Chapter 189: Takin, Leopard, or Hog Badger?

After finishing breakfast, the three of them set out again, searching the surrounding area for new prey.

They headed in the direction closer to Mount Taibai, hoping for better luck. Since they had brought some dry rations with them, they didn’t plan to return for lunch.

Mount Taibai towered above them, and none of them dared to climb it. In winter, it was covered in ice and snow—dangerous in every sense. More importantly, it would take until two or three in the afternoon just to reach the top, and they’d have to make their way back in the dark. Traveling through the untamed wilderness of Mount Taibai at night, without any modern safety equipment, was no different from courting death.

There were still some ancient trails built long ago, but they were no less treacherous—perhaps even more so. Those old paths could be even more dangerous than forging a new one.

After searching the forest for over three hours, Lin Heng couldn’t help but sigh. “Looks like our luck today isn’t nearly as good as yesterday.”

It was already noon, and he hadn’t even seen a squirrel. It felt like all his luck had been used up. Still, thanks to yesterday’s musk deer, he was in a relaxed enough mood to enjoy the scenery.

Standing on the mountainside, he could see layer upon layer of lush green ridges. Even in winter, the forest still held patches of snow, and with mist curling through the trees, it looked like a hidden paradise. No wonder people in ancient times chose to live in seclusion here.

There were still people living near Mount Taibai, in a tiny village even poorer than Huangtan Town. With no infrastructure, it took two or three days on foot just to get out of the mountains. There weren’t even roads—just narrow, winding trails and forest paths. Everything depended on manpower and pack animals; even tractors couldn’t get through.

From where Lin Heng stood, he couldn’t see the village—it was on the other side of the mountain range. You’d have to cross the peaks to reach it.

“There are still some enoki mushrooms,” Lin Heng said, crouching to pick a mushroom from the snow. In this cold, only enoki mushrooms still grew.

The enoki mushrooms in the snow had a rich, golden-brown color, looking like tiny forest sprites. The forest was wild and full of decaying wood, so every now and then, he’d spot a pair of mushrooms growing together.

Before he knew it, it was already afternoon, and Lin Heng still hadn’t found any game. Instead, he’d been foraging mushrooms and digging up herbs.

The forest was quiet, broken only by the occasional birdsong—clear, pleasant, and so serene it made one feel intoxicated.

“Woof! Woof!”

Suddenly, Xiong Ba barked from not far away and started digging behind a rock.

By the time Lin Heng walked over, the dog had already unearthed a stash of chestnuts and pine nuts.

“Pine nuts too?” Lin Heng said, a little surprised.

The hole was filled with chestnuts and pine nuts—a lucky find indeed.

He cracked open a pine nut and tasted it. A faint, nutty aroma lingered on his tongue.

“Let’s pack it up.”

Lin Heng took out a bag and collected every last nut. After giving Xiong Ba a good head rub, they continued wandering through the forest.

Not long after, they heard two gunshots. Lin Heng was curious what kind of prey the others had bagged.

Unknowingly, he and Xiong Ba had wandered up to a mountaintop. There, a massive white boulder overlooked a jade-green stream below, like a ribbon of emerald winding through the valley.

It wasn’t the stream near their camp, but one from a different valley.

Beyond the stream were distant mountains—majestic and shrouded in mist, yet exuding a sense of hopeless isolation.

The mountains were so vast, it would take generations to walk out of them.

After standing in the cold wind for a while, Lin Heng headed back down.

When he regrouped with the others, he saw what his uncle-in-law and Old Man Gao had caught.

Li Baiquan, his uncle-in-law, was holding two golden pheasants. Old Man Gao had four bamboo partridges in hand.

“Looks like your luck really ran out today,” Old Man Gao said with a chuckle.

“No luck, but I did pick some mushrooms—we can stew the chicken with them,” Lin Heng said, showing the enoki mushrooms in his bag.

“Then we’re in for a treat,” Old Man Gao grinned. Lin Heng was quite skilled at cooking meat.

Back at the shelter, Lin Heng discovered that the smoked meat and musk deer meat they’d hung up had been raided by magpies and crows.

Thankfully, he’d already wrapped the dried musk in plastic and kept it with him.

“Damn birds,” Li Baiquan cursed.

“Just stash it away tomorrow. It’s pretty much all dried now,” said Old Man Gao, checking the smoked meat.

It had been both smoked and sun-dried—it was completely cured.

“I’ll get started on dinner,” Lin Heng said, shaking his head and heading off to start the fire.

That night, they had rice with stir-fried musk deer innards. Those parts couldn’t be taken back with them, so they had to eat them here.

