Chapter 602: A Pack of Wolves Startles the Soul (Next Chapter Later)

The winter camp was not large, but very warm. Nearby lay an open-pit coal mine, as yet undeveloped. After returning from their seasonal migration, Ha Li Mu and the others had spent several consecutive days digging coal, hauling enough to last the entire winter.

A thick mix of milky and gamey odors hung in the air; Li Long felt slightly unaccustomed at first, but after drinking two bowls of milk tea, the sensation vanished.

The old woman sat on the wooden kang, smiling as she watched Li Long, occasionally muttering words he could not understand.

Nassen and Sa Si Ken periodically pulled things out to show Li Long: certificates of merit, their own books, paintings they had drawn, and handmade crafts.

When Li Long asked if they had finished their homework, the two children immediately became hesitant and stammering.

Li Long burst into laughter; these two children were much like Li Qiang. If not for Li Juan keeping watch over him, Li Qiang would never do his homework either; aside from meal times, even in the dead of winter, he would be playing outside from dawn till dusk.

Nassen and Sa Si Ken, somewhat embarrassed, retrieved their notebooks from a corner of the wooden kang and lay prone upon it, ready to write their homework.

Li Long thought that before his next visit, he must find a carpenter to build two small wooden tables for the children; writing while seated at a table would be far better than lying prone on the kang.

Ha Li Mu's family did have a wooden kang, but it was used for eating, making it inconvenient for doing homework atop it.

Li Long also considered that those foldable small wooden tables from later generations would be excellent: unfolded when needed, folded away for easy storage when not in use.

He only wondered whether the carpenters in the township could currently make such things.

Ha Li Mu's mother broke the naan into small pieces, placed them on a plate, and set it before Li Long. Nassen's mother then took from a cabinet beside the stove a small dish of jam; Li Long casually picked up a piece of naan, dipped it in the jam, and ate.

He calculated the time: if Ha Li Mu had merely gone to ask someone, he should return within an hour or two.

Although the snow in the mountains was deep, livestock frequently trod through the winter pastures, and horses moved swiftly; thus, he should return soon.

Inside the house it was very hot, and the smell quite strong; the two children lay prone on the wooden kang doing homework, occasionally shifting and twisting.

After finishing his milk tea and eating two pieces of naan, Li Long stood up, called out that he was going outside to tidy the tractor, and departed.

As soon as Li Long stepped out, Nassen immediately followed, running out behind him.

"Uncle, I've finished my homework for today," Nassen said, his expression brimming with pride.

In truth, they had only recently started school; at this stage, the curriculum itself was relatively simple, with few subjects, so having little homework was normal.

Li Long cranked the tractor to start it briefly, mainly to prevent the radiator water from cooling too much and making subsequent starting difficult.

The put-put-put sound echoed through the valley; the tractor initially belched black smoke, then soon returned to normal operation.

Li Long merely let the tractor's engine warm up; after ten-odd minutes, he shut it off.

It seemed nothing much could be accomplished today; he planned to wait for Ha Li Mu's return, then drive the tractor back. He would stop by the county's furniture factory to see if any small wooden tables were ready-made, buy them, and haul them back tomorrow.

Come to think of it, Brother Brother Yushanjiang's family also had children attending school; he ought to buy two extra tables.

Having made up his mind, Li Long slung his rifle over his shoulder and began wandering around the vicinity.

Although it had only recently snowed, the snow around Ha Li Mu's winter camp was already trampled flat. Everywhere were hoofprints of cattle and sheep; clearly, the livestock were regularly let out to graze and move about on the winter pastures.

Nearby, the stream still flowed; the current was not strong, but the water was exceptionally clear. Beneath the surface, several clumps of green grass were still growing.

Life truly possessed tenacious vitality.

Nassen wandered near Li Long for a while; soon after, Sa Si Ken ran out from the winter camp, caught up to Li Long from behind, and joined Nassen.

The two children shared a close bond; bickering and play-fighting were normal, and though occasional arguments could be heard, they always followed one another, becoming anxious whenever out of sight.

It was quite cold outside; neither child wore Dai Maozi, and soon their ears turned red from the frost, snot dripping down, which they wiped away with their sleeves from time to time, reminding Li Long of Li Qiang two years prior.

Children of this era were indeed much the same.

Better to go back inside the winter camp; at least the children would not freeze.

Just as Li Long was about to speak, he heard the sound of wolf howls drifting from the distance.

Extremely mournful and drawn-out!

Li Long looked toward the southwest; that was precisely the direction Ha Li Mu had taken, and the winter camps of Brother Brother Yushanjiang, Talihar, and others all lay in that direction!

