Flip the table and divide the family property! Take his wife and daughter into the mountains and eat

After the heavy snow cleared, the sun shone on the snow-covered ground, making people dizzy.

The commotion in Kaoshantun last night had subsided, and Zhao Shanhe got up very early.

He ignored the villagers still crowding around the TV antenna in front of his house, and instead changed into a neat fur-lined hunting outfit and carried the familiar bamboo basket on his back.

The basket on his back was heavy, filled with the "top-quality goods" he brought back from the provincial capital last night: two bottles of Beidacang liquor, two packs of Daqianmen liquor, and a large piece of sliced ​​Harbin red sausage.

"Black Dragon! Come out!"

Zhao Shanhe called out.

"Splash—"

A black bolt of lightning shot out from the doghouse.

That was Black Dragon. After that night's ordeal with the wolves, the dog had truly grown up.

It was lean and slender, with a shiny black body, and its white-rimmed eyes revealed a sinister glint.

Upon seeing Zhao Shanhe, it merely wagged the tip of its tail before crouching warily to the side, like an assassin ready to strike at any moment.

Immediately afterwards, Zhao Shanhe did not shout, but quietly walked to another shack covered with thick cotton quilts and squatted down.

"Old buddy, are you awake?"

Inside the shack, the enormous, bluish-gray beast—the Azure Dragon—struggled to raise its head.

Its hind leg, which had been broken and severely injured by wolves, was still wrapped in thick bandages, which Lin Xiu had carefully wrapped layer by layer with strips of cloth.

Qinglong's eyes lit up when he saw Zhao Shanhe.

It let out a low, affectionate whimper, its tail slapping loudly on the grass, as if trying to stand up to greet its owner.

But as soon as its hind legs braced, its body suddenly tilted to the side and it almost fell over.

"Don't move! What are you trying to prove!"

Zhao Shanhe pressed down on its large head, his voice full of heartache:

"A broken bone takes a hundred days to heal. This injury is from fighting for your life against the King of Hell. How can it heal so quickly?"

The Azure Dragon seemed to understand its master's scolding, and it rubbed its head against Zhao Shanhe's knees in a wronged manner, its wet nose exhaling a puff of hot air.

"I'm taking you back to your parents' home today."

Zhao Shanhe stroked the thick mane around its neck:

"We brought you back from Grandpa Sun's place. Now that you've done such a great service and suffered such a serious injury, we need to let him take a look. He has some folk remedies for bone injuries that are more effective than the plaster casts from the clinic."

After saying that, Zhao Shanhe tightened the basket on his back, then turned around, half-squatted on the snow, and patted his back:

"Come up."

Qinglong paused for a moment, hesitated, and shrank back, wanting to walk away on his own.

"Come on up!"

Zhao Shanhe gave a low shout, his tone leaving no room for argument:

"The snow is knee-deep along this road. If you walk by yourself, your leg will be ruined! How can you guard the house if it's ruined?"

Hearing this, Qinglong finally stopped insisting.

It carefully placed its two front legs on Zhao Shanhe's broad shoulders, trying to press its body weight down as much as possible.

Zhao Shanhe took a deep breath, supported Qinglong's buttocks with both hands, and exerted force with his waist and abdomen.

"rise!"

He gritted his teeth and carried the giant beast, which weighed over 100 pounds, on his back.

"Let's go!"

One person, one injured dog, and one black demon.

Zhao Shanhe trudged through the ankle-deep snow towards the back of the mountain.

The wind was strong, and it felt like knives on my face.

But Zhao Shanhe felt a warm sensation on his back.

……

Red Pine Forest Farm, a land devoid of offspring.

The log cabin, surrounded by barbed wire, still stands alone in the wind and snow, like an isolated island cut off from the world.

Before even entering the hospital, the black dragon that had been running ahead suddenly stopped.

Its nose twitched twice, as if it could smell that unforgettable scent—the old man who had once pinched its spine and asserted that it would "rebel when it grew up."

It instantly tucked its tail between its legs, letting out a defiant growl, but dared not take another step forward.

"Coward."

Zhao Shanhe cursed, then, carrying Qinglong on his back, kicked open the heavy wooden door.

"Bang!"

Inside the house, the fire was burning brightly.

Old Sun was sitting cross-legged on the kang (a heated brick bed), holding a piece of deerskin in his hand, wiping the old hunting rifle that he regarded as his life.

Hearing the noise, the old man didn't even lift his eyelids, and immediately started cursing:

"Who's so blind? Don't they know how to knock? You broke the door, and you don't have to pay for it?"

"Grandpa, it's me."

Zhao Shanhe entered the house panting, a thin layer of sweat on his forehead.

When Old Sun looked up, he was stunned by Zhao Shanhe's appearance.

Zhao Shanhe looked like a laborer, carrying a huge bluish-gray thing on his back and a heavy basket hanging on his chest, making him look somewhat hunched over.

The Azure Dragon, perched on his back, had its head drooping and looked extremely weak.

"this……"

Old Sun lowered his gun, his eagle eyes narrowed instantly, his gaze fixed on Qinglong's bandaged hind leg.

"How did you do that?"

