My 1995 Small Farm.

Chapter 155 Wetland
"What is it? What did you find?"

Hearing the two old hunters shouting so excitedly, the group knew that the haul must be quite large.

They hurried forward.

Chen Ling, who had been tracking the jackals with a dog earlier and wasn't carrying any prey, was the first to approach.

Liu Guangli and Wang Lixian were beaming with joy, clearly overjoyed.

Pointing to the prey on the ground, he said, "Haha, Fugui, come and see! It wasn't a waste of time to chase after it all this way, was it? We really did manage to find it..."

This place is quite far from the cliff.

However, the slope is still quite steep, the nearby trees are sparse, and the ground is covered with vegetation consisting of ferns, shrubs, wild grasses, and mosses.

Chen Ling saw a plump and robust sika deer lying on the grassy slope. Its antlers were very beautiful, and judging from its appearance, it probably weighed over 100 pounds.
Not far from the sika deer, about ten meters away, there was another small, dark brown deer.

Their deaths were all quite gruesome...

Both were torn open from behind their anuses, their internal organs emptied by the jackals, leaving only two pitiful bodies.

“Fugui, try lifting it and see how it weighs. This male deer isn’t small. Even after that dog ripped out its cavity, it still weighs about a hundred pounds…”

Liu Guangli bent down, grabbed one of the sika deer's legs, and dragged it to Chen Ling.

Chen Ling took it and picked it up to try it out.

It was indeed quite heavy, so he laughed and said, "Looks like I'm having good luck today."

Adult sika deer weigh a little over 200 pounds, so this male deer is definitely not small.

Venison alone can fetch a considerable amount of money.

"Haha, what a huge sika deer!"

"I...I'll give it a try too."

Everyone was excited to have such a large prey for free.

One by one, they put down their things and came forward, eager to get started.

"Is that a small deer over there?"

Chen Ling turned his gaze to another spot, where Heiwa had already run over and snatched it away.

"This isn't a grass deer, it's a fragrant one..."

Liu Guangli shook his head, pointed to the fawn that Heiwa had thrown in front of everyone, and said to Chen Ling, "Look, there's a sachet under its belly. It's a tooth-shaped sachet."

Fragrant seed is the musk deer, also known as forest musk deer.

In their culture, male musk deer are called "tooth musk deer," and females are called "grass musk deer."

Because male musk deer have two curved teeth showing at the corners of their mouths.

This is a male musk deer. It looks like a deer, but it's much smaller, has no antlers, brown fur, and light-colored spots on its back, though not as prominent as on a sika deer. It's 50 centimeters tall, which is considered quite large for a musk deer.

"How about it, Fugui? Never seen this before? Come here, have a sniff..."

Seeing that Chen Ling was still in a daze, Liu Guangli patted him on the shoulder and gave him a mischievous smile.

Although Chen Ling had often heard people say that musk deer smelled wonderful and that natural musk was extremely precious, he had never actually seen such a thing in all these years.

Out of curiosity, I squatted down, turned the musk deer over, and brought my hand to its belly button. I gently pressed the bulging musk pod and took a deep sniff.

Instantly, a strong, sour, and foul odor assaulted his nostrils, nearly knocking him over. He stood up and coughed violently.

"Cough cough cough..."

"Ugh, what's that smell? It's fucking awful."

"Haha, that's what makes it smelly."

Liu Guangli's wicked scheme succeeded, and he sat on the grass next to him, laughing so hard he almost fell over.

"You old geezer, you're so old, yet you're still full of bad intentions..."

Chen Ling coughed for a long time, rubbing his nose repeatedly, but still couldn't catch his breath.

Everyone couldn't help but laugh when they saw his expression.

After having their fun, the group of young men were very curious. Even though they knew the stuff smelled bad, they all crowded around and carefully took a sniff.

"Uncle Guangli, aren't all sachets supposed to smell wonderful? Why do they smell so pungent? Did the dog eat the cavity and ruin the sachet?"

"What's wrong with it? The sachet wasn't cut off, but it still smells like this."

