Landlord in the Arctic

While Feng Shan was lost in thought, the truck had already reached the foot of Atigun Mountain.

The truck crawled laboriously up the narrow, winding road. The scenery on either side changed constantly, from towering walls of snow to terrifying, bottomless cliffs.

In the vast, snowy wilderness, the only things guiding the truck were the reflective poles lining the road, most of them half-buried in drifts. They flickered in the truck’s faint light, like lonely guardians in the darkness.

The journey over Atigun Mountain was incredibly long. At this high altitude, the engine struggled for power, forcing the truck to crawl forward at a turtle’s pace.

Deep snow covered the road, creating one obstacle after another for the truck.

Even with snow chains, which ground against the snow with a CRUNCHING sound in an attempt to gain more traction, the truck still drifted from time to time.

The truck’s body swayed, threatening to veer off the path at any moment.

Everyone in the cab was tense; each turn of the wheels felt like a monumental effort.

They climbed from the foothills to the 4,700-foot summit.

As their altitude increased, the air grew thinner and the temperature plummeted. Cold drafts seeped through the window seals, making everyone shiver uncontrollably.

Each breath was a struggle, like trying to gasp for air in a confined space. Chests heaved, and breathing grew ragged.

Finally, after a long downhill stretch, the second leg of the journey was officially over.

The 180-mile-plus journey had taken a full eight hours, far longer than Feng Shan had anticipated.

’I’d originally planned to cross the Tundra and get back to Crown Territory in a day,’ Feng Shan thought. ’But at this rate, it looks like the trip will have to be delayed by a day.’

Not wanting Jenny to worry, Feng Shan thought for a moment, then sent her a text.

Of course, he couldn’t mention the real situation on the road. He used Old Tom as an excuse, telling Jenny he would be home a little later.

He received a reply from Jenny a few moments later.

Meanwhile, the truck reached its destination: Sagewang.

It was a desolate little town on the banks of the Frozen River. A few dilapidated, decaying wooden cabins were scattered along the riverbank, teetering in the frigid wind as if they might be swallowed by the torrent of time at any moment.

An eerie silence hung over the area, broken only by the howling wind, which added to the sense of desolation.

Lisa drove the truck off the road and parked it on an open, snowy patch of ground.

She turned to Feng Shan, her face a mask of disbelief.

"Man, this is Sagewang. Are you sure you really want to cross the Tundra? My God, that’s insane! How is that any different from a death wish?"

Feng Shan rolled his eyes in annoyance.

’Lisa hadn’t stopped with the discouraging remarks the entire trip, as if she was convinced I was going to die crossing the Tundra.’

Not wanting to listen to Lisa ramble on, he ignored her and went straight to the rear of the flatbed trailer with Nash.

The two of them first unloaded the snowmobiles and supplies, then opened the shipping container doors.

Lisa stood to the side, watching curiously. As far as she was concerned, her delivery job was done; the rest had nothing to do with her.

Still, she was intrigued by the animals Feng Shan had mentioned and couldn’t resist watching.

When the container doors slowly swung open, a tiger wobbled out and jumped down.

Lisa was startled and instinctively shrank back.

But a moment later, she burst out laughing.

’Normally, seeing a tiger should be terrifying, especially one that isn’t in a cage. If it suddenly went berserk and attacked, the consequences would be unimaginable.’

But this tiger, after jumping down from the container, flopped onto the snow with a THUD and immediately started retching.

Seeing this, Feng Shan shot an annoyed glare at Lisa, who was bent over with laughter.

’Still laughing? It’s your driving that did this.’

’A perfectly healthy tiger, and you’ve made it carsick!’

Then, the other tigers jumped out of the container one after another.

Without exception, they were all carsick. They flopped onto the snow and wretched violently.

Seeing this, Lisa realized her laughter was perhaps a bit inappropriate and sheepishly suppressed her smile.

But the scene was just too absurd, and she couldn’t help but want to laugh again. She struggled to hold it in, her face turning red with the effort.

Just then, a pinkish head appeared at the opening of the container.

The head peeked out cautiously, seemingly wary of the outside world. It took one look and immediately pulled back.

’What kind of animal is that?’

’I’ve never seen anything like it.’

