said I don't want this money. Tell them to spend it wisely. There might be a lot of money to be greased around, and their matter is quite urgent."

"Things will be easier once they're over there, but the people are dead and buried; transporting them here is still a problem. There will definitely be paperwork needed at the border; let them check everything carefully. It would be troublesome if the people over there are picked up but then get stuck at the border trying to come back here."

Upon hearing this, Ma Qiang realized it was a serious matter, so he quickly went to the county guesthouse to inform the Wan family. Although the Wan family was anxious, there was nothing they could do at that point.

There was nowhere to ask or check at that time, since there was no customs in the county. But I kept this in mind and went to handle it in advance when I arrived at the port.

In the afternoon, the old man and young man from the Wan family brought things to the purchasing station to thank Li Long, and also offered money. Li Long really refused to accept it. It was only then that they learned that the old woman, wife, and children from the Wan family had already returned to the city. They couldn't help here, so they went home to wait, hoping to hear news, whether they were alive or dead.

Based on his experience, Li Long gave the Wan family some advice, especially after they arrived in Kazakhstan. He told them to stay close to the convoy and to greet Boss Liu on his behalf when they arrived, so that Boss Liu could help them with transportation and retrieving the body.

The next day, Li Long and Liu Gaolou led the convoy to the sugar factory. After loading the sugar, the convoy was led by someone, with the Wan family father and son riding in two separate vehicles, heading west together.

Li Long and Liu Gaolou drove back to the county. Liu Gaolou said he planned to drive to Beiting City today. Li Long said he didn't have time to accompany him and told him to go by himself.

Over the next few days, people came to buy cars every day. Chen Yan also brought a big client who picked up a luxury Mercedes and left. Chen Yan had figured out the pattern of cars coming in for Li Long; he would come every two weeks anyway.

The clients they bring in have diverse needs, ranging from high-end to low-end cars, including luxury vehicles and regular cars. Of course, sometimes Chen Yan will also proactively call Li Long to ask if he has any cars she needs.

Chen Yan made a lot of money from both Li Long's clients and her car. She also changed her car from a Santana to a Mercedes. Although it is not a luxury model, it is still the kind of car that many people envy.

The two had become somewhat acquainted, occasionally exchanging jokes. Some of the middlemen at the recycling station were interested in this beautiful woman, but she never seemed to give any of them a second glance. Li Long didn't care about any of this nonsense; he only cared about selling cars and making money.

Three days after the luxury Mercedes was picked up, Chen Yan drove his Mercedes over again.

This time, she specifically sought Li Long's advice. She said, "There's someone in Urumqi who wants to invest with me to import a batch of cars from Kazakhstan to sell."

Chen Yan didn't hide this news from Li Long at all. She said frankly, "The people who invested in me think that if you can get such a cheap car, it means that the car prices over there should be even cheaper."

They also have channels at the port, saying they can import a batch of cars from there, making tens of thousands or even hundreds of thousands of yuan per car. If they get a dozen or so, they can make a fortune for the New Year.

Li Long then asked him, "Are there any business people among their partners in the past?"

Chen Yan shook her head and said, "No. But we can hire a translator; these are things we can think of."

Li Long then recounted the story of the Wan family.

Chen Yan's expression immediately changed. She knew Li Long wouldn't lie to her, and there was no need for her to use these things to stop her plans.

Li Long earnestly said to Chen Yan, "It is indeed easier to make money over there. The supplies needed on both sides are different. Even if you only make a small profit from the price difference, you can still make a decent living."

If you have connections at the port, you can get special permits and earn even more. But the prerequisite is that you have connections there.

In just the past year and a half, from what I know, many people have been kidnapped or died there. And it's not just ordinary citizens! People from state-owned enterprises have also been robbed. So if you want to do business there, you should at least take this factor into account.”

Chen Yan's expression immediately turned sour. She said, "These people called me over mainly because they said I'm quite knowledgeable about the performance of used cars. After all, we've been working together for so long, and I've studied the condition of these cars quite thoroughly. I didn't expect that while there's nothing wrong with the business itself, there would be such dangers outside of it all!"

She looked at Li Long, who waved his hand and said, "Don't look at me. I do have connections in the used car market, but I can't possibly cultivate a competitor. If you're capable, you can find your own way; if you're not, then just be my downstream supplier."

Of course, it's also possible that you'll be lucky and return safely without any problems. You could try it too.

Chen Yan snorted and said, "I'm not stupid. I can make tens of thousands of yuan a month doing this business here, isn't that great? Why take this risk?"

I'll go back and talk to them. Whoever wants to do it can do it. They initially offered me 20% of the shares, which I thought was a good thing, but I didn't expect such a huge trap.”

No wonder Chen Yan was willing to take this risk; it turns out there were two layers of shares waiting for her.

Before leaving, Chen Yan made a point of thanking Li Long very sincerely.

Li Long waved his hand and said, "It's nothing."

A week after Chen Yan left, Ma Qiang came with the young man from the Wan family, saying that the person had been brought back, or rather, the ashes had been brought back.

They confirmed over there that it was indeed the person they were looking for. However, it was difficult to bring the person back, and frankly, the body was already decomposed beyond recognition, so they simply cremated it there and collected the ashes to make it easier to bring back later.

They also said that they were very fortunate to have the convoy that made the trip; otherwise, they might not have been able to reach Almaty safely and bring the ashes back safely.

Now that the person had been identified and returned safely, Li Long was relieved. Knowing that Li Long didn't accept money, the Wan family bought some things for him.

Li Long accepted the gifts and saw the people off. He then asked Ma Qiang, who had stayed behind, where the convoy was. Ma Qiang said that the convoy was at the border, where there were some things to take care of. The Kazakh businessman, Mr. Liu, was also at the border. Li Long understood.

It is estimated that Liu Shanmin still has supplies to hand over to his superior.

Then there's no need to rush. (End of Chapter)