Chapter 45: Striking the Big One Again?

When Tang Linbao arrived at the place and took a look, his eyes instantly widened.

This was an incredibly secluded valley, surrounded by dense forests, then even denser thickets of brambles. Beyond the thorns lay a muddy pond about twenty to thirty meters across. Even in the biting cold of midwinter, this pond had not frozen over; it remained soft and damp.

Approaching closer, wisps of steam curled upward, clearly indicating a hot spring beneath the mud.

But what shocked Tang Linbao was not the hot spring itself—it was that six wild buffaloes were lying right in that muddy pond!

Six of them!

Judging by their size, each weighed at least half a ton!

Tang Linbao suddenly felt his breath quicken.

He had thought Tang Jiancheng was just playing a prank on him, dragging him through the woods in the dead of winter for fun. Now he realized that Tang Jiancheng was actually searching for wild buffalo!

If this was a prank, he hoped Tang Jiancheng would do it to him more often!

“Grandpa Jiancheng, what should we do next?” Tang Linbao asked quietly after a moment, approaching Tang Jiancheng with a tone full of respect.

If yesterday he had only heard of Tang Jiancheng’s prowess, now seeing it with his own eyes had an even greater impact, leaving him deeply impressed and shaken.

The six buffaloes seemed to be enjoying their soak. Even when they sensed the two men, they didn’t flee; they just lifted their heads to glance at them, then rolled over and resumed their warm mud bath, utterly comfortable.

“Do you think we should capture them alive, or shoot them and sell the meat?” Tang Jiancheng asked.

“Capture them alive?” Tang Linbao was startled. If they could bring them back alive, it would certainly be more valuable and impressive!

But wild buffalo were still wild buffalo. Though they seemed harmless now, once out of this warm pond and exposed to the cold wind, they might become wild and uncontrollable.

With just the two of them and no ropes or restraints, it would be easy for the buffalo to escape.

“Grandpa Jiancheng, with just the two of us, we can maybe catch one alive at most. The rest should probably be shot,” Tang Linbao said.

“No, I still want to catch them alive,” Tang Jiancheng said, pointing to the bellies of two of the buffalo. “Look closely—aren’t those two pregnant? If we bring them back and raise them, next year we could have two calves! How great would that be?”

“Really?” Tang Linbao’s eyes lit up.

He had thought there were only six, but now they might have two more unborn calves inside them—that would be a huge gain!

“Linbao, hurry back to the village and bring my father and a few brothers. Of course, you can also call your father and your brothers, but if there are too many people, we’ll have less to share,” Tang Jiancheng instructed.

Tang Linbao nodded. “Got it.”

“Keep it a secret for now! Don’t tell anyone until we get back!” Tang Jiancheng called out loudly as Tang Linbao set off.

He knew Tang Linbao’s personality well—he loved boasting and showing off. Without this warning, as soon as he reached the village, he would be bragging to everyone, and soon everyone in the village would know.

If only the villagers found out, that might be okay. But if the neighboring villages near Haoshan Reservoir heard, they would surely be envious and might come to cause trouble.

Fortunately, Tang Linbao now regarded Tang Jiancheng almost like a living legend. He took his words to heart and, despite meeting many acquaintances along the way, kept silent the entire journey, running straight to the village with his head down.

“Linbao, I heard you went hunting with Jiancheng? How was the haul? Hey, Linbao, why are you running—is it a big catch again?” As soon as he entered the village, villagers spotted him and asked eagerly. Tang Linbao wanted to boast about seeing wild buffalo but managed to hold back.

“Brother Linbao, why are you back so soon? Where’s Grandpa Jiancheng?” a young man playing cards suddenly appeared ahead. Tang Linbao’s lips moved, but he still held his tongue.

Finally, he reached Tang Genshui’s house and called out, “Ancestor Genshui! Are you home?”

“Who’s there?” Tang Genshui, bundled in a thick coat, opened the door. Seeing Tang Linbao, he was momentarily taken aback. This boy usually acted arrogant and rarely greeted anyone so politely.

“Linbao, what’s the matter?” he asked.

Tang Linbao longed to reveal the secret about finding the wild buffalo with Tang Jiancheng but glanced around. Several villagers had gathered, their curiosity piqued by Tang Linbao’s unusual behavior.

More importantly, they all knew he had gone hunting with Tang Jiancheng today and were eager to see what kind of game he had brought back.

“Ancestor Genshui, Grandpa Jiancheng asked me to call you and some other brothers to come with me back to the mountain. Bring plenty of strong ropes!” Tang Linbao whispered, still biting his tongue to keep the secret. It was so hard!

Tang Genshui immediately understood that Tang Jiancheng must have bagged some big game again. He quickly sent Tang Jianbing to call his older brothers, then went inside to fetch a large bundle of sturdy ropes. He swapped into his rain boots and tied his sleeves tight.

“Where are you going?” Yuan Yue Zhu asked.

“Most likely Jiancheng caught something big again. He sent Linbao to call us. We have to hurry—we don’t even know how far it is,” Tang Genshui replied.

“Big game again? Since when did Jiancheng become so skilled at hunting?” Yuan Yue Zhu was curious.

“Skilled is good, isn’t it?” Tang Genshui didn’t waste time explaining. When Tang Jianbing and Tang Jianwen arrived, he left with them, following Tang Linbao toward Haoshan Reservoir.

The villagers nearby watched their hurried departure, curiosity growing.

“What do you think Jiancheng caught this time?”

“Probably wild boar again.”

“Yesterday, they had twenty or thirty people; today it’s just him, his father, and a few brothers. I bet today’s haul won’t be as big.”

“Not necessarily. What if it’s wild buffalo?”

“Wild buffalo? You must be joking. There are indeed wild buffalo in these mountains, but they’re so rare. If one appears, hunters from all surrounding villages would come out immediately. But I haven’t heard of any buffalo sightings lately.”

“Stop guessing. We’ll know when they come back. I’m going to sharpen my knife just in case—to help and maybe get a few extra pounds of meat.”

Hearing this, other villagers also headed home to sharpen their knives.

In Daping Village, there was an unspoken rule: villagers who helped got a fair share from the host, while those who didn’t helped depended on the host’s mood.

For example, yesterday, those who didn’t help got only five pounds of meat, while helpers got fifteen.

“Mom, Dad caught something big again! He’s amazing!” The lively “Xiao Qi” was the first to get the news and rushed home to share it with the family.

“Really? Do you know what it was?”

“Not sure yet, but they say it was wild buffalo!”

“Wild buffalo?!” Liu Fangfang and the older children were astonished, then, hearing it might just be speculation, shot Xiao Qi a warning glance, though their hearts brimmed with hope.

Big Sister’s anticipation was even stronger—her father had told her that next year he would send her to school!