Chapter 78

Ling Yue looked up, the diving eagle falcon was extremely handsome, like a descending fighter jet.

Ling Yue's mind tensed; before she could speak, a yellow mass, like an arrow released from a bow, shot out violently.

It's Miss Goldfinch!

It flew forward like a burning fireball, rushing toward the spot Big Black indicated, its whole body trembling, its round eyes darting into the bushes where the man hid, seeing a bare gun barrel.

Ling Yue gazed solemnly at Big Black: "Let's chase quickly!"

Miss Goldfinch looked past the pitch-black opening, her heart stopping—the direction the gun barrel pointed was exactly her husband!

At the same time, the overjoyed Eagle Falcon let out a cry, hearing the song and knowing its wife had returned, returning to the mountains where they lived, it could not wait to swoop down, calling its wife's name.

"Snap, snap!" the excited professional birdwatcher behind shouted, urging his companions, then immediately activated the high-speed burst mode.

From the bushes ahead came the man's casual tone: "What a beautiful big bird."

Too bad today he's destined to become a corpse.

Having calculated that it had entered his firing range, the man pressed the trigger, focusing intently, waiting for the next moment, when suddenly a bang sounded.

A tender yellow mass of the goldfinch struck the gun barrel like a small cannonball; the offset caused the man to mishandle, and as he pulled the trigger, the bullet fired, striking the nearby rock.

The goldfinch itself, due to the excessive impact, fell into the grass.

The man's sinister gaze fell on it: "Pah! Where did this little thing come from, so oblivious?!"

"I'll roast you right now!"

"Don't move it!"

After Ling Yue made out the scene in the bushes, she furrowed her brows, without hesitation commanding Big Black to charge forward; taking advantage of the man's inattention, Big Black slammed into him with a thud, the strength of the dozens-of-pounds adult dog astonishing, pressing him to sit on the ground, the world spinning.

In an instant, he lost the strength to resist, only able to shout repeatedly: "What are you doing? What are you doing?!"

"Cry!!"

"Who are you?!"

The Eagle Falcon, sensing the movement, immediately flew over; seeing these humans, it instantly heightened its vigilance to the utmost, its powerful talons spreading, on its wingspan over a meter, each feather gleaming, each as cold and hard as steel.

Mighty and imposing, only the free sky could nurture such a lord of the skies.

Ling Yue froze for a moment, then hurried over and picked up Miss Goldfinch, who remained motionless; she watched, her heart tightening: "Azure Spirit?"

Miss Goldfinch had been knocked unconscious; it had struck with too much force, the gun barrel moved, and it too was dazed, only its chest weakly rising and falling.

"Azure Spirit, wake up." Ling Yue began first aid, gently pressing on the bird's abdomen and ribs, soon working up a sweat.

"Azure Spirit?"

The Eagle Falcon came flying, seeing Ling Yue holding a patch of tender yellow, it froze in place, its feathers exploding outward: "What happened to my wife?"

Big Black saw his master's expression gradually ease, couldn't help rolling his eyes, and said to the Eagle Falcon: "Can't you see? It fainted."

"It's all to save you!"

Ling Yue didn't even have time to speak; Big Black related the whole story: "After the goldfinch was captured, my master rescued it, it begged my master to find you, we got news of you from other animal friends, and so we came."

"Ah ah ah, stinky dog, stinky dog!"

Big Black slapped his paw onto the man's head, barking loudly: "Be honest, you!"

"It's him—just now he had a gun aimed at you; if Azure Spirit hadn't intervened, you two would now be separated by life and death!"

Having spoken beyond his usual ability, Big Black saw the Eagle Falcon already lunging, its hateful gaze fixed on the man, the more silent it was, the more frightening.

The just-reckless poacher seemed to realize something, sitting on the ground and continually backing away: "Don't come over! Don't come over! Ah ah ah!"

He never imagined he would be so afraid of an animal.

The Eagle Falcon let out a cry, its strong, huge wings spreading, frightening Big Black's heart to skip a beat; it had already swooped down, its sharp beak pecking at the man's eye.

In the silent place, a tragic howl rang out.

"Is it your eye?"

The man painfully covered his right eye, blood continually seeping from between his fingers, his whole body convulsing in agony, unaware whether he regretted his past deeds.

Suddenly, the Eagle Falcon heard a chirp, and Miss Goldfinch woke up.

