This kind of pine table was the type used by the command center back in the day; it was thick, heavy, and exceptionally sturdy!
Perhaps the original purpose of making such tables was to be able to block gunfire!
Furthermore, there wasn't a single nail in the entire table; it was all mortise-and-tenon joints. If Wang An tried to move it alone, it would be absolutely impossible; even shifting it an inch would be a struggle!
Wang An tugged hard on Li Er-lengzi's collar a few more times, but he still couldn't budge him. Helplessly, he clenched his right hand into a rock-hard fist.
He swung his arm, the fist about to strike.
At that moment, Li Er-lengzi seemed to finally realize what fear felt like, and he shouted in terror
"Brother... brother, wait a second before you hit me, brother!"
This shout left Wang An stunned. Since when could hitting someone be put on hold?
Wang An wasn't in a rush, though. He decided to hear what the man had to say first; it didn't matter when he beat him. So, he lowered his fist.
"How about this, brother, don't beat me, and I'll tell you a secret," Li Er-lengzi said in a mysterious, lowered voice.
Wang An looked at Li Er-lengzi, speechless at this sudden turn of events. Where had that arrogant, lightning-fast confidence from earlier gone?
Besides, no matter how mysterious you act or how much you lower your voice, with a room full of people this close, are they supposed to pretend they can't hear you?
Wang An didn't speak; he just stared at Li Er-lengzi, as if saying: *You'd better say something that satisfies me, or I'll hammer you to death.*
Under these circumstances, Li Er-lengzi wasn't "leng" (clueless) at all. He glanced at the people in the room and said, "Brother, how about we go outside to talk? But you can't beat me, alright? We've got a deal."
Wang An was speechless again. Do you really need a specific location to get beaten?
Wang An let go of Li Er-lengzi's collar and led the way out of the convenience store. Li Er-lengzi straightened his clothes, thought for a moment, and followed him out.
Once outside, Wang An stood there watching Li Er-lengzi. He wasn't worried at all that Li Er-lengzi would run; with Wang An's long legs, chasing him down would be like a game.
Li Er-lengzi felt somewhat uneasy. Mainly because he had provoked Wang An but couldn't fight him, and most importantly, he couldn't even outrun him!
Coming up to Wang An, Li Er-lengzi whispered, "Brother, I know you're hunting in the mountains right now. I know the location of a black bear den."
After speaking, Li Er-lengzi seemed to be waiting for a surprised expression. Wang An was a shrewd man; although he was very happy internally, he didn't show a hint of it on his face. He just looked at Li Er-lengzi without speaking, appearing ready to strike at any moment.
Li Er-lengzi waited for a long time, only to find that Wang An didn't take the bait and seemed uninterested. He had wanted to show off a bit, but since the other party wasn't cooperating, how could he keep acting cool?
Failing to show off, it seemed he wouldn't be able to avoid this beating after all, and he began to panic.
He hurriedly said, "Brother, I actually know two dens. One is a black bear den, and the other—I'm not sure what kind—but there's definitely loot in it."
This time, before Wang An could react, Li Er-lengzi continued, "How about this, brother? I don't have the skill to raid these dens. I heard from Biaozi that your marksmanship is incredible, so why don't you go raid them? What do you think?"
After hearing this, Wang An was internally shocked. This Li Er-lengzi was loud and unreliable every single day, so where did he get information about these dens?
One had to realize that information about these dens could be sold for money. If one could find a few dens every year, they wouldn't even need to earn work points; they could live quite comfortably just on the shares from these raids!
Wang An pretended to think for a while, his face remaining calm as he asked, "How much of a share do you want?"
Wang An's composure gave Li Er-lengzi great confidence, as it at least proved that Wang An was confident in raiding dens and had likely done it before.
Li Er-lengzi thought for a moment and said, "Twenty percent. Brother, how does twenty percent sound?"
Internally, Wang An agreed; this was a normal price. But would it be Wang An's personality if he didn't stir things up a bit?
Thus, Wang An's expression immediately shifted from sunny to cloudy. He stepped forward, looking at Li Er-lengzi with an unfriendly gaze.
Li Er-lengzi felt a bit nervous, because this was the prelude to getting thrashed! Every time he was about to be beaten, the opponent made this face, no matter who it was!
Swallowing hard several times, Li Er-lengzi immediately said, "Fifteen percent, brother! Fifteen percent!"
Seeing that Wang An was still stepping forward, Li Er-lengzi was terrified, but he refused to lower the share any further!
Suddenly, Li Er-lengzi changed his terrified expression to one of frankness and boldness, adopting an attitude of *hit me however you want!*
As if not wanting to see the image of himself being beaten, he promptly closed his eyes!
However, after waiting a long time, the fist never fell. Instead, he felt a heavy slap on his shoulder!
That single slap nearly knocked Li Er-lengzi straight onto the ground.
"Fine, fifteen percent it is," Wang An said with a smile after slapping him.
Having avoided the beating, Li Er-lengzi felt as if he had survived a catastrophe.
He then said to Wang An with a grin, "Then it's a deal, brother. I'm trusting you!"
Then, he told Wang An the locations of both dens.
One was a "sky den," located in a mountain hollow about twenty li east of Black Bear Gully, inside a poplar tree hole.
The other was a "ground den," located in a stone cave about fifteen li south of the sky den. This cave was very deep, and the white frost at the entrance was very thick, suggesting there wasn't just one bear inside, so one had to be extremely careful when raiding it!
Once Li Er-lengzi finished his mysterious explanation, Wang An asked, "Any other conditions?"
"Brother, how about you give me two bear paws when the time comes? And cut me some meat too?" Li Er-lengzi asked cheekily.
According to the rules, aside from the share of the bear gall, everything else on the black bear or bear carcass could be withheld from the informant!
Without a second thought—since it wasn't a big deal—Wang An simply said, "Sure. Anything else?"
"That's it, that's it! Brother, you're really generous!" Li Er-lengzi flattered him with a grin.
The moment the word "generous" left his lips, Wang An smiled. Before Li Er-lengzi could react, Wang An tripped him, and Li Er-lengzi landed hard on the ground.
"Hey, brother... hey..." Before Li Er-lengzi could finish shouting.
Wang An unleashed a flurry of kicks onto Li Er-lengzi's body, muttering, "That's for your damn blabbering, that's for your big mouth running wild..."
Although Wang An didn't use too much force during his "foot-output," it certainly hurt Li Er-lengzi, and Wang An actually felt quite tired!
Given Wang An's petty nature regarding such things, how could he let Li Er-lengzi off? If he didn't give him a good kicking, his meals wouldn't taste right later!
Looking at Li Er-lengzi lying on the ground and wailing continuously, Wang An took a few deep breaths, then gave him one last kick and said cheerfully, "Get up quickly, or I'll kick you again."
Hearing this, Li Er-lengzi stopped wailing and stood up immediately. If not for the shoe prints all over his body, one might not even tell he had been kicked.
Wang An cheerfully gave Li Er-lengzi a cigarette and, with a very helpful attitude, lit it for him!
This drastic shift in behavior left Li Er-lengzi bewildered and jumpy, not knowing how to react!
He thought to himself: *This guy definitely has the spirit of a dog!*