American Hunting: Starting with Solitary Life in the Wilderness

Chapter 216 The Turning Point

Lin Yu'an wiped his hands and answered the satellite phone. It was Mark.

As soon as the call connected, before Lin Yu'an could even speak, Mark's voice, like a machine gun firing, burst out, filled with barely suppressed excitement and relief.

"Lin! Don't talk, listen to me! Great news! Huge, incredible news! I swear, this is the coolest thing I've ever heard in my twenty years of making shows!"

"Take your time, Mark, don't get so excited you choke on your own." Lin Yu'an was infected by his emotions, but still remained calm. In her heart, she had a premonition that the turning point Mark had promised might really be coming.

"I can't help but be excited!"

Mark shouted from the other end, "Remember that briefcase? Its owner, Dr. Michaels Lane! We've found her!"

Lin Yu'an raised an eyebrow. "Oh? That's really good news. She didn't say she was going to sue me, did she?"

Mark laughed, "Sue you? She'd be grateful to you!"

"She's currently on a temporary academic exchange at St. John's University in Newfoundland. After our people contacted her, she expressed her immense gratitude for you finding her such an important sample box, and... she wants to meet you!"

Lin Yu'an was a little surprised and joked, "See me? I can't get away right now unless she's willing to come here for grilled fish."

“I have already explained to her that you are participating in the wilderness challenge and cannot leave for the time being.”

"Then, just as I was about to hang up, I suddenly thought of that poor little thing... A thought, ding! It lit up my head like a light bulb!"

"I asked her, 'Doctor, if I may ask, is your seemingly impressive research institute... perhaps interested in helping an orphaned polar bear?'"

On the other end of the phone, Mark seemed to excitedly take a sip of water, making a "gulp" sound.

"Lin, guess what she said? She said she's not only interested, but their base has the most advanced rewilding training facilities for large Arctic mammals in all of North America! It's like a kindergarten for Arctic animals! My God! This is simply divine intervention!"

“I immediately told her everything about Little Bear, including your situation, the bureaucracy we encountered, and everything else.”

"After listening to her, she only said one thing: 'Keep all the relevant videos you've taken and give me the contact information for that stupid Canadian official. I'll follow up on this.'"

Lin Yu'an subconsciously glanced at December, who was sitting next to him, happily munching on a small piece of dried fish with her two front paws, and a warm feeling welled up in her heart.

“Just now, a few minutes ago!” Mark’s tone was filled with awe and disbelief.

"Dr. McCormick's assistant called, Lin, take a deep breath and listen carefully... Our team has obtained a fully legal temporary rescue authorization from Environment Canada for this specific cub!"

Lin Yu'an was stunned; he could hardly believe his ears. In less than a day, that cold and resolute official decision had been completely reversed by a woman he had never met before!
"This...how is this possible? How did she do that?"

Mark remarked, "Because she is neither me nor you, Lynn."

“She didn’t go through the usual channels at all. Instead, she contacted the Canadian federal science advisor and several international environmental organizations that they collaborate with, all under the name of a top international research institution.”

"From a thorny local incident, it was cleverly packaged into an 'emergency intervention and international scientific research cooperation on an unexpected break in the polar food chain.' Listen to that level of vision and scale!"

"She promised the Canadian side that her organization would provide remote scientific guidance throughout the process and was willing to take the cub in free of charge for professional rewilding training, and that all research data would be shared with the Canadian side."

"Faced with such a stepping stone that could both solve the problem and gain a huge positive international reputation, those bureaucrats had no reason to refuse."

Lin Yu'an let out a long breath, feeling as if the biggest weight on his heart had finally been lifted.

“That’s great…Mark, please thank her for me. And thank you too.”

“Don’t thank me yet, Lin.” Mark’s voice became serious again.

"This isn't over yet; the real challenge is just beginning. Listen carefully to what's coming next."

Mark emphasized, "We can't take it away yet. According to the agreement reached between Dr. McCormick and the Canadian side, in order to minimize human contact and avoid the cub developing a dependence on multiple people, which would affect subsequent rewilding training."

