pappabearbooks Chapter 97: The bandits were blown to smithereens with explosives.
Chapter 97: The bandits were blown to smithereens with explosives.
Chapter 97: The bandits were blown to smithereens with explosives.
Swish!
A chilling glint of light tore through the night!
Pfft—!
The short knife pierced the target with unparalleled precision, the dull thud of the blade entering flesh particularly noticeable.
boom!
A body covered in snow crashed heavily to the ground.
It's a dog!
A huge, vicious dog!
Its body was covered in white snow, its fangs bared menacingly, and it made a hissing sound in its throat. Its cloudy eyes stared intently at Tom, filled with the resentment and bitterness of a wild beast on its deathbed.
call----
On the deathly silent snowfield, several heavy, suppressed breaths rang out simultaneously.
Everyone's tense nerves suddenly relaxed!
Tom's gaze swept over the bandits in the room repeatedly.
There was no unusual movement, only thunderous snoring.
Everyone held their breath and pressed themselves against the windows of the main house; the house was deathly silent.
"Go!" James ordered.
The detonators and fuses were carefully wrapped in cloth strips and then tied securely with ropes, and several makeshift explosive packages were quickly formed.
The explosive charges were carefully placed in a circle at the base of the main house wall.
The fuse was stretched over 100 meters away.
The group rushed into the snowdrift and covered their ears.
As James lit the fuse.
Boom! Boom boom boom—!!
A deafening explosion tore through the air!
The violent shockwave whipped up a cloud of snow, instantly engulfing them!
All I could see was a white blur, and all I could hear was a terrifying buzzing sound.
Snowflakes pelted down on everyone's faces, and for a moment, no one knew where they were!
As the snow and fog dissipated, the tinnitus gradually subsided.
As far as the eye could see, the house had long since turned into a steaming pile of rubble!
Tom's sharp eyes searched carefully through the ruins, but there was nothing alive.
The explosion was a complete success.
The crowd stared blankly at the ruins.
Not long ago, they were still terrified of the bandits' possible retaliation.
In the blink of an eye, those murderers had become corpses under the rubble.
Instantly, everyone's eyes were focused on Tom.
Without the gunpowder barrel, detonator, and fuse he provided, this explosive charge would never have been completed!
But what good person would hoard gunpowder kegs for fun?
Thinking of this, everyone felt a chill run down their spines, and Tom's level of danger skyrocketed in their minds!
Tom, of course, had no idea what the others were thinking; his gaze was fixed firmly on the distance.
"Retreat!" James, having confirmed that the bandits were dead, urged everyone to hurry back to the ranch to keep warm.
Tom, however, did not move an inch.
Everyone followed his gaze.
"What is that place?" Tom asked, scanning the crowd.
Everyone shook their heads blankly.
Tom smiled knowingly. "That's a 20,000-acre ranch. How many livestock do you think it can support?"
Everyone looked puzzled.
Only Ennis's pupils constricted, and his voice trembled: "You—you mean—?"
Tom shook his head, immediately throwing cold water on the idea: "Maybe it's already been emptied out?"
Listening to the two speaking in cryptic terms, the impatient Jonah couldn't hold back any longer: "Hey! Speak properly! What are you talking about?"
Tom ignored him, turning his gaze to his father, James, and pointing to the blurry outline in the distance, his voice clear and crisp: "That's the livestock shed!"
One sentence, like a thunderclap!
Everyone's eyes lit up instantly!
Covington’s ranch is not only amazing in size, but even the barns are built in a way that makes you want to give it a thumbs up!
When Tom and his group saw what was inside the shed, they gasped in shock.
The two enormous livestock sheds were completely crammed full!
Nearly a thousand plump and strong beef cattle lay densely packed on the hay!
The biting wind swept by like a knife, and the group quickly worked together to close the heavy door.
The fireplace was lit, and the orange flames leaped up, greedily devouring the chill in the shed.
Even without a fireplace, the temperature inside the shed is significantly higher than outside.
Tom's gaze swept over the thick layer of ashes that had not yet been cleaned up in the corner; the fire here probably burned day and night!
"Look! The barn is full of hay, piles of soybean cake, running water in the stone trough, and there's even a deep well next to it!" Ennis clicked his tongue, shaking his head in amazement. "What a grand gesture! No wonder he owns a 20,000-acre ranch!"
Jonah rushed to the well, peered inside, and exclaimed, "Holy crap! The well water hasn't frozen?!"
This further confirms the speculation that the area is heated day and night.
"How much gold must have been spent burning like this all winter?" Cooper stared at the enormous herd of cattle, his voice hoarse. "Will we really break even after selling these cattle in the spring?"
This probing question silenced everyone.
Even the experienced cowboy Ennis opened his mouth, but ultimately couldn't answer.
Zach scratched his head and asked a more practical question: "Then—what about these cows?"
The air froze instantly.
Rushing back to "Dutton House"? That tiny ranch couldn't even fit a cow's hoof!
Where's the fodder? Where's the water? How are we going to feed these thousands of mouths?
But with such a large sum of unclaimed wealth, are we just going to stand by and watch it benefit someone else in the future?
Greed and the harsh reality pierce the hearts of everyone.
"Winter's not going to end anytime soon," Tom's voice broke the silence, his gaze sweeping across Ennis and Jonah like a knife. "When will the trains start running?"
Their Adam's apples bobbed, and they exchanged a glance, both seeing the heaviness in each other's eyes.
Ennis licked his chapped lips, his voice hoarse: "The earliest we can expect is springtime, when it warms up. May, or June?"
He gave a wry smile. "Who the hell can predict what will happen in God's hands!"
Tom's gaze fell on his father, James.
The head of the household fell silent the moment he stepped into the livestock shed, which was crammed with cattle.
But how should we deal with this windfall?
James frowned deeply, his knuckles turning white from clenching his fists.
Finally, as if using all his remaining strength, he squeezed out two words through gritted teeth: "Stay!"
"Send a few men to stay!" James's voice was firm and decisive. "We'll hold out until spring when it warms up, then move these cattle back to Dutton House in batches! There's food, water, and firewood here; enough for them to survive this awful winter!"
"Who stays?" Ennis asked, getting straight to the point.
James's gaze swept over the crowd, his Adam's apple bobbing, and he was momentarily at a loss for what to do.
"I'll stay!" Tom broke the silence instantly without the slightest hesitation.
He swept his sharp gaze across his companions; these things, to put it another way, were named after Dutton!
He absolutely did not want to test human nature with so-called "trust".
"If you're bored out of your mind, you can come keep me company," he added casually, but his eyes held a scrutinizing gaze.
"Count me in!" Zach was the first to jump out and respond.
Cooper was about to speak when Tom raised his hand to stop him: "Cooper, Dutton House is the real headquarters!"
His gaze swept over the huge herd of cattle. "They need more manpower over there."
Two people guarding nearly a thousand cattle?
Just keeping them from starving or freezing to death is a tough battle!
After everyone evacuated, only Tom and the tall, thin Zack remained in the howling snow-covered barn.
The two men immediately sprang into action: lighting the fireplaces in the remaining sheds, adding dried hay, and checking the cold running water in the stone troughs. The previous bandits had clearly not cared about the well-being of these "living gold" people.
After adding the last handful of hay, Zack leaned close to Tom, lowered his voice, and gleamed greedily in his eyes: "Tom, do you think—with such a big ranch, there might be some hidden treasure?"