sjar Chapter 109 Setting a Trap in the Mountains
Chapter 109 Setting a Trap in the Mountains
Li Ju'an managed to buy steel wire rope through his assistant Chen's connections. Steel wire rope was a scarce commodity at the time, and ordinary people couldn't buy it. He spent 25 yuan, plus two packs of cigarettes, to buy six sections of steel wire rope, a length of 2 meters—it was far too expensive.
Moreover, even these steel cables were given to him by Assistant Chen out of respect for Lao Qin. As for whether the specimen-taking job will be secured, it's still uncertain. Li Ju'an also realized that too many gunners wanted to take on this job; almost all the well-known gunners in the area had tried to pull strings. As long as they could cooperate once, they could have a long-term partnership, and everyone wanted to get a piece of the action.
Assistant Chen's words were loaded with meaning. He glanced admiringly at the eleven dogs at Li Ju'an's feet. "They're good dogs. It's not easy for such a young leader to have a gang of dogs." He pointed to another leader who had come to him, dressed in a leather coat and with an eagle perched on his arm. He said that leaders must have their own considerations when selecting people; they don't choose people arbitrarily. Having a gang of dogs is a basic requirement, and they also need to have solid skills and a good reputation.
Li Ju'an's heart trembled; he was utterly impressed. Sable, also known as sable fur, was extremely valuable; even experienced hunters could only capture a couple a year. The government shops at the foot of the mountain would pay six or seven hundred for sable fur, even if it wasn't of good quality. The price of sable fur skyrocketed year after year; someone who could afford to wear a sable fur coat and had no shortage of pelts—how could he not be impressed?
Assistant Chen lit a cigarette, and Li Ju'an quickly lit it for him, saying, "Brother Chen, which family does that gunner belong to?"
Assistant Chen squinted and exhaled a smoke ring. In a good mood, he became more talkative and said, "Zhao Pao from Yulou Village, Tuchengzi Township, have you heard of Yingtun? His village is full of falconry culture passed down from their ancestors. Everyone in the village plays with falcons."
As Li Ju'an and Zhao Pao passed each other, Li Ju'an felt that the man had a very special aura, with an indescribable fierceness. His eyes were bright and piercing, unlike those of the locals. The eagle he was riding was very handsome, with sharp eyes.
Assistant Chen noticed that Li Ju'an was staring intently at the camera and patted him on the shoulder encouragingly, "Our leaders don't like outsiders; they only trust hunters from the local villages who they know well. Li Ju'an, do a good job, and I'll put in a good word for you with the leaders later." He winked at Da Pi, and Li Ju'an understood.
You little punk, you think badger oil isn't enough, so you've got your eye on Big Skin, huh? If I had Big Skin, would I even need to come to you? Wouldn't it be better to just go straight to Boss Chen?
He inwardly grumbled, but outwardly remained calm and readily agreed.
He went back to the family village and passed by Lao Tao's house. He found Sun Weimin and Lu Zhiqiang still bothering Lao Tao, asking to borrow the dog to go into the mountains. The two of them were really annoying Lao Tao.
The two turned around and saw their nemesis leading 11 dogs into the village for a stroll.
Lu Zhiqiang said sourly, "General Li from the dog gang is here again."
Sun Weimin's words were even more sarcastic: "Damn it! What General Li? It's you again, Li Ju'an. You have nothing to do all day but wander around like a slippery dog. Of the 11 dogs you walk, 6 of them are always slippery, and the other three will definitely love to slippery when they grow up. We should call you the Slippery General."
The two men's sarcastic remarks only made Li Ju'an laugh heartily. "Even the most cunning and treacherous dog has its deadly moments. Besides, I think Tiechui is a smart girl. If a hunting dog encounters a pack of wolves, how could it possibly come back alive? Tiechui lured the wolves back, and she came back herself, bringing three pups with her, adding to our dog gang's ranks."
Old Tao started to ponder these words, looking at Iron Hammer more closely. He used to think Iron Hammer was just playful and misbehaved with the wolves, but now that he thought about it, it might be Iron Hammer's little scheme to escape. For a dog to have such clever ideas, its intelligence is truly remarkable.
Old Tao advised him, saying, "Having too many dogs isn't necessarily a good thing. Joining a gang isn't always easy. Da Hu is arrogant, and none of the six dogs you lead are gentle. The problem is that the new dogs are violent, unruly, and don't do any proper work."
