r18novel Chapter 39 Small Fishing Village
Chapter 39 Small Fishing Village
"You...you caught all of these?" Old Yang's voice trembled.
Lu Siye put the bag on the ground, opened it, and showed it to Old Yang.
"Snake...so big...and this, this is..." He pointed at the lizard, his fingers trembling.
"Lizard," Lu Siye said.
"Is it edible?"
"It's edible."
Old Yang was silent for two seconds, then stood up, turned around and shouted towards the village.
"Come out, everyone! Come out, everyone!"
One by one, the old people came out of the house and surrounded the bag, looking at what was inside. No one spoke, but Lu Siye could hear them swallowing.
That night, the whole village was filled with the aroma of meat.
Old Yang cut the snake and lizard meat into chunks and washed them with seawater.
Fresh water is too precious to use.
The water in the pot boiled, and the chunks of meat rolled around in the boiling water, emitting a very primal smell. It wasn't pleasant, but everyone greedily inhaled it.
There were no spices, no ginger, no cooking wine, and only a tiny bit of salt, which was coarse salt scraped from the rocks by the sea, carrying a fishy smell.
But the old people, holding bowls, squatted by the pot, sipping their soup and eating their meat, their expressions unlike anything Lu Siye had ever seen before.
That expression wasn't one of satisfaction or happiness; it was more of an instinctive affirmation of the meaning of "being alive."
They are still alive.
And you can still get hot food.
We can hold on for one more day.
That night, Lu Siye did not sleep under the old banyan tree.
Old Yang insisted on pulling him into the house, giving him his wooden bed to sleep on while he slept on the floor.
Lu Siye did not refuse, because he knew that refusing would be useless.
He lay on the wooden bed, thinking about something.
He can only stay here for another day or two at most.
He has to leave.
Tang Yuan was still waiting for him.
But what will happen to this village, these people, after he leaves?
He dug cellars for them, hunted for them, and taught them how to escape, but these were only temporary measures.
The prey will eventually be eaten, the cellar will eventually be discovered, and the means of escape are as fragile as a piece of paper in the face of absolute violence.
He can't save them.
He knew his abilities were limited.
He was powerless to change the fate of the village.
He can't do anything.
But at least, at least he can let them live a few more days.
Even just living one more day is good.
This idea is so humble, so ridiculously humble.
But this is the only thing he can give right now.
On the third day, Lu Siye went up the mountain again.
This time he went even further than yesterday, all the way to the other side of the mountain, to a valley he had never been to before.
There is a stream in the valley. The water is shallow, barely reaching your ankles. There are some small fish in the water, but they are too small to be worth catching.
He circled the valley but found nothing of value, only a snake and a few large snails.
Just as he was about to go back, he heard a voice.
It's not human breathing.
It's an animal.
Lu Siye stopped and squatted down slightly.
His ears twitched, trying to pinpoint the direction of the sound.
On his left.
Behind a thicket of bushes about thirty meters away.
The bushes were so dense that it was impossible to see what was inside.
But he could smell it.
It had a foul, pungent odor.
Bear.
Lu Siye stopped and stood about ten meters away from the bushes.
He wanted to turn around and leave.
There's no need to take that risk.
He already had enough prey; the snake meat, plus what was left over from yesterday, was enough to feed the old people for several days.
Moreover, bear meat is difficult to process; its fat is too thick and it spoils easily. Without a refrigerator, it will smell bad within a few days.
Turning around and leaving is the most rational choice.
But Lu Siye did not move.
He stood there, looking at the bushes and listening to the heavy breathing.
He thought of something.
Bear paw.
He didn't know the names of those old people, nor what they looked like when they were young.
But he knew one thing.
They hadn't had a truly satisfying meal in a long time.
It's not the kind of thin porridge made with a few grains of rice and wild vegetable leaves, nor is it the kind of soup made by boiling fish bones several times until only a layer of oil remains.
It's not the kind of lizard meat that tastes like firewood.
It is real, oily food that warms you from your stomach to your toes.
Bear paw.
Bear paws are high in fat and calories; a small piece can provide a person with energy for most of the day.
For these people, a bear paw is a life.
Lu Siye took a deep breath, squatted down, and picked up a fist-sized stone from the ground.
Then he stood up and walked toward the bushes.
He didn't deliberately soften his footsteps.
The panting from the bushes stopped.
Then came the sound of a branch breaking.
The bushes rustled, and a black bear rushed out from within.
Very big.
The black bears Lu Siye saw in the documentary were all standing in zoos or forests.
You can't really sense their true size just by looking at them through the screen.
But the bear was standing right in front of him, less than five meters away.
It is very thin.
During this season, black bears should be storing up fat to prepare for winter, but this bear is so thin, which means it hasn't had enough to eat in a long time.
Those eyes were fixed on Lu Siye, probably trying to determine whether the two-legged creature before them was prey or danger.
Lu Siye stood five meters away, staring at the bear.
