Return to 1983 Hunting Xing'an Mountains

Chapter 529: Sankanzi, the King of Hell jumps, Xu Laonian picks up a little roe deer

As the saying goes: Three steps down, the King of Hell jumps.

This saying is generally used to describe the difficulties or challenges that one may encounter in life. Specifically, one may encounter three important checkpoints in life, such as: when a person reaches fifty-five, the King of Hell counts his numbers; at seventy-three and eighty-four, the King of Hell leaves uninvited. This reminds people to be especially careful at these three age stages, as many historical figures did not make it through these three hurdles.

However, Xu Ning, leading Xu Laonian, Liu Daming and other five people, plunged into the three ridges which had a bad meaning. They first jumped over the Yanwang ridge, and then entered the first and second ridges. Therefore, they had to be cautious when staying in the three ridges to rest. Whether they could cross the three ridges tomorrow depended on whether something strange would happen tonight.

Of course, he also heard these words from Old Jindouzi in his previous life. That night, they encountered a strange wind that blew into the cave, blowing the fire onto the mattress and setting it on fire. At that time, Old Jindouzi said that the situation was not good, but the people in the gang were anxious to earn money by carrying hammers, and they earnestly told Old Jindouzi about the difficulties at home. Old Jindouzi was also a little soft-hearted because his family was also short of money, so he took everyone into the mountains the next day, and then an internal conflict broke out...

So some place names are not randomly chosen, there are some explanations for them.

The sun was setting and the forest was no longer as hot as it was at noon. When the group of six quickly arrived at Sankanzi, it was exactly 6 o'clock.

Standing in front of the Sankanzi Cave, Xu Laonian felt a chill on his back. He turned to look at Xu Ning and said, "Son, this place is a bit shady... and cool."

"Well, let's put the things in the cave and cook outside. Do you see those stones over there? They're for the stove."

Li Fuqiang took a step forward, but Xu Ning stopped him and said, "I'll go take a look inside the cave first."

Then, he threw all his things down, carried the 56 and a half and walked towards the cave entrance, and Xu Laonian followed slowly behind him.

Xu Ning glanced into the cave, then stepped out and said, "It's nothing. Uncle, go inside and spread the broken mattress on the side."

Xu Laonian said, "This cave is quite big. Is there any wind in it?"

"It's a little bit of a cool breeze. Let's sleep by the cave entrance. Let's get busy."

Then Liu Daming spread the torn mattress to the edge of the cave. The cave was about six or seven meters deep and more than three meters wide at its widest point. It was in the shape of a long strip. Guan Lei then handed the tarpaulin, backpack and other things placed at the entrance of the cave to Liu Daming, who put them into the cave.

Wang Hu and Li Fuqiang picked up some firewood nearby. Xu Ning and Xu Laonian moved the stones to the cleared space, built a stove, put a large iron pot on it, and started a fire with hay.

The vegetables in the basket had all been washed, and even if they were a little dirty on the road, no one complained, because they only had one pot of water, which they would need to use for stewing vegetables later, and they definitely couldn't waste it.

Liu Daming walked over and said, "Shall I prepare the dishes?"

The five of them all raised their heads and stared at him. Liu Daming took two steps back, waved his hand and said with a smile, "That's just what I said."

Xu Laonian rolled his eyes and said, "Go pick up some firewood and stop hanging around the pot. I'm really worried about you!"

"I'm worried too! My little brother is vomiting and having diarrhea after eating the food you cooked, and this is happening right in front of me. I'm really scared."

Li Fuqiang said with a smile: "Uncle, let's go collect firewood. I'm scared just by hearing that..."

"Hey, look at you guys, I'm just being polite, then I'll go collect firewood."

"Hold your stuff! Don't go more than 100 meters away from the target. Shout if anything happens," Xu Ning instructed.

After the two left, Wang Hu took out the cucumber and eggplant and said, "What should we do?"

"Let's make some eggplant soup. We have steamed bread and pancakes. Let's just have a bite and make some tomato soup tomorrow morning. Oh! Dad, don't pour the water yet. Let's fry the eggplant first..."

Xu Laonian put down the kettle and said, "I don't know how to cook!"

Xu Ning covered his face with his hands, feeling a little helpless. He was busy planning to go into the mountains and carry the hammer. He had thought of almost everything, but he didn't expect that these people didn't know how to cook!
This is fucking... eh! Xu Ning sighed heavily. Liu Daming, needless to say, the food he cooked could easily kill people. Li Fuqiang's wife was the chef, and he didn't even know how to distinguish salt from sugar at home. Wang Hu was also a glutton at home. Let him eat, but let him cook? That would be the end of him.

Guan Lei said from the side: "Brother, how about I try? The dishes I prepare should be edible."

"Then you do it." Xu Ning stepped back and gave his seat to Guan Lei, while Xu Laonian hid aside to smoke.

Guan Lei first broke the eggplant into strips, then poured some soybean oil into the pot. The eggplant made a sizzling sound after being put into the pot. He fried it for a while before adding water...

