Chapter 346 - 284: Almost Scared to Death
WHOOSH... HOWL... The sound of the mountain wind howling.
RUSTLE... SWISH... SWOOSH... The sound of the wind shaking branches and twigs.
CAW... SCREECH... HOWL... The strange cries of owls and other nocturnal creatures.
These sounds mingled, and at any moment, one might swell from a whisper to a roar, only to fade away again.
That’s why anyone who could spend a night in the mountains had to be mentally tough. Otherwise, the sounds alone would be too much for an ordinary person to bear.
Holding a torch, Zhao Jun had been trekking through the night for over three hours. He didn’t reach No. 78 Logging Camp until a little after ten.
By this time, the camp’s logging teams had already left the mountain for the day. But Yang Hong, the Leader, was still there, as were the cook, Hu Dahai, and his son.
The moment Zhao Jun arrived, the dogs at the camp started barking.
The barking woke Hu Dahai. He threw on a padded cotton jacket and came out to see what was going on. When he saw it was Zhao Jun, he didn’t say a word, simply leading him to Yang Hong’s shack—the Leader’s quarters.
Yang Hong, who was already asleep, heard a knock on his door. When he called out and heard it was Zhao Jun, he scrambled off his sleeping platform and invited him into the shack.
"Technician Zhao! You’re..." Outside, it had been too dark for Yang Hong to see clearly.
But now, inside the shack, Yang Hong saw that Zhao Jun’s padded jacket and pants were completely covered in blood.
The sight terrified Yang Hong!
Zhao Jun followed Yang Hong’s stunned gaze down to his own clothes. He knew exactly what the man was thinking and quickly explained, "Don’t worry, Yang Leader. It’s all boar blood."
Hearing this, Yang Hong took a step forward and grabbed Zhao Jun’s hand. When he felt how ice-cold it was, his own heart sank.
He instinctively let go. His eyes widened and his lips trembled as he stared at Zhao Jun, stumbling backward.
"Technician Zhao!" Just then, the shack door opened. The cook, Hu Dahai, walked in carrying a thermos. "You must be frozen after that long walk in the mountains..." he said to Zhao Jun.
Hu Dahai looked up and was startled to see Zhao Jun covered in blood. But then he noticed the rifle on Zhao Jun’s back. As an experienced old-timer, he asked, "Were you out hunting?"
"Yeah." Zhao Jun reached out, took the thermos, and smiled at Hu Dahai. "Uncle, sorry to be a bother."
Hu Dahai had a good impression of Zhao Jun. The young man was friendly, and even though he was an inspector, he was always very respectful to an old cook like him, always calling him "Uncle."
So, Hu Dahai smiled. "It’s no trouble, not at—"
Before he could finish, Hu Dahai’s gaze fell on Yang Hong. The Leader was sitting on the edge of the sleeping platform, his face ashen.
"What’s wrong with him?"
Just then, Yang Hong snapped out of it. He had been scared by Zhao Jun—or rather, by his own imagination.
Seeing Zhao Jun’s state, he had assumed the young man had died a violent death on the mountain and that this was his ghost paying a visit.
Then, touching Zhao Jun’s ice-cold hand had only seemed to confirm his suspicion.
It had scared him half to death. If Hu Dahai hadn’t shown up when he did, Yang Hong would have screamed.
Hu Dahai’s arrival had given Yang Hong a sliver of courage. While Zhao Jun was talking to the cook, Yang Hong forced himself to look over. In the dim light, he could see Zhao Jun’s shadow stretched long across the floor.
’Can a ghost have a shadow?’
At that thought, Yang Hong’s heart finally settled. As for why Zhao Jun’s hand was so cold?
’Isn’t it obvious?’
’The temperature in the mountains drops below freezing at night. He’d been walking for hours, holding a torch with his bare hand. Of course it was going to be cold.’
Now Yang Hong understood. ’Zhao Jun must have gone hunting, gotten stuck, and came to my shack to rest for the night.’
