My 1995 Small Farm.

Chapter 149: Pushing the Mountain
"It's a crane."

Several young people opened their mouths wide and echoed the sentiment.

"What crane? A crane is a red-crowned crane, with a bright red forehead. You can't even tell the difference between a crane and a white crane? You've all grown up in vain."

Chen Dazhi turned around and slapped his nephew, saying with disgust.

The group laughed and weren't embarrassed at all.

The flock of cranes arrives no later than the ninth day of the ninth lunar month and departs no later than the third day of the third lunar month.

This year has a leap August, which, according to previous years, would actually be considered the ninth month of the lunar calendar. All the usual solar terms have already passed.

It's perfectly normal for flocks of cranes to fly back from the north.

Every year at this time, you can see them along the riverbanks, in ponds, and in reed marshes.

Among wild ducks, moorhens, and other waterfowl, it truly stands out like a crane among chickens, attracting a lot of attention.

After walking along the mountain stream for a while, the group...

Soon another migratory bird was discovered.

"Chirp, chirp—"

Its call was delicate and clear, and at first everyone thought it was a quail.

As you approach, just a few steps away, a flock of birds flutters up from the grass; it turns out to be a cluster of willow branches.

That is, the warbler.

The small, yellowish-green bird was about two sizes smaller than a sparrow.

She has a slender figure and golden tattooed eyebrows.

This bird is very beautiful and is often mistaken for a canary.

But he just stood there, looking completely dazed.

People usually only realize it's flying when they get within a few meters of it; it's a very easy bird to catch.

However, local residents rarely make arrests.

People are always exceptionally tolerant of these migratory birds.

I can see them in the fall, but I won't see them for most of the rest of the year, and I'll miss them.

In fact, like many migratory birds, the willow catkin flies north in spring and summer to incubate eggs and reproduce, and then flies south to overwinter in autumn.

Many are just passing through the area and don't stay long.

They will continue to cross the Yangtze River.

But people are used to having them in autumn; it's a simple sentiment.

This is the time of year to go into the mountains.

Migratory birds, which are rarely seen on ordinary days, have started to appear one after another.

However, there are far fewer pheasants and rabbits, perhaps due to the frequent activity of wolf packs in the past two months.

According to Wang Lixian.

In the past, whenever we ventured deep into this area, rabbits would often roam in clumps in the bushes.

Pheasants were also running around everywhere.

There are very few now.

The prey wasn't anything special either. After searching the mountains for half a day, the largest animal they saw was a yellow tabby that was running away in panic.

The fox was just as alert as the wolf; it ran away before it could even raise its gun.

It seems we need to keep moving forward.

However, it's almost noon now, and everyone was exhausted from clearing the path by cutting through the vines, so we need to prepare lunch early.

Let's fill our stomachs before continuing our journey.

So they let the dogs out, letting them sniff around with their heads down, running back and forth in the dense forest.

It took a good while before Xiao Jin led a few pheasants out. They flapped their wings and squawked, quite frightened, their feathers flying like snowflakes across the stream as they fled towards the group.

The pheasant panicked, terrified, and didn't even care that there were people around.

It made terrified "clucking" sounds.

We can't let something that comes to us go.

The crowd raised their guns and opened fire, shooting down two of them.

Including the one Xiao Jin caught.

That's enough to eat.

Heiwa had stayed beside Chen Ling as a warning.

Now, seeing that the dogs have all made a harvest, I run over to join in the fun.

When Chen Ling got closer, he saw that in addition to the pheasant that Xiao Jin had caught, the other dogs had also caught some mountain rats.

Chen Ling was both amused and exasperated, and wanted to throw them away.

Chen Dazhi, however, said to keep it, since it's still some meat.

"Hey kid, why are you making such a face? Mountain rats don't have much of a smell, and they're even a bit sweet when roasted over a fire. They're all lean meat and quite palatable."

As he spoke, he glanced at Chen Ling, then picked up the mountain rats and tied them together.

Chen Ling shook his head, unable to imagine the smell of rats.

He said, “Alright, then you guys kill the pheasants. I just saw snakes peeking out from the bushes and trees a few steps away. I’ll go catch them and we should be able to make a pot of snake soup.”

