1940s: I supported my wife and sister-in-law by hunting.

Chen Gaoshan drove the sled, and along the way he ate two fried pancakes that his wife had made for him, along with pickled vegetables, which filled his stomach to about 70% full, so he was no longer feeling empty.

Two guards stood at the entrance of the town government office, and errand runners walked back and forth. There were also stalls set up around the area, making it quite lively.

Chen Gaoshan reined in his horse, dismounted from the sled, and after tying it up, greeted the two men at the door before heading towards Zhao Hengsheng's office.

As a result, the corner was too sharp, and with a loud bang, he bumped right into a comrade in a gray uniform carrying a gun.

The two were walking in a hurry, and Chen Gaoshan almost knocked the other person down on their backside. He quickly helped the person up.

This person is none other than Xie Chengliang, the personal bodyguard of Mayor Zhao Hengsheng.

Xie Chengliang steadied himself and was about to speak when he glanced at the person opposite him and immediately recognized him as the militia captain from Nangou Village.

"Brother Gaoshan, what a coincidence! Every time I go to the village to look for you, you show up on your own. This time, it really is an emergency."

Chen Gaoshan supported his arm. "Comrade Xie, I also have something urgent to attend to. You go first."

"A few days ago, no one from Xiajiabaozi was found. The family thought it was just a neighbor who had come to visit. Then, the night before last, another person died. There was blood everywhere inside and outside the house, as well as claw marks from wild animals. That's when they realized that the things in the mountain village of Baozi had been destroyed. The town mayor asked me to go to your Nangou Village to inform you to take your militia members to hunt wild animals."

Upon hearing this, Chen Gaoshan's heart sank completely.

Sure enough, the man-eating tiger had run off to another village a few days ago. It didn't stay in one place for long, and it wreaked havoc in all the surrounding gullies.

"I came here because of what you're talking about. Not only in Xiajiabaozi, but also in Jiapigou, four people have died in the past few days. I think it was all the work of the same man-eating tiger. It's become addicted to eating people."

Xie Chengliang didn't dare to delay and quickly pulled him toward the mayor's office.

Zhao Hengsheng was sitting at the table, looking at the newspaper.

Seeing the two of them rush in, he said, "Shanzi? What brings you here? I asked Chengliang to look for you."

Chen Gaoshan recounted the entire story of Jiapigou and the man-eating tiger to Zhao Hengsheng from beginning to end.

As Zhao Hengsheng listened, his face grew increasingly grim, and he slammed his hand on the table.

"Damn it, this beast has become a demon! I used to think that one company of militiamen in Nangou Village was enough to keep your villages safe, but now it seems that it is not enough at all!"

After this encirclement and suppression operation concludes, all the surrounding villages, large and small, will be assigned to militia teams to patrol the mountains and protect the forests.

After he finished speaking, he looked at the high mountain.

"Gaoshan, you're a smart and brave guy. After this battle against the man-eating tiger, there will be more than a dozen villages around Black Tiger Mountain that need to form militia teams. I'd like you to be the captain of the patrol militia team. What do you think?"

Upon hearing this, Chen Gaoshan felt no joy, but rather a sense of reluctance.

He knew the way things were done in the town best, especially Zhao Hengsheng, who loved to make empty promises.

Previously, the weapons and supplies for the patrol militia team in Nangou Village were approved after a long and drawn-out process, taking almost half a year.

If I really became the captain, the title would sound good, and I'd get all the work myself.

He will be in charge of all the equipment, training, and patrols in each village. The town will not provide resources or supplies. In the end, he will be the one doing the work, taking the blame, and suffering the losses.

They might even have to pour their own savings into it.

After all, our long-standing tradition is that honor belongs to the collective, while responsibility falls on the individual.

He neither agreed on the spot nor refused outright.

"Mayor Zhao, the most important thing now is to catch and kill this man-eating tiger to save the lives of the people in each village. As for the matter of the brigade leader, I think I am still young and need more experience. Managing twenty-five people is already quite a challenge. If I were to be in charge of all the villages in the surrounding area, I'm afraid my words wouldn't carry much weight. Perhaps we should wait until we catch the man-eating tiger before discussing this further."

"That tiger is very clever. It doesn't fight people head-on. It relies on sneak attacks and dodging. It darts around randomly. We can't let our guard down."

After listening, Zhao Hengsheng stopped talking nonsense. The matter of the brigade leader could be discussed later. Chen Gaoshan was the person he valued most in the surrounding villages. He didn't believe it.

Under the influence of the team, if he still doesn't want to be the brigade leader, then his thinking still needs to be reformed. Right now, the most important thing is the man-eating tiger. If this happens when spring comes and the villagers can't farm, it will have a huge impact.

"Shanzi, here's what I'll do. I'll directly assign a company of comrades to go into the mountains with you to encircle and suppress them. Xie Chengliang."

Xie Chengliang immediately stood at attention.

"arrive."

"Take Gao Shan to the Second Company and relay my words. Then, the Second Company Commander, Zhao Guanqun, will cooperate with Shanzi and follow him into the mountains for a comprehensive search. We must eradicate this man-eating tiger!"

"Mission accomplished!"

Before long, Xie Chengliang arrived with his men and headed straight for the Second Company camp to mobilize manpower.

The entire company, fully armed, marched along the ski slope toward Nangou Village.

Chen Gaoshan held the reins and led the way with the horse-drawn sled.

Xie Chengliang and Zhao Guanqun, the company commander of the Second Company, sat on the planks of a sled.

The faces of the men were all tense; the tiger was in the shadows, while they were in the open.

Black Tiger Mountain is a vast and deep mountain with dense forests, a veritable snow-covered forest. Finding a hidden man-eating tiger would be an incredibly difficult task.

Just as everyone was figuring out how to find it, the second company commander, Zhao Guanqun, had a sudden inspiration and came up with a risky plan.

He turned and stared at Captain Chen, who was driving the sled ahead.

"Brother Gaoshan, I've come up with a plan. This man-eating tiger has gotten used to eating people. The other day when you used wild boar meat as bait, it didn't even show its face. It's obvious that it doesn't care about wild boar and only craves human flesh."

Since it loves to eat people, let's address the root cause! Let's use people as bait to lure it out. Look at the atrocities this tiger has committed—it eats one person every two days. At this rate, won't it wreak havoc on at least two hundred villagers a year? Who in the village, young and old, can live in peace then? This tiger must be eliminated.”

After hearing this, Chen Gaoshan had to admit that this method might actually work.

This man-eating tiger has already made humans the easiest and most convenient prey to catch, and has included them in its diet.

Once a wild animal gets used to eating human flesh, it will fixate on it and will immediately target humans when it is hungry. Using a living person as bait can indeed lure it out.

"Company Commander Zhao, this move is too risky. It's no joke. That beast can shatter a person's skull with one slap. If it touches you, you'll be injured; if it gets close, you'll die."

The person who can act as bait not only needs to be incredibly brave, but also exceptionally skilled. Who would dare to take such a death risk?

Zhao Guanqun looked determined.

"I'll be the bait. Back in the day, I've been through so much, I'm not afraid of this man-eating tiger! For the sake of the villagers, I'm not afraid of anything. As long as I can kill it, it's worth it to give up my life here."

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