Chapter 20: Strange news

After that night’s deep conversation, the four of us and the ghost finally became a team, and our adventure in the old forest officially began that day.

We left the warm shack where the hunters rested, and we were about to face the vast, unknown, mysterious old forest.

The journey was smooth, after all, the outer hills, in Zhang’s words, were so familiar that you could walk out with your eyes closed.

In fact, we even met a few people in the outer forest. Old Zhang said they were hunters from the nearby village. They didn’t want to stay indoors during the winter, so they came out to stretch their legs and arms, and to hunt some game to improve their livelihood.

Although it was already early winter and the entire forest was covered in snow, it was still a beautiful sight. Because Zhang was always busy, he could always tell us which trees were precious and which could be called living fossils. In the end, he would always say proudly, “In our forest, what treasures are there? This forest is a gift from heaven to the people of Northeast China.”

This is true. People should be grateful. Although Zhang’s words are simple, they often coincide with what our masters taught us when we were young. The three of us all agreed. Only Wu Laogui, as if nothing had happened, floated in front of Zhang and asked something else: “Zhang, do you think that the ‘sticks’ in this large forest are all a big bear? What kind of big bear is it? Can it be as powerful as a big bird that has almost become a spirit?”

Since he had opened up to Zhang, Wu Laogui was absolutely not afraid to float in front of Zhang. Perhaps it was because he felt a little guilty. Wu Laogui was especially affectionate towards Zhang, and Zhang was also very adaptable to Wu Laogui’s presence. Soon, and since they had talked it out, Zhang also spoke more clearly. So when faced with Wu Laogui’s questions, Zhang also answered quite patiently: “This big bear is not just any big bear, it’s a bear with wisdom in its head, a human bear! You’ve heard of the legend of the man-bear, right? Because the bear is blind, it can’t see clearly, so in order to determine whether you are edible, it always walks lightly behind you, and then suddenly grabs your shoulder. At this time, if you turn your head, it will know that you are a living thing, and it will open its mouth and bite your neck.

Lao Zhang said it very seriously, and I was really scared. I couldn’t help but touch my own neck, while Chengxin looked nervously behind him, afraid that a blind bear would suddenly grab his shoulder.

Seeing our reaction, Zhang was quite pleased with himself. Northeasterners are proud of their appearance, so they have to have something that can shock people. Obviously, my reaction and that of Chengxin’s were shocked.

This made Zhang talk about sex and continue, “Do you know? In fact, the bear is sometimes quite fun, especially the black bear, which is gentle and can ask you for food. The grizzly bear is a bit more powerful and not easy to approach. If you encounter a grizzly bear, you have to stay away from it, but if you avoid it, it will be fine. But this man-bear is different. Man-bear, man-bear, except for the man-bear that can stand up and eat people, it is also said to be it! This man-bear is known to people in the surrounding villages. It has killed three people, and everyone wants to get rid of this big pest. But the key is that it is a bear, so is it that easy to deal with? I suspect that it has also become a spirit. For so many years, no one has been able to catch it! But if you ask me who is more powerful, the man-bear or the big bird, I will definitely tell you that it is the big bird. They are not on the same level. The big bird protects the forest on the outside, and the man-bear dares not step in. In the end, no matter how smart the man-bear is, it is still a beast. It is an exaggeration to say that it has become a spirit, but the big bird is different. It is really becoming a spirit.

Old Zhang talked incessantly, and the old ghost of Wu shrunk his neck. He looked behind him, and Old Zhang looked funny: “I said, Old Wu, you don’t have half a pound of meat, what are you afraid of? Besides, this man-bear sleeps in winter, and it’s too lazy to bother with you.”

After he finished, we all laughed. At that moment, I heard a voice coming from far away: “Old Zhang…”

Is it an acquaintance of Old Zhang? We weren’t surprised. After all, we had already seen three groups of people on the way, and all three groups knew Old Zhang!

So we looked around and saw several people standing on the hillside, waving at Lao Zhang. Lao Zhang saw them too and waved back from a distance: “Hey, Lao Shen, Lao Yan, you’re still wandering around in the mountains on such a cold day?”

