Rebirth in 1972: Redemption in Changbai Mountain

Gu Dayong didn't say much. He nodded to Zhou Rui, picked up the pile of straw at the entrance of the cave, and stuffed it into the crack, pressing it as tightly as possible. He then patted it twice to make it firm.

This thing can't really stop the wolves; at most, it can only buy Zhou Rui time to react.

The four people and eight dogs took off running towards the big house in the distance. Big Yellow suddenly turned around and barked wildly at Zhou Rui as a warning.

Zhou Rui raised his hand, clenched his fist, pressed it down, and then swung it in the direction of retreat.

This gesture was familiar to Huang, telling him to ignore himself and quickly catch up with the group.

Big Yellow flicked its tail, turned around, and chased after the group, leaving them in the dust.

Zhou Rui quickly ejected the spent cartridge and loaded the magazine. After firing three bullets, only two bullets remained in the gun.

The moment the magazine was full, he put down the rifle and remained crouched on the high point, motionless, like a stone sculpture poised to strike.

Ten minutes later, gunfire erupted from the direction of the sheepfold, as dense as popping beans.

Not long after, a second wave of gunfire erupted as Gu Dayong and his men arrived to engage in combat.

The gunfire continued for several minutes, then suddenly fell silent. Until dawn, not a single person came this way.

The rising sun had just jumped above the horizon, its warm light bathing Zhou Rui.

Instead of waiting for someone to meet him, he saw seven educated youths rushing towards him, all of them, young and old, with anxious expressions on their faces.

They searched the courtyard thoroughly, and just as they gathered at the cave entrance, they saw four wolf carcasses lying side by side on the ground. The two female educated youths' legs went weak, and they froze on the spot.

One of the male educated youths was particularly brave; upon seeing this, he immediately grabbed a sickle and stood in front of the two female educated youths.

"Don't be afraid, all the wolves are dead."

Zhou Rui's voice fell from the rooftop, clear and crisp.

The seven educated youths looked up abruptly and saw a person squatting on the eaves, holding a rifle with the muzzle pointing straight at the sky.

After a few close looks, the group realized that the people were either militiamen or hunters who had come to help.

"You...you're all alone?"

An older educated youth found it a bit unbelievable that such a young boy could guard the roof alone and kill four wild wolves.

Zhou Rui climbed down the pillar; shouting from the rooftop was too exhausting.

"My companions went to help with the sheepfold..."

Zhou Rui explained to the educated youth what he had discovered the night before and how he had killed the wolves. Then he piled the four wolves together, carried them on his back, and headed towards the accommodation area.

"This young man is really strong, he's a great worker!" a girl with a tanned face said with a smile.

"What? You've got your eye on someone? Want me to help you find the farm manager and set you up?" the middle-aged educated youth asked with a smile.

"Get lost. How old is this kid? I'm already twenty-five, okay?"

The girl's face instantly turned red to her ears. She gently patted the arm of the person next to her, but couldn't help glancing at Zhou Rui out of the corner of her eye.

He carried the wolf carcass, which was half his height, ahead of him. His back was ramrod straight. He looked thin, but his steps were as steady as if they were nailed to the ground without wobbling.

When Zhou Rui returned to the office building, most of the patrolling militiamen and the hunters who had launched an overnight raid had withdrawn.

There were eight or nine wolf carcasses lying haphazardly on the open ground outside the office. If you count the four that Zhou Rui had just carried back, the total number had exceeded thirteen.

Before he could report to the farm management, he saw Big Yellow wag its tail and squeeze out from the crowd, its hot head rubbing against his ankle.

Zhou Rui quickly squatted down and ran his fingertips along Big Yellow's back from head to tail, making sure there wasn't even a deep cut under its fur. Only then did his heart, which had been hanging in suspense for half the night, finally settle down.

Hunting dogs are the most protective of their owners. If Gu Dayong and his group had gotten into trouble, Dahuang wouldn't have been able to come back unscathed, without even a scratch.

