HLnovel Chapter 619 Main Peak Valley, with a Herd of Deer
Chapter 619 Main Peak Valley, with a Herd of Deer
The door hinge rusted, making a creaking sound that was quite eerie.
The room was empty, with trampled snow on the ground and debris left behind by the police during their search—rotten paper, rags, and two empty cans.
The fireplace is still there, and the mud bricks are all smoky and charred.
"Come in, get out of the wind," Lu Yao said.
People squeezed in, some stomping their feet, others rubbing their hands together.
Er Gouzi picked up a piece of wood from outside and used it to block the broken window, finally making the room less drafty.
Tie Zhu squatted in the corner, took out a wine flask from his pocket, unscrewed the cap, and took a sip.
Liu Shuangyan was standing right next to him, stamping her feet to keep warm.
"Are you cold?" Tie Zhu handed over the wine jug. "Have a sip to warm yourself up."
Liu Shuangyan glanced at him, then at Lu Yao.
Lu Yao was squatting by the door, talking to Uncle Lao Ba, and didn't even look this way.
She took the wine jug, tilted her head back and took a big gulp, choking and coughing, her face turning red instantly.
"Drink slowly." Tie Zhu looked directly at her.
Liu Shuangyan wiped her mouth, handed the wine jug back to him, and deliberately moved closer to him:
"Brother Tiezhu, you're really warm."
Tie Zhu was stunned, his face turned red, and he didn't know where to put his hands.
Over there, Zuo Xiaoying was circling around Lu Yao:
"Company Commander Lu, are we going further in later? I heard from my grandfather that there are bears, tigers and other ferocious beasts in these deep mountains."
Lu Yao smiled and reached out to rub the top of her head:
"Don't worry, Brother Wa is here!"
Turn around and talk to Uncle Ba and Uncle Guangyi:
"Let's rest here for a bit. If we go north for another twenty miles after leaving the valley, we'll reach the main peak of the Great Ring Mountain. The forests there are dense and there are plenty of wild animals. Let's rest here for today, have lunch, and then continue our journey."
Uncle Guangyi nodded: "I'll listen to you."
Zuo Xiaoying leaned closer again:
"Company Commander Lu, if I can't walk anymore, can you carry me?"
Lu Yao glanced at her:
"Don't follow me anymore once you can't walk anymore."
"I can walk, I can!"
Zuo Xiaoying quickly made a guarantee.
We haven't really enjoyed hunting yet on this trip.
How can we give up so easily?
It was just a little coquettishness, why has Brother Wa become so serious since we went into the mountains?
Lu Yao continued to talk to the men about his hunting experiences.
Liu Shuangyan listened from the side, and seeing that Lu Yao didn't even glance at her, she felt a tightness in her chest.
She deliberately leaned closer to Tie Zhu, softening her voice:
"Brother Tiezhu, is your leg injury healed yet? I felt pain just watching that wild boar bite you last time."
Tie Zhu's ears turned red, and he stammered:
"Okay, okay, it's alright now."
"Let me see," Liu Shuangyan said, bending down.
"No, no, no, that's great!"
Tie Zhu took a step back and almost bumped into the wall.
Liu Shuangyan chuckled and glanced back at Lu Yao.
Lu Yao still didn't look at her. He was gesturing with Uncle Lao Ba, asking how to get to the woods ahead.
Erni'er squatted on the other side, munching on a hard cornbread. She looked at Liu Shuangyan, then at Tiezhu, and whispered to Zuo Xiaoying, "Why is Sister Shuangyan arguing with Tiezhu all day?"
Zuo Xiaoying pouted: "Who knows?"
Tie Zhu stood there, clutching the wine jug in both hands, unsure where to look.
He didn't dare look at Liu Shuangyan when she was talking to him, but once she stopped looking at him, his eyes would be fixed on her face and he couldn't take them off.
After eating a mouthful of dry rations, they began their march again.
If it were a clear day, the towering main peak would have been visible long ago.