It lay weakly in Ling Yue's palm, its first reaction being to look toward its husband; the instant the two birds' eyes met, the Eagle Falcon's eyes turned red: "Wife."

It rushed over, spreading its wings, joyfully swaying back and forth; Ling Yue pressed her lips tightly, almost laughing at the silly sight.

The goldfinch in her palm closed its eyes, and the Big Bird Mister thought it had fainted again, immediately shouting loudly.

"Shut, shut up!" the goldfinch spread its wings, struggled to turn over, its head buzzing, it lay in Ling Yue's palm: "So noisy, dizzy."

A light remark, and the Eagle Falcon immediately clamped its beak shut, grateful gaze falling on Ling Yue; without her, it would never see its wife in this lifetime.

Ling Yue lowered her gaze, her eyes flickering, and she suddenly noticed a warm, moist liquid silently falling in her palm.

Clearly, compared to the outwardly emotional Eagle Falcon, its emotions were more restrained; the excitement of meeting wasn't absent, just tightly suppressed by it.

Dizzy, not wanting the Big Bird Mister to see its dirty appearance.

Would it be very ugly?

Ling Yue signaled with her eyes to the Eagle Falcon, the big bird instantly understanding, bearing no trace of its earlier ferocity.

The Eagle Falcon clumsily ran over, gently spreading its wings, just as before their separation, the warm, dry feathers wrapping its little lover, their hearts infinitely close.

This was their time alone; Ling Yue and Big Black quietly withdrew, supporting the half-conscious poacher.

"What's going on?" the professional birdwatcher ran over; having heard the gunshot earlier, they had rushed over, and upon seeing Ling Yue beside the half-dead poacher, they were instantly filled with horror, their gaze toward Ling Yue changing: "You——"

Big Black secretly kicked the poacher's foot, "Damn it!" it vigilantly guarded in front of its master, and Ling Yue directly said: "He's a poacher."

Hearing this, the others shouted at the top of their lungs: "Poacher!"

In an instant, everyone's gaze fell on the man.

As for whom they hated most, there was no doubt it was this type; recalling the footage they had just captured, their delight instantly turned to dread, a cold sweat breaking out on their backs.

The leading middle-aged man thought quickly, nervously asking: "Is he hiding here for that Altai falcon?"

Ling Yue nodded: "The gunshot you heard just now was his; but because of an accident, he shot off-target."

The recent perilous scene still leaves Ling Yue with lingering fear.

This group of professional bird-watchers have started cursing: 'Damn it, this guy is worse than livestock!'

"Bastard, it's these people again, they really deserve to die!"

If it weren't for seeing that the poacher was already seriously injured, everyone would want to kick him to death!

Because of these poachers before, they personally witnessed a tragedy unfold; that was also a shoot, during which they discovered a rare Oriental white stork.

Several professional bird-watchers immediately gathered their companions, preparing to capture the bird on film.

They happily set up the "big gun", the super-telephoto lens capturing the Oriental white stork playing in the water, the sparkling lake surface, the stork spreading its elegant posture, with a red sun behind it as the sunset sank.

The professional bird-watchers grinned, unable to contain their joy, he lay in front of the big gun: 'Take a look at this little guy, truly beautiful.'

Nice ripples spread across the water; in the frame, the Oriental white stork swam leisurely, he pressed the continuous shooting function, and the shutter sounded 'click-click-click' rapidly.

However, at that very moment——

Gunshots rang out suddenly!

That beautiful creature screamed in terror, wings flapping, bright red blood scattering like beads across the lake surface, lovely white feathers falling in a shower, the continuous-shot lens capturing every frame from its life to its death.

The Oriental white stork's slender neck drooped as it slowly sank to the lake bottom, leaving only a large expanse of blood mixed with the golden water.

A deathly stillness.

Everyone stood frozen; beside the swaying reeds, the super-telephoto lens panned to a man half-crouched, gun in hand, a smug smile curling his lips.

That is a nightmare that all bird-watching enthusiasts will never forget.

"I wish I could kill him!" the man said, eyes red, his companion restraining him: "No, no, no, absolutely no violence!"

They said, looking at Ling Yue: 'What are we to do about you? His eye——'

Even though they wanted to tear him apart, they had to stay rational, since he hadn't actually harmed the bird, and they worried Ling Yue might face some punishment.

This clearly shouldn't be the case!

