My 1995 Small Farm.

Chapter 413 This Beast is Incredibly Audacious
Jackal, also known locally as jackal dog or jackal dog.

They resemble dogs in shape, with broad heads, narrow snouts like foxes, semi-circular ears, and mostly dark reddish-brown fur. They have thick tails that gradually turn black at the tip.

Although this beast is smaller than a wolf, it is far more ferocious than a wolf.

Wolf packs are mostly composed of female wolves.

However, in a jackal pack, the male animals are the dominant species.

When equal numbers of wolves encounter a pack of jackals, the wolves are usually the ones who are defeated in the end.

It sounds incredible.

That's because people aren't familiar with jackals.

This beast is incredibly bold.

They were even fearless of tigers.

They often bully the few, taking advantage of their group size to harass leopards, bears, and lynxes, driving them away before forcibly taking food from their mouths.

It can be said that jackals and African hyenas are similar in temperament, with no bottom line. They will do anything for food, often like to get something for nothing, and are a very annoying wild beast.

Even so, with no tigers in the mountains, no wild beast could provoke a pack of jackals.

When Chen Ling and his group went into the mountains two years ago, they encountered a pack of jackals. After daybreak, they went to collect meat and found many jackal carcasses with their internal organs removed.

That was their companions killing it, gutting it, and eating it; that was the remaining corpse.

Jackals can eat their own kind.

Even the fiercest wolves and tigers will not eat their own kind.

This reveals its brutal side.

So Chen Ling discovered that there were jackals around.

They immediately became alert.

This thing is brave, that's one aspect.

In addition, they are clever and cunning, able to tease and deceive their prey, and test their strength and weakness.

Wang Lixian and Liu Guangli had both warned him that he should be careful when a jackal appeared in front of him.

This is something it deliberately showed you.

In fact, other wolves had already been lying in ambush in the shadows at this time.

While you are distracted by one of the jackals in your line of sight, other jackals will take advantage of your momentary lapse in attention and launch a surprise attack.

There's a saying that describes the cunning of wolves: "The wolf feigns sleep to lure the enemy."

It is also very appropriate to use it to describe jackals.

Moreover, they are even more cunning than wolves.

……

Sure enough, Chen Ling and his two dogs spotted the jackals in the distance and immediately became alert.

The next second, Heiwa Xiaojin suddenly stared at two places, one on the left and one on the right, his eyes sharp and cold, and he made a whimpering sound.

They crouched down, arched their backs, and prepared to attack at any moment.

These two places are not on the other side of the stream.

Instead, there were two places nearby, one to the left and one to the right, one to the south and one to the north, all covered with tall, dense grass and messy shrubs.

These wild grasses in the mountains are all over a meter tall, obstructing the view.

Although Chen Ling couldn't see what was happening inside, the two dogs' reactions said it all.

"Damn it, what are these jackals doing around here in broad daylight? This is wolf territory..."

Chen Ling cursed under his breath, telling the two dogs not to move. He then took out a hunting rifle from the cave and fired two shots at each of the two spots.

Bang, bang—

After the gunshot, the tall grass stalks in those two places began to sway, followed by a rustling sound and a "woo-ah—woo-ah—" sound, similar to someone blowing a metal whistle.

Its call is strange, short, and sharp.

Meanwhile, stealthy red shadows peered out from among the grass, stomping on the bushes with a "crunch, crunch" sound and making a whistling noise as they stepped on them, making an even bigger commotion.

If this were at night, it would be enough to send chills down one's spine.

Jackals are incredibly bold.

Wild animals are generally terrified of gunshots and will flee at the sound of gunfire.

But they are not afraid.

Chen Ling fired two shots in two different locations, but they showed no sign of panic.

And they're still lingering here, refusing to leave.

They harassed one person and two dogs in two different locations on the left and right.

This allows one person and two dogs to guard the left side but not the right, thus creating an opportunity for a sneak attack.

Jackals are masters at provoking and harassing their enemies.

This is a tactic they deliberately employed.

"Woof woof woof!"

The jackals' behavior completely enraged Heiwa and his companion.

The two dogs, who were hard to beat in the mountains and had their own pride, could not stand such provocation.

It immediately roared fiercely, wanting to pounce on those two places and teach them a lesson.

"Ignore them. If they dare to play tricks, we won't let them get away with it. Let's go to the opposite hillside and deal with that lone one."

Chen Ling glanced at the two patches of grass, waved to the two dogs, and took the lead in leaping across the stream, charging towards the opposite hillside.

Upon hearing the command, the two dogs barked excitedly and leaped out, leaving Chen Ling behind in a few steps. They then fiercely pounced on the lone jackal on the hillside.

A man and two dogs suddenly attacked, startling the jackal.

The saying that jackals are bold only applies when they have an overwhelming numerical advantage. At that time, they are especially audacious, showing no fear even when facing lynxes, which are predatory wolf packs, or tigers.

They even dared to lure the tiger into a chase, while the remaining jackals stole the tiger's food.

But now it was all alone, facing Chen Ling and his two dogs, at a severe disadvantage, and immediately panicked. At this moment, it was too late to escape. Xiao Jin was extremely fast, and in the blink of an eye, it was right in front of it, opening its ferocious mouth, revealing its white teeth, and pounced on it.

So, just as the jackal turned around to run away, before it even had a chance to escape, it was caught up by Little Gold.

In extreme panic, the jackal let out a hoarse howl and its body instinctively reacted by dodging. Like a nimble cat, it arched its back and leaped, jumping three or four meters away.

That's what makes jackals so formidable; they can even cross ravines five or six meters wide.

It's much more powerful than a wolf.

But Xiao Jin is not someone to be trifled with.

