Chapter 71

Li Shuangqiang is an excellent hunter who can judge the distance by the sound of gunfire.

"Where the shot was fired is about four to five li away from us. It will take them at least half an hour to get here."

The hunters all looked at Li Shuangqiang, who was their leader and needed to make the decision.

"Mr. Chen, we are here for profit, not to cause conflicts. So let's leave quickly. The person with a handgun in the mountains is probably not someone to mess with. It's better not to meet them."

Chen Jintai nodded in agreement. As a businessman, he preferred to avoid trouble.

Ding Ning did not express an opinion, but followed the group, continuing deeper into the mountains.

However, Ding Ning had a vague sense of unease. This trip into the mountains would not be easy. The bald man was definitely after him, and the foreigner who got off at Water Source Town was the one truly putting pressure on him. But there was no good solution at the moment, so he could only remain vigilant.

The group ate some dry rations and drank some spring water at noon. By evening, they finally arrived at Ma Family Village.

Ma Family Village is a small village with only twenty or so households.

Li Shuangqiang was very familiar with the place. When he arrived, many people recognized him and greeted him along the way.

"Is Ma Dabing around?" Li Shuangqiang asked a passerby. Ma Dabing is the village chief.

"He's at home."

Li Shuangqiang led the group to the village chief's house, which was a brick and tile house.

Most of the houses in the village were surrounded by fences, and the village chief's house was the only brick and tile house.

Ma Dabing was a tall and strong man, a former soldier, who still had a military demeanor. Later, the villagers simply called him Ma Dabing, forgetting his real name.

Ma Dabing was very热情 when he saw Li Shuangqiang, inviting everyone into the house and telling his wife to prepare a meal.

Mountain tea has a unique flavor. Everyone was tired, and after drinking some hot tea, Li Shuangqiang said to Ma Dabing, "Dabing, how have you been? Are you still going into the mountains with Lengzi?"

Ding Ning perked up his ears, as Lengzi was the person he was looking for, whose real name was Ma Xiaoleng.

Ma Dabing sighed, "Brother Li, things are not like they used to be. It's hard to find big game. Lengzi's family is poor. A few months ago, he somehow got some bones and tried to pass them off as tiger bones in Haibin, but he was caught and fined a thousand yuan. He hasn't gone into the mountains since then."

"Can other bones pass for tiger bones?" Li Shuangqiang was puzzled.

"I don't know how they test in Haibin, but they said it was cat bones. I saw the bones, they were smaller than tiger bones, but they couldn't be cat bones. The testers are unreliable."

"Ha! Modern equipment, it's just a matter of finding an excuse to fine Lengzi."

Li Shuangqiang laughed, not taking it seriously.

Ding Ning, however, spoke up, "Village Chief Ma, is Lengzi at home?"

"Yes! Do you have something to talk to him about?"

"Yes, I like to collect unusual things and I'm very interested in the bones you mentioned. I want to go to his house and see them, and if they're good, I'll buy them."

"Ha! It's just a broken bone, no need to talk about buying. I'll give it to you. Let's eat first, and after the meal, I'll take you to his house."

Ma Dabing slapped his chest, making a promise.

The village dishes, including the snakes, wild rabbits, and pine ducks that Ding Ning and the others brought, were all prepared. The mushrooms and wild vegetables smelled delicious, and the tired people were eager to eat, enjoying the meal with sorghum wine.

Ding Ning once again showed his prowess, getting everyone so drunk that they were almost all passed out.

Before Ma Dabing passed out, he asked his wife to take Ding Ning to Ma Xiaoleng's house, while he himself couldn't get up.

Ma Dabing's wife was about twenty-seven or twenty-eight years old, with slightly rough skin but a decent appearance, and a rare shyness for a mountain woman. She didn't talk much to Ding Ning on the way, and finally brought him to a low thatched house, introduced him to the owner, and then left.

At this point, Ding Ning finally met the person he was looking for, Ma Xiaoleng.

Ma Xiaoleng was not yet thirty, short and thin, with a dark complexion and calloused hands, clearly someone who spent a lot of time in the mountains.

Seeing Ding Ning come in, Ma Xiaoleng quickly invited him to sit down, offering tea and cigarettes.

Ding Ning waved to stop him, saying, "Brother Ma, I came to see the bone you found."

"Sure! I'll get it for you."

After a while, Ma Xiaoleng found a cloth bag in the back room, carefully opened it, and handed it to Ding Ning.

"Ah, the city people said it's not tiger bone, and the mountain people also said it's not tiger bone, but I feel it should be a young tiger's bone. Unfortunately, no one appreciates it."