Those people gritted their teeth; Ling Yue shook her head: 'I should be fine.'

She withdrew her gaze slowly: 'I didn't hit or assault him; his injuries are self-inflicted. He was blinded in the eye by an angry Altai falcon—what's that got to do with me?'

That remark made everyone laugh, the tense atmosphere instantly lightening: 'Exactly, exactly, exactly—that's a nationally protected Class II species; he provoked it himself, and birds don't understand the law.'

"Alas, he's really unlucky," the middle-aged man said in a sorrowful tone, shaking his head as if regretting it, only the corners of his mouth turned up high revealing his true feeling.

Serves him right!

"So what are you going to do next?"

Ling Yue chuckled: 'I might need to trouble you guys a bit next.'

"What kind of help? Only we can assist, we'll definitely help you!" the speaker said, patting his chest with a solemn expression.

They took a liking to Ling Yue; although she hadn't explained clearly, they all knew it must be something the little girl did—she is the falcon's lifesaver!

Ling Yue stated her plan: 'I've already called the police; this man is not only suspected of illegally hunting wildlife, I also found he has a gun in his hand—an American air gun "Eagle"; I want you to help me get him out of here!'

Hearing this, the bird-watching enthusiasts were shocked, then after reacting they laughed—this guy is contraband, great, finally they caught him red-handed, this time they got both person and goods!

"Don't worry, we'll definitely help you!"

"Or we could deliver him right to the police station? I know where the nearest precinct is around here."

Hearing this, everyone laughed along, teasing: "Hey, Old Li, you're really ruthless."

Ling Yue blinked, then curled the corner of her mouth.

Next, only the canary and its falcon companion remained; this creature is a nationally protected Class II animal, Ling Yue couldn't take it home, but she also couldn't let it stay on Crescent Moon Mountain.

Today's incident serves as a warning—there are good people, but also bad ones; Ling Yue didn't dare to gamble, she believed the canary wouldn't either, so it had to find a new mountain.

She shook her head and sighed.

During the process, someone asked her where the canary had gone; Ling Yue made up an excuse, needless to say, they were newlyweds blissfully enjoying their bird-world, what business did she have interfering?

Acting like a glowing, heat-emitting light bulb? Laughable.

When they brought the man to the police station, the officers they saw were startled; the man was covered in blood, rushed to the hospital in an emergency, but it seemed already too late.

The police asked: "How did you bring him to the station instead of the hospital?"

Ling Yue and the bird-watching enthusiasts exchanged a glance, utterly puzzled: "We don't know him; we just happened to notice he was covered in blood, with this in his hand——"

She said, gloved hand lifting the packaged gun, unpacking it, and the officers jumped: "Holy shit, a gun!!"

"Yeah."

Ling Yue spoke innocently: "Officer, we've never met before; I just saw him lying on the ground with a gun beside him, and a bird flying in the sky."

The police took the matter seriously; the bird-watching enthusiasts immediately produced the photos they'd captured as proof: "We were summoned by the little girl; we had coincidentally run into each other earlier, we were preparing to shoot the Altai falcon and ended up capturing it as well."

"But this man is holding an American air gun 'Eagle'; we suspect he intends to illegally shoot protected wildlife!"

That was very reasonable; even the investigating officers couldn't help but nod, then immediately reacted, clearing their throats: "Without evidence we can't just speculate; it's all conjecture."

The middle-aged uncle almost couldn't help laughing: "We know, we know."

After finishing the statement and leaving contact information, there was nothing more for them; Ling Yue and the bird-watching enthusiasts parted ways, and the off-road vehicle turned a corner heading back.

Big Black lay in the back seat, yawning: "Woof, Master, where are we going now?"

Ling Yue didn't speak; the Treasure-seeking Rat chimed in: "I know, I know—Master is heading back to the Mianyun Mountain Range to pick up the canary, right?"

Ling Yue nodded: "I can't rest easy with just one bird coming back."

After all, the canary is a small bird; there are who knows how many dangers on this road, plus it previously collided with a gun barrel, so Ling Yue plans to bring it back for a thorough check-up.

Compared to the earlier tension, this trip was leisurely, akin to an outing.

Before even entering Crescent Moon Mountain, a birdcall rang out from the woods; the tall canopy rustled, and a falcon swooped down from the trees, its talons curled, revealing a faint hint of yellow—sure enough, it was the exquisite, lovely canary, Pure Spirit.

