American Hunting: Starting with Solitary Life in the Wilderness

Chapter 115 The wooden house is under construction

Lin Yu'an used his XCMG loader to steadily place a four-meter-long log that had already been peeled onto the track of the band saw, and then used a special clamp to firmly secure it.

Then the engine of the Honda GX390 was started, and the huge band saw blade reached extremely high speeds in an instant, making a "buzzing" sound!

He gripped the control lever on the main unit and pushed it forward smoothly along the track.

With a linear hissing sound, a piece of evenly thick wood was cut off the log completely!
David rushed forward and ran his hand over the smooth cut surface: "Wow! This...this speed is simply unbelievable."

Lin Yu'an turned off the machine and looked at the result with equal satisfaction.

After testing the band saw, Lin Yu'an and the other two sat around the fireplace in their rented wooden cabin, with the blueprints of the entire plan spread out on the table.

"Lin, so what's our next plan?" David asked, holding a hot coffee, his voice full of anticipation.

Lin Yu'an pointed to the complex foundation map drawn by old George.

"To complete the construction of this foundation, we also need to prepare materials and a spiral drilling machine attachment, which cannot be found in Wiesmann."

"Moreover, another container I ordered from China has now been cleared through customs and has been transported to and stored in a leased warehouse in Fairbanks."

"I need to open it so I can take out some of the things we urgently need first, and then transport the whole thing over after the snow melts."

He pointed to the pile holes on the foundation map and said, "Also, I need to equip the XCMG loader with a spiral drilling attachment to drill through the frozen soil here. This can only be rented from a professional company in Fairbanks."

"Finally, and most importantly, the materials needed for the foundation—cement, steel bars, sand, and gravel—all had to be sourced from Fairbanks in a single procurement."

Lin Yu'an stood up, straightened his clothes, and looked at David, saying, "So, let's go. We'll go to Old George's house first and borrow his pickup truck and trailer."

"Then go to Fairbanks, rent equipment, buy materials, and finally pick up the goods from my warehouse and transport everything back here."

When the three of them arrived at old George's house, the old man was sitting in a rocking chair by the window in his living room, bathed in the precious morning sunlight of the North.

Like all gun-loving old Texas cowboys, old George would tinker with guns in his spare time.

He held an oilcloth in his hand, carefully wiping his Remington 700 rifle, the stock of which he had rubbed until it shone.

"Hey kid, judging by your posture, you're getting ready to set off?"

When old George saw them, he smiled and asked, but he didn't get up. He just gestured with his eyes to the empty seat next to him.

"Yes, George. I've come to borrow your car."

Lin Yu'an got straight to the point, which was also the most comfortable way for him and Old George to communicate.

"No problem at all."

Old George stood up, steadily leaned his beloved rifle against the wall, took a bunch of keys with brass ornaments from inside the house, and casually tossed them to Lin Yu'an.

"I just filled up the gas tank on my old Ford yesterday. And remember to check the tire pressure on that two-axle flatbed trailer in the back of the yard; that guy hasn't been on a long trip in a while."

With George's help, they worked together to hook the huge two-axle flatbed trailer onto the back of Ford's truck.

The heavy metallic clang when the hook was connected marked the official start of this procurement plan!
"Goodbye, George, we're off."

"Goodbye? No, I'm going with you. I should also go see my old friends in the city."

The Dalton Highway was at its muddiest at this time, with potholes and uneven surfaces, like an old blanket covered in patches.

But experienced drivers know where it's easy to drive and where they won't get stuck.

Old George drove his old Ford at a slow but extremely smooth speed; decades of driving experience allowed him to easily handle every hidden pothole.

Upon arriving in Fairbanks, Lin Yu'an did not rest but went straight to the industrial area on the outskirts of the city.

Their actions proceeded exactly as Lin Yu'an had planned.

Our first stop was Fairbanks' largest engineering equipment rental company.

Old George was clearly a regular here, and with his decades of experience, he skillfully negotiated with the leasing company manager.

“Hey Bob, don’t give me that. Your price is for those suckers from the local market.”

Old George slammed his hand on the counter and said, “My friend here wants to build a real home in Wiesman, not just come for a vacation! You have to give him a fair price.”

Ultimately, thanks to old George's influence, they managed to rent a auger attachment with two extended drill rods at a very fair package price.

When David went to the warehouse to pick up the goods, he asked curiously, "Lin, are you sure the size of this accessory matches your loader?"

"Of course, the accessories of XCMG loaders use internationally accepted standards, and they can be perfectly matched with my XCMG loader."

They loaded the heavy drilling machine accessories onto a flatbed trailer using a forklift.

Lin Yu'an took the list that Old George and he had worked together to finalize and contacted the building materials supplier through Bob's phone.

"Hello, I need to purchase a batch of materials."

“I need four tons of 425 grade Portland cement, the latest batch.”

“Building grade threaded steel bars, 16 mm and 20 mm, require a total of more than two thousand kilograms.”

"There are also eight tons of screened dry river sand and twelve tons of well-graded crushed stone aggregate."

"In addition, I also need some high-density extruded polystyrene boards for pile foundation insulation and thermal insulation blankets for concrete curing."

