Chapter 80: I'm Rich
Johnny took the wallet, which looked like it was about to burst.
Curiously opening it, he wanted to see exactly how much money was inside.
What met his eyes was a thick stack of $100 bills.
Johnny was stunned.
Is this guy a counterfeiter?
He began to meticulously check every detail, bill by bill.
Good grief!
A full $4,348!
That's almost as much as the bounty on Arthur's head!
If it were just a hundred or two, Johnny might have accepted it, but faced with such a fortune, his first instinct was actually to refuse.
Seeing Johnny's eyes go from suspicion to obsession and then back to clarity, Oliver knew the other man was likely planning to decline.
So he spoke up first:
"This is my superpower—being rich! Please take it! To me, this is only a month or two of pocket money."
"If you feel bad about it, then could you help me see a real American Gunslinger? That is my wish!"
Ultimately, after the other's persistent badgering, he accepted the wallet and promised to meet him at the Smithfield Saloon tomorrow at noon.
Johnny had originally intended to give him a ride, since he had shot out the man's stirrups, but after a few seconds, he realized he was overthinking it.
The other man was clearly a capable rider; he leaped onto the horse, squeezed its flanks with his legs, and set off.
Not long after, Kieran approached alone, riding one horse and leading another.
Then he said excitedly:
"Johnny, those three only had two horses: a morgan horse and a spotted thoroughbred horse. We've hit the jackpot!"
"By the way, where's that young master?"
Johnny indicated that the man had already left, and as he spoke, he prepared to pull out some of the looted spoils for Kieran.
Kieran quickly refused, saying he hadn't done anything and would feel guilty taking it.
Seeing Kieran so resolute, Johnny didn't want to force him.
So he looked at the spotted thoroughbred horse and said:
"The Gang hasn't had a suitable horse for you all this time, and ordinary horses are just too poor."
"You know, when moving with us, it's undoubtedly dangerous if your horse is too slow."
"So I've decided to give this spotted thoroughbred horse to you. I hope you can contribute more to the Gang in the future instead of just doing chores around the camp. Understand?"
Kieran was incredibly grateful. Between the gun and now the horse, if they weren't around the same age, he would have wanted to call Johnny his godfather.
Finally, after taking the two battle-worn cowboy revolvers from the other two men, Johnny and Kieran moved the bodies out of the middle of the road.
Then they galloped off toward the camp.
After returning to the camp, Kieran went to Hosea's former bunk to wash his clothes.
After all, that spot was now his residence, as arranged by Ms. Grimshaw.
However, some of the mats and such were too old and needed a good washing before use.
Meanwhile, Arthur was in front of his tent, shaving in front of a mirror.
After admiring his own looks, he walked toward Johnny.
"What happened to you two? Why are you getting back to camp after me? Did you two go camping?"
Sure enough.
As soon as Arthur spoke, it was a heavy-hitting tease.
Johnny naturally wasn't going to let him get away with it, so they began a frantic exchange of banter.
Finally, Dutch, who was smoking a cigar at the tent entrance, couldn't take it anymore and stopped them. He suggested that if they had so much energy, they should go hunt a few more deer for the Gang.
The two of them finally stopped.
Arthur then began to use his "super-intelligence":
"You two just went and stole two horses, didn't you? I saw that Kieran kid riding back just now."
Johnny replied, "Of course. They were a gift from our 'good friends'!"
Hearing this, Arthur instantly understood it was likely the unlucky ODriscoll Gang again.
Johnny continued, "Arthur, I've found a job for you. All you need to do is accompany a real Capitalist young master for a lovely lunch, and he'll give us a handsome reward."
"A Capitalist? Don't you hate Capitalists the most? Are you becoming their lapdog so soon?"
Arthur's words were as sharp as ever, to which Johnny responded:
"What I want to overthrow is the unscrupulous oppression of Capitalists, not Capitalists themselves. That's not something we can achieve!"
Although Arthur didn't understand all that nonsense, he knew a generous rich kid wanted to buy him a meal.
So, after confirming the time and place, he readily agreed.
Johnny got up and went to Dutch's tent. As he spoke, he took $500 from his satchel and handed it to Dutch.
Dutch refused, saying:
"Oh, son, the Gang didn't help you much with this. We just had Arthur and Charles catch a few insignificant bounties. Keep this money for yourself!"
Johnny insisted firmly:
"No, Dutch. Without the Gang's help, I wouldn't have been able to secure Mr. Trelawny's full assistance at such a low price."
"And as I see it, the Gang is my home. I'm just sharing a portion of my wealth with my brothers and sisters."
Hearing this, Dutch couldn't help but feel moved. He accepted the $500 and declared it would definitely be used to improve the lives of everyone in the Gang.
Johnny didn't mention the rich kid; it would be bad if Dutch thought he could take the opportunity to rob him.
After all, at this stage, Dutch still hadn't broken out of the cycle of needing to commit a robbery before moving to the next destination.
Early the next morning.
After getting up and washing, Johnny began to dismantle yesterday's two guns into useful parts. Once maintained, he put them into the weapon box along with that Schofield.
Then he got up to have some of Pearson's stew.
Due to the sharp rise in the Gang's standard of living, Pearson was now willing to use a variety of seasonings when making the stew.
It actually tasted quite good!
After finishing, Johnny walked over to John and asked for some pointers on his marksmanship.
The entire morning passed this way.
At noon, Johnny returned to camp and called for Arthur, who had just returned from hunting, to head to Valentine with him.
On the way, the two talked about debt collection. Arthur was quite impressed by Johnny's approach, which was firm yet not without a touch of warmth.
"Johnny, you young people have sharp minds—except for that guy Sean. Haha!"
Before long, the two arrived in Valentine.
Johnny first mentioned that he needed to go to the general store to buy a bandana.
Arthur didn't think much of it and went with Johnny to the general store to pick up some premium cigarettes and such.
Since leaving Flatneck Station, Arthur had been collecting Cigarette Cards. Not only was he doing it himself, but he had also mobilized everyone in the Gang to help him.
It made the others in the Gang think Arthur was going through a second childhood, becoming obsessed with such childish toys.
In reality, Arthur wanted to earn more money to improve everyone's lives without needing to do extra work.
Cigarette Cards were clearly a suitable way.
Outlaws could least do without fine wine and cigarettes.
Meanwhile, Johnny was carefully inspecting the quality and patterns of every bandana to see if they met his liking.
After all, since his close encounter with Downes last time, he felt his bandana was covered in bacteria, which disgusted him constantly.
In desperation, he had no choice but to burn it.
After looking through all the styles and patterns, Johnny chose the highest quality bandana with a wolf head design.
After paying the 36-cent price, the two left the general store and headed toward the Smithfield Saloon.
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