Chapter 81: Pigs, Like You, Can't Do Brain Teasers

The New Recruit Company at night was shrouded in a quiet, eerie atmosphere.

The misty night seemed to drape a veil of white gauze over everyone's eyes.

Streaks of glaring flashlight beams, like sharp spears, pierced holes through the fog‑filled darkness.

The new recruits, organized by squad, wielded iron spades, brooms, and engineer shovels, and under the Squad Leader's guidance carefully searched every corner of the camp.

Because just ten minutes earlier, a sudden wild‑beast attack on a person had occurred in the Cai Di on Hou Shan.

Senior Private Liu Cheng of the rear kitchen, following routine, went to patrol the Cai Di on Hou Shan to prevent rats from nibbling the seedlings.

Unexpectedly, he was attacked by a massive, unusually ferocious wild boar, which rolled him down the hillside.

Not only did he bruise his head, but his arm was also broken.

Fortunately, every member of the Cook Squad had reviewed battlefield first aid with Lu Yang.

At the first sign of the situation, they hurriedly dragged the person to a safe spot, quickly bandaged and splinted him, then immediately lifted him on a stretcher to the infirmary.

But in the chaos, the wild boar that had attacked was nowhere to be found; someone claimed to have seen a large dark shape burst from Hou Shan into the New Recruit Company's camp.

Is that even allowed?

If a soldier on duty gets hurt, or it breaks into the Shushe lou, wouldn't that cause a complete uproar?

To prevent the wild boar from continuing its harmful impact, and to stop it from fleeing and harming nearby villagers.

The Company Commander ordered the Whole Company to assemble and work together to capture the wild boar.

To be safe, he even chambered a bullet, ready to kill it.

In earlier years, wild boars were indeed protected animals, but in recent years their breeding has become excessive, and attacks on people have become frequent across the country.

Therefore, modern wild boars no longer enjoy the status they once had, and since they now actively attack people, physical exorcism is not an option.

"My dear mother, I heard that wild boar weighed about four hundred jin, and when it runs it looks like a small hill; it knocked Liu Cheng right out of the air in an instant."

"That scary? Isn't it just a pig, not a tiger or lion?"

"You can tell you're not a country kid; haven't you heard the saying 'one pig, two bears, three tigers'?"

"In our northeast region, during the New Year we slaughter a year‑old pig, and four or five adults can't hold down a single pig, let alone a raging wild boar."

"Weighing around four hundred jin, at full speed it can reach fifty kilometers per hour, like a moving mini‑tank; even a light hit would cause a fracture."

"My second uncle once came back from an evening banquet and ran into a wild boar in a small grove, and the person was gone!"

"He was killed by the wild boar?"

"Not exactly; he had drunk too much, saw the wild boar and got scared, turned around, lost control of the steering wheel, drove into a nearby ditch, and drowned face‑down..."

The new recruits chattered anxiously, their hearts unsettled.

With such a formidable creature, can they manage it just with iron spades, brooms, and engineer shovels?

Zhou Kaidong, as Squad Leader, warned everyone to shut up and not discuss it.

A wild boar can scare you this much; on the battlefield facing an enemy, wouldn't you piss your pants?

But criticism aside, the reminder still stands: "Do not try to go up and provoke it, and do not stare into the wild boar's eyes; if it charges at you, dodge if you can."

Lu Yang added, "Run in an S‑shape as much as possible."

"Why?" Kong Long asked curiously.

"Because a pig, like you, can't turn its head."

"…"

Kong Long, irritated, said, "Telling jokes at a time like this doesn't make anyone laugh!"

Lu Yang: "It's true, pigs really can't do brain teasers."

He had read in a book that running in an S‑shape has a high chance of evading a wild boar's pursuit.

It's like a matador making sudden brakes and turns, circling the bull.

The Third Squad's new recruits searched around the wall but found nothing.

"Where could such a big‑headed wild boar hide?"

"The camp is only this large; could it have already run out?"

"Who knows? Keep looking."

The others, clueless, could only continue searching as instructed.

Other squads also conducted endurance searches, yet still found nothing.

Soon, Lu Yang and the others arrived near the La Ji Zhan and were about to search.

th Class Squad Leader Li Jiang came over from that side: "We've just searched here, no need to do it again; let's check elsewhere."

Zhou Kaidong glanced over, saw nothing unusual, and nodded.

