sbdcsierra Chapter 1778 Black Tiger Leads the Dog Gang to the Zhang Family (Bonus Chapter 13)
Chapter 1778 Black Tiger Leads the Dog Gang to the Zhang Family (Bonus Chapter 13)
Chapter 1778 Black Tiger Takes the Dog Gang Home (Bonus Chapter 13 for Holiday)
"What did you say? You're going up the mountain?" Li Meijuan, who had just returned from exchanging tofu, looked at Han Shengli with a surprised expression and asked, "Didn't you say you were staying home today?"
"Damn it!" Han Shengli said irritably, "Zhang Laosan came over just now. I don't know who told him, but he said that Ergudong's dog is staying at our house."
"Oh my goodness!" Upon hearing this, Li Meijuan immediately became very angry and asked, "Then what does he mean?"
"I don't fucking care what he means." Han Shengli waved his hand at Li Meijuan and urged, "Hurry up and cook for me. After I finish eating, I'll take these dogs and leave."
After saying this, Han Shengli paused for a moment and added, "That old guy is a real pain in the neck, he might even tell Ergudong."
“No?” Li Meijuan frowned and questioned, “You take the dog away, so you’re not going to come back? If you ask me, you might as well just send the dog back to Ergudong.”
"What are you going to send?" Han Shengli interrupted Li Meijuan rudely, saying, "I'll take the dog up the mountain to find a shed, leave it there for ten or eight days, and then come back. When that happens, I'll leave the dog in the shed, and when I come back, I'll just say the dog is lost. What can he do to me?"
Hearing Han Shengli's words, Li Meijuan quickly asked, "You're going to stay in the mountain for more than ten days, what are you bringing from home? There's nothing in the mountains, you'll have to bring food, right?"
Living in a shack in the mountains is not like visiting someone's house. Supplies are already scarce in the mountains, and the mountain dogs living in the shacks are struggling to feed and drink themselves. Adding one more person and six more dogs would be unbearable for anyone.
Han Shengli frowned and pondered for a moment, then said to Li Meijuan, "Hurry up and start stewing the dishes. After that, go and call Lao San and Zhen Dong over. Don't tell them Zhang Lao San is here. Just tell them I need to talk to them and ask them to come over right away."
Li Meijuan agreed and started cooking. After she finished cooking, she hurriedly left home.
Fifteen minutes passed, and Li Meijuan still hadn't returned, but the food was already cooked.
Han Shengli didn't wait for her; he picked up the steamed buns and served the stewed tofu himself. Then he carried the plates and bowls into the inner room and started eating.
Twenty minutes later, Li Meijuan returned with Han Wenxue and Pang Zhendong.
As soon as Han Wenxue and Pang Zhendong entered the east room, they saw Han Shengli put down his chopsticks and stare at them sharply.
"Brother, what's wrong?" Han Wenxue asked. Han Shengli replied, "I picked up Ergudong's big black dog. Did one of you tell anyone?"
"No!" Han Wenxue and Pang Zhendong said in unison, "I didn't tell anyone!"
"If you didn't tell anyone, how did Zhang Laosan find out?" Han Shengli pressed. Han Wenxue and Pang Zhendong exchanged glances and said, "Brother, neither of us told him. If you told us not to talk about it, how could we tell anyone?"
"Oh dear!" Li Meijuan spoke up for Han Wenxue and Pang Zhendong, saying to Han Shengli, "Maybe you took the dog for a walk this morning and he was watching it."
Upon hearing this, Han Shengli continued to stare at Han Wenxue and Pang Zhendong, pressing them for the truth: "Tell the truth, did you say it or not? Did you two really say it?"
“Brother, we really don’t.” Han Wenxue said, “Don’t you know us? Besides, I’ve already told Dongzi. In a couple of days, when the grass ripens, we won’t be able to hunt dogs. We’ll go hunting in the mountains with Pang first. After winter comes and the snow falls, we’ll come back and hunt with you to make money.”
“Yeah, Brother Han,” Pang Zhendong chimed in, “I told Wenxue that the Zhao family beat us up last time when Ding Guangwu was on May 4th. We can’t just send the dog back to them like that, we won’t be able to swallow this insult.”
Hearing Han Wenxue and Pang Zhendong's statements, Han Shengli's expression softened slightly, and he said, "If it really wasn't you two who said it, then I'll tell you two something."
