Wild 1979: From Fishing and Hunting to Becoming a Literary Master

Chapter 76 Survival Rules

After Chen Tuo returned to the educated youth settlement after seeing Hong Ye off, Wu Laowai, who had just been dazed, started smoking his pipe.

"You little rascal, you're pretty sharp, aren't you? I think you're not just frozen dumb, you've become more perceptive. Don't try to use those tricks on me again!"

Wu Laowai wasn't someone who hadn't drunk too much; rather, he often drank too much and had long been used to being drunk.

Before Chen Tuo beat the bear that night, he was also drunk, but he didn't forget any of the things he needed to do.

He was just scared by the bear, which made the alcohol hit him a little faster; otherwise, even in a normal state of intoxication, it wouldn't have stopped him from firing the gun.

This is similar to how hunters in the mountains can bring alcohol with them when hunting; once they get used to drinking and getting drunk, they adapt to it.

"Uncle Wu, you're not drunk?"

Chen Tuo glanced at Wu Laowai, who was posing with a pipe in his mouth, but didn't argue. He simply added a few more pieces of firewood to the dying campfire.

Even if you're not drunk, smoking around a dying campfire in the dead of winter makes your mind sluggish.

"Having too much to drink won't stop you from thinking! You really want to stay here, kid? What's so great about this place?"

After picking up his pipe, Wu Laowai carefully examined Chen Tuo for a while before asking about his suspicions.

"Hmm...it's quiet here, without all the fuss outside!"

"Quiet? Nothing to do? Then you'd better not stay here. Do you know what my real name is?"

"have no idea!"

"Wu Zhengdao! This is the name my father gave me, who used to be a bearded man and a pillar of society. He wanted me to walk the right path, to be honest and upright."

"That's great!"

"Good? It must have been tough! I listened to my dad, honestly farmed the land, worked diligently, and almost starved to death, and almost got beaten to death too!"

"That can't be, can it?"

"How did you get to Songling? I've finally figured it out. People just can't honestly walk the right path..."

Perhaps it was the alcohol, or perhaps it was the sight of the scene that stirred up memories for Wu Laowai, but the old man began to tell Chen Tuo about the first half of his life.

When he was old enough to remember things, his father, Wu Wenlin, had already stopped hanging around in the gangs and was now taking him to hunt, gather herbs, and cultivate the land in these mountains and forests.

Their family had the opportunity to move to Bianli, but they also had reasons to stay in Songling.

The result was simply that Wu Laowai stayed in Songling, intending to settle down and make a living by farming.

When Wu Laowai talked about the gang and the past, Chen Tuo also took out his notebook and began to record the material.

After Wu Laowai finished speaking, Chen Tuo also came up with two titles: My First Half of Life and My Second Half of Life.

In the first half of his life, Wu Laowai was honest and conscientious, and although his life was ordinary, he made do.

The story of Wu Laowai, who was involved in the lower body incident, dates back to more than ten years ago.

As he spoke, Wu Laowai counted on his fingers again and again, which was quite fascinating, but it's not easy to put into writing.

"Hey man! Honesty comes with hardship. You little brat, you're better at dealing with people than I am. That fat girl, you've got her wrapped around your little finger!"

After recounting the dirty and messy things he had experienced, Wu Laowai changed the subject and talked about Hong Ye, but only briefly.

"So, as they say, 'Man dies for wealth, birds die for food,' and to add, 'survival of the fittest!'"

"If you want to make a living by hunting, you first need to know the habits of the animals in the mountains. Wild boars can't smell humans when they're circling, making them the easiest to hunt!"

"Roe deer and elk love to eat salt, so you can hunt them by building an alkaline well or a salt pit."

"The greyhound must not land; it must be caught in the morning..."

As he spoke, Wu Laowai started talking about his hunting experience, but he stopped after only getting to the beginning.

"Aren't you going to feed the mountain dogs? Let's go..."

Seeing the cunning look in Wu Laowai's eyes, Chen Tuo didn't dwell on it.

