"Then why shouldn't we give in? People in our commune go up the mountain in gangs every year at this time.
We have a bad temper with Brother Xu, so we want to join you."
Most of the people who go to Fangshan are to find people they get along with on weekdays. Like Xu Shiyan's time last year, he was simply forced to have no choice.
Even though Xu Shiyan has only been in Donggang for a short time, he has really made many friends.
In the past, they had harvested niu Maoguang and dug gastrodia elata together, and they all thought they were quite good at it, so they came to see Xu Shiyan again this time.
"You've all said so, then go ahead and find the candidate. Everyone knows the rules of Fangshan. You want singles, not doubles.
It's best if you know how to ride a bicycle. If we want to go, we can go a little further. I don't think we can get to the nearest places."
It would be nonsense to say that Xu Shiyan is not moved. Since everyone wants to go, let's go into the mountains together.
Everyone was very happy when they heard Xu Shiyan agreed, so they agreed to go up the mountain the day after tomorrow, which is the 16th day of the seventh lunar month.
After the discussion was completed, those few quickly went home to prepare things.
Xu Shiyan also hurriedly cooked and ate, then rummaged through boxes and cabinets to find various tools and clothes for the mountain.
The next day is July 15th, the Ghost Festival, and it is not allowed to go to the graves and burn paper at this time. Besides, the Xu family has no ancestors here, so there is no need to pay tribute.
So Xu Shiyan was resting at home to coax his children that day, and Su Anying had the opportunity to cut a lot of beans, eggplants, and cucumbers to dry in the sun.
This is the case in Shotoin. The sun-dried vegetables in summer can be kept for winter and spring.
After the beginning of autumn, the weather is dry, and the vegetables that are dried are less likely to get moldy and hairy.
Normally Su Anying had to coax her children, so she could only take the opportunity to cut less. This time with Xu Shiyan's help, Su Anying cut a lot and laid it out all over the west yard.
The sun is very good. After a day in the sun, the vegetables will be half dry.
Xu Shiyan helped put them away in the evening, and after they were dried in the sun the next day, they were almost ready to be put away.
Early in the morning of July 16th, Xu Shiyan, Huang Shengli, Sun Xiaofeng, Feng Chao and Zhou Qingguo came.
The five people each carried sixty or seventy kilograms of luggage and rode their bicycles from Donggang, walking eight kilometers to Baixi Forest Farm and then to the reserve.
Changbai Mountain Nature Reserve was established in the 1960s and is divided into general reserves and absolute reserves.
In these days, the management of protected areas is not so strict, and generally outsiders are allowed to enter the protected areas.
It was not until 1982 that the general protected areas and absolute protected areas were abolished and placed under unified management. After the promulgation of management regulations in 1988, strict management was implemented.
From Donggang to the reserve, Xu Shiyan chose the shortest road, which was still 70 to 80 kilometers away.
These days, they were all firewood transport roads, which were incomparable to the cement roads and asphalt roads of later generations. It wasn't until around two o'clock in the afternoon that we finally arrived at the scheduled location.
Xu Shiyan visited Ma'anshan Forest Farm for several years in his previous life and went to the mountain every year, so he was very familiar with the area around the reserve.
The familiar road led everyone through a forest path and found a windy and sunny hillside.
When arriving at a place, we still set up a master's house first, then build a shack and collect firewood.
Xu Shiyan was chopping wood with an ax when he suddenly saw something running over from a short distance away.
The thing's fur was brown and red, like a wolf, but smaller than a wolf. The tip of its tail was dotted with a few tufts of black hair. It had a thin waist and short legs. It moved quickly and disappeared in a swish.
"What ran past just now?"
Among the few people, Zhou Qingguo had never been to the mountains. He had been a soldier since he was eighteen. He came back last winter, so how could he have the chance to go into the mountains?
So when Zhou Qingguo saw something running past, he wanted to chase it.
"Qingguo, you don't want your life, how dare you chase it?" Xu Shiyan quickly stopped Zhou Qingguo.
"Do you know what that is? How dare you pursue it rashly?"
As soon as Zhou Qingguo heard Xu Shiyan's words, he knew something was wrong.
"Was that a wolf or a fox just now?" Zhou Qingguo asked uncertainly.
Xu Shiyan shook his head, "It's not a wolf or a fox.
That thing, no matter how small it is, even the ancestors of wild beasts in the mountains, tigers, leopards, bears and pigs, are afraid of it.
If a hunter brings a dog into the mountains and dares to provoke it, both the man and the dog will be destroyed."
"Ah? What is so powerful?"
Over there, Feng Chao and Sun Xiaofeng were dumbfounded when they heard it. They had never heard of such an animal before.
Huang Shengli, on the other hand, his grandfather and father both know how to hunt. He heard the elders in his family talk about it and knew what it was.
"Brother Xu, are you talking about jackal?"
"Yes, that's it." Xu Shiyan nodded.
Jackal is the local name for it. It is actually a jackal. Mountain people also call it red wolf.
Jackals are smaller than wolves, but their sense of smell, hearing and vision are sharper than wolves. They are agile and good at running. They are the mortal enemies of many animals in the mountains.
This thing is very cunning, relying on its body, soul and quick feet, it can jump on the opponent's back like a gust of wind, clamp the opponent's neck like a pair of pliers, and bite the throat hard.
No matter how strong the beast is, it cannot break free until its throat is bitten off.
People in the mountains know the temper of jackals, so no one dares to provoke them, so it is rare to hear of jackals hurting people.
After listening to Xu Shiyan's explanation, Zhou Qingguo let out a sigh of relief and said, "Fortunately I didn't catch up just now, otherwise it would have been really dangerous."
Zhou Qingguo brought a gun up the mountain, not for hunting, but for self-defense.
He was just curious for a moment, but now he thought about it, but fortunately he heard Xu Shiyan's words and didn't follow him impulsively, otherwise he would have been really confused.
"When you enter the mountain, you have to abide by the rules of the mountain. Even if you have a gun, that's not okay.
We are here to free the mountains, not to hunt. We are not here to encounter danger, and we cannot take the initiative to provoke animals."
There are many rules in the mountains, which emphasize the harmonious coexistence between man and nature. Most people do not go hunting in the mountains.
Unless they have been in the mountains for too long and have nothing to eat, there is no other way. Most of them just set traps and catch roe deer.
"Hey, I understand, Third Uncle, I will listen to you." Zhou Qingguo nodded repeatedly.
For someone like him who has never left the mountains, it would be nice to be able to lead him. He doesn't dare to mess around, so it's better to be obedient.
Several people hurriedly set up the moat and built a fire outside in the evening.
Several people sat around the fire, eating and chatting.
After chatting until after eight o'clock in the evening, Xu Shiyan asked everyone to go back and rest.
"Have a nice dream tonight. Tell me your dream tomorrow morning."
According to the rules passed down by the elders, the dream of freeing people is not in vain, as they all say.
Many people found Bang Chui by following the guidance of dreams, so Xu Shiyan will tell everyone this.
There was a mattress of grass and roe deer skin inside the shack. Xu Shiyan fell asleep not long after he lay down.
In the deep mountains and old forests, from time to time, the sounds of wild animals, especially wolves, can be heard. The sounds of breathing out are soft and the sounds of breathing back are loud. The noise is really scary.
When Xu Shiyan slept until midnight, he felt a smell of urine.
He felt strange and got up to check, only to see a shadow running away quickly.
The shadow looked clearly like the jackal I saw in the afternoon. The guy came to urinate nearby with him.