He’d made his living in these mountains for years. He knew that even experienced hunters could lose their bearings and get lost. ’Besides, Zhao Jun is just a kid. It would be perfectly normal for him to lose his way.’
With that thought, Yang Hong quickly stood up, grabbed a washbasin from nearby, and said to Zhao Jun, "Technician Zhao, you should wash up first."
Zhao Jun glanced at Yang Hong with a smile. He had seen the man’s reaction and knew exactly what he had been thinking.
"Yang Leader, I’ll wash up later," Zhao Jun said, setting down the thermos he’d gotten from Hu Dahai. He then turned to Yang Hong. "I have a favor to ask you."
"What is it? Just ask!"
Of the three logging camps and their three Leaders under Zhao Jun’s purview, Yang Hong was the most straightforward and generous. That’s why Zhao Jun had specifically come to No. 78 Logging Camp.
"I shot a wild boar up on the mountain." Zhao Jun didn’t beat around the bush. "This pig is important. That’s why I came looking for you. I need you to come with me right now and help me bring it back."
"Go right now?" Yang Hong was taken aback. He hadn’t expected Zhao Jun to be in such a rush. Normally, if you killed a mountain beast and couldn’t haul it back the same day, it was perfectly fine to go get it the next.
"Yeah." Zhao Jun nodded. "This boar is important. I’m afraid if I leave it there, it’ll attract scavengers."
Normally, Zhao Jun wouldn’t have cared what he’d shot. But this particular boar was destined for the Provincial Museum to be made into a specimen.
That meant he had to keep its hide as pristine as possible. Even if a Black Bear didn’t get to it, he couldn’t have yellow foxes nibbling on it either.
That’s why Zhao Jun had come to find Yang Hong, willing to owe a favor if he had to.
"Alright then!" Yang Hong gestured to Zhao Jun. "Technician Zhao, you rest here in my shack for a bit. I’ll go feed the animals, and we’ll head out as soon as I’m done."
"Thank you for the trouble, Yang Leader."
"It’s no trouble." Yang Hong waved his hand dismissively, then turned to Hu Dahai, who was standing nearby. "Uncle Hu, Technician Zhao probably hasn’t eaten. See if you can whip something up for him."
"No, no, it’s fine," Zhao Jun quickly said. "I bought plenty of rations before I went up the mountain, and I just finished them."
...
「Over half an hour later」
With Zhao Jun giving directions, Yang Hong drove a horse-drawn sled carrying him and Hu Xiangqian away from No. 78 Logging Camp and toward the place where Zhao Jun had shot the wild boar.
Hu Xiangqian was Hu Dahai’s son. He was a Gui Ling worker at the camp, and the two of them, father and son, relied on each other. That’s why he stayed behind at the Logging Camp with Hu Dahai, even after the other logging teams had gone home.
When the horse-drawn sled reached the spot, both Yang Hong and Hu Xiangqian were stunned. The boar was huge—unbelievably so.
"Technician Zhao, this is a Pig God! You’re the one who shot it?" Hu Xiangqian was even more stunned than Yang Hong. Unlike Yang Hong, who didn’t hunt, Hu Xiangqian had gone on hunts with Hu Dahai and Song Dong just a few years prior.
So, Hu Xiangqian knew exactly what a wild boar this size meant.
"Yeah." Zhao Jun simply smiled and nodded at Hu Xiangqian.
Hu Xiangqian stared blankly at Zhao Jun. It wasn’t until Yang Hong called for his help to move the boar that he snapped out of his daze.
A boar weighing over a thousand pounds was impossible for three men to lift on their own.
But these were men who made their living in the Forest Area; they had their ways. Zhao Jun cut down a few thick poles, and using them as levers, the three men worked together to pry the massive boar up from one side.
It took a full hour of grueling effort, but they finally managed to get the massive boar onto the sled.
By now, it was a little after one in the morning. Yang Hong drove the sled, hauling the boar back toward the Logging Camp, leaving Zhao Jun and Hu Xiangqian to walk.
There was no other way. The pig was just too big.