My 1995 Small Farm.

Chapter 325 Descending into the Wolf's Den, Capturing a Basket of Wolf Puppies

Raiding a wolf's den is neither particularly difficult nor particularly easy.

Back when the commune was still in existence, when fighting the wolf pack, if they were pushed to the brink, they would still find the wolf dens and wipe them out one by one.

To raid a wolf's den, the key is whether you know its location beforehand, specifically where it's hidden in the mountains.

Another question is whether we can keep all the wolves in their den.

Wolves hold grudges; if you don't nip the problem in the bud, you're likely to face their revenge.

So in the past, if you knew where the wolf's den was, it was basically a prelude to raiding the house and wiping out the whole family.

This is not the same concept as Chen Ling raiding a wolf's den.

He just wanted to catch a few wolf cubs.

Besides, those wolves were female wolves who had mated with Heiwa.

Therefore, there is no need to make a big fuss about this trip, and there is no need to worry too much.

Two dogs, an eagle, and a hunting rifle are enough.

The family also knew about the wolf pack.

Back when the wolf den was still in the ravine behind the mountain, Chen Ling led his family to visit it.

When Heiwa was around, the wolves weren't afraid of people, nor did they bare their teeth at them. They would eat when they wanted to eat, play when they wanted to play, each doing their own thing, and they didn't offend anyone.

So we're not worried at all.

My father-in-law is going back to Fenglei Town in a couple of days.

Hearing that Chen Ling was going into the mountains to capture the little wolf cub, he wanted to go with him.

Chen Ling naturally had no objection to going.

So the next morning, after breakfast, the father-in-law and son-in-law packed their things and set off.

The third day of the eleventh lunar month falls in early winter.

The air in the mountains and forests felt exceptionally cool and crisp.

The winding, narrow path stretches deep into the mountains and forests.

The mountains are serene and secluded during this season.

The cold of winter has not yet officially arrived, and the withered yellow leaves have not yet all fallen.

The mountains, their colors still vibrant, are ablaze with autumn hues.

The water flow has not dried up, and the water is colorful.

However, winter has finally arrived, the weather has turned cold, and the mountains are no longer as lively as usual. Walking in the mountains, stepping on the thick layer of fallen leaves, you can only hear a few birds chirping.

The chirping of insects and the playful antics of small animals have all vanished.

But there was a touch of desolation.

"Hey, Fugui, you and Uncle Cunye are up early to run in the mountains too?"

"Yes, you're here so early too."

The two men didn't go into the mountains too late, but there were others who went even earlier, a group of young people from the village. In the past two months, they had been catching squirrels and trapping wild boars, and selling their catch in Wangba City for a considerable amount of money.

Once they see the money, they all get even more excited.

Judging from this, they came up the mountain before dawn.

They get up early to go up the mountain, mostly to catch the traps.

The traps and snares yield results at night, so collect them early.

Receiving the goods too late can easily lead to accidents.

"We arrived early, but we can't compare to you. Your dog is too amazing; it never comes into the mountains empty-handed. We often come back empty-handed with nothing."

"If you don't believe me, look, we caught these little tits last night, and even the mice aren't taking the bait."

"Exactly, we've been wandering around here for two or three days, and we probably don't get as many fares as you get in one trip."

"..."

"No, it's not as exaggerated as you all say. Now that it's winter, there are fewer wild animals, and they don't like to come out usually, so it's not easy for anyone to catch them. Let's wait for snow. When it snows, they'll go hungry for a few meals, and then they'll be easier to catch."

Chen Ling shook his head. This year there were more wild things in the mountains, and everyone's harvest was pretty good.

In previous years, setting a trap in the mountains might not yield anything of value even after seven or eight days; it would usually just be some random mountain birds or mice.

That's good enough.

Using a gun or slingshot isn't necessarily better than this.

In addition, everyone is busy with various things on weekdays and doesn't rely solely on hunting for a living, so their shooting and slingshot skills are not very strong.

Sometimes, even after wandering around all day, it's hard to hit more than a few birds.

This isn't just idle talk; you'll know once you take a slingshot outside and try it out.

In the end, it's not as profitable as setting two traps or two snares.

Unlike Chen Ling's family.

Two dogs wanted to catch some pheasants and rabbits, and they caught them every time.

Even Chen Ling, who is only half-baked, can leave the average person far behind.

After all, who has as much free time as him to spend time and energy shooting guns and using slingshots?

