Era-C88

Chapter 88: Empty-Handed Hunts Are Common

They had set out in high spirits, trekking through difficult terrain to finally reach the wetland where they had set their traps.

“The first King Yama Noose is empty?”

Lin Heng was a little disappointed.

Then his disappointment grew.

Empty.

Empty.

Empty again.

They checked over a dozen snare traps, and every single one was empty.

“Could it be that there’s something wrong with my King Yama Noose?”

Lin Heng began to doubt himself. It was one thing for the regular snares to be empty, but even the King Yama Noose had caught nothing?

He turned to look at Xiongba. “Xiongba, step on it and try it out. A dog is raised for a thousand days to be used in a single moment—it’s your time to shine.”

Xiongba: “?!”

His expression seemed to say: I may not be human, but you’re a real Dog Bastard, master.

“Forget it, forget it. I’ll test it myself.”

Lin Heng shook his head and stepped onto the trap. With a sudden whoosh, the rope was triggered, and his foot was instantly bound. The tension of the tree pulled him into the air in an instant.

“Oh no, my crotch!” Lin Heng hurriedly grabbed onto the rope, yelping in pain. The unexpected split nearly ended him right then and there.

Xiongba had already bolted far away, licking his lips with a look of schadenfreude, as if to say: Look, a dumb dog.

Lin Heng untied himself and reset the King Yama Noose. Clearly, the trap wasn’t faulty—there were simply no animals passing through.

The missing corn had probably been eaten by mice and birds.

He took a handful of roasted soybeans from his pocket, ate them in one bite, and pretended to still have food. He called out to Xiongba, “Come here and eat!”

“Awooo~”

Xiongba glanced at him and even rolled his eyes, as if to say: At least try to scam me with some sincerity.

“You little bastard, getting bold now, huh?”

Lin Heng, fuming, picked up a small stone and tossed it at him.

“Woof woof~”

Xiongba happily dashed away.

Lin Heng gritted his teeth. He couldn’t even trick a dog into letting him take out his frustration.

Chirp chirp chirp!!

Nearby, some green-backed finches perched on the reeds seemed to be mocking him, chirping as if to say: Empty-handed loser, empty-handed loser!

Lin Heng pulled out his slingshot and—snap!—took one out. “Go on, keep chirping, I dare you.”

The poor little bird had only been enjoying the show, yet it paid the ultimate price.

A harsh lesson: Never mock an empty-handed hunter. They’re dangerous.

Lin Heng picked up the finch and shot down two more on the way back, planning to use them for lunch.

As he continued checking the traps, the King Yama Nooses remained untouched. Two snare traps had been triggered, though.

One was a bloodstained mess, rabbit fur scattered everywhere—it had been half-eaten by something.

The other had been triggered but was completely empty, leaving no clue as to what animal had set it off.

Carrying half a wild rabbit and seven finches, Lin Heng left the wetland and arrived at the waterfall pool where he had previously harvested Dendrobium.

He sat down, and Xiongba trotted over eagerly. But just as the dog got close, Lin Heng suddenly grabbed his head and tackled him to the ground with a wicked chuckle. “Come on, keep running, little doggy?”

“Weren’t you just laughing at me? Thought it was funny, huh?”

Holding Xiongba down, he squeezed the dog’s mouth shut and gave him a good roughing up.

“Awooo~”

The poor Xiongba whimpered in surrender, but Lin Heng, still fuming from his fruitless hunt, had no intention of letting him off easy.

Ruthless head rubbing + relentless belly rubbing + evil cackling + more head rubbing + even more head rubbing.

By the time Lin Heng was done, Xiongba lay there limp, completely relaxed.

“Hmph, I might not have caught any prey, but I can definitely catch some fish!”

Lin Heng sneered and looked at the crystal-clear pool, where trout swam lazily. The sight only fueled his frustration further, and he began setting up a fish trap.

He built a “Maze Trap,” a well-known technique that uses intersecting barriers to confuse fish, making it hard for them to find their way out.

It was easy to construct—either with stones or branches. Since the pool’s edge was covered in soft silt, branches were the better choice.

After about forty minutes, he had built a three-square-meter trap using nearby branches. To bait it, he killed a nearby waterfowl, chopped off its head, and tossed the carcass into the center of the trap.

Splash!

With that done, he stripped off his clothes and dove into the water for a swim.

