Chapter Thirteen: Thrown into the Bear's Den

  The axe shone brightly in the sunset, and was aimed at Wu Jie, like a death warrant.

  This Wu Liang is really a ruthless man, he kills as soon as he says so. Wu Ji did not expect to be in such a situation and had no way out.

  "It's all in!" Wu Jie clenched his fists tightly around the firewood, raised it high, and prepared for a desperate fight.

  "Chaihe!" Wu Liang was very disdainful, looking down on him from the start. Comparing Chaihe to an axe, which one is more formidable, doesn't need to be said.

  "Ah! There's a bear!" Wu Ji suddenly thought of a trick, which was to feign and distract Wu Liang, perhaps there was still a glimmer of hope. Wu Ji's acting skills were not bad, his shrill cry was extremely ear-piercing, as if there really was a bear.

  "Come on! I'm not stupid, I won't fall for your trick!" Wu Liang still didn't believe him, and with the axe in his hand raised high, he was about to chop down at Wu Ji. If he did, Wu Ji would be finished for sure.

  "Ahh! A bear! A bear! Such a big bear! Help!"

  Just at this critical moment, Yang Xiuxiu's shrill cry pierced the air, filled with fear and panic, making it impossible not to believe.

  "Really a bear?" Wu Liang's heart skipped a beat, and he involuntarily slowed down his hand, turning his head to take a look. He saw a bright knife light flashing towards him, and an axe was chopping down at him. At this moment, Yang Xiuxiu had a face full of hatred, her two hands grasping the axe, fiercely chopping down at Wu Liang.

  "You deceived me!" Wu Liang suddenly realized, he had been cheated. A cold smile appeared on the corner of his mouth: "You think you can hurt me with just this little trick?" He dodged to the side, easily avoiding it.

  "What about me?!" Wu Liang had just dodged Yang Xiuxiu's cleaver, when Wu Jian's voice rang out, cold and devoid of any emotional tone.

  Wu Liang didn't put Wu Qi in his eyes, and just as he was about to mock him, a dark object suddenly came crashing down. He didn't even have time to dodge, and his forehead throbbed with pain. He let out a miserable cry, and everything went black before he fell backwards onto the ground.

  It turned out that Wu Jia seized the opportunity and slammed down the firewood in his hand. This piece of firewood was Wu Jia's crutch, which Yang Xiuxiu had specially found for him when he left home. Unexpectedly, it made a great contribution and saved his own life.

  Wu Liang was sturdy and strong, and with one blow, he didn't seem to be able to faint for long. Wu Ji was still worried and raised the firewood again, heavily hitting him on the forehead. Wu Liang let out a painful moan and stopped moving.

  Of course he didn't die, he just fainted.

  "Hah! Hah!"

  He walked through the Ghost Gate again, and Wu Ji's heart relaxed, panting heavily. This strike had exhausted his strength, and he was almost fainting, swaying back and forth, Yang Xiuxiu hurriedly supported him.

  Wu Ji looked at Yang Xiuxiu, the little girl's face was deathly pale, and she was terrified. She had never encountered such a dangerous situation in her life, today was the first time, her small heart was racing, and her slender body was trembling uncontrollably.

  "It's all right! It's all right!" Wu Jie had killed Oubenching and witnessed the bloodshed, so he wasn't afraid of such things. He quickly comforted Yang Xiuxiu, gently patting her back.

  "Hmm!" Yang Xiuxiu nodded slightly, but her body was shaking uncontrollably. Such things couldn't be calmed down so quickly, they needed time. After a long while, Yang Xiuxiu felt slightly better and asked: "Wu Lang, how should we deal with this?"

  Wu Liang is a scourge, not only wanting to plot for wealth and murder, but also to monopolize Yang Xiuxiu. This makes Wu Jie hate him from the bottom of his heart. He gritted his teeth and made up his mind: "Either do nothing or go all out. Kill him!" This is the best way to eliminate future troubles.

  Wu Jie took the axe from Yang Xiuxiu's hand, and Yang Xiuxiu covered her face with both hands, quickly turning around. Her body shook even more violently. She hated Wu Liang, but after all, this was a human life, and if Yang Xiuxiu wasn't afraid, it wouldn't be normal.

  Witnessing Yang Xiuxiu's frightened appearance, Wu Ji secretly sighed. If he were to kill Wu Liang now, Yang Xiuxiu would definitely have nightmares for a long time after witnessing the bloody scene. More seriously, she might even suffer from mental breakdown. A girl like her from a small mountain village, so simple and innocent, uncompetitive with the world, killing is too serious a matter.

  "Alas!" Wu Jie sighed silently, and had to give up the idea of killing Wu Liang. He handed the hatchet to Yang Xiuxiu and said, "Get some mountain vines and tie him up, then throw him into the bear's den."

  Throwing Wu Liang into the bear's den here is no different from cutting off his path of life, and the possibility of being discovered by others is extremely low. It can kill Wu Liang without letting Yang Xiuxiu see blood, a two-for-one deal.

