At the same time, on the Sino-Russian border near the Trans-Baikal region, six Chinese soldiers, carrying rifles, lined up in a row, trudged forward in knee-deep snow, carrying out routine patrol tasks along the border.
The north wind howled, carrying snowflakes the size of a baby's palm, and lashed the soldiers mercilessly. The snow soaked the outer layers of their thick cotton coats, and a thin layer of ice formed, heavy and hard like armor. In temperatures exceeding -20 degrees Celsius, the soldiers' hot breath instantly turned to white mist. Frost formed on the mouths and noses of their masks, and even their eyelashes were covered with a thick layer.
The young soldier walking in front shouted loudly to his comrade behind him. Although the two were only two meters apart, the voice was blown away by the strong wind as soon as it came out, and the person behind could barely hear it clearly.
"Squad leader, this heavy snow has been falling for five days. If it keeps going on like this, the boundary marker will be buried in the snow!"
The man behind the young soldier replied in a hoarse voice, "It doesn't matter if I bury it—I've been patrolling this route for eleven years—I wouldn't get lost even with my eyes closed—!"
Another gust of strong wind swirled over, and the snow on the ground mixed with the snow floating in the sky. Nothing could be seen in the field of vision except the white snowflakes. The team did not dare to move around, and lay on the ground where they were, waiting for the evil wind to pass.
After five or six minutes, the wind died down a bit, and the young soldier at the front shook his head to shake off the snow on his face. Squad leader Lao Song glanced back and saw that all the soldiers were there. He felt relieved, reached out and patted the young soldier on the shoulder, and shouted:
"Jinzi, the snow is too strong. I'll lead the way. You go to the back and take care of those three new recruits!"
Jinzi nodded and, as Squad Leader Song requested, turned and walked towards the back of the team. However, the moment he turned around, Jinzi's expression changed. He pointed to the back of the team and shouted, "Squad Leader—look behind you—!"
The other three soldiers heard Jinzi's shout and turned to look back. Less than a hundred meters away, they saw five fat, thick-furred brown bears as big as hills, and twelve gray wolves with droopy eyes and long tails. They walked steadily across the border and into the forest within Chinese territory.
The tallest and strongest brown bear walked in the front, followed by four smaller ones. The five bears formed a triangular formation, enclosing the twelve gray wolves inside, and moved forward easily in the wind and snow.
The beasts showed no intention of attacking the patrol soldiers. Squad Leader Song's grip on his rifle slowly relaxed. Jin Zi leaned close to Squad Leader Song's ear and whispered, "Squad Leader, are you going to stop them?"
Squad Leader Song was amused and elbowed him. "I'm saying, are you crazy? Why stop wild animals from crossing the border? They must have run out of food over there, so they came to China to make a living. Maybe they'll stay and become rare animals in China. That's great! Okay, stop watching the fun and keep moving forward. Try to reach the next rest stop before lunch!"
Several soldiers quickly formed a team, with Squad Leader Song leading the way, and continued to advance against the wind and snow. Jinzi was hanging at the end of the team, and the more he thought about it, the more confused he became:
Aren't bears hibernating at this time of year? Could it be that they're really coming to China to find food, as the squad leader said? That doesn't make sense. They look plump and strong, and don't look hungry...
Jinzi couldn't help but look back, wanting to take another look at the bodies of the beasts, but unexpectedly his eyes met the brown bear walking at the end.
The brown bear opened its mouth wide, revealing its fangs, and gave Jinzi a human smile, which actually contained obvious mockery. Jinzi was startled and quickly turned his head, cursing in his heart that it was weird, and quickly followed the team on the road.
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