By the time the two returned home, it was already late at night.
Liu Tiezhu took a hot shower, then embraced Yang Yulan, ready to start a baby-making session.
Suddenly, a gunshot rang out, leaving them both stunned.
The sound of the gunshot was especially clear in the silent night, heard by the entire village.
Second Uncle and the others were also jolted awake by the sudden gunfire.
Yaoyao, held in Huang Xiumei's arms, had a pale face, clearly terrified.
"What's going on? Did I just hear a gunshot?" Second Uncle rubbed his bleary eyes, asking in disbelief.
"That's right, it was a gunshot, coming from the west," Liu Tieshan said.
The west?
Second Uncle's expression shifted. "Isn't that near Liu Dahai's place?"
"A gunshot in the dead of night is never a good sign. Could his house have been robbed?"
Hearing this, everyone's faces turned grim.
Liu Tieshan was stunned for a moment, then quickly grabbed a thick cotton coat and put it on.
"Second Uncle, I need to go check it out."
"Liu Dahai used to take me hunting and gave us meat before. We can't just ignore this."
Liu Tiezhu grabbed his elder brother. "Brother, if you're going, you can't go empty-handed."
"Here's the plan: Dog and I will go. You and Second Uncle stay and guard the house."
As he spoke, Liu Tiezhu handed a compound crossbow to Second Uncle.
Er Gouzi picked up another compound crossbow, wrapped himself in a cotton coat, and followed Liu Tiezhu.
The two ran all the way. After about a hundred meters, they heard wailing.
Liu Dahai's house was brightly lit, and the crying came from his yard.
But the neighbors' doors were tightly shut, with no one daring to come out.
Er Gouzi was about to push the door open, but Liu Tiezhu pulled him back.
"Dog, did a donkey kick your head?"
"Do you know what's going on inside?"
"If the bandits are still in there, barging in like that, do you want to catch a bullet?"
"Stay behind me and wait for my signal."
After scolding Er Gouzi, Liu Tiezhu crouched low and crept around to Liu Dahai's backyard.
Once there, he quietly climbed up the wall to observe the situation inside.
Inside was chaos. Liu Dahai lay in the middle of the main hall, his wife Zhang Ling clinging to him, crying her heart out. His two sons were bustling around him, busy with something.
From too far away, Liu Tiezhu couldn't see what they were doing.
After observing for a while and seeing no one else, Liu Tiezhu led Er Gouzi to knock on the door.
The knock made Liu Dahai's family tense up again.
"Uncle Dahai, it's me, Liu Tiezhu."
"My brother sent me and Dog to check on you."
Liu Tiezhu called out loudly from outside.
Hearing Liu Tiezhu's voice, Liu Dahai's eldest son, Liu Zhang, dared to open the yard gate.
Liu Zhang's voice was choked with tears. "Brother Tiezhu, you're just in time. Dad got shot."
"Think of a way to get the bullet out of his leg."
Liu Tiezhu's face tensed. He quickly crouched down to examine Liu Dahai's condition.
Liu Dahai's right leg was covered in blood, with dense bullet holes in the flesh—a shocking sight.
Liu Tiezhu estimated that thirteen steel pellets were embedded in Liu Dahai's right leg, fired from a shotgun.
Fortunately, the pellets weren't deep, likely because the cotton pants had absorbed the impact.
After checking, Liu Tiezhu immediately asked Liu Zhang for a short knife, bamboo fiber, and strong liquor.
"Uncle Dahai, I'm going to remove these pellets. Bear with it."
Liu Tiezhu gave a warning, then had Liu Zhang bring a wet towel for Liu Dahai to bite on.
Once everything was ready, Liu Tiezhu placed the short knife on the stove to heat it.
Given the limited conditions, this was the best method he could think of for sterilization and infection prevention.
When the knife was glowing red, Liu Tiezhu picked it up and dipped it into the strong liquor.
"Uncle Dahai, I'm starting. Hold on."
Liu Tiezhu warned again, then drove the knife into the bullet hole, pried it up, and a steel pellet popped out.
Liu Dahai's body went rigid instantly, cold sweat pouring from his forehead.
"Dog, come help hold Uncle Dahai down."
Liu Tiezhu called to Er Gouzi and continued digging out the pellets.
A few minutes later, all thirteen steel pellets were removed.
Liu Dahai was completely drained, his face as pale as paper.
Liu Tiezhu took the bamboo fiber and pressed it over the bullet holes, then wrapped it tightly with cotton cloth.
After finishing the bandaging, Liu Tiezhu let out a sigh of relief.
*Thud!*
Just as Liu Tiezhu finished, Liu Zhang and his younger brother Liu Yu knelt down together.
Liu Tiezhu was startled and quickly helped them up. "What are you doing? Get up."
"Tell me what happened."
Before the brothers could speak, Liu Dahai sighed and recounted everything.
Half an hour ago, six masked men had broken into the house.
The leader pointed a gun at him while the others headed straight for the cellar.
Finding no food in the cellar, the masked man threatened him to hand over the hidden supplies.
Liu Dahai refused to tell them where the food was. During the struggle, the shotgun went off, hitting his right leg.
After the gunshot, the men didn't dare stay and fled over the back wall.
Hearing Liu Dahai's story, Er Gouzi cursed outright.
"Those bastards are probably local villagers, definitely not bandits."
From Liu Dahai's account, it was clear these men had no experience—they were amateurs.
If they were real bandits, Liu Dahai's whole family might have lost their lives.
Liu Tiezhu nodded, agreeing with Er Gouzi.
"Uncle Dahai, if this happens again, don't be so reckless."
"We need to find ways to stall them, not confront them head-on," Liu Tiezhu said.
This time, Liu Dahai was lucky to run into amateurs, and the pellets hadn't hit any bones.
If it had been real hardliners, Liu Dahai might have lost his life.
Liu Dahai nodded. "Got it. Wife, go to the cellar behind the house and get ten pounds of meat for Tiezhu."
"Uncle Dahai, keep the meat. If there's nothing else, we'll head back."
"If you need help, have Zhang come find me."
With that, Liu Tiezhu stood up to leave.
Liu Dahai grabbed him. "Don't rush off. You have to take the ten pounds of meat."
"Recently, a herd of wild boars showed up at the foot of Jiaoling Mountain. I got lucky and killed a few. We have meat at home."
Liu Tiezhu said, "Uncle Dahai, don't tell anyone about the meat."
"I've got some stored at home too. It's late, so we're heading back."
Seeing Liu Tiezhu refuse the meat, Liu Dahai had his wife bring out over ten pounds of dried radish and forced it into Liu Tiezhu's hands.
Leaving Liu Dahai's house, the two hurried back.
Er Gouzi said, "Brother Tiezhu, looks like we need to get bullets fast."
"Today they hit Uncle Dahai's place. Tomorrow, whose house will it be?"
Liu Tiezhu nodded. "Tomorrow noon, we'll go to Yang Hua's place again."
"Once we get the bullets, we'll head to Jiaoling Mountain."
"Uncle Dahai said there's a wild boar herd there. There's probably more than one."
As they talked and walked, when they were about thirty meters from home, another gunshot rang out.
This time, three shots in a row.
Liu Tiezhu and Er Gouzi exchanged glances, their faces turning pale.
The sound of the gunfire was coming from the direction of their home.