But the snowy weather was foggy, and I could vaguely see a huge, shadowy object ahead, but I just couldn't make it out.
Only when you reach the foot of the mountain do you truly feel the magnificence of this main peak.
The team led by Company Commander Shui Miao had climbed this main peak before when they were chasing Batu, but not in the same direction.
The main peak stretches for more than ten miles, and the hillside where they encountered the avalanche is nowhere to be found.
A mountain crumbled before him, and Lu Yao waved his hand:
"Let's go in from here."
The mountain crevice was so narrow that only one person could pass at a time. The stone walls on both sides were covered with moss and frozen hard, covered with white frost.
The wind was blowing in from inside, and it was colder than outside.
After walking for more than half an hour, the view suddenly opened up before us.
This is a valley, with steep slopes to the west and a wasteland in the middle.
The snow was lighter than outside, and in some places, the tips of withered yellow grass were showing.
Uncle Ba couldn't help but sigh as he looked at it.
He was a country bumpkin, but he was highly skilled and daring.
Most hunters, let alone come here to hunt, would probably not have the courage to even take a stroll here.
Along the way, he talked to Lu Yao about hunting experiences, and even the old hunter, Uncle Ba, admired him for his hard work.
What's even stranger is that Lu Yao has such a vast amount of knowledge.
I thought he was my apprentice.
But after talking to him, I realized that Lu Yao's knowledge did not come from me; he was more like an apprentice to some country bumpkin.
He knew it, and the country bumpkin knew it all; but the country bumpkin knew many things that he had never even heard of.
When it comes to experience, if Tuwazi says he's second, probably no one here would dare to say they're first.
As they walked forward, Lu Yao suddenly raised his hand, and the group stopped.
He squatted down and dug through a patch of snow, revealing fresh, black, soft droppings underneath.
"A sika deer." Uncle Ba leaned over to take a look. "It just passed by not long ago."
He lowered his voice: "Don't make a sound, it's windy, they can't smell you. Spread out, wrap them up from both sides."
Gou Shengzi, He Wangcai, and Li Youtian went around to the left.
Uncle Lao Ba led Uncle Guangyi and Er Gouzi to the right.
Lu Yao led the remaining people and slowly made their way forward from the middle.
The snow was thick, so we walked slowly.
Lift your foot, put it down, lift it up again; every step requires effort.
Liu Shuangyan was panting heavily, her face red from the cold, but she gritted her teeth and followed.
Those black dots are getting closer and closer.
There are probably twenty or thirty of them.
They were digging through the snow on a gentle slope in search of food.
Several males, propped up on their horns, paced back and forth, occasionally looking up.
Lu Yao turned around and made a hand gesture:
Bow and arrow.
At this point, it is best to shoot without alerting the enemy.
We can take down more.
It's not too late to shoot when the deer are startled.
Everyone aimed carefully, and when Lu Yao gave the order, they all fired at once.
Old Eight and other hunters who frequently practiced archery stepped forward, half-squatting on the ground to aim.
Uncle Ba nocked an arrow and aimed at the one on the far right.
The wind whistled through the bowstring, making it hum.
In this environment, long-range shooting requires adjusting the aiming direction according to the wind speed.
He waited a while, until the wind subsided a bit, and then loosened his grip.
As the arrow was released, the wind blew in gusts, making it difficult to predict the direction of the arrow, and it was still veered off course by the wind.
It flew past the deer's back and landed on the snow.
The deer herd was startled; several looked up in this direction, but didn't run away, still unsure of their way.
"shoot."
Lu Yao's arrow also left the bowstring.
He aimed lower and moved with lightning speed, piercing the neck of a doe.
The deer jumped, ran a few steps forward, and then fell down.
The deer herd panicked and ran up the hill.
The other arrows flew over, some missing their mark and others failing to hit vital points, and the sika deer jumped up and ran away.
Given the distance and strong winds, it's no wonder everyone was clumsy.
Without any cover, getting any closer would startle the sika deer, leaving no chance to shoot arrows.
At this distance, Lu Yao could kill him with a single arrow.