I can’t help but sigh. These people who have been in the woods for so long have become eagles. They can recognize who is who at such a distance? They are all right!

In the meantime, the people on the hillside had already started to walk down. The downhill road was fast, and in a few minutes, the people had already walked in front of us. As soon as they saw Lao Zhang, they gave him a warm bear hug. One of the men even took out a jug of wine and warmly greeted us: “Want some? It’s freezing cold today. Have a sip of wine and your whole body will be warm.”

This is the enthusiasm of northern men. We are not pretentious either. We took the small wine bag and each took a sip. It was still spicy and warm to the heart. Drinking in the north is not so particular. It is strong, spicy and warm. It can be drunk in large gulps. It is good wine and good men.

After the warm greetings, the middle-aged man named Lao Shen said, “Lao Zhang, where are you going? After this mountain, there won’t be any people, and you won’t be able to find a shack to stay in. Why do I see that you don’t seem to be going back?”

Lao Zhang just smiled and didn’t answer. He was smiling to thank Lao Shen for his concern, and he didn’t answer because men aren’t that nosy. He didn’t ask for our opinions and didn’t want to talk about it in detail.

Lao Shen didn’t ask any more, but just reminded him, “We have set the traps on this mountain, and we are going to check them in a few days to see how many spores we can catch. Now we are going back, and if you want to go back, we will go together. Lao Yuan said that during this time, there are probably some unruly people in the mountains, so it is safer to go in a group.”

When Old Zhang heard this, he became interested and asked, “What do you mean?”

“You know, this forest is the territory of the old bear, and he’s here with his cubs, showing off. It’s winter now, so they’ve calmed down a bit, so we usually hunt here in winter. However, a few days ago, Lao Yuan went down the mountain to set traps and found some strange footprints in the snow. He followed the footprints for a long time, but he didn’t see where the main character was. He was worried, but he was relieved. Someone had come out of the deep mountains to “stand up” (claim the throne) and take over the territory here in the winter. Lao Shen said with a worried look on his face.

It is no wonder that Lao Shen is worried. After all, what comes out of the deep mountains and can “stand up to the stick” is not a good match. This means that they cannot happily run a business in the mountains, such as hunting, gathering medicine, or looking for ginseng. This is really frustrating, because the wages of the forest farm are enough to eat, and if you want a better life, you have to rely on the mountains.

Old Shen was worried, and so was Old Zhang. He asked, “Do you know what the main culprit is? A wild boar? A Siberian tiger? That’s impossible. There are probably more of them in the mountains of the old Russians, but it’s hard to find them here! A wolf? Why compete with a bear? Yes…”

While Lao Zhang was still guessing, Lao Shen interrupted him, looked at us hesitantly, but did not answer Lao Zhang, but asked Lao Zhang: “These young people, are the young girls going into the mountains to see the freshness, to travel? Isn’t there a special tourist route? It’s not fun to run these remote old forests.

This remark was a reminder to Zhang to be careful in front of strangers, and also a reminder to us to come and go. His heart was warm.

The man next to us who was passing us wine also asked curiously, “Lao Zhang, you don’t do this kind of work, do you? Is your family in trouble?”

The enthusiasm of these people made Zhang laugh and cry. But Zhang was also a practical person, and quickly said, “I’m not here to be greedy for the young people. To be honest with you, they are very capable people. There is no problem entering the mountains. Don’t ask too much about the rest. In front of them, you can say anything. Lao Shen, what is it that is running here? Hurry up!”

Old Zhang urged him, and Old Shen did not hesitate to say in a low voice, “You know, there are many strange things in this old forest. Based on Old Yuan’s experience, I can’t tell what those footprints are. They say it’s a wolf, but the claws are much bigger than a wolf’s. You also know that the man-bear is strange. In the middle of winter, other bears sleep so soundly that they don’t wake up even if you beat a gong and drum. It often wakes up inexplicably, swings around, and then goes back to sleep. Maybe there will be a good fight! In short, when monsters fight, we mortals should not even watch the excitement. Hurry up and retreat.”

Old Shen said sincerely, and Old Zhang frowned and said after a long time, “No, this is not right. What is this guy in the deep forest doing? There is no one to disturb you inside, isn’t it better than outside? It can’t be!”