Reborn in 80: Starting with hunting in the mountains to get rich

Chapter 446 Li Changqing's Accident

Lu Jinyang called out to him, "Leader Chen from the forest farm has been looking for you for several weeks, but you've been politely declining him. So he went to Sun Weimin's area. Are you aware of this?"

The forestry leader, Chen, has been having a headache lately because of the stag mites in the mountains that have been causing injuries.

The number of barbarians in the mountains has surged in the last two and a half years. Mountain villagers dare not walk alone on the old ginseng trails; those dirt paths are easily attacked by barbarians unless you're in a group. I heard that the son of the old man from the next village was dragged away on a mountain path while accompanying his wife to visit her parents. His wife was crying and screaming, clutching their child. Luckily, they ran into a group of herders, and only then, still shaken, were they taken to the hospital.

Later, that family led a search party through the mountains, but they couldn't find their son. The village elders said that in that state, he was probably eaten by stags, leaving only bone fragments. His wife, holding their one-year-old child, couldn't bear it and fainted; she was taken away by her family.

The people in the safari team said they seemed to hear a bear roar. The low-frequency bear roar sounded particularly eerie.

Li Ju'an knew about the frequent occurrences of wild boars in the mountains, so he had been busy visiting several farms lately, driving whenever possible and avoiding going into the mountains alone. At most, he would set traps near the wild boar forest. There were also many hunters passing by, so he hadn't encountered any wild boars.

He said, "When I go to wish the old mechanics in the automotive department a Happy New Year, I'll go to the forest farm and ask around to see what's going on."

Lu Jinyang responded, then suddenly looked up and said, "Qin Pao is coming out, right? Qin Pao should know about this, after all, it was his fault."

Li Ju'an understood Lu Jinyang's meaning. This pack of wolves was a large one, and they also roared like bears. Moreover, bears don't stay in their dens in the dead of winter. For even a few bears to roam outside in the freezing cold, they would need a sufficient amount of food. Apart from the wolf with eyes that Qin Pao had trained, no other wolf pack could manage that.

He was also somewhat annoyed, saying, "I should have shot that beast dead back then; I was too lenient."

Back then, Wolf Eyes and Tiger were fighting dogs, and he let Wolf Eyes go out of respect for Qin Pao. Now he regrets it deeply; he should have beaten that beast back then, which would have been better than all this trouble now.

Song Desheng had finished arguing with the feed mill supplier. After seeing the supplier off, he ran over and said, "What are you saying! Li Ju'an, you're finally back. My daughter wants to play with your kids. She said she wants a little sister."

Li Ju'an laughed and said, "Sure, come to the mountains in a couple of days. You can build a snowman in the backyard. I'll get you a grilled fish and roasted pork, and stew a big braised pork knuckle. Let your daughter eat to her heart's content."

Song Desheng grinned broadly and exclaimed, "Alright! That gluttonous girl loves coming to your house. She calls you Uncle Li all the time, knowing that you'll never lack for food."

Li Ju'an's family had no shortage of wild game; meat and oil were plentiful. This caught the eye of Song Desheng's daughter. At only four years old, she was already quick-witted and articulate, her chubby little face endearing. She was a master of flattery, showering people with compliments. Even Yang Dezheng, the stern and rigid brigade leader, would beam with joy upon seeing Song Desheng's daughter, insisting on playing with her for a while.

Li Ju'an thought that Song Desheng's daughter's sweet talk was just like his father's. Song Desheng was a master at flirting, charming his wife with sweet words, and his daughter was just as good at it, able to sweet-talk anyone without batting an eye.

He left the sheep farm and ran towards the old man's house.

Along the way, Nannan nestled in Lin Mei's arms, whimpering, "Pig, little fat pig." Lin Mei smiled and held her daughter's small hand, saying, "Daddy doesn't raise piglets, he raises ground sheep, he raises plateau moles."

The little girl couldn't understand the word "highland mole," so she just repeated in her baby voice, "Mouse, mouse, Daddy raises mice."

This amused Li Ju'an and his mother, Song Lanhua. The group chatted and laughed all the way, crossing the main road of the county town and stopping in front of a tenement building.

Li Ju'an went to visit the old man's family, carrying large and small bags. As soon as he led the family into the house, he felt the oppressive atmosphere that enveloped him.

Li Changqing is back.

Four years later, Li Changqing returned home for the first time.

The old woman looked at Li Changqing now and almost cried her eyes out.

When Li Changqing made a fuss about leaving his hometown and heading south, he was in good health, with well-proportioned muscles and a lot of energy. He was a refined and reserved but capable young man.

Four years have passed, and Li Changqing has lost a lot of weight. His cheeks have become sunken, and at such a young age, his temples are already streaked with gray. His eyes have lost their former vigor and spirit, and instead are filled with a sense of powerlessness and exhaustion, like a middle-aged man who has experienced many vicissitudes.

"elder brother?"

"Ju'an, you've arrived."

After giving a brief greeting, Li Changqing remained seated in the room, ignoring everyone. The old woman, her eyes swollen from crying, held Song Lanhua's hand and rambled on about the events of the past few years.

Li Changqing hadn't said he was coming home for the New Year. That morning, however, he suddenly showed up at the door and knocked. His mother thought her son would only call, as always, and never show up. She was overjoyed and heartbroken to see her son, whom she had missed for four years, standing right there at the door. She rubbed his thin, sunken face and burst into tears.

The old man, wiping his red eyes, said, "Don't say anything more, come in and eat. Ju'an will be coming again for lunch."

Li Changqing sat silently in the house, listening to his mother crying as she cooked, until Li Ju'an arrived.

Li Ju'an had a meal with the elderly couple. After the meal, he originally intended to chat with his relatives. However, seeing Li Changqing's state, he didn't want to disturb the family. He spoke a few words with his mother and wife, and seeing the elderly couple's absent-minded appearance, he got up to leave.

Suddenly, Li Changqing called out to him.

Li Changqing said, "Ju'an, I've been reported."

The familiar words sent a shiver down Li Ju'an's spine, as if he had been struck by lightning.

The intense anger and resentment from his previous life made him furrow his brow and clench his fists tightly as he suppressed his anger and the urge to explode. He asked, "Who reported me?"

"That bastard Zhang Yingnian."

After Li Changqing finished speaking, he lowered his head again, staring helplessly at the tiled floor, and put down the chopsticks in his hand.

A surge of intense emotions welled up within Li Ju'an, his anger rising and falling like tides. He knew that Li Changqing had come home to say goodbye.

In his previous life, he was reported by Zhang Yingnian, who gathered evidence and sent him to prison. Twenty years in prison suffocated him. By the time he was released, he was middle-aged, and there was no chance for him to turn things around.

In this life, he earnestly advised his cousin Li Changqing not to go south and not to partner with Zhang Yingnian in business. Li Changqing ignored him, assuming that he was jealous and envious of his achievements, and that Zhang Yingnian had now reported him.