The next day, after settling everything at home, Li Long drove the Jeep into the mountains.
He did not go to Small White Poplar Gully first, but headed to the Wooden Cabin instead.
Yesterday had been Sun Jiaqiang's first day "on the job." He wondered how things had gone over there and whether anything had gone wrong.
When the Jeep reached the Small Wooden Cabin, Li Long saw Bolati's horse grazing nearby, with three sacks beside it. Bolati and Sun Jiaqiang stood in front of the cabin, watching the approaching Jeep.
Li Long vaguely remembered that Bolati and Sun Jiaqiang had met last year. Surely they would not clash?
Once the Jeep stopped, Li Long had barely climbed out when Bolati came over and asked:
"Li Long, this man-you left him here?"
"Yes," Li Long said. "I can't handle everything alone, so I asked him to help collect fritillaria."
"Well..." Bolati pulled Li Long aside, then glanced back at Sun Jiaqiang before lowering his voice.
"Can he be trusted?"
"I suppose so." With Bolati asking like that, Li Long was not entirely sure himself.
"Let me tell you-you know this too-I bring this fritillaria here behind our Forestry Team's back. If he reports it..."
"He won't." Li Long waved a hand and lowered his voice too. "First, he doesn't know where your Forestry Team is. Second, he wants to make money too. Would he get a reward for reporting you?"
"No, but we'd be punished."
"There you go. There's nothing in it for him, so he won't do it." Li Long was reassuring Bolati, but honestly, he was not entirely certain himself.
After all, people's hearts were hard to fathom. That sort of thing was difficult to test.
"Good, then. Look, I brought you three sacks of fritillaria this time.