The pool was around twenty or thirty square meters wide, with a waterfall cascading from a rocky cliff above, churning the water into white froth.

Lin Heng dove deep, and Xiongba excitedly swam in after him.

He loved swimming in such crystal-clear waters. Opening his eyes underwater, the entire submerged world looked dreamlike, as if it belonged to another realm.

And then there was that satisfying feeling of holding his breath to the limit before exhaling in one powerful burst.

Just as he was enjoying his dive, something caught his eye at the riverbed—dozens of fish, each around ten centimeters long.

At first, he thought they were just regular trout, but when he got closer, he realized they weren’t.

These fish had dark brown backs, transitioning to white on their bellies, with distinctive black circular spots along their sides.

“Wait… aren’t these Qinling fine-scaled salmon?!”

Lin Heng shot up from the water, feeling a mix of disbelief and excitement. He dove back down for another look.

“They really are fine-scaled salmon! Why didn’t I find any downstream before?”

It was baffling—he had searched the lower streams thoroughly but hadn’t spotted a single one. Yet here they were.

After thinking about it carefully, Lin Heng found it quite reasonable. These fish were native to the Qinling Mountains, and their decline in later years was due to environmental damage.

But now, in the 1980s, the environment was still intact, so the natural population was relatively abundant. This area also provided a suitable habitat, so their presence wasn’t surprising.

These fish weren’t very large, with an average length of about 20 centimeters and a weight of around half a kilogram to one kilogram. The biggest ones could grow up to 40 or 50 centimeters and weigh three to four kilograms.

Like other freshwater salmon, these fish were originally marine species. They got trapped inland during the Little Ice Age and gradually evolved into freshwater fish.

Just like their marine relatives, they had no intermuscular bones, and their meat was tender and delicious, making them highly sought after.

“Dumb dog, stop swimming. Get out.”

Lin Heng glanced at Xiongba, who was still swimming, then stepped out of the pool himself.

“We’ll catch two first to taste, and as for the rest, we can figure out how to bring them back after digging out the fish pond in winter.”

After calming down and thinking it over, Lin Heng realized there wasn’t a good way to transport them for now.

These fish preferred fast-flowing water and required high oxygen levels, making it difficult to keep them alive without aeration.

So, it was better to just catch a few for food. There wasn’t a better solution at the moment.

Since it was already noon and he hadn’t caught any prey, Lin Heng decided to relax under a tree with Xiongba, waiting for fish to swim into his trap.

Lying on a large rock, he dozed off and unknowingly slept for more than two hours, only waking up when the sun started shining on his face.

“Let’s go check.” Lin Heng glanced at Xiongba, who had been napping beside him. What a good dog.

From a distance, Lin Heng saw ripples in the trap, indicating that fish were moving inside. Excited, he jogged over and used a wooden stick to completely seal the entrance.

Splash! Splash! Splash!

Sensing danger, the fish in the trap frantically darted around, splashing water everywhere.

But they were already caught in the trap—there was no way they could escape.

Without much effort, Lin Heng grabbed a 20-centimeter-long fine-scaled salmon, weighing a little over half a kilogram. It was still wildly flapping its tail.

“It looks pretty plump.”

Lin Heng placed the knife on a rock and killed the fish. As he sliced it open, he noticed that its flesh was completely different from any inland fish like carp, crucian carp, grass carp, or stream-dwelling perch. Instead, it resembled marine salmon, with red meat interlaced with white fat rings.

Apart from the spine, there wasn’t a single fish bone.

The beautiful flesh tempted Lin Heng to take a big bite of sashimi, but after some thought, he reminded himself that this wasn’t a saltwater fish. Instead, he cut a small piece and put it in his mouth.

“Hmm, not bad.”

After chewing a couple of times, Lin Heng nodded in satisfaction. It had almost no fishy taste, and the meat was smooth and tender—quite good.

The only downside was that even the largest ones only weighed three to five kilograms, which was on the small side. However, he was sure that this fish would taste amazing when steamed. His daughter, Xiaoxia, would love it.

“Here!”

After taking a couple of bites, Lin Heng tossed the rest of the fish to Xiongba.

The dog leaped up and caught it perfectly, devouring it in just a few bites. Then, it looked at Lin Heng expectantly, as if saying, Give me another one to taste.