Old Man Gao and Li Baiquan were busy processing the game they’d caught.

“I roasted the musk deer eggs and the gun—who wants some?” Lin Heng said with a grin. Roasted, they were incredibly fragrant.

Old Man Gao laughed and shook his head. “You young folks enjoy it. This old man’s good.”

“Haha, then I’ll take one!” Li Baiquan said, laughing.

Lin Heng handed him one of the eggs and ate the other egg and the gun himself.

The cleaned parts were perfectly edible and tasted great.

After dinner, Lin Heng fetched some water and stewed one of the golden pheasants in a pot. He added only chestnuts—nothing else—and left it by the fire to slow-cook overnight.

By the next morning, the water in the pot had almost boiled away. Lin Heng quickly added more, then tossed in some Chinese yam, enoki mushrooms, and a pinch of salt. After simmering for another half hour, the chicken was fall-off-the-bone tender.

The meat was soft and fragrant, a pale golden color. The flavor of the chestnuts blended perfectly with the chicken.

“This stew is amazing,” Old Man Gao said, nodding repeatedly. For him, it was a real treat—he couldn’t stop eating.

“Golden pheasant has great texture. You don’t need to add anything—it’s delicious on its own,” Lin Heng said with a smile.

“Absolutely,” Li Baiquan agreed, downing bowl after bowl. It was just too good.

They soaked the leftover rice from last night in the chicken soup, and the flavor was out of this world.

On such a cold morning, a hot bowl of soup was pure bliss.

Lin Heng’s favorites were the chestnuts and enoki mushrooms—one was fragrant and sticky, the other smooth and tender.

After breakfast, the group set out once more.

Today, Lin Heng decided to change his strategy. He brought some rope and set up several King Yama’s Noose Traps in nearby areas.

In addition to those, he also laid out some regular snare traps throughout the day.

His uncle-in-law set a few traps as well. Old Man Gao, uninterested in traps, simply roamed the forest with his gun.

For the past couple of days, he’d been searching for traces of that bear. Lin Heng had wanted to track it down too—whether it was a black bear or a giant panda, it would’ve been great just to catch a glimpse.

Unfortunately, the snow had melted, and the tracks were gone. There was no way to tell where the creature had gone.

Over the next two days, the three of them didn’t have much luck either. Their catches were limited to small game like bamboo partridges, hazel grouse, or rabbits.

They ate some, saved some. Lin Heng checked the traps he’d set—still no activity.

Before they knew it, it was already December 25th. They’d been in the mountains for nearly ten days.

That afternoon, they gathered around the camp. With no major finds lately, the mood was getting a bit gloomy.

“Lin Heng, when are you planning to head back?” Li Baiquan asked, glancing over at him.

Lin Heng thought for a moment. “Let’s stay another week. We’ll see how things go after New Year’s. I still think there’s hope.”

“Alright then,” Li Baiquan nodded, though he was actually starting to feel like heading back.

Old Man Gao looked at Lin Heng and said, “Let’s go check out a more remote area tomorrow.”

Lin Heng nodded. It was their best option at this point.

Early the next morning, they had a quick breakfast of sauerkraut dough-drop noodles and set out.

After eating, Li Baiquan said, “I’ll stay nearby. You two go check the farther areas. I’ll go inspect the traps.”

They’d been trekking all over the place these past days—his old canvas shoes were nearly worn through—and still hadn’t gotten much. He didn’t feel like going far today.

“Alright. Just be careful out there, Uncle.”

Lin Heng nodded, not pushing him. A day of rest wasn’t a bad idea.

He set off with Xiong Ba and Old Man Gao.

They were already familiar with the surrounding area. By around eleven, they’d taken a shortcut over three mountains and arrived at a canyon more than ten kilometers from camp.

As soon as they entered the canyon, Xiong Ba picked up a scent. Lin Heng walked over and immediately said, “There are takins here! Too bad the droppings aren’t fresh.”

Takin droppings come in three forms: when they’re well-hydrated, they look like cow patties; with less moisture, they’re clumped; and when they’re really dry, they resemble goat pellets.

Even though takins have “niu” (ox) in their name, they actually belong to the goat subfamily. They’re the largest of the goat species, typically weighing between 200 and 400 kilograms, with some reportedly reaching up to a ton.

The droppings Xiong Ba found were clumped and already dried out, meaning they were at least two weeks old.

Still, this was good news for Lin Heng. Takins might not fetch a high price, but they had a lot of meat—plenty to sell. Plus, their hides were excellent for cold resistance and went for a decent price.

Bagging one could be worth around a thousand yuan.

