Ask the mountains and rivers

Chapter 65 Entering the Mountain
"There's a pheasant!"

"Shh!"

Whoosh! An arrow flew, and the pheasant fell from the lush foliage.

Pei Yan excitedly stepped forward, picked up the plump pheasant, turned around and waved it at everyone, grinning: "I'll make soup when we get back tonight, and everyone can have a bowl."

Pei Qinghe raised an eyebrow and smiled: "One isn't enough. We'll go into the mountains today and hunt more wild animals. Everyone will have meat tonight."

In Peijia Village, food was plentiful, with daily meals consisting of coarse grain steamed buns and vegetable soup. Meat was also served every three days. This provided them with ample physical strength and energy for martial arts training.

The mere mention of meat made Pei Yan's mouth water. She then scanned the surroundings, fired three arrows, and brought back a wild rabbit.

Pei Yun and Mao Hongling were both equally skilled with arrows and soon both made their catches.

However, faced with Pei Qinghe's divine archery skills, which never missed, they could only admit defeat.

Dozens of people went into the mountains together, and to ensure safety, they formed groups of five, keeping a short distance between each other. At the slightest sign of trouble, they would immediately blow their bamboo whistles.

The mountains and forests teem with mushrooms and wild fruits, teeming with wild game, as well as venomous snakes lurking in the shadows and darting wild beasts. In his past life, when they went hunting in the mountains, the Pei family suffered heavy casualties, and Pei Qinghe was even scratched on the cheek by a tiger, disfiguring her and ruining her appearance.

Living off the mountains is a natural instinct, and the continuous Yanshan Mountains are a treasure trove full of thorns. We cannot abandon the entire forest because of the risks. Today, Pei Qinghe led more than thirty people into the mountains to hunt, bringing all their bows and arrows, and each person carried at least two sharp weapons—they were well-prepared.

Beep!
A sharp bamboo whistle suddenly rang out, one after another, revealing the panic and urgency.

Pei Qinghe's gaze sharpened, and she swiftly headed southeast. Pei Yan and the others followed closely behind. With ample food and constant training, Pei Qinghe had grown taller. Running at full speed through the mountains, she was as swift as a leopard.

The roars of wild beasts echoed through the mountains and forests. The five Pei women, who had encountered the ferocious beast, brandished their weapons and tried to kill it. The weakest of them, pale-faced and trembling all over, did not cry out.

It was a black bear. It had probably been awakened from hibernation, as its movements were rather sluggish. The bear had also been hit by two arrows, neither of which were in vital areas, but these had only fueled its ferocity.

Pei Qinghe ran as fast as he could, drawing his bow and shooting an arrow. The arrow whistled off the string, flew over a hundred meters, and pierced straight into the black bear's left eye.

The black bear was in excruciating pain and suddenly roared wildly.

"Quickly climb up the tree to avoid danger!" Pei Qinghe shouted.

These were all things they had practiced regularly. Now was not the time to concern themselves with graceful appearances. Several women from the Pei family swiftly climbed the tree, narrowly avoiding the crazed black bear.

Pei Qinghe fired another arrow, this time aimed at the black bear's throat.

Black bears have thick hides and tough flesh. An arrow splattered blood, but the bear did not fall; instead, it became even more frenzied. The black bear pounced in the direction of the arrow.

Amidst the gasps of the crowd, Pei Qinghe drew her long sword, its gleaming blade flashing, and engaged in a fierce battle with the crazed black bear.

In his haste, Pei Yan drew his long sword and rushed forward.

Pei Qinghe shouted, "Everyone else, stay away! Get up in the tree!"

During the struggle, Pei Qinghe stabbed the black bear in its other eye with a knife. The black bear was now blind in both eyes, roaring and furious. Then, she plunged another knife straight into the black bear's throat.

The black bear finally succumbed and collapsed heavily in a pool of blood.

It was a thrilling moment, but it was incredibly intense.

