Qin Ziwu gripped the wooden stick in his hand, eager to try. "Brother, I really want to shove my stick hard up its butt."
Looking in the direction where the wild boar had left, Qin Ziwu said, "That wild boar doesn't seem that big anyway."
Deng Guang suggested it was better not to provoke the wild boar. "This one weighs at least two hundred pounds. Don't be fooled by its stocky appearance—it's all muscle. There's a saying: first the boar, second the bear, third the tiger. It's not that the wild boar is the most powerful, but this creature is single-minded. Once injured, its aggression spikes dramatically, and its first instinct is to charge straight at you."
Qin Ziwen suppressed his urge to attack. He knew his current weapons and equipment weren't suitable for hunting wild boars.
Qin Ziwen analyzed calmly, "Since it appeared here, it means this area is part of its territory. If it showed up once, it can show up again. Let's figure out a way to set a trap. As long as we can restrain it with a trap, things will be much easier."
Qin Ziwu whispered, "I think the three of us can take it down. It weighs two hundred pounds, but I'm not far off—I'm one seventy. You and Uncle Deng together must be at least three hundred pounds. Our combined weight is more than double its size."
Qin Ziwen gave him an exasperated look. "Can you guarantee no injuries? What if someone gets hurt? The chance of bacterial infection from its bite isn't one hundred percent, but there's at least a sixty to seventy percent risk. We don't have any iodine or alcohol to disinfect wounds. Plus, there are only three of us. Even if we injure it, we might not be able to catch up. Let's play it safe for now."
Qin Ziwu fell silent. Although he felt he might not necessarily get injured, he thought his older brother's cautious approach made sense. "Alright, I'm just worried someone else might discover it first."
Qin Ziwen shook his head with a light laugh. "If we miss it, we miss it. This forest might lack many things, but animals aren't one of them. Killing this thing isn't that easy. How many people in our residential complex have actually killed a wild boar? None of us have experience. When I get back today, I'll make a stronger rope. Then we'll be able to hunt slightly larger animals."
Deng Guang said, "The cable wires in the complex should work."
Qin Ziwen thought of the climbing net in the children's play area of the complex—he had been coveting that net for a while. Using that net to trap a wild boar would be perfect material. Unfortunately, after the last crocodile hunt, Huang Tao and his group had taken it away.
The three of them walked along the path the wild boar had come from. Since the boar had approached from that direction in a relaxed state, it suggested it hadn't encountered any fierce beasts coming from there. Compared to other directions, that way was more likely to be safe.
"There are mushrooms here." Qin Ziwu crouched down. Some gray mushrooms grew beside the tree roots. "Are they edible?"
"Don't know."
The three looked at each other, then picked some and placed them in a small compartment of their backpack. They didn't recognize them, but perhaps someone in the complex would know. They could take them back and ask others.
After walking some distance, they reached a gentle slope ahead. Climbing to the top of the slope, the surrounding trees thinned out, allowing much more light through.
Qin Ziwen saw many vines climbing the trees before him, laden with brown fruits. The fruits weren't large, and at first glance he almost didn't recognize what they were. Only after picking one, peeling it, seeing the familiar color, smelling it, feeding it to the field mouse and hedgehog to test for poison, and then taking a small taste himself did he confirm they were kiwifruit.
Different from those sold in supermarkets, these wild kiwifruits were very small, and basically each branch held just a small cluster. Most were brownish-yellow, but a few were still greenish and hard, seemingly unripe.
Qin Ziwen started picking them. "I heard kiwifruit are very rich in vitamins. These can supplement the elements we need."
(Wild Kiwifruit)
The wild kiwifruits closer to the ground were relatively easy to pick, but the higher ones weren't as convenient. Qin Ziwen had the Crowned Eagle help. Finally, after working for the better part of the morning, the three of them managed to harvest most of the wild kiwifruits in this area, leaving only the unripe fruits behind. Of course, the main reason was that their backpacks were completely full—all three packs stuffed with wild kiwifruits, totaling at least seventy to eighty pounds combined. The hedgehog and field mouse from the backpack were transferred into a bucket.
Qin Ziwen remembered that kiwifruit don't have a very short shelf life, and since they had a cellar at home, storing them for a month shouldn't be a problem. Any extras could also be traded with others for more shelf-stable foods, like modern processed items such as biscuits or instant noodles.
It was currently afternoon, and the three of them, tired after half a day's work, sat on rocks to rest.
Deng Guang said thoughtfully, "How about we head back? We've had quite a good harvest today. What if the kiwifruits in our bags get crushed..."
Qin Ziwen readily agreed; in fact, he had been thinking the same thing. "Sure. Little Eagle, go check the direction towards the complex."
The Crowned Eagle flew up into the sky, came down after a short while, and nodded its head repeatedly toward a certain direction.
Descending the gentle slope, the three supported themselves on tree trunks and grabbed vines until they reached the bottom of the slope, then began their return journey in the direction indicated by the Crowned Eagle.
After walking for about half an hour, intermittent dog barking came from the dense forest ahead.
"Sounds like it's right up ahead."
"Be careful."
"Could it be wild dogs?"
Deng Guang suggested, "How about we detour around it?"
"Alright." Qin Ziwen nodded. In this kind of wilderness, fellow humans could be just as dangerous as wild beasts. Regardless of whether it was beasts or not, they planned to avoid it.
The three walked sideways for some distance.
Suddenly, a brownish-yellow figure burst out from the dense forest.
"Woof woof woof!"
Looking at the dirty, soy-sauce-colored Golden Retriever before them, the three tightened their grips on their weapons.
"Someone owns this one."
"Woof woof woof!" The old Golden Retriever didn't attack. After barking at the trio a few times, it turned its head to look behind it. It took a few steps back, then, seeing the three weren't moving, turned around again and barked at them.
Qin Ziwu frowned. "It seems to be calling us over."
Qin Ziwen glanced at the Golden Retriever. "Ignore it. Let's keep going."
The three walked about ten meters when the Golden Retriever caught up from behind. But it didn't approach closely, maintaining a safe distance of two to three meters away. It lay directly on the ground, whimpering with a trembling voice, "Whimper whimper~"
The Golden Retriever lay on the ground, its rear end raised, tail wagging vigorously. It seemed to know who the leader of this group was. It looked at Qin Ziwen, cautiously crawled closer, and gently pawed at Qin Ziwen's pant leg.
Once the Golden Retriever was close, Qin Ziwen noticed it had injuries; there was blood behind its ears.
"Whimper whimper~"
Qin Ziwen narrowed his eyes. "Are you asking for help?"
The Golden Retriever seemed to understand. It stood up, stuck out its tongue, and looked at Qin Ziwen with pleading eyes.
Qin Ziwu looked at his older brother. "Brother, should we go?"
Qin Ziwen was silent for a long moment. "How many people are with your owner? Bark once for one person, twice for two people."
"Woof!" The Golden Retriever barked once.
After another long silence, Qin Ziwen said, "Let's go take a look."
Seeing Qin Ziwen start walking forward, the Golden Retriever excitedly turned and ran ahead.
Qin Ziwen and the others moved very slowly, maintaining full alertness the entire time, letting the Golden Retriever run furthest ahead.
......