Traveling back to 1977

Chapter 534 Luck, Pure Luck

At first, Director Jia thought Chen Fan might want to see the tigers in the zoo, but after asking again and confirming that he wanted to find wild tigers, he was speechless.

The others also looked at Chen Fan with strange expressions. You are a great writer, and you go to fight tigers. Isn't this crossover a bit too ruthless?
After thinking carefully for a moment, Director Jia said, "Wait a moment, let me make a phone call and ask."

This is something most people would be helpless to do, and might even offer kind advice, telling him not to go looking for death.

However, for Director Jia, this request was actually not difficult to fulfill.

Chen Fan's design and suggestions are of great value. Now he wants to take down a big tiger without mentioning any other conditions. Director Jia feels it is necessary to grant his request.

Chen Fan sat on the sofa, full of curiosity. He was prepared to be rejected, but he just wanted to find out where there was information about tigers so he could go and take a look.

But judging from Director Jia's current demeanor, it seems like there's a chance.

Director Jia picked up the phone and dialed. The call was answered shortly. After exchanging a few pleasantries with a smile, he asked, "Old Wang, what's been happening with your company's hunting team lately?"

Chen Fan understood the message in just one sentence.

So they wanted him to go into the mountains with the provincial import and export company's hunting team!
After talking for a few minutes, Director Jia hung up the phone and smiled at Chen Fan, "It just so happens that the Provincial Import and Export Company has a hunting team in the Changbai Mountain hunting grounds. There are signs of tigers there all year round. You can go with the team to take a look."

Chen Fan's eyes lit up. "If we kill the tiger, who gets the prize?"

Director Jia laughed and said meaningfully, "Director Wang from their unit said that anything you hunt yourself is yours, but if the hunting team helps, it's theirs, and you'll get a share of the meat at most."

You think you can hunt a tiger by yourself? You'd better be able to get out of the hunting party's sight before you do!

But is it possible?
Little one, let's treat this as a unique trip!

Chen Fan had no idea about his scheme; he simply clapped his hands and exclaimed, "All done!"

……

A day later, Chen Fan sat on a horse-drawn plow, with a dozen or so hunting dogs running hard on the left, right and in front of him, as the caravan traversed through a mountainous region.

He was wrapped in a thick sheepskin coat, his hands tucked into his sleeves, chatting with the hunters from the hunting party.

Squad leader Yao Shan asked curiously, "Writer Chen, what were you thinking? Why did you have to come here to hunt tigers?"

Chen Fan said helplessly, "I wanted to buy some tiger bones to make medicinal wine, but I can't afford it, so I'll have to hunt them myself."

Yao Shan grinned and laughed heartily, "You're really good at joking."

Chen Fan turned his head and looked at him seriously. "I'm not joking. Sigh, do you not believe I can kill a tiger, or do you not believe I can't afford tiger bones?"

Yao Shan's face was full of disbelief. "You still say you're not joking? You're a great writer, you can make a lot of money just by writing, how could you not afford a few tiger bones?"

Besides, everyone knows tigers are hard to hunt. Even for us experienced hunters, if we encounter a tiger alone, we can only run for our lives.

Unless several people work together and they have hunting rifles, it's unlikely they can hunt a tiger. To be absolutely certain, the entire small team needs to cooperate.

No sooner had he finished speaking than an old voice came from the plow in front of him, "Writer Chen, if you really want to fight tigers, it's not impossible."

Chen Fan turned his head and only saw a horse's rump. "Master Xie, what do you mean?"

The driver in front, Mr. Xie, said loudly, "There are 'hunting grounds' near several provincial capitals, such as Shenyang, Changchun, and Harbin. Although they are exclusively for foreign guests, ordinary people are not restricted from entering."

You can go hunting in the hunting grounds. A rabbit costs 350, a fox 1500, and if you're lucky, you might even catch a tiger that darted out of the forest—5000 yuan!

(In the 1970s, a Hong Kong backpacker hunted three wild rabbits at a hunting ground in Harbin and had to pay 1050 yuan.)
Chen Fan was stunned. "350 for a wild rabbit? 1500 for a fox? That's outrageous!"

While wild rabbits and foxes aren't exactly everywhere, they're certainly not rare either.

