HUN Chapter 115: The Brothers-in-Law Arrive!

Lin Yu'an brought them to his vehicle.

This was a 2020 Ford Explorer Limited edition he had ordered online through Fairbanks' used car trading website a few days ago.

Mid-level 8-seat version with added FX4 off-road package, 3.5T V6 engine, maximum output 446 horsepower. Everything cost a bit over $60,000, about $20,000 cheaper than a new car.

He also took stock of his recent bills. After investing in NVIDIA stock, he still had $560,000 in liquid funds.

$100,000 for land, around $100,000 for domestic purchases, $60,000 for the car, plus previous car rentals, living expenses, etc., totaling about $40,000, meaning he still had $260,000 in liquid funds remaining.

Fortunately, the major expenses were all taken care of. After NVIDIA's stock split in July, there would be another large cash flow coming in.

Lin Yu'an drove the Ford Explorer SUV that could fit all of them and their equipment, racing north toward Wiseman.

The muddy road leading to Wood Forest Land hadn't been maintained, so even the Ford Explorer couldn't drive directly in.

Lin Yu'an had to park the car at the rented cabin in Wiseman town, then take everyone to camp on the Zongshen three-wheeler.

The brothers-in-law were also particularly interested in the Zongshen three-wheeler. Each of them tried riding it for a stretch of road and had great fun.

Upon arriving at camp, the four brothers-in-law were immediately attracted by the scene before them.

"Wow, this band saw looks really impressive!"

Third brother-in-law Bo was most interested in machinery and immediately rushed to the assembled band saw, reaching out to spin the huge saw wheel and checking the straightness of the tracks.

Fourth brother-in-law Clay became interested in the yellow XCMG XC760K.

He jumped into the cab and touched the control levers, "Lin, is this little thing the Chinese loader you mentioned? Looks pretty powerful! Are the controls the same as the Bobcats we usually use?"

"Basically the same, very easy to pick up," Lin Yu'an replied.

Lin Yu'an arranged for them to stay in the cabin rented by the production team. After the four brothers-in-law busied themselves around the camp for a while, they rode the Zongshen three-wheeler to the cabin to rest and adjust to the time difference.

The next day, after resting for one night, the brothers-in-law quickly threw themselves into the work.

With these four fresh reinforcements joining, the efficiency of the entire "hundred-day plan" instantly increased several fold.

The originally somewhat quiet logging site with three people became a lively, even somewhat noisy construction site.

The brothers-in-law hardly needed Lin Yu'an's direction, spontaneously forming a perfect division of labor assembly line.

Lin Yu'an, as general commander and technical core, no longer needed to spend large amounts of time on repetitive physical labor, but could focus on the most important parts.

He only needed to select the most suitable trees in the forest and cut them down with his Stihl chainsaw.

The strongest brothers-in-law, eldest Wyatt and second Garrett, voluntarily took over the most exhausting log hauling work.

They took control of the portable gasoline winch, responsible for dragging the felled giant trees out from deep in the forest.

The two worked in perfect coordination, with Wyatt clearing routes and setting up pulleys in front while Garrett operated the winch in back.

Third brother-in-law Bo and fourth brother-in-law Clay were responsible for all preliminary log processing work. They loved the chainsaw's debarking attachment.

The two often competed to see who could debark faster and cleaner, then used wooden supports to stack the gleaming white logs neatly beside the camp for ventilation and drying.

David and Mike were in an excited working state every day. They had too many spectacular scenes to capture.

Through their lenses, the entire "Wood Forest Land" became a symphony composed of various engine roars, logging sounds, and hearty laughter!

Previously, Lin Yu'an alone could only process one to two trees per day with maximum effort.

But now, this McKinley logging crew, after familiarizing themselves with the process, could easily handle five to six trees per day!

There was even one day when they were in peak condition and completed the full processing of seven trees!

Beside the camp sat massive piles of white debarked logs ready for drying, growing almost daily in number, eventually forming an extremely spectacular log mountain!

David wrote in his daily filming log, "I have never seen such an efficient team. They don't seem to be working, but rather engaging in an enjoyable family competition."

"Everyone knows what they should do. Their coordination and strength made me truly understand the weight of the word 'family.'"

During work breaks, the five tough guys would sit on huge logs, take beers from the cooler, and loudly shoot the breeze.

Garrett asked, "Hey, Lin, could that Chinese three-wheeler of yours drag an adult moose next time we go hunting?"

"Dragging two would be no problem!" Lin Yu'an answered confidently.

Two weeks flew by.

With the brothers-in-law's full assistance, they miraculously completed the felling and preliminary processing of nearly seventy trees.

More than half of the planned timber had already become a spectacular white log mountain, piled at the camp waiting to dry.

According to the original plan, the brothers-in-law needed to return to Montana to handle their respective farm affairs.

On the evening before their departure, Lin Yu'an prepared to arrange a grand bonfire banquet to see them off.

Just before the banquet began, eldest brother-in-law Wyatt's satellite phone rang. It was their father Robert calling.

Wyatt answered and put it on speaker.

