Hu Xianglan was helping Zhou Cang tidy his roe deer fur coat when she heard him ask about the Black Bear.
Her hand trembled as she asked, "Is it in Black Bear Gully? Why do you ask?"
The image of her eldest son's blood-soaked face was still fresh in her memory.
As a mother, it was the most painful thing to watch her son on the verge of death and be unable to take his place.
When Wang Tieshan was carried home, his entire face was already mangled.
His cotton jacket had been torn into shreds by the Black Bear, and he was covered in wounds.
Everyone at the time thought Wang Tieshan wouldn't make it, but Hu Xianglan insisted on sending her eldest son to the County Hospital.
The head surgeon at the County Hospital had never seen such severe injuries before and could only stitch up the wounds that needed closing.
As for his face, his eyeballs were gone.
The doctor cleaned the dirt from his face and ligated several blood vessels to stop the bleeding.
He was put on a penicillin drip, and his survival depended on whether he could fight off the infection.
Fortunately, his nose and chin were still intact.
The doctor said that as long as he didn't develop a fever and could eat, he would be fine.
Luckily, Wang Tieshan was robust and eventually pulled through.
On the third day after the operation, he was able to drink rice gruel.
It took several months for the wounds on his face to mostly heal.
From then on, Wang Tieshan never went into the mountains again, and he covered his face with a black cloth.
"I plan to get a Black Bear!" Zhou Cang's words interrupted Hu Xianglan's memories.
"Son, that Black Bear isn't like other animals; even a gun might not kill it!" Hu Xianglan said, trembling.
Zhang Yue heard the tense atmosphere of their conversation and came closer.
"Brother Fugui, you're going to hunt a Black Bear?" Zhang Yue asked worriedly.
"Yes, Old Sun said that a noble from the provincial capital wants to buy bear gall for medicine, so I want to get one!"
"Don't worry, even if I can't beat it, I can outrun it.
I'll be careful!" Zhou Cang said.
"Sigh, you're a stubborn child; I know I can't stop you." Hu Xianglan was truly worried.
But she also understood that since he was going hunting, danger was unavoidable.
"This time when I go into the mountains, I'll take Little White with me, and I might have to stay in the mountains for a few more days."
Zhang Yue didn't try to dissuade Zhou Cang.
She knew that her Brother Fugui was risking his life hunting in the mountains so that their whole family could eat their fill and live a good life.
With red eyes, she and Hu Xianglan worked together to make a dozen scallion pancakes, adding salt to the dough.
They also made dried roe deer leg meat, tearing it all into small strips and putting it into cloth bags, filling an aluminum lunchbox to the brim.
They also stuffed sugar balls and a small packet of finely ground salt into the pouch Zhou Cang was taking up the mountain.
Zhou Cang, meanwhile, was organizing his gear for the mountain.
The rifle Zhao Kaishan had lent him had already been returned.
A Type 56 rifle, fifty rounds of ammunition, and a triangular bayonet.
A hunting rifle, with slug rounds.
A newly bought box plus the remaining ones totaled over twenty rounds.
A Type 54 pistol, with over thirty rounds of ammunition.
He also had a bow and arrows.
Although he had guns, he planned to bring them along.
Their lethality at short to medium range was actually stronger than a pistol, and they were silent.
The hunting knife, spear, and axe were all sharpened by Zhou Cang, ensuring they were keen.
He also had a flashlight and five or six light bulbs.
He then carefully took out explosives and made two small explosive packages, stuffing them with many rusty nails.
Looking at the 7.62mm rifle cartridges in his hand, Zhou Cang stroked his chin in thought.
Black Bears have thick hides.
The safest method was to use a trap, but with the current freezing weather, digging a trap capable of taking down a Black Bear was unrealistic.
That meant he could only shoot it in the head, preferably the eyes, or blow it up with explosives!
Zhou Cang wiped all the bullets clean, carefully inspected and maintained the firearms, and then blunted the tips of half of the rifle bullets, putting them all into the ammunition pouch.
Besides things like matches and hemp rope, the wolf fur Hu Xianglan had tanned was also rolled up with a quilt and placed on the sled.
In the cold winter, if one had to spend the night in the mountains, having a wolf fur under one's body would be especially warm.
Early the next morning, Zhou Cang ate his fill, gathered his equipment, and set off.
Little White followed by his side, running around excitedly.
It seemed to know it was going into the mountains; the little fox was a bit excited.
"I said you're a fox, but why are you acting like a dog?" Zhou Cang laughed.
"Chirp, chirp!"
When the little fox got tired of running, it jumped onto the sled and lay on the back, letting Zhou Cang pull it along.
"I swear you're just turning everything upside down!" Zhou Cang said indignantly, "I need to get a few dogs quickly!"
"Good hunting dogs are probably hard to find now.
I'll ask Old Sun later."
According to his grandmother's description, Black Bear Gully was about twenty kilometers northeast from their side of the mountain entrance.
The mountain roads were already difficult to traverse in winter, and it had snowed heavily a few days prior.
Zhou Cang trudged through the silent forest, pulling the sled with difficulty.
The little fox had lost its initial excitement from when they left the village.
After a few days of being fed, this fellow showed a strong tendency to abandon its wild nature.
When it saw squirrels pass by, it merely sniffed indifferently, showing no intention of hunting.
One person and one fox walked non-stop in the forest until noon.
Zhou Cang also realized that this little creature was waiting for him to hunt and feed it!
"You're no good at this!
At least go catch a rabbit, and I can roast it for you for free.
Bullets are expensive, we need to save them!"
"Oh dear! You haven't degenerated to the point of forgetting how to hunt, have you?" Zhou Cang turned to look at the little fox, saying with a look of disbelief.
The little fox seemed to understand, or perhaps it had been hungry for half a day and Zhou Cang hadn't fed it.
Suddenly, it darted away and, two minutes later, returned with a large gray rabbit in its mouth.
"Good job! Let's make a fire and roast the rabbit!"
The little fox jumped onto the sled, looking smug.
Its expression seemed to be looking down on Zhou Cang, as if to say he shouldn't question its hunting abilities.
Zhou Cang chuckled to himself, pulled out his knife, cut a few pieces of birch bark, and gathered a large handful of dry branches.
Birch bark is very flammable.
Although it looks dry, it's actually rich in oil, and you just need to light it directly with a match.
Soon, a fire slowly started.
Zhou Cang tied one of the rabbit's hind legs with a rope, hung it upside down from a branch, and used his knife to make a circular cut on the rabbit's hind leg.
Starting from this cut, he sliced down along the inner thigh of the rabbit.
With his left hand pulling the skin and his right hand holding the knife, he quickly peeled off the hide.
He cut open the rabbit's belly, quickly pulled out the internal organs, chopped off a tree branch, and spread out the rabbit's limbs to secure it.
Zhou Cang held up the branch and began to roast the rabbit.
Soon, the aroma of roasted meat wafted out, and the rabbit meat turned purplish with a slightly charred surface.
The little fox beside him drooled, its saliva dripping onto the snow, forming small pits on the surface.
He first tore off a rabbit leg and threw it to the little fox, then sprinkled crushed salt and chili powder onto the rest.
By now, the rabbit had an enticing sheen, and its fat dripped onto the fire, occasionally making sizzling sounds.