The fat man whose forehead was soaked with blood suddenly pointed at a small wooden boat on the surface of the lake. There were only two people on the boat, and they were paddling toward the lake together. When the boat reached the shore, a young military officer calmly walked down from the boat. Immediately after, he was aimed at by dozens of rifles, but he was not afraid at all. With a smile on his face, he said to the soldiers in front of him, "I'm Officer Ran Xiuzhou from the Hubei base. We've come with goodwill to discuss some details regarding trade with Hua Guoqiang. We have a lot of resources, and Hua Guoqiang has a lot of people. I believe we'll be able to complement each other in many areas …"
The gloomy meeting room was silent. The burning cigarette butt flickered in and out of the room, and the smoke swirled in front of Huang Quan and Gao Feng. Both of them did not look good, and Three, who was sitting beside them, had an ominous glint in his eyes. He gritted his teeth so hard that they creaked. Time seemed to have stopped, and the only sign of time passing was the slowly burning cigarette butt. Suddenly, there was a loud bang. Three slammed the table and stood up, shouting at Huang Quan, "What are you waiting for … …"
Three's eyes were blazing with flames, as though they were about to burn Huang Quan. Huang Quan's ashen face turned black as he raised his head and shouted. "Those are my soldiers … and also Zhang Xiaoqiang's soldiers. Do you think I want to sit here? If Zhang Xiaoqiang does not return, we will not move a single soldier …."
Huang Quan's roar did not quell Three's anger. He swept the ashtray and teacups on the table onto the floor and went around the table to Huang Quan. He grabbed his collar and shouted. "They killed our men and even cut off the ears and nose of another soldier. This is a provocation to us and an insult to Zhang Xiaoqiang. We have never been bullied like this before. You coward, how will the soldiers look at you …."
"Three, this has nothing to do with you. You are not from the Hubei base. What right do you have to shout and shout …."
Gao Feng could not take it anymore. He was already unhappy with the Jiangxi detachment and immediately stood up to refute Three. Three's expression turned strange as his lips curled up. He let go of Huang Quan and turned around to glare at Gao Feng.
"In the past, even if Huang Quan had wronged you, but now that Zhang Xiaoqiang is back, you can get Zhang Xiaoqiang to give you justice. Why didn't you bring the Jiangxi detachment back to Zhang Xiaoqiang? Isn't it because of your selfishness? What right do you have to say that about Huang Quan? What right do you have to shout and shout here …."
Gao Feng's words caused the coldness in Three's eyes to intensify. Anger and shame intertwined and turned into annoyance, and he could no longer control his impulsive emotions. With a loud roar, he raised his fist and smashed it into Gao Feng's face. Gao Feng cried out in pain as he fell backwards. Three pointed at Gao Feng and was about to scold him when Huang Quan suddenly pounced forward and hugged him. With a loud roar, Three was lifted into the air and smashed heavily onto the wooden table. The wooden table splintered into two, and Three writhed and screamed on the floor. Huang Quan glared at Three and turned towards Gao Feng to help him up. However, a strange sound came from behind, as half of the table smashed onto his body. Huang Quan also fell to the ground. Following that, Three rushed forward to fight with Huang Quan and Gao Feng … …
Zhang Xiaoqiang was carefreely flying across the surface of the river. The giant water snake twisted its body like a flying arrow, splitting apart the ripples in the river. The speed of the water snake was extremely fast, and Zhang Xiaoqiang, who was standing on its head, had his hair blown up by the wind. The wind was as sharp as a knife, and it stung his face, but it did not affect Zhang Xiaoqiang in the slightest. The verdant fields on both sides of the river quickly passed by him, and it made Zhang Xiaoqiang feel as though he was about to fly. This was a feeling that he had never felt before. Even sitting in a helicopter did not have this kind of carefree feeling. Although the giant water snake was only swimming on the surface of the river, it was already enough to make Zhang Xiaoqiang experience the excitement brought about by its speed.