“Fu Gui is right. These wild creatures are easier to catch when it snows. If they are frozen for two days, cold and hungry, they will not be afraid to leave their nests.”

"Just scatter some food in the snow, and they'll step right into the traps. Wouldn't that make them easy to catch?"

"It's only the beginning of winter, so we'll have to wait a while longer for snow."

"Yes, we have to wait, but it's worth the wait this year. There are so many wild things in the fall, and if we come to catch them in the winter, the harvest will definitely be good."

I chatted with these people for a few minutes.

They are all quite young and have little experience running in the mountains.

Chen Ling didn't tell them to go deeper into the area.

The mountains to the north are sparsely populated, with abundant prey, and squirrels hopping about in the trees.

However, there were signs of lynxes in the area, so I decided not to tell them.

Although I look down on squirrels and civets, it's winter now and wild animals are more likely to go hungry, so it's best not to let people go too far in.

"These wild yams are pretty good, let's dig some up on the way back."

“It’s grown quite big. Dad, you’ve been here this year, but you haven’t managed to dig up any kudzu or wild yams…”

"Hey, whether you dig or not, I'm just rambling on. I'm happy enough just looking after my grandson. What's a little bit of stuff compared to that?"

In the past, Wang Cunye would go into the mountains to dig for medicinal herbs in late autumn.

Dig for Gastrodia elata, kudzu root, and wild yam.

Pick Schisandra chinensis, Japanese raisin tree, and wild chrysanthemum.

This is a habit they've developed over many years: picking the right herbs for the right season, otherwise they always feel a sense of emptiness.

"Our wine is selling quite well. I was planning to pick a few more baskets of Schisandra chinensis for you to make wine this year, but I couldn't manage it. It looks like I'll have to wait until next autumn."

The old man sighed, but was soon drawn to the wild fruits hanging loosely on the branches in the forest.

Pointing to a few wild persimmon trees, he said, "The birds haven't destroyed the persimmons on these trees. Leave a mark, and you can come back to pick dried persimmons in a while."

Dried persimmons that naturally form on the tree taste almost as good as homemade persimmon cakes.

After being coated with frost, they taste sweet and chewy, with a texture similar to dried sweet potatoes, making them a good snack.

Chen Ling walked up to the tree, looked up, and saw that the persimmon skin was somewhat wilted and wrinkled.

"These aren't dried persimmons yet, but they've been touched by frost, so it's fine to eat them now."

He then picked a few and handed them to his father-in-law and father-in-law, and peeled and ate them himself.

The persimmons weren't spoiled at this time; they just had less moisture and more sugar in the flesh, with a bright yellow core. When you broke them in half, they looked like candied fruit—very sweet and delicious.

The father-in-law and son-in-law ate as they walked, while Heiwa led Xiaojin around, catching any prey they saw, regardless of its size.

Unfortunately, after winter sets in, herbivorous wild animals begin to migrate south, and species like deer, roe deer, and muntjacs become increasingly rare.

Even for the two of them, finding such large prey is quite a challenge.

Wang Cunye picked up the prey that Heiwa Xiaojin had caught and put it in the basket. He said with great admiration, "Heiwa is really diligent. If it were any other male dog, it wouldn't care whether you had puppies or not after mating. It wouldn't even pay attention to you."

My little male dog is old enough to mate, I wonder if he'll be able to learn even a fraction of what Heiwa does.

"Hmm, that shouldn't be a problem, with its older brother setting a good example."

Chen Ling smiled and said to the two dogs, "You two stop what you're doing and lead the way. After we get the wolf cubs, let's go home as soon as possible. It's very cold in the mountains."

The father-in-law waved with a smile and said, "Lead the way, lead the way. I've heard magpies chirping all the way, so this trip is sure to go smoothly. I've been wanting to see those wolf cubs for a long time."

Heiwa stuck out his tongue and wagged his tail at Chen Ling, then turned and ran off first.

Xiao Jin followed leisurely beside the two.

Looking at the red leaves covering the mountain, the two people and two dogs walked for more than half an hour until they could see a cliff in front of them before stopping.

The cliff is not steep; on the contrary, it is very flat.

Beneath several old pine trees, bent and twisted by the mountain wind, lies a huge, strange rock that, from a distance, looks like a giant toad lying on a cliff.

This is another dangerous place besides Wolf-Claw Rock, called Toad Cliff.

The danger of Toad Cliff stemmed from the fact that there were many venomous snakes in the area in the past. "Goodness, they really know how to find a place. So they moved to Toad Cliff."