Old Sun's voice instantly turned cold, carrying a hint of murderous intent.

"They ran into a pack of wolves. To protect their master, they charged straight in."

Zhao Shanhe walked to the edge of the kang (a heated brick bed), carefully turned around, and gently placed Qinglong on the warmest dog-skin rug at the end of the kang.

As soon as Qinglong touched the kang (a heated brick bed), he didn't lie down immediately. Instead, he struggled to move his body closer to Old Sun and stuck out his tongue to lick the old man's dry hand.

"Waaah..."

The cry sounded as aggrieved as a child who had been beaten outside seeing their own father.

Old Sun's hand trembled slightly.

He didn't dodge, letting the Azure Dragon lick him.

"You stupid beast."

Old Sun cursed, but his voice was somewhat hoarse.

He reached out and pinched the broken bone of the Azure Dragon with extremely fast and heavy movements.

Qinglong shuddered in pain, but he didn't utter a sound.

"The bone has been set, but there is still blood stasis inside, and the cold has penetrated into the bone."

Old Sun snorted, turned around and got off the kang (a heated brick bed), dragging his injured leg on the ground, but he walked very quickly.

He went to the cabinet in the corner of the room, rummaged around for a while, and took out a dark, asphalt-like jar, and a roll of yellowed oil paper.

"Take off the bandages," Old Sun ordered.

Zhao Shanhe quickly took action and untied the strips of cloth binding Lin Xiu one by one.

The exposed injured leg was red and swollen, with blood seeping from some places, a shocking sight.

Old Sun opened the jar, and an extremely pungent medicinal smell instantly filled the entire room.

It smelled of bear oil mixed with herbs and some kind of unknown poisonous insect.

"When I broke my leg, this thing was my lifeline."

Old Sun scooped out a large piece of black ointment, heated it in his palm with fire until it melted, and then rubbed his hands together vigorously to warm it up.

"Hold him down! This medicine is extremely potent!"

Zhao Shanhe quickly pressed down on Qinglong's head.

"Snapped!"

Old Sun applied the scalding hot ointment directly to Qinglong's injured leg, and with his hands like iron clamps, he vigorously rubbed and massaged the broken bone.

"Awooo—!!"

The Azure Dragon screamed in pain, its muscles convulsing violently, and it opened its mouth to bite.

But just as its teeth touched Old Sun's wrist, it abruptly stopped, its mouth agape, panting heavily, tears welling in its eyes from the pain.

"Bear with it!"

Old Sun was covered in sweat, but his hands kept moving.

"If the bruise doesn't clear up, this leg will be useless! Do you want to be a cripple for the rest of your life?"

I kneaded it for a full quarter of an hour.

Only after the black ointment had completely seeped into the flesh did Old Sun wrap his leg with oiled paper and then tightly bind it with a clean strip of cloth.

"Alright."

Old Sun let out a long sigh, plopped down on the edge of the kang (a heated brick bed), and wiped the sweat from his forehead.

"This medicine is potent. After applying it for three days, the bruising will dissipate, and the bones will heal properly. With another half month of rest, he'll be a fine man again."

The Azure Dragon had stopped roaring.

Although the medicine was strong, after the excruciating pain subsided, a warm sensation spread through the injured leg, making it so comfortable that it squinted its eyes, rested its head on Old Sun's leg, and remained still.

Zhao Shanhe felt a warm glow in his heart as he watched this scene.

This strange old man has a sharp tongue but a soft heart.

"Thanks, sir."

Zhao Shanhe took the contents out of the basket and laid them out on the table one by one.

Two bottles of Beidacang liquor, two packs of Daqianmen liquor, and the biggest piece of red sausage.

"This wine is to thank you for your medicine."

Zhao Shanhe poured a bowl of wine, held it with both hands, and looked solemn:

"But this first bowl is to honor your kindness in giving me the dog."

"If you hadn't given me this azure dragon back then, my whole family would have been wiped out the night the wolves broke into our yard a few days ago."

"What you gave me wasn't a dog, it was the lives of my whole family."

After saying that, Zhao Shanhe tilted his head back and drank the strong liquor in one gulp.

Old Sun looked at Zhao Shanhe, then at Qinglong lying on his lap, took a couple of puffs of his pipe, and finally cracked the hard shell on his face.

"Alright, stop with the sour grapes."

Old Sun picked up his wine bowl and took a sip:

"It's a spirit. Since it recognized you, it's its destiny to protect you from disaster. The fact that you remember this and still carried this hundred-odd pounds of its flesh up the mountain to ask for medicine shows that you're a kind and righteous person."

"This dog didn't choose the wrong person."

……

After a few rounds of drinks, the atmosphere in the room became much more lively.

Qinglong lay on the kang (a heated brick bed) and fell asleep. The medicine was taking effect, and it was sleeping very soundly.

Black Dragon also boldly slipped into the house and lay down by the stove to warm himself up.

"Speak."

Old Sun broke the whole piece of red sausage in half, tossing one half to Qinglong and the other half to Heilong. Then he pointed at Zhao Shanhe with his chopsticks: "You're the kind of kid who doesn't get up early for nothing. Carrying an injured dog up the mountain, besides expressing gratitude, there must be something important going on."