“Until McCormick’s professional team arrives, you will be the only legal, officially designated caregiver.”

"Me?" Lin Yu'an's tone carried a hint of absurdity.

"You mean, I have to continue the survival challenge with a polar bear in tow?"

Mark laughed and said, "Haha, congratulations, you got it right!"

“Dr. McCormick needs time. Her professional team and equipment need to fly from Alaska and meet up with the team in Canada. This involves complex cross-border scheduling and official procedures. Conservatively speaking, it will take more than ten days to reach your location.”

"More than ten days?"

“That’s right. And Lin, you have to understand, this matter has now become a huge news event.”

"The involvement of Dr. McCormick's organization has drawn the attention of Canadian officials, the media, and major animal protection organizations."

"The day they come to pick up Little Bear will likely be a live-streamed 'handover ceremony,' which is essentially a good political show. Therefore, all parties need time to prepare and make arrangements beforehand."

Mark paused, then his tone shifted again, becoming a mixture of excitement and composure: "Lin, I'm telling you this now as the lead producer of *Wilderness Solitary: The Frozen Throne*. Do you know what this means? It means we've hit the jackpot!"

"After hearing my report, the executives at Discovery Channel went completely crazy! They believe that this 'polar bear rescue incident' is the biggest and most positive 'hot topic' we've encountered since the start of this project!"

"This has transcended a simple survival challenge and evolved into a global event filled with the brilliance of humanity, international cooperation, and top-notch scientific research."

“Our PR team is going all out! They’re shaping you into a ‘lone hero who chose life over rules’.”

"And Dr. McCormick's involvement gave this story the most perfect, scientifically rigorous sequel. Ann, do you understand? You're no longer just a contestant; you're becoming the detonator of a bombshell!"

Mark's speech quickened, unable to conceal his excitement as a top producer: "The higher-ups have decided to produce a standalone documentary special around this!"

"Every moment you spend with the polar bear cub over the next ten days will be the core material for this documentary!"

"The copyright value of this film may exceed the entire prize money of the challenge! Our ratings will be historic, and we may even be able to compete for an Emmy Award!"

Mark's tone returned to calm: "So, Lin. From now on, your challenge has a second meaning. You not only have to live for yourself, but also strive for the perfect ending to this story."

"Discovery Channel will use all its resources to ensure that this matter develops in the most favorable direction for us in terms of public opinion and law. As for you, you just need to do what you do best—survive, and take care of the bear."

"Based on the principle of minimal contact, allowing the polar bear cub to interact only with you is currently the best solution that everyone agrees on."

"Lin, congratulations. Over the next ten days or so, you'll not only be a challenger, but also the protagonist of a great documentary, continuing to survive in the wild with this little guy!"

Lin Yu'an was not blinded by Mark's grand vision and interrupted Mark's excitement, calmly raising a most practical question.

“Mark, don’t rush to pop the champagne. Whether it’s a documentary or an Emmy, there’s one prerequisite—the bear has to be alive.”

Mark on the other end of the phone paused for a moment: "Of course, there's no doubt about it. Could it be that the bear has already..."

Lin Yu'an's tone was extremely serious: "Not yet, but it will be soon. As for food, I can't keep using fish oil as a substitute for milk. My resources are limited, and the nutrition is definitely not balanced enough."

"It's growing rapidly, and in a few days this amount of food won't be enough to satisfy its appetite. Most importantly, my own food reserves are also being depleted much faster because of taking care of it."

“I understand, Lin.” Mark immediately suppressed his excitement and resumed his serious demeanor.

“You’ve touched on the most crucial point. I’m sorry, Lin, I was so excited that I forgot to tell you this crucial point. Don’t worry, we already have a solution.”

"We expect to send a helicopter to deliver a batch of supplies to you tomorrow. These are 'scientific research supplies' specially approved through official channels and intended for this rescue operation, so they are completely legal."

Mark emphasized the legal origin of the supplies and then explained it in detail.

"The airdrop crate mainly contained food and specialized equipment for the little guy. It included several large cans of their organization's specially made, high-fat infant formula, enough for him to eat until Dr. McCormick's team arrived."

