Chapter 38: Hunting Accident

That day, Zhang Ping'an walked into the courtyard with his large bow on his back.

"My goodness, Ping'an, this bow is quite imposing! And it looks like it's got some years on it, too."

"Hahaha, Teacher Yan has a sharp eye."

Yan Bugui looked at Zhang Ping'an with envy; his image was simply something else—a physique like a leopard's, paired with that large bow. If his face weren't still so youthful, he would be a total powerhouse.

"Zhang Shu?"

"Oh, is Shazhu off today?"

"Yeah, Zhang Shu, you this..."

"Shazhu, don't be envious. Ping'an gets up to exercise every morning after five. If you could be that persistent, you wouldn't be much worse."

"……"

Shazhu was currently busy as could be in the kitchen every day; by the end of the day, he didn't even want to move, let alone have the time or energy to exercise.

After being questioned by Yan Bugui, Zhang Ping'an had started wearing long sleeves, but since the weather was too hot now, he was wearing short sleeves. Now, everyone who saw him had to ask a couple of questions, but fortunately, having Yan Bugui act as his mouthpiece saved him a lot of trouble.

"Zhang Shu, are we going into the mountains tomorrow?" Damao popped out from somewhere and looked at the large bow on Zhang Ping'an's back.

"Yes, it's good you came; it saves me from having to go notify you."

"Zhang Shu, I don't have anything going on tomorrow, count me in."

"Shazhu, how come you're everywhere?"

"You idiot, you can't carry anything on your shoulders or lift anything with your hands, what can you do if you follow along? At least I can help Zhang Shu carry the game."

"You... who says I can't? I've been exercising this past year, I'm taller than before, and I'm stronger too."

Although Damao had been eating and drinking well every day this past year and was much sturdier than before, he was still thin overall.

Even though Damao was two years younger than Shazhu, he looked more imposing than Shazhu, but he was a skinny beanpole. Shazhu was a cook, so he had plenty of oil and fat, giving him a very sturdy appearance.

"Hehe~ Pfft, skinny dog."

"You******" Damao kept sending telegrams.

"I'll beat you to death, damn it!"

Zhang Ping'an looked at the two of them speechlessly and pulled them apart.

"Both of you go tomorrow."

"Alright!" X2

"……"

"Go back and prepare. We leave at 4:30 tomorrow morning. Bring the things from last time and wear long clothes and long sleeves."

"Alright, Zhang Shu."

Zhang Ping'an walked to the Middle Courtyard to tell Jia Dongxu about the hunting trip tomorrow morning, then went back to prepare his things.

A wood-chopping knife, water canteen, lunch box, matches, pot, bow and arrows, burlap sack, seasonings, and a flashlight. The wood-chopping knife was something Zhang Ping'an had paid Liu Haizhong, who wielded the big hammer, to forge for him. He and Jia Dongxu each had one. Lao Liu's technique was beyond reproach; the wood-chopping knife was exceptionally sharp.

The next morning, Zhang Ping'an woke up at four, exercised for twenty minutes, inhaled his breakfast, and then headed out.

"Get up quickly, it's already 4:30, don't keep your Zhang Shu waiting!" Xu Fugui kicked the sleepy-eyed Xu Damao awake.

Although Xu Fugui didn't spend much time at the Rolling Mill, that didn't mean he didn't know anything. Just seeing the money in his son's little stash growing more and more was enough to know that Zhang Ping'an had led his son to get rich again.

"Oh, okay." Xu Damao washed his face haphazardly, grabbed the things his father had prepared, and went out.

It was the same at Shazhu's house; the still-dazed Shazhu was woken up by He Daqing.

"Oh, you're all up."

As soon as Zhang Ping'an walked out of the courtyard gate, he saw the three of them already waiting in the Middle Courtyard. He was surprised; he had been planning to go knock on their doors.

"Uncle, we just arrived too."

"Alright, have you all eaten?"

"Zhang Shu, I'll go buy a few big meat buns outside to eat on the way."

"That works, let's go."

Two tricycles left the city silently. Half an hour later, they arrived at the foot of the mountain. They hid the carts in the mountain hollow from before, and the four of them headed straight up the mountain.