It is not only faster than Heiwa, but also has an extremely strong jumping ability. When it was four or five months old, it could leap onto the top of the wall and summon the pack of dogs on rainy nights.

In the mountains, it was even more at home. Taking advantage of the speed of the sprinting attack, it suddenly stopped, then leaped up, stepped on a tree trunk, and used the momentum to jump directly in front of the jackal, instantly pouncing on it and biting its neck.

Just like a martial arts master with light-footed skills, chasing after a fleeing enemy, he pushes off the tree with both feet, uses the momentum to somersault in mid-air, and lands directly in front of the enemy. By the time the enemy reacts, a long sword is already at his neck.

That was quite dashing.

In short, he's handsome.

It was even more agile and graceful than the Belgian Malinois, which became popular in later generations and was known for its jumping ability.

All this happened in a flash of lightning.

When Xiao Jin subdued the jackals on the hillside, the jackals in the bushes on the other side of the stream finally reacted and hurriedly ran out, one after another, eight in total. Adding the one on the hill, that made nine.

They made strange "clucking" sounds, like chickens crowing, which carried a hint of panic compared to their previous whistles.

Given the nature of jackals, they wouldn't be in such a panic when they have a numerical advantage.

Chen Ling found it rather strange and shouted to Xiao Jin, "Xiao Jin, spare that jackal's life for now, just teach it a lesson. We'll collect the interest after autumn."

As for Heiwa, he was already used to Xiaojin stealing the spotlight. At this moment, he just stood in front of Chen Ling, staring at the jackals that were flanking him, while letting out long howls like wolves.

The more Heiwa yelled, the more panicked the jackals became, constantly making frightened "cluck cluck cluck cluck cluck cluck cluck cluck cluck" sounds like chickens.

They had originally planned to attack Chen Ling and his two dogs.

But just as they crossed the stream and were about to pounce on them, the jackals suddenly turned back halfway, abandoning their companions on the hillside and running away.

These jackals didn't run far.

Suddenly, a series of wolf howls rang out in Chen Ling's ears, the sound incredibly clear and loud, as if they were right next to him.

Looking in the direction from which the sound came, they indeed saw large gray wolves appearing on the neighboring hillside, rapidly approaching them.

"Oh, it was the boy who cried wolf. No wonder the jackals were so panicked."

Chen Ling smiled. Jackals are just like that—bullying the weak and fearing the strong. Knowing that they only have nine members while the wolf pack has more than twenty, they are outnumbered and cannot win by sheer numbers, so they simply give up.

However, Chen Ling quickly suppressed his smile.

Now, not only are there wolves in the mountains, but a pack of jackals has also appeared.

This won't work.

It poses a significant threat to the village.

We need to find a way to drive them back to the deep mountains and forests.

"Alright, I was distracted for a second and they disappeared." Chen Ling looked around, slapped his thigh, and had no choice but to give up for the time being.

Those jackals were slender and didn't look as strong as ordinary mongrels, but they were very powerful and fast. Like red phantoms, they darted through the forest and quickly disappeared.

Moreover, they can cross mountain streams five or six meters wide, walk along cliff edges, and even use the terrain to jump onto treetops...

Even with a dog, he couldn't catch up.

The remaining jackal, which had been bitten by Xiao Jin, was also very slippery. It limped to its feet, trying to escape while Chen Ling wasn't paying attention.

Xiao Jin stopped him in time.

"According to the rules of the mountains, I originally intended to let you go, but if it weren't for my superior skills and daring, anyone else passing by would surely have lost their life here..."

"So, go to the cave and work as a laborer for me, so you won't go back injured and be eaten by your own kind."

"So, you should thank me."

Chen Ling waved his hand and put the struggling jackal into the cave.

A live jackal suddenly vanished, leaving the wolf pack that had rushed over from the neighboring mountain stunned and staring blankly at Chen Ling.

"You don't recognize me after just a few days? Come on over, I'll show you around."

Chen Ling thought they were just shy around strangers, so he waved to them enthusiastically.

……

And so, with his two dogs and the wolf pack, he roamed freely and happily in the mountains for half a day, before leisurely descending the mountain and returning home after sunset.

The next morning, after getting up, Chen Ling prepared to go to the brigade to tell the villagers about the jackals that were appearing in the mountains, and to tell them not to go deep into the mountains unless necessary.

Actually, now that it's the busy farming season, not many people have the leisure to wander around in the mountains.

However, it's still worth reminding you.

By the way, we should also find a few people from the village to help pick apricots.

Today is the day to pick apricots.

Sun Yanhong also said yesterday that she would send a car over today.

As soon as he arrived in the village, before he could even say a word, more than one person knew that his family was going to pick apricots that day.

They all said they would go over to help after the meal and that he shouldn't worry about it.

Many of these people made money by taking fish fry from his house, or bought local specialties through his introduction.

Since the other party was grateful for the favor and wanted to help, Chen Ling naturally wouldn't refuse.

When he went to the brigade, Wang Wenchao from Er Maolu's family stopped him and told him that Li Hongqi and others who were recuperating in the village had recovered and were planning to find people to go into the mountains again in the next few days.

He thought about it and realized that these people had given him a lot of money, so he still wanted to go with them this time.

Today I helped Chen Ling pick apricots, and tomorrow or the day after I'll go into the mountains with them.

Upon hearing this, Chen Ling's expression turned serious. He pulled him aside and said, "Xiao Chao, I advise you not to go this time if you can avoid it. There are not only wolves in the mountains now, but also jackals. Jackals are much fiercer than wolves. This is also the peak season for wild animals to give birth. If you provoke them, even if you bring guns, you won't be able to handle them."

(End of this chapter)