Rebirth in 1972: Redemption in Changbai Mountain

"Should we give chase?"

He Wu's eyes gleamed; the force of his shot at that lone wolf, which had missed by half an inch, was still lingering in his chest.

The wolf pack is currently loitering near the edge of the snowy forest. If we chase after them, we can finally make up for the missed wolf gun hunt.

Zhou Rui turned his head and glanced at him, looking at him like he was an idiot: "You can pursue him, but have you done the math?"

Following the wolf tracks into the woods, it would take at least two hours to get back.

Wolf meat is so tough it gets stuck in your teeth; it doesn't fetch a good price at all, not even a fraction of the value of bear bile. It's a complete waste of effort.

"Uh...hey, I was thinking off-topic." He Wu scratched the back of his head and chuckled, instantly extinguishing his thought of chasing the wolf.

The sun was directly overhead, and the light reflected off the snow was so dazzling that it was impossible to open one's eyes.

All five of them wore thin veils on their faces, making it difficult to see the dark entrance to the cave in the ravine.

He Wu and Liu Qingguo's fingertips were sweating. Zhou Rui had entrusted them with the task of raiding the bear's den, which was a genuine sign of trust in the eyes of the mountain herders.

Gu Shaofeng, clutching the rolled-up firecracker, took two steps toward the cave entrance, then turned back and gave him a look. He Wu and Liu Qingguo immediately leveled their hunting rifles and aimed them at the cave entrance.

Zhou Rui and Gu Jiacheng stood guard behind them with nine hunting dogs, even Da Huang kept its tail low and didn't make a sound.

The fuse of the firecracker held between Gu Shaofeng's fingers hissed and sparked. With a flick of his wrist, he sent the smoking firecracker rolling into the tunnel.

Within two seconds, a muffled thud was heard, causing the snow fragments at the cave entrance to fall in a flurry.

Smoke and the stench from the cave drifted out on the wind, and He Wu took a small step forward, gun in hand.

Zhou Rui's voice came steadily from behind: "Don't rush, take it easy, wait three breaths."

"When a hibernating bear is startled by the sound of cannon fire, it won't rush out immediately; it will remain stunned in its den for a few seconds first."

No sooner had the words left his mouth than a deep, muffled roar suddenly came from the depths of the cave, sending chills down one's spine.

Liu Qingguo's face tightened instantly, and his finger instinctively reached for the trigger, but Zhou Rui stopped him, saying, "Don't fire randomly, wait for him to show his face."

"Brother He Wu, take the lead; Brother Qing Guo, take the bear. Aim carefully, both of you."

A moment later, a dark, foul-smelling shadow suddenly burst out of the dark cave entrance.

A large black bear, weighing six or seven hundred pounds and covered in black fur, burst out.

The black bear that stood upright was a whole size bigger than the one from last night, which startled Liu Qingguo. With a tremor in his hand, a bullet was fired and pierced diagonally below the black bear's heart.

Red blood spurted out instantly, and the black bear's massive body staggered, its center of gravity instinctively shifting to the left.

He Wu's gunshot rang out immediately afterward, and the black bear was shot in the head, but it seemed to have only been bitten, and its massive body continued to pounce forward.

He Wu instinctively fired two more shots, one of which blew off the black bear's ear, while the other shot went astray.

Bang... The last shot was fired from behind He Wu and Liu Qingguo, hitting the black bear squarely between the eyebrows.

With a loud thud, several hundred pounds of flesh crashed to the ground, causing the ground to tremble.

The smoke of battle had not yet dissipated in the snow and wind. He Wu and Liu Qingguo stood frozen in place, staring at the enormous thing lying at their feet for a long time without coming back to their senses.

The moment the black bear-man stood up, the oppressive feeling made my chest feel tight.

They missed two out of four shots, and couldn't control the muzzle for the next two.

Gu Shaofeng walked back with a grin: "Hehe, you two didn't wet your pants, did you?"

"What are you standing there for? Hurry up and pack your things." Zhou Rui's voice drifted from behind, and the Type 56 pistol in Gu Jiacheng's hand to his left was still emitting wisps of white smoke.

