Chapter 62 Encountering a Bear

Upon hearing this, Ge Shengli thought, "This is outrageous! If Xiang Laoda dares to beat up a postman, and I, as a cadre, don't do anything about it, if something really happens, I can forget about being the village party secretary."

They immediately summoned other village officials and villagers, arrested Xiang Laoda, and demanded that he apologize to Cheng Ying.

Cheng Ying said, “What wrong have you done! Secretary Ge, he dared to hit a state cadre and even tried to kill me. This is a crime! This is attempted murder! Don’t try to smooth things over. This matter must be sent to the town and handed over to the comrades of the Public Security Bureau to handle. Give me a fair explanation! If you want to protect the murderer, then I will have to go to the town myself to find the police to arrest him. I will also report to the commune secretary that you, as the secretary, are protecting the murderer and shielding the criminal. You are a complete illiterate and do not deserve to be the village party secretary at all.”

Ge Shengli broke out in a cold sweat. He didn't want to get involved in the matter between Xiang Laoda and her. The main reason was that he was from Aimen Village and had grown up there. He was watched by the older generation of villagers, so he couldn't help but subconsciously help the villagers when something happened in the village.

But he also knew that Cheng Ying was a retired female soldier. She had served as a female officer in the army. When she returned to her hometown after retiring from the army, even the county magistrate, the director of the county public security bureau, the minister of the people's armed forces department, and other leaders could call her to her house to stand up for her father.

If he doesn't follow the instructions of a woman with connections, influence, and a difficult temper, he'll really be stuck as the village party secretary for good.

Helpless, Ge Shengli had no choice but to follow Cheng Ying's instructions, gather a few strong young men, tie up Xiang Laoda tightly with ropes, and send him to the town's public security bureau.

Cheng Ying still had mail to deliver and couldn't spend too much time in the village, so she naturally handed over the task of sending Xiang Laoda to the town to Ge Shengli and the other village cadres.

After being kidnapped, Xiang struggled and cursed Cheng Ying with all sorts of foul language.

He was being carried towards the town by two tall young men. He couldn't run away, so he struggled and turned his head with a fierce look in his eyes, shouting at Cheng Ying, who was standing in the village committee courtyard: "Cheng! You dare to mess with me? You just wait, when I get out, I'll kill you! For meddling in other people's business!"

It would have been better if he hadn't said it; by saying it, he confirmed that he intended to kill Cheng Ying.

Ge Shengli slapped him angrily, "Shut up! You're used to throwing your weight around at home, do you really think hitting people isn't illegal? Now that you've met Cheng Ying, a tough nut to crack, you should go to the police station and admit your mistakes and reflect on them. If you're still stubborn and keep thinking about bullying and killing her, then you can prepare to spend the rest of your life in jail."

After Xiang Laoda and his group left, many kind-hearted people and those who liked to join in the fun offered their concern and greetings to Cheng Ying before escorting her back to the Xiang family's courtyard.

Xiang Zhaodi's mother was still sitting in the courtyard, holding her youngest son and crying incessantly. Xiang Zhaodi was also crying in the woodshed. The Xiang family was shrouded in gloom and despair.

When the group saw the bruises on Zhao Di's mother's face and the pitiful state of Xiang Zhao Di, who was locked up like an animal, they all gasped. "That Xiang Boss is such a scoundrel! It's one thing for couples to have a little fight, but how can you beat someone to death like that! That's going too far!"

"Yes, this Boss Xiang used to beat Zhao Di's mother all the time. When the people living nearby heard it, they would come over and try to persuade him, and he would restrain himself a little. Now that he's older, he's gotten more and more violent. He doesn't treat Zhao Di and her mother like human beings at all. If Comrade Cheng hadn't come to deliver the things today, I'm afraid Zhao Di's mother would have been beaten to death and no one would have known."

A young woman who had just married into Aimen Village, upon seeing Zhao Di's mother's miserable state, couldn't help but ask, "Why doesn't Zhao Di's mother divorce him, leave the Xiang family, or ask her family for help when Xiang Laoda beats her like that?"

