Chapter 503 - Chapter 503: Chapter 495: People Die for Wealth (2/2)

You also know that our Liu Family has been woodcutters for generations, making a living by felling and chopping wood.

Seeing the Yan Family offering high prices for golden teak and rosewood, my brother’s heart fluttered. Early the next morning, he pulled me aside and whispered to me, “Brother, an opportunity for our family to turn things around has come with the Yan Family paying top dollar for precious timber.”

“Today, let’s go into the mountain and look for golden teak and rosewood. If we find two or three larger trees, the money for both of us to get married will be taken care of.”

At that time, I was still young, only vaguely understanding the matter of getting married.

However, every time I heard someone ridicule our family for not being able to afford a bride, my heart felt bitter.

So I followed my brother with our axes and ropes, provisions, and water, and entered the mountain.

After a tough search, heaven favored the diligent, and we brothers discovered two golden teak trees, one large and one small, outside that valley. The larger one was as thick as an adult’s waist, and the smaller one had a diameter of about four inches. This made us extremely happy.

My brother was even more ecstatic, his face flushed with excitement as he vigorously patted my shoulder and said with an intense fervor I’d never heard before, “Brother, we’ve got enough for four marriages now. I’m twenty-one now and still haven’t taken a wife, haven’t even touched a woman’s hand; the nights are truly lonely! Life is too hard for a man without a wife. I will never let you suffer like that.”

“The moment you turn fifteen, I’ll immediately have a matchmaker find you a beautiful girl.”

Reminiscing about these past events, Liu Shengli’s face showed an unprecedented tenderness, while tears slid down his cheeks.

Who would have thought that the shrewd and businesslike Liu Shengli could also be so sentimental?

It’s clear that he had a deep bond with his brother.

Qin Niu only knew that Liu Tieniu had been short-lived, having heard he was injured while chopping wood in the mountains, and after lying at home for a few days, he died. The specifics of his death, the Liu Family never shared with outsiders.

At the time, Qin Niu was only four or five years old and understood nothing.

He spent his days following the older children, playing in the mud.

Looking back now, Liu Tieniu’s death was related to that incident with the golden teak trees.

They were just ordinary men; facing a Scorpion Demon, anyone could guess the outcome with their toes.

“We rushed to the two golden teak trees with our axes, full of excitement. But just as we reached the trees, I quickly spotted a rusty axe lying there. Clearing the dead leaves on the ground surface, we found a decomposed skeleton.”

I was so scared at the time that I nearly wet my pants.

My brother was also quite frightened.

He quickly realized the danger and deliberately made up an excuse for me to wait for him at a distance. I was also foolish at that time; he told me to stand on the mountain peak opposite and keep watch for him, to alert him immediately if anyone approached.

The smaller golden teak tree was felled without any mishaps, and everything went smoothly.

After it fell, my brother dragged it about two or three hundred meters from the valley before calling me over to help.

We transported that golden teak tree back home.

Taking it to the Yan Family, after measuring its length at just over five meters, it indeed sold for five taels of silver.

Earning five taels of silver in one go, my brother and my parents were especially pleased.

The very next day, the three of us went into the mountain together, planning to cut down and bring back the larger golden teak tree.

The larger and more precious the timber, the more valuable it was. The tree we sold yesterday, which had a diameter of less than four inches, fetched five taels of silver, so this larger one could definitely sell for twenty or thirty taels.

My father and brother worked on cutting the tree, while I was once again arranged by my brother to stand guard on the opposite mountain peak.

In the beginning, everything went smoothly, but right after the big tree was felled, I heard my father scream and then shout to my brother, “Tieniu, run fast, this beast is fierce!”