"We usually feel sick of sweet candy when it's too sweet, and this stuff is the same way. It can be so delicious that it'll turn rotten after a while..."

Liu Guangli clicked his tongue and said, "If you don't believe me, take some out, find a place with water, put it in the water, and after it dissolves, the fragrance will linger for days."

"Huh? Really?"

"Really, try it if you don't believe me!"

"This... let's forget about it. I heard this thing is very expensive. Let's not waste such a good thing."

The villagers looked at each other. Although they hadn't seen musk deer much, people in the village often went up the mountain to collect herbs to exchange for money, so they roughly knew that it was a valuable thing.

"These are indeed good things. No wonder the rich family's dog has done such a great service. The sika deer and the fragrant ones are all incredibly valuable..."

Liu Guangli sat on the grass, humming and shaking his head.

Then he looked up and grinned at Chen Ling: "Well, valuable as it may be, since this stag and Xiangzi were found by your dog, Fugui, we won't get involved. They're all yours..."

Chen Ling was stunned for a moment, then pushed him away, saying, "No, Uncle Guangli."

"This mountain and river scenery is for everyone to enjoy; how can we keep it all to ourselves?"

Indeed, the old rule is that everyone who goes hiking or swimming gets a share.

It means that whether you go hunting in the mountains or fishing in the water, everyone who participates gets a share of the spoils, even the little kids who cheer and shout along.

However, there are some nuances here: the "head shot" or "fish head" should get a larger share.

The "first shot" is the person who hits the prey first. In addition to sharing the prey with everyone else, they are also entitled to choose the hide or other valuable parts.

The "fish leader" is the person who leads the fishing. After the catch is divided, they can also choose extra large fish.

Even though they've found sika deer and musk deer, nobody's seriously chasing them in the mountains anymore.

But neither of these items is cheap.

Besides its hide and meat, the sika deer's penis, heart, and tail are all used in traditional Chinese medicine.

This doesn't need much explanation; the key is the musk deer.

A single musk sachet can fetch a considerable sum.

This is natural musk, you should know.

Chen Ling knew this better than anyone else. In later generations, this thing was a prohibited item and was not allowed to be bought or sold privately, but it was repeatedly banned but still sold at exorbitant prices.

Even in this day and age, it's very expensive.

In the years before, around 90, the annual production of musk was only about 2000 kilograms, and it has been decreasing ever since. It's important to know that this is not just the musk from the musk deer.

The total amount is also included in the total amount of other aromatic wild animals.

Although the price is not as crazy as it was in later years, a musk deer sachet can still sell for several hundred yuan.

"Uncle Guangli, everyone who sees this mountain and water-chasing event gets a share, let's stick to the old rules..."

Wang Lixian and the others from Chenwangzhuang echoed this sentiment.

Liu Guangli waved his hand and stood up from the grass: "Don't bother with it, you can take it. I reckon there's more ahead. After all these years of venturing into this old forest, I know more about dog-catching than you do. Let's go, let's walk a little further and see..."

"What do you mean, Uncle Guangli? Does that mean Xiangzi and the sika deer are involved too?"

Upon hearing this, the young man became as excited as if he had been injected with chicken blood.

"Go away, what are you thinking about?"

"These sika deer, like the male ones, are basically solitary, living alone, unless it's spring or summer when the weather is warm enough for breeding, otherwise you'll never see them in herds..."

"There are only two or three of them at most. This stuff is especially fragrant. It gets very lazy in the fall. It often settles down on a high mountain. When the sun comes out, it lies sprawled out on the cliff to dry its fragrant sachets. After the scent spreads out, insects and ants crawl into its sachets, and its sachets grow bigger and bigger. Then it stays on that mountain all year round and doesn't come down."

"This thing is timid. If it weren't for the dog catcher, even with the help of the rich family's two big dogs, it would have been difficult for us!"

As he spoke, Liu Guangli pointed to the cliff behind him: "Look at this, no matter how fast a dog runs, how can you catch them on a cliff like this? Those guys can leap really high and climb trees. Only someone like a dog catcher could subdue them..."