Chen Ling saw Xiao Jin wagging its tail at him next to several large footprints under the big tree, and Heiwa also stopped in front of him, looking at him with fawning eyes. Needless to say, that was enough.

The wolf's den must be nearby.

Wang Cunye went closer to take a look and confirmed that they were indeed wolf footprints. "They've moved quite a distance. I thought they were heading north to the Qinling Mountains, but I didn't expect them to have taken a detour and come south."

If Wolf-Claw Rock is to the north of the farm, then Toad Cliff must be to the southwest, which is quite a roundabout way.

The wolves in the mountains are cunning, and they usually build their dens in very hidden places.

Inexperienced people can't find the wolf's den.

With Heiwa leading them, Chen Ling and his son-in-law went down the ridge and quickly approached Toad Cliff.

The wolf den was located below Toad Cliff, hidden by dense bushes.

After passing through the bushes, the entrance to the wolf den is located beneath a large rock.

Chen Ling crouched down in front of the wolf den and peered inside.

The entrance to this wolf den is large enough for one person to enter, but it is extremely deep and long, at least ten or twenty meters.

"Ow~"

Heiwa squatted at the entrance of the wolf den, tilted his head back, and howled. His deep and long howl quickly stirred up the wolf den.

Soon after, the soft whimpering of wolves could be heard coming from inside the cave.

This isn't the howl of a wolf cub; it's the mother wolf knowing Heiwa has arrived and trying to charm him.

However, these nursing mother wolves are too wary.

When they were three or four meters from the cave entrance, they noticed the old man and his son-in-law, Chen Ling and his son-in-law, and the young man outside. They immediately bared their white teeth and growled at them in a low voice, threatening them.

This is the mother wolf after giving birth to her cubs.

Protecting their young is an instinct and responsibility ingrained in the very bones of these mother wolves, and indeed the entire wolf pack; at this point, no one can intervene.

Even though Heiwa kept barking to reassure them, it was to no avail.

At the cave entrance, Chen Ling and his companion could only see pairs of bright green eyes gleaming inside.

Gradually, they retreated back into the cave.

Chen Ling watched them shrink further and further back, and with his keen hearing, he could still hear the soft, baby cries of wolf pups coming from deep within the cave.

The sounds of babyish voices made him restless, so he rubbed his hands together and urged, "Heiwa, go and fetch a few of your little ones. Just leave one or two from each litter. Hurry up and go."

Heiwa stared wide-eyed at him, tilting his head, until Xiaojin barked twice before he understood what he meant.

Unlike Xiao Jin, Heiwa is smart, but not good with numbers.

It can't tell the difference between one or two, whether to catch or keep them.

I was able to roughly understand it only after Xiao Jin reminded me.

Then Heiwa crawled into the cave and climbed in through the wolf's den.

After a while, a commotion broke out inside.

There were even a few unfamiliar dog barks.

Not long after the cry subsided, Heiwa emerged from the wolf den, covered in dust and looking dejected, without having brought out a single wolf cub.

Seeing this, the father-in-law slapped his thigh and said anxiously, "It's over, it's over! Now the she-wolf is using the emperor to command the princes."

They wouldn't give it to him, and Heiwa couldn't do anything about it.

These mother wolves are no longer natural enemies to Heiwa; they are his mother. How could he bite them in anger if he didn't give them to his cubs? What would happen to the cubs if he killed them?

So the mother wolf was wary of humans and wouldn't let Heiwa touch the cubs, and Heiwa couldn't do anything about it.

“Heiwa has no idea what to do, but I do. I’m going to go down into the wolf’s den right now, and you still don’t believe me?”

Chen Ling took out a hunting knife and a hunting rifle from the bamboo basket, tied the knife to his wrist, and, holding the gun, crawled down, ready to crawl into the wolf den.

Wang Cunye quickly stopped his son-in-law: "No, what are you doing? Even if you're in a hurry to catch wolf cubs, you can't go down into the wolf den. Going into the wolf den to catch wolves is like throwing a meat bun to a dog."

"No, Father, you don't know..."

Chen Ling slapped his forehead: "I forgot to tell you about this."

Last year, he and Lynx discovered a wolf den in a valley near Deer Head Mountain by observing a mother wolf that was being held captive and dripping milk.

Back then, Lynx had told him that wolves are fierce and cunning, and if you encounter wolves in the wild, not to mention one person, even several people would not be a match for a pack of wolves.