Last year, he hunted in Lujiawan, and these were the two types of animals he caught the most. A wild rabbit there only sold for 3 yuan, but here it was more than 100 times more expensive.
Who set the price?
That's incredibly accurate! Could you transport the wild rabbits from Lujiawan over here to sell?
Comrade Yao Shan immediately corrected him, "How can this be called 'black'? This is the rational use of resources. We earn foreign exchange, and they have fun hunting. Isn't that great!"

Chen Fan rolled his eyes. "If I could come up with that much money, would I need to come here? I could just buy all the tiger bones at Tongrentang."

Yao Shan was somewhat surprised. "I read in the newspapers a few years ago that writers made a lot of money, didn't they?"

Chen Fan laughed and said, "That's all ancient history. The original manuscript fee standards were abolished a long time ago, and it was only restored a little bit last year. Writing a few words all day long is just enough to make a living. If you want to make a lot of money by writing books like before, it's impossible now."

Yao Shan looked on with curiosity. "Oh, is that so? I thought writers could make a lot of money."

Chen Fan laughed and said, "When it comes to making money, many writers can't compare to you. With your salary and allowances, you make more than a hundred yuan a month. That's what you call impressive."

Yao Shan chuckled, "I've made a lot of money, but it's also been hard work. I spend all my time in the old forest, often facing wild animals. I'm risking my life for money."

Chen Fan nodded in deep agreement, "That's true. In fact, every job is difficult. Take writers, for example. When they're writing, they can sit for a whole day and still not be able to squeeze out a single fart..."

His gaze towards Yao Shan was filled with a strange expression, and he couldn't help but laugh, "Captain Yao, can you sit at your desk all day?"

Yao Shan glanced up and thought for a moment, then couldn't help but shudder and shook his head repeatedly, saying, "I can't stand it, I can't stand it. I can't even sit still for a short while, let alone all day."

He then shook his head with a sigh, "You're right, every profession has its difficulties, and work is tough."

While they were chatting, the small team quickly moved forward and arrived at their destination before they knew it.

There is no road ahead; it is surrounded by mountains on all sides, with only the narrow path we came by.

Chen Fan picked up a pair of skis, put them on, and took a couple of steps on the snow. It felt alright.

He then carried the hunting rifle and bow and arrows he had borrowed from the hunting team on his back. In addition, he also converted two steel bars from his sleeves into two hiltless short swords in a car, along with some other odds and ends, as well as a large backpack.

By this time, the hunting party members were all ready, and a dozen or so dogs were running around excitedly, barking loudly.

While the others were settling their horses and preparing the camp, Yao Shan, leaning on his ski poles, slid up to Chen Fan, exhaled a puff of white breath, and said, "Writer Chen, we're going into the mountains soon, so you'd better stay close. The forest is not like the outside. Although it's winter now and there are no snakes or insects, there are still plenty of wild animals foraging for food, so you still need to be careful."

Chen Fan stuck the snowball in the snow, looked around, and then turned back with a smile, "Captain Yao, how about we make a bet?"

Captain Yao raised an eyebrow slightly. "How do we bet?"

Chen Fan pointed to the mountains not far away, "We'll each have ten minutes. It'll be just the two of us. We'll each find a forest to go into and come back in ten minutes. Whoever catches the most prey wins."

Seeing Yao Shan's strange expression, he smiled and said, "According to the rules set by your Director Wang, I can take away the game I hunt myself, and the game I hunt with you belongs to you. So I want to go separately, and now I'll have a competition to show you my skills."

He paused for a moment, and seeing that Yao Shan still didn't speak, he couldn't help but raise an eyebrow slightly, "You're not afraid of losing, are you?"

Upon hearing this, the other team members exchanged glances and unconsciously gathered around.

I want to see some excitement!

Yao Shan chuckled, glanced around, and shook his head at Chen Fan, saying, "Writer Chen, don't provoke me. My superiors said that no matter what, you can't act alone. You have to be in my sight at all times."

"Hey, if you wander off and I can't see you anymore, then I'd better find you and bring you back right away. You absolutely can't go anywhere alone, and you absolutely can't get into any trouble."

Seeing Yao Shan's determined look, Chen Fan could only put on a long face and follow them skiing up the mountain.

