Rebirth in 1972: Redemption in Changbai Mountain

As dawn broke in the east, Zhou Rui tossed his coat aside, his body steaming with heat.

It snowed all night, covering the campsite clean. If it weren't for the mountain of flesh piled up next to it, it would have seemed like nothing had happened.

Four and a half moose and more than thirty wolves, which together amount to several thousand kilograms of meat.

"How big was this wolf pack? Thirty-seven of them were killed."

"It might at least double. More than ten horses escaped from the camp last night, and there are probably many more hiding in the shadows that haven't met their end."

Wang Shouye saw it clearly from the rooftop last night; there were quite a few people there.

"Master, I've been following you through the mountains for so many years, but this is the first time I've seen such a large pack of wolves. Could they be steppe wolves?" Gu Shaofeng asked, somewhat puzzled.

"Judging from its appearance and size, it shouldn't be; steppe wolves are much larger," Wang Shouye explained based on his own experience.

"However, I think the wolf king is very large, weighing over 150 pounds, so it must be a different breed. Such a wolf king is usually quite ambitious and may have absorbed other wolf packs."

"No matter what kind of alien species it was, Junior Brother shot it in the head with a single shot. I think after the Wolf King dies, there will definitely be a fight for the Wolf King again. Maybe the remaining wolves will even be scattered."

Wang Zhen crossed his arms, looking very confident. He was skilled at making traps, naturally relying on his understanding of animal habits.

"Zhenzi is right, Ruiwa really solved a big problem for us. If the wolf king hadn't died, the wolf pack might have continued to follow us."

That won't happen now. These wolves will definitely fight amongst themselves when they get back; they won't stop until a wolf king emerges.

Wang Shouye confirmed Wang Zhen's conjecture.

"Master, this wolf king's pelt is really nice, big and warm, it's just a pity it's not pure white. Master, is this pelt worth a hundred dollars?"

"Pretty much. This wolf pelt isn't very valuable to begin with, far less than mink, leopard, or tiger pelts. But considering the rarity of wolf kings and the size of this pelt, a hundred should be enough."

"What, you want it?" Wang Shouye teased.

"No, I just wanted to make more money." Gu Shaofeng chuckled; all he cared about now was money.

"Let's not sell these hides. Let's send them to Director Zhang of the forest farm. Sending just a few pheasants is a bit stingy."

Wang Shouye decided to do his best to curry favor with Zhou Rui and give him face. After all, the winter procurement volume was too large, so he needed to send more gifts regularly, and the gifts should ideally be unique.

"Master, how should we get down there? Should we ask the villagers for help? Junior Brother's big mule has disappeared." Zhang Shitou came over to ask Wang Shouye for his opinion.

"The amount of meat we harvested this time was less than last time, but it was still six or seven thousand catties. Even with Ruiwa's big mule, it would be impossible to pull it all in one trip."

"However, this Dwarf Camel Mountain is quite far from several villages, so it's not appropriate to go and call the villagers over. Let me think about it some more."

Wang Shouye wandered around in the snow, trying to figure out how to properly transport the meat back home. He never had these worries before.

Back then, we didn't harvest much meat because there was nowhere to sell it; we mainly focused on the hides. Any extra meat was simply thrown into the mountains.

"I've got it. I remember this direction. It's another five or six li down the mountain, and the sleds can go straight down. There are logging trucks passing by at the foot of the mountain." Wang Shouye pointed southwest.

"We can take them down in batches, leaving one person on the road to wait for the return trip. We can ask him to go back to the forest farm and inform them that a vehicle will be sent to pick us up."

"Ruiwa," Wang Shouye turned around, "Take Huaban and go find your mule, see if you can get it back. Can you manage alone?"

Wang Shouye was relatively confident in Zhou Rui. Zhou Rui was more composed than Gu Shaofeng and Wang Zhen, smarter than Zhang Shitou, and had the best marksmanship.

"Okay. If I find a mule, will I come back here?"

"No need. Just go to the spot down the mountain and find us. There are four of us, plus ten dogs. We can get there in three or four trips."

"Eat first, you'll have energy after you eat."

So everyone took out their knives and started cutting meat from the first deer they had hunted the day before. They needed to eat breakfast early and quickly replenish their energy, so cutting the venison into small pieces and roasting it was the fastest way.

Before long, Zhou Rui stuffed the freshly roasted meat into his mouth. Because he had something on his mind, Zhou Rui didn't care whether the meat was delicious or not; he just wanted to fill his stomach.

"Master, I'll go now. Spotted, come here." Zhou Rui grabbed a handful of snow, wiped his mouth, and waved to Spotted.

The spotted one came over wagging its tail.

Zhou Rui took out a large mule's mane and placed it under Huaban's nose. Huaban sniffed it, bleated twice at Zhou Rui, and then ran off on all fours. Zhou Rui slung his backpack over his shoulder and quickly followed.

"Master, is it possible to find Junior Brother's mule?" Zhang Shitou asked with some worry. He felt that the mule was the family's most important possession, and it would be a great pity if it were lost.

"I don't know, there are too many dangers in the mountains. We'll see how lucky we are." Wang Shouye sighed. "Let's go, let's get the meat down there and sell it as soon as possible."

After leaving the camp, Zhou Rui gradually increased his speed, and he no longer needed Hua Ban to stop and wait for him. However, Hua Ban couldn't run very fast and had to sniff the ground from time to time.

Zhou Rui followed behind Hua Ban, occasionally using his senses to observe whether the big mule was nearby.

Actually, if it hadn't snowed last night, Zhou Rui could have followed the hoofprints himself, and even faster. Now that the hoofprints are covered by the heavy snow, he can only rely on the spots.

Zhou Rui wasn't too anxious, but he had spent several hundred yuan to buy the mule, and it was a bit of a shame that it was lost on the first time he brought it to the mountains.

After walking for more than two hours, Zhou Rui still hadn't sensed the mule. This mule was incredibly fast; they'd covered nearly twenty miles already, and it still hadn't stopped?

Zhou Rui took the liquor out of his bag and took a big gulp. Not because it was cold, but to perk himself up.

Seeing that Zhou Rui hadn't followed, the spotted dog quickly turned around. Woof, woof...

Zhou Rui walked over and patted the dog's head: "Little thing, you're urging me on. Let's go."

It seems we can't bring the mule up the mountain next time. If something happens at night, the mule won't even be able to get into the house.

Woof woof.

Hmm, has this been discovered?

Zhou Rui activated his senses. Sure enough, he sensed it. This was behind this mountain, around a bend, but what was that thing next to the mule?

Oh no, the big mule must be in danger.

"Spotted, let's go." This time, Zhou Rui got ahead of Spotted because he no longer needed Spotted to lead the way.

The sound of Zhou Rui's boots scraping against the snow was rapid and sharp.

The journey wasn't long; a few minutes later, Zhou Rui saw the scene ahead. A few hundred meters away, an animal resembling a small bear was circling around the mule.

What is this? A wolverine. Small in size, it's a killer of most animals.

Zhou Rui's mule was so frightened that it kept running around, but perhaps because it had used up too much energy last night, the big mule couldn't get out of that area and kept braying.

"Faster, faster!" Zhou Rui, who hadn't been in a hurry at first, became anxious after seeing the mule.

Just then, the mule's feet suddenly slipped, and its whole body staggered. Taking advantage of this opportunity, the wolverine leaped up, grabbed the mule's head with its two forelegs, and opened its mouth wide to bite its neck.

It's too late to kill him by grabbing his head. If we delay even a minute longer, the mule will be beyond saving.

Zhou Rui shrugged, and the Mauser 98K appeared in his hand. He raised the gun and aimed.

The mule kept shaking its head, trying to shake off the wolverine, but the wolverine's claws held on so tightly that they dug deep into its flesh, and it just wouldn't fall off.

Distance: 478 meters; wind direction: northwest; wind speed: force 6. Without an optical sight, he wasn't very confident.