He did not use his primordial energy.
It's not because he doesn't want to use it, it's because he can't.
The older man told him during his training that Yuan Qi was a last resort, not the first choice.
If your body can't keep up, even the strongest primordial energy is just a castle in the air.
In a true life-or-death situation, what you can rely on most is always your body, your muscles, your bones, and your will.
Moreover, he didn't want to reveal his Xia Lan identity here.
The village was already in enough chaos; he didn't want to add fuel to the fire.
The black bear made the first move.
It took a step forward, its forepaws landing on the ground, crushing the withered leaves to dust.
Then comes the second step.
third step.
It wasn't moving fast, and Lu Siye could see its movements very clearly.
He crouched down, placed the stone at his feet, and then did something that the black bear never expected.
He opened his arms.
It is neither an offensive stance nor a defensive stance.
Instead, it's a gesture that looks absurd, like embracing something.
The black bear paused for a moment.
Its eyes blinked, and it tilted its head, probably trying to understand this strange behavior.
In that instant, Lu Siye moved.
He shot out like an arrow, not dodging to the side or retreating, but charging straight towards the black bear.
The five-meter distance was closed in less than a second.
The black bear reacted quickly, raising its front paws and slapping at him.
Bear paws are very powerful; a single slap can shatter the skull of a wild boar.
He didn't take the hit head-on.
The moment the bear's paw struck, his body sank down, sliding under the bear's forelimb.
He slid down to the underside of the black bear's belly.
The black bear's belly is its weak point.
Thin skin, little fat, no bone protection, and internal organs are all located here.
Lu Siye drew a small knife from behind his waist with his right hand, pointed it upwards, and thrust it upwards with all his might.
The knife tip pierced the black bear's abdomen, penetrating between the skin and muscle.
Lu Siye could feel the tip of the knife piercing through layer after layer of tissue, finally hitting something hard.
rib cage.
The knife wasn't long enough to reach the heart.
But that's enough.
The black bear let out a terrible scream, so loud that the entire valley shook.
It leaped upwards and jumped over Lu Siye.
Lu Siye lay on the spot, his body covered in black bear blood, which smelled foul and was poured over his head, covering his eyes and mouth.
He wiped his face with his arm and turned over to stand up.
The black bear was standing ten meters away from him, with a gash on its side.
Its breathing became rapid, and each exhale was accompanied by blood foam.
It looked at Lu Siye, and its eyes changed.
It's no longer about testing and being wary.
It was pure hatred.
It wanted to kill him.
The black bear charged again, this time much faster than before.
Lu Siye did not run away.
He knew he couldn't run.
Turning around and running away in front of a black bear is the most foolish choice.
Its burst speed is much faster than that of a human; you can never outrun it.
He stood still, legs slightly apart, center of gravity low.
When the black bear rushed in front of him, he stood up.
Its two front paws slapped at him, one on the left and one on the right. Lu Siye did not retreat, but took a step forward and stepped directly into the black bear's arms.
This is an extremely dangerous move, tantamount to putting oneself within the black bear's attack range.
But it is also the most effective action.
Because a black bear's paw strike requires distance; if it's too close, it won't generate enough power.
Lu Siye's body was pressed against the black bear's chest, and he could even feel the black bear's heartbeat.
With his left hand he grabbed the black bear's neck fur, and with his right hand he held the knife, stabbing it into the bear's throat from bottom to top, one cut at a time.
The first knife.
Second knife.
The third cut.
The fourth cut.
The fifth cut.
He had lost count of how many times he had stabbed someone.
All he knew was that the black bear's body was getting heavier and heavier on his back.
The bear paw gripping his back grew weaker and weaker until it finally released its grip completely.
The black bear's body fell forward.
He lay there, panting heavily.
After about two minutes, he used all his strength to push the black bear's carcass off him and sat up.
The black bear lay beside him, its eyes still open, already dead.
Lu Siye looked into those eyes and remained silent for a few seconds.
Then he stood up, wiped the knife clean on the black bear's fur, and put it back in the scabbard at his waist.
He began to deal with the bear.
First, cut off the four bear paws and wrap them in banana leaves.
Then peel off the bear skin.
He kept the bearskin; it's thick, warm, and can be laid on the ground to keep out moisture.
He cut the bear meat into large chunks, separating the fat from the lean meat. He kept the fat to render oil, and cut the lean meat into strips and marinated it with salt.
He only kept the heart and liver; the rest were buried because they spoiled too easily and wouldn't keep well even if he took them back.
He worked on the mountain for the entire afternoon, and by the time he finished dealing with everything, it was almost dark.
He carried a huge bundle down the mountain, which was made of bear skin and vines.
It contained bear paws, bear meat, bear oil, bear heart, and bear liver, weighing at least fifty or sixty pounds.
By the time we got back to the village, it was completely dark.
But the village was lit up.
The village has been without power for a long time, and the lights are just scattered here and there, made of coconut shells.