Ski mountaineering is an extreme sport that combines skiing and mountain climbing techniques. Chen Fan never expected that his first time skiing would be on the most difficult version.

Fortunately, the hunting team was considerate of him, slowing him down and giving him a chance to improve.

After the hunting team skied up the mountain from the foot of the hill, Chen Fan felt he could go solo.

At this moment, Master Xie, who was walking in front, put his finger in his mouth and blew a sharp, piercing whistle.

The others looked up at the sky.

A moment later, a bird chirping sound came from the sky.

The dogs on the ground were barking incessantly.

In Chen Fan's line of sight, a large falcon swooped down from the sky, and his eyes lit up. "A gyrfalcon?!"

Yao Shan laughed and said, "Not bad, Writer Chen, you even know about the gyrfalcon."

He looked at the gyrfalcon circling low in the sky and said, "This is Old Xie's treasure. We dare to go hunting in winter, and this bird deserves half the credit. After we catch our prey, we have to feed it first."

Chen Fan was a little itchy; he wanted it.

He immediately asked, "Where can I get a gyrfalcon?"

Master Xie in front laughed loudly, "Then you'll have to catch them yourself, and you'll have to catch baby birds, otherwise you won't be able to tame them."

Chen Fan clicked his tongue. "Envious."

At this moment, the gyrfalcon soared into the sky again and flew away into the distance.

Seeing that Chen Fan could keep up, Yao Shan ordered the hunting team to speed up their advance.

In the mountains and forests, the group passed through the large trees, winding their way up little by little.

When the forest ahead became denser, we took off our skis, carried them on our backs, and continued on foot.

Yao Shan glanced back and saw that Chen Fan remained relaxed and at ease, which made him look at this young writer with new respect.

He didn't believe Chen Fan's bet at all earlier, but now he's starting to believe it a little.

To be able to hunt so easily in a snow-covered old forest in winter, one's hunting skills must be quite good.

Of course, it's impossible to beat yourself...

Before he could even process what was happening, he saw Chen Fan raise his hand and send a flying dragon plummeting down from the sky, landing motionless on the snow.

Chen Fan walked over, picked up the flying dragon, shook it, and laughed, "A great start!"

When he turned his head again, a dozen hunters were staring at him in a daze.

He picked up the dragon and shook it. "Can't we fight this one?"

Yao Shan snapped out of his daze, looked at the spot where Feilong had fallen, then at him, and asked, "How did you find out?"

With so many experienced hunters and so many hounds below, none of them spotted this dragon, yet a scholar managed to snatch the victory?

Yao Shan felt his face getting hot.

Chen Fan pointed to a tree branch that was more than ten meters high, "It was squatting there, and that's when I saw it."

Yao Shan wiped his face, glanced at his fellow comrades who were also blushing, and suddenly believed what Writer Chen had said. This young scholar really knew how to hunt!
He asked, somewhat curiously, "What did you just use?"

Chen Fan stretched out his palm, revealing a pebble the size of a pigeon's egg lying in his palm. "This is it."

The group exchanged bewildered glances again, surprised that he was someone who could throw stones!
The hunting party continued onward, though the atmosphere was slightly tense. It wasn't until someone in the party finally caught something that Chen Fan clearly heard them all exhale a long breath.

It's just opening for the first time, why are you so nervous?
Changbai Mountain is rich in resources, and even in winter, many wild animals are active there.

Roe deer, hares, foxes, gazelles, blue sheep, serows, red deer, sika deer, sable, wild boars... and ferocious beasts include brown bears, black bears, leopards, and of course, the most famous Siberian tiger.

Although hunting teams have frequently visited the area over the years, under the guidance of experienced hunters, they have not exhausted the resources but have instead hunted in a planned manner.

Therefore, there are quite a few animals in this mountain forest.

According to Director Jia, several Siberian tigers are found here every year, and some of them become prey for hunting teams, contributing to the earning of foreign exchange.

Chen Fan deduced from the continuous stream of prey that Director Jia was not lying to him.

Such abundant animal resources could very well support the survival and reproduction of one or even many tigers.

He couldn't help but get excited and prepared to engage in a battle with the tiger at any moment.

Unfortunately, Yao Shan kept a close watch on him and wouldn't allow him to go far.