"I'm back."

The falcon stood silently to the side; previously unnoticed, now face-to-face, its large, formidable stature suddenly became apparent, causing the Treasure-seeking Rat to exclaim repeatedly: "What a huge bird!"

Big Black remained silent, sensing a faint threat from this creature—after all, it's the fiercest police dog of the Criminal Investigation Detachment, and this guy's strength is not to be underestimated.

At this moment, Ling Yue looked at Mr. Big Bird, explained her purpose, after which he silently looked at Miss Canary.

Miss Canary stepped on his claws, what an idiot, when asked you don't even know how to say a word!

The silent falcon lowered its head, pecked at its feathers, what did the human just say? The wife is too beautiful, it really didn't hear.

Miss Canary: "You're right, that's also what I think, so I brought my husband out, preparing to find a new place."

"But I don't know where is good, Mianyun Mountain Range is no good anymore, it's all because of it!"

"This big fool!"

Ling Yue blinked, how could she hear a hint of sweetness from that tone?

The treasure-seeking mouse was a bit puzzled, looked up at the falcon: "Miss Canary, why do you say it's stupid?"

"Who let it run to the city for a little clue, you know the owner, that's the previous pet street, I also don't know how it inquired, it flew all the way, seen by many humans, so I said we can't stay in Mianyun Mountain Range."

She said, feeling both angry and sweet, her wings flapped and she patted Mr. Big Bird.

He stepped forward, letting it pat more smoothly, then tilted his head, saying: "I don't want to be separated from Ling Er."

Ling Yue: "……"

What did she do wrong to have to eat bird feed?!

Mr. Falcon continued: "Can you adopt me? I can hunt and support myself."

Don't want to be separated?

That's impossible.

Ling Yue firmly rejected its intention: "No. At least for now, you can't be together, but I can send Green Spirit to find you. As for your proposal just now——"

She paused, although she was moved, still said: "You are a national second-level protected animal; if I kept you, I'd be arrested and thrown in jail, I really don't want to go there."

Mr. Falcon stared at her, Ling Yue looked back without hesitation, just as she thought he would take some action, Mr. Falcon suddenly lowered his head and sighed: "Wife."

In the following ten-odd minutes, they clung together like this, including Ling Yue, one person, one dog, one mouse, suffered a couple's critical hit, damage increased by ten thousand points!

Can't be in Mianyun Mountain Range, nor in the city, Ling Yue suddenly thought of something and blurted: "The winery I previously contacted, one is about to go bankrupt, right here!"

Her gaze swept over Miss Canary and Mr. Falcon: "How about we go take a look?"

The treasure-seeking mouse was the first to react, dazedly saying: "Is that the small winery you've been muttering about? What are we going to do there? Construction is about to start!"

Ling Yue: "Um... to be honest, I haven't bought it yet."

She isn't procrastinating, she just has too much on her plate; now bringing it up suddenly, Ling Yue glanced at the big black dog in the back, the dog's eyes full of confusion: "What winery? Why would the owner open a winery?"

Big Black had forgotten all about it.

Ling Yue rubbed her forehead, having to explain again; as for why go, she curled her lips, eyes sparkling: "How about we just arrange Mr. Falcon at the winery?"

That winery is at the foot of Mianyun Mountain Range, convenient for it to hunt anytime, and there's a place to reside; no one would think that, as a wild animal, the falcon would actually live in a human house.

Apart from one problem, there are basically no loopholes.

The treasure-seeking mouse was very curious, lying in her pocket asking: "What problem?"

Ling Yue: "I haven't bought that small winery yet."

The treasure-seeking mouse went "pa li" and fell back into the pocket, really couldn't hold back.

Ling Yue glanced at her wristwatch: "Time is still early, let's go take a look now."

The treasure-seeking mouse listened more and more felt unreliable, the key is Big Black basically a lackey, whatever the owner says it thinks is right; turning its head, it saw Miss Canary and her husband full of expectation.

After all, they are animals, naturally loving nature, Mr. Falcon especially, being able to live beside the big mountain is simply the best!

Miss Canary naturally had no problem either, noticing her husband's wing overstepping, she gave a subtle glare, but ended up being pulled even closer by it.

In an instant, the sweetness in the air exceeded the limit, as if bright sugar threads could be pulled out the next second.