An older woman said, "Zhao Di's family also favored sons over daughters. She was never well-liked by her parents. After she married Xiang Laoda, he gave her parents a dowry. Her parents thought their son-in-law was capable, and that once a daughter is married, she is like water spilled from a cup. As long as Zhao Di wasn't beaten to death, they could live on. They always told Zhao Di's mother to just bear with it."

Zhao Di's mother had endured this for almost twenty years and was used to being beaten by Xiang Laoda. She dared not resist Xiang Laoda, nor did she dare to divorce him, fearing that if she divorced him, she would have nowhere to go, and her children would be left without anyone to care for them, which would be pitiful.

The women's director in our village had tried to persuade her to divorce him several times before, even threatening to arrest and lock up Xiang Laoda. But she not only refused to divorce him, she also protected him, saying that he treated her quite well when he wasn't beating her.

Anyway, there's always a reason why someone is pitiful; Zhao Di's mother was beaten into this state because she spoiled herself.

The young wife suddenly realized, and sighed, "Ah, every family has its own problems."

After the village's women's director followed Cheng Ying to Xiang's house, she went up to greet Zhao Di's mother almost immediately. Then she asked someone to find two large stones and smash the iron lock on the woodshed to release Xiang Zhao Di.

When Xiang Zhaodi was released, she saw the clear handprint on Cheng Ying's face where Xiang Laoda had hit her. Tears streamed down her face, and she choked out, "I'm sorry, Comrade Cheng. It's my fault that you got beaten by my dad. Does it hurt?"

“It doesn’t hurt anymore, so don’t blame yourself.” Cheng Ying took out the review materials that Cheng Xue had copied from the package and gave them to her. “Don’t cry. This is not your fault. It was your father’s mistake. It has nothing to do with you. Take these materials and study them carefully. No matter what happens, you must take the college entrance examination. This is your only chance to leave home.”

She leaned close to Xiang Zhaodi and said in a voice only the two of them could hear, "I deliberately provoked your father so that he would beat me, chase me, and let the villagers see it and think he was really going to kill me, so they would send him to the town's police station."

Given your father's attempted murder of me, he will be sentenced to at least three years in prison, spending three years there. He will no longer prevent you from studying or force you to get married.

By then, you'll definitely have been admitted to university and settled in the city. After you graduate, find a good job, and earn money, you can bring your mother and younger siblings to the city to live a better life.

"Comrade Cheng, thank you for helping me." Hearing her words, Xiang Zhaodi was first surprised, then grateful, and then hesitant. "If my father really gets sentenced, only my mother will be left with seven or eight younger siblings. How can she raise so many children alone? Besides, my father accepted the bride price, and that family is coming to marry me in a week. If I only think of myself, my mother will be exhausted. Furthermore, I don't have the money to go to university..."

Cheng Ying said, "What are you worried about? Your mother has been beaten by your father for more than 20 years, and she has managed to live on tenaciously. Does she think she can't live without you and your father?"

You're not the only child in this family. Your younger siblings, except for the three youngest, are all around fourteen or fifteen, or seventeen or eighteen years old. They are perfectly capable of helping your mother with chores and supporting themselves.

Given your family's current situation, you can go to the village officials and ask them to help take care of your family, such as letting your younger siblings do some light work to earn work points to supplement the family income.

If your father accepted money from the man who tried to force you to marry him, you should go directly to his home with the women's director of your village and the police officers from the town to break off the engagement and return the money. If they don't agree to break off the engagement, the village officials and the police officers from the town will uphold justice for you!

As for university tuition, you don't need to worry. Universities in our country currently do not charge tuition. Not only that, but the school also covers the costs of miscellaneous fees, dormitory fees, etc., and provides a monthly stipend of 20 yuan, of which 18 yuan is directly allocated to the cafeteria for food expenses, so you won't go hungry.

Students like you, who come from rural areas, have poor family conditions, and have an average income of less than 30 yuan per person, can apply for additional subsidies.

If you get into university, the school will basically cover all your living expenses and tuition fees, so you don't need to worry about living expenses.

If you achieve excellent grades, you can participate in academic forums or various national competitions and win substantial prize money.

If you really don't have any money, or if you've been admitted to university but don't have enough money for the bus fare, you can borrow money from me. I'll definitely help you to the best of my ability.

