Back to 1984: Hunting in the Mountains

Chapter 85 Stabbing a Knife in the Heart

When Wang Haofeng learned whether the uncle was alone, he became even more indignant. He kept complaining and scolding, as if he had been betrayed.

Yu Qiutang knew his temper and was not surprised.

Yu Qiujiang was not very familiar with Wang Haofeng. He did not expect that this guy had such sentiments, and the way he looked at him was much gentler.

"Don't worry, Tangtang. As my master, if you ever break a leg or get your stomach pierced by a wild beast, I will definitely not abandon you and will definitely carry you down the mountain."

Feeling that just complaining about others was not satisfying enough, Wang Haofeng patted Yu Qiutang on the shoulder and told him not to worry.

"Then I thank you."

Yu Qiutang could only curl his lips at this kind of cursed concern. Now he understood Yu Qiujiang's feelings. What's the point of fussing with a fool?

After this happened, Yu Qiutang asked the two to rest, but they were unwilling to do so, so the three of them gathered around the fire, checking on the uncle's injuries and chatting casually.

Yu Qiutang began to worry that some wild animal would smell the scent and come over, but he was relieved when he saw no sign of it until the second half of the night.

It was a little after four in the morning. The shadows cast by the moonlight on the ground became lighter and lighter. The sky in the east began to turn pale and the early birds in the woods began to chirp non-stop.

"Hmm... hum~"

With a groan of pain, the uncle finally woke up. He opened his eyes several times before he could barely open his thick eyelids.

He looked at the three of them one by one, then closed his eyes again.

"Hey……"

Wang Haofeng was about to speak when Yu Qiutang grabbed him and shook his head at him.

Wang Haofeng didn't understand, but he was very obedient and remained silent again.

After a few minutes, the uncle opened his eyes again. This time, there was a bit more vitality in his eyes. He looked at the three people one by one again, and finally his eyes stopped on Yu Qiutang.

"Did you save me?"

Yu Qiutang smiled and pointed at Wang Haofeng, "Yes, this is the one who carried you back," and then pointed at Yu Qiujiang, "and this is the one who sewed your wound."

The uncle wanted to nod, but failed because he was lying down, so he could only blink at the two of them and smile gratefully.

"Thank you for your hard work. When I was lying in the thorns, I thought I might die here. Then I saw a glimmer of fire and thought it was an illusion. I didn't expect it was a real person."

Yu Qiutang smiled, "It's just a coincidence, this is fate, Uncle Liu...what do you think, you bleed a lot."

“I won’t die.” The uncle smiled. Although his face was a little pale, his smile was full. It seemed that he was also a cheerful person. “I have been running in the mountains for most of my life. I don’t know how many times I have experienced more serious injuries than this…”

As he was speaking, his expression suddenly turned gloomy. "Besides, physical wounds are no more hurtful than mental wounds."

Yu Qiutang did not respond.

The uncle naturally has his own story. If he wants to tell it, then listen to it. If he doesn’t want to tell it, that’s his freedom.

"Fortunately, there is always a way out. It is my luck to meet you three young men, three enthusiastic people at that. I always say that people should do good deeds and accumulate virtues to accumulate some blessings for themselves. Look, my blessings have come, haven't they?"

Yu Qiutang smiled, seeing the old man's pale face, and said, "Uncle, you should rest more. We will find a way to carry you down the mountain after daybreak. By the way, which village are you from?"

"Old Willow Village."

"It's so far, how did you get to Houtouling?" Yu Qiutang was very surprised.

Lao Liulin Village is the village at the edge of Qingquan Town, nearly fifteen kilometers away from Wangjia Village. He had only been to this village once in his previous life, and that was when something happened in the mountains and he had to go there.

"It's just to get some older Codonopsis pilosula."

Lao Liu sighed and explained, "To be honest, in addition to hiking, I am also a barefoot doctor. Our Lao Liulin Village is more than ten kilometers away from the town, and it is inconvenient to go in and out of the mountains. Therefore, when the villagers are sick, it is impossible for them to go to the town's health center.

I am their only hope and the only doctor in the village. They basically come to me for treatment of all their illnesses, big and small.

Although I can diagnose the disease, I need medicine to treat it. We are close to Gouweiba Ridge. You may not know that it is a rocky mountain and it is difficult to grow good medicinal herbs.

I have searched everywhere around there, but it is hard to find enough medicinal herbs, so I have slowly found my way to your place."

Yu Qiutang didn't expect that this old man was not only a hunter, but also a barefoot doctor, a profession that was gradually banned by systems and regulations in later generations.

