Reborn in 80: Starting with hunting in the mountains to get rich

Chapter 160 Saving Lives is Paramount: Chen Xiangqian's Determination

Chen Xiangqian was provoked and refused to back down. He sat on the edge of the kang (a heated brick bed) tying his leg bindings, pulled on his shoes and ran outside, saying, "Brother Li hasn't come back yet. It's not good to just wait here like this. We have to go out and look for him."

Zhao Pao and the hunters from Yingtun also sat down, one by one went to the thatched hut to take care of their personal needs, then wiped their faces and the backs of their ears with towels, saying, "It's not the right time to go out and look for someone. It's minus forty degrees outside. Don't even think about catching a cold if you go out; your nose and ears could freeze off."

"Xiao Chen, the division commander instructed us to bring you back safely. You must listen to our advice and not be the only one in a hurry."

As dawn broke outside, a warm yellow light shone from the forest ranger's watch hut. The hunters rose one by one, wiping the grime from their eyes, cocking their guns with a click, preparing to set off to search for the missing person after daybreak.

Zhao Pao asked Veterinarian Lao Zhang what had happened yesterday. Lao Zhang told him about his encounter with the Tiger King and also described the terrain of the mountain in detail.

Besides the steep cliffs, the area is full of snowdrifts and several gullies in the forest, making it the perfect hunting ground for mother tigers with their cubs. It is a favorite territory for wild animals.

Zhao Pao from Yingtun thought for a moment and said, "In the past, there was an old hunter in Yingtun named Lao Fu. He was hired by Qianjin Ranch to hunt tigers. He was very famous in Yingtun and always worked as a lone hunter."

In Southern dialect, "跑单帮" refers to an individual who makes a living by trading goods and selling them for profit. However, in the slang of Yingtun, it refers to a lone hunter who travels alone through the mountains.

Groups of hunters roam the mountains, often organized by a gunner. Solo hunters, on the other hand, usually travel alone, accompanied by falcons or hounds.

Veterinarian Zhang understood immediately. He glanced at the white mastiff whose surgical stitches had just been done and said, "Did that Lao Fu bring his dog? If he didn't, he'll be in trouble with so many snowdrifts."

"That's not good at all, it's just a lot of trouble."

Old Fu, an old hunter from Yingtun more than ten years ago, only took his falcons into the mountains to work as a lone hunter. He took a tiger hunting job assigned by the ranch and worked alone. However, he did not expect that the snow-covered areas in the Xingan Mountains were very deep and he had to avoid the snow areas that had been set up by others.

According to Lao Fu, the hunters in the Xing'an Mountains are really bored. The ground is frozen solid, impossible to split with an axe, and digging is impossible, yet they still stumble upon a tiger trap. The snow has melted at most a meter below the surface, and below that, it's still frozen. He couldn't imagine what tools the hunters in the Xing'an Mountains could use to dig the trap. Even if a whole team of hunters went to dig, it would take them forever.

Old Fu was out hunting tigers on his own when he got stuck in a snowdrift. Luckily, he was prepared, and his 50+ years of hunting experience proved to be a lifesaver. He always carried two ropes with him, and when he got stuck in the snowdrift, he whistled for his falcon to bring him the ropes. The trained falcon would lasso the ropes in a large tree branch, and then he would pull hard on the ropes to make sure it was safe before pulling on the hemp ropes and stepping on the edge of the snowdrift to get out of trouble.

Zhao Pao recounted Lao Fu's experience. Veterinarian Lao Zhang and Forestry Officer Lao Tang both shook their heads.

The people of Yingtun are unaware of the decades of tiger plagues that have plagued the local population. In all those years of fighting tigers, not only hunters, but even the old men living in the mountain huts have developed the habit of digging traps to trap tigers. In other mountain areas, hunters and their dogs often fail to catch wild boars and end up falling into traps dug by other hunters, suffering serious injuries. But the local mountain people are particularly sensitive to traps.

Any trap that can trap a tiger is a good trap.

Chen Xiangqian, wearing a sheepskin coat, stood at the door. Suddenly, he turned on his flashlight and saw a reflection behind the bushes. He shouted, "There are traps and snares here too!"

This thicket of bushes was exactly the trap that Li Ju'an set before leaving the wooden house.

He set up a total of seven or eight large snares near the forest ranger's duty room, which he made himself using steel wire ropes as thick as a thumb.

The steel cables of the 80s were different from those of later generations. They were made by twisting strands of steel cable together, creating a loop about the thickness of a little finger. Adult tigers are already difficult to lasso. This hillside was also gentle, and if a Siberian tiger weighing over 500 pounds charged, the steel cable would easily break, rendering it useless.

So he set a large trap, with an iron chain tied to a piece of wood, making a snare. When a wild beast steps on the trap, it will struggle and try to escape. The wood will get caught on the tree roots or branches, greatly increasing the chances of capturing the beast alive.

Chen Xiangqian pondered for a moment, then his eyes lit up and he exclaimed in realization, "Could this be a trap set by Brother Li?"

Lin Yuan Lao Tang nodded, spoke to him briefly, and told him to stand far away so that he wouldn't step on something that could break his leg.

Chen Xiangqian's eyes shone even brighter. He squatted down and carefully examined the trap set by Li Ju'an with a flashlight, praising it repeatedly as he looked at it.

Several old hunters from Yingtun laughed and said, "Young man, you really like the dog-raising gang from Lijiatun."

"So what if that kid surnamed Li is good at setting traps? There are so many tigers in the mountains. He's set seven or eight traps, and he hasn't caught any of them. The people are still in the mountains, eagerly waiting for us to rescue them."

"That's right. We've spent money and rescued people in the mountains, so that kid surnamed Li has to pay for us. At least two ten-yuan bills per person."

The hunters of Yingtun burst into laughter. In their view, Li Ju'an had gone into the mountains at night and hadn't been heard from since, so he was probably trapped somewhere, desperately waiting for their rescue.

Chen Xiangqian said angrily, "Brother Li must have gone into the mountains to set traps. We'll catch him and bring him back to see Tiger King. Then you'll all shut up."

The old hunter from Eagle Village was also angry and retorted, "Hey, why are you so sharp-tongued, kid? You get angry after just a few words, huh? So what if you're the son of a division commander?"

Zhao Pao quickly pulled the old hunter away and said a few polite words, "Xiao Chen will stay inside, while Lao Zhang and Lao Zhou will go out to rescue people."

Chen Xiangqian was displeased when he heard this and shouted that he wanted to go out too, because he could also save people.

Suddenly, a piercing wolf howl echoed from the distant hills. Immediately afterwards, echoes of wolf howls reverberated from hilltops in all directions. The high-pitched howls reverberated through the mountains, sending chills down one's spine and making one's body tremble involuntarily.

Before Chen Xiangqian could react, Zhao Pao quickly grabbed his gun and led the old hunters up the ridge, shouting, "Saving lives is the priority!"

The old hunters spat and glanced at Chen Xiangqian, their eyes clearly saying: "See? What were we just saying? Your hero, Brother Li, is in trouble now. He didn't even catch the tiger, and he's surrounded by wolves."