Xu Laonian saw this from the side and said with a smile: "Leizi knows some cooking skills! He cooks quite well."

"Uncle, I only know these two tricks. I definitely don't understand how to cook. Stewing is relatively simple."

"Okay, from now on you will just focus on cooking."

Xu Ning searched for seasoning in his cloth bag and handed it to Guan Lei, saying, "Didn't my mom bring me some soybean paste? Cucumbers taste so good when dipped in the sauce."

"Dip it in the pickled vegetable soup. Well, how about pouring some pickled vegetables into the pot? That would be so delicious!" Xu Laonian's eyes lit up.

"Dad, just stop it and don't give me any random advice." Xu Ning waved his hand to veto.

After Li Fuqiang, Liu Daming and Wang Hu came back, the three of them put the wood and branches in their arms under a tree nearby, then found a small spot to sit down, chatting while waiting for the eggplant soup.

These gentlemen no longer had any requirements for the food, as long as they could eat it and were not starving to death, it was fine. When the eggplant soup was ready, they each took their lunch boxes and ate some, then crushed the steamed corn bread and soaked it in the soup.

"Oh, why does it taste a bit like dog food when eaten this way?"

"Hahaha, the eggplant soup made by Leizi tastes good..."

Xu Ning said with a smile: "None of us had thought about cooking before, and now it's good enough that it can be done like this."

Actually, Xu Ning can cook, but in the eyes of his family, he is a picky person. How can he cook if he can't even help a soy sauce bottle fall? So when Guan Lei said he wanted to cook, he didn't fight for it. Xu Ning was also afraid that he would cook a good dish and scare them.

It was getting dark. After they finished their meal, they carried the big pot into the cave, lit a fire near the entrance, added a few pieces of wood, and went into the cave to rest.

The ground was covered with tarpaulin and mattresses. Although there were no pillows, we could make do with the wood we picked up or clothes.

Xu Ning sat cross-legged at the entrance of the cave, looking outside, holding the 56- in his hand. He could respond immediately to any disturbance.

He did not tell Xu Laonian and others about the strange things that happened in Sankanzi. If it really happened, he would just say that he could not lift the ginseng. If nothing happened, he would proceed as usual.

It was past 8 o'clock, as the fire at the entrance of the cave had burned out, it was pitch black outside the cave. Inside the cave, Xu Laonian and Liu Daming were already snoring. They took off their clothes and pants, and made a simple clothesline with the spear and branches that Li Fuqiang had brought.

Li Fuqiang, Guan Lei and Wang Hu were sitting at the entrance of the cave, chatting in low voices. They didn't know why Xu Ning was staring outside the cave. Since Xu Ning didn't say anything, they didn't ask and just stood by and watched.

Outside the cave, there is the rustling of leaves in the wind, the chirping of insects, and the sound of small animals climbing trees...

Xu Ning placed the backpack with clothes and pants hanging on it at the entrance of the cave, turned around and said, "Go to bed quickly."

"Are you okay?" Li Fuqiang asked.

"No, it looks pretty quiet tonight."

"Well, go to sleep then."

The four of them lay on the tarpaulin, covered with clothes. There were no small biting mosquitoes in the cave, only some small ants.

One night passed quietly.

The next day, when everyone woke up, Xu Laonian rubbed his thighs and said with a grin, "Oh my god, what the hell bit me? It bit my thighs. It's so itchy."

"Don't scratch! Big brother, take out the ointment in the small cloth bag, the one in the vanishing cream box." After Li Fuqiang handed it to Xu Ning, he took it in his hand and scooped some ointment from it with his index finger, saying, "Move towards the hole. It shouldn't be a grass crawler, but a red ant. You can't prevent this thing. Just apply some ointment."

"Oh my god, Daming didn't get bitten?"

Liu Daming spread his hands and said, "No, I slept until dawn, nothing happened."

Li Fuqiang, Guan Lei and Wang Hu were fine. Xu Ning said, "You are lying on this mattress and it smells. Who else should it bite if not you? This mattress was used by Hualang to spread on the ground..."

"Then why didn't you say it earlier!" Xu Laonian clapped his hands.

"How dare I say it? You just lay down without asking me anything. If I say it, won't you think I'm trying to steal your mattress?"

Xu Laonian curled his lips: "Your father is not that kind of person!"

"Haha..." Liu Daming, Li Fuqiang and others laughed.

After applying the ointment to Xu Laonian, Guan Lei went out of the cave to prepare breakfast, still stewing soup. He originally wanted to make tomato soup, but Xu Ning said that the salted fish should be eaten first, otherwise it would get sick in such a hot weather.

"These pancakes and steamed bread are really not enough to eat. They will be finished in two or three meals."

"We six have big appetites..."

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Liu Daming said, "Erning, if we do this, our food and rations can only last for six or seven days. We have to think of hiring some livestock."

