bookrebus Chapter 384 Chen Xiangqian Returns to the Village with Congratulatory Gifts
Chapter 384 Chen Xiangqian Returns to the Village with Congratulatory Gifts
Li Ju'an injured his right hind leg. It's impossible for it to have been unharmed after being trampled by a Gobi bear. He estimated that he would need to have an X-ray taken to see how serious the injury was, but it would likely involve contusions.
Sun Weimin was more seriously injured. He heard that Li Ju'an was covered in blood after being crushed by a bear, and thought his childhood friend was about to die. His adrenaline surged, and he dragged his injured body over. The pain from his broken ribs was excruciating.
Old Chen's leg is injured, but Old Li is fine, just weak.
Fortunately, Li Ju'an brought over two animals: a horse and a small ibex.
Now, the horse carries wounded hunting dogs on both sides, hanging in baskets tied with hemp ropes on both sides, and is being carried on the horse's back. A trailer is also being pulled behind the horse, carrying lightly injured dogs.
The little ibex was also a laborer, not idle at all, pulling a small cart loaded with heavy goods. Poor little lamb, not long after birth, already a laborer.
Old Li laughed and said, "These argali sheep are quite well-behaved. Once trained, what path can't they take in the mountains? They can even climb the Gobi Desert. They're more agile and efficient than mules."
Li Ju'an thought of how the Himalayan blue sheep would be listed as a first-class protected animal in later generations. Who would dare to ask a first-class protected animal to pull a sled or a trailer? He said, "Your butt must be itching for a fight. You dare to think about something that will get you jail time."
Old Li really dared to think that way. He said, "We're the 'Five Guarantees' households, so what? Can't I even think about it? Is thinking about it illegal?"
Several people burst into laughter.
The duty room by the hydroelectric power station dam was quiet at night.
Chicken Butt, Fortune, and Flower Girl's three cheering dogs were fine, barking as they rushed towards the duty room.
The duty room door was hurriedly opened, and Qian Gong was so excited. Looking at Sun Weimin, Lao Chen and Lao Li, his emotions surged up and he was overwhelmed with feelings. He quickly pulled the group into the duty room, lit a fire, and made them warm on the kang (heated brick bed), crying his eyes out.
"Old Chen, don't really blame me for running fast. I was really out of options back then. To be honest, I was genuinely scared. Two bears were circling around under the tree roots. I have elderly parents and young children to take care of. How could I not be scared?"
He knelt on the ground, begging Old Chen and the others for forgiveness, slapping himself repeatedly across the face, shouting, "I'm not human, I'm not even a thing, I'm a beast!"
Old Chen was so angry his cheeks were trembling. He pointed at him and cursed, "You can run away, but you should at least leave a gun behind! Not a single bullet, not a single gun. But you, you disappeared as soon as you saw a bear, vanished without a trace, and didn't even fire a single shot. I'll take you into the mountains for a few rounds! Even a dog is better than you!"
Old Chen, being the oldest and most senior, was furious and started cursing at Qian Gong while pointing at the dog.
Qian Gong accepted everything without question, slapping himself repeatedly.
Old Chen was filled with disappointment, and Old Li sighed as well. He pulled Chen Xiangqian aside and said to Qian Gong, "A kid this age who doesn't even know how to fire a gun? He's using this old, broken foreign cannon, which is so dangerous it might explode, and this kid didn't even flinch. Aren't you ashamed? I really didn't expect this at your age. You run away at the sight of a bear, you're not even as good as a kid."
Hunters in the mountains have a rule: they will not abandon their companions and run away on their own.
Let alone hunting wild boars, even if you were a tiger hunter, you wouldn't leave your companions behind and run away, betraying your teammates to danger. Such a person is despised by hunters. If word gets out and the hunters in the mountains find out, no one will go into the mountains with him. Everyone would want to spit on him and stomp on him.
Qian Gong remained silent and did not try to argue. He just cried and said that his child's tuition fees depended on this trip to divide the profits. He just wanted to go into the mountains to hunt mountain goats and some ground goats, which are also known as plateau mole rats, or catch a pangolin alive to sell at the market to raise money for his child's tuition. His elderly mother was waiting for money for medicine, and his wife was waiting for him to earn money to buy rice and flour for cooking.