In the early years, as Lao Liu said, many villages were relatively remote and it was impossible to go to towns to find a doctor, so there would be a doctor like this in the village or several nearby villages.

The reason they are barefoot is not only because they do not have formal medical qualifications, but more because it highlights their difficulties.

Many barefoot doctors had to visit many homes to see patients every day. Their straw sandals were easily damaged, so sometimes they had no choice but to go barefoot, so they were called barefoot doctors.

This type of doctor is a product of the development of the times. Their medical level is generally underdeveloped, but they fill the gap in ordinary people's medical treatment, so they are of great positive significance.

But when it comes to their medical skills, there are certain limitations.

Often, they will resort to folk remedies, and in pursuit of a cure, they will use heavier dosages, which can cause problems for patients.

There was a barefoot doctor in Wangjia Village. In his later years, when he was treating a patient, after one injection, the old lady passed away on the spot. The doctor was then imprisoned for seven or eight years before being released.

But overall, people in the mountains are still very grateful to these barefoot doctors. They have greatly maintained everyone's health with extremely low requirements.

As for Codonopsis pilosula, it is a medicinal herb produced here.

The older the wild Codonopsis pilosula is, the better its effect is. The younger ones are not very valuable.

Wang Haofeng suddenly asked, "Uncle Liu, you are so old, even if you are collecting herbs, you can't go into the mountains alone. You see how dangerous it is. If I meet a few of us, won't you die here?"

Yu Qiujiang glanced at Wang Haofeng and felt that the little bit of good impression he had accumulated towards this boy suddenly disappeared without a trace.

You can't speak, and no one thinks you are dumb.

Sure enough, when Old Liu heard Wang Haofeng's question, his gentle expression suddenly turned a little ugly.

"Don't say this, don't say this."

"What can't you say? Tell me, did the person who came with you abandon you here and run away?"

Wang Haofeng was determined to get to the bottom of the matter.

Old Liu was slightly startled, looking at Wang Haofeng's eyes full of resentment and injustice, knowing that he had good intentions, he couldn't help but smile, "Well, actually there were three of us who came together. One was my apprentice, and the other was someone who asked me to treat an illness, but we were separated by a wild boar..."

"Were they dispersed, or were you left behind?"

Old Liu was startled again, and said to Wang Haofeng helplessly, "You, young man, really have a sharp eye. That's right, we encountered a group of wild boars, with six wild boars, two large and four small.

I never thought I would encounter so many wild boars at this altitude. It shouldn't be possible... Did you guys notice it?"

Yu Qiutang thought of the jackals he had encountered some time ago, and nodded, saying, "Yes, I also think there is something wrong. We encountered a group of jackals in the old oak forest below. That creature should not appear in this season."

"Well, that's right. Based on my years of hiking and collecting herbs, I think there's something wrong with this mountain. The range of wild animals' activities generally won't change unless their survival itself is in danger...

Oh, why am I saying this? You are all hunters, and you know these things better than me."

Yu Qiutang and Yu Qiujiang both nodded.

Wang Haofeng wanted to listen more, but seeing that both of them nodded, he was too embarrassed to continue asking, as that would make him look stupid.

"Because the wild boar appeared too suddenly, I wanted to go around it from behind. Unexpectedly, the person with me saw one of the little wild boars was alone and ignored my attempts to stop him and insisted on stealing it..."

"Idiot!" Yu Qiutang couldn't help but blurt out a curse.

He hates this kind of troublemaker the most.

He doesn't know the rules of the mountains, is naughty, and doesn't obey orders, harming others and himself.

So whether he was taking his nephew or Wang Haofeng into the mountains, he would repeatedly emphasize that they must respect the rules in the mountains and not act recklessly.

This is precisely to prevent this.

"That's right," Lao Liu said here, feeling quite depressed. "As for what happened next, you can imagine how sensitive the wild boar's sense of smell is and how fast it is. There's no way we can catch up with it.

As a result, the boy saw that the situation was not good and turned around and ran away. In order to let my apprentice escape, I took the initiative to attract the wild boar. Although I managed to climb up the tree, I was still scratched on the left rib by the wild boar's tusks. "

"You have a gun, why don't you use it to shoot the wild boar?" Wang Haofeng asked in confusion.

"How did you know I had a gun?"

"Hehe, of course I can tell," Wang Haofeng repeated to Lao Liu what Yu Qiutang had taught him. Lao Liu laughed and said, "You're right. I did use a gun before, but since last winter, something went wrong with my right arm and I can no longer use it. This time, only my apprentice brought a gun.