Lisa’s eyes widened, her face full of confusion.

’I’ve lived here my whole life and I’ve never seen an animal like that.’

She watched curiously as Feng Shan walked over to the container door.

"Tu’Er, come on out. We’re about to leave. You’re covered in feathers, what the hell are you cold for? Get out here!"

A moment later, a strange-looking large bird timidly shuffled to the container’s opening.

It looked like an eagle, but it had a long neck and a completely bald head, which gave it a very bizarre appearance.

Seeing Tu’Er about to dart back inside, Feng Shan reacted instantly. He lunged forward, snatched it by its long neck, and carried it away from the container.

The moment Tu’Er was out in the open, the cold hit its bald head, dazing it. In a panic, it immediately tucked its head under its wing, leaving only a round, feathery body shivering in the snow.

Looking at Tu’Er’s pitiful appearance, Feng Shan slapped his forehead, realizing he had forgotten to find a hat for it.

He quickly turned to Lisa, his voice pleading.

"Do you have an extra hat or a neck gaiter in your truck? Anything warm? If not, even some cold-weather tape would do."

"I should. Let me look!"

Lisa answered, then turned and hurried back to the cab.

She returned a moment later holding a red Santa hat and said, a bit apologetically.

"Sorry, all I have in the truck is this hat from Christmas. I don’t know if it’ll work."

"It’s perfect." Feng Shan quickly took the Santa hat, turned, and squatted down next to Tu’Er. He coaxed it softly, "Tu’Er, I found a hat for you. Come on out, it’s nice and warm!"

The vulture cautiously poked its head out from under its wing, its round eyes warily scanning the surroundings.

Seeing this, Feng Shan quickly put the Santa hat on its head and gently adjusted it. "There, how’s that? Still cold?"

As soon as the Santa hat was on, Tu’Er’s head instantly felt much warmer. Its body, which had been curled into a ball, relaxed a little. It excitedly spread its wings and let out a series of happy calls.

"Mr. Feng, what kind of bird is this? I’ve never seen one before." Lisa walked over curiously and bent down to get a closer look at Tu’Er.

Its appearance was unique, unlike any bird she’d seen before.

Feng Shan reached out to tighten Tu’Er’s Santa hat to prevent it from being blown off by the wind, then explained, "It’s a Himalayan Vulture. It was supposed to fly to the Himalayas, but it went the wrong way and ended up in Alaska. A hunter mistook it for a goose and shot it, breaking its wing. I adopted it from Anchorage."

"My God, how awful." Lisa looked at the Santa-hat-wearing Tu’Er with pity in her eyes.

GRRR!

Suddenly, a low growl rumbled from behind them.

The sound was jarring in the silence of the snowy landscape. Like a frightened rabbit, Lisa yelped and dove straight into Feng Shan’s arms.

She wrapped her arms tightly around Feng Shan’s waist, squeezing with enough force to fuse them together. Her eyes were wide with terror.

’Well...’

’She jumped into my arms on her own. This has nothing to do with me.’

’And... feeling Lisa’s figure, which was flat as a board, he couldn’t help but compare her to Jenny. Night and day.’

’What am I even thinking?’

Feng Shan quickly raised his hands, signaling his innocence.

Nearby, Nash remained impassive, continuing to organize the snowmobiles at a steady pace, as if whatever might happen between Feng Shan and the driver was none of his concern.

"Hey, that’s just Tyson. He won’t hurt you," Feng Shan quickly said to soothe Lisa.

"He doesn’t eat people?" Lisa’s face was pale. She cautiously peeked out and saw a tiger standing right behind Feng Shan.

But the tiger’s appearance surprised her.

Its face was huge and round, like a giant hamburger. It lacked the majestic ferocity of the tigers in documentaries and instead looked almost comical.

With its innocent eyes and dopey, cute expression, it made you want to get closer, maybe even reach out and give it a scratch.

"He really doesn’t bite?" Lisa was still skeptical. Her eyes betrayed a hint of fear, but she couldn’t suppress her curiosity about the adorably goofy tiger before her.

"Really. I swear to God."

’Feng Shan felt helpless, but he had to invoke God. After all, that’s what Westerners believed in.’

...