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

Zhao Guanqun and his men worked quickly, setting up a sled and two stretchers, but they didn't manage to catch any prey.

One of the items wrapped in bandages contained the remains of the villagers.

The sled was pulling a man-eating tiger that weighed nearly 600 pounds.

Everyone worked together to lift the man-eating tiger onto the sled, and several young soldiers took turns pulling the sled.

With everything tidied up, Zhao Guanqun waved his hand.

"On the way back, we'll go back to Jiapigou first. We need to show everyone what this beast is really like. Only when they know that we've killed the man-eating tiger can they feel at ease."

Two hunting dogs led the way, sniffing as they went.

No one spoke, but everyone knew in their hearts that this trip into the mountains had eliminated the man-eating tiger that had been wreaking havoc in several villages, and also brought back the remaining heads and bones of the villagers.

They rushed as fast as they could, and less than three hours later, they could see smoke billowing from the chimneys of Jiapigou in the distance.

After they entered the mountains, the villagers of Jiapigou all stayed at home, and no one dared to come out to work all day.

The braver ones pushed open the door and saw the man-eating tiger. They jumped up and down with excitement. Some went to Old Zhang's house to report the news, while others followed behind, banging gongs.

"The man-eating tiger is dead, everyone don't need to be afraid anymore, come out!"

Upon hearing the noise, the entire Jiapigou area immediately came to life.

"We killed it! We really killed that man-eating tiger!"

"My God! Finally, they've gotten rid of them!"

Old Mrs. Li was burying her son, Tie Niu, a white-haired woman who had outlived her black-haired son. A few days ago, with everyone's help, she buried him. Hearing the commotion outside, she immediately grabbed a knife and ran out.

"I'm going to chop it up to avenge my Iron Ox! Ox, you died unjustly! This beast ate you and didn't even leave you with a whole body!"

When Wang San's family, who had been ravaged by the man-eating tiger, saw the head wrapped in white cloth and a few bones, they immediately knelt down and cried their hearts out.

Chen Gaoshan and Ma Wanzhong walked on the side of the procession, and seeing the villagers crying, they felt bad too.

After Wang San's wife finished crying, she wiped her snotty nose with her padded sleeve and immediately started hitting the man-eating tiger. It was so cold in the first month of the lunar year that your chin could freeze off. The man-eating tiger was already frozen stiff and wouldn't deform no matter how much she hit it. Only her hand hurt.

A five or six-year-old boy followed behind, and immediately bit down hard, almost breaking his own teeth, but he did manage to bite off a mouthful of tiger fur.

However, a few brave boys and girls were gathered behind the man-eating tiger, each ringing a pair of bells.

"This orchid is not even as big as my donkey, how come it is so powerful that it dares to eat so many people in our ditch?"

Ya Danzi next to him reached out and tugged at it. "It looks about the same size as my big yellow guard dog, but how come such a big dog is so tiny?"

However, Erniu, who was a bit older, saw this naughty kid who was acting recklessly and was making a ruckus, so he quickly pulled them up.

"Why are you touching this? You're so horny. Get up and go home. If you want to touch something, touch your dad's."

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The largest open space in Jiapigou Village was filled with people of all ages.

In the very center of the field, the man-eating tiger that had wreaked havoc on several villages lay on the ground, its yellow and black fur a mess.

Old Zhang, Chen Gaoshan, and Zhao Guanqun stood at the front, facing the villagers of Jiapigou.

Old Zhang looks terrible these past few days; his eye sockets are deep-set, and his eyes are very red.

After that beast came down the mountain, the villagers were uneasy day and night. Every household locked their doors after dark, adults dared not go out, and children dared not cry. They endured many days in fear and anxiety.

Now that the troublemaker was dead, he forced himself to stand up, cleared his throat, and raised his hand to suppress the people below who were cursing through gritted teeth.

"Everyone, young and old, please calm down. These past few days, no one has had a good night's sleep. We've all been terrified by this beast."

"Today I can finally breathe a sigh of relief, all thanks to Captain Chen and his patrol team from Nangou Village, and Company Commander Zhao from Eighth Master Gray Village in town. They led these young comrades into the mountains at great personal risk and dealt with that man-eating tiger."

"Captain Chen and Company Commander Zhao just said that they don't want this beast; they'll keep it all for Jiapigou. They'll sell everything they can—its bones, meat, hide, tiger hook—for money."

"I won't keep any of the money from the sales; I'll distribute it all to the families in our village who have suffered from the disaster. Do you think that's a good idea?"

The villagers below nodded in approval upon hearing this.

"Master Zhang is fair."

"That's how it should be divided; those who suffer should receive compensation!"

"We have nothing to say."

The villagers of Jiapigou had no objections.

At this moment, Chen Gaoshan, who was standing to the side, suddenly stepped forward half a step and spoke.

He thought to himself, this beast has not only wreaked havoc on Jiapigou, but also on Wangjiatun and Xiajiabaozi.

"Uncle Zhang, let me interject. This man-eating tiger not only plagues our Jiapigou, but also Xiajiabaozi and Wangjiatun a while ago, each of them lost a person. They were all carried away by this beast."

"These days, everyone has a hard time making a living, and no one is well-off. We have to share the money with the families who have been wronged. We'll help them if we can, since they're all fellow villagers from the surrounding villages."

Since it doesn't cost me anything, why not do a good deed that's easy to do for others?

It's a win-win situation: you can live with your conscience and gain a good reputation.

Old Zhang nodded after listening.

"Gao Shan is right. I was shortsighted. I'll remember this. I'll have Bao Guo go to town to exchange this beast for money. We'll distribute the money to Jiapigou and send the rest to Xiajiabaozi and Wangjiatun."

Zhao Guanqun, who was standing next to him, listened to the whole thing and nodded in agreement. The more he looked at Chen Gaoshan, the more pleasing he became.

This young man is reliable; no wonder the team valued him.

He is selfless in the face of adversity and even thinks of the suffering people in Waitun. His ideological awareness is truly high.

Without saying a word, he reached into his shirt pocket and pulled out a 1,000 yuan coin.

In front of all the villagers.

"Fellow villagers, the suffering people of Jiapigou, Xiajiabaozi, and Wangjiatun, are all innocent victims. I am the company commander of the Second Company in the town. This little bit of help is nothing. I will personally donate 1,000 yuan to subsidize the families of the suffering villagers."

After saying that, he directly stuffed a circulation coupon into Old Zhang's hand.

"No, no, no, Company Commander Zhao, you can't do that! You helped us fight the tiger, how could we take your money again?"

"No, we can't accept this money."

"Company Commander Zhao, on behalf of the people of Jiapigou, I bow to you."

After Old Zhang finished speaking, he remained polite, but his hands were quick as he slipped a thousand yuan into his pocket.

Chen Gaoshan, who was standing to the side watching, almost couldn't help but burst out laughing.

That old Zhang, he's all talk and no action, but he's really quick to collect money.

Actually, what happened just now was something they had discussed beforehand.

He didn't know that Zhao Guanqun had donated money out of his own pocket.

Those who were in charge had to return to town to report first, so there was no time to stay in Jiapigou. Xie Chengliang was specially left behind with the patrol militia team.

Go and call the people from Xiajiabaozi and Wangjiatun over to check their heads and see if they are their missing fellow villagers, so as to give them an explanation.

This is truly a case of recognizing people's faces, without any faking.

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