He looked at Li Ju'an with a hint of pity in his eyes. If Li Ju'an were to go into the mountains this time, it would be the first time he and the Hehe Gang would officially engage in a dog hunt. The first dog hunt would likely end in a complete mess, and if things went wrong, it might even cause trouble and leave the hunters embarrassed.
Li Ju'an, however, was quite confident, laughing and saying, "We won't be hunting much in the mountains for a while. We'll just set the traps and come right back. If we're lucky, we might catch a big one. We'll go back up to snag some more traps after the fifteenth."
Lu Zhiqiang asked curiously, "Going to snatch the trap after the fifteenth? Aren't you afraid Da Pi will get eaten by the wild animals?"
"No way, I put the trap in the snowdrift, where scavengers can't reach it, and other mountain animals can't find it either."
Sable meat is inedible; hunters only want the pelt. If a sable gets caught in a trap and is trapped in a snowdrift, its pelt won't freeze, and the hunters can collect it later.
Lu Zhiqiang was very tempted by the soaring price of leather. Besides, he hadn't received a single penny from following Sun Weimin lately; he only got a share of the profits by following Li Ju'an. His own grandfather had promised to teach him hunting and even get him a gun, but who knew his cunning grandfather had gotten him a spear instead!
What kind of hunting is this, spear-wielding?
He finally understood that the old man was trying to make him back down. He was a stubborn man, and the more he was suppressed, the more defiant he became. He took the initiative to approach Li Ju'an and said, "Li Pao, can you take me with you when you go into the mountains?"
Not only Li Ju'an, but even Sun Weimin and Lao Tao were stunned. The Lu family used to be so arrogant, how could Lu Zhiqiang have bowed his head?
Li Ju'an asked him, "No dogs, no guns, what are you doing coming into the mountains with me? To gather firewood?"
Lu Zhiqiang blushed, turned around and walked back. Everyone thought he had run away, but unexpectedly, he came back a moment later with a spear, planted it in the snow, and shouted, "I am General Lu! I specialize in using spears to stab wild boars in the neck!"
The group paused for a moment, then Sun Weimin couldn't help but burst into laughter, very loudly, teasing him: "Your old man taught you hunting for days, and all he taught you was how to use a spear? You might as well lead a mule and follow behind Li Ju'an."
Lu Zhiqiang, his neck stiff and face red, shouted, "There's nothing shameful about being someone's apprentice! Once I make money from my share of the profits, I'll have dogs, and I'll have 56 semi-automatic cars too!"
Li Ju'an realized that going into the mountains alone would leave him without anyone to look after him, so going with Lu Zhiqiang was a good idea. If something happened, the Lu family would be anxious and send people to search the entire mountain, which was better than leaving his mother to worry helplessly.
He went back and packed his things, then arranged to go into the mountains with Lu Zhiqiang and Song Desheng on Saturday. As for why he invited Song Desheng, he particularly liked the medium-caliber slug shotgun that Song Desheng carried. The slug was like a metal block; a medium-caliber slug could penetrate a bear, let alone its skull, and could easily pierce the mud and oil armor of a cannonball—its power was immense. Any large animal, if hit accurately, would basically fall with a single shot.
……
Saturday arrived quickly. Li Ju'an met with Lu Zhiqiang and Song Desheng. He carried sticky rice cakes steamed by his mother in his arms and led 11 barking dogs into the mountains.
All three of them carried cloth bags containing snares and homemade traps. This trip into the mountains was solely for setting snares and traps, making it relatively easy.
With the work being easy, Li Ju'an was in an exceptionally good mood.
Standing on the hilltop, he looked down and saw that the entire Xing'an Mountains resembled irregular, large waves. The gentle slopes of the ridges were mostly dotted with villages. The fifth ridge south of the village was the hunting grounds organized by the forestry farm. The gully at the bottom of the waves was Changchong Gully, where he had allocated five mu of dry land to each household.
This time, he went into the mountains along the ridges, which were high up and had few shrubs and trees. It was easier for him to lead the mule, and the view was also more open.
Song Desheng followed him and looked down, shouting, "Brother Li, the trap you set last time was right there on the third ridge north of Kaoshantun, wasn't it?"