Many times, even having a gun isn't enough; once you run out of bullets, you're just waiting to die.

This is outside.

But if you go into the wolf's den, you'll trap them inside.

They will become as timid as mice.

They neither attacked nor fled, but huddled together like sheep, trembling inside the cave.

At this point, even if you shoot them with a gun or chop them with a knife, you can kill them one by one; no wolf will fight back.

Chen Ling didn't know if this statement was true or false, because lynxes catch wolves in the plains of the north, and the habits of grassland wolves, plain wolves, and mountain wolves are different.

But he has a hidden cave, so even if the wolves resist after he sneaks into their den, he is not afraid.

I said this to put my father-in-law's mind at ease.

Sure enough, Wang Cunye was stunned when he said that, and muttered, "This wolf is quite strange. But I've heard stories of people going to wolf dens to take wolf cubs and getting trapped inside, almost being eaten by the wolves?"

"Yes, those are wolves that came back from outside. Wolves that come back from outside are fierce. If they were in their dens, they would be scared if they were cornered inside."

Chen Ling smiled, seeing his father-in-law's skepticism, and said no more, quickly taking his gun and entering the cave.

The wolf den had a long entrance.

The cave suddenly opens up into a large underground cavity, which is the wolf's den.

If I had to describe it with an object, it would be like a long-necked conical flask, or perhaps the jade vase held by Guanyin Bodhisattva.

The neck is narrow and long, with a large belly below.

A wolf's den has this kind of structure.

The long, narrow, and deep cave is more than ten meters long. If you go deep inside, you'll find a wolf den the size of half a house.

Such wolf dens are hidden deep underground, warm in winter and cool in summer.

This shows that they also know how to enjoy life.

But after Chen Ling actually entered the wolf den...

He then discovered that the wolf dens in the mountains were not straight; they would turn when they encountered rocks, much like rat burrows, winding and twisting.

And it was too dark inside the cave.

Chen Ling's flashlight was of little use; the wolf den was underground, and the flashlight's light was like a firefly in the night, barely dispelling the darkness.

Fortunately, Chen Ling has excellent night vision.

They struggled to climb deeper into the wolf den until suddenly the space opened up before them, where pairs of bright green eyes darted together in a flustered huddle.

Chen Ling's face lit up with joy: "The lynx is right. Once a wolf is cornered in its den, it really won't fight back."

But before he could be happy for long, or even before he could go find the wolf cubs, a loud "poof" was heard, and a stench that could knock a person out spread out.

Chen Ling's expression changed drastically, and he quickly covered his nose.

Damn it, the wolf was so scared it farted.

The wolves were huddled together in a corner of their den, shivering and farting.

Fortunately, the wolf den was spacious, and Chen Ling was able to stand up with his back bent.

When Chen Ling pinched his nose and walked up to the wolves, they were so frightened that they barked loudly, farted repeatedly, and urinated.

Chen Ling really didn't expect it to be like this. Seeing that they were getting worse and worse, he also felt that making a wolf den like this was too dirty and smelly, so he quickly waved his hand and took them all into the cave.

The wolf den is usually very clean, and the wolves will not defecate in it.

In this situation, they simply feel they are facing a life-or-death crisis and are so frightened that they have lost control of their bladder and bowels.

After the wolves were taken away, he could see clearly that in the corner behind the huddled wolves were fluffy, trembling little wolf cubs.

These little guys are chubby and plump, with gray-black fur, and they keep making soft, whimpering noises. They are also curled up in a ball.

It looks extremely adorable.

Chen Ling took a closer look and saw that the little ones were obviously almost a month old. When they were huddled together, they were divided into several groups. Brothers and sisters from the same mother would squeeze into one group, while the others were clearly separated.

These are litters of wolf cubs.

"I'm going to be rich now! So many chubby little boys, all of them are Heiwa's offspring."

Chen Ling rubbed his hands together, his eyes shining with excitement.

Then they went closer and carefully picked up and selected the little ones from each nest.

He didn't make a random choice.

Those little guys that were already growing well and thriving, he didn't move.

They specifically sought out the thinner ones, those who were noticeably smaller than their brothers and sisters, and then untied their bundles and wrapped them up.

After selecting them, watching the little ones crawling around in the bundle, Chen Ling picked them up and found them quite heavy. "Hehe, these little wolf puppies, I could fill a whole basket if I took them out."

Satisfied, he looked at it again and again, then waved his hand and put it into the cave.

(End of this chapter)