Li Long's complexion instantly changed, for he heard another wolf howl!

This was a pack of wolves!

Could Ha Li Mu be in danger?

Only then did Li Long remember that Ha Li Mu had departed in such haste that he had not even slung a rifle over his back!

Indeed, apart from a horsewhip, he had carried no weapon whatsoever!

He immediately removed the sheathed rifle from his back, tossed the gun case aside, then, while running toward the southwest, he drew the rifle, released the safety, and chambered a round.

At this moment, driving the tractor would be slower than running on foot. Heavy snow had fallen in the mountains, covering pits, gullies, and the like. Since Li Long did not frequently travel this route, driving the tractor risked getting it stuck; not only would he fail to help, but he might hinder the urgent matter!

His Type 56 semi-automatic rifle was fully loaded with ammunition, and the satchel he carried personally held several dozen additional rounds.

"Bang!"

Li Long raised his rifle and fired a shot into the sky, intending to intimidate those wolves and also signal to Ha Li Mu, who might be in peril, that he had discovered the situation!

Li Long charged down the grassy slope, following the direction of Ha Li Mu's earlier horse tracks, and ran onward.

This was a desperate race to save lives; whether it was Ha Li Mu or anyone else, they must all be rescued.

He faintly heard the neighing of a horse, confirming that the wolves were surely pursuing someone.

"Bang!"

Li Long fired another shot into the sky; in less than two minutes, he had already run several hundred meters and was about to enter another valley.

Just then, the sound of hoofbeats arose behind him; turning his head, he was surprised to discover that the one riding the horse was Nassen, who, brandishing a small horsewhip, urged his mount to catch up with Li Long.

"Uncle, get on! I'll take you there!" Nassen's face now bore the seriousness and maturity of an adult. "The horse is faster!"

Li Long hesitated briefly, then slung his pack over his shoulder, pressed diagonally against the horse's back, and leapt directly onto the saddle.

Nassen had not expected Li Long to mount so agilely; he then flicked his horsewhip, and the black-and-yellow horse let out a neigh before galloping toward the source of the wolf howls.

Li Long turned his head and saw that at the entrance of the winter camp, the old woman and Sa Si Ken were both present.

Meanwhile, Ha Li Mu's wife stood holding a Type 56 semi-automatic rifle, watching them.

He felt reassured.

Even if wolves were to attack the winter camp at this moment, there was likely nothing there requiring his concern.

Anyone capable of living long-term in the mountains, especially Ha Li Mu's wife, was certainly not a woman who knew only how to bake naan and brew milk tea.

The horse ran extremely fast; Li Long took the rifle from his shoulder, angled it forward to aim, but couldn't get a lock at all. Yet he wasn't worried—as long as the person surrounded by wolves could hold out until he and Nasen arrived, even if he missed, the gunshot alone would startle the wolves.

Having lived in these mountains for decades, the pack of wolves had witnessed the power of firearms more than once; those who didn't believe in its power had, in all likelihood, already become wolf pelts and nourishment consumed by people.

Rushing past two valley mouths, the howling of wolves rang out again; this time it felt closer, yet still no precise location could be determined.

Li Long raised his gun, intending to fire another shot, but then worried the horse might spook; if startled by the gunshot, both he and Nasen could be injured.

"Uncle, go ahead and shoot; my horse isn't afraid," Nasen suddenly spoke up.

Good, it wasn't afraid; Li Long immediately angled his rifle upward and fired another shot toward the direction of the wolf howl.

"Bang!"

After the gunshot, the echo reverberated through the valley, and then another wolf howl was heard from afar—this one short and piercing, though it was unclear what the alpha wolf was calling for.

The horses neighed again; this time their cries sounded panicked.

Li Long grew even more worried; he fired two consecutive shots into the sky, then felt the horse beneath him running somewhat unevenly—it seemed the gunshots did affect the animal after all.

Crossing another low slope and passing a valley mouth, Li Long finally spotted the horse ahead galloping toward them.

It was Ha Li Mu!

Flanking Ha Li Mu and his horse on both sides were six or seven wolves darting through the mountain terrain; occasionally, one would lunge forward, attempting to bite the horse's legs, while Ha Li Mu swung his riding whip to drive them off.

Li Long grew extremely anxious; he could see the wolves posed a grave threat to the horse—if even one managed to bite a leg, both rider and mount would likely tumble down, and once the pack swarmed over them, the outcome would be anyone's guess!

