âThere is a possibility of that, and itâs not small.â
âLetâs just wait.â Yang Guanfeng lit a cigarette.
âWhat are we waiting for?â Lu Xiufeng asked.
âWe will wait for that person.â
Since there was someone who had given them a secret message at night, it was likely that the person would give them another one.
âOh, that one?â
âYes, that one.â
The night was quiet. The entire stockade was silent. Most of the people had entered dreamland, with the exception of a few people, such as Lu Xiufeng and Yang Guanfeng. They were lying on the bed talking about things and waiting for the person who had delivered the message to them that night.
âI donât think he will come back in the first half of the night,â Yang Guanfeng said. âIâll go to bed first. You keep an eye out.â
âHey, thatâs not right,â Lu Xiufeng said. âI should have been the one to say that!â
âI think you are quite energetic. I am a little tired.â
âAlright, go to bed first.â
After a short while, Yang Guanfeng began snoring. He had fallen asleep. For some unknown reason, he had felt tired and fatigued that day and just wanted to sleep.
âWhy havenât you arrived yet? Iâll fall asleep if I donât come soon.â Lu Xiufeng laid in bed. He was bored beyond words. He picked up his cellphone to read a novel.
A little after 10 p.m., a small iron ball flew in from outside and landed on the ground with a clink. He hurried out of bed, picked up the small iron ball, and found a blank piece of paper inside.
âWhat does that mean?â
âWrite down our contact information.â A voice came from behind him.
âGoddammit, Lao Yang. When did you wake up? Can you please make some noise? You scared me! This could frighten someone to death!â Lu Xiufeng was really shocked.
âI just woke up.â
âI didnât expect such a little noise to wake you up from the looks of how deep you were sleeping.â
âDonât talk so much,â Yang Guanfeng said. âWrite it down quickly and throw it out. The other party is probably waiting outside now.â
Just now, he had indeed fallen asleep, but he had developed a professional habit after many years. No matter how he slept, he was able to get up and react immediately from just a little sound.
Lu Xiufeng didnât talk unnecessarily anymore. He quickly wrote down two phone numbers and put them into the small iron ball. He threw it out of the window and listened quietly for a while.
âThatâs strange. Why donât I hear anything?â
âHeâs gone.â Yang Guanfeng was back in bed.
âLetâs sleep.â
âAh, Lao Yang, youâve come to bear it,â Lu Xiufeng said with a smile.
âWe have already taken the main step. Next, letâs see what useful news that person can provide us,â Yang Guanfeng said. After a while, he started snoring again.
âThatâs right.â After a short time, Lu Xiufeng also fell asleep.
The first message came early morning the next morning when most people were asleep. Lu Xiufeng was awakened by his cellphone vibrating. He picked up the phone and saw a message.
[The stockade is studying the elixir of immortality, presided over by Miao Xihe. Several people have participated in the study. They are conducting human experiments.]
Human experiments? Lu Xiufeng thought for a while. He turned around and looked at Yang Guanfeng. He hadnât woken up.
He softly called out, âLao Yang?â
âWhatâs the matter?â Yang Guanfeng immediately opened his eyes and felt for his waist.
âLook at this.â He handed Yang Guanfeng his cellphone.
âExperiments?â
âYes.â
âWhere is the evidence and the place?â
Lu Xiufeng sent back a message with those questions. After a while, the other party replied.
[Southwest of Houshan Mountain.]
âNot in the stockade?â
The two shared a look.
âSouthwest of Houshan Mountain is a little vague for a location.â Lu Xiufeng frowned, which was rare.
It didnât matter if the location was vague. It was just a mountain. If they wanted to find it, they could find it. If they could not do it in one day, they would find it in two days. The main problem was not if they wanted to find it. It was if the others wanted them to find it, for example, Miao Qingfeng, who followed them all the time. From morning to night, except when they went to the toilet and sleep, he was always with them and by their side. They couldnât investigate that place alone.
âWhat should we do?â
âLetâs go and have a look tomorrow,â Yang Guanfeng said. There wasnât a good way to solve this problem. They were on someone elseâs territory.
âWith what reason?â
âYouâre good at that. You think of it,â Yang Guanfeng said.
The next morning, as usual, Miao Qingfeng came over early.
âDo the two of you have any plans for today?â he asked with a smile.