The young men thought about it and realized that such clever wild animals were indeed quite difficult to catch. Chen Ling, however, ignored this and exchanged glances with Wang Lixian and Chen Dazhi.

I roughly guessed what Liu Guangli was thinking.

They weren't given a share of the spoils. Firstly, it was Chen Ling's dog that chased after them; without his dog, they wouldn't have found such valuable goods at all.

Secondly, there are too many people in Chenwangzhuang.

There were twelve people who went into the mountains in total, and Liu Guangli and his group had five more.

Even if they split the profits, Chen Ling is still entitled to the lion's share according to the rules.

Whether or not to separate them, it's all meaningless.

It's better to do someone a favor.

Although there are many young people in Chenwangzhuang, none of them are truly foolish or ignorant.

Nobody touched the deer and Xiangzi on the ground.

Each of them took what they were supposed to take and what they were supposed to carry, leaving that to Chen Ling.

Seeing this, Chen Ling felt quite helpless, so he had no choice but to prop up the deer's legs himself, carry the sika deer on his back, and have Heiwa carry the musk deer in his mouth, and continue on the way with the others.

We descended slowly along the wide ridge. When we reached the edge of the forest, we heard the sound of water nearby. We turned around and walked towards the water. Before long, a deep ravine appeared in front of us.

The water was extremely clear, flowing through a ditch four or five meters deep beneath the group.

Liu Guangli crouched down and looked around, noticing dark red animal fur and bloodstains. He said, "Head northwest..."

As soon as he finished speaking, the pack of dogs from Chenwangzhuang, led by Xiao Jin, ran off.

Liu Guangli was taken aback for a moment, then laughed: "Looks like I guessed right."

"What's going on? Is it another chance to find meat?"

Everyone immediately perked up.

Liu Guangli shook his head: "It's not wild animal meat. You'll find out once you come along."

Then, as we walked forward, after only about ten meters, the continuous barking of dogs came from the woods.

Upon hearing the sound, everyone quickened their pace and rushed over. They found the forest sparse, mostly with common mountain species such as soapberry, paper mulberry, eucalyptus, and tung oil tree. Xiao Jin was barking wildly among the trees with his pack of dogs, and behind them lay several red-haired wild animals.

It turned out to be the dead dog-eater.

After counting them carefully, there were five in total.

Most of the people in Chenwangzhuang were surprised to see this scene.

"How come so many of these dog catchers died?"

"Was it killed by dogs? No, that's not right. They're fast and they wanted to run away. Our dogs can't catch them here."

"Also, when we came here, Uncle Lixian and the others mentioned that there were wild boars. Could it be that they were killed by wild boars?"

"That's right, there aren't enough sika deer and xiangzi to eat, so they'll probably go hunt wild boars to eat..."

Wang Lixian did not immediately answer their speculations, but stepped forward to look at the corpses of the dog catchers.

He asked, "Uncle Guangli, you came here just to find this?"

"That's right! We're looking for them..."

Liu Guangli walked up to the jackal and looked it over from all angles.

Chen Ling and the others were also puzzled, so they went over to investigate as well.

"Does Li Xian know how they died here?"

Liu Guangli asked with a smile.

"Well, I don't know as much about this as you do, Uncle Guangli, but I've heard the older folks say that when dog stalks form packs, there are more males than females. The more males there are, the more they like to fight, especially after one gets injured. If there isn't enough food to go around, the other dog stalks will bite it to death..."

Wang Lixian thought for a moment and then answered.

He had only heard about this from the old hunters in the village; he had never experienced it himself.

Liu Guangli hummed in agreement and nodded: "You're right, that's how vicious a dog can be."

"I reckon one of these is the alpha jackal, and we shot him, so he's useless now. The other male dogs weren't happy about it, so they fought here. Look at their wounds; this one's blind, and his ear was bitten off..."

Chen Ling and the others went over to take a look. These dog-snatching dogs were indeed badly injured. Some of them had been disemboweled, with their intestines spilling out all over the ground.

Fortunately, they don't eat their own kind.