“Go ahead, brother.” Han Wenxue agreed readily, and then Han Shengli said, “After we finish eating, I’ll take my gun and the dog up the mountain and stay at Old Zheng’s shack for a few days. I’m quick and agile, so I’ll go first. After that, you two carry some dry rations and some cornmeal for me.”
……
At 7:00 a.m., Zhang Jimin left home to catch the forest ranger team's commuter cart.
He hadn't gone two steps when he ran into Song Fu'an, who was also on his way to work.
"Third brother!" Song Fu'an greeted Zhang Jimin, but Zhang Jimin only responded with a curt "Brother Song".
"Oh dear," Song Fu'an laughed, "Why are you looking so listless?"
"Sigh!" Zhang Jimin sighed heavily, but said nothing.
His dejected and listless appearance was entirely due to his unfulfilled expectations.
Seeing Zhang Jimin's expression, Song Fu'an didn't say anything. He knew Zhang Jimin well and knew that he was a bit petty and liked to nitpick. Asking too many questions would only make things worse.
The two walked towards the edge of the village, and after a few steps, they saw dogs darting out of Han Shengli's yard. Three black and two spotted, five hunting dogs were sniffing and urinating happily by the roadside.
Immediately afterwards, Song Fu'an and Zhang Jimin saw a large black dog struggling to walk out of the Han family's yard, with the other end of the rope held by Han Shengli, who was carrying a gun and a bag.
“That dog…” Song Fu’an looked at the big black dog that Han Shengli was holding in surprise, and nudged Zhang Jimin twice.
Zhang Jimin wasn't blind, so he naturally saw the black tiger that Han Shengli was leading. Although the dog wasn't wearing armor, its massive size of over 130 pounds was probably rare even in the entire Northeast.
So the two of them almost instantly realized that this was the big black dog Zhao Jun was looking for.
Zhang Jimin remained silent at this moment, because he sensed something unusual about Han Shengli's attire.
Previously, when they were at Han Shengli's house, Han Shengli repeatedly said he would return Black Tiger to Zhao Youcai. But now, Han Shengli is carrying a gun, a bag, and has brought five hunting dogs in addition to Black Tiger.
This is clearly not a trip to return the dog, but rather a trip into the mountains to hunt.
"This bastard wants to steal the dog's money." A thought flashed through Zhang Jimin's mind, and then he was overjoyed. He felt that his chance to make a contribution had come, and his chance to curry favor with someone powerful had arrived.
At this moment, Song Fu'an also noticed something was wrong. He nudged Zhang Jimin again and said, "Third brother, is Brother Han taking the dog up the mountain?"
"Okay." Zhang Jimin responded, and said, "Brother Song, well... you should go to work first."
"Huh?" Song Fu'an was taken aback and looked at Zhang Jimin, asking, "Then where are you going?"
“I’m going to Yong’an,” Zhang Jimin said. “I have to tell our team leader about this. Our team leader has been so good to us, looking for the dog so anxiously these past two days. I saw it, how could I not tell him?”
“This…” Song Fu’an hesitated. He guessed that Han Shengli might not have good intentions. But if he sold Han Shengli out of the village, the villagers would gossip about him.
So when Song Fu'an heard Zhang Jimin say he was going to Yong'an to deliver the message, he didn't stop him. He knew Zhang Jimin's character; even if he could stop him for a while, he couldn't stop him forever.
Moreover, if he stopped him, Zhang Jimin would definitely complain about him to Zhao Jun.
“Then go ahead,” Song Fu’an said. “Go tell the team leader about this, and I’ll find someone to cover your shift.”
……
When Han Shengli took the dog into the mountains and Zhang Jimin ran towards Yong'an, Zhao Jun had already boarded the vehicle with the Zhao family gang and continued their search for the dog.
Before Zhao Jun and his gang set off, Zhao Jinhui drove his jeep, taking Li Ruhai around to spread the word.
Wang Meilan continued to lead people to work in the fields, while Zhao Weipeng went to the city to prepare for the supermarket's opening, leaving only Zhao Youcai at home to look after the house.
There are no more mountain products to harvest this season, so Zhao Youcai stays at home in case someone brings Black Tiger to collect the bounty and no one is home.
Around 7:30, Zhao Youcai was petting a lynx on the kang (heated brick bed) in the west hut when he heard the hunting dogs behind the house barking. Zhao Youcai got up and glanced out the window, vaguely seeing someone entering through the main gate. He quickly got up and went outside.
After Zhao Youcai came out of the house, he saw Zhang Jimin running towards him, panting heavily. Zhao Youcai recognized Zhang Jimin. When he saw Zhang Jimin, he had a feeling that this old man had brought news of Black Tiger.