He closed the notebook, handed the water beads to Wu Laowai, and then carried the Tula single-barreled gun and all the bullets on his back. The two of them headed towards the Hetao region again.

"Uncle Wu, are you trying to say that people can't be too kind in life?"

Stepping on the fresh snow, and thinking about what Wu Laowai had just said, Chen Tuo finally gave him a reply.

"That's right! No matter how big or small the matter is, if it's not your business, it's none of your concern. Similarly, your eating, drinking, and bodily functions are none of other people's business."

Chen Tuo interrupted halfway through the conversation, which reignited Wu Laowai's rambling.

"Quiet? Where are you going to find quiet in a place with people? Forget everything else, just look at those two wild dogs you fed—don't they want to rip you out?"

"I don't think so?"

"That's right! You killed those two dogs, and they were pregnant and couldn't eat. If they didn't eat your food, they would starve to death!"

"So, you're saying whoever feeds you is your mother?"

"That's true, but we can't say it or do it openly. As the old saying goes, 'If a man doesn't look out for himself, he'll be damned if he doesn't look out for himself.'"

Chen Tuo understood and practiced the principles Wu Laowai was talking about, but what he wanted to hear more about now was how to hunt.

"Uncle Wu, can you teach me how to hunt in the mountains?"

Wu Laowai, fueled by alcohol, talked for a long time, his purpose being the same as Chen Tuo's: to teach him how to run in the mountains.

However, Chen Tuo wanted to learn the technology, while Wu Laowai wanted security.

A few years ago, people in their early fifties were considered old.

Over the years, life has gotten better and better. We eat better and dress warmly, so even though Wu Laowai is over fifty, he can still run in the mountains.

But he can only run for the last few years. His physical strength, eyesight, and mental strength are not as good as before, which is Wu Laowai's most direct feeling.

Having taught him the skill of mountain running, Chen Tuo was obligated to take care of his retirement and transportation; this was the real reason Wu Laowai revealed his true intentions while drunk.

However, Chen Tuo was too cunning and did not directly respond to the survival rules he taught.

If Chen Tuo were a heartless wretch, let alone teaching him a lesson, not even leaving him in the mountains would be considered a sign of Wu Laowai's kindness.

"What skills do I, an old codger, have to teach you?"

"Uncle Wu, it was worth teaching you; it's so cold in Songling!"

Wu Laowai wanted a promise, but Chen Tuo wouldn't give him one.

They walked all the way to Hetao, but the two still hadn't decided whether they would teach each other a trade, provide for each other in old age, or give each other money.

Looking at the mountain dog who was squatting on the snow right on time, and at Chen Tuo carrying wolf antlers down to the river bend, Wu Laowai sighed before saying:

"Let's see if we can take them back. If we raise them like this, once they have puppies, they'll be thinking about how to take you away."

"Take them home. With the puppies on leashes, these two will be more tame. Next year, they can even snag a male mountain dog for you, and then you'll have a whole pack!"

After explaining how to raise mountain dogs, Old Wu pointed to two female mountain dogs and said:

"Those male mountain dogs are no ordinary creatures; they must be ruthless hunters capable of hunting wild elk, otherwise they wouldn't have such large frames."

"If the male mountain dog can hunt elk, these two definitely can too, and their puppies will learn as well."

"Although the mountain dogs are tough, even two or three of them can't be pinned down by the wolf in one go. The fact that these two were able to hold them down means they must be the toughest among the mountain dogs!"

After Wu Laowai shared his experience, Chen Tuo put away the wolf pups in his hand, looked at the small, watery-eyed mountain dog, and thought for a while before saying:

"Uncle Wu, come down and see if you can get close to them."

Thinking about it is one thing, saying it is another, but when it came to actually taking the two wolverines back to the educated youth settlement to raise, Chen Tuo dared not listen to Wu Laowai.

What if these two were taken by the Sun family's boys? Wouldn't that be just asking for trouble?

"You little rascal! I was really looking forward to seeing how ruthless you were..."