Lin Heng grabbed a few large stream perch and threw them to Xiongba. But upon realizing they weren’t fine-scaled salmon, the dog didn’t even bother jumping, looking visibly disappointed.

“If you won’t eat, then starve!” Lin Heng scolded before catching a 350-gram fine-scaled salmon, preparing to roast it.

“Woof~”

Seeing no fine-scaled salmon for itself, Xiongba reluctantly trotted back to pick up the discarded stream perch. It even showed human-like distaste for the dirt stuck to the fish, killing them first and then rinsing them in the water before eating.

Lin Heng built a fire and roasted the fine-scaled salmon. The cooked version tasted even better than raw—delicate, firm, and free of any fishy odor. With a good dipping sauce, it would be perfect.

“Woof~”

Xiongba stared at him with eager eyes, as if saying, I want to try some too.

“Here.”

Lin Heng tossed the fish head to the dog and ate the rest himself.

After finishing his meal, he glanced at the fish still trapped in the formation and decided to leave them there for now. In a few days, when he was ready to head home, he would catch a few to bring back for his daughter.

“Come on, time to put your skills to use. Let’s see if we can catch something this afternoon.”

Lin Heng said to Xiongba, preparing to search the forest again, even though he didn’t have much hope.

He took the dog along a trail south of the waterfall, heading up a mountain he hadn’t explored much before.

He hadn’t gone far when he spotted a beautiful red lingzhi mushroom, bringing a smile to his face. “Looks like a good start. Xiongba, see if you can find more around here.”

Xiongba sniffed the red lingzhi in Lin Heng’s hand, then searched around. Not long after, it let out an excited bark.

“Woof~”

“There really is more!”

Lin Heng walked over and found two more red lingzhi mushrooms.

Then he found another one, but after that, there were no more.

Continuing forward, Lin Heng entered a dense forest filled with vines but didn’t find anything worthwhile along the way.

“There are so many yangtao on this mountain.”

Looking up, Lin Heng saw countless kiwi fruits hanging from the branches, each about the size of a jujube.

Locally, people called kiwi fruit yangtao.

But these were far from ripe. If eaten too early, they were sour enough to make someone pucker for days.

When fully ripe, however, they had a perfect balance of sweetness and tanginess, making them irresistible.

“It’s already 6:30… Am I going home empty-handed again?”

Over the past few days, Lin Heng had come to truly understand the difficulties of hunting.

Ever since he had caught that muntjac, he hadn’t managed to bag any large prey.

“Let’s head back.”

Looking at the path ahead, Lin Heng decided to turn around. This spot was likely six or seven kilometers from his shelter. If he didn’t head back soon, it would be dark before he could find his way home.

On the way back, after walking for over half an hour, he only managed to pick up two greenhead mushrooms—he hadn’t even encountered a single snake.

“Woof!”

As Lin Heng was resting on a rock, Xiongba suddenly picked up a scent and barked to alert him.

“What is it?”

Lin Heng quickly got up, grabbed his bow and arrows, and followed Xiongba.

After tracking for a while, they arrived near a mountain gully and finally found their prey.

“Roar!!”

The creature let out an angry, threatening roar upon seeing Lin Heng and Xiongba.

For a moment, Lin Heng didn’t know what to say.

“Who threw a cat into the mountains?”

The prey that Xiongba had tracked down left him greatly disappointed—it was just a kitten, barely a month old, still covered in its baby fur.

“It doesn’t look like a clouded leopard cub… Could it be some kind of wildcat?”

Lin Heng was puzzled. How could there be such a young kitten out here?

He walked over and tried to pick it up, but the little thing let out an angry cry: “Hiss~~”

It sounded just like a cat in a fight.

“Quite fierce, huh?” Lin Heng sneered and grabbed it by the scruff of its neck, lifting it up.

“It’s a little female cat, but I can’t tell exactly what kind of wildcat it is.”

Shaking his head, Lin Heng turned to Xiongba. “Keep searching. See if there’s a den nearby—we might find an adult.”

Wildcats were decent game in the mountains, though they were hard to catch and usually required traps.

Felines had sharp senses of smell and sight, making them difficult to approach before they noticed you. More often than not, they spotted you first.

Xiongba continued searching and soon made another discovery three hundred meters away—a dead wildcat cub.

Lin Heng inspected it and estimated it had been dead for at least a week, already crawling with maggots.