"I can tell from your eyes that you want something from me."

Zhao Shanhe put down his wine bowl. He looked at Old Sun, leaned forward slightly, and lowered his voice to a whisper:

"Sir, the Foreign Trade Bureau gave me a heads-up."

"The Moscow trade fair is in March. They want a top-quality sable fur that can intimidate the Soviets..."

"Sable?"

Old Sun frowned, toying with the empty wine glass in his hand: "If you were a level one skinny, although there aren't many on this mountain, with your skills, you could find one in half a month. Why did you have to come and ask me?"

"This is not your average Level 1."

Zhao Shanhe shook his head, stared into Old Sun's eyes, and uttered the word slowly and deliberately:

"What they want is... the 'Black Pearl'."

"That is, the kind that is completely black, with only a touch of frost white on the tips of the bristles, and the leather is as soft as silk.

Upon hearing the words "Black Pearl," Old Sun paused for a moment, his hand holding the wine glass still.

He didn't say anything, but instead filled a new pipe, lit it with a match, and took a deep drag.

"You really dare to dream," Old Sun said, exhaling a puff of smoke, his tone tinged with a hint of admiration.

"That thing isn't some mythical creature, but it's even harder to come by than a mythical one."

"The sable of that quality must be an old male sable that has lived for at least four or five years. Only old sables have thick enough underfur and shiny enough guard hairs. Moreover, it must have grown up in a shady, deep mountain forest, away from strong light, so that its fur can be a deep, purplish-black color."

Old Sun looked at Zhao Shanhe and held up three fingers: "This old mink is really cunning."

"First, it doesn't follow the usual path. It doesn't walk on the snow, it only walks on the treetops. It jumps from one tree to another without touching the ground, so you can't even find its footprints."

"Secondly, it has many burrows. A cunning rabbit has three burrows, but this thing must have ten. Moreover, it never goes back the same way; it sleeps here today and there tomorrow, so it's impossible to block it up."

"Third, and most difficult, is that there can't be any gun holes."

Old Sun pointed to the hunting rifle hanging on the wall: "That kind of top-quality leather is all about being 'flawless.' If you use a shotgun, the leather will be ruined; if you use a clamp, the leg hair will be broken. What the Foreign Trade Bureau wants is definitely the kind of 'tube leather' that's smoked or captured alive."

Zhao Shanhe nodded: "Yes, we need tube wrappers. That's why I'm worried."

"With the heavy snow blocking the mountains, I can't possibly search all over the place."

Old Sun squinted and remained silent for a long while. He seemed to be recalling the terrain of every corner of this mountain.

After a long while, he dipped his chopsticks in the wine and drew a simple topographical map on the kang table.

"Thirty miles to the north, there is a place called 'Eagle Beak Cliff'."

"The terrain there is treacherous, and the trees are all ancient red pines, their canopies connected, blocking out the sun all year round."

Old Sun raised his head, his eyes sharp as knives: "Three years ago, I saw the droppings of those old sables in that forest. That place is cold and damp, a perfect spot for 'Black Pearls'."

"If you want to catch it, you can't just chase after it. You'll be running on the ground, stumbling and falling, while it's flying in the trees. You'll exhaust yourself and still not catch it."

Old Sun tapped the table and revealed the true expert's secret:

"We have to use a 'clumsy' approach."

"What stupid trick?" Zhao Shanhe asked.

"Penetrating fragrance" plus "flexible set".

Old Sun pulled a package of oiled paper from his pocket and tossed it to Zhao Shanhe: "This is bait I made myself, a mixture of a female mink's estrus glands and musk. No matter how cunning the male mink is, it won't be able to resist this scent."

"When you reach Eagle's Beak Cliff, don't rush to chase after it. Find an old tree with wear marks at the entrance of a hollow, and smear this incense at the entrance."

"Then, three inches below the hole, place the thinnest horsehair loop. Remember, only horsehair; wire has a smell and won't drill through."

At this point, Old Sun pointed to Black Dragon, who was squatting by the stove pit, greedily gnawing on a red sausage:

"Also, we need to bring this black dog."

"Bring the Black Dragon?" Zhao Shanhe was taken aback. "Can't we use the Azure Dragon?"

"The Azure Dragon is strong and heavy; it is a warrior, meant to deal with wolves and wild boars."

Old Sun's eyes gleamed: "But once a sable gets startled and burrows into a crevice, the Azure Dragon can't get in. Only a slender, ruthless 'mountain herder' like this dares to sneak in and force it out."

"Alright."

Old Sun slammed his pipe on the sole of his shoe: "I've told you the location and the trick. Whether you can get that 'Black Pearl' card depends on how tough your luck is."

Zhao Shanhe gripped the oil paper package, still warm from his body.

This is real experience. There's no fantasy involved; it's all survival wisdom gleaned from the hard work of seasoned hunters.

"Sir, I've got it."

Zhao Shanhe stood up and respectfully filled Old Sun's cup with wine: "Once Qinglong's leg is healed and Heilong has been trained, I will go into the mountains."

"When the time comes, I'll definitely toast you first!"