The supplier listened to the list and mentally estimated that it was a standard order for foundations for a private house.

He asked, "Sir, how is the transportation arranged? Do you need our company's dump truck service for these bulk sand and gravel?"

"Yes, I need you to arrange one of your best heavy-duty dump trucks to transport them all to the vicinity of Dalton Highway Milestone 115 in one go."

"If possible, I would like you to use nylon bags for packaging, because your car definitely can't drive into my house, so you can only put the building materials on the roadside."

After calculating the total price and the hefty shipping costs, the sales manager quoted a total price of tens of thousands of dollars. Lin Yu'an paid online, and all that remained was to wait patiently.

Then, they arrived at the warehouse rented by Lin Yu'an and used the key to open the container that had been shipped from Haines Port and had all the legal documents.

David and Mike's cameras immediately followed them inside, revealing neatly stacked wooden frames, plastic crates, and wooden boxes within the container.

Lin Yu'an pointed to a wooden box and said, "This contains a silent diesel generator with a power output of up to 20 kilowatts."

"As the weather gets hotter, food storage requires refrigerators, and we also use more power tools such as lights, appliances, and kitchen utensils in our daily lives."

"As more and more places require electricity, the power generated by those few solar panels will gradually become insufficient."

“Wow! This thing is huge!” David exclaimed.

After moving the generator out, Lin Yu'an took out several tightly sealed engineering plastic boxes from another corner of the container.

"what is this?"

"seed."

Lin Yu'an opened a box; the packaging bag was labeled with cold-resistant Chinese cabbage, black soil green beans, and high-altitude purple-skinned garlic.

"I've also prepared some vegetable seeds. It's the end of April now, and May is just around the corner, which is the perfect time for planting. We can't miss this opportunity."

Having completed this whirlwind purchase and pickup, everyone embarked on their return journey.

The flatbed trailer now only carries the accessories for the auger drilling machine and the diesel generator.

Three weeks have passed, and it's now early May.

The midnight sun has arrived, and the ground is experiencing its peak snowmelt period, turning it into a completely muddy state.

Lin Yu'an's 100-day plan is progressing smoothly, but the impact of the snowmelt season is still quite significant, severely affecting his efficiency.

On this night of the midnight sun, after a tiring day at work, I made my weekly video call as scheduled.

On the screen, Arya's beautiful face quickly appeared; she was holding her daughter Olivia, who was already a little sleepy.

Seeing her husband in the video, who looked noticeably thinner and tired, she felt a pang of heartache.

"Honey, you look so tired."

Arya's voice was full of worry; she tried her best to sound calm, but her concern was evident.

“You can’t keep carrying this burden alone, you’ll wear yourself out! We can take our time with the plan, there’s no rush, summer is still long.”

"Don't worry, I'm fine, everything is going according to plan."

Lin Yu'an smiled, adjusted his posture, and tried to make himself look more relaxed.

"The workload is indeed very large, but seeing more and more wood next to the camp every day gives me a great sense of accomplishment! I finished two more today."

Just then, a burly figure suddenly squeezed into the background of the video; it was Arya's older brother, Wyatt.

He picked up the phone, the screen shook, and then his second brother Garrett, third brother Bo, and fourth brother Clay also came over, their four distinct faces instantly filling the small phone screen.

"Lin, don't push yourself."

Wyatt spoke, his voice as steady and powerful as ever.

“You work every day, and Arya worries about you every day. We’ve already talked to her about it.”

Lin Yu'an asked with some confusion, "What did you agree on?"

Garrett, the hottest-tempered brother-in-law, immediately interrupted and shouted at the screen.

“We men of the McKinley family have no reason to let our brother-in-law suffer alone in the wilderness!”

Bo, the three brothers-in-law, chimed in, "We've already arranged all the work on our respective farms. Each of us has squeezed out two whole weeks of our time. Next week, we'll fly over to help you."

Looking at the unyielding expressions of her brothers-in-law on the screen, and the reassuring smile on Aria's face, a huge wave of warmth instantly surged into Lin Yu'an's heart.

He originally wanted to say, "I can handle it myself."

But when the words reached my lips, they became the simplest and most sincere: "Thank you."

One week later, Fairbanks International Airport.

Lin Yu'an stood at the exit and soon spotted the four extremely conspicuous figures.

Wyatt, Garrett, Bo, and Clay were all dressed in thick work jackets and jeans, with indestructible yellow boots on their feet.

Each person carried a large backpack, and as they walked out of the passage, their powerful aura as true working-class men caused the well-dressed tourists around them to instinctively make way for them.

David and Mike excitedly recorded the scene of the logging team gathering.

Excitedly, he whispered to Mike, "Close up! Shoot their expressions! This is real family reality TV! Not those fake shows that are just acting in Beverly Hills!"

"Hey! Hermann!"

When his brothers-in-law saw Lin Yu'an, they quickly walked over and, without much pleasantry or small talk, each gave him a firm hug.

The other brothers-in-law also stepped forward and punched him, the force of which made Lin Yu'an wince.

They patted him hard on the back, then let go and looked him up and down: "You've gotten thinner, but you still look pretty muscular."

“You did a good job, Lin. But now, give us the heaviest work!”

(End of this chapter)