This time, Jia Dongxu held the wood-chopping knife to clear the path, while Zhang Ping'an brought up the rear with his bow.

"Uncle, are we going straight to the place where we found the Wild Boar last time?"

"Yes, and if you see any animal trails, set some traps along the way. Shazhu, Damao, you two need to remember the locations too."

"Alright, Zhang Shu."

They walked and stopped along the way, setting quite a few traps. Zhang Ping'an also casually shot two wild rabbits and a pheasant. The two idiots both looked at Zhang Ping'an with eyes full of worship; weapons were always a man's favorite.

"Shazhu, process these simply first, let's have them for lunch." The temperature in the mountains was lower, so the meat wouldn't spoil for a while.

"Alright."

Shazhu hadn't wasted his year of work; he processed the rabbits quite skillfully. Removing the heart and lungs, skinning, and deboning—it was all done in one smooth motion.

"Not bad, not bad. Your technique is very practiced. You've put in a lot of effort this year, Shazhu."

"Hehe, that's right." Once he was praised, Shazhu's tail was about to wag up to the sky.

Three hours later, the four of them reached an open area. They all looked like they had been fished out of water; at first, it was dew, but later, it was sweat.

"Let's start a fire and cook lunch here. This is a pit that Dongxu and I dug before. Let's rest for a while, then go pick up some firewood nearby."

"Shazhu, lunch is up to you: roasted rabbit and mushroom chicken soup." The mushrooms were also picked along the way.

"Got it, just leave it to me."

"Dongxu, look around to see if there are any suitable places to set traps. I'm going to look further out."

"Alright, Uncle."

Zhang Ping'an used his wood-chopping knife to clear the path and headed quickly into the deep mountains. Half an hour later, he discovered traces of people living there long-term.

Zhang Ping'an followed the small path that had been trampled out and carefully crept over. There were quite a few Agents at this time; after all, what normal person would live in the deep mountains and old forests?

"Watashi wa..."

"Chotto matte~"

Foot-basin chicken? Zhang Ping'an had watched many divine dramas in his past life, and that language was exactly like this, identical.

Zhang Ping'an looked at the camp from afar, not daring to alert them, and quietly retreated.

"Dongxu, Zhuzi, Damao, stop cooking, hurry back and report to Public Security, there are Agents here."

"Ah? Uncle, you..."

"You all hurry back, I heard the conversation of three or four people, they are deep in the mountains, go report to Public Security at the fastest speed, I will keep watch here, they likely won't come out for a while, I will leave marks, just follow the marks to find me then."

"Alright Uncle, we are heading down the mountain now, take care of yourself." Jia Dongxu also realized the seriousness of the matter, no longer hesitated, took the firewood knife, and led Ersha down the mountain.

After they left, Zhang Ping'an put everything into his space, replenished his state in the space, and returned to the deep mountains after leaving marks.

Just now, listening to the conversation, there were at least three or four people, and weapons were certainly not lacking, so Zhang Ping'an did not dare to act rashly.

"Public Security comrade, we discovered Agents in the mountains, my uncle is watching them there, you all hurry over."

"What? Little comrade, you must not speak nonsense."

"I am not speaking nonsense, I am a Worker at the Rolling Mill, I live at Nanluoguxiang 95, I went up the mountain to hunt this morning, my uncle discovered them by accident and told us to report to Public Security immediately."

"How many people are on the other side?"

"At least three or four."

"Everyone assemble quickly, Xiaoli, you notify the superior leaders, we will go ahead first."

"Yes, Station Chief."

"Zhuzi, Damao, you go back and tell my father and mother, I will lead the way for the Public Security comrades."

"Alright, Brother Dongxu." The two of them were still a bit shaken, and they hadn't dared to stop for a moment since coming down from the mountain.

"Xiaoli, find someone to send them back and explain the situation clearly to their families."

"Yes."

"Put-put-put," two three-wheeled motorcycles carrying fifteen fully armed men headed straight for the mountain area.

Zhang Ping'an had been observing the situation inside the camp from a tree, and a middle-aged man dressed in a long gown from the Republic of China era walked out from inside.

"Oh no."