"There are also matching special baby bottles, cleaning tools, and various necessary vitamin supplements, as well as more professional shooting equipment and a sufficient amount of batteries. I believe you will be able to operate it."

Mark added, "In addition, there's a professional medical monitoring kit with a non-contact infrared thermometer that allows you to monitor its temperature at any time to prevent overheating or hypothermia." "There are also some basic medical supplies. Don't worry, everything is covered with a very detailed instruction manual—how to use everything, how to prepare the formula, the daily feeding amount, and precautions—you just need to follow it."

They discussed a few more details and then hung up the phone.

Lin Yu'an stood there blankly for a long time, still processing the massive amount of information from the phone call.

He looked down and saw that the little bear, which had just been playing with dried fish, seemed to sense his change in mood. It had come close to his feet and was gently rubbing its little head against his trouser leg, making a soothing "mmm" sound in its throat.

Lin Yu'an slowly squatted down, picked up the furry little guy, and pressed his forehead against its equally furry little head.

He transformed from a "violationist" facing legal sanctions into the "solely designated caretaker" authorized by the authorities.

This change in identity allowed him to openly and wholeheartedly devote all his energy to the little life before him. His challenge also transformed from a solitary wilderness survival struggle into a weighty responsibility of raising bears in the wilderness.

And he himself is no longer just a contestant, but... possibly the protagonist of a great documentary.

“Hey, little guy,” he said softly, a hint of amusement in his voice that he himself didn’t even realize.

"Did you hear that? We'll be spending a lot of time together. Not only can you not cause me any trouble, but you also have to behave well. The whole world might be watching us then."

The little bear seemed to understand the ease in his tone, and in response, it stuck out its pink tongue and gently licked the tip of his nose.

Lin Yu'an put it down, a huge weight lifted from his heart. He no longer needed to worry about any legal issues; everything he had done would be recognized as a legitimate rescue.

A thought flashed through his mind like lightning. He subconsciously touched the GoPro on his chest. He had turned it on earlier to record a black box, evidence that might be needed to defend himself in court.

He had thought that the contents of this videotape would forever remain a secret known only to him, which he would watch alone on some future night.

But now, everything is different.

Mark and the Discovery Channel are working hard to make this a positive global event.

His videotape contains the very core, the most original, and the most touching beginning of the entire event—a unique scene that all the cameras on the production team missed due to "low-temperature power loss"!
He skillfully opened the card slot of the GoPro camera belonging to the production crew, took out a MicroSD card, and then opened the GoPro on his chest to take out the memory card that recorded the entire rescue process.

He then swapped the two cards in his hands, and steadily inserted his memory card, which was filled with precious footage, into the program's camera.

Then, he put the almost blank memory card from the show's production team into his GoPro.

A perfect material alternation.

The value of this material is immeasurable, and it has the potential to be seen by more people!
Only if their story is made public can his and his little bear December's story be told perfectly, and only then can they receive maximum support and protection.

As for whether to let more people see this potentially illegal footage, that's a problem for Mark and his team to figure out later.

After doing all this, he turned the GoPro back on to record, gave a meaningful smile, and then picked up December from beside his feet and held it in front of the camera.

He laughed and said, "Alright, December. From now on, let's officially greet the world."

Then, he refocused his attention on the work at hand.

Although the catch this time was not as large as the last time, with only about twenty fish, almost every single one was an enormous creature, and the total weight was absolutely overwhelming.

With December as his "sweet burden," his need for dietary fat resources is more urgent than ever before.

He looked at the little guy peering curiously at his feet and then at the GoPro camera on his chest, saying, "Alright, December, today I'll give you a lesson on handling wild food."

"When processing fish, the first step is always sorting. Different fish and different parts of the fish have the most suitable processing methods."

Lin Yu'an divided the more than twenty fish into three piles. The red-spotted salmon, which had the largest number, had firm flesh and moderate oil content, so he classified them into one category.

He picked up one of them, brought it to his nose, and smelled the cold, fishy odor. A look of disgust appeared on his face, and he gently shook his head.