âWell, is there a lot of wild game in the mountain?â Lu Xiufeng asked as he rubbed his hands together.
âWild game? Captain Lu, do you want to hunt in the mountains?â
âOh, yes, thatâs what I mean,â Lu Xiufeng said with a smile.
Perfect! Yang Guanfeng thought to himself. In recent days, Lu Xiufeng had left an impression on them that he was unpredictable, except for the fact that he loved food and wine. The impression he left on other places was the same. Because of that, many people had reported to the provincial hall that he was acting as a public official for his own gains. Fortunately, several leaders in the provincial hall knew about his true ability and did not listen to the rumors. Therefore, even if the people in the stockade had informants outside, the evaluation of the two of them would be the same.
âOK, no problem,â Miao Qingfeng said with a smile.
He prepared the bows and arrows.
âDo we hunt with these?â Looking at the bow and arrow in his hand, Lu Xiufeng was surprised.
âYes, we use these for hunting here.â
âAh, well, can you teach us how to use it first?â
âNo problem.â
The two of them quickly learned how to use them. They went up the mountain with the bows and arrows.
âWhat wild game are there on this mountain?â
âThere are deer, hare, boar, pheasant, and many other kinds,â Miao Qingfeng replied.
âThere are no fierce beasts like wolves and tigers, right?â
âThere are leopards and wolves, but no tigers,â Miao Qingfeng said.
âNo way! Will they eat people?â
âIn general, they will not take the initiative to attack humans, especially groups like the three of us,â Miao Qingfeng said. âIn special cases, for example, when we go near their den and young are in there, they would get very aggressive. If we got closer, they would take the initiative to attack us.â
âCan you handle them?â
Miao Qingfeng thought for a moment before replying, âMe? Yes, I can. Besides, even if I couldnât, donât both of you have guys on you? No matter how ferocious they are, they canât compete with guns. In fact, the beasts that can be seen are not the most terrible ones. The most terrible things in the jungle are those little things that are easily ignored.â
âFor example?â
âFor example, poisonous spiders, centipedes, vipers, and other poisonous things. Quite a few of them are highly poisonous. If you happen to get bitten by them accidentally, it will be fatal.â
âI donât think we should have come here after hearing what you have said,â Lu Xiufeng said. As he spoke, he continued walking in the general direction of the mountain.
âIt will be fine. Iâm here. You wonât have a problem,â Miao Qingfeng said with a smile.
Swish... Swish... Swish... There suddenly was a noise coming from not far away.
âShh.â Lu Xiufeng made a shushing gesture. He looked up and saw a dark wild boar. It was grunting as it pushed against something.
âA wild boar!â
âWill our bow and arrow work for this?â Lu Xiufeng softly asked.
âNo, the wild boar has rough and coarse skin,â Miao Qingfeng said. âAlthough the bows and arrows we carry can occasionally pierce its skin, they canât cause fatal damage to it unless they happen to hit its eyes and other weak parts. They will only make it crazy.â
âWhat do we do if encounter a wild boar while hunting?â
âWe usually smear a special poison on the arrow of the bow and arrow,â Miao Qingfeng said. âWhen we hit it, it will faint. That is when we will kill it. I didnât bring that poison today.â
âOr, shall I just shoot it down?â Lu Xiufeng took out his pistol.
âPut it away!â Yang Guanfeng glared at him.
âJust joking,â He said with a smile.n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om
âItâs quite a pity. Does wild board taste good?â
âIt is good. Youâve eaten it.â Swish....
âIs that so? Was it in one of the dishes from the other night?â
âYes.â
âForget it. Letâs go. It wonât attack us on its own accord, will it?â
âIt could,â Miao Qingfeng said. âBoars have a very grumpy temper when they are frightened. Letâs keep our voices down. Donât disturb him, or it will be very troublesome.â
The three of them quietly left. They continued to search for their next prey. They soon found some pheasant.
âDonât move,â Lu Xiufeng said. âLet me handle this!â
He drew his bow and nocked the arrow, Unsurprisingly, he missed his shot without. The pheasant flapped its wings frantically as it tried to fly away. As it fluttered, a feathered arrow shot straight into its body. After a flailing around for a few times, it stopped moving.
âGood archery!â Lu Xiufeng raised his thumb.
âIâm flattered. Iâve practiced this since I was a child,â Miao Qingfeng said with a smile.