This was the first time that Zhang Xiaoqiang used the giant water snake as a means of transportation on the surface of the lake, and he enjoyed the stability and extreme speed that no other boat could enjoy. The maximum speed of the giant water snake could reach 200 kilometers per hour, which was enough to catch up with a sports car. On the surface of the river, there was no obstruction, and this feeling of extreme speed almost made his heart explode. In his excitement, he handed over the task of communicating with Hua Guoqiang to his subordinates, and let the giant water snake take him as it pleased.
When they came to the surface of the river, Zhang Xiaoqiang was no longer in control, and let the giant water snake swim freely. Under the stimulation of extreme speed, he suddenly had an idea. He wanted to go to Australia, but he couldn't find a way. Originally, he wanted to wait for Urey to recover from his injuries, and then take a plane there. Originally, he had a knot in his heart about taking a plane, and God knew if they had anti-aircraft nets. Since the last time he was shot down, he always had a lingering fear. If he had a choice, he wouldn't want to take a plane, let alone take a boat. However, it seemed like he didn't have so many concerns with the mutated water snake. Maybe he could even get the mutated water snake to help him?
Thinking of this, an indescribable feeling welled up in Zhang Xiaoqiang's heart. Although the road ahead was uncertain, as long as he took the initiative to find trouble with New Era, he would be able to change from passive defense to active offense. New Era had always been looking for trouble with him, so going to the hinterland of New Era to make a scene and vent his anger was Zhang Xiaoqiang's true nature. He had always been the one bullying others, so how could others bully him?
When he came back to his senses, he found that he had already left the Yangtze River Fleet's sphere of influence, and arrived at an unknown small river. The waterway here was winding, and the huge body of the giant water snake seemed crowded here. However, the snake was too agile, and even in this narrow waterway, it didn't slow down. After they had been winding in this waterway for nearly half an hour, the giant water snake brought him into a huge lake.
Seeing the lake, Zhang Xiaoqiang knew that he was there. There were many lakes in the Yangtze River, but there were only a few that were connected to it: Dongting Lake, Poyang Lake, and a lake near Poyang Lake. This lake wasn't famous, and it didn't have an economic zone like the other lakes. Zhang Xiaoqiang didn't understand why the giant water snake had brought him here. He knocked on the snake's head, trying to make it leave, but the usually obedient water snake wasn't so obedient this time. It was determined to swim deeper into the lake. Even when Zhang Xiaoqiang kicked its head into the water, it wouldn't budge.
Looking at the green lake and the farmland full of mutated plants along the shore, Zhang Xiaoqiang stopped torturing the water snake. He suddenly realized that the water snake must have brought him here for a reason. Could it be that … the mutated water snake also had the talent of the lightning ferret, and could automatically search for treasures?
As his thoughts ran wild, Zhang Xiaoqiang waited for the giant water snake to bring him forward …
Be it the Jiangxi branch's fishing boat dock or the military camp next to the dock, all of them were filled with a kind of violent anger. Everyone was busy as usual, but at the same time, there was no smile or satisfaction. Every move they made was filled with anger that could not be vented. Be it civilians or soldiers, Hubei or Jiangxi, they were all angry. On the escort ship in the middle of the river, the officer on duty was loudly scolding the soldiers below. The soldiers were also using their own methods to vent the dissatisfaction in their hearts. The machine gun chains were wiped again and again. Even though they shone brilliantly under the sunlight, they still felt that it was not enough. They kept on wiping, as if they wanted to rub through the brass casing of the bullets. The machine guns and cannons were all maintained to the extreme. The sergeants operating the weapons clenched their teeth and pointed the muzzles and barrels around, testing the dexterity of the weapons. Looking at the anger in their eyes, it seemed like they wanted to fire hundreds or even thousands of bullets.
Suddenly, a soldier who was looking into the distance pointed at the river and opened his mouth to scream, but no sound came out. His superior was still cursing and urging his comrades to work. His face was so dark that ink was about to drip out. In the end, the soldier still could not scream. He rushed to the officer, grabbed his collar, and dragged him to the side of the ship. The sudden change made all the soldiers stop what they were doing. They thought in surprise, could it be that wherever there was oppression, there would be resistance?
The officer pushed the soldier away and cursed, "Are you blind, kid? I'm your company commander, what are you doing …"