These words brought tears welling up in Xiang Zhaodi's eyes again.

She held Cheng Ying's hand and expressed her gratitude. Finally, she said, "Comrade Cheng, thank you for reminding me and helping me. I will definitely get into university and live up to the expectations of my teachers, you, and everyone else who has been kind to me."

Cheng Ying smiled and patted her hand, "Study hard and prepare for the college entrance examination. I wish you success in getting into university, leaving the mountains, having a bright future, and living the life you dream of."

Cheng Ying left with her mailbag and Da Huang, leaving the Xiang family's affairs to the village's women's director, other village officials, and some kind-hearted villagers to handle.

They were all from the same village. Seeing how pitiful Zhao Di and her daughters were, everyone had a kind heart and helped them whenever they could.

But she has her own work and her own mission, and cannot linger any longer.

Before leaving, Xiang Zhaodi stuffed a bunch of wild chestnuts that her siblings and she had picked up on the mountain into her mailbag.

Those chestnuts were all cut open with a knife and cooked in a pot. They could be eaten as a snack or as a meal. Cheng Ying was bored while walking along the road, so she could eat them as she walked.

Before leaving, Cheng Ying asked Zhao Di, "Comrade Cheng, why did you help me like this?"

To help her, Cheng Ying, despite being a female soldier who could easily subdue her father and dodge his slaps, didn't flinch and took the slap herself, all to provoke him and leave the village officials with the impression that he was insane and wanted to kill. She wanted to lock him up so he wouldn't interfere with her taking the college entrance exam, prevent her from getting married, and let her go her own way.

Cheng Ying smiled and said, "Do girls need a reason to help each other? I just don't want to see a good girl who could have had a wonderful life, who could have gone to university and worked hard for the country, have her wings broken and be stuck in the mud for the rest of her life because of a bad father and family."

Xiang Zhaodi burst into tears instantly, reached out and hugged Cheng Ying, crying and saying, "Comrade Cheng, I sincerely thank you. I will definitely get into university and use my knowledge to serve the country in the future."

**

The rain was torrential, and the mountain roads were muddy.

It was sunny in the morning, but in less than an hour, the sky turned overcast and a torrential downpour began.

The weather in the mountains is always unpredictable; it can rain whenever it wants.

Cheng Ying and Da Huang were walking on a mountain road about an hour away from Nanping Village, where Zhuo Zuilan lived. They were surrounded by mountains and forests, with no village or shop in sight. They could only take Da Huang and hide in a dense pine forest by the roadside, waiting for the rain to subside before continuing.

The pine forest is lush with foliage, and even in winter, the pine branches and leaves remain green, providing shelter from half the rain.

Even so, Cheng Ying was still worried that the heavy rain would wet the mailbag. She wrapped her raincoat tightly around the mailbag, and feeling sorry for Da Huang, afraid that it would get sick from being wet in the rain, she held Da Huang in her arms and sheltered it under the raincoat. The two of them squatted under a pine tree as thick as a bucket to avoid the rain.

Time passed by, and Cheng Ying got tired of squatting. Ignoring the slippery ground, she sat down on the ground and waited for the rain to stop.

After a long while, Cheng Ying grew impatient. She glanced at her watch and saw that it had been raining for over an hour with no sign of stopping or lessening. Unable to wait any longer, she decided to get up and continue walking in the rain.

Just then, Big Yellow, who had been quietly nestled in her arms, suddenly stood up, pricked up its two ears, looked at the woods opposite, and barked twice.

"What's wrong, Big Yellow?" Cheng Ying looked in the direction it was looking, but there was nothing there except dense trees and bushes.

But Dahuang looked alert, grabbing Cheng Ying's hand with its mouth and trying to pull her away, while tucking its tail down, as if it wanted her to retreat but was also very wary and afraid.

Cheng Ying sensed something was wrong and quickly followed Da Huang deeper into the pine forest, asking as they walked, "Da Huang, is something coming this way?"

Cheng Ying couldn't think of anything else besides a wild beast that could make Da Huang so alert and frightened, wanting it to bite her hand and make her retreat.

But it was raining heavily, and the sound of the rain hitting the trees was so loud that she couldn't hear anything else.

