Chapter 142: Practicing the Spear

Zhang Can changed into dry clothes inside the tent, then lifted the curtain and stepped outside. Su Xue was standing just ten meters away. Seeing Zhang Can emerge so quickly, she hurried over and said, "Don't come out, it's too freezing outside! You need to warm your body up properly, otherwise it will harm your health!"

Zhang Can waved his hand with a smile and said, "It's nothing. I'm a country boy and have suffered plenty of hardships since I was a child. Back in my hometown during the New Year, we often drained the fish ponds to catch fish while the water was still covered with a layer of ice. Nothing ever happened to me then, so what is this compared to that!"

Su Xue looked at Zhang Can and saw no real signs of frostbite, which filled her with a sense of wonder. Zhang Can always gave her a strange feeling, and this time was no exception. Perhaps, as he claimed, he had simply grown accustomed to such experiences since childhood and thus developed a strong resistance; otherwise, judging by his physique alone, he shouldn't have been able to endure it.

Zhang Can's main intention was to go and check on the wolves, especially the one he had drowned in the river. Down by the riverbank, Zheng Dabao and the others were already inspecting the area, while other herdsmen were checking if any livestock had been attacked by the pack. Fortunately, thanks to the vigilance of more than a dozen sheepdogs, the wolves had been unable to slip through.

Seeing Zhang Can approach, Zheng Dabao asked in surprise, "Xiao Zhang, you were out in the freezing river water. You should be warming yourself properly in the tent instead of coming out."

Zhang Can replied, "I'm fine, no problem at all. Is that wolf completely dead?"

Wang Qian and Zhu Senlin also stepped forward to look Zhang Can over. Seeing that he had no injuries and was neither shivering nor shaking, they finally felt reassured that he was indeed unharmed.

"It's completely dead, Xiao Zhang. I never would have guessed! Not only is your appraisal skill top-notch, but your reflexes are quite impressive too. Three wolves surrounded you, and you actually managed to drag one into the water and drown it. The desert wolves around here are exceptionally fierce, but those three were clearly just scouts. If it had been a large pack, you would have been in serious trouble all by yourself. Why on earth did you wander out alone in the middle of the night?" Zheng Dabao praised Zhang Can while asking his question. In such freezing weather, nobody would willingly stroll around at midnight.

Zhang Can chuckled awkwardly and explained, "I had some alcohol, and when I woke up, my throat was dry, so I wanted a drink of water. It was the middle of the night, and I didn't want to wake you all up, so I quietly went down to the river to get some. Who would have thought I'd run into three wolves? Those wolves are cunning; they surrounded me from three different directions. Fortunately, they didn't attack all at once. The moment the first wolf lunged, I jumped into the river, and the wolf jumped in right after me. I grabbed its head and pressed it firmly against the riverbed, and within a few minutes, it drowned!"

Wiping away a cold sweat, Zhang Can continued, "It was a good thing the other two wolves didn't jump in to attack me as well, or I wouldn't have been able to escape. But only a few minutes later, those two wolves seemed to notice and started closing in, and right then Su Xue came out and shot them dead, one by one!"

Zheng Dabao nodded and said, "Thank goodness, Miss Su arrived just in time. More than a dozen backup wolves had already rushed over. It's also fortunate that Miss Su had a gun and such excellent marksmanship. These desert wolves don't always operate as a unified clan; it's possible the alpha hadn't arrived yet. As long as the alpha is present and refuses to retreat, the pack will fight desperately with no regard for their lives."

To be honest, Zhang Can felt a lingering sense of terror—even more so than when he had encountered mudslides and landslides. If you couldn't escape a natural disaster like that, you would at least be buried, and the manner of death wouldn't be quite so gruesome. But being caught by a wolf pack... he could easily imagine what would happen: his flesh would be torn apart piece by piece by the wolves. Even if he were already dead, the thought of his body being shredded into pieces by them was deeply horrifying.