He learned the skill of catching snakes with his bare hands from Wang Susu.

He crept up quietly and caught them every time. Heiwa tried to follow, but he chased him aside and caught them himself.

In a short while, they caught three snakes.

Two large cauliflower snakes, and a burlap sack.

Holding it in his hand, he smiled at people and said, "We're lucky, aren't we? They're all quite big; enough to fill our stomachs by noon."

indeed.

This skill is quite remarkable, leaving Chen Yubin and the other young men completely stunned.

Upon closer inspection, they discovered that Chen Ling had already broken the neck bones of these snakes.

Just then, Chen Ling came over with the snake.

They had already gathered firewood, started a fire, and were setting up a pot to boil water.

Then, using the stream, they got busy.

Chen Ling hung the snake on a small tree branch, skinned it in a few seconds, removed its internal organs, and then cut off its head.

Meanwhile, Wang Lixian and Chen Dazhi went to deal with the pheasants.

After cleaning everything, cut the snake meat into sections and stew it in soup.

Stuff the pheasant's belly with seasonings and wild fruits, then wrap it with large mulberry leaves.

Even the largest mulberry leaves are not as big as lotus leaves, so they need to be divided into several pieces and wrapped together, tied with thin vines, and wrapped several times.

After wrapping it up, dig some hard yellow mud from the stream, mix it with other mud to make a soft paste, and then smear it thickly on the pheasant before roasting it.

In the mountains, at times like these.

You don't need too many seasonings; just use pure, natural, wild ones.

Wrap the pheasant in mud and throw it into the fire.

Chen Ling then led Yu Qiang and Chen Ze to look for mushrooms, wood ear fungus, and the like, intending to stew them with the snake meat.

A few young people also came to help with the search.

Normally, mushroom picking involves splitting up into two or three directions to gather more mushrooms. But now we just make a soup, enough to last.

Affected by the two autumn rains a few days ago, many fresh mushrooms have sprouted in the mountains.

Butterfly mushrooms, meat mushrooms, yellow-footed mushrooms, oxlip mushrooms...

Each person can easily pick a handful.

Pick the mushrooms, wash them, and cook them in a pot.

Suddenly, he heard someone shout, "Damn it, which bastard hit me?" Chen Ling turned around and saw Chen Dazhi pulling up his pants as he hurriedly ran out of the dense forest.

Behind them, a group of monkeys were leaping back and forth on the branches of the trees, hurling wild fruits and other things at the trees.

It hurts so much.

This made Chen Dazhi look like he was running away with his head in his hands.

Seeing Chen Ling and the others standing motionless by the stream watching the show, he immediately said in a fit of anger, "These damn monkeys are so annoying! All you do is watch the show, why don't you take out your guns and chase them away?"

After saying that, he raised his hunting rifle and started shooting at the monkeys.

A gunshot rang out.

The monkeys immediately started squeaking and screaming in fright.

While frantically jumping around on the tree branches, it didn't forget to keep hitting people on the head.

He really does hold grudges.

Chen Ling was squatting next to the firewood and didn't get up when he was accidentally hit.

My forehead is bruised and sore.

His temper flared up immediately.

He also got up and fired a shot from his hunting rifle.

Now, Heiwa and Xiaojin couldn't sit still any longer. They led their pack of dogs, barking loudly as they chased after them. But the monkeys leaped and bounded among the branches with incredible agility. The dogs couldn't climb the trees and could only tilt their heads back, barking and circling around the base of the trees.

But the shotgun did hit several monkeys.

Although they weren't killed, the monkeys were beaten so badly they screamed and fled in terror, swinging from branch to branch.

"Damn it, those monkeys in the mountains are so annoying."

"We have guns this time, so we're not afraid of them."

“In the past, you couldn’t chase them away. Slingshots couldn’t hurt them. They would follow you all the way, jumping and yelling, and throwing stones down. They scared away all the wild animals. You wouldn’t be able to catch any prey when you went into the mountains.”

Chen Dazhi said through gritted teeth, seemingly harboring deep resentment.

Wang Lixian nodded.

When he was young, he often went into the mountains and was also frequently disturbed by them.

