American Landowners: Starting with Hunting in Alaska

Suwei answered her without turning his head, his hands already gripping the deformed metal shell of the snowmobile.

He gripped the handle tightly, pulling hard and making a creaking sound.

"I want to see if it still works."

Emily stood there, stunned, watching his retreating figure.

use?

The thing had been smashed into a pile of scrap metal; the front was dented, and one side of the skis was sticking up high, almost detached from the vehicle.

How could this still be usable?

Su Wei offered no explanation.

There was only one thought in his mind.

Carrying a person with a severe ankle injury back to the camp a few hundred meters away on foot, in knee-deep snow, is almost like sending them to their death.

Physical exertion is secondary; the key factor is time.

It was already completely dark; every minute we stayed outside increased the danger.

This snowmobile is the only way.

Moreover, generally speaking, an off-road snowmobile is very durable.

It won't break down easily.

It may only look bad on the outside, and perhaps the damage inside is not yet so severe that it's unbearable to look at.

Su Wei walked around the motorcycle, observing it carefully.

The outer shell is severely deformed.

However, the engine compartment did not appear to have suffered a fatal impact.

The most critical track was stuck in a crevice in the rock, but the chain was intact and not broken.

There is hope.

Su Wei plunged the entrenching tool into the gap between the tracks and the rock, took a deep breath, used the wooden handle as a lever, and pressed down with all his might.

"Crunch—Squeak—"

The friction between metal and rock produced a sound that almost tore eardrums apart.

The wooden handle of the entrenching tool was bent into an exaggerated arc under the pressure, and it could burst at any moment.

Su Wei's arm muscles bulged, veins stood out on his forehead, and he let out a low growl as he strained.

He put all his weight on it.

"Clang!"

With a loud bang, the stuck track sprang out of the rocks.

The entire motorcycle jolted.

It worked!

It actually worked!

Su Wei shook his numb arms, and before he could catch his breath, he turned his attention to the severely deformed front of the car and the crooked steering handle.

He straddled the vehicle, his feet firmly planted on the ground, using the strength of his thighs and waist to grip the vehicle body, then grabbed the handle on one side with both hands and forcefully pulled it in the opposite direction.

The metal emitted a piercing creaking sound.

Emily watched this scene from a short distance away, almost forgetting the excruciating pain in her ankle.

The Su Wei she remembered was quiet, even a little shy, and would blush at her joke.

But the man in front of me was struggling with a pile of scrap metal in the daylight.

He was focused, calm, and every movement was precise; his goal was clear.

Seeing his focused expression, her panicked heart calmed down.

There was another dull metallic creak as he forcefully turned the steering handle back to a roughly normal angle.

Although it's still crooked, at least it's controllable now.

Suwei jumped out of the car, brushed the snow off his hands, and walked to the ignition.

The key is still stuck in it.

He turned the key.

"Click".

There was a soft click, but the dial did not react.

Emily's newly ignited hope instantly vanished.

Su Wei was not surprised by this.

He unscrewed the fuel tank cap and smelled it; there was still about half a tank of fuel left.

He then checked the exposed wires and, relying on the original owner's pitiful mechanical knowledge, re-plugged and unplugged a few connectors that looked a bit loose.

After doing all this, he turned the key again.

"Thump...thump thump..."

The engine emitted two weak coughs, then fell silent again.

Emily's heart leaped into her throat.

Suwei paused for a few seconds to allow the battery to flow back slightly, then turned the key for the third time.

"Puff puff... Buzz—Boom!"

This time, after struggling a few times, the engine finally roared out tenaciously.

A strong smell of gasoline mixed with exhaust fumes spread out, and in the dead of night, this frenzied noise was strangely pleasant.

Become!

Su Wei let out a long breath, and the tightness in his chest disappeared.

He walked over to Emily, looked at her astonished expression, and said calmly, "It can still run; we have to leave right away."

Emily was still in shock and simply nodded subconsciously.

Su Wei squatted down, gesturing for her to put her arm around his shoulder.

He helped her up in one swift motion, his movements steady and decisive.

After settling Emily on the back of the snowmobile, Suwei quickly searched the surrounding area again.

He found Emily's backpack in the snow, but the SLR camera was smashed to pieces, the lens and body separated, and it was in terrible condition.

"My camera..." Emily's voice was low.

