King of the Wilderness

He calmly replied, ”I was just lucky, Mark. The sea gave me some things others didn’t want, and I happened to know how to use them.”

”Trash?” Mark shook his head with a laugh, his eyes slowly sweeping over the camp at the astonishing creations.

”No, Lin, luck doesn’t explain this. This is a testament to knowledge and ability.” 𝒻𝑟ℯℯ

He pointed his finger at the well-structured horizontal forge: ”This, I can see, is a forge.”

Then, he pointed to the huge, earth-yellow plastic box beside it: ”And this big guy made from a fishing float box is undoubtedly a bellows for providing air.”

Mark’s gaze finally rested on the intricately woven, foldable A-shaped object made of numerous willow branches, and for the first time, genuine curiosity and puzzlement appeared in his eyes.

He asked, ”But that thing... what is it? It looks like some kind of screen, or... trap?”

Lin Yu’an followed his gaze, a faint smile appearing on his face: ”That’s my mobile shelter, an ice fishing shanty. I spent all day yesterday making it.”

”Ice fishing shanty...” Mark repeated the words, his eyes filled with even more amazement.

He noticed the strange device in the snow not far away, with only a blue lid exposed, and curiously asked, ”And over there, what’s that plastic barrel buried in the snow?”

Lin Yu’an explained, ”That’s a 55-gallon drum I found after the storm. It’s primarily my food storage now, holding all my food.”

After hearing all this, Mark fell into complete silence.

A forge, a bellows, a foldable ice fishing shanty, a snow cellar fridge... all of this far exceeded Mark’s expectations of a ”survival challenge.”

He finally spoke, his tone full of sincere admiration: ”Lin, you’re not just surviving; you’re practically establishing civilization here!”

Doctor Anna also came over, equally stunned by the sight, but her professional instinct made her focus more on the human condition.

”Hello, Lin. I’m Anna.” She offered her hand proactively.

Lin Yu’an was taken aback for a moment, but then extended his hand for a gentle shake.

She opened the medical kit in her hand and spoke in a relaxed tone: ”Mark is right, this is incredible. But as per regulation, I need to ensure your body isn’t overloaded.”

”You don’t mind if I do a simple check-up, do you? Blood pressure, heart rate, body temperature, and we’ll chat a bit.”

”Of course, please.” Lin Yu’an nodded, naturally sitting down on a wooden stump and rolling up his sleeve.

He cooperated as Anna wrapped the blood pressure cuff around his arm.

”Don’t be nervous, we’re just having a chat.”

While measuring, Anna softly asked, ”When was the last time you ate? What did you eat?”

”About half an hour ago, a few fried hairy scale fish, and some hot water.”

”Hairy scale fish? High protein, high fat, an excellent energy source. It seems you’ve become quite the fisherman.” Anna nodded approvingly, noting the blood pressure reading, everything normal.

”Just lucky,” Lin Yu’an replied modestly.

Anna smiled and continued to ask, ”Over the past twenty days, have you felt dizzy, nauseous, or experienced blurred vision?”

”No.”

She changed the subject, her tone still gentle but her gaze more focused: ”Let’s discuss something more important, your mental state. In such complete isolation, loneliness can devour one’s will like a beast.”

”Have you felt excessive anxiety, despair, or experienced hallucinations?”

Lin Yu’an thought for a moment, then looked at the dark green box in the corner of the shelter, slowly shaking his head.

”Despair is a luxury I can’t afford here. But yes, I sometimes feel a bit lonely, especially at night when the wind is loud, as if I’m the only person left in the world. But fortunately, there’s always something to do once it gets light.”

Anna listened quietly, an expression of admiration in her eyes.

She put away the blood pressure monitor and used a forehead thermometer to measure his body temperature, which was also within the normal range.

”From the physiological indicators and mental state, your condition is excellent; it seems you’ve adapted well.”

While the medical examination was conducted, the cameraman carefully changed all the batteries and media cards in the cameras inside and outside Lin Yu’an’s shelter.

”Grizzly Bear” had completed its security patrol outside, now standing like a silent mountain, guarding by the helicopter.

After the check-up, Mark came over, ready to ask some details about his camp construction.

But before he could speak, Lin Yu’an took the initiative, saying, ”Mark, I’ve made a discovery. Something that might be very important. I need your help.”

Mark’s face showed an interested expression: ”Oh? What is it?”

Lin Yu’an did not answer directly but turned into the shelter, and returned shortly, holding that dark green professional safety box.

Mark, Anna, and even the distant cameraman and ”Grizzly Bear” had their eyes drawn to this box full of modern industrial civilization, which shouldn’t be here.

”This is...” Mark’s eyes lit up instantly. He recognized that it wasn’t an ordinary box.

”A Pelican case? Or something similar, military-grade equipment? Where did you find it?”

Lin Yu’an replied succinctly, ”To the south, about two kilometers beyond an ice pressure ridge. It was wedged between a piece of driftwood and some ice floes.”

He pointed to the combination lock in the center of the box that he had already opened: ”It was locked before. It took me a while to open it.”

Mark was even more surprised: ”You opened it? What’s inside? Guns? Food? Tools?”

”None of those.” Lin Yu’an shook his head, knelt down, unfastened the four clasps, and slowly lifted the lid.

”It’s something... more important.”

When the contents of the box were displayed before them, everyone fell silent: stacks of well-sealed research documents, a sturdy special-purpose laptop, and the dark blue journal.

Mark carefully picked up the journal, and upon seeing the words ”Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution” on the cover, and flipping open the title page, he immediately understood the gravity of it all.

”My God... Lin, do you know what you’ve found, Lin? This might be an entire research team’s seasonal findings.”

”I know.” Lin Yu’an’s voice was calm.

”I’ve checked the items inside. Apart from the journal, the other materials were well-sealed, and I didn’t open or check them.”

”These things are of no use to me, but to their owner, they could be everything. I hope you can take it and find her, or her family, colleagues.”

Mark looked up with a solemn gaze at Lin Yu’an: ”We will. This is beyond the scope of the competition. We’ll use all resources to contact Woods Hole and find the owner. I promise you that.”

Mark looked at him, suddenly thought of something, and smiled: ”You know, Lin, when this box finally returns to its owner, she would be very interested to know who found it and protected it under such circumstances.”

He looked at Lin Yu’an, with a slight encouragement in his eyes: ”You should leave her a letter, telling her about the experience of finding it.”

Lin Yu’an paused, he hadn’t thought that far before, he just instinctively felt it should be returned.

But Mark’s words made him realize that returning this box was not just a process of restoring to its rightful owner but a wonderful connection across time and space.

He understood, nodding solemnly at Mark: ”You’re right, Mark, I should do that.”

Mark immediately took a waterproof hard-cover notebook and a black marker from the inside pocket of his parka, handing them to him.

”Use this, it’s waterproof.”

Lin Yu’an took the pen and began writing on the paper, using the earth-yellow bellows as a table.

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