He led Dahuang to the kitchen to get some hot food, while the leaders in the office didn't even dare to breathe, huddled together reviewing the chaos of last night.

"Last night we injured three brothers and lost a hunting dog, and in total we took down about ten wolves."

"The battle wasn't bad, but we just didn't run into the wolf king."

"That thing was too clever; it never showed itself from beginning to end, hiding in the shadows and directing the wolf pack to circle the farm for most of the night."

The old man's voice was hoarse, like it had been sanded. He clenched his fists and kept pounding his legs. He had obviously been badly chased by the wolves last night and had a lot of pent-up anger with nowhere to vent it.

"When we got there, we realized that the theft of piglets from the pig farm was a feint; the sheep pen was surrounded the moment they arrived."

Gu Dayong added, making the wolf king's scheme crystal clear.

"They used a few wolves to drag us around the pig farm, while they sent all their main force to the sheep pen. If we were ten minutes late, we would have suffered heavy losses."

Farm manager Wang Houtian had a relieved smile on his face. It was true that the situation last night was tense, but fortunately, none of the educated youth were injured, and only a few livestock were lost. In his opinion, this was already the best possible outcome.

"You've done enough. The wolf carcasses displayed outside the courtyard will put the educated youth at ease when they see them on their way to work."

He smiled and offered cigarettes to everyone: "With your wolf-hunting team guarding us, everyone can work with peace of mind."

"This is what we should do. The educated youth traveled thousands of miles to support the construction in the Great Northern Wilderness, so we locals must make sure they are protected."

Correspondent Li Jixue is very good at handling things. With just a few words, he managed to smooth things over between both sides, and the atmosphere immediately became warm and lively.

At this moment, Gu Yunqian, the militia captain of Gujiatun, sat down and became serious: "Director Wang, we are not afraid to risk our lives against wolves, and we can patrol all night for several nights without any problem. There is just something we need your help with."

Seeing that he was speaking seriously, Wang Houtian quickly put down his cigarette and sat up straight.

"Captain Gu, just say what's wrong. Is it that the food rations in the kitchen aren't enough, or that the kang (heated brick bed) where everyone is resting is too cold? We'll arrange for someone to adjust it immediately."

"These are nothing, we can get through them if we grit our teeth." Gu Yunqian waved his hand and got straight to the point.

"The militia used up too many bullets last night fighting wolves, and their reserves are almost gone. We were wondering if the farm headquarters could provide us with a new batch of ammunition?"

Uncle Guai and Gu Dayong exchanged a glance, but neither expressed their opinion nor uttered a sound.

The militiamen were excellent at drill training, but completely inept at hunting, firing their guns at the slightest sound.

Most of the gunshots last night were blanks; they didn't even hit a single wolf.

But they couldn't say this outright, since the militia wasn't under the hunters' jurisdiction, and saying too much would only cause them trouble.

Wang Houtian pondered for a while before speaking: "I took inventory yesterday. Most of the militia have old-fashioned guns, with only a small number of Type 56 semi-automatic rifles."

"The factory has stock of Type 56 and Type 6 ammunition, but we can't get any of the older models out of stock."

The farm was equipped with all new standard weapons, which were completely incompatible with the outdated equipment in the hands of the militia.

Gu Yunqian frowned instantly. Several militia captains were all staring at Wang Houtian. With ammunition not replenished, most of the guns were rendered useless, and the militia's combat power was reduced to half.

"I've got it! The farm headquarters has a direct phone line to the county." Wang Houtian immediately made the decision. "I'll contact the county's armed forces department right away and have them send a vehicle to deliver the ammunition over as quickly as possible."

He made a prudent move. The militia was under the jurisdiction of the armed forces department, so it was perfectly reasonable for the ammunition supply to go through the formal channels.

While Wang Houtian was on the phone, the group immediately gathered around the map to discuss their strategy and tactics, determined not to be led around by the Wolf King again that night.

Either scare the wolf pack into submission or kill the wolf king; there is no third option.