“Looks like it was abandoned,” Lin Heng said, glancing at the half-starved kitten in his hand.

“Forget it. If we can’t find anything else, let’s head back.”

Shaking his head, Lin Heng carried the kitten and walked back.

All sorts of things happened in the mountains, and he had no way of figuring out the exact situation.

The kitten was restless in his grip, meowing constantly. Lin Heng hoped it would call out to its mother, but they encountered nothing along the way.

By the time they returned to the shelter, it was already past eight. Tian Baishun, his uncle, and his uncle-in-law were all gathered around the fire.

Without asking, Lin Heng already knew they had no luck hunting today—he hadn’t heard any gunshots.

“Where’d you pick up that wildcat cub? Did you manage to hunt a wildcat?”

His uncle-in-law stood up upon hearing the kitten’s cries.

“No, just found this one alive and another one dead. I did catch a rabbit in a snare, but something ate half of it.”

Lin Heng explained and then held up the kitten, now tied with a rope. “Anyone recognize what species this is?”

“Let me see.”

Tian Baishun pulled the kitten closer to the fire and shone a flashlight on it.

“I think it looks like a golden cat cub. What do you guys think?” He glanced at the others.

“I think it looks more like a young white-muzzled cat,” Lin Heng’s uncle said.

“I can’t tell, but reddish-furred wildcat cubs are pretty rare,” his uncle-in-law, Li Baiquan, commented.

“Looks like none of us are sure. Let’s just tie it up for now.”

Lin Heng took the rope and secured the kitten to a wooden stake nearby, tossing it a creek fish he had caught earlier.

Then he pulled out the cleaned half-rabbit from his basket and glanced at the three men munching on wild taro. “Looks like you guys had an even worse day than me—didn’t even catch a snake?”

“There are fresh wild boar tracks again. We set up more traps. If we still get nothing tomorrow, we’ll move on.”

Lu Honghai spoke up.

“Yeah, if we don’t get anything, we’ll leave. Can’t keep waiting here,” Li Baiquan agreed, looking frustrated. Going home empty-handed wouldn’t look good.

“Stop talking and roast that rabbit already. I can’t eat another bite of this taro—it’s awful,” the old man, Tian, grumbled.

“You guys really came up with nothing?” Lin Heng asked while roasting the rabbit.

“Not exactly. We did gather some medicinal herbs. I also dug up some kudzu roots—we can make starch when we get back.”

Li Baiquan pointed to the pile of kudzu behind them.

“Wow, we’re really down bad, huh? Gathering kudzu now?” Lin Heng chuckled.

“This is nothing. Hunting in winter is way worse. Sometimes you go days without catching anything, and there’s no food in the mountains. You’d be starving,” Tian Baishun shook his head.

“Anyway, if tomorrow’s another bust, we’re moving on,” Li Baiquan reiterated.

Once the rabbit was roasted, Lin Heng divided it among them. Xiongba and Dahua, the two dogs, sat nearby, staring at the bones with eager eyes.

In the distance, the little wildcat, seeing that no one was paying attention to it, seemed to be starving. It quietly dragged the fish behind the stake and began gobbling it up.

“Damn, this rabbit tastes even better than yesterday’s,” the old man Tian said, his face greasy as he devoured the meat.

Lin Heng glanced up at the sky. The stars were gone, and the moon was slipping behind the clouds. After several clear days, the weather was starting to show signs of rain.

If it was just a brief shower, it wouldn’t be a big deal. But prolonged rain would be troublesome—it would be cold and damp, and hunting would become much harder.

If they didn’t catch something sizable before the rain, they might really go home empty-handed.

Lin Heng was starting to think that was a very real possibility.

The next morning, as the first light of dawn appeared, the four of them were already up. After two straight days of no results, they were getting anxious.

“Lin Heng, wait until noon to check your snares today. We’ll head straight to the wild boar area first thing in the morning—the two dogs will improve our chances.”

Li Baiquan suggested.

“Sounds good. Let’s go together,” Lin Heng agreed.

In half an hour, the four men and two dogs arrived at the trap site. As soon as they got there, Tian Baishun let out an excited shout.

“The wild boars were definitely here last night! Look at all these fresh digging marks!”

The group immediately perked up, their drowsiness vanishing. If the boars had been here recently, their chances of finding them today were much higher.

(End of Chapter)