Every day in the Emerald Ranch seems to be the same, waking up early in the morning, day after day with the same morning dew, the same birdsong, the same smell of horse manure......

What is different is that Schupel's Chrysostom has finally opened up to John these days, and in his distinctive local accent, he neither talks to John like an old friend nor greets him politely, but rudely reminds John that he can hardly tolerate them staying here any longer. In addition to this, Schupel had to check the healing of Gremes' calf injury every day, and he was unabashed, untactful, almost tearing off the bandage of the wound, and every time Gremes would turn around and secretly wipe her tears. Seeing that the gang members were so wronged, if it weren't for the fact that the gang still relied on Schupel's manor to recuperate for a period of time, John would have given Schupel two punches no matter what he said.

Although Schupel was reluctant to reconcile with John and the others on the surface, he acquiesced in the delicate relationship that developed with the other party - a group of travelers and a farmer jointly building a "home", on this basis, John needed a shelter that could accommodate the gang, and Schupel needed to be paid, so whenever Schupel began to complain endlessly, John had to work harder in front of the old couple to show that he always remembered to repay the family's charity, so that Schupel realized whether he had acted excessively.

This morning, John learns from a brief conversation in the kitchen that Schupel is leaving for the heart of the earth to bring back the timber he has ordered, and that the supplier has no manpower because of the long distance, so Mr. Schupel must prepare his own men. John thought that this would happen to him nine times out of ten, and sure enough, Schuppel expressed his opinion to his wife very cryptically, and he hoped that she would urge John and the others to do their part, and avoid all possible communication.

When the men boarded the carriage in the afternoon, John greeted Schupel, as was customary, and the latter looked at the sky with his back straight, and the thick white beard on his lips moved, and when John looked him straight in the eye, Schupel looked down again anxiously at the pen on his breast pocket.

The convoy, an empty wagon and a two-horse carriage, traveled along the path that ran between the Emerald Ranch and the Heart of the Earth oilfield, where a long whistle could be heard from time to time, but few trains whizzed by, and oddly enough, the non-main train line was a short distance north of the two states, while the steel railway, which had been almost dominated by friendly railroads, was a few miles east through the hard rock of Mount Kamasa. Then it joins the railway from Annisberg in the blue water marshes to St. Denis. It's hard not to imagine the significance of a small and humble railroad connecting the capital of New Hanover with the largest city in the southeast.

At one o'clock in the afternoon, after a bumpy journey, the two wagons finally arrived at the timber warehouse in the Heart of the Earth, a retail station to be precise, that packages and sells timber from Beecher Wish to buyers from all over New Hanover every year.

John looked around, it was a small town, the streets were sparsely populated, only this wood shop was often loaded and unloaded by horse-drawn carriages, as if the whole town was made for a lumber yard.

Schupel jumped out of the carriage with great skill and confidently walked over to a man leaning over with a small notebook in the shape of a bill.

"Hey, Albert!"

The bookkeeper was stunned, and looked up to see Schupel walking towards him.

"Hi, Mr. Schupel, long time no see."

Schupel and Albert hugged each other like old friends.

"It's been a busy time, and I underestimated the enthusiasm of my customers in Blackwater...... Oh, you're definitely here to pick up the order, let me see. Albert flipped through the ledger and his index finger stopped on one of the pages, "Number 86, cut the building materials, this is going to be a heavy job, do you have enough of them?" Mr. ”

Schupel tilted his mouth at John, "It's all here." ”

"Very well, gentlemen, we'll have to load the trucks before you get to work, but my staff will do the work, and you can walk around."

"Mr. Schupel, is that you?"

Suddenly two men stepped out from behind the carriage, with bullets on their shoulders and rifles pinned to their waists.

Albert was a little flustered when he saw this scene, and he leaned over to Schupel: "What's the matter?" ”

Schupel smiled wryly, "Don't be scared, sir. There was a guy who was passing by the woods and was attacked on the road, and he said that the Skinning Brothers were hanging around there, and just in case, these two were the gunmen I had hired, and they were among the best marksmen in New Hanover. ”

Albert breathed a sigh of relief: "If you want me to say, sir, deal with those guys, these fellows of yours are enough. ”

Schupel smiled contemptuously: "They're just ordinary gentlemen, and I'm worried about whether they have the ability to defend themselves, let alone protect the wood." ”

Ten minutes later, all the wood used as building materials for the house was loaded. John looked at the half-story tall wood on the car, and thought to himself that the car could be crushed on the road at any moment.

The two gentlemen were so skilled that one leaped up to the top of the lumber pile, and one of them saw John standing underneath and asked him what his name was.

"John Milton." John thought about it for a moment, thinking that the two might be bounty hunters, so he didn't plan to give out his real names.

"I'm Mapper Wayne, and he's Cored Petge."

In the order of the carriages when they came, Miller, Thomas, and Bibo drove the cart first. John, Schupel, and two gentlemen drove behind in the wagon, and the two cars were like a fortress, advancing forward.