Just as Zhao Youcai had expected, as soon as Zhang Jimin arrived in front of Zhao Youcai, he said breathlessly, "Master Zhao, I know where your big black dog is."
"Where is it?" Zhao Youcai asked. Zhang Jimin replied, "Han Shengli took it."
"Who?" Zhao Youcai asked, not because he hadn't heard clearly, but because he was surprised that Han Shengli had been involved.
Of the four tiger hunters back then, Zhou Chengguo was a loner, while Han Shengli and Xue Baojun were kindred spirits; Zhao Youcai had neither friendship nor conflict with Zhou Chengguo and Xue Baojun, but he was always at odds with Han Shengli.
The two had been rivals since childhood. Later, when they joined the militia for target practice, they always had to prove who was better. Whoever came out on top this time would fight tooth and nail to get their revenge next time.
Their last competition was the Yong'an Spring Hunt, which Han Shengli won. Although Li Dayong tried to make amends for Zhao Youcai, saying that if Zhao Youcai hadn't been injured midway, he would definitely have won first place.
However, Zhao Youcai himself does not agree with this statement. In his view, hunting in the mountains is inherently risky, and if one gets injured while hunting, it means that one's own skills are not up to par.
Zhao Youcai acknowledged Han Shengli's abilities. What he disapproved of was Han Shengli's character.
Thinking back to that special era twenty-two years ago, Han Shengli dared to steal tiger bones from the public; that took a lot of guts!
So when Zhang Jimin said that his Black Tiger had fallen into Han Shengli's hands, Zhao Youcai's first reaction was that things were not going well.
"Where did he take my Tiger?" Zhao Youcai hurriedly asked Zhang Jimin. Zhang Jimin replied, "I saw him carrying a gun and leading a dog out of the village. Were they going hunting in the mountains?"
"Fuck!" Zhao Youcai cursed on the spot, "This son of a bitch, is he trying to cheat me out of my life?"
"He dares?" Zhang Jimin loudly professed his loyalty to Zhao Youcai, saying, "He even dares to steal our team leader's dog, does he have a death wish?"
Upon hearing this, Zhao Youcai curled his lip and said, "If he wants to hide my dog in the mountains, where am I supposed to find it?"
As expected of his old rival, Zhao Youcai hit the nail on the head with just one sentence.
Upon hearing this, Zhang Jimin was stunned for a moment, then realized: if Han Shengli insisted that he did not know the dog belonged to Zhao Youcai, and that he picked it up and then threw it away, no one could find fault with him.
Thinking of this, Zhang Jimin laughed and said to Zhao Youcai, "Master Zhao, I went to his house this morning to ask if that dog was yours, and he admitted it. If he takes our dog away again, we'll deal with him!"
Zhao Youcai glanced at Zhang Jimin. Although Zhao Youcai and Han Shengli hadn't had much contact in twenty years, based on his understanding of Han Shengli, the old man wouldn't be back for at least five or seven days after taking the dog away today.
Moreover, by the time Han Shengli returns, Hei Hu will definitely not be able to come back.
At that point, Han Shengli will either say that Black Tiger is lost or that Black Tiger is dead, followed by a sincere apology and an offer to compensate the Zhao family. Public opinion will then overwhelmingly side with Han Shengli. If the Zhao family tries to deal with Han Shengli, the people in the forest area will say that the Zhao family is bullying them.
The Zhao family and the forestry bureau secretary are close relatives, and Zhao Jun is a cadre; reputation is very important these days.
Seeing Zhao Youcai's troubled expression, Zhang Jimin quickly asked the reason. After listening to Zhao Youcai's worries, Zhang Jimin smiled and said, "Master Zhao, have you forgotten?"
"Huh?" Zhao Youcai was taken aback, then heard Zhang Jimin add, "Have you forgotten what we do?"
Zhao Youcai frowned, his small eyes narrowing slightly. Zhang Jimin continued, "Master Zhao, we're forest rangers! If Han Shengli really dares to act arrogantly, you and Team Leader Zhao don't need to do anything. Just watch how I deal with him!"
"Huh?" Zhao Youcai was taken aback. Zhang Jimin laughed and said, "He'll have to fire a gun when he goes hunting in the mountains, right? As long as he fires a shot and scrapes a piece of bark, you'll see how I deal with him."
"This...is it going to work?" Zhao Youcai asked doubtfully. "This is such a big mountain area, do you think you can run into him?"