The bullet that hit right between the eyebrows was precisely the one Gu Jiacheng fired, without the slightest deviation.

Sweat instantly soaked through the fur collar of Liu Qingguo's cotton-padded jacket.

His hand trembled just now, and the bullet missed by three inches, failing to hit the heart, but instead provoking the mad bear's ferocity.

If Gu Jiacheng's last shot had been even half a second slower, they would both be getting a bear's paw right now.

He Wu scratched the back of his head, his face turning bright red.

He had just fired three shots, but only one hit the head. Now he felt a pang of shame for having failed to capture Xiongcang.

"It's not shameful. If you can hold your gun steady when you first encounter such a big bear, then you're not a coward." Gu Shaofeng put his hands on the shoulders of the two men and smiled to comfort them.

"Alright, hurry up and skin the bear, chop off its paws, and drag the rest back to the dugout so we can get some rest earlier tonight."

Zhou Rui reached out and took the bear bile from Gu Jiacheng. It was larger than the one from last night, and the quality was much better.

"So this is the copper-coated body, right?"

He Wu shamelessly leaned closer: "The color is much better than last night's."

Zhou Rui's upper lip twitched slightly. "Damn, the color looks good. It must be because the banknotes are thicker."

Three days later, the five men trudged down the mountain through ankle-deep snow, their sleds piled high behind them.

Three plump black bears, five half-grown wild boars, and two cleaned roe deer.

When they arrived at the forest farm's purchasing station and weighed the meat, it was 3,120 jin (1,500 kg), and they sold it for a solid 3,993 yuan.

The bear bile, bear paws, whole bear skins, and wolf skins—all highly sought-after items—were secretly taken by Gu Jiacheng, who exchanged them for a total of three thousand five hundred yuan.

This batch of goods did not pass through the hands of the factory manager, Zhang Zhenbei.

Zhang Zhenbei wasn't annoyed. He was currently acting as the director of the forest farm, and all his attention was focused on the farm's business. He was so busy every day that he had no time to think about the ins and outs of these side businesses selling mountain products.

The happiest of the group was Liu Qingguo, who not only received a small piece of bear meat to take home to improve his parents' meals, but Zhou Rui also gave him a separate 1,070 yuan.

This was the largest sum of cash he had ever held since he was born, more than all the money he had saved up over several years by earning work points in the fields.

He wrapped the money in three layers of old newspapers and stuffed it into the innermost pocket of his cotton-padded coat. He kept his hand on the pocket the whole way and didn't dare to take any fast steps.

When they returned to the village, Zhou Rui specifically reminded them, "Hide your money well, don't flaunt your wealth."

There was no other reason than that Liu Qingguo had too many relatives and friends in the village, including aunts, uncles, and distant relatives who could stand half a circle around the old locust tree at the entrance of the village.

If word gets out about this thousand-plus yuan, my doorstep will be overwhelmed with people coming to borrow money within three days.

Today they come crying to me about being poor and needing to pay for their elderly parents' medical treatment; tomorrow they come complaining about needing to pay for their child's marriage. I can't shake them off.

"No, that won't do. That's my capital for getting married." Liu Qingguo held his hand even tighter, as if afraid that if he let go, he would lose his wife.

When it was completely dark, Zhou Rui came out of the bathroom after taking a hot shower.

The mountain wind that swept across his face, carrying a chill, and the stench of wild animals that had lingered for days, were all washed away completely.

This bath was unavoidable. As soon as she stepped inside, Xiao Niangao hid behind Lin Qiuyue and refused to come near him no matter what.

The little boy shook his head like a rattle, clearly disgusted by the strange smell he had brought back from the mountains.

A large enamel basin was placed in the center of the kang table. There were no other fancy things to do tonight; Lin Qiuyue had stewed a whole pot of bear meat and potatoes.

The meat chunks were stewed until they were so tender they could be poked with a single touch, and the golden oil sizzled around the edge of the pot, making your stomach rumble with enticing aroma.