Chapter 2: Man is no better than a horse

The hope that had been kept in the deepest part of his heart for several days had completely vanished, and he felt that life no longer had any meaning. A large cloud floated by, and the sky darkened. It turned out to be a rain cloud. Yun Ye laughed twice. What did it matter whether he collected his clothes or not? Did it matter whether it rained or not?

The rain finally came. It wasn’t heavy, but Yun Ye felt that the heavens were also sad for him. He was so pitiful. A warm breath came to his ear, filling Yun Ye’s heart with emotion. Who was comforting him in his ear? He decided to say thank you in person, but when he turned around, he saw a blood-filled mouth with sharp white teeth coming at his throat.

Yun Ye quickly shoved the steel shovel in his hand into the big mouth. He heard a “crunch” and the white teeth clamped down on the shovel. Yun Ye took the opportunity to roll up and tightly grasp the shovel handle and forcefully pushed it out. He heard a “woo” of miserable cries and a large amount of blood sprayed out. Yun Ye discovered that in front of him was a blue wolf. The huge mouth had been completely torn apart by the serrated edge of the shovel, and the jaw hung down weakly. Faced with such a fierce beast, not completely killing it would only make things difficult for himself.

He quickly swung the shovel and slashed the wolf’s neck, severing the wolf’s head from its body. The wolf’s head hung limply from its neck, connected only by a layer of wolf skin, and the wolf’s body twitched as it fell to the ground.

The whole thing happened in just 20 seconds, but Yun Ye felt as if he had been fighting the wolf for a century. His heart was pounding, and his throat felt as if it was on fire, burning with pain.

This was obviously not a lone wolf. The glossy fur proved that it had good nutrition, and only a pack of wolves could provide it with such good nutrition. Yun Ye had experience with wolves. Without saying a word, he turned and ran in the direction of the herd of horses in the grasslands. Before he had run less than 300 meters, he heard several piercing howls from behind him.

Yun Ye quickened his pace. He had completely forgotten his sadness at that moment. Could it be that the meaning of life is to run?

The sky is vast and the wilderness is vast. The sky is like a dome covering the four fields.

The lonely Yun Ye wandered with the herd on this grassland. Fortunately, this pasture was not very large, otherwise, he would have run to death long ago. The herd of horses also seemed reluctant to leave the lush grass, and there was no sign of them leaving after five days. Yun Ye did not dare to leave the herd, as the wolves in the distance were still wandering nearby. If it weren’t for the king of horses being too magnificent, they would have surrounded him and feasted on him.

Yun Ye has been trying to catch a wild horse as a walking tool, but apart from his face full of frustration, he has achieved nothing. The horse-ropes made of straw have been broken into four or five pieces. The damn horse broke the rope and ran away. It actually chewed the rope as fodder, fully expressing its contempt for Yun Ye’s thought of being overconfident. Without a horse, he could only wander in the wilderness on his own two legs.

His physical strength was declining rapidly, and his legs were weak. Yun Ye knew that this was the result of not replenishing his salt for three days. If he didn’t find salt soon, this was where he would be buried. The wolves gradually grew from two or three to seven or eight, and the horses could no longer protect themselves. He had a clear understanding that once the wolves began to attack the horses, and he didn’t have the ability to run on a horse, the wolves wouldn’t mind swallowing him as a delicious snack.

The horses began to panic. A small horse was bitten on the hind legs and let out a miserable cry. All the horses began to move. At this time, a high-pitched neighing made the horses quiet down. The red horse king charged at the wolves like lightning. Two huge hooves stepped heavily on the murderer, and the other stallions also attacked the wolves.

The wolves were obviously too lightly regarded, and they saw three wolves turn into meat under the iron hooves. The wolves saw the situation was not good and turned and fled into the depths of the wasteland. The horses chased after them, and in an instant, the vast battlefield was left with Yun Ye standing in the middle, still hesitating in his mind whether to run away.

The wolves that were trampled to death looked so pitiful that Yun Ye only managed to cut off two slightly intact wolf legs from the three wolves. Turning his head, he could no longer see the wolves, nor could he see the horses. Yun Ye looked in the direction the horses were chasing and said goodbye, then turned and walked east. He knew very well that there was a big river waiting for him there.

Yun Ye heard the sigh of the river, the rolling eastward flow of water never stopping.