"Wyatt, how are things going over there?" Robert's booming voice came through the phone.

"Dad, we're doing great! And Alaska is amazing! Can't imagine that nighttime here is only a few hours each day now!"

Wyatt looked at the mountain of stacked timber and continued proudly, "We helped our brother-in-law complete more than half the work. We're preparing to head back tomorrow."

Robert on the other end was silent for a few seconds, "What are you coming back for at this time?"

"Are you going to run away after finishing half the job? The McKinley family doesn't have such quitters!"

"But Dad, the work on our respective farms..."

Robert interrupted him, "I can have the farm hands help you deal with those trivial matters."

He paused, his tone softening slightly, "Your task now is to stay there and help Hermann collect and process all the timber completely!"

After the call ended, the four brothers-in-law looked at each other, then all burst into hearty laughter.

Eldest brother-in-law Wyatt walked over and heavily patted Lin Yu'an's shoulder, grinning, "Well, Hermann, looks like we're not leaving anytime soon."

Lin Yu'an's heart was filled with indescribable emotion and warmth.

He knew this was the entire McKinley family's most unreserved acceptance and support of him as their newest member.

The originally planned farewell banquet instantly became a celebration party for the project extension.

Lin Yu'an brought out Wuliangye liquor and drank heartily with his brothers-in-law under the Alaskan starry sky!

The next day, the McKinley logging crew went full throttle again!

Everyone continued working under the polar day conditions, cutting trees, sectioning, winch transport, debarking, and stacking for drying.

Finally, in a total of one month, the five men miraculously completed the felling and preliminary processing of 120 trees!

This time, it was truly time for farewell.

Eldest brother-in-law Wyatt raised his glass, his face full of satisfied smiles, "Hermann, all the timber is here. The remaining work is up to you."

"Don't worry, Wyatt," Lin Yu'an replied with a smile.

"You've already helped me complete the most difficult part. Thank you all!"

"We're family, no need to say that," eldest brother-in-law Wyatt gave Lin Yu'an a strong hug.

"But remember, if you need help, just one phone call and we'll fly back over! The McKinley family will always be your support!"

Mike drove the Ford Explorer SUV to send the brothers-in-law on their way to Fairbanks, where they would fly back to Montana.

Mike would also pick up the delayed express delivery, precisely those two Arcteryx outfits ordered a month ago.

After the huge engine sounds and hearty laughter disappeared, the Dalton Highway returned to tranquility, leaving only Lin Yu'an and David.

Lin Yu'an rode the Zongshen three-wheeler with David to Wood Forest Land to continue today's cleanup work.

David carried his camera, circling the spectacular timber pile, shooting various close-ups and panoramic shots.

David's face was full of excitement. The material recorded over this month was enough to edit several episodes of high-quality program content.

He had already thought of the episode title: "One Phone Call and Four Brothers-in-Law Came to Help Me Cut Trees!"

He walked to Lin Yu'an's side and sincerely sighed, "Lin, this is incredible! A month ago, I couldn't have imagined this place would become like this! Your family members are simply an army!"

Lin Yu'an smiled, "Yes, they are my strongest support."

A few days after the brothers-in-law left, while Lin Yu'an was processing timber, he received a phone call.

The building materials driver he had ordered a month ago had arrived at the designated location.

After Lin Yu'an arrived on his Zongshen three-wheeler, a red heavy dump truck marked with "Arctic Star Logistics" appeared again at the familiar unloading point.

The driver was surprisingly the same experienced old driver from last time.

This time, after unloading, the driver didn't leave immediately. He curiously handed Lin Yu'an a cigarette and asked.

"Brother, what are you planning to do here? I've been running this road for fifteen years, and this is the first time I've seen someone transport so much cement and sand to this godforsaken place."

Lin Yu'an took the cigarette and smiled, "I'm planning to build a home here."

The driver was stunned, then showed admiring eyes. He heavily patted Lin Yu'an's shoulder, "Good luck to you!"

After the dump truck also disappeared over the horizon, the small mountain made of sand, gravel, cement, and steel bars stood quietly in the wilderness.

Lin Yu'an once again began the arduous "ant moving house" work.

This time, the Zongshen three-wheeler became the absolute workhorse, making trip after trip transporting building materials to "Wood Forest Land" five kilometers away.

David timely posed a question, "So now that all the building materials are ready, what's our next plan? Are we starting to process this timber with the band saw?"

Lin Yu'an shook his head, his gaze turning toward the foundation area already marked out.

"No, now is not the time yet."

"This timber was just debarked and still needs time to dry out and let moisture evaporate. This way we can minimize shrinkage and cracking after construction."

"However, we can prepare by cutting the logs into 'D' shapes in advance, meaning flattening the top and bottom surfaces."

"This both accelerates moisture evaporation speed and matches our expected construction processing method."

"But now that we've reached mid-June, the extended daylight of the polar day has melted the active permafrost layer on the ground, providing us with the best construction window."

"So it's time to find Old George for help again."

"You mean we can start building the foundation?" David's eyes immediately lit up!

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