With no other option, he took out his skis and circled around the hunting party.

Of course, the gains were also considerable.

At first, he hunted quite a few wyverns, pheasants, and rabbits, but later he became too lazy to even touch these small creatures and left them to the hunting team to deal with, while he focused on hunting the big ones.

Seeing Chen Fan's large, fully loaded basket, the hunting team members were completely convinced.

Yao Shan was still thinking of poaching people, "Writer Chen, didn't you say that writing books doesn't make money? Why don't you just join our hunting team!"

Chen Fan chuckled dryly, "Luck, it's purely luck."

It was luck that brought me good fortune.

His eyes suddenly lit up, and he immediately drew his bow and arrow. Before Yao Shan and the others could react, with a whistle, a sika deer in the distance let out a mournful cry and fell to the ground with a thud.

Master Xie witnessed the whole thing and couldn't help but exclaim, "What a fine arrow!"

Chen Fan turned around. Hmm?
Yao Shan didn't hesitate and immediately called for his men, "Drag him over here."

He then turned around, gave Chen Fan a thumbs-up, and said, "Writer Chen, you're amazing!"

Chen Fan chuckled and said, "Luck, it's purely luck."

Master Xie walked over, and after the two team members dragged the sika deer over, he went up to take a look. "An arrow through the head, this is no luck!"

He looked at Yao Shan and said, "Old Yao, when it comes to hunting, I'm afraid you really can't beat him."

Yao Shan rolled his eyes. "You talk as if you could beat them."

Although the sika deer was not the hunting team's prey, everyone was eager to help deal with it.

They then used the wooden frame they had brought to assemble a plow, loaded all the game onto a cart pulled by several hunting dogs, and sent two people back to the camp.

Someone stays there to perform preliminary processing of the prey before the unit sends a vehicle to pick it up.

Hunting teams never return from the mountains in just one or two days; they may stay for ten days to half a month, or even two or three months at a time.

Chen Fan naturally couldn't wait that long.

Taking advantage of the moment, he caught a small bird and, after friendly negotiation, reached an employment agreement with it using a few corn kernels.

Birds flitted through the forest, bringing him news from afar.

There is a big tiger on the mountain beyond the three mountains!

So Chen Fan deliberately ran ahead, leading the hunting team toward the tiger.

Two days later.

Master Xie fired an arrow and shot down a gazelle. Just then, the chirping of a gyrfalcon suddenly came from the sky.

He looked up at the sky and saw the trajectory of the gyrfalcon. His expression changed drastically, and he turned around and shouted, "Old Yao, there's a big bug!"

Before the words were even finished, almost all the team members immediately moved closer to Yao Shan.

Yao Shan frowned. "Which direction?"

Master Xie pointed ahead, "Over there, it shouldn't be far."

At this moment, Chen Fan quickly ran over and whispered, "Captain Yao, can I have this tiger? I'll trade you other prey for it."

If he had said this before entering the mountains, Yao Shanli would have been too lazy to pay attention to him. But now, after a couple of seconds of contemplation, he said, "No need to change. I'll only give you one chance. If you miss, we'll take action."

Chen Fan immediately beamed with joy, cupped his hands in thanks, and said, "Thank you very much."

Then Yao Shan waved his hand and said, "Old Li, go ahead and scout the way. Everyone else, follow and be careful."

Then he said to Master Xie, "Make sure you keep a close eye on your baby."

Master Xie nodded, then twirled his fingers and whistled a few times. The gyrfalcon in the sky immediately responded with a "chirp chirp" and circled in the sky.

Chen Fan quickened his pace and ran at the front of the team, only lagging behind Master Li.

Half a day later, Master Li emerged from a clump of miscellaneous trees and whispered, "It's just ahead. This is a big guy. Its head and body are over two meters long, and it probably weighs 500 kilograms."

Yao Shan's gaze sharpened slightly as he turned to look at Chen Fan, his meaning clear.

Chen Fan shrugged and held up one finger. "I'll only shoot one arrow. If I miss, you can shoot all you want."

Yao Shan hesitated for two seconds, "But we need to keep our distance, safety first."

Chen Fan looked up at his surroundings, listened to the message from the bird, and turned back to smile, "Now that I'm up in the tree, I can rest assured, right?"

