Back in the 1980s, hiking in the mountains was also a way of life

Of the seven wild boars, two females weighing around 250 jin (approximately 125 kg) had died, as had one young boar that had just reached adulthood and was still with the herd, and four yellow-haired boars, including the largest one. The remaining three were not very large, averaging around 120 jin (approximately 60 catties).

Wang An didn't plan to skin or butcher the four dead wild boars, so gutting and bleeding them would be a quick process.

Throw away all the intestines, keep the heart, liver, and lungs to feed the dogs, and leave the pig's stomach clean of pig manure. That's how you deal with these four wild boars.

After dealing with the wild boar, Wang An checked his watch. It was already past 2 p.m. Fortunately, since it was April, it got dark much later. The sun didn't set until after 4 p.m., and it wouldn't be completely dark until almost 7 p.m.

Therefore, Wang An was not worried about staying up late when he returned.

Looking at the three yellow-haired pigs that were constantly squealing and howling, Wang An felt that the pigs' squeals were annoying and likely to attract wild animals.

So Wang An pulled out the rope and walked menacingly toward one of the blond-haired foals.

Seeing this, Huang Zhong was momentarily confused as to what Wang An was up to, and asked with considerable surprise:

"Brother, what are you doing? This pig's leg is broken, I can't run away now, can I?"

Wang An said without turning his head:
"I tied this pig's snout up. Damn it, this pig's squealing is driving me crazy."

As he spoke, Wang An made a noose out of the rope and put it over the pig's snout.

And you know what? This yellow-haired creature, weighing over 120 pounds, is already quite aggressive.

Although their legs were broken, their heads and bodies were still wriggling. When Wang An approached, the blond-haired creature stretched out its neck and tried to bite him.

Wang An tried to put the snout on the pig twice but failed, and couldn't help but curse:
"Damn, you're pretty dishonest."

No sooner had he finished speaking than Wang An's left knee slammed firmly into the pig's neck.

Wang An, who weighs 170-180 pounds, pressed down on the wild boar, which weighs over 120 pounds, and instantly suppressed the boar completely.

Seeing that the wild boar had stopped moving, Wang An still muttered angrily:

"You little rascal, I can't handle you."

Muttering to himself, Wang An's hands didn't stop moving. He smoothly put the rope around the pig's snout, wrapped the rope around the snout a few times, and tied it into a tight knot.

Following the same method, Wang An tied up the snouts of all three yellow-haired pigs with rope.

After tying up the pig's snout, Wang An looked at the