20: Chapter 20 The Gold Rush Team

Guo Kui stood up, shook his hands, and picked up his phone to check. It was indeed a call from his cousin, Guo Jianjun, so he quickly answered.

He responded casually a few times, and the smile on his face grew wider and wider.

After hanging up, Guo Kui turned his head and grinned at Zheng Jing: "It's done! My cousin said he's already talked it over with The Zhao Brothers. Neither of them has any objections and they agree to let you join! I'll add you to our Gold Panning Squad group chat right now."

Zheng Jing felt a surge of joy and immediately nodded.

Guo Kui immediately operated WeChat and pulled Zheng Jing into the squad group.

The group name was simple and clear: Gold Panning Squad.

There were already four people inside: Guo Jianjun, Guo Kui, Boss Zhao, and Zhao the Second.

After entering the group, Zheng Jing politely sent a greeting message: "Hello everyone, I'm Zheng Jing. I'll be working with you all from now on. I'll be a bother, so please guide and look after me!"

To show his sincerity, he casually sent a large red envelope into the group as a way to introduce himself.

The red envelope was snatched up the moment it was sent.

Boss Zhao replied in the group: "Welcome, brother. You're generous! From now on, we're all family."

Zhao the Second also sent a 'Wishing the boss wealth' emoji, which meant he had completely accepted him.

Looking at his phone, Guo Kui patted Zheng Jing's arm: "See? I told you it wouldn't be a problem. From now on, we can head into the mountains for Gold Panning together!"

Zheng Jing smiled and nodded. The two put down their phones and continued to enjoy soaking in the pool.

Taking advantage of the leisure time while soaking, Guo Kui briefly explained some of the rules for entering the mountains to Zheng Jing.

"Jingzi, everything else is fine, but we have one ironclad rule when entering the mountains: once we reach the mining slope, we must scatter. Everyone finds their own territory and searches for their own goods. Even if you see someone else having good luck and finding lots of gold or silver, you cannot quietly follow behind them to leech off their spot. This is the biggest taboo in the trade, and it easily leads to conflicts and hurts the camaraderie between brothers."

Zheng Jing immediately indicated that it was no problem.

To tell the truth, this ironclad rule actually seemed more favorable to him.

He was actually worried about others following behind him.

Guo Kui paused, then continued to talk about the rules regarding food and drink: "The same goes for eating. A bunch of grown men have different tastes, and we can't be bothered to pool money or split meal expenses. So, we simply cook and eat separately once we are in the mountains. Only at night, when we've all finished work and returned to the vehicle to rest, do we boil a pot of hot soup together, gather around to drink something warm, and chat to relieve boredom."

Zheng Jing nodded as he listened.

These rules were very reasonable; it was clear they had spent quite some time summarizing them.

Guo Kui then took the opportunity to explain the rules regarding the team's internal expenses to Zheng Jing.

"Our expenses for entering the mountains are fixed. The fuel costs for each trip and miscellaneous expenses on the road are split equally among us. In addition, for every trip into the mountains, each person must pay my cousin five hundred yuan separately as a vehicle wear-and-tear fee."

"No problem!"

Zheng Jing felt it was very reasonable as he listened.

Everyone would stay in the mountains for a dozen days or more per trip, and the rough mountain roads caused significant wear and tear on the vehicle. Even if one were to rent a similar vehicle outside, the rent would be far more than this amount. Furthermore, Guo Jianjun provided the vehicle, which meant he was running around as both the person in charge and the driver. Charging this small wear-and-tear fee was not excessive at all; it could even be considered a very good deal!

Since everyone was working together for the long term, it was only right to lay out the rules clearly and keep the accounts straight; only then could things be stable for a long time.

The two chatted while soaking, feeling extremely comfortable.

When they came out of the bathhouse, it was only a little past seven in the evening.

Guo Kui thought for a moment and immediately suggested: "Since we're idle anyway, why don't we just go to the supermarket now?"

Zheng Jing asked: "To buy supplies at the supermarket?"

Guo Kui nodded: "Yes, let's buy all the supplies needed for entering the mountains at once. Once my cousin confirms the departure time, we can set off at any time without any delays."

"Then what are we waiting for? Let's go."

Zheng Jing immediately nodded in agreement, and the two headed straight to the most affordable large supermarket in the county.

This large supermarket focused on bulk quantity and good prices; for some basic commodities, the prices weren't much different from buying online.

Upon entering the supermarket, Guo Kui began selecting supplies with familiarity: large bags of instant noodles, several boxes of self-heating rice, packages of ham sausages, and he also picked up iodine, Band-Aids, and Huoxiang Zhengqi capsules for preventing heatstroke. He picked up a large pile of essential items needed for entering the mountains.

Finally, he specially picked out a light, small cotton quilt for Zheng Jing.

"The temperature difference in these deep mountains and forests is huge. Even though summer is almost here, you won't be able to stand it if you don't have a quilt."

"You're still the thoughtful one."

Zheng Jing nodded and said: "By the way, do we need to buy a tent?"

"Why buy a tent?" Guo Kui asked, puzzled.

Zheng Jing was equally puzzled: "Of course, for sleeping. You aren't planning on having me squeeze into a tent with you, are you?"

Hearing this, Guo Kui shook his head repeatedly.