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

Chapter 153 The Tiger Cub Falls into a Snowdrift

Two leaves were rolled up and inserted at opposite ends of the bark roll. This unprecedented bark marking made the two men jump up almost immediately, realizing that Lu Zhiqiang had left a signal.

Song Desheng slapped his forehead and sucked hard on his snot that had almost frozen solid: "It's a good thing you were careful, Brother Li, otherwise Lu Zhiqiang would be trembling with fear somewhere right now, and wouldn't be able to get through the whole night."

It's important to save people.

Unfortunately, it started snowing at that moment, and the snowflakes covered much of the daytime footprints, leaving only the faint outlines of five or six hunters' tracks. Luckily, Lu Zhiqiang and his group hadn't been separated; if they had been, it would have been a real problem.

Not only hunters use stalks, but also clever predators like wolves. They hide in one place while the others run to the other side of the prey to growl or stir the grass to scare the prey. They can also drive the prey in a predetermined direction to the ambush site where their companions are hiding.

When the prey is exhausted from running, they can work together to deliver a fatal blow.

The idea that tigers can use hunting sticks is unheard of, but Li Ju'an stood across a ditch, facing a tigress leading three half-grown tigers. Whether the tigress would lead her nearly adult cubs in hunting sticks, teaching them hunting skills, was anyone's guess.

He swept his flashlight across the snow. Among the faint footprints, there were indeed huge claw marks, still very fresh, as if they had just been left. The snow in the claw marks had not yet melted into ice, and some loose snowflakes were scattered in the center of the paw prints.

Song Desheng's heart skipped a beat, and he said, "How come there really are big claws that can chase a cane? We're doomed. The claw marks of that half-grown tiger cub are almost as big as the mother tiger's, and they must be four big claws. Lu Zhiqiang is really unlucky to have encountered such a rare thing."

Li Ju'an shook his head, frowned, and said, "No, that's not right. Look at this mark, isn't it a wolf paw print?"

Besides the large claw marks, there was also a row of wolf claw marks that stretched down the mountain.

The tiger barked softly nearby, and Li Ju'an quickly followed. The tiger had found some fox paw prints under the tree roots, but the prints were somewhat illegible and not very fresh. Based on the recent snowfall, the fox had likely passed through the area about two days prior.

"There are ditches and ponds down from here. You should be able to meet her in about two miles."

Hearing this, Song Desheng was also puzzled and asked him, "How can you tell there's a ditch or pond? It's just a string of fox footprints."

The fox, also known as the red fox or red fox in the mountains, has a very diverse diet. Red foxes can eat jerks, mice, small birds, frogs, and insects, and will even eat carrion when extremely hungry. Ditches and ponds have water, and in winter, small animals such as mice like to gather near them, which also attracts foxes.

In summer, wild boars like to venture into ditches and ponds to cool off and repel mosquitoes, and they can even get muddy armor on their bodies. Therefore, many wild animals usually frequent the vicinity of ditches and ponds.

Li Ju'an pondered for a moment and said, "If the Tiger King is really driving them away, he might be deliberately leading them into the ditch. This is the hunting ground for wild beasts."

The more Song Desheng listened, the more uneasy he felt, goosebumps rising on his skin. He picked up his gun and started to walk back: "Quickly call for reinforcements, the two of us alone won't do. Bring those guys surnamed Zhao along."

The two men went out to check on Lu Zhiqiang and his group's whereabouts, wondering why they hadn't returned so late and if something had happened. Now that something had indeed gone wrong, he naturally had to go back to get reinforcements.

The hunters in Eagle Village were foul-mouthed and spoke rudely, but they wouldn't hesitate to call on someone if they didn't want to; no one in the deep mountains and forests would risk their life.

Suddenly, gunfire erupted in the distance.

At first, the gunfire was intense and frequent, the "bang bang bang" shaking the entire forest. Even the usually annoying chirping owls were startled into silence and flew away. Soon, the gunfire became sparse, sporadic shots, one after another, as if only one or two people were firing.

Then, the sporadic gunshots ceased, and the forest fell eerily silent.

Li Ju'an didn't have time to go back and get reinforcements. He grabbed his gun, shouted to his hunting dog, and rushed towards the ditch: "Song Desheng, go back and call for help."

Song Desheng stomped his feet. He desperately wanted to go back to the forest ranger's duty room, but he was all alone in the desolate wilderness, armed only with a flashlight. With tigers in front and wolves behind, he dared not move an inch.

He steeled his resolve, turned around, and ran after Li Ju'an toward the ditch, shouting, "I'm really screwed, Brother Li, wait for me, don't leave me alone."

……

Under the dim moonlight, the two men, guns in hand, followed the hunting dogs and ran quickly toward the ditch where the gunshots had echoed.

The ditch was only two miles away, and the snow was covered with sparse blood and spots of blood, with messy footprints nearby.

Song Desheng's eyes burned with desire as he nervously raised his pump-action shotgun and aimed it at the surroundings, remaining constantly vigilant for the glowing eyes of wild beasts in the darkness.

"Damn! That beast actually drove Lu Zhiqiang to this ditch."

"Lu Zhiqiang, wait for your grandpa to come and save you."

The spots of blood stretched forward and then disappeared into the snow.

Seeing that Song Desheng was about to continue walking forward, Li Ju'an suddenly shouted, "Song Desheng, stop the hell!"

Song Desheng lifted his foot to take a step forward, turning his head to look at Li Ju'an behind him. Luckily, he didn't step on the ground properly. He stumbled and suddenly missed the spot, startled, and quickly took two steps back before looking at the empty space he had just missed.

It's a deep snowdrift, probably 4 meters deep.

Hunting in snowy weather presents many dangers, the most common being snowdrifts. These small ravines in the mountains vary in depth, from a meter or two to five or six meters deep, and even deeper if there's a steep, vertical rock face. Even with accumulated snow, falling in can cause injury, and it's very difficult to climb out.

As he lowered his head, by sheer coincidence, his eyes met a pair of piercing, beastly eyes.

A sub-adult tiger is leaping up in a snowdrift. The tiger cub, about two years old, is still learning to hunt from its mother. It already weighs over 300 pounds and looks only slightly smaller than an adult tiger, but its attack power is by no means weak.

The tiger cub's drooping eyes glowed green in the night, flashing with sharpness and ferocity. It raised its head, opened its blood-red maw, and let out a low, beastly roar, its howl filled with wildness and a stench that filled the air.

Anyone who comes face-to-face with a tiger at close range will instantly feel a chill. Song Desheng trembled. Facing the tiger's eyes at close range, he felt a chill run down his spine and his legs trembled.

"Depend on!"

Li Ju'an took a step forward, raised his gun, aimed it at the tiger cub's drooping eye, and fired a shot.