Ma Xiaoleng said, looking at Ding Ning with hope, hoping he would believe him and buy the bone.

Ding Ning ignored him and carefully examined the bone.

It was a leg bone. At first glance, Ding Ning realized it was indeed a bone from a spirit animal, but he couldn't determine if it was from a cat or a tiger.

It probably wasn't a tiger's bone. The test results couldn't be wrong. If it were a tiger's bone, it wouldn't have returned to Ma Xiaoleng's hands.

Confirming it was a spirit animal's bone, Ding Ning's purpose for this trip was half achieved. If it wasn't a spirit animal's bone, this trip would have been in vain, and he would have to continue searching.

"Brother Ma, this is indeed not a tiger bone, I don't want it."

Ding Ning returned the bone to Ma Xiaoleng, as it was of no use to him.

Ma Xiaoleng's face showed disappointment, and his attitude towards Ding Ning became cold.

Ding Ning smiled, "Brother Ma, although I don't want this bone, I am very interested in the place where you found it. If you can take me there, I will pay you a thousand yuan as a reward."

Hearing this, Ma Xiaoleng's eyes lit up, "No problem, that place is quite far and hard to find. No one but me can find it. Since you asked, I'll definitely help you."

"Alright, I'll go back and tell Li Shuangqiang and the others. We'll go into the mountains alone tomorrow morning, not with them."

"Sure, I'll come to find you early tomorrow." Ma Xiaoleng casually threw the bone into a corner.

After leaving Ma Xiaoleng's house, Ding Ning returned to Ma Dabing's house to sleep.

The next morning, the mountain people got up early. The rooster crowed before the sun came up, and Ma Dabing's wife got up to cook. Ding Ning also got up.

After tidying up, Li Shuangqiang and the others also got up.

Ding Ning said to Chen Jintai and Li Shuangqiang, "Brothers, I have an appointment with Ma Xiaoleng to go into the mountains alone."

Chen Jintai was taken aback, "Brother, but we agreed..."

"Don't worry, you go your way. If I find anything, I'll still buy it. We'll still come back here after going into the mountains."

Chen Jintai nodded. They were deep in the mountains, and he wasn't worried about Ding Ning reneging on the deal. They could still hunt without him.

After breakfast, Ma Xiaoleng arrived, carrying a large backpack and a homemade gun.

"Brother, the journey is not short. Are you prepared? We might have to spend the night in the mountains."

"I brought a tent." Ding Ning patted his backpack.

"Bringing things isn't practical. It's better to bring some thick clothes. You can rest anytime. Let's go."

Ma Xiaoleng was ready to leave with Ding Ning.

At this moment, a villager ran over to Ma Dabing, "Chief, something happened. One of my old hens is missing."

"Did you eat it yourself?" Ma Dabing didn't want to deal with the villager.

"That hen still lays eggs. How could I eat it? It's really missing." The villager was very anxious.

"Alright, I know. Your hen being stolen isn't my fault. Why are you coming to me? You can report it or find the thief yourself, and I'll handle it."

The villager grumbled and left, saying he would curse in the village today, and whoever stole his hen would have a bad end.

Ma Dabing didn't take the matter seriously, but Li Shuangqiang and the others were a bit worried.

Chen Jintai walked to Ding Ning, "Brother, we heard gunshots yesterday. There might be outsiders. If there really are, it might be dangerous for you and Xiaoleng to go alone. Why don't we go together?"

Ding Ning waved his hand, "Thank you, Brother Chen, but I'm not worried. Brother Xiaoleng is a good hunter, and I'm not useless either."

"You're right, I was overthinking it. You're a hidden gem." Chen Jintai stopped persuading and smiled, bidding farewell to Ding Ning.

Li Shuangqiang and the others took one path, heading into the main part of the mountains, while Ma Xiaoleng led Ding Ning on a separate, more secluded path to the place where he found the bone.

After leaving Ma Family Village and walking for over an hour, they were deep in the mountains.

In the vast mountains, the natural energy was much more abundant than in the city. Ding Ning felt refreshed, and his senses were much sharper.

After walking for a while, Ma Xiaoleng said to Ding Ning, "Brother, you go ahead slowly. I had some bad food yesterday and need to take a break."

Ding Ning nodded and walked slowly ahead.

After passing two large trees, Ma Xiaoleng was no longer in sight.

Ding Ning leaned against a tree to rest, enjoying the natural atmosphere.

Time passed, and after more than ten minutes, Ma Xiaoleng still hadn't caught up.