The dead wolf was currently laid out on the ground. Illuminated by the strong beam of the night lamp, Zhang Can saw that the wolf's eyes were wide open, its mouth agape with a dense array of interlocking canine teeth, the two large fangs gleaming stark white. Water was still slowly seeping from the corners of its mouth, and its belly was bloated, clearly having swallowed a stomach full of river water.

Zhang Can looked over at the river. The other two wolf carcasses were already gone, presumably washed downstream by the current.

Zheng Dabao waved his hand, instructing his men to drag the wolf carcass away and bring it back, then turned to smile at Wang Qian, Zhang Can, and the others. "Fancy some wolf meat?"

However, before anyone could answer, he immediately added, "Actually, wolf meat doesn't taste very good. The meat is tough and requires special preparation. Moreover, wolves carry quite a few pathogens, so a specific method of processing is essential. Still, if prepared properly, sun-dried seasoned wolf jerky can be quite delicious. It's just that the process involves a lot of steps and takes several months, so you can't eat it right away. Nowadays, wolf attacks on humans are rare, and it's also hard for them to steal cattle and sheep because herdsmen have hunting rifles and sheepdogs. Under normal circumstances, wolf packs only choose to hunt wild animals."

Hearing that wolf carcasses carried numerous germs, Zhang Can, Wang Qian, and the others naturally lost any appetite for it. In truth, it was probably no different from dog meat, which also required special culinary techniques; without the proper skill, anything casually whipped up would taste dreadful.

Zheng Dabao chuckled again. "I figured you wouldn't want to eat it anyway. I'll have someone prepare breakfast; once we finish eating, dawn will break, and we'll set off immediately. Wolf packs aren't what they used to be decades ago—their numbers have dropped significantly. If it were back in the old days, even the scouting party Xiao Zhang encountered would have numbered at least a dozen, and an entire tribal pack could consist of hundreds. Nowadays, a single pack usually only numbers around a few dozen."

Upon hearing that food was being prepared, Zhu Senlin's interest was instantly piqued. The taste of roasted beef and mutton was truly beyond description, making him secretly resolve to open a specialty whole-roasted ox and sheep restaurant back in Chengdu after this trip. That flavor was far more exhilarating than any rare mountain delicacies or seafood.

Wang Qian's bodyguards also found the idea appealing and joined in, planning to roast the food themselves and learn the technique of barbecue.

Zhang Can squatted down, plucked a blade of grass, and held it between his lips, savoring its faint grassy flavor. A delicate, subtle fragrance drifted into his nostrils. Turning his head, he saw the pretty face of Su Xue. The sky was very dark, but under the flickering lights of Zheng Dabao and the others in the distance, Su Xue's dark hair fell past her shoulders, revealing half her profile in a deeply captivating way.

"Are you really okay?" Su Xue asked Zhang Can, still feeling a trace of unease in her heart.

Zhang Can smiled and said, "Su Xue, you don't seem like yourself at all right now. Think about the past—you used to beat me black and blue and give me nosebleeds at the drop of a hat. Seeing you act like this now makes me feel quite unaccustomed to it."

"Hmph!"

Su Xue spat out softly in annoyance, "You glutton for punishment! I'm nice to you and you don't like it, you just prefer being abused!"

Zhang Can hadn't thought much of it, but as soon as those words left her mouth, Su Xue's face suddenly flushed red. She thought to herself that being nice to someone was hardly something that would normally come out of her mouth. Her face burned and her heart pounded. She stole a glance at Zhang Can and, seeing that he remained completely oblivious, let out a sigh of relief. She touched her face—it was burning hot.

Could it be that she had fallen for this bumpkin?

No way, absolutely not! Su Xue shook her head vigorously, denying it to herself. How could she possibly fall for a country bumpkin? At most, it was just because he had saved her life a few times, so her previous hostility had faded, leaving behind a favorable impression. As for liking him—how could that ever happen?

As Su Xue wrestled with her thoughts internally, she gritted her teeth. Zhang Can paid her no mind, resting his chin in his hand as he gazed into the distance, wondering whether this expedition would yield any results and whether they would be able to cure the elderly gentleman in Wang Qian's family upon their return.

"Here, take this!"