But as he was about to lead the team elsewhere, he saw Lu Yang suddenly stop.

"What's wrong?"

"Over there, something seems off."

"Did you spot the wild boar?"

Lu Yang pointed to an inconspicuous clump of shrub behind the trash can: "There's something over there."

Li Jiang and Zhou Kaidong shone their flashlights at it, but found nothing.

This made the two wonder whether Lu Yang's eyes were playing tricks.

But Lu Yang was convinced he hadn't misseen; there must be something inside that shrub!

The two exchanged a helpless glance, shrugged, and Li Jiang stepped forward, scraping the shrub's exterior a couple of times with his engineer shovel.

"There's nothing there?"

"Left rear."

Prompted by Lu Yang, Li Jiang circled to the back and struck it with a shovel.

Clang!

The shovel blade hit a hard, solid object with a hint of softness—it was a wild boar butt!

"Watch out!"

As soon as Zhou Kaidong shouted, a robust wild boar with tusks charged out of the bushes.

Caught off guard, Li Jiang was shoved aside, while the wild boar looked for a chance to flee.

Kong Long and Ding Tengfei, seeing the creature's red‑glowing eyes and sharp tusks, dared not approach directly; they could only keep shifting positions and beat it with iron spade and club.

But the wild boar's rough hide and thick flesh meant even a knife might not easily pierce it; the attacks felt like a light scraping or tickling.

As more people gathered, the wild boar suddenly went berserk, charging toward Hou Shan.

At that speed and mass, anyone who tried to block it would surely be knocked away, then suffer broken bones and be taken to the hospital.

Lu Yang thought that wuxia novels often mention a single punch killing a bull; but in reality, even a Schwarzenegger‑type strongman would likely be unable to stop a wild boar's savage charge.

Gao Feng, hastily brandishing his gun, chased from behind, his muzzle already raised, ready to pull the trigger.

But seeing the chaotic crowd and the wild boar already far away, the raised muzzle was forced to be lowered.

Night visibility was poor; under such conditions, shooting at a fast‑moving target was most likely to miss.

"Everyone, follow me to Hou Shan!"

"We must have wild boar meat tomorrow!"

Gao Feng, breathing heavily with his gun, led a group in pursuit from behind.

Near the junkyard, the dazed Li Jiang, who had been knocked, was helped up from the ground by Zhou Kaidong.

"Are you okay?"

Li Jiang clutched his side waist, his face full of pain.

"You get hit once—try it? It really hurts!"

"The Company Commander has already passed; if you don't rest here, I'll take people over to help."

"I'll go with you; otherwise when we split the meat later, I'll get one less portion!"

Zhou Kaidong turned his head toward Lu Yang, asking in confusion, "How did you see that the wild boar was hidden behind? Neither of us veterans noticed it."

Lu Yang shook his head, "I'm not sure either; I just saw it at a glance, and I don't know why you didn't see it."

The two veterans rolled their eyes, suddenly feeling a bit offended.

But with the sky so dark and fog falling, not noticing it was quite normal.

As for why Lu Yang could spot it, it was probably just a coincidence.

Good news: Gao Feng, with his gun, and the others managed to corner the wild boar in Hou Shan.

Bad news: the sky was too dark, the forest too complex, and the damn thing got lost again.

The wild boar's fur naturally bears autumn‑winter camouflage colors; hide it in a pile of weeds and dead leaves, and as soon as it darts into the brush, as long as it stays silent and unseen, it's truly hard to find.

Flashlights, held haphazardly, flickered like scribbles under the night sky, and despite the many people, they still couldn't locate where that thing was hidden.

No wonder—beasts are masters of stealth and camouflage; this is the marvel of natural evolution.

Seeing the cabbage, radish seedlings, and spinach seedlings ruined by the wild boar in the fields, the Director of Affairs was heartbroken.

In two days, the camp's publicity officer will come to take photos, organize material, and write a press release.

After all this, still write a hammer—what the heck, a newspaper?

He wished he could slash this damn wild boar three times, six holes, skin it and pull its tendons!

Then cut it, cut it, and make red‑braised meat, lion meat, steamed shredded pork, twice‑cooked pork, sweet‑and‑sour spare ribs, boiled sliced pork, scallion‑braised pork chops, stir‑fried pork kidneys, sautéed liver tips, fried pork intestines, mu shu pork, guo bao pork, wild boar meat stewed with vermicelli…