Otherwise, it wouldn't be so embarrassing. Although wild boars are strong, they are not as strong as peanuts. As long as they can knock down the two old ones, the remaining few small ones will be easy...

Alas, what a pity! I am old now. I didn’t expect that after walking in the mountains for most of my life, I would be bullied by a wild boar. I feel ashamed to tell others about it.”

"That's true." Wang Haofeng nodded, understanding.

"Bullshit," Yu Qiutang couldn't help but patted Wang Haofeng on the head. If you don't know how to speak, then don't speak. Old Liu was just being humble. He gave you a knife, but you didn't show any courtesy and stabbed him in the heart.

"Haha~ You are quite straightforward, young man. I like this kind of straightforward personality." Unexpectedly, Lao Liu did not blame Wang Haofeng for what he said, but felt better. "What I hate most are those people with many twists and turns."

"Same as me, Lao Liu. I feel the same way." Wang Haofeng was very happy to have found a soulmate.

Yu Qiutang shook his head. Since Old Liu had no objection, he didn't say anything else.

Just like Lao Liu said, Wang Haofeng has a straightforward personality and sometimes seems unable to speak, but as long as you spend a long time with him, you will like him.

Otherwise, how could he eat at hundreds of houses in the village and still be recognized and liked by everyone?

As they were talking, the moon gradually set behind the treetops and the red glow of the sun began to appear in the east, signaling that it was about to get brighter.

Yu Qiutang asked the two men to keep an eye on Lao Liu while he took an axe and chopped some branches. He then came back and used ropes to make a simple stretcher.

Although Old Liu still wanted to insist on walking down the mountain and did not want to trouble Yu Qiutang and the others, Yu Qiutang, based on his assessment of his injuries, believed that the best way to avoid any trouble would be for Old Liu to be carried down the mountain obediently.

Saving a life is better than building a seven-story pagoda. Being able to meet them in the vast mountains is fate. To say it superstitiously, it is also a chance for God to give them to accumulate blessings.

If you help others today, you may be able to receive help from others when you encounter problems in the future.

As long as you walk in the mountains, no one can guarantee that you will never get hurt or have an accident.

Fortunately, he had participated in many rescue operations as a ranger before, so making a makeshift stretcher was not difficult for him. With the help of Wang Haofeng, the stretcher was completed in no time.

After discussion, Wang Haofeng and Yu Qiujiang carried Lao Liu, while Yu Qiutang was responsible for carrying the prey. The three of them went down the mountain steadily under the morning sunshine and stepping on the dew on the grass.

Yu Qiutang actually felt a little regretful.

I was planning to catch another one this morning. It's not easy to get here, so I'd better catch as many as I can. Once I catch them, I'll get money.

But now that I have met Lao Liu, there is nothing else to say.

Human life is above all else.

Old Liu simply sutured the wound to prevent excessive bleeding, but Yu Qiutang tended to be pessimistic as to whether this treatment was scientific or not.

Old Liu is a doctor himself and he knows this clearly.

Carrying a patient down the mountain, the three of them could not walk fast enough. They walked from less than six in the morning until more than one in the afternoon before they finally reached the foot of the mountain.

The three of them were hungry, hot, and tired, with sweat all over their heads.

Old Liu was very moved and expressed many words of gratitude along the way. He also kept complaining about the people he brought with him. In comparison, the three strange kind-hearted people Yu Qiutang were really rare.

The three of them first returned to Yu Qiujiang's blacksmith shop to take a break. Yu Qiutang asked Wang Haofeng to hire an ox cart or a mule cart to take them back to Lao Liulin Village.

It would be unrealistic to rely on people to carry the luggage for a distance of more than ten kilometers.

As for the money for hiring a car, Yu Qiutang was ready to pay for it, but Lao Liu said he had money on him and took out a dozen yuan, asking him to use it first and tell him to go back if it was not enough.

While waiting for a car, with the help of Yu Qiutang and Yu Qiujiang, they quickly processed the other roe deer. The weather was getting warmer and the meat would be ruined if it was not processed in time.

After the preparation was completed, Yu Qiujiang was asked to sprinkle some water on the ground next to him, spread some firewood, and temporarily place the meat on it to cool.

Let’s talk about it after we resolve the issue with Old Liu here.

A few minutes before three o'clock, Wang Haofeng came back. He was actually driving the mule cart himself, holding a whip in his hand, which made a whining sound in the air, looking very impressive.

(End of this chapter)