"You can buy new things if they break, as long as you're okay." Su Wei said, pulling a hardcover notebook from the side pocket of his backpack and handing it to her, "Your observation log, this one isn't broken."

Emily took the diary and hugged it tightly to her chest; it was the culmination of her efforts over the past few months.

She looked up at Su Wei and said softly, "Thank you."

Suwei didn't say anything, turned around and picked up the little fox who was squatting to the side, tilting its head curiously, and put it directly into Emily's arms.

"Holding it will keep me warm."

The marshmallow's body is fluffy, like a natural hot water bottle.

The little one wasn't shy at all. He found a comfortable position in Emily's arms and curled up, his blue eyes curiously examining the new "cushion".

Emily was instantly captivated by this adorable little creature and couldn't help but reach out and gently stroke its white fur.

Su Wei straddled the motorcycle, felt the crooked handlebars, and twisted the throttle hard.

The snowmobile roared, its tracks churning up large amounts of snowflakes, and carried the two of them off towards the camp.

The mountains and forests at night are much more dangerous than during the day.

Su Wei dared not walk in a straight line, constantly alert to his surroundings.

The roar of a motorcycle can scare away some small wild animals, but it can also attract more troublesome things, such as a brown bear that has been awakened, or a pack of hungry wolves.

Emily sat in the back, one hand tightly gripping Suwei's windbreaker, the other protecting the cotton candy in her arms.

The bumpy ride made her ankle injury ache slightly, but the warmth of the little fox in her arms and the broad back in front of her gave her a strange sense of security.

Looking at the docile white fox in her arms, her professional instincts as a master of animal behavior filled her with curiosity.

"Suvius," she leaned closer so her voice could drown out the wind and engine noise, "your fox...it's beautiful. A blue-eyed albino red fox, so rare. Which pet store did you buy it from? It must have cost a lot of money!"

In her opinion, a rare breed of pet with this quality would cost at least several thousand or tens of thousands of US dollars.

Su Wei, driving the motorcycle and looking straight ahead, answered casually.

"It wasn't bought."

"Was that a gift from a friend?"

"No, not exactly," Suwei replied simply. "Wild."

Emily was stunned.

"Wild... wild?"

She doubted she had heard correctly.

"It ran to the entrance of my camp by itself, and I couldn't get rid of it, so it stayed." Su Wei said it very casually, as if it were a very ordinary little thing.

Emily was completely speechless.

A master's student who has studied animal behavior for several years has to carefully set up infrared cameras, spray pheromones, and hide in the snow and ice for several days in order to observe wolves and foxes, in order to capture one or two blurry shadows.

And Suwei, a wilderness hunter, and a wild, extremely rare blue-eyed white fox, just delivered themselves to his doorstep and refused to leave.

This...this is simply unscientific!

She looked down at the marshmallow, and the little guy seemed to sense her gaze, raising his head and looking back at her with his blue eyes, even sticking out his tongue to lick her fingers.

It has no wildness whatsoever; it's just a domesticated pet that's been raised in the wild.

Emily couldn't quite describe the feeling in her heart; she was a little jealous, but mostly envious and incredulous.

She buried her face in the warm fur of the marshmallow and muttered, "Looks like animals all like you. Maybe it wouldn't be me studying this major, but you."

Hearing her words, tinged with a hint of emotion, Su Wei's lips curled slightly in the darkness.

"Perhaps."

The two chatted casually, which eased the tense atmosphere somewhat.

The snowmobile that had been roughly repaired turned out to be quite sturdy; although it rattled and clanged the whole way, it never broke down.

A dozen minutes later, an orange dot of light appeared on the hillside ahead.

That's a Soviet tent.

The motorcycle headlights swept across the campsite, illuminating the entire scene clearly.

Orange mountain tents.

There was a neatly stacked pile of firewood next to it, enough to burn for several days.

There was even a newly completed wooden sled that looked exceptionally sturdy.

The cargo, piled high on the sled and covered with a tarpaulin, looked grotesque.

Emily stared at all of this, stunned once again.

This campsite doesn't look like something an amateur could set up.

It is more professional and has a lot of prey.

Suwei, he has really changed so much.

Suwei parked the motorcycle next to the tent and turned off the engine.

The world fell silent in an instant, with only the mournful sound of the wind blowing through the spruce forest remaining.

He turned around and met Emily's shocked and bewildered eyes.

"We've arrived. This is my camp."