Even better, takins were herd animals—usually groups of ten or more. Finding signs of one meant there were likely many nearby.

“I’ve found some too,” Old Man Gao said, nodding.

They kept moving forward and found even more droppings in the canyon, confirming it was a herd, not a lone animal.

Lin Heng was getting excited. If they could track them down, this trip to the Qinling Mountains would be a huge success.

Old Man Gao clearly understood that too. The two of them picked up the pace, following the trail.

Before they knew it, it was already afternoon. Old Man Gao said confidently, “The takins must have moved to lower ground. If we follow the canyon down, we’ll definitely find them.”

Lin Heng nodded. No doubt about it.

“But we’re running out of time. Let’s head back for now,” Lin Heng said, glancing at his watch.

As he looked down, he suddenly noticed Xiong Ba frozen, staring intently in one direction.

He followed the dog’s gaze—and was stunned. “A leopard!”

Up on the edge of the forest above the canyon stood a massive leopard with golden rosettes, staring straight at them.

“What?” Old Man Gao quickly turned his head. The leopard, now aware it had been spotted, slipped into the forest and vanished.

It was a leopard—also known as a panther. A true big cat, much larger than a clouded leopard, with adults weighing at least fifty kilograms.

Old Man Gao shook his head as he looked toward where the leopard had disappeared. “We’re lucky today, but that thing’s nearly impossible to hunt. Too clever.”

“Just seeing one is pure luck,” Lin Heng agreed. He had no intention of going after it.

Hunting a leopard required the perfect combination of timing, terrain, and manpower—missing any one of those and you were out of luck.

They looked around a bit more, then began the trek back.

On the way, they came across two golden pheasants. Each of them took one down with a bow and arrow. So, at least they weren’t going home empty-handed.

Lin Heng shook his head. The golden pheasants in these mountains were really taking a hit—they’d already bagged nearly ten over the past few days.

By the time they returned to camp, it was already dark. Li Baiquan greeted them with a big grin. “Guess what I found today?”

Lin Heng saw how he couldn’t stop smiling and asked curiously, “A muntjac? A wild boar? Did you get it?”

“Neither. I found a Hog Badger den. There are at least four or five inside. I couldn’t handle it alone, so I didn’t disturb them,” Li Baiquan said with a laugh.

“A Hog Badger den?” Lin Heng was taken aback. That was a big deal. If it really was a den, they could catch quite a few.

Even Old Man Gao looked surprised. “Where did you find it? We thought we had all the luck today—found takin tracks and even saw a leopard. But you found a Hog Badger den?”

Li Baiquan laughed heartily. “You guys had good luck too! I was just checking the traps, then went to dig up some wild yams and herbs. Found it by chance.”

Now he had zero intention of leaving.

Lin Heng grinned. “Haha, looks like our luck’s turning around too.”

By custom, the one who discovered a den got sixty percent of the haul. Lin Heng and Old Man Gao would help, so each of them would get twenty percent.

Worst case, they’d get half a Hog Badger. Best case, they might get a whole one.

“If I’d known where you guys were, I would’ve started digging today,” Li Baiquan said, grinning wide.

He then asked about the takins and the leopard. After hearing the details, he was even more determined to stay.

Who would’ve thought things would turn around so quickly?

They quickly ate dinner. Lately, they’d been eating mostly chicken meat or giblets. The pork and musk deer innards were long gone. They’d even eaten some of the cured meat.

After dinner, no one wasted time chatting—they all went straight to bed. Lin Heng rubbed his sore feet and drifted off.

This kind of mountain trekking was as tough as military drills—brutal. They were covering fifteen to twenty kilometers a day, and their shoes were falling apart.

But the exhaustion made for deep, satisfying sleep. In the morning, after a good pee, he felt refreshed all over.

They’d finished off the last of the noodles. There was still some sauerkraut left, so for breakfast they made sauerkraut chicken giblet dough-drop soup.

Tasted pretty good, though the soup didn’t look all that appetizing.

“Let’s go, time to move!” Li Baiquan said eagerly right after breakfast.

Old Man Gao said, “We need to get everything ready. The Hog Badger’s den runs deep—it won’t be easy.”

Li Baiquan waved his hand. “Don’t worry, I got everything prepped yesterday. We just need to top it off a bit.”

“Alright then,” Lin Heng nodded, and the four of them headed up the mountain together.

They followed the canyon for a while before climbing a mountain to the north. After crossing over, they descended into another ravine.

The area was thick with wild yam vines—a great spot for digging up mountain yams.

“It’s just up ahead,” Li Baiquan said as he led the way.

(End of Chapter)