Later, a bow was made, and things got a little better.

But having a bow and arrows but no gun isn't safe either; it's best to avoid provoking these annoying guys when you're alone or with one other person.

After chasing away the monkeys, the first meal in the mountains was ready.

Thank goodness Chen Ling brought the seasonings, otherwise these rough men would have been in trouble.

Adding a pinch of salt should be enough.

In the mountains, people just try to fill their stomachs; if there's a hot meal, they'll make do. Most people go into the mountains to make a living; nobody's picky.

Today, however, I'm in for a treat.

I've tasted Chen Ling's cooking before.

Needless to say, everyone was tired and hungry. They were drinking the delicious snake soup and eating the fragrant beggar's chicken, and they were so engrossed in it that they forgot to talk.

However, after seeing Chen Ling share the food with his two dogs, they all stared wide-eyed, unable to contain themselves.

"Good heavens, you're really willing to spend money on wealth."

"No wonder your dog is so intelligent; you must be raising it like a son."

But think about it.

If his family also had two dogs that would catch pheasants and rabbits every now and then, they would probably treat them well.

This is a treasure.

Turning the corner, I couldn't help but feel envious again.

This left Chen Ling both amused and exasperated.

After enjoying this sumptuous lunch, our first meal of the day upon entering the mountains.

After a short rest, the group continued northward. To the north lay towering mountains that reached into the clouds, their slopes becoming increasingly steep and their forests increasingly tall and deep. People standing among them felt as small as ants.

They continued along the stream, following the tracks left by the prey along the water's edge, and were usually able to make a simple judgment about the type and quantity of the prey.

Experienced hunters like Wang Lixian can accurately predict the direction in which prey will appear and make corresponding hunting plans.

……

And so, as they ventured deeper, the stream gradually widened, and the tracks of prey began to appear more frequently.

Not to mention the pheasants and rabbits, they also discovered another troop of monkeys, which startled a group of oddly colored wild ducks that fled quickly along the water's surface, leaving long trails of water that even dogs couldn't catch.

It left everyone in awe.

"Stop right here, this is it..."

When they reached a rocky beach along the stream, Wang Lixian and Chen Dazhi turned around and squatted down to observe carefully. There were dense hoof and footprints here, indicating that prey often came here to drink water.

It's a good location.

They could make some inferences by observing the degree of drying of the feces, the depth of the footprints, and the direction of the hoofprints.

Once he had a general idea, he stood up and reminded Chen Ling.

"Fugui, get ready, we're about to unleash the dogs to chase you up the mountain."

After Chen Ling nodded in agreement, Wang Lixian gave another round of arrangements.

“Fugui will stay with me and guard the ‘intersection’ later. Shuiwazi and the rest of you are young and strong, so you’ll follow the dog and be its runners…”

Jiaokou is one of the places that wild animals inevitably pass through after being disturbed.

"Sitting at the crossroads" is a common term for ambush, which means finding someone with good marksmanship to hide well and set up an ambush.

"Chasing the foot" or "chasing the mountain" refers to people who follow dogs to chase the mountain, shouting slogans to help the dogs drive the prey towards the intersection.

After everyone had a clear division of labor.

Wang Lixian pulled Chen Ling along and made Xiao Jin sniff the messy hoof prints and some feces by the water's edge. His family's yellow tabby dog ​​also followed suit.

After a moment, the yellow tiger stripe showed no reaction.

Xiao Jin's eyes sharpened, and she sobbed softly in one direction.

This means the prey has been spotted!
"What a clever dog..."

Wang Lixian couldn't help but look up in surprise and glance at Chen Ling.

After the previous times, he had come to think highly of Chen Ling's two dogs.

I didn't expect that I had underestimated it.

"Xiao Jin, go!"

Chen Ling smiled slightly and gave the order to Xiao Jin.

All that could be heard was Xiao Jin's low growling, and the pack of dogs perked up, ears perked, and followed closely behind, galloping wildly in one direction of the forest.

Chen Ze and his uncles exchanged glances, nodded to Chen Ling and the others, and then hurriedly followed.

The mountain chase has begun.

(End of this chapter)