The Yellow River! Looking at her, a sense of familiarity welled up in him, like an old friend. At a time when there was no one in the city, no relatives, her appearance gave Yun Ye a little comfort. After drinking a few mouthfuls of water, she was so sweet. The entire river was turbulent, yet clear and crystal-like, like a flowing stream of jade liquid.

He saw the herd of horses again, and the horse king was drinking water next to Yun Ye as if there were no one else around. In its eyes, humans were no more of a threat than the wild goats. It was true that Yun Ye had not performed as well as the wild goats in the past few days. Apart from adding a little bit of fun to the herd of horses, he had not posed any danger.

The horse king drank his fill of water, walked over to the stone wall, and licked it with his tongue, “splash splash.” This perverted horse! Does it have to practice its tongue like this? No, Yun Ye suddenly realized that horses are also living creatures, and they need minerals, especially salt!

Yun Ye quickly ran over and gently licked the stone wall with his tongue. It was bitter, astringent, and salty. What was it? “Bah, bah, bah,” he spat it out.

The horse king looked at him with dissatisfaction and continued to lick the stone wall with his tongue, making a “splashing” sound.

This is brine, with too many impurities to be eaten directly. Yun Ye used a steel shovel to knock off a few dark brown crystals and carefully ground them into powder on a boulder by the river. He put them in a stainless steel rice bowl and dissolved them in water. He took out a dust mask and put it over the mouth of the pan to pour the cloudy liquid into the pan. The liquid in the pan became clear and transparent.

Yun Ye poured the liquid onto the huge, smooth rock by the river. As soon as the water was poured on, it was evaporated by the sun-warmed rock, leaving only a thin layer of white powder on the rock. A light taste revealed the pure taste of salt. From noon to sunset, Yun Ye collected a total of three catties of salt, which was enough for him to eat for several months.

As the sun set, Yun Ye lit a bonfire and put the smoked wolf’s leg from the previous few days on the fire to roast. Soon, the aroma of the roast meat filled the beach by the river. Sprinkle some salt, which is the ultimate delicacy for Yun Ye. He dared not use the chili again, but he still had to leave some to refresh himself at critical moments. After hesitating for a long time, he took out a potato and buried it in the ashes of the fire. Eating meat all day was a great test for his body.

Seeing the dandelions growing by the river, he was overjoyed. This stuff is a good ingredient for clearing heat and detoxifying. He pulled out a few and washed them by the river, planning to fry them in mutton fat. Perhaps the fragrance of the fried wild vegetables was too strong. The horses next to him stared at Yun Ye with big eyes, as if they wanted to eat, but they were afraid of the fire and did not dare to come over.

The horse king was naturally fearless, and came over with his tail wagging. Yun Ye knew at a glance that his old man had come to collect protection money. Who let him rely on the protection of the horse herd during this period of time. As a younger brother, he naturally had the awareness of a younger brother. When the wild vegetables had cooled down, he quickly placed them in a large leaf and offered them to the horse king. The boss can’t be provoked.

The horse king sniffed and seemed satisfied with the taste of the salt. He ate it in two bites. Yun Ye suspected that he had misread the situation, because the horse king’s eyes showed a sense of enjoyment. After eating two bites, it stared at Yun Ye again. Yun Ye had no choice but to continue roasting the wild vegetables. After eating four rounds, it probably thought it was nothing special and returned to the herd with a snort to continue being king.

Yun Ye carefully pried open the ashes, and the potatoes inside were soft and fragrant. After breaking them apart, he took a big bite, and the hot and sweet flavor made Yun Ye almost cry with happiness.

Lying in his sleeping bag, he felt the soft river sand beneath him. Not far to the right was a slow-moving river, and to the left, a group of horses were releasing farts one after another, their faces looking innocent and carefree. Looking up at the sky full of stars, the Milky Way hung in the sky like a black curtain studded with bright diamonds, blinking at him.

His wife had always longed for a diamond, and he had promised to buy her one when he became rich. Now that was impossible, so Yun Ye took out a rhinestone hairpin from his bosom. Under the light of the fire, it glowed with an orange glow. Yun Ye had specially asked a friend who made jewelry to design it for his wife. The silver was the bone, the topaz was the support, and the rhinestones were set into a lotus flower. Although it is not valuable, it is unique. It was originally a birthday gift for his wife, but because he had to rescue two missing foreigners, he could no longer give it to her. Yun Ye held the hairpin tightly, and his heart ached with pain. God, you have finally taken everything from me. Yun Ye muttered to himself…