Back in the 1980s, hiking in the mountains was also a way of life

Wang An patted Huang Zhong on the shoulder and said happily:

"Okay, as long as you're not cold, riding a horse in this freezing weather is really tough. Go up inside and warm up, I'll go tie the horse up."

Upon hearing this, Huang Zhong quickly snatched the horse reins and said:

"Oh, no need, I'm fine, I'll just go tie up the horse."

To be fair, the Oroqen horse is absolutely the most suitable horse for the environment and climate of Northeast China. In this respect, even the eldest son horse, which is used as a warhorse, is slightly inferior.

In such low temperatures, the Oroqen horses neither ate grass nor drank water for a whole day, yet they still ran back without showing any signs of fatigue.

Of course, this is also related to Wang Anjia's feeding habits, because Wang Anjia's horses were fed very ample food, so each horse was very fat.

Domestic draft animals like mules, horses, and cattle are different from other animals. While other animals become dumber the fatter they are, mules, horses, and cattle are better off being fatter, as they have more stamina when they are a little fatter.

Wang An smiled as he watched Huang Zhong lead the horse into the open shed, then turned and went inside.

When Huang Zhong finished tying up his horse and went inside, Wang An had already placed a large bowl of instant noodles on the coffee table.

Seeing Huang Zhong enter the room, Wang An gestured with his chin towards the instant noodle bowl and said with a smile:

"You must be starving after a long day. Let's have some instant noodles to tide us over, and then we'll have hot pot together tonight, hehehe."

Since Huang Zhong returned just in the time between meals, and it wasn't feasible to cook a separate meal for him, Wang An decided to just make him two packets of instant noodles.

However, Wang An's actions could not be considered a mere sham.

At that time, instant noodles were still a very rare commodity, and the price was not cheap. A pack of instant noodles that cost 32 cents in Harbin sold for 35 cents in the county town. Even buying a whole case was a dollar more expensive than in Harbin.

Two packets of instant noodles cost a full 7 cents, which is quite a high standard of living.

Therefore, upon seeing this, Huang Zhong immediately declined, saying:

"No need, brother. I'm not that hungry right now. We can eat together after we coax Qian'er."

Wang An stated without any room for doubt:
"Not hungry? Not hungry at all. Hurry up and eat. After you finish, tell me in detail what happened. I, as your older brother, have been personally making instant noodles for you every day. How dare you not give me face?"

Huang Zhong chuckled upon hearing this and said:

"Then I won't be polite, big brother, hehehe. I'm actually a little hungry."

As he spoke, Huang Zhong opened the plate covering the bowl, picked up his chopsticks, and began to eat the instant noodles while blowing on them to cool them down.

He said he wasn't hungry, but his stomach didn't lie; Huang Zhong ate noodles incredibly fast.

In just two or three minutes, Huang Zhong finished both packets of instant noodles, even drinking all the soup.

After putting down his chopsticks, Huang Zhong let out a long sigh of relief and said:
"This instant noodles smell so good."

Wang An smiled slightly and said:

"Not enough to eat? Hehehe, there's hot water in the thermos, go and make two more packets. There's plenty of instant noodles too."

Huang Zhong waved his hand and said with a smile:
"I'm not eating anymore, I'm not eating anymore. I'll save my appetite for hot pot tonight."

Wang An smiled but didn't say anything more. Instead, his face suddenly turned grim as he asked:

"How's it going? Did you find that old bastard Song Ping today?" Wang An's hatred, or rather, his murderous intent, towards the poisoner had been building up for a long time. He was determined to make the poisoner experience what it meant to suffer a fate worse than death before finally killing him.

That's why Wang An's expression changes so quickly whenever Song Ping, the prime suspect, is mentioned.

Seeing Wang An's suddenly droopy face, Huang Zhong was still a little scared. He immediately wiped the smile off his face and nodded, saying:

"I found him. I searched for him all day and finally found him in Taiping Village, north of Hongfeng Village. That old guy really collected a lot of small sacks that day. I saw that the back seat of his bicycle was full of three sacks, and he just pushed the bicycle around like that."

"After we left Taipingtun, that old guy loaded the leather he had collected onto a sled, and also tied the bicycle to the sled. It's just that the person driving the sled was covered up too much, so I didn't get a good look at what he looked like."

Upon hearing this, Wang An sat up abruptly, staring intently at Huang Zhong and asking:

"Are the hoof prints of the sled the same as the hoof prints that appeared behind our house?"

Huang Zhong nodded, his face stern, and said:
"Yes, there's no doubt about the hoof prints and sled prints. I'm sure it's the same horse and sled that came to pick us up that day."

After a pause, Huang Zhong frowned and said, puzzled:

"Song Ping's footprints don't match the footprints left at the base of the outer wall of the courtyard. They're all different sizes. I still don't understand why."

Wang An thought for a moment and analyzed:

"Did he change his shoes? Or did he deliberately wear shoes that were a little too small when he came to our house?"

Huang Zhong shook his head and said:

"I don't think so, but who knows?"

Wang An sneered and said:

"It's nothing, it doesn't matter whose footprints they are. Where did you find him to rest?"

Huang Zhong said:

“I found him. He has a mistress in Taipingtun. If he hadn’t driven the sled carrying the bicycle into his mistress’s yard, I wouldn’t have been sure if it was him.”

After a pause, Huang Zhong continued:
“I saw Song Ping groping that woman from a distance. After that, the guy driving the sled, I don’t know what he did, just stood there.”

At that time in Northeast China, many people's courtyard walls were made of tree trunks and fence panels, with a height of more than one meter. So it was quite normal to be able to see inside the courtyard from outside.

Wang An thought for a moment and said:
"Where did they take all those small hides?"

Upon hearing this, Huang Zhong said:

"They took him to LQ County. Song Ping stayed in that woman's house for less than half a day. After that, Song Ping came out and drove the sled by himself. The person who helped him drive the sled before didn't leave."

“I didn’t dare to chase him too closely. I saw him enter a village. Later, I asked someone in the passageway and found out that the village was called Anfu Village, which is under the jurisdiction of Shuangqiao Township in LQ County. It’s not far from Taiping Village, only about seven or eight miles away.”

Just as Wang An was about to speak, Huang Zhong continued:
"As soon as I entered that village, the villagers started watching me. Then I memorized Song Ping's house and rode back on horseback."

In Northeast China during that era, apart from people from neighboring villages who wouldn't arouse suspicion, any stranger who entered a village would quickly be targeted.

Upon hearing this, Wang An slammed his hand on the table and said with a beaming smile:
"Good job, Xiao Zhong. You did a great job today. On the fifth day of the new year, you'll come with me to the county. After that, I'll have someone raid his house in the county first, and then raid his house in Anfu Village. Damn it, he dared to come to our house to poison us. I'll make sure he's dead."

Seeing Wang An's face filled with excitement and murderous intent, Huang Zhong couldn't help but remind him:
"Brother, he has a gun, a flat-bladed double-barreled shotgun. How about I sneak up and shoot him first, so he doesn't get desperate and then try to shoot us? What do you say, brother?" (End of Chapter)