With so many mouths to feed in the family, all open and eagerly waiting for him to feed them, he really didn't dare to risk his life running up the mountain like a fugitive.
Li Ju'an remained silent and said nothing.
In the impoverished mountains, the burden of supporting a family fell entirely on the men's shoulders. Qian Gong risked his life to earn money, but upon encountering a bear, he would turn and run, faster than his companions, without firing a single shot. There's no way to whitewash such behavior.
"Let's warm ourselves by the fire and rest. Is there any hot water? Let's boil some."
Exhausted, the group collapsed onto the floor of the duty room. The injured hunting dog lay sprawled on the floor as well. The radio station nearby was still broadcasting Qian Gong's distress signal on a loop.
Li Ju'an sighed and said, "Let's boil some more soup and use the meat I brought. There's a lot of mutton in the bundle on the horse."
"okay."
Qian Gong hurriedly started running around, as if only in this way could he feel a little more at ease and feel better.
People at the bottom of society work themselves to the bone to earn a living, all for a few coins. And it is precisely these few coins that can provide food for their wives and children, education for their children, medicine for their elderly mothers, and a mere glimpse of their former glory.
Qian Gong was in his early forties, but his head was completely white, and his busy figure made him look much older.
After daybreak, the group used the power station's dial phone to contact the nearest ranch.
After learning about the situation, Captain Wang of the ranch hurriedly dispatched veterinarian Xiao Chen, the ranch's barefoot doctor Lao Jiang, and some members of the ranch to come over.
When the ranch rescue team arrived, the forestry station, having received news of the trapped person, also organized a rescue team. Upon learning that Sun Weimin had been missing for several days, the Sun family also organized hunters from the village to search for and rescue him in the mountains.
The three teams arrived around night of the second day. Some carried stretchers, others carried carts, and veterinarian Xiao Chen even had someone bring baskets to transport the injured hunting dog.
When Xiao Chen saw the two falcons on Li Ju'an's shoulders and the golden eagle on his horse, he was amazed and said, "This golden eagle looks quite majestic. It hasn't eaten for the past few days, but it hasn't become weak at all. It's very energetic."
Li Ju'an was exhausted. He glanced at the golden eagle and said, "This golden eagle is hard to keep going. It didn't eat or drink for three days on the road and it didn't lose any strength at all. We humans are already exhausted."
The nights were filled with the roars of bears and the sounds of battle. The golden eagle hadn't eaten or drunk for three days, and the noise was so loud that it was too frightened to sleep. It was as if the eagle had been kept awake for three days straight, but the golden eagle was still lively and energetic, while the man was almost lying on the ground unable to move.
Veterinarian Xiao Chen laughed and said, "Adult golden eagles are like this, very wild. If Li Pao really wants to tame them, when Zhao Pao's group of eagle handlers in Yingtun find out, they will all give him a thumbs up."
Li Ju'an was sent back to the clinic in Lijiatun overnight for treatment. Veterinarian Xiao Chen borrowed a room next to the clinic to treat the hunting dogs.
Sun Weimin was the most seriously injured and was taken to the town's central hospital by his family.
Chen Xiangqian went back to the city a few days ago, and three or four days later, he came to visit Li Ju'an at the clinic with lots of gifts.
At the clinic, Dr. Zhao told him that Li Ju'an had already gone home to rest. He could only thank him and then went to visit him in Lijiatun.
Chen Xiangqian's arrival in the village this time was quite a grand affair. His family driver brought him in in a sedan, with a large package in the trunk.
The trunk was too full, so the trunk lid was opened wide, revealing several large boxes of items.
The car bumped along the dirt road, full of potholes, until it reached the village entrance, where Lu Zhiqiang and Lu Jinyang saw him.
Lu Zhiqiang greeted him, saying, "Oh, young master, you've come to see Li Ju'an? Such a grand entourage, quite impressive."
If someone else had said that, Chen Xiangqian would definitely have felt very uncomfortable. But Lu Zhiqiang had been with Li Ju'an for a long time and they had played cards and chatted together. He knew that Lu Zhiqiang was just a smart aleck, but he didn't have any bad intentions. So he laughed and said, "Don't you like a big show? How about a ride in a car?"
Lu Zhiqiang, seizing the opportunity, quickly smiled and said to him, "Then you must sit!"