Rebirth in 1972: Redemption in Changbai Mountain

An'an finished eating quickly. She especially liked the dogs that Wang Shouye had brought, and went out to play with them after she finished eating. Soon, joyful cheers came from the yard; there were many more dogs now.

Wang Shouye drank a few more sips of wine with his spicy stir-fried wild boar and pheasant meat, and finally got down to business.

"Ruiwa, we're here today because of the leopard you mentioned the other day."

Zhou Rui was somewhat surprised: "So fast? The heavy rain just ended, the roads aren't even dry yet, and the mountains are all muddy, it won't be easy to walk on."

"The longer it rains, the worse it gets for the leopard. As soon as the rain stops, the leopard will definitely come out and move around," Wang Shouye said slowly, imparting his experience to Zhou Rui.

"Furthermore, the road is muddy and difficult to walk on, but the tracks left by the leopard are also obvious, making it easier to track."

Zhou Rui nodded after listening. This was experience passed down from an old hunter, full of valuable insights.

"When are we going up the mountain? What should we bring? How many days will we stay? Uncle Wang, what are your plans for these things?" Zhou Rui was the one asking the questions, probably because Wang Shouye and Gu Shaofeng had already discussed it before they arrived.

"After you finish eating, we'll go up the mountain with three days' worth of dry food. Also, bring a raincoat, a flashlight, and enough batteries. Because it just stopped raining today, the leopards will be out hunting. There will be the most tracks today and tomorrow. After two more days, the tracks will gradually decrease and they will be harder to find."

"Then it's time for the hunt. This time, I plan to have the two of you as the main force for hunting cheetahs. You're both very accurate marksmen, and you're both using rifles, so the damage to the hide will be minimal. I'll be loading shotguns in my guns in case the cheetahs ambush us."

"My plan for the distribution is 40/30. One share for the person, one share for the gun, and one share for the dog, but since this information came from you, Ruiwa, I'll give you an extra share."

Gu Shaofeng and Zhou Rui both nodded in agreement, indicating that the allocation was reasonable and they had no objections.

Zhou Rui originally wanted to send Zhou Ping and the other two to Zhao Dazhu's house for a few days, but Zhou Ping was unwilling. Zhou Rui did not force him, but still sent An'an and Xiao Niangao there to be taken care of by Sister Xinghua, while Zhou Ping stayed at home by himself and went to work every day to gather pig feed.

After returning from Zhao Dazhu's house, Zhou Rui began packing his gear. He brought a raincoat, a flashlight, a box of batteries, and a thick coat in case he caught a chill at night. He also packed two bottles of liquor to ward off the cold and dampness. He also brought a bundle of these two-legged kicking sticks, a deadly weapon whether used to blow up badger burrows or drive away wolf packs.

He carried a fully loaded Mauser 98K rifle and Browning pistol, plus twenty extra rounds of each type. He also brought a knife, a slingshot, and everything else he needed. Since his body modification, Zhou Rui's explosive power and endurance had continuously increased, so he wasn't worried about carrying heavy loads.

Bring some chili peppers, star anise, and salt; when you're traveling, you can't skimp on your food.

After everything was packed, Zhou Rui and his two companions set off with their seven hunting dogs. Passing by the educated youth settlement compound, they found it completely silent; the youths, having been cooped up there for days, had probably gone out to have some fun.

As they started climbing the mountain, Zhou Rui checked his watch; it was 1:20 PM. With a clear destination, Zhou Rui and his team could take a shortcut and reach the edge of the forest where the Amur leopard had been spotted last time in about two and a half hours. They would have another two to three hours to search before dark.

After walking for more than an hour, all three of them were thirsty and stopped to replenish their water and rest for a while. It had just rained in Changbai Mountain in August, and it was hot and humid. In addition, the three of them wore raincoats to prevent the residual rainwater on the branches from wetting their clothes, which made the humidity and heat even more intense.

"How much further?" Gu Shaofeng asked, panting heavily.

He hadn't expected walking through the mud to be so difficult, but what he hadn't expected even more was that he was the weakest of the three, which he found hard to accept. His master, Wang Pao, though experienced and having spent more time running in the mountains, was nearly forty and long past his physical prime. Zhou Rui, still a minor, was carrying a large bag and leading the way; his only advantage was his familiarity with the terrain.

Zhou Rui took small sips of water and said with steady breathing, "It's about five or six miles away, but the road is much gentler than the one we came on. It won't be long."

"Zhou Rui, did you really kill two deer with two shots last time, both hitting them in the forehead?"

"What, do you think Master is bragging for me?" Zhou Rui looked at him with a half-smile.

"No. I just think you're still quite young, and probably haven't fired many bullets, so how did you develop such good marksmanship?"

Zhou Rui's opinion of Gu Shaofeng changed somewhat after hearing his words. Although Gu Shaofeng was somewhat arrogant, he was honest and straightforward, speaking his mind directly without beating around the bush.

"Well..." Zhou Rui pondered for a moment before continuing, "Some people never learn from a master chef; they just watch their parents cook at home and they can still make delicious dishes. Some people go to school and are naturally better at learning than others. And some people never learn martial arts, but they are more resilient and capable of fighting than others from a young age. I call these talents."

"You mean you also have this kind of talent?" Gu Shaofeng didn't expect to get this result from Zhou Rui.

"I don't know if I have any talent. But I've always been more accurate with a slingshot than my friends since I was little. Later, during militia training, my dad took me to target practice, and I hit the target in just a few shots. Then, a while ago, after I got this gun, I started practicing shooting in the mountains, and I've become more and more accurate. Every time I hold this gun, I can feel the blood connection between me and it." Zhou Rui kept bluffing, making sure he didn't mention how he wasted bullets on the mercenary battlefield in his later years.

Gu Shaofeng was dumbfounded: "That's it? All my years of marksmanship training have been for nothing?"

Gu Shaofeng was indignant. He had loved guns since childhood, spending every day with his father, the militia captain, going to target practice. Later, disliking farm work, he begged his father to take him to Wang Shouye to learn hunting. After several years of hunting, he saved some money, and with some help from his family, bought this Type 56 semi-automatic rifle. He continued hunting for several more years, finally developing excellent marksmanship. As for Zhou Rui, he claimed to have mastered shooting at such a young age without firing many shots—frankly, Gu Shaofeng didn't believe it.

Wang Shouye didn't care what the two were talking about. He took the time to rest, and once he had rested enough, he called the two of them to continue their journey.

At the edge of a dense forest, Zhou Rui stood in the grass, pointing ahead and saying, "It's this forest. I was on my way back from hunting when a herd of sika deer suddenly darted out. Then I saw a leopard leap down from a tree and pounce on a fawn. I was about to shoot when the leopard climbed back up a tree and disappeared."

Zhou Rui briefly described what had happened to the two men so that they could make a judgment. As for how to search, that would depend on Wang Shouye's arrangements.

Wang Shouye surveyed the dense forest and quickly came up with a plan.

"We'll start our search from that location. It's low-lying there, so the ascent will be slower, but it's all about looking up, which will allow us to see more clearly. The three of us will search side-by-side, spaced ten meters apart, so we can support each other and avoid missing anything. We'll find the leopard's tracks first, and then have Spotted follow them."

The spotted dog was Wang Shouye's head dog, the one with its head bowed in incense. Seeing that Wang Shouye's arrangement was reasonable, Zhou Rui and Gu Shaofeng didn't offer any other suggestions and simply followed the plan.

Before leaving, Wang Shouye reminded everyone: "Release the safety on your guns. Once you're here, you're in the Far East Leopard's territory. Be careful, don't let the leopard turn on you."