The Entire Mountain Is My Hunting Ground

Hearing Zhao Jun ask to borrow the gun, Eldest Sister-in-law Zhou froze on the spot. She looked Zhao Jun up and down.

At this moment, Eldest Sister-in-law Zhou couldn’t quite figure out what Zhao Jun was thinking. In her eyes, Zhao Jun was so young; he didn’t look like someone who could handle a gun.

’Then what does he want to borrow a gun for?’

’It can’t be that Zhao Youcai wants to use it, can it?’

Eldest Sister-in-law Zhou mulled it over and could only come to one conclusion: Zhao Jun wanted their family’s gun for himself.

But that didn’t make sense either.

After all, she had just tried to give that Copper Gall to Zhao Jun, and he had refused it. A Copper Gall that large could probably sell for two thousand yuan at the store down the mountain.

’Zhao Jun didn’t even want the more valuable Bear Gall, so why would he be after their family’s gun?’

"Young brother, this..." Eldest Sister-in-law Zhou was in a difficult position. Zhao Jun had saved her husband’s life today and even returned the Bear Gall to them. To the Zhou family, this was an act of immense kindness.

Now, it was just about this one Type 56 semi-automatic rifle. Never mind lending it, Eldest Sister-in-law Zhou would have been willing to give it to Zhao Jun outright.

But there was one problem. A gun was a deadly weapon. Eldest Sister-in-law Zhou was afraid that Zhao Jun, being so young and reckless, might get into trouble if he went out with it.

Whether he hurt someone else or himself, if anything happened while Zhao Jun had that gun, Eldest Sister-in-law Zhou would never have peace of mind for the rest of her life.

Eldest Sister-in-law Zhou thought and thought but didn’t know what to say. The words of refusal came to her lips several times, but she couldn’t bring herself to say them.

Just then, Lin Xiangshun, who had been watching coolly from the side, spoke up. "Sister-in-law, if Zhao Jun wants to borrow the gun, you should just lend it to him."

"But..." Eldest Sister-in-law Zhou looked at Lin Xiangshun, her eyes filled with conflict and confusion.

Lin Xiangshun smiled. "Don’t you worry, Sister-in-law. Zhao Jun knows how to shoot. He’s hunted and brought back several bears already."

Hearing this, Zhao Jun laughed and said to Eldest Sister-in-law Zhou, "I’ll just borrow the gun for a few days. Once Brother Zhou has recovered, I’ll bring it right back to you."

"That’s fine, that’s fine." Although Eldest Sister-in-law Zhou was still a little worried, since he put it that way, she couldn’t make Zhao Jun lose face, could she?

Immediately, she warned Zhao Jun, "Young brother, hunting isn’t like other things. Look at your elder brother here—didn’t he just get mauled by a bear? You have to be careful."

"Don’t you worry, Sister-in-law. I’ll just be wandering around the outskirts of the logging area. I might not even get a shot in."

The few of them chatted for a bit longer. Then, Zhao Jun and Lin Xiangshun said goodbye to Eldest Sister-in-law Zhou. The two got into the car and, with her watching, left the hospital and headed for the logging area.

On the way back, since he no longer had to look after Zhou Chengguo, Zhao Jun sat in the passenger seat. He held the rifle in his arms, stroking it continuously the entire trip.

Seeing Zhao Jun like this, Lin Xiangshun couldn’t help but shake his head to himself.

It was nearly eleven at night by the time the car reached Zhao Jun’s family home. However, Zhao Youcai and Wang Meilan were both still awake, waiting for Zhao Jun to return with the lights on.

Zhao Jun got out of the car and pulled Lin Xiangshun into his house. They’d been running around since the afternoon and hadn’t had a bite to eat or a drop to drink. On the way back, Zhao Jun had even heard Lin Xiangshun’s stomach growling.

He didn’t know if Lin Xiangshun’s wife had saved him any dinner, but since they were already at his doorstep, he couldn’t let Lin Xiangshun go home hungry.

Seeing Lin Xiangshun return with Zhao Jun, Wang Meilan quickly told Zhao Youcai to set up the kang table, then served them the meal that had been kept warm in the large pot.