While Zhang Can was deep in thought, Su Xue suddenly thrust an object into his hand. It felt ice-cold, heavy, and carried a substantial weight.

Zhang Can looked down. It was pitch black. Bringing it close to his eyes for a closer inspection, he realized it was a handgun. Startled, he recoiled slightly and asked, "Why... why are you giving me a gun?"

Su Xue sneered and said, "With your amateur skills, once we head deeper into the mountain, dangers will lurk everywhere, and there will be even more wild beasts. Tonight was just a fluke because I happened to wake up; if I hadn't come out, wouldn't you have been eaten by the wolves? Take it. If you get separated from the group, having a gun can serve as self-defense. Besides, if you fire a shot, anyone nearby who hears it can come looking for you!"

Zhang Can waved his hands frantically and said, "No, no, I don't want it. Even if you give it to me, I don't know how to use it, so it's useless. Besides, this thing is illegal; I wouldn't dare touch it!"

Su Xue said with exasperation, "Who said I was giving it to you? I'm merely lending it to you temporarily; you have to return it when we get back. And as for using it, could anything be simpler? I'll just teach you!"

Zhang Can wanted to return the handgun to her, but seeing Su Xue flip her wrist and pull out another pistol, the dark muzzle staring ominously at him, his heart skipped a beat, and he dared not protest further. Despite her present beauty and gentleness, this woman possessed a wild and untamed nature. If he provoked her anger, he would undoubtedly suffer. Fine, she had nothing better to do; if she wanted to teach him, he would learn. He would just play the role of an obedient student and humor her.

By this time, a pale fish-belly white had appeared on the horizon, and the sky was growing brighter. Su Xue grabbed two pieces of firewood from the campfire, carried them over to an unoccupied spot, stood them upright, and placed a fist-sized stone on top.

"Shoot that!" Su Xue pointed at the wooden stake and the stone, then pulled Zhang Can back about fifteen meters.

Frowning, Zhang Can said, "Is it even possible to hit it from this far away? That stone is so small."

Su Xue retorted impatiently, "Be grateful I'm not making you shoot a chicken egg. You think this is small? And you call this far? It's barely a dozen meters. In the military, training starts at thirty meters and beyond. And I'm only having you practice the most basic shooting techniques—I'm not asking you to practice crossing obstacles, fifty-meter or hundred-meter rapid firing, or rapid firing at multiple targets."

Zhang Can's head spun at her words, and he couldn't help saying, "Why do I need to practice all that? I'm not joining the army to fight in wars, nor am I becoming a policeman. I'm just an antique appraiser; I should just focus on mastering my own profession!"

"You—" Su Xue was choked up by Zhang Can's words, torn between amusement and anger. She truly didn't know what to do with this guy. However, her expression darkened, and she said domineeringly, "I don't care! You are going to learn whether you want to or not. Follow my lead; if you can't master shooting, you'll spar with me in boxing instead!"

Zhang Can was terrified. Practicing shooting was one thing, but if he sparred in boxing with her, he would genuinely become a living punching bag. It wasn't like he hadn't been beaten by her before; this young woman packed a heavy punch.

Seeing that Zhang Can no longer dared to object, Su Xue chuckled, raised her arm, and fired a shot. The stone on the wooden stake was instantly blasted away. She then looked back at Zhang Can and said, "Just like this—follow what I do. Raise your right arm flat, hold the gun steady, look through the rear sight of the scope, and line up the target, the front sight, and your eye so that all three points form a single straight line. Then you can pull the trigger."

Zhang Can raised his right arm and aimed the muzzle at the stone. Disregarding Su Xue's talk of a "three-point line," he hooked his finger, pulling the trigger repeatedly. However, there was no sound from the handgun whatsoever—not the slightest noise.

Su Xue was amused and exasperated all over again. "The safety isn't even off yet! Do you know how to drive a car? When driving, you release the handbrake the moment you get in; when shooting, naturally you have to disengage the safety!" With that, she pointed out the safety catch on the handgun and repeatedly demonstrated the motion to him—disengaging the safety, engaging it again, and repeating the cycle.