  Wu Liang wanted to put Wu Ji in a desperate situation, and Yang Xiuxiu also hated him, nodding slightly, taking the machete, and going to cut the mountain vines. Wu Ji sat on the ground with a thud, fell backwards, leaned against the bear's corpse, and panted heavily.

  Today's events were too many, first hunting bears, startling and thrilling, several times joyful, several times tense, several times frightened. And then there was the matter of Wu Liang, which was even more critical at the moment of life and death, Wu Ji's mind was greatly exhausted, leaning on the bear's corpse, almost fainting.

  Before long, Yang Xiuxiu fetched some mountain vines and Wu Ji tied up Wu Liang's hands and feet with a sturdy knot. Together with Yang Xiuxiu, they dragged Wu Liang into the bear den. Wu Liang had a robust body and was not light in weight, causing Wu Ji to break out in a sweat from exhaustion.

  They tore off a piece of cloth from Wu Liang's body and stuffed it into his mouth, making him unable to shout for help, leaving him with no choice but to wait for death.

  The sun is not high anymore, the sky is almost dark, and we must hurry back. But how can this bear be taken back? Going back to the village to call for help is a good idea, but it would save Wu Liang, which Wu Jian is unwilling to do.

  After some thought, there was only one way to do it - cut down a few sturdy trees and place them under the bear's body. This would be equivalent to having wheels, and with just a bit of effort, they could push the bear's body forward.

  Yang Xiuxiu was in charge of pushing, Wu Ji mainly responsible for not moving trees. After exposing the back, take it to the front and lay it out, occasionally helping Yang Xiuxiu a bit.

  The two of them pushed the bear's body up onto the slope, and with one more push, it let out a "rumbling" sound as it rolled down quickly, picking up speed.

  The bear's den was originally higher than Wu's village, and once on the slope, everything was easy. This roll wasn't a big deal, but the bear's body rolled out far away. Wu Ji followed Yang Xiu Xiu's support and chased after him along the slope. After checking, Wu Ji found that the bear skin was thick and rough, and there was no damage at all, and the bear skin was intact.

  Here is the translation:

  They lifted the bear here and didn't find Wu Liang. Wu Jian and Yang Xiuxiu returned to the village together and went straight to see Wu Qing.

  "Ji'er, what's wrong with you? You're sweating so much, I can smell it from far away! You need to take care of yourself, you're so weak, you should stay indoors, what are you running around for?" As soon as they met, Wu Qing threw out a big pile of complaints.

  Although it was a complaint, it was not without concern. Wu Ji's heart warmed up: "Third Uncle, quickly find a few people to carry the bear back!"

  "Bears? What bears? Where are there bears?" Wu Qing was taken aback for a moment, his face full of surprise.

  "Third Uncle, I and Xiuxiu have killed the bear. But it's too big, we can't bring it back ourselves. On the slope, hurry up and find a few people to help bring it back." Wu Jie had to explain and urge at the same time, briefly describing what happened.

  "What are you talking about? You hunted a bear? You killed the bear?" Wu Qing didn't believe it at all, his old eyes swept back and forth on Wu Ji's body, and he couldn't help but laugh: "Ji'er, you're indeed a scholar, your words are so amusing! A bear is so big, how could you possibly kill it? Our village has so many people, and even the militia can't kill them!"

  "Third Uncle, Wu Lang said it's true. If you don't believe it, go take a look at the slope yourself!" Yang Xiuxiu said with a proud face, glancing at Wu Ji and rushing to tell Wu Qing.

  "Take a look? It's almost dark, I still have things to do, no time for this." Wu Qing was still disbelieving, shaking his head rapidly.

  They had been looking forward to hunting bears every day, but when they succeeded, they didn't believe it. This made Wu Ji very speechless, stunned for a moment, and said: "Third Uncle, I am a scholar, I will never say such humiliating words! If there is no such thing, isn't that losing face?"

  Xiucai is a person of status, if he speaks recklessly, it would be ridiculed by others. Wu Qing couldn't help but pause for a moment, still somewhat disbelieving: "Ji'er, you didn't deceive San Shu?"

  "I'm a scholar, a noble status, can I cheat you?" Wu Ji was very unhappy and had to mention the scholar's tiger skin again in an unquestionable tone.

  Wu Qing was stunned, hesitated for a moment, and then said: "That's also true! I'll go with you to take a look. Niece-in-law, come with me to take a look. Jiji, your body is so weak, don't go out in the cold, stay at home." After inviting Wu Jiji into the house, she poured a bowl of hot water for him and then followed Yang Xiuxiu.

  Wu Jie hadn't finished his bowl of water when Wu Qing rushed back, bursting into the room with a mix of joy, shock, and anger: "Jie'er, you went hunting for bears and caused trouble in the village. Third Uncle is delighted, but you're a scholar, putting yourself in danger like this. What if something happened to you? Next time, don't be allowed to take risks again! Did you hear me?"