Big Yellow's behavior made her realize that there must be some ferocious beast approaching her nearby.

Without a word, she gripped the military dagger tucked in her pocket and ran after Da Huang through the pine forest.

This large pine forest is a wild pine forest, with trees growing haphazardly. Although there are no weeds in the forest, there is a thick layer of withered yellow pine needles that have fallen and accumulated over the years. When it rains, the pine needles become extremely slippery.

The pine forest was a slope, and below the slope was a steep and narrow valley. Cheng Ying not only had to carefully step on the pine needles to keep her balance, but also had to prevent herself from running too fast and losing her footing, thus slowing down her running speed considerably.

Soon, Cheng Ying heard a heavy thud coming from the pine forest behind her, the crackling sound of something crashing against the trees and the rapid clattering of branches as someone ran.

She couldn't help but look back and saw two strong, adult brown bears, each weighing over 100 pounds, sprinting towards her location at top speed, ignoring the pine branches in the forest.

Cheng Ying cursed immediately upon seeing it. She knew that there were wild beasts on the Ma'anshan postal route because the villages along this route were all in the mountains. The further in you went, the deeper the mountains became and the more forests there were, the more wild beasts were hidden there.

Common predators include brown bears, wolves, and wild boars.

When villagers leave their village to go to town, they either travel in groups or take the roads built by the government. They rarely take these secluded and less-traveled mountain paths alone, for fear of encountering wild animals. They are afraid that they cannot outrun them and cannot fight them alone, and that they will die at the hands of wild animals.

This is also why many postmen are unwilling to run this postal route; who would risk their life for such a small wage?

In such heavy rain, even wild animals would seek shelter, so why did these two brown bears ignore the downpour and chase after her and Dahuang?

It was so hungry that it smelled its prey and went straight for it to eat.

As Cheng Ying ran, her mind raced, trying to figure out how to get rid of the brown bear behind her.

Generally speaking, if you encounter a brown bear in the wild forest, the best course of action is to remain calm, stop running, avoid direct eye contact or making threatening gestures, and slowly back away. The brown bear is unlikely to attack you in this situation.

But she started running before she could even see the bear. To the brown bear, this was undoubtedly a living prey that was afraid of them and trying to escape, which would instinctively ignite their desire to chase after the prey.

It's definitely not going to work for her to stop and confront them now, or to slowly walk away.

If we were to launch an attack as some people suggest, or feign death, it would undoubtedly be like throwing an egg against a rock, and we would certainly die.

Brown bears are very powerful attackers. They have a bite force of tons and are extremely aggressive. With their strong bodies, a single slap can kill a person. Fighting one is tantamount to suicide.

Brown bears are also very intelligent, equivalent to a 3-5 year old child. They like to eat live prey, so even if you play dead in front of them, you may not be able to fool them.

Climbing trees is also not advisable, because although brown bears appear to be fat, they are actually expert tree climbers. They might climb up as soon as you climb up and eat you in one bite.

Alternatively, it might use its size advantage to shake the tree wildly from below, knocking people down to eat them.

Alternatively, they would wait under the tree until the people in the tree ran out of water and food, and their strength gradually diminished, causing them to fall from the tree and be eaten.

If you run directly, brown bears are very fast, and many people can't outrun them and will be pounced on.

The only way to deal with brown bears is to use the weapon of truth and confront them head-on.

Cheng Ying only had a military dagger. Although she was a retired female soldier with rich fighting skills, she could stop and fight the brown bear head-on. But in the end, she was no match for two powerful brown bears.

She tried to get Big Yellow to stop and confront the brown bear, but Big Yellow wouldn't listen and kept running wildly through the pine forest.

She couldn't just ignore Dahuang's life or death, so she gritted her teeth and kept running.

The dense pine forest, hundreds of years old, has huge trees with canopies that block out the sun, making the forest very dark under the dark clouds and heavy rain.

In such a dark environment, with rain constantly washing over her face and eyes, Cheng Ying's vision was obstructed, and she quickly got separated from Da Huang.

She ran through the woods, her feet sinking deep into the muddy ground. The mud and yellow sludge slid into her shoes, making them wet and heavy, making it even harder to run.