Glancing to both sides, he said to Nasen:

"Slow down!" Nasen pulled the reins; Li Long leaped off the horse, stumbled twice in the snow, and the moment he steadied himself, he had already raised his rifle!

He didn't aim at the wolves closely pursuing Ha Li Mu, but instead targeted those weaving through the mountain slopes, occasionally lifting their heads to howl!

"Bang!"

"Bang! Bang!"

After three shots, blood sprayed from one wolf's body, while another, exceedingly cunning, plunged headfirst into the snow, evading the bullets.

Li Long kept his rifle raised and aimed; this time he targeted the wolf preparing to attack Ha Li Mu's horse!

From the moment he first spotted Ha Li Mu, when the distance between them had been about one hundred sixty or seventy meters, to now, after Li Long had fired those three shots, the gap had narrowed to just over one hundred meters.

One wolf had hesitated, slowing its pace, while two others still pressed on relentlessly!

"Bang!"

Just as Ha Li Mu suddenly turned, Li Long, who had been steadily aiming, seized the opportunity and shot down the wolf that hadn't managed to keep up and was still charging forward!

This wolf wasn't dead yet; after being hit, it rolled twice in the snow, then began wailing—a sound utterly miserable to hear.

At that moment, another wolf realized something was wrong; without hesitation, it turned tail and fled into Lin Zi. Li Long aimed twice more, but the wolf was too cunning, using Ha Li Mu and his horse to block Li Long's line of sight, ultimately escaping unhit.

!.

By now, Nasen had reached Ha Li Mu; after the two riders and their horses regrouped, they charged toward Li Long.

Seeing no more wolves in pursuit, Li Long immediately took bullets from his satchel and loaded them into his rifle.

Once fully loaded, he gripped his rifle and walked forward.

Ha Li Mu leaped down from his horse, came over, and gave Li Long a firm embrace:

"Thank you, Brother Li Long!"

"Why thank me? You went out because of me, which is why you encountered danger. Come, let's check if any wolves are still alive!"

Li Long glanced over and noticed a bloody gash on the hind leg of Ha Li Mu's horse; he pointed it out for Ha Li Mu to see.

"It's fine; it's used to this," Ha Li Mu said, his emotions finally stabilizing. "I regret it now; I should have brought my gun."

Li Long thought the same.

"I never expected these wolves would attack people in broad daylight," Ha Li Mu said, leading his horse back as he spoke to Nasen:

"Go tell your mother we're safe."

"Alright!" Nasen flicked his riding whip and galloped quickly back.

"Will he be alright?" Li Long turned his head to watch Nasen.

"He will be," Ha Li Mu replied. "There's less than five hundred meters left; if the wolves dare make another move, then this winter we'll have to thoroughly clear out the mountains and hunt them down properly."

Only then did Li Long feel reassured.

The two men retraced Ha Li Mu's path, and to Li Long's surprise, they ended up killing three wolves.

Ha Li Mu took a rope from his saddle, tied up the three wolves, fastened them with the rope, and dragged them behind his horse all the way back to the winter camp.

Ha Li Mu's wife and mother both asked questions, which he answered one by one.

He then took a Type 56 semi-automatic rifle from his wife's hands and remarked with a sigh:

"This year's snowfall is heavy; the wolves have all come out from Lishan. It seems from now on we must always carry our guns."

"Should we notify the others as well?" Li Long asked, somewhat worried; earlier, that pack of at most seven or eight wolves had dared to attack both people and horses—he wondered if conditions in the mountains had deteriorated, leading to such incidents.

"Yes, we should. But I think Brother Brother Yushanjiang will arrive shortly," Ha Li Mu said. "With so many gunshots fired, he's sure to have noticed. He'll probably bring his gun and come to check the situation. Come, let's go inside first and talk slowly."

Ha Li Mu had arrived at Brother Brother Yushanjiang's home first; a large portion of Brother Brother Yushanjiang's fat sheep had also been taken, their situation mirroring Ha Li Mu's. Combined, the two families had fewer than thirty fat sheep remaining.

They would need to continue searching other households.

Ha Li Mu visited two more families, gathering a total of fifty fat sheep, and arranged with them to drive the animals to his place the next morning for joint slaughter.

Today, Ha Li Mu still needed to notify the Imam, as there would be a ceremony tomorrow.

He hadn't expected that on his way back after delivering the notice, he would encounter this wolf pack. At first, spotting a single wolf, Ha Li Mu hadn't paid much attention, simply urging his horse to move faster.

Unexpectedly, after following Ha Li Mu for some distance, that wolf began howling, summoning its companions.