Facing the GoPro camera on his chest, he slowly said in a tone that was a mix of self-deprecation and seriousness, "To be honest, I'm really getting tired of eating tasteless grilled fish chunks."

"Every day it was just salty and fishy smells. After a while, I felt like I was turning into a wild beast that only knew how to eat."

Lin Yu'an gently tapped the frozen fish with the back of his knife, making a "bang" sound. "Of course, freezing it directly is the easiest way. A natural icebox at minus twenty degrees Celsius is convenient enough. But people can't live on convenience alone."

"So, I plan to spend some time and effort to deal with these things."

Then he pushed the pile of red-spotted salmon forward, a glimmer of expectation in his eyes.

“I plan to cold smoke it, which will give these fish a completely different and complex smoky flavor.”

Another pile consists of several medium-sized pike. Their flesh is delicious, but they have many intramuscular bones. "These are not suitable for making jerky. I will remove the fish meat and grill it directly for the time being."

Finally, he turned his gaze to the largest lake trout, which December had used as a toy, and several other equally plump trout of the same kind.

"And these big guys are the highlight of today. Their most valuable parts, besides their thick, fatty flesh, are the rich oil in their internal organs and heads."

He started by processing the huge lake trout, his knife work precise and efficient. The tip of the knife sliced ​​along the fish's spine, easily slicing off two large, pink fillets with beautiful marbling.

The finest fillets were strung together and hung on a beam near the top of the shelter. The dry air and the faint heat from the fireplace would slowly dry them into nutritious jerky, though it would lack a smoky flavor.

After processing the fish meat, he threw the remaining fish head, bones, skin, and internal organs into the iron pot, intending to render more fish oil to provide ample "ammunition" for the December "milk substitute".

While waiting for the fish oil to be rendered, Lin Yu'an began preparing the second "luxury meal" of the day for December.

He said to the GoPro camera, "I've used up all the wolf heart I had yesterday, so starting today, I need to find new sources of protein and trace elements from the catch."

Then, from that pile of fish offal, he carefully picked out a few whole, brightly colored fish livers, and the thin, fatty mesentery that wrapped around the fish roe.

"Fish liver is also rich in vitamins, but it is much less risky than apex predators, while the mesentery of fish roe is an excellent source of fat and protein."

Similarly, these must all be processed into the most easily digestible form.

Using the same meticulous methods he employed when processing wolf hearts, he repeatedly scraped and crushed the fish livers and mesentery, eventually creating a small pile of delicate, light pink minced meat.

These will be entirely new sources of animal protein and trace elements in today's milk replacer formulas.

After doing all this, he reached out and turned off the GoPro. The flashing red dot went out instantly, and only then did he begin to execute his real "secret recipe" in complete privacy.

With a slight thought, he took out the metal milk powder can with a cute baby's face printed on it from his golden finger space, scooped out a few spoonfuls of milk powder, put it into a clean birch bark bowl, and then quickly put the milk powder can back.

Simply making fat substitutes by hand has limited nutritional value, so he decided to make one on camera, and then secretly give December an extra meal off-camera. Fortunately, Mark promised to airdrop professional milk powder for polar bear cubs tomorrow.

After doing all this, he restarted the GoPro recording and began his performance for the world.

Lin Yu'an skillfully mixed the freshly refined, warm fish oil with a small amount of wolf oil, then added the prepared cod liver paste, and finally mixed it with warm water, stirring carefully until it was evenly mixed.

Based on his recovery in December, he specially prepared the "milk substitute" to be a little thicker.

He then explained meticulously to the camera: "Its digestive system is gradually adapting, so we can appropriately increase the energy density. Today, we used fish liver and fish roe mesentery instead of wolf internal organs, making the nutritional sources more diverse."

When the bowl of fragrant food was placed in front of her again, December immediately cheered and quickly devoured the entire bowl of milk substitute.

After eating and drinking its fill, December was much more energetic than the day before. Instead of immediately going to sleep, it began another adventure in the shelter.

As evening fell, having finished preparing food for December, Lin Yu-an was finally able to start preparing her own dinner.

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(As usual, please vote for me! PS: You can also check out the author's note on the last page of this chapter.)
(End of this chapter)