All the elderly people were waiting for him at the village entrance.
Old Yang stood at the front, holding a torch in his hand. His expression changed from worry to surprise, from surprise to shock, and finally to an expression that Lu Siye could not describe.
He watched as Lu Siye emerged from the darkness, carrying a huge package on his back.
Old Yang ran over to him, looked him up and down, opened his mouth several times, and finally only said one sentence.
You are injured.
"It's alright," Lu Siye said.
He took the package off his back, untied the rattan, and opened the bear skin.
The firelight illuminated the contents of the package.
Four bear paws, and dozens of kilograms of bear meat.
And a large chunk of bear fat; just looking at it, you can imagine how it melts in the pot.
There are also bear hearts and livers, which are bigger than an adult's fist.
Everyone fell silent.
Then Old Yang cried.
He squatted down next to the pile of meat, his hands supporting his knees, his head bowed.
Then he cried.
The sound of crying echoed throughout the entire village.
The other elderly people also started crying.
Lu Siye stood there, watching them cry.
He didn't comfort them; he just stood there.
He never regretted that decision.
He took a deep breath and suppressed those thoughts.
I won't think about it.
Don't think about things that are useless to think about now.
Let's focus on doing the things at hand well first.
He distributed the bear meat to the elderly, giving each household a small amount—not much, but enough to last for several days.
He didn't distinguish between bear heart, bear liver, and bear paw.
He kept the bear paw, intending to handle it himself.
"You don't know how to do this," he said. "I'll do it."
Old Yang boiled a large pot of water for him, and he set up a pot at the door of Old Yang's house and put the bear paw in to scald it.
By the time the four bear paws were finished, it was almost dawn.
On the third night, Lu Siye sat on the steps in front of Old Yang's house, packing his backpack.
It's time to go.
He's been here for three days, which is his limit.
He stood up, ready to say goodbye to Old Yang.
As he turned around, he saw Old Yang standing behind him, holding a cloth bag in his hand.
Old Yang handed him the cloth bag.
"Take it," Old Yang said.
Lu Siye did not answer.
"Worthless."
Old Yang stuffed the cloth bag into his hand.
"The valuables have all been looted. This is something that has been passed down in our family for generations. It's not a very good piece of jade, and it has cracks, but... but it should be able to be exchanged for some money."
Lu Siye opened the cloth bag.
Inside was a jade pendant, not large, about an inch square, bluish-white, carved with an animal whose nature was unclear.
The lines are rough, and the knife work is mediocre; it doesn't look like something valuable.
But when Lu Siye held it in his hand, he felt that there was a warm spot on the jade pendant.
He turned the jade pendant over and saw that there were several words engraved on the back.
Sanskrit.
He didn't ask Old Yang what those words meant.
Because Old Yang probably didn't know either.
"This is something that has been passed down in our family for generations."
Old Yang rubbed his hands together, his voice low.
"It was passed down from my father to me, from my father's father to my father, and I don't know how many generations back."
"When my family was rich, this thing was just a broken rock, and nobody cared about it."
"Later, when we ran out of money, this thing was still just a broken stone, but... but it was passed down from our ancestors, so there's something to cherish about it."
"Take this and see if you can bribe someone when you get to the barracks."
He himself didn't quite believe it when he said that.
Even if you take this jade pendant to a pawnshop, you might not be able to get much money from it, let alone bribe those who have guns.
But he still gave it to him.
Because that's all he has left.
Lu Siye looked at the jade pendant in his hand, remained silent for a few seconds, and then put the jade pendant into his inner pocket.
"Thank you," he said.
Old Yang shook his head, his eyes reddening again.
He took out several more items from his pocket and stuffed them into Lu Siye's hand one by one.
A soldier's badge, made of bronze, has turned black; I don't know which unit it belongs to.
There was also a dagger and a pocket watch.
The last few crumpled banknotes had small denominations.
"These are all..."
Old Yang thought for a moment, seemingly unsure how to address these things.
"We took them all from the soldiers, not stolen. They died, and no one was there to collect their bodies, so when we went to bury them..."
He didn't continue.
Lu Siye knew.
Some of those who died in the war had their bodies recovered, while others did not.
Those that weren't there just lay there, slowly rotting away and becoming part of the soil.
When these old people went to bury them, the things they took from their bodies were not for personal gain, but because they thought that someone should remember them.
Even if it's just a badge without a name, or a stopped pocket watch.
Lu Siye put those things into his bag one by one.
"I'll give it a try," he said.
Old Yang nodded, then extended his calloused hands and grasped Lu Siye's hand.
"Child," he said, "you are a good person."
Good people will be rewarded.
You will definitely find the person you are looking for.
Lu Siye looked into his eyes and said nothing.
He shook Old Yang's hand, then let go, slung his backpack over his shoulder, and turned to walk into the night.
The old people stood at the village entrance, under the torches, watching him walk further and further away.
"Take care of yourself."