Chapter 22: Returning to the Mountains, Hunting the Azure Goat

Following this, Liu Yuzhi ushered the village head, the head of Huang Village, and the Huang brothers into the house, while she pulled Huang Su'e into the bedroom.

In the main hall, only the eldest brother and Su Yu were there to host them. Since Su's father was away, it fell to the eldest son, Su Sheng, to handle the situation. As for Su's mother, being a woman, the two village heads could not press her on any matters.

Huang Shan and Huang Hai thanked Su Yu repeatedly. Huang Hongsheng had finally regained consciousness today after surviving his ordeal. The doctor stated that he was past the critical stage; as long as the wound did not become infected, he would be fine and just needed a few months to recuperate.

"Brother Su Yu, we still need to visit Brother Huzi's house, so we won't stay long. We will come to visit again another day."

After bidding farewell to Su Yu’s family, Liu Yuzhi had politely declined the gifts they brought for a long time, but she could not out-persist the Huang family and eventually accepted them.

The Su family had truly gained prestige this time. In a collective village, there is an advantage: a strong sense of honor. This is why when one family sends a son to the army, the whole village shares the glory.

The news of Su Yu saving the old man of the Huang family would undoubtedly be known to everyone within a day. Moreover, the Huang family had presented generous gifts—a pig's head and carp, which were the most formal tokens of gratitude. They had prepared two sets of these gifts; it wouldn't have emptied their household coffers, but it certainly wouldn't have been easy for them.

Yet, they did it anyway. This was the nature of being grateful. Meanwhile, Comrade Liu Yuzhi could not stop thinking about the Huang family's daughter. She had two sons who were bachelors, so naturally, she was anxious. Seeing Huang Su'e today, she had felt a spark of interest.

Half an hour later, Huzi arrived late. Su Yu knew he had been delayed by the Huang family's enthusiasm.

"Brother Yu, did Huang Shan and Huang Hai go to your place too?"

Su Yu nodded. Since his house was at the entrance of the village, they naturally visited him first before heading to Huzi's.

"Sigh... I almost couldn't get away because of this, but I managed to slip out. Oh, by the way, when I went to sell the hides today, I forgot to sell the rabbit and badger skins. You said they were uncomfortable to sit on in the back of the cart, so I used them as a cushion and forgot about them."

Su Yu remembered then, but it didn't matter. Rabbit and badger skins weren't worth much anyway; it was fine to wait and sell them next time.

"It's alright, just keep them there. You can bring them next time."

"Hey, Brother Yong, are you coming with us too?" Huzi asked, only just noticing Su Dayong standing nearby.

"Heh, I've wanted to see what it's like for a long time. By the way, did you bring an extra weapon? Give me one so I can practice, too."

Huzi handed him the crossbow and whispered, "Here, you play with it. I'll just carry the game; I can't aim well anyway—it's all Brother Yu who does the shooting."

This made Dayong feel a bit embarrassed. He scratched his head but took it anyway.

"Alright, we all grew up in the same village, so don't be shy. If Huzi gives it to you, just take it. Let's go. Into the mountains."

"Little Yu, where are we hunting today?" Su Dayong asked, as this was his first time in the mountains and he was unfamiliar with the area.

"Let's go to Swan Lake. There's plenty of game there. If we go and return quickly, we should make it back in time."

Dayong was just tagging along, so he had no objections, and neither did Huzi. The three of them set off together, moving cautiously, with Huzi holding a wood-chopping knife to clear the path ahead.

It was impossible to enter the mountains without a knife; the thorns alone would make it impossible to move, so a path had to be cleared.

Su Dayong followed behind with the crossbow to guard against any surprise attacks from the rear, while Su Yu stayed in the middle to prevent any game from jumping out from the sides.

Huzi carried a wicker basket, knife in hand, leading the way.

"Once we pass this stretch, there should be a path ahead. It will be much easier to walk. Everyone, watch your step for snakes; be careful," Huzi warned while pushing aside the thorny bushes, moving forward step by step.

The three of them stumbled over the mountain and finally arrived at Swan Lake.

"Look, the reed marsh ahead! We finally made it. I'm exhausted. Let's sit and rest for a while; I really can't take it anymore."

Huzi and Su Dayong collapsed on the ground to rest. Su Yu leaned against a tree. In truth, he wasn't very tired; his body had been strengthened, and as a child of the mountains, he was accustomed to this terrain. Huzi and Dayong were simply lacking stamina—in plain terms, they weren't eating enough to keep their strength up.

"Shh!"

As the two were talking, Su Yu suddenly crouched down and made a gesture for them to be silent.

Both men became alert and looked in the direction Su Yu was watching.

As mentioned, there was a shortcut to Swan Lake: climb over the small ridge to reach the reed marsh on the other side. They had only reached the top of the ridge and could see the reeds, but they hadn't arrived at the lake itself. However, looking down from there provided a clear, unobstructed view.

While looking down, Su Yu had spotted a piece of prey halfway down the slope, about forty or fifty meters away.

The two men leaned in and squinted for a long time, but they couldn't tell what it was. It was too far away, and there was brush obscuring the view.

"Brother Yu, can you see clearly? What is it?"

"It looks like a blue sheep. I'll go over and take a look. You two stay put."

Su Yu stooped low and began to descend the mountain. Since they were close to the reed marsh, with plenty of grass and water, it wasn't strange to find a blue sheep, though they were rarely encountered and extremely alert.

Su Yu stopped after descending fifteen meters; he dared not go further. He was still thirty-five or thirty-six meters from the sheep. Ideally, he would be closer, but the path down the mountain was too open, and the brush wouldn't hide his movements. Moving any further would risk exposure.

With no other choice, Su Yu held his breath, pulled out an arrow, nocked it, drew his bow, and took aim.

Even at this distance, the blue sheep clearly sensed danger approaching. It kept looking up, restless and uneasy.

"Whoosh!"

The arrow flew from above.

"Thwack!"

The sound of the arrow piercing flesh was clear even from thirty meters away. It struck the blue sheep directly in the neck.

The sheep scrambled to flee, but with the arrow in its neck, it couldn't get far. Su Yu hurried down, and by the time he reached the spot, the sheep had collapsed at the foot of the mountain, twenty or thirty meters away from him.

Huzi and Dayong ran down.

"Holy cow, Little Yu, that's impressive!"

Dayong and Huzi rushed over. Huzi pulled the arrow from the sheep. It hadn't died yet; its abdomen was still rising and falling. It had lost too much blood and couldn't stand.

"Brother Yu, what should we do?"

"What else? Put it out of its misery and drain the blood, or the meat won't taste good and won't keep."

Without hesitation, Huzi stepped forward and plunged his knife diagonally into the sheep's neck. Before long, the sheep breathed its last.

Huzi cut open the sheep's belly, removed the entrails, took out the heart and liver, and hung the rest of the innards on a tree. This was an old custom—an offering to the mountain god.

In reality, this served to attract other predators in the woods so that the hunters could carry the carcass away undisturbed. Otherwise, the scent of the blood alone would draw carnivores, making it difficult for the hunters to carry the load out. By leaving the innards on a tree, the scent would be concentrated there, allowing the hunters to retreat safely.