C26 Returning to the 1960s: Starting with Digging for Fo-ti

Everyone finally realized it had all been a misunderstanding.

The village head slapped Liu Chun’an on the back with great emotion, feeling both happy and sighing with relief.

“Never gamble again,” he said. “Your father will find you a proper job so you can live a steady life. By next year, you will be of marriageable age, and I will help you find a wife.”

Liu Chun’an blushed and admitted his mistake. “Father, I was wrong to gamble. I won’t touch it again. But you don’t need to find me a job. I have decided to follow Du Jianguo in learning to hunt. I promise I can earn a hundred or eighty yuan a year!”

The village head was immediately stunned. He looked at his son with a bit of helplessness and thought the boy must have been scared silly by the black bear. “Son, go back and drink some herbal medicine to clear your head. Why is your mind so unclear?”

“Follow Du Jianguo to hunt?”

He didn’t argue further with his son. Instead, he cleared his throat and shouted to the crowd, “Since the person has been found, everyone should head back to the village! It is getting dark. If we wait a few more hours, that black bear might chase after us again. Everyone come to my house tonight. I will treat you all to cornbread stewed with vermicelli!”

The crowd finally started moving to return to Xiao An Village.

Du Jianguo quickly stepped forward to stop them. “Wait! Since there are so many of us now, can you help me with a favor? I need to move the bear I hunted back home.”

Liu Chun’an nodded and added, “Dad, the bear we hunted is hidden behind us. It won’t be long before flies spoil it. Since there are many people now, let’s figure out a way to carry it back together!”

These words made everyone fall silent. The village head stood frozen in place, his mouth agape in shock. He couldn’t process the words for a long moment. “Son, are you joking with me? You are saying that you and Du Jianguo… hunted a bear?”

“Of course it’s true!” Liu Chun’an patted his chest to confirm, then scratched his head awkwardly. “But it has nothing to do with me. Mainly it was Du Jianguo who did it. I was just the bait.”

“Father, let me tell you, Du Jianguo’s shooting is very accurate. He shot the bear in the head with one bullet, bursting its brains out! If not for him, your son would surely have lost an arm or a leg today!”

Du Jianguo cleared his throat and handed the Hanyang rifle he had hidden behind his back to the village head. His tone carried a hint of apology. “Village head, in the emergency situation earlier, I took this rifle from your house to save Chunan. You won’t blame me for wasting bullets, will you?”

“That rifle earlier… was it you who fired it?”

The village head held the rifle body, still finding it hard to believe. “Come, take me to see the bear you hunted.”

Du Jianguo and Liu Chun’an led the way, followed by the men, women, and children of Xiao An Village. Everyone stretched their necks. Who did not want to see whether Du Jianguo had truly hunted a bear? They didn’t want to be fooled by lies.

…

The massive black bear lay sprawled on the ground. Black blood flowed from its wound, soaking the grass in the mountain.

Seeing the mountain-like body, many people shrank back in fear, afraid to get close. This was an instinctive fear of the weak facing a fierce beast’s corpse.

However, a few brave souls stepped forward to inspect the black bear’s body. They quickly found the gunshot wounds on it.

“That’s right! This bear was killed by a single shot to the head!”

Someone shouted out, matching exactly what Du Jianguo and Liu Chun’an had said.

“My goodness!”

The entire village was shocked. Their gazes turned all at once toward Du Jianguo. They looked at him with disbelief. This young man had actually hunted a bear!

Everyone then remembered that Du Jianguo had either caught wild pigeons or dug up He Shou Wu these past few days. Could it be that he really was a natural born hunter, just as he had said?

“Du Jianguo! You are amazing!”

Someone couldn’t help but praise him. “You have such skills? Before, everyone thought you were just a gambler who bullied your wife. Now, you look like a hero!”

“You are too kind,” Du Jianguo replied with a smile. Inside, he felt proud as well. Hunting a bear was not something anyone could do. If his shooting had been just a bit less accurate, Liu Chun’an would likely have died today.

Before he could say more, the village head suddenly fell to his knees and began to kowtow toward Du Jianguo.

“Village head! What are you doing? Get up quickly!” Du Jianguo quickly reached out to help him up.

The village head waved his hand, insisting on finishing the kowtows before speaking. His voice was filled with gratitude. “It is owed! These kowtows are on behalf of my son to thank you for saving his life. From now on, you are the benefactor of our old Liu family!”

Du Jianguo quickly helped the village head stand up. The village head turned to shout at the crowd, “Do not just stand there! Quickly find some wooden poles to tie up the bear. Help Du Jianguo carry it back!”

The crowd scattered to find poles. However, a few people with ill intentions gathered around the black bear. Their eyes showed greed. Li Ergou was one of them.

He blinked and deliberately cleared his throat. “Village head, although Du Jianguo hunted this bear, according to current rules, shouldn’t it be considered the collective property of our village?”

“Collective your mother’s egg!”

Hearing Li Ergou’s words, Liu Chun’an was instantly furious. He snatched the Hanyang rifle from his father’s hand and smashed the stock hard against Li Ergou’s forehead.

There was a loud thump. Li Ergou’s head immediately bled. Blood flowed down his forehead.

“Ah!” Li Ergou screamed in pain. He clutched his head and stared at Liu Chun’an in terror. “Liu Chun’an, are you crazy?”

“Do you still have the face to say that?”

Liu Chun’an stared at him coldly, his tone full of anger. “This bear was hunted by Du Jianguo at the risk of his life, and he saved my life! You did nothing but stand here and watch. How dare you try to take a share? Li Ergou, where is your face?”

Liu Chun’an took a deep breath and turned to the village head. “Father, I was just playing cards for fun. I did not intend to gamble for money. It was Li Ergou who set a trap for me. He forced me to increase the stakes until I lost over thirty yuan! He is the real culprit!”

The village head’s face turned dark. He shouted, “Li Ergou!” His eyes were cold as he stared at the other man. “You really have grown up. You even dare to trick my son!”

Li Ergou felt intimidated by the village head’s gaze. But when he thought of his backer, he raised his chin and said, “Village head, you may call me a village head, but don’t think too highly of yourself! Do not forget that I am under the protection of Cadre Zhang. Do you dare touch me?”

Li Ergou was placed by Cadre Zhang in the village committee. Hearing this, the village head clenched his fist and really did not dare to act against him. After all, Cadre Zhang was sent from above. Confronting him directly would get him nowhere.

At that moment, Du Jianguo stepped forward. His eyes were cold as they fixed on Li Ergou. “You want to share the bear I hunted?”

“Of course!” Li Ergou stuck out his neck and said confidently. “You hunted a collective bear. It should belong to everyone! If you don’t agree, I will go find Cadre Zhang to judge. Let him decide!”

“Don’t use your so-called Cadre Zhang to pressure me.” Du Jianguo’s tone was calm but carried an undeniable firmness. “If you want someone to judge, fine. I will find someone too. Let us see which side the police will stand on.”