Cheng Ying didn't know where Da Huang had run off to. She knew she shouldn't make a sound and attract the brown bear's attention in this situation, but she was really worried about Da Huang's safety and couldn't help but shout, "Da Huang—Da Huang, where did you go!"

"Woof—" came Big Yellow's bark from the left front.

At the same time, a brown bear's howl came from the other side, it seemed that a brown bear had chased Big Yellow.

Ignoring her own safety, Cheng Ying pushed aside the pine branches that were obstructing her view and ran quickly toward the location where Da Huang was making the noise.

She hadn't run more than a few meters when she suddenly heard a heavy sound coming rapidly from behind.

Suddenly, a huge brown bear appeared behind her, raised its powerful paw, and slapped her hard on the back.

Cheng Ying felt a sharp pain in her back. Before she could react, the brown bear slapped her hard with its paw, sending her flying with a thud.

She glanced down and exclaimed, "Wow, the ground below is a narrow valley where two low hills meet!"

"Ah—!" she screamed as she tumbled down the slope above the valley, spinning wildly.

She rolled dozens of times, bumping into many trees and some weeds on the valley cliff to cushion her fall before landing in a small valley at the bottom of the slope.

Fortunately, the valley, which was less than two meters wide, was not deep, so she was not seriously injured and was still able to climb back up.

After landing, Cheng Ying paused to catch her breath and was about to climb back up when, as soon as she moved her leg, she uncontrollably slid down.

She turned her head and saw that there was a dark hole next to her.

She rolled down onto a patch of yellow mud that was already crumbling after being washed away by the torrential rain. Now, as she fell from it, the mud couldn't support her weight and collapsed directly into the hole next to it.

Cheng Ying didn't have time to grab onto the weeds to steady herself before she collapsed straight into the cave entrance.

The hole was of unknown depth. She screamed for a while before landing. The ground was rock, and her head hit the rock when she landed, knocking her unconscious.

Before she fainted, she seemed to hear Big Yellow barking anxiously.

I thought to myself, if she dies here, I wonder if Big Yellow will be able to escape the brown bears' attacks.

This silly dog ​​really needs to take good care of itself.

——

Tick-tock—tick-tock.

Water droplets fell and hit Cheng Ying's face.

Cheng Ying, who had fainted, was awakened by a drop of water.

A bone-chilling cold, accompanied by excruciating pain all over her body, made Cheng Ying shiver with both pain and cold.

She struggled to sit up from the ground and found herself covered in scrapes and abrasions. Her left hand and right foot seemed to be broken, and any movement caused excruciating pain.

Her head was still spinning, and the back of her head hurt a lot. When she reached out and touched it, she felt a sticky patch on the back of her head, which was covered with blood that was about to dry and congeal. It must have been the blood that flowed when her head hit the rock when she fell.

Cheng Ying winced in pain, sat down to catch her breath, looked around, and found herself in a deep cave.

The room was dimly lit, with only a faint glimmer of light visible above the opening. The opening was far from where she was, and the walls were smooth and covered in moss, with centipedes and other insects crawling rustling along the rock face, a sight that sent chills down her spine.

In her current condition, she has no way of climbing up to the cave entrance.

Cheng Ying couldn't help but smile bitterly. Falling from such a height, she only suffered a broken bone and a head injury, but she didn't die. She was really lucky.

No one knows where Big Yellow went or whether she escaped from the brown bear. She's stuck in this remote cave, and no one knows when someone will notice she hasn't delivered the mail on time and come looking for her.

She had to find a way out before she starved to death.

Cheng Ying tried to move, but the moment she moved, her fractured hand and leg throbbed with excruciating pain. She also felt dizzy and her vision blurred, a sign of excessive blood loss.

What's worse, the cave is extremely cold, the temperature is very low, she is soaked in sweat, and the cold makes her teeth chatter and she shiver incessantly.

Fortunately, she was carrying a mailbag, and when she fell into the cave, the mailbag, which didn't have many letters or packages, cushioned her fall and prevented her from dying instantly.

She also had her shoulder bag, which contained some dry food and chestnuts, as well as water from her military canteen. In addition, there was a change of clothes in the parcel, enough to last her for several days.