Chapter Thirty-Five: Found

When we set out this time, Master Lao Chen surprisingly told me to bring Dahan along. Looking at my sharp-eyed companion perched on my shoulder, I smiled and asked, "Master Lao Chen, didn't you say before that bringing Dahan would give away our position?"

"Heh! Sanqi, let's put it this way: if we were the prey at the start, the tables have turned now. We have become the hunters, and they are the prey!" Master Lao Chen’s lips curled upward.

I blinked. "Just... the two of us?"

Master Lao Chen’s gaze suddenly shifted to the front right. "It won't just be the two of us."

I looked in the direction of his gaze with curiosity and was shocked to see a snow-white weasel perched on a mound not far from us, watching us with a pleasant, smiling expression.

"So... that’s how it is!"

It was as if I suddenly understood everything. Our encounter with this weasel yesterday was likely no accident; on the contrary, the weasel had been seeking our help. Just then, the weasel flickered and vanished from our sight.

Looking at Master Lao Chen, I asked first, "Master... did you actually know this yesterday?"

"Yes. Once you told me about seeing a pure white weasel yesterday, and we later found those clay weasel statues, I had already guessed it."

"Oh, I see!"

"Sanqi, let Dahan take a look first."

"Right!"

I took Dahan off my shoulder, held him in my hand, and pulled out the hawk whistle, puffing out my cheeks to blow. Dahan suddenly leapt, like a sword unsheathed, rushing out of the dense forest and soaring toward the blue sky, letting out a sharp cry.

Master Lao Chen looked up and said, "Sanqi, if you have the chance, help me train a falcon too. With one of these around, I wouldn't be afraid no matter how deep we go into the old forests."

"Yes, I will," I said softly.

Though I said that, I knew deep down that a falcon is not something easily trained. During the Yuan Dynasty, falcons were used by the emperors to reward meritorious officials; thus, a falcon was a symbol of power and status. That was how my family maintained such prestige during the height of the Yuan Dynasty. Take Dahan, for example: when I was at a hunting ground, a wealthy merchant from Guangdong offered eight hundred thousand to buy him, but I refused.

In the modern era, only a very few people possess falcons, and those who do are generally either extremely wealthy or highly influential.

Sitting under a large tree with Master Lao Chen, I fiddled with a pine nut in my hand and asked softly, "Master, do you think Qiyang will leave?"

"I hope he leaves." Master Lao Chen took a swig of liquor. He then turned to me and asked, "Sanqi, were you afraid last night?"

I paused, then scratched my head. "Master, do you want the truth or a lie?"

"The truth."

"The truth is... I was scared to death last night. I felt like my heart was going to jump out of my chest," I admitted, feeling a bit embarrassed.

But Master Lao Chen’s expression remained unchanged. He murmured to himself, "It’s good to be afraid. Knowing fear... makes you cherish your life more, which in turn makes you more cautious."

I blinked, just about to say something, when a sharp cry from the hunting falcon pierced the sky. *Yee~ yee~*

At the sound, I stood up without hesitation.

"Sanqi, how is it? Have you found them?" Master Lao Chen stood up quickly beside me, looking surprised.

I inclined my head to listen to Dahan’s cries. After a dozen seconds, I nodded. "Yes! A group of hunters has been located, but they are not very close to us."

"Let's go!" Master Lao Chen took another swig of liquor and said coldly.

I nodded and blew the whistle again, signaling for Dahan to lead the way.

Under Dahan’s guidance, Master Lao Chen and I dashed through the forest. Running through mountain woods is physically exhausting, and we also had to avoid other dangers lurking in the deep forest. I lost count of how many mountain ridges we crossed before finally reaching our destination in the afternoon.

Panting heavily, we stood on a rugged slope and looked down, where we spotted a campsite. There were tents and a bonfire; between them, a line was strung up, with six or seven weasel pelts hanging out to dry. Looking closely, I saw seven or eight figures in the camp—some playing cards, others cooking—looking quite at ease. From their attire, it was clear that these people were hunters.

"Master, what now? It seems the weasels were indeed annoyed by them!" I spoke first.

Master Lao Chen looked at the sky, then back at the hunters' camp. "There are many of them, and they seem to be 'Xiangshan' hunters. Let's wait until dark."

"Understood!"

We lay on the ground, observing the camp while gnawing on our dried meat and taking swigs of corn liquor. The temperature in the Greater Khingan Mountains was already biting, but the liquor made our bodies feel fiery hot.

As the sun set completely, the hunters gathered around the bonfire to eat. They were stewing something—I couldn't tell if it was wild boar or something else—but the aroma hit me so hard I instinctively swallowed my saliva. Having eaten nothing but dried meat since morning, I was starving.

The hunters sat around in their dog-fur hats, eating with relish. I whispered, "Master, what are they stewing? It smells so good."

"Snake meat," Master Lao Chen replied calmly.

I nodded and swallowed again. It was then that I heard the hunters talking loudly.

"Boss! What's the situation? We've been searching for so long and found nothing. Are we really going to spend the winter in the Khingan Mountains?"

As one spoke, the others chimed in. "Yeah, Boss! This place isn't like anywhere else. The heavy snow is coming soon; if we get stuck here for the winter, this is going to cost us our lives!"

"Yeah, yeah!"

"Boss..."

As more people started complaining, a burly man with a fox pelt draped over his shoulder tapped his bowl with his chopsticks. *Clink, clink, clink!*

Everyone fell silent. I watched as the man used his hand to push a snake head into his mouth, chewed, swallowed, and then said crudely:

"Damn it! Are you all trying to revolt? You took the money without complaint, and now that we hit a snag, you want to back out? When we came in, the higher-ups gave the word: if we don't find it, none of us are leaving these mountains! Besides, do you think I’d be hunting weasels if it weren't to survive the winter? With these pelts, don't worry, you definitely won't freeze to death!"