I am a local in North America

Chapter 7 My Ancestors

"Climbing the hillside in the snow-covered forest takes far more physical exertion than usual. If I hadn't caught that pike today, I probably would have reduced the frequency and duration of fire-making, instead of running out to look for dead wood."

"It looks like even if we find it now, it won't be worthwhile to carry the firewood back. We've already walked almost two kilometers from the camp."

"I'm not sure exactly how far it is, but the road here is really difficult to travel. Maybe I should bring my homemade sled here, tie it with sawn firewood, and haul it back."

Just walking left me breathless, and my thermal underwear was soaked with sweat and felt sticky.
There were already quite a few firewood piles prepared in advance, but Su Jierui had no intuitive understanding of the terrifying low temperatures of minus thirty or forty degrees Celsius, and only thought that the more firewood the better.

Recently, the nighttime temperature has dropped to around -15 degrees Celsius, and he feels he can't hold on much longer. He doesn't need to worry too much about food for the time being, but lacking firewood would really be suicide.

As he walked, he kept a close eye on his surroundings.
Apart from some mice, insects, or hibernating squirrels hiding underground, there were no other prey to be seen.

"Huff...huff...Since participating in the show, I feel like I've seized every opportunity I could."

"We didn't catch any large game other than fish and the reindeer, mainly because there weren't any near the camp. And according to local laws, I could only hunt the black bear if my own safety was threatened."

"However, I feel that the current situation is about to meet the conditions for being threatened. The black bear Bell is coming to the vicinity of my camp more and more frequently. A black bear that is too hungry to hibernate has set its sights on me and sees me as prey. This is a deadly threat."

"But with my food reserves, I don't want to fight it. If I get injured during the bear hunt, the other contestants will just wave their million-dollar checks and laugh at me for being an idiot."

Su Jerry was unaware that one of his competitors this season had already successfully hunted a black bear, simply because that black bear had eaten the other's musk meat.

Black bear populations are rampant in North America, and people are allowed to legally hunt them almost every year. The total number of black bears is as high as 4 to 5, and the population is strictly managed by the authorities to ensure population stability and ecological balance. Hunters need to obtain a "bear license" before they can hunt.

In some areas, it is not uncommon for individuals to consume bear meat obtained through hunting, or for small-scale trade of bear meat and fur to take place.

With many species overpopulated, as long as you're willing to spend the money, you can find legal opportunities to hunt bears, crocodiles, wolves, moose, and more. This continent of the Americas is indeed a paradise for hunting enthusiasts.

After searching for more than an hour, we finally found another dead tree that had not yet fallen. Its bare branches were covered with ice and snow, and its bark was beginning to rot and peel off.

Su Jierui stopped talking and put down the action camera to get to work. After choosing a direction, he took out a saw and cut down the tree, which was more than ten meters tall.

To conserve energy, I deliberately slowed down my work, first gathering up the branches that were easy to burn and neatly arranging them on the rope.

After collecting forty or fifty pounds of branches, he tied them together with a rope and made a knot. After trying it out, he found that dragging them down the mountain was less strenuous than carrying them on his back, so he simply dragged the firewood all the way back to the camp.

They still didn't encounter any other prey along the way. After returning to the camp and tidying up the firewood, they went inside to drink some still-warm fish soup and rest for a while. Then came a long period of emptiness and loneliness.

Sitting on the edge of the bed, I used a small knife to carve wood. The shape of the sword was already quite realistic, with a rounded tip to prevent injury.

My older sister's nephew is over four years old and has started to become mischievous. There's nothing to show off in this desolate place, so Su Jierui makes his own toys, mainly to kill time.

Like many American families, Sue Jerry's family is quite lively. In addition to her older sister, she also has a younger sister who just turned 20 this year and is studying architecture at MIT. She has also won several awards and received full scholarships.

From childhood to adulthood, my home has always been very lively. I used to sometimes find it a bit troublesome and envy only-child families without siblings.

The prolonged loneliness was driving him crazy. Lately, Su Jierui often missed them and was thinking about what small gifts he could prepare for them once he made a fortune.

My parents make a living by fishing. Their life is neither good nor bad. Especially since all three of their children have gone to university or are currently in university, they have hardly saved any money in recent years. Fortunately, they were quite frugal in the past and managed to save some money.

His parents were quite savvy; they took out a loan to buy a house near Fisherman's Wharf in Seattle in the late 90s. They kept the second floor and attic for their own residence, while the first floor was rented out to open a seafood restaurant.

The house is in a good location with a view of the sea and the iconic Ferris wheel. After I bought it, the price skyrocketed. It dropped during the subprime mortgage crisis in 2008, but then reached a new high a few years later.

Last year, the family mortgaged their house to the bank for a $75 loan to buy a professional crab fishing boat. The total cost of the new boat was $130 million. They borrowed a large sum of money from the bank and estimate it will take several years to pay it off completely.

now.

Busy repairing a small sword with a dagger, Su Jierui muttered to himself as he explained:
"My ancestors once lived on an island in Zhejiang Province of China."

"During World War II, my great-grandfather risked his life to save a white pilot from Seattle at sea. In doing so, he was subjected to enemy aircraft fire, lost his small fishing boat which he used to make a living, and took care of the pilot for more than six months."

"Later, with the help of the other side, in order to escape the war and survive, my great-grandfather moved to the United States with my grandfather and great-aunt to make a living, and settled down there to this day."

"Even now, my family maintains a good relationship with the pilot's family and we occasionally meet at Thanksgiving gatherings."

