Chapter 102: Smoke Rising from Seven Orifices

Compared to trains, fortune wagons cost much less to make.

However, the journey takes longer.

In other words, Xu Fei and Zhang Mingyang would have to endure some hardship.

But since they were running their own business, a little suffering only meant saving money for themselves.

“Brother Zhao, do you think we’ll get there in two days?” Xu Fei asked.

Zhao Tie was rather polite to Xu Fei. He replied coolly, “A day and a half. We’ll be at East Sea by nine tomorrow morning.”

Xu Fei calculated—this trip would take less than three days. They were ahead of schedule.

After all, there was a lawsuit waiting for him at home.

The vehicle rumbled and jolted along the highway.

Once they left Nanjing, the fields on either side became pleasant scenery.

Zhang Mingyang, thanks to Zhao Tie’s presence, leaned against the car and pretended to be asleep.

In truth, he was still angry.

To lighten the mood, Xu Fei tried to find topics and chatted with Zhao Tie sporadically.

Soon, the sky turned a dull yellow.

“Looks like it’s going to rain,” Zhao Tie remarked, glancing at the evening weather.

“Really?” Xu Fei sounded worried.

After all, the road ahead was in poor condition.

They called it a highway, but it was little more than a dirt path.

If it rained, it wouldn’t just be muddy—the worst would be potholes and ruts, slowing the vehicle’s progress.

“If it rains, will our journey…” Xu Fei began.

Zhao Tie nodded. As a driver, he didn’t want bad weather either. Poor roads would cost him a lot of time.

Long-distance drivers fear nothing more than sudden weather changes.

And, as fate would have it, their worries seemed to come true.

As the moon climbed the treetops, dark clouds soon swallowed its glow.

“Damn it,” Zhao Tie muttered, looking out the window.

Just then—

Drip…

A raindrop struck the windshield.

“What’s with this weather? The forecast said no rain when we set out,” Zhao Tie grumbled.

Xu Fei thought silently, “Weather forecasts at this time were nothing but guesses. They can’t compare to the big-data forecasts of the twenty-first century—those were truly accurate.”

As he pondered this—

Rain.

It poured down like water from a bucket.

“Damn it!” Zhao Tie cursed at the storm.

He eased his foot from the accelerator.

In weather like this, driving an old Liberation truck fully loaded—even for a veteran like him—wasn’t wise.

“Should we find a place to wait out the rain?” Xu Fei suggested, glancing at Zhao Tie.

“Wait?” Zhao Tie shook his head. “Are you crazy? This is Nanjing. Rain here can last days—if Heaven’s in a mood, it might go on for three days straight.”

He turned on the windshield wipers.

Xu Fei peered ahead; visibility was dropping fast.

He could only see two or three meters in front of the truck. He glanced at Zhao Tie—the heavyset driver was craning his head toward the wheel.

Nearsighted?

Xu Fei wondered, but didn’t ask.

Zhao Tie stared intently at the road.

Already, pools of water were forming on the surface.

“Damn, let’s hope we don’t get stuck in a pothole,” he muttered.

No sooner had he spoken than it seemed fate conspired against him—

Bang!

The truck jolted violently and came to a halt.

The shaking startled Zhang Mingyang upright.

“What happened?”

The vehicle stopped.

Zhao Tie pressed the accelerator hard.

The engine roared and the truck shuddered, struggling—an effect from the strain.

But the sound lasted only a few seconds.

Suddenly, all was quiet.

“Why isn’t it moving?” Zhang Mingyang asked, looking at Zhao Tie.

“The engine’s dead!” Zhao Tie’s face darkened.

“Can we still drive?” Xu Fei asked.

“Drive?” Zhao Tie glanced at him. “Even if I get it started, the truck’s stuck. We’re not going anywhere.”

“So what now?” Zhang Mingyang snapped.

“I’ll go check,” Zhao Tie said, pulling out a battered raincoat from behind.

“I’ll help you,” Xu Fei offered.

But Zhang Mingyang grabbed him.

“Are you crazy? It’s pouring out there and you don’t even have a raincoat. You’ll catch a cold for sure.”

Zhang Mingyang’s words weren’t without reason.

Xu Fei watched as Zhao Tie climbed out.

“But he can’t manage alone,” Xu Fei argued.

Zhang Mingyang shot him a fierce glare. “Are you stupid, Fourth Brother? Did you forget how he treated us? Now you want to help him?”

“Third Brother, it’s our time being wasted too. The sooner we get moving, the sooner we’ll get home.”

Zhang Mingyang rolled his eyes. “No. You don’t even have a raincoat.”

Xu Fei was held back.

Outside, Zhao Tie circled the truck with a flashlight.

Sure enough, the right rear wheel had sunk deep into a pit.

He fetched a military shovel from the toolbox.

He dug laboriously in front of the wheel.

Inside, Zhang Mingyang watched through the rearview mirror and laughed coldly. “Serves him right—let Heaven teach him a lesson for showing off.”

Xu Fei glanced over. “Third Brother, he might not manage alone.”

“What’s the problem? We can just wait in the truck. The rain will ease up by morning.”

Xu Fei shook his head. “He told me the weather here isn’t like East Sea. If it starts, it might not stop.”

“Who cares?” Zhang Mingyang tapped the bag behind him. “We’ve got food in here. Even if we wait days in the truck, we won’t starve.”

By now, Zhao Tie had been digging for a while.

Once satisfied, he climbed back in and shot a fierce look at Zhang Mingyang, who was smirking.

“What are you looking at?” Zhang Mingyang sneered.

“Looking at you—so what?” Zhao Tie retorted.

“Can we move now?” Zhang Mingyang demanded.

“How should I know?” Zhao Tie replied.

“You don’t know? What are you here for then?” Zhang Mingyang’s words left Zhao Tie speechless.

He smacked his lips, wanting to snap back—but swallowed his words.

Irritated, Zhao Tie restarted the truck.

He stamped the accelerator, released the clutch, and the truck surged forward.

The sunken right side slowly lifted. Xu Fei called out, “It’s working!”

But the truck wouldn’t obey, slipping back into the pit.

“What’s going on? Can’t you drive? Why aren’t you pressing the accelerator?” Zhang Mingyang accused.

“You think you know? I was pressing as hard as I could,” Zhao Tie retorted.

“Useless, just useless,” Zhang Mingyang scoffed, enraging Zhao Tie, who killed the engine and glared at him.

“If you’re not useless, you try it!” Zhao Tie challenged.

“Me? If I could, why would I pay you? Get back out and keep digging,” Zhang Mingyang said, leaning back.

Zhao Tie looked at him, smoke practically pouring from his ears in fury.