The people of Chenwangzhuang were truly amazed by what they saw and couldn't help but exclaim in amazement.

Then, when it was time to divide the prey again, Chen Ling and his group refused to take any.

Jackal pelts aren't very valuable; their pelts can't compare to wolf or fox pelts, and their meat is even cheaper. But since they were found without any effort, it's already quite good.

"Alright, I won't stand on ceremony anymore. With these five scoundrels around, it's time for us to head back down the mountain..."

After Liu Guangli and his four companions neatly tied up and cleaned the five jackals, they were now carrying wild boars and other game of various sizes on their backs.

"You guys should look around some more. Judging from the footprints, the wild boar didn't go very far. I reckon it's still on these two hills."

"Alright, take care on your journey."

"Haha, let's go!"

"By the way, Fugui, come here for a moment, I'll tell you two prescriptions."

...The hunters from Kinmen Village left, heading southwest along the mountain stream and crossing a mountain.

Chen Ling and his group remained near Eagle Claw Ridge, searching for traces left by the wild boar.

However, they were also discussing that they would stay for two more days at most before heading out of the mountains. Frost was approaching, and although the temperature in the mountains was not high, the livestock could not be left for too long. Today was the third day, and they needed to get rid of them as soon as possible.

"Fugui, quickly call the dog over, get ready to find a slut."

Following the wild boar's tracks around the mountain, Wang Lixian discovered the latest traces of the wild boar on a bare, bluish-green rock in a pine forest.

There were wild boar footprints and rough, stiff wild boar hair.

Chen Ling quickly went over, took the musk deer that Heiwa was carrying in his mouth, and let the two dogs smell it together.

"Brother Xian, I can now roughly recognize the wild boar's footprints and droppings. How did you guys figure out its size and weight?"

Chen Ling couldn't quite understand it.

"It's not difficult. Wild boars like to rub their itch after walking a certain distance. If you look at the footprints they leave behind and the height of the rubbing spots, you can estimate the size and weight of a wild boar after seeing it many times!"

As Wang Lixian spoke, he pointed to the footprints not far away and said, "Look, the wild boar's footprints are made with its toes touching the ground, and the depth varies. The deeper the footprints, the bigger the boar is, and the shallower the footprints, the smaller the boar is. You can figure that out. Look at the height of this scratching mark, it's about fifty centimeters deep, and the footprints are two or three centimeters deep. That's a wild boar that weighs about two hundred pounds..."

"However, the ground is different in hardness. You have to pay attention and remember it yourself. After running in the mountains a lot, you will know what it is without anyone teaching you."

Everyone suddenly realized.

While they were talking, two dogs came up to Sao and led the pack of dogs down the hillside.

After the group followed, they soon went down the mountain stream.

To the north of the mountain stream is a sunny slope. From the bottom of the stream all the way to the top of the cliff, there is a magical tree with leaves like a sycamore tree, but flowers that look like lotus buds about to bloom. A strange fragrance drifts over with the water vapor, making Chen Ling really want to go and dig one up.

But they couldn't cross the deep ravine.

I had no choice but to obediently follow the two dogs to track the wild boar.

Finally, the stream split into two in the mountain valley, and they followed the pack of dogs southward.

Before long, following the small stream, the terrain gradually lowered, and slowly, a wetland appeared before everyone's eyes, hidden among dense reeds and cattails. The water was grayish-green, and the area was large, but the surface was very calm. From a distance, it had a kind of deep and quiet beauty.

As you get closer, the sound of the water diminishes.

A series of clear chirping birdsongs mingled with the cawing of waterbirds.

No wild boars were seen in the wetlands, only a flock of white cranes, standing quietly in the lush reeds, slowly preening their feathers. On the distant water, another flock of equally white and elegant birds flapped their wings and called out.

"It's that flock of white cranes!"

"And, swans..."

Everyone subconsciously slowed their pace, watching the beautiful migratory birds.

But at that moment, on the other side of the water, a golden figure silently appeared, crouching from the forest toward the water's edge.

(End of this chapter)