The car stopped in front of the winery, Ling Yue jumped out directly, followed by Big Black, the treasure-seeking mouse poked its head out of her pocket, eyes dull and dazed, as if it had suffered a huge blow.

"It's just a significant other, I-I... I don't have one waa waa waa~"

It sulkily crawled back into the pocket, head in hands, crying bitterly.

Ling Yue rubbed its little head, the treasure-seeking mouse looked at her resentfully: "Owner, you're not single, don't you have any ideas?"

Ling Yue: "What ideas?"

The treasure-seeking mouse winked at her, Ling Yue clenched her fist: "What's there to talk about love? Making money is most important!"

"With no man in the heart, drawing the sword is naturally divine!"

Immediately, she strode forward.

Ling Yue looked around, the small winery really is just a small winery, not large in area, just too quiet.

Ling Yue hadn't even entered when she smelled a strong, almost pungent wine aroma, she slightly furrowed her brows, the automatic retractable door blocked the way.

Ling Yue looked to the side, in the guard room an old man was lowering his head to read the newspaper, she knocked on the glass window, he startled, Ling Yue said: "I'm here to find your factory chief."

The old man raised his head, amiably said: "You're looking for the factory chief?"

After seeing his face clearly, Ling Yue's pupils contracted, his face was covered densely with scars, overlapping in various depths, almost blurred into a mess, even the facial outlines couldn't be made out.

Soon, Ling Yue frowned tightly, he had already quickly withdrawn his gaze; if not for her keen senses, she wouldn't even notice his subtle scrutiny.

His evaluating gaze was like treating her as a vegetable on a stall for anyone to pick.

Strangely, Ling Yue felt a subtle ripple in her heart.

Ling Yue thinking, Big Black suddenly darted out, lying at the glass window sniffing: "How strange."

The old man in the guard room suddenly stood up, his toes quickly tapping back, a series of small movements quick and light; if Ling Yue hadn't been paying attention, she wouldn't have noticed.

Ling Yue's gaze darkened.

The gatekeeper old man seemed frightened, softly sitting back in his chair: "Oh dear, is this your dog? Why did it suddenly dash out, it scared me to death!"

Really?

Ling Yue questioned in her heart, holding Big Black's leash, her face apologetic: "Sorry, I'll definitely keep an eye on it."

The old man waved his hand: "Forget it."

Afterwards, he received a phone call and led Ling Yue to the winery office.

She herself hadn't expected it to go so smoothly; when the winery director heard her purpose, he smiled like a chrysanthemum and readily agreed to her inspection request.

He looked around and then realized only he and Old Zhang remained in the factory; instinctively he said, "Old Zhang, you take Miss Ling there—no, I'll go myself!"

Old Zhang?

Ling Yue glanced at the gatekeeper.

Seeing he had nothing to do with her, he quickly left; Ling Yue watched him for a moment before withdrawing her gaze.

The winery was small but complete, with medium equipment, and its workers had basically all been laid off.

Ling Yue had checked the records; it seemed to be due to poor management leading to bankruptcy, and she sensed something subtle, while the other party was overly enthusiastic.

They signed the documents, and the factory director beamed, saying, "Congratulations, congratulations—from today on, the entire winery is yours."

He seemed to recall something and suddenly brought up Old Zhang: "Right, that gatekeeper Old Zhang—he came to guard the gate voluntarily, without pay."

"If you want to keep employing him, just provide room and board."

Ling Yue's heart skipped a beat: "Why?"

The factory director said, "I don't know about that, but he's diligent and good at watching the gate."

"Ah, it's also because I'm soft-hearted—look at his appearance; I initially didn't even want him to guard the gate, he's just too scary..."

Ling Yue furrowed her brows, straining to extract useful information from a pile of nonsense.

Beside her, Da Hei spun around anxiously; the scent was really familiar, but it just couldn't recall, and the little dog whimpered in distress.

The treasure-seeking mouse in her pocket said nonchalantly, "Da Hei, why are you rushing? Just forget it if you can't remember."

"It couldn't possibly be a criminal, could it?" it said, chuckling, covering its mouth with its tiny paws, its voice still leaking out: "You work in the Criminal Investigation Brigade—you're the best at catching criminals, aren't you?"

The treasure-seeking mouse went on, looked up and saw Ling Yue and the dog staring at it, and it shrank its neck in fright: "I, I didn't say something wrong, did I?"

Ling Yue: "No, you're absolutely right.",,.