Trying to find someone in these mountains is like looking for a needle in a haystack.
“Master Zhao,” Zhang Jimin said with a wicked grin, “I don’t need to catch him every time. If I manage to catch him once out of ten times, I’ll punish him to death!”
After saying that, Zhang Jimin added, "Those vagrants back then, they didn't even fire guns, but we still managed to take care of them."
At this moment, Zhao Youcai blinked his small eyes and murmured as if he had just realized something, "So it can be done like this?"
This is a difference in perception. Zhao Youcai has been hunting for so many years and has never encountered anything like this before, nor has any forest ranger dared to stop him. So Zhao Youcai never imagined that this could be done.
But Zhao Youcai, nicknamed "Two-Drummer" by the people in the underworld, looked Zhang Jimin up and down and then tentatively asked, "Can you really do it this way?"
Zhao Youcai asked this question because Zhang Jimin and Han Shengli lived in the same village. In local parlance, this was called "village kinship." Moreover, the conflict between Han Shengli and the Zhao family had nothing to do with Zhang Jimin. The fact that he would actively get involved showed that he was no good person.
“What’s wrong with that?” Zhang Jimin said firmly, “He’s cheating our team leader’s dog, which is cheating our forest ranger team’s dog!”
……
By this time, Han Shengli, who was in the hunting grounds, had been there for a while. Suddenly, his five hunting dogs barked several times in unison.
The sound was neither continuous nor intense, and Han Shengli immediately realized that he had run into someone.
Immediately afterwards, a tall figure came into Han Shengli's view.
"Oh!" Han Shengli was taken aback when he saw the person who came in, and tentatively asked, "Are you Gu Si?"
The visitor was Gu Yang. In the past six months, Gu Yang had been helping out at weddings and funerals in the four residential areas of the forest district, so he knew quite a lot of people.
At this moment, Gu Yang, pale-faced, stumbled to Han Shengli and said, "Uncle Han, I was so scared! The black bear was eaten by the black bear!"
"Huh?" Han Shengli was surprised, but then his eyes lit up and he asked, "Where is it? Take me there!"
"I'm not going!" Gu Yang shook his head and said, "Uncle Han, I'm scared!"
"What are you afraid of!" Han Shengli gave Gu Yang a light push and said, "You lead me there, and if we catch a black bear, I'll share my courage with you."
"Give me a share..." Gu Yang got up early to go into the mountains to find Black Tiger. He wanted to find Black Tiger to claim the reward, but he couldn't find Black Tiger and almost got chased away by Black Bear.
However, with Han Shengli present, Gu Yang mustered his courage and led Han Shengli into the ditch.
Upon entering the ditch, Black Tiger felt a sense of familiarity. Suddenly, a mountain breeze blew down, and Black Tiger sniffed the air, barking loudly. Meanwhile, Han Shengli's lead dog looked around blankly.
Han Shengli was secretly delighted when he saw this. He realized that Black Tiger Incense Head was excellent, much better than his own dog.
At this moment, Gu Yang also noticed Black Tiger, but before he could speak, he saw Black Tiger frantically pulling on the rope, while the other dogs still did not react.
"Sanhei!" Han Sheng, who could no longer hold onto Hei Hu, shouted to him, "I'll let go of you, but you can't run away!"
Han Shengli decided to release the black tiger not because he was careless, but because there was prey up there. He didn't believe the black tiger would run away randomly; even with a rope, it would still head for the prey.
That way, when I go over to refill the gun, I can casually put the rope around Black Tiger's neck, and Black Tiger still won't be able to escape.
Thinking of this, Han Shengli pulled the rope, the chain buckle came off, and Black Tiger came out with a roar.
As soon as it ran and barked, the other five dogs set off in pursuit.
"See this dog, Uncle?" Han Shengli boasted to Gu Yang, "It's a big-headed dog."
"Awooo..." Black Tiger, with five dogs, climbed the slope and arrived at the place where Wang Meilan had encountered danger a few days ago.
Upon seeing the familiar surroundings, Black Tiger let out a roar and stopped going up the hillside. Instead, it led its five dogs down the slope.
Downhill and out of the ditch, Black Tiger got onto the firewood transport road. This was the same firewood transport road in Yong'an: Black Tiger knew it well; it always took this road when it went up the mountain with Zhao Jun.
Black Tiger, familiar with the route, barked excitedly, leading the five hunting dogs out of the mountain area!
(End of this chapter)