The Sacrifice Approaches

"He's really quick to act," Jiang Che thought to himself as he watched Gou Buyi's receding figure.

He had made an enemy of Scarface yesterday, and today Scarface showed up at the Auxiliary Barracks. It was impossible that he was just wandering around.

However, there was one thing he couldn't quite figure out.

Why was Gou Buyi being so aggressive?

He was about to be transferred to the 'border garrison,' so he shouldn't pose any threat to Gou Buyi. Unless it was simply because he had knocked down Scarface, and that had created a deadly feud?

If that was the case, it would be very difficult to survive in the camp.

The thought flashed through his mind, but Jiang Che was more concerned.

He worried that Liu Zhi might go back on his word and abandon him casually due to Gou Buyi's elder brother's status. If that happened, his situation would instantly become dangerous.

This feeling of entrusting his safety to others made Jiang Che very unhappy at the moment.

"Brother Che, Brother Che."

Xu San'er's voice sounded in his ear. Jiang Che snapped back to attention, putting on a calm smile.

"What is it, Brother Xu?"

"N-nothing." Xu San'er was sharp. From Jiang Che's earlier demeanor, he could tell that Jiang Che was in a bad mood and didn't dare to pry too much.

A moment later, a personal guard of Liu Zhi jogged over.

"Jiang Che, Commander Liu wants to see you."

"Alright."

In front of the tent, Jiang Che, who was about to enter, and Gou Buyi, who was coming out, met face-to-face. The atmosphere between them became somewhat tense. Gou Buyi stopped and spoke first.

"Don't you recognize your Brother Gou anymore?"

"Of course, I recognize you. It's just that the situation is different from a few days ago."

"Heh heh. You sure have your ways, kid. You got Deputy Commander Liu to disregard even my brother's face to protect you for seven days. Very good, I've seen it today."

Gou Buyi stared at Jiang Che with a fake smile.

"It's Commander Gou's methods that are truly impressive. I only bought a few pounds of meat, and you've already become so covetous. I really don't understand this."

Jiang Che wasn't afraid to meet his gaze, wanting to probe the real situation.

But Gou Buyi didn't answer the question directly. With his hands behind his back, he walked up to Jiang Che and said in a voice only they could hear:

"After seven days, you'll be transferred to the mess hall. Then... your Brother Gou will definitely make good arrangements for you. Heh heh, heh heh heh..."

With a light laugh, Gou Buyi walked away.

Jiang Che's expression remained unchanged, but as he stared at the other man's retreating back, he narrowed his eyes.

Entering the tent, Liu Zhi was still seated at the head. Jiang Che bowed.

"Your subordinate greets Commander."

"You just saw Gou Buyi, didn't you?"

"I did."

Jiang Che nodded.

"It's just as I expected. That dog is using his brother, Gou Buren, to pressure me, planning to transfer you to the mess hall. But I always keep my word.

I said I'd protect you for seven days, and I'll protect you for seven days."

"Regardless of what happens after seven days, your subordinate will always remember your kindness."

"Haha, you're quite the grateful one."

Liu Zhi was pleased with Jiang Che's attitude. It made his deliberate timing to let them meet worthwhile.

Jiang Che was a promising talent praised by Captain Zhu. As long as he could demonstrate his value within these seven days, his efforts wouldn't be in vain. If the kid truly had potential, He had further benefits waiting for him.

In short, he wanted Jiang Che's complete loyalty!

"Have you finished reading Savage Bull Strength?"

"I am currently cultivating it."

"Do you have confidence?"

"If nothing unexpected happens, your subordinate will definitely master this technique within seven days!" Jiang Che raised his head, his eyes shining with brilliance, exuding an aura of powerful confidence, as if it were a trivial matter to him.

No one knew that he couldn't even stand properly in the basic stance yet.

However.

With the crisis of Gou Buyi approaching, he had to elevate his standing in Liu Zhi's eyes. Only then could Liu Zhi continue to protect him and not abandon him due to other external pressures.

Concealing his true abilities now was absolutely out of the question.

"Good, then this commander will wait and see."

In the blink of an eye, another two days passed. Jiang Che's focus was entirely on promoting the Savage Bull Strength cultivation technique. Wu Changfeng and Li Erxian, whom Xu San had mentioned earlier, had all agreed to pay to learn the martial arts.

It was just that these two were not easy to fool, nor did they have that much silver. Jiang Che only managed to get ten taels of silver from them, so Jiang Che began to look for other targets who were flush with cash.

His days were quite busy.

One day, after finishing the intensive training, Geng Dabiao hurriedly found Jiang Che and told him that he had found a reliable channel and that Jiang Che should quickly hand over the money.

"Is this channel reliable?"

It wasn't that Jiang Che was being overly cautious; it was just too difficult to get money from the auxiliary soldiers, and with less than four days left before the seven-day deadline, if the money was lost...

His situation would instantly take a sharp turn for the worse.

"Don't worry, it's absolutely reliable." Geng Dabiao patted his chest confidently. Seeing Jiang Che still looking suspicious, he then lowered his voice:

"I won't hide it from you. Before I joined the army, I had a few brothers I'd risked my life with. They used to slaughter pigs and sell meat. After receiving my message, they've found targets, and they can get the goods anytime."

"I trust you, Brother Dabiao, but I've never met your brothers. Giving them so much silver is indeed a bit risky. Hmm, how about this?

I'll give you ten taels first, plus the ten taels you promised, making it twenty taels as a deposit. The remaining ten taels, we'll settle once the goods are delivered."

Jiang Che actually only had ten taels of silver on him and couldn't produce that much. However, he didn't want any unforeseen complications to arise, so he made this suggestion.

"That's not what you said before," Geng Dabiao said, glaring with his bull-like eyes.

"Don't worry, I will never go back on my word. This is just safer. I won't hide anything from you now; Commander Liu actually wants this beef and tendons.

I'm just a messenger. Surely you don't distrust Commander Liu?"

Jiang Che continued to put on the tiger's skin.

His goal was to prevent Geng Dabiao and his group from having any ill intentions. Otherwise, if Liu Zhi held a grudge against him in the Auxiliary Barracks, his future days would be worse than death.

As expected, when Jiang Che mentioned Liu Zhi, Geng Dabiao's attitude changed. After a moment of thought, he said:

"Alright, I'll agree to your terms, but you must give me the remaining silver later, otherwise my brothers will lose money."

"That's natural. I, Jiang, have always kept my word."

Jiang Che smiled and placed ten taels of silver into Geng Dabiao's palm.

He weighed the silver in his hand, confirmed its weight, and tucked it into his embrace. He continued:

"At the latest, the goods you want will be delivered outside the barracks the day after tomorrow. You'll need to arrange the reception then."

"Okay!"