The meal was sorghum rice and a dish of wild boar stir-fried with pickled cabbage. A small basin full of rice and a large basin full of the main dish were both wiped clean by the two of them.

After they had eaten and drunk their fill, Lin Xiangshun drove his car home. Zhao Youcai’s eyes were fixed on Zhao Jun, making his scalp tingle.

"Dad, your son was out doing a good deed today," Zhao Jun said, unable to hold back any longer.

Zhao Youcai continued to stare at him intently and asked, "So you’ve got yourself a piece now. Planning to go all out this winter, are you?"

At Zhao Youcai’s question, Zhao Jun just laughed. "Dad, I’m just going to wander the mountains a bit, bring back some meat for you."

Hearing this, Zhao Youcai was silent for two seconds before speaking. "You know how skilled Zhou Chengguo is. You’d better be careful."

"I know, Dad."

Zhao Youcai added, "After the New Year, your sister’s father-in-law is going to arrange a job for you. Don’t you cause any trouble before then."

"I..."

Just as Zhao Jun started to speak, Wang Meilan walked in from the outer room. "Running off to the mountains every day," she said. "Now that you have a gun, you’ll be even more eager to go."

’This is bad,’ Zhao Jun thought, and quickly said, "Dad, Mom, it’s almost one o’clock. You two should get some rest. Dad has to get up early for work tomorrow."

"You’re right, I do need to rest. I have to host some guests at the field tomorrow." Zhao Youcai waved his hand at Zhao Jun. "Go on back to bed."

"Alrighty then." Feeling like he’d been granted a pardon, Zhao Jun scrambled up from the kang and bolted for his room.

"You!" As soon as Zhao Jun left, Wang Meilan pointed a finger at Zhao Youcai and scolded him, "Why didn’t you take that gun from him?"

Zhao Youcai shook his head. "With or without a gun, your son is going to run off to the mountains. At least with a gun, he’ll be a bit safer."

At this, seeing that Wang Meilan was about to say more, Zhao Youcai shook his head again. "Your son’s a good shot. Who knows, maybe one day he’ll bring you back another Bear Gall."

Wang Meilan: ...

...

Early the next morning, before Zhao Jun had even woken up, Li Baoyu rushed into his room.

He brought in a blast of cold air, jolting Zhao Jun awake.

"Brother, what time did you get back last night?"

"How’s Brother Zhou doing?"

"And..."

Li Baoyu fired off a string of questions the moment he came in. With a sigh, Zhao Jun had no choice but to sit up on the kang, wrap the quilt around himself, and recount the rest of yesterday’s events to Li Baoyu.

But before Zhao Jun could finish, Li Baoyu shot up from the kang and looked at the wall behind him. Sure enough, a Type 56 semi-automatic rifle was hanging there.

Li Baoyu went over, took down the gun, and turned it over in his hands.

"Brother, are we going up the mountain tomorrow?" Li Baoyu asked Zhao Jun excitedly.

"We are!" Zhao Jun replied. He turned, opened the kang cabinet behind him, took out a roll of small-denomination bills, and tossed it to Li Baoyu with a flick of his wrist.

"Take this and get us some bullets."

"You got it!" Gun in one hand and money in the other, Li Baoyu was about to dash outside but was stopped by three words from Zhao Jun.

"Put the gun down."

"Ah!" Li Baoyu laughed. "I got too excited, almost forgot."

After Li Baoyu left, Zhao Jun got out of the kang, quickly washed up, and started eating breakfast.

Before he could finish eating, Li Baoyu burst back in, rushed up to Zhao Jun, slapped the roll of bills on the table, and pulled a five-round clip of bullets from his pocket.

"What’s this?" Zhao Jun was very puzzled. He’d gotten the bullets back, but what was the deal with not spending the money?

Li Baoyu smiled. "Zhao Jinshan gave me the bullets."

"Who?" Zhao Jun asked, not because he hadn’t heard clearly, but because he couldn’t quite believe it.

"Zhao Jinshan," Li Baoyu repeated, then explained, "Zhao Jinshan said he doesn’t want money for the bullets, but if we take down a wild boar, we have to give him a leg. If we get a bear, we have to give him a bear leg."

"Deal. That’s a good bargain!"