"Their family owns several car dealerships, as well as wine and other businesses, all under the brand 'Lancaster.' Hopefully this part won't be cut. Sellers who are interested can contact them."

Taking this opportunity to reciprocate is like returning a small favor.

He had saved the Lancaster family's lives years ago, but later the pilot and his descendants also helped the family a great deal.

For example, the Lakeside School that Su Jerry attended during his secondary school years was only able to be enrolled thanks to connections made by the Lancaster family.

To put it simply, Bill Gates attended this private school, and both of his daughters are also enrolled here. As the world's richest man for many consecutive years, it's hard to find any obvious shortcomings.

Gates' second daughter, Phoebe Adele Gates, was in the next class with Sue Jerry and took elective courses together for a few months.

Unfortunately, I was young and naive back then and had no concept of clinging to a rich woman. Otherwise, I should have tried a few times, whether there was a chance or not. What if I had fallen for her?

Without a strong letter of recommendation, given Su Jierui's grades and family background, it would be almost impossible for him to be admitted.

It wasn't that he wasn't smart or hardworking enough; it was just that those Asian students were incredibly competitive and driven to get ahead. Add to that the school's racial quotas, which meant they would often recruit minority students as a show, meaning admissions weren't entirely based on merit. Otherwise, top universities would be dominated by Asian students, especially Chinese students.

at dusk.

Taking a break wasn't entirely fruitless; he had figured out a reasonable way to barbecue the dying alligator snapping turtle.

……

I didn't bring a camera with me when I went out.

First, go to the trap area and get the frozen entrails of the pike and yellow perch. After walking for a while, bury them near the burrow where the alligator snapping turtle is hiding.

About four or five meters from the lake shore, there are some natural soil cracks under the tree roots, which are sheltered from the wind and go deep underground, making them very suitable for overwintering.

Followed by.

Su Jierui began to clean up the scene, restoring the original appearance of the snow under the trees on the shore, and carefully swept away his footprints with a branch.

Heavy snow was falling from the sky, and it would probably cover all his footprints in no time.

The black bear has a very keen sense of smell. His plan is to first use the strong fishy smell of the fish entrails to attract the black bear to dig, then reasonably suspect that there are some animals hiding underground, and then dig out the dying alligator snapping turtle.

In this way, even if the entire process is filmed, he doesn't need to worry about giving himself away; he can explain it away as luck or being careful.

Otherwise, simply "accurately locating the alligator snapping turtle hiding in the cave" seems rather unbelievable.

Digging is not a skill that black bears are good at, and besides, the ground was frozen solid, so Su Jerry wasn't worried that the alligator snapping turtle would be eaten by the black bear.

After inspecting the site, we returned to the camp feeling quite pleased with ourselves.

I chopped so much firewood this afternoon, and I was quite exhausted. My stomach started growling again.

He thought for a moment, then took out a yellow perch from the wooden smoked meat storage box located outdoors, intending to make grilled fish for tonight.

After removing the internal organs, about 1.5 pounds remain. I'll eat two-thirds tonight, and use the rest for tomorrow's breakfast.

“A hard yellow perch is hard enough to be used as a hammer. If you use it as a murder weapon, as long as you don’t leave any DNA, the detectives will never think of it.”

After muttering to himself, Su Jierui started a fire to prepare to grill the fish.

The ingredients were prepared in advance, and even the tiny scales were scraped off.

The giant white pike, which was about 1.3 meters long, was also cut into pieces beforehand, with each piece weighing about 1 pound, so that it could be eaten in several servings.

Once the flames were lit, he placed the fish about 15 centimeters away from the fire, ensuring that the fish was heated evenly and preventing the skin from burning.

While waiting, Su Jierui took out an oval-shaped stone from his pocket, smiled, and showed it to him, saying:
“My collection is perfect. I’m so lucky to have found it before the show finished filming.”

"At first, I saw a larger rock that looked like a foot."

"Then I paid special attention to the stones on the ground, trying to arrange the toes from largest to smallest."

“We’ve already collected all the other toes, but we haven’t found a suitable big toe with a similar color. Now it’s perfect…”

Arrange the stones in order and use a sports camera to film the footage.

Judging from the shape of the stones, it really does look like a small footprint, and even the colors are very similar.

Besides.

Su Jerry's most prized possession is a straight black walnut stick, coated with pine resin, which gives it a beautiful pattern.

It was about two meters long, and he used a dagger to trim it until it was smooth and flat, which took him more than a month in total. This shows how bored he usually was.

The yellow perch is ready.

Use a dagger to pry it open, and the golden-brown, glossy fish skin bursts open, revealing the snow-white, tender flesh inside.

The aroma of roasted fish wafts through the air, accompanied by a generous sprinkle of salt and roasted wild onion powder. The moment it enters your mouth, the outer skin is crispy, while the fish meat is sweet and juicy, making it far more delicious than smoked dried fish.

"The heat is just right, and my grilled fish is getting better and better. Cooking skills really are all about practice, haha."

After entertaining yourself, continue lying still to reduce your calorie expenditure.

Similar to a mobile phone, being in standby mode can extend battery life, the only downside being the unbearable boredom.

He has a little trick to help him get through the tough nights: he closes his eyes and imagines the plot of a novel in his mind, which is the easiest way to kill time.

If he had the time, he wanted to write a book about fishing, adapting it to his family's specific circumstances. He thought he could publish it and make some money, and it would also serve as his graduation project for his master's degree in literature...

(End of this chapter)