Realizing the danger, Ha Li Mu immediately increased his speed. However, the horse had already run a long distance, and with the heavy snow, it couldn't pick up pace, allowing the wolf pack to catch up.

Ha Li Mu knew he couldn't stop now; he vigorously swung his whip, urging the horse to run harder, thinking that if he could just reach the winter camp, he'd be safe. At this point, he deeply regretted not bringing his gun; had he done so, a couple of shots would have been enough to scare the wolves away.

Then the alpha wolf howled, likely adjusting its tactics; unexpectedly, Li Long heard it, and as soon as the gunshot rang out, some wolves began to feel fear.

Seizing this exact opportunity, Ha Li Mu broke through the wolves' encirclement and sprinted desperately toward them.

"Nasen is still formidable; if I had been running alone, I might not have encountered you so quickly," Li Long said, patting Nasen's head. "In critical moments, even a pup proves immensely useful."

Ha Li Mu smiled, giving his son a look of gratification.

Nasen immediately became proud.

Ha Li Mu's wife served milk tea, occasionally whispering a word or two to Ha Li Mu.

Although he could not understand the words, Li Long could hear the tone was full of concern, mixed with a slight hint of reproach.

He lowered his head and took a sip of the milk tea.

Could this be considered flaunting their affection?

The sound of hoofbeats came from outside.

"Brother Brother Yushanjiang should be arriving," Ha Li Mu said, finishing the milk tea in his bowl and standing up.

Li Long also climbed down from the wooden kang, slipped on his shoes, and walked outside.

Sure enough, Brother Brother Yushanjiang, carrying a rifle, jumped down from his horse; upon seeing Ha Li Mu and Li Long, he immediately asked:

"Ha Li Mu, did you encounter wolves?"

"Mm, a pack of wolves chased me for over a kilometer. If not for Li Long, I would have been finished." Ha Li Mu spoke very calmly, yet Brother Brother Yushanjiang's face grew stern upon hearing this:

"It seems that after we slaughter the sheep this time, we must clear out this mountain area. These wolves are too rampant! Now they dare to chase people in broad daylight; if this continues, they might even dare to charge straight into the sheepfolds at night!"

"Good." Although Ha Li Mu had remained calm throughout, if he could exact revenge, he had no intention of waiting until the next day.

"Then I will go back and get some more bullets," Li Long said after a moment's thought. "I will come over then as well."

"Alright."

Neither Ha Li Mu nor Brother Brother Yushanjiang declined; they were all their own people, so there was no need for polite formalities. Li Long's marksmanship was excellent, and he often hunted; with his addition, they could kill more wolves.

Although wild boars caused greater harm in the interior regions, here in Northern Xinjiang, in this era, wolves were still more dangerous for the herders in the mountains.

After all, wild boars could at most ruin the pastures by rooting them up. Since rainfall here was abundant, pastures that had been rooted up would quickly grow grass again.

But if that pack of wolves became established, the losses might involve more than just cattle and sheep; people could very well lose their lives.

Every year, an unknown number of people who entered the mountains to gather herbs in hopes of getting rich ended up in the mouths of these beasts.

Usually, the herders' energy was mainly focused on grazing, but when these beasts truly threatened their lives, they would not show any mercy.

"In a little while, let's go together to notify Talihar and the others; when they drive the sheep over tomorrow, they must bring their guns," Brother Brother Yushanjiang said. "We cannot allow them to encounter danger on the road."

"Good." Ha Li Mu nodded. He turned his head and said to Li Long:

"Li Long, you do not need to go. Both Brother Brother Yushanjiang and I are carrying guns, so it will be fine. You go back first; if you are going to procure bullets, you will be busy this afternoon."

"Alright." This was the first time Ha Li Mu had urged Li Long to leave, but Li Long knew that everyone was busy right now. These were major matters, and none could be delayed.

"As for the wolves, wait until Brother Brother Yushanjiang and I return, and we will skin them; tomorrow you can come over and directly take the pelts and wolf meat," Ha Li Mu added. "Bullets are very important; you just focus on procuring those."

"Fine." Li Long stopped being polite; he took two spare bags of bullets from his satchel and handed them separately to Ha Li Mu and Brother Brother Yushanjiang, then started the tractor, turned it around on the snowy slope, and drove down the mountain.

Today's wolf incident had startled him as well; this matter truly could not be delayed.

As the tractor drove out of Shankou, Li Long still heard wolf howls coming from the mountain peaks to the west.

Have wolves become a plague this year? Why are there so many?

Or is there some big creature appearing in the inner mountains that has driven these wolves out? (End of Chapter)