Hearing this, Yao Shan breathed a long sigh of relief, "Then there's no problem."

He then ordered the others to spread out and stand guard, while watching Chen Fan run forward.

Before long, Chen Fan climbed up a big tree and stood on a horizontal branch without any attempt to hide it, drawing his bow and arrow and staring straight ahead.

The members of the hunting party each found a place to hide, and they faced different directions, so no matter which direction the tiger came out from, it could not escape their sight.

Even the dogs were quiet and focused, lying silently beside them, cautiously observing the surrounding movements.

A dozen minutes later, accompanied by a low growl, a striped tiger appeared before the crowd with slow, deliberate steps.

Without hesitation, Chen Fan nocked an arrow and drew his bow. Before anyone could react, they heard a bowstring twang, followed by a tiger's roar, and the tiger collapsed to the ground with a thud.

Yao Shan stood there dumbfounded. Was that all?
Master Li came to his senses and chased after the barking dogs until he reached the tiger.

Chen Fan put away his bow and arrows, and to avoid making them question their existence, he had no choice but to climb down from the tree.

Otherwise, he wouldn't bother climbing the tree at a height of ten meters or so; it would be so much easier to just jump down.

When the hunting party members ran over, they were all speechless with shock when they saw the arrow stuck in the tiger's eye.

Yao Shan turned to look at Chen Fan and said with emotion, "I thought you were pretty good, but I didn't expect you to be this good."

Chen Fan chuckled dryly, "Luck, it's purely luck."

Everyone rolled their eyes. "You don't believe me!"
……

Chen Fan was brought back by the hunting team's truck.

When the light truck drove into the factory, Director Jia and others, who had already received the news, were already waiting at the entrance of the guesthouse.

When the car stopped, Director Yang was the first to rush over. When he saw the big tiger, his eyes widened. "You really killed a tiger? And there's so much meat on it?!"

Inside the carriage, all the prey had been processed.

The birds were plucked and gutted, and piled up naked in baskets.

Animals were skinned and their bones collected, then sorted and piled up.

The most eye-catching item is a bundle of tiger skins with a tiger head attached. Even though only the head is left, it still inspires awe.

Even in death, a tiger's might remains!

Chen Fan got out of the passenger seat carrying a suitcase, only to find that there was no space to squeeze in. He could only walk to the side and smoke silently, thinking to himself, "Who are you talking to?"

Professor Zhu from the expert group was the first to react, running up to Chen Fan and whispering, "The tiger is so big, sell me the tiger skin!"

Chen Fan coughed lightly. "The leaders of the import and export company said that I can only keep this for myself and cannot sell it, otherwise I will be making a mistake."

Professor Zhu said, "Then I'll trade. You'll only get two thousand yuan for handing over this tiger skin. I'll trade you a three-thousand-yuan canopy bed, how about that?!"

"I'll pay 3500!"

Director Jia immediately leaned over and whispered, "Didn't you only want the tiger bones? Leave the tiger skin to our unit. We'll gather 3500 worth of supplies for you later, how about that?!"

This is a tiger skin with a complete tiger head. No matter what we do with it, if we can get our hands on it, we should definitely get it first!
Factory Director Yang also came over at this time, but he didn't dare to compete with the two of them. He could only keep giving them meaningful glances from the side.

You can't give away such a treasure! It's just a few thousand yuan worth of supplies, the machinery factory can afford it!

Chen Fan laughed and said, "Director Jia, Professor Zhu, I'd rather keep the tiger skin for myself. But I can't possibly take the whole skeleton. Except for the patella, I can share some of the rest with you."

Seeing Chen Fan's response, Professor Zhu and Director Jia could only regretfully give up.

Then he cheered up again; if he didn't have tiger skin, getting some tiger bones wouldn't be bad either.

The two quickly ran over, wanting to pick out a few good bones first.

At this moment, Director Yang noticed the small wooden box in his hand, blinked, and asked in a low voice, "What are you carrying?"

Chen Fan glanced at him and whispered, "Uncle Yang, you really have a sharp eye."

He shook the box, his eyes full of pride. "I hunted too much game, so I only picked out the good stuff. I asked the import and export company to help me exchange the rest for wild ginseng. Here it is."

(End of this chapter)