"Well, let's try our luck after we get into the mountains."

Since nothing strange happened last night, Xu Ning felt more at ease. After dinner, everyone started to pack up. Xu Ning put the stones used to build the stove back to their original positions and used a branch to sweep the traces in the cave, as well as the place where they were active at the entrance of the cave...

"What is this for?" Liu Daming didn't understand.

Xu Laonian said: "What else can we do? We don't want others to find out that we have entered the mountains."

Xu Ning threw the branch far away and said, "That's about right. The main reason is that we are staying at someone else's house, so we have to clean up before we leave."

"What this guy said is nonsense." Xu Laonian muttered.

Everyone walked towards the deep mountains. The temperature in the early afternoon was not too hot, and there was a slight breeze blowing. After they jumped over three ridges, Xu Ning led the way and headed straight to the southwest.

It was almost noon and they had only walked less than 15 miles. Why were they walking so slowly? It was because the things they were carrying were too heavy!
"Second brother, what is this place?" Wang Hu asked.

Xu Ning shook his head: "I don't know the name of the place either. This place looks similar to our back garden."

"Well, can there be a mallet here?"

"There may be a few seedlings, but we can't stop here, we have to go inside."

Xu Laonian sat on the ground and nodded: "Whatever you say is what it is."

At noon, there was no stove or fire. They just had some big pancakes wrapped in pickles and fried fish to eat. After Xu Laonian and others finished smoking, everyone continued to go deeper into the mountains.

"It must be around 3 o'clock now. Where are we staying tonight?" asked Xu Laonian.

"Put up a tent for the night and keep an eye out for old cows on the road."

Lao Niu Gan is a kind of fungus, similar to red Ganoderma lucidum, but for mountain people, Lao Niu Gan is mosquito coil for fumigating mosquitoes.

"Hey, I've walked more than 30 miles these past two days. I don't walk in the mountains often, so my legs and feet are not working well anymore."

Xu Ning turned around and asked, "Does your foot hurt? Then you rest here for a while, we'll go first."

"Hey, little one..." Xu Laonian glared, then smiled and said, "You still want to abandon me? Your father won't be fooled! Let's go now."

Although we were walking in the mountains, we hardly saw any living creatures along the way. We did see a few deer antlers and broken bones on the ground. People who are used to seeing these things are not afraid at all...

At about 5:, Xu Ning pointed to the depression at the foot of the mountain and said, "Let's set up the tent here. Find some wood to press down the tarpaulin, and gather some branches to spread on the ground..."

"I'm going to chop branches!" Xu Laonian threw down the cloth bag, grabbed Liu Daming and left.

Li Fuqiang said, "Brother, can we use these two trees to set up a tent?"

"Okay, let's do it together. Huzi will collect firewood and build a stove with stones to cook."

"Got it."

When Xu Ning was spreading out the tarpaulin, he heard a slight cough.

He raised his head suddenly, grabbed the gun belt from behind, held the 56 and a half in his hand, and stared around.

Li Fuqiang was stunned for a moment, and also grabbed the spear, and asked in a low voice: "What's the matter, brother?"

"There's movement!"

After that, a burst of laughter was heard. Xu Laonian and Liu Daming had smiles on their faces, and they were holding a small roe deer in their hands. The roe deer was about one month old, with thin limbs and little meat on its body.

Xu Laonian laughed and said, "Old man! Look what dad brought back. Hahaha, I found it from the haystack. I saw it when I was digging just now. This stupid roe deer didn't even run away when it saw me..."

At this time, there was a noise on the right side of Xu Laonian. Xu Ning saw a shadow passing by and rushed straight towards Xu Laonian.

He yelled, "Dad! Hide!"

Xu Laonian was stunned, his expression froze, and when he turned around, he saw a big roe deer attacking him. Frightened, Xu Laonian quickly threw the small roe deer away, grabbed Liu Daming's shoulder and took two steps back.

"Oh, fuck me!"

Xu Ning raised his gun but did not dare to fire, because the silhouette of the big roe deer had overlapped with Liu Daming. If the gun was fired, the bullet might penetrate the roe deer and easily injure Liu Daming.

When Xu Laonian was dodging, his heel accidentally tripped on a tree branch and he sat down on the grass.

"Hey!"

The big roe deer stopped, turned around and rushed towards Xu Laonian. Liu Daming also reacted, scattered the branches under his armpits on the ground, picked up a branch as thick as his arm and swung it at the big roe deer's head.

"What the hell!"

Xu Ning shouted, "Uncle, don't kill it! Dad, how are you?"

Xu Laonian put his hands on the ground and jumped back half a meter, then raised his leg and kicked the big roe deer. "It's okay! Fuck, you scared me!"

Li Fuqiang had already rushed forward two meters, but he, Wang Hu, and Guan Lei were too far away from Xu Laonian and Liu Daming, and they did not dare to fire their guns. They could only open their mouths and shout: "Tiger! Tiger! Get lost!"

(End of this chapter)