Pei Qinghe wiped the cold sweat from her forehead with her sleeve and glared angrily at Pei Yan: "Before we entered the mountains, I told them that if they encountered ferocious beasts like black bears and tigers, they should hide and avoid them, and not confront them head-on. Did you rush over just now because you were afraid of not dying fast enough?"

Pei Yan's left arm was scratched and bled, stinging painfully. She grimaced and replied, "I can't just watch you deal with the black bear alone."

"We live together, we die together." Pei Qinghe continued to glare at him angrily: "When are you going to change your reckless and impulsive nature?"

Seeing that Pei Qinghe was truly angry, Pei Yan lowered her head and cried out, "Ouch! My arm hurts!"

Pei Qinghe stepped forward with a cold face and quickly applied medicine and bandaged Pei Yan's wound.

Dr. Bao worked tirelessly for two days in the rain, preparing dozens of medicine packets. Each packet contained topical wound medicine, clean bandages, and powdered medicine for venomous snakes and insects. These medicine packets came in handy at this time.

The people in the tree all came down. The Pei women, who had come looking for the sound of bamboo whistles and the roars of wild beasts, also gathered around.

"Qinghe, you actually killed a black bear all by yourself!" Mao Hongling couldn't help but exclaim in amazement. "I heard that when my father-in-law was young, he fought a tiger. Your bravery is even greater than his."

Everyone looked at Pei Qinghe with reverence.

Such fierce and invincible courage is like a god descending to earth, inspiring awe, submission, and wholehearted following.

Pei Qinghe bandaged Pei Yan's wounds and looked up, saying, "Today's hunt ends here. Take all the prey and let's go down the mountain."

The black bear weighed several hundred pounds, and dragging it down the mountain was no easy task. Pei Qinghe used a knife to remove the four bear paws and peel off the complete bear skin. The bear meat was too gamey and unpalatable to eat, so there was no need to take it.

The group, carrying their prey, followed Pei Qinghe out of the forest.

Several figures quietly appeared in the forest where a pile of black bear meat had been dumped.

The bloody bear meat was haphazardly piled under the tree, attracting insects and ants drawn by the smell of blood.

Several men of varying heights and with disheveled beards and hair swallowed hard as they looked at the pungent, coarse bear meat: "They don't want this bear meat, do they?"

“We secretly picked them up; it’ll be enough to eat for a few days.”

"What if she comes back, sees the meat is gone, and throws a tantrum at us?"

Upon hearing this, everyone fell silent.

They were all refugees, hiding deep in the mountains. They eked out a living by gathering wild fruits and hunting. They would go hungry during heavy rains. It was common for them to die from poisonous snakes and wild beasts, from disease, or from starvation in the forest.

There was such a huge pile of meat in front of them, enough to feed dozens of people for several days. It would be a shame not to take it, but the thought of that terrifying girl who fought the black bear made everyone's legs go weak and cold sweat pour down their foreheads.

"I heard that the leader of Black Bear Village died at her hands."

A thin man with a full beard lowered his voice and said, "The people of that village were killed by Black Bear Stronghold a few years ago. In the end, Black Bear Stronghold was wiped out by Pei Family Village."

"It's truly a matter of karma; retribution is inevitable."

"The Pei family has such a killing machine, and they also have the Beiping Army as their backer. I heard that they sometimes send them food."

The refugees and hermits in the mountains weren't entirely without contact. Within a few months, Peijia Village had quietly become a new legend in the mountains.

Today, the Pei family went hunting in the mountains, and they happened to run into them. They didn't dare to show themselves and hid in a secluded cave.

Then, they witnessed a truly awe-inspiring scene.

They didn't dare to take the bear meat that Pei Qinghe had discarded.

Suddenly, a voice rang out: "We can't survive in the mountains anymore. Why don't we go and seek refuge in Pei Family Village?"

(End of this chapter)