Rebirth in 1972: Redemption in Changbai Mountain

"My older brother told you to beat him up?"

At this moment, Qin Rui came out and broke the awkward silence, but her walking posture was a little off.

"What happened to your foot?" Zhou Rui frowned as he looked at Qin Rui's foot.

"Oh, oh, my foot, I twisted my ankle."

Qin Rui glanced down; she had forgotten about it in her haste to leave. She dared not walk now; it hurt every time she touched the ground, so she had to stand on tiptoe.

"You haven't told me yet, but my older brother is here?"

Zhou Rui nodded: "They've arrived. They're waiting for news in Taiping Town."

As Zhou Rui spoke, he rummaged through the ground for something, and after a while, he took out a small bottle and put it into He Wu's outstretched hand.

"Here, wipe her down, apply a little more pressure."

"Safflower oil. Shall I take some?"

He Wu was a little stunned. He had just hit him hard, but now he was talking to him so naturally. Was this some kind of magical thing?

"Yes, that's what your brother-in-law said," Zhou Rui replied naturally, without any sense of abruptness.

He Wu's anger vanished instantly, and he could only take the medicine bottle and obediently apply it to Qin Rui.

"Did my brother-in-law say anything else?"

While applying the medicine to Qin Rui, He Wu looked up and asked.

"Oh, he said so. He wants you to hurry down the mountain so he can teach you three troublemakers a lesson."

Zhou Rui seemed to have turned into a machine, only knowing how to repeat Qin Zhan's words.

"Pfft, ouch." Qin Rui burst out laughing, but then touched her sprained ankle and cried out in pain.

Lu Zhijun and He Wu stared blankly at Qin Rui, wondering why she was laughing.

"That's what my older brother said, but it's really funny what this young man said."

"Alright, it's getting late, let's head back to camp. Comrades Lü Zhixue and Wu Jiajia are waiting for your news."

Wang Shouye looked up at the sky and couldn't help but remind him.

"Oh, my brother and Jiajia are both alright. Where are they?"

"Let's go, let's hurry! Where are they? Why haven't they come looking for us?"

"I miss Jiajia so much."

"Comrade Lü Zhixue broke his leg, and Miss Wu Jiajia had a fever, but she's feeling better now."

Seeing how anxious these young people were, Wang Shouye could only offer a few words of explanation to put their minds at ease.

"What? My brother broke his leg? How? How did he break it?"

"Jiajia has a fever, is she alright?"

Zhou Rui then packed the things back up on the ground, picked up his backpack, and said, "Let's go. We can talk about any problems on the way."

"Brother Jiacheng, bring two jackals, we'll roast them for dinner tonight."

"Let's not eat it, that jackal meat is awful." Wu Jiajia covered her mouth, feeling a bit uncomfortable.

Zhou Rui glanced at it and immediately knew that they might have eaten raw meat in the ice cave.

"It's alright, I brought spices, it'll be fine after roasting. Let's go."

After Zhou Rui finished speaking, he took Gu Jiacheng and Hu Dongmu and prepared to leave.

"Wait, Comrade Zhou," Lü Zhijun suddenly called out to Zhou Rui.

"What's wrong?"

Zhou Rui turned around and saw Lü Zhijun and He Wu supporting Qin Rui on either side, their faces showing embarrassment.

"You carry her on your backs?" Zhou Rui asked, somewhat puzzled.

"I, we..." Lü Zhijun was a little embarrassed and couldn't finish his sentence.

Fortunately, He Wu was thick-skinned: "We haven't eaten for days, and we're all injured. We can't carry Rui Rui."

At this moment, Xie Yongjiang suddenly jumped out.

"I'll carry Qin Rui on my back."

He thought Wu Jiajia was pretty when he was at the camp, but Wu Jiajia didn't pay much attention to him.

After rescuing Qin Rui in this valley, he felt that Qin Rui was even more beautiful than Wu Jiajia.

Qin Rui suddenly hopped on one foot and hid behind He Wu. This man didn't look honest; ever since they came out of the ice cave, his eyes had been lingering on her.

She was trying to avoid him, so why would she willingly offer herself up?

Lu Zhijun and Qin Rui grew up in the same courtyard since they were little, and he could tell what she was thinking just by looking at her actions.

"No need, no need, thank you for your kindness, comrade." However, Lu Zhijun was, after all, a member of a high-ranking family, and although he didn't like Xie Yongjiang, he still spoke very tactfully.

Xie Zhijie knew from the sight that these city people looked down on his nephew, but he also felt that his nephew was truly shameful.

He got thwarted by Wu Jiajia these past two days, and now he's trying to curry favor with Qin Rui like a dog in heat.

Those two young men from Hongqi Town and that kid surnamed Hu didn't try to get close to them. They know their place; they're not city people.

"Luo Hao, Xiao Long, let's go."

After saying that, he ignored Xie Yongjiang and left with his two apprentices.

Wang Xiaolong had originally intended to walk slower, as his shins were still throbbing slightly. However, seeing his master call out, he had no choice but to endure the pain and follow.

"Uncle Wang?"

Zhou Rui looked at Wang Shouye, thinking that these people were really troublesome. Did he expect them to ride in a sedan chair?

"It's getting late, and we won't have enough time to make the sled. Ruiwa, carry Comrade Qin on your back, let's hurry back."

"Don't worry, Comrade Qin. My little apprentice is not even sixteen years old yet. He's still a child. It's alright."

Wang Shouye was meticulous and even gave Lü Zhijun and the other two an explanation.

"What?"

He's only fifteen years old.

"Not a minor."

"Is Brother Zhou so young? How come his marksmanship is so amazing?"

Hu Dongmu nudged Gu Jiacheng with his elbow.

"My dad said that Ruiwa has a talent that others can't learn."

"Then, I'll have to trouble you, Comrade Xiao Zhou."

Qin Rui did not have any conflict with Zhou Rui.

At first, they thought Zhou Rui was just young-looking, since he was strong and composed. They all thought he was over twenty. They never expected him to be so young.

Zhou Rui glanced helplessly at Wang Shouye, annoyed that his master was giving him trouble. But since no one else was willing to do it this time, and Qin Rui herself had agreed, he had no choice but to comply.

Zhou Rui threw his backpack at Hu Dongmu, walked up to Qin Rui, and turned his back.

"Comrade Qin, come on up."

Qin Rui hadn't expected Zhou Rui to be so decisive, and was initially a little shy.

But then she thought about it again, and realized that Zhou Rui was several years younger than her, just a little brother, so she wasn't so embarrassed anymore.

After defeating the jackals, the journey back to the camp was smooth, and nothing unexpected happened the following day.

The next day, Wang Shouye and his group arrived at the Taiping Commune office with a snow sled.

"Thank you, Comrade Wang, thank you so much, Comrade Xie..."

Qin Zhan ignored the younger generation who surrounded him, and instead kept shaking the hands of Wang Shouye, Xie Zhihua and other veteran hunters, expressing his gratitude repeatedly.

With nothing to do, Zhou Rui sat to the side with Gu Jiacheng, and Hu Dongmu squeezed in next to them as well.

"Oh, it's a pity you're from Hongqi Town. If you were in Taiping Town, I would love to come visit you."

"It's alright. Now that we know each other, we'll have plenty of opportunities to work together in the future."

Zhou Rui looked somewhat listless, not because he was tired, but because he was homesick.

Gu Dayong pulled Lin Guoqiang to stand in another corner, pointing at Black Wolf and his companion one moment, then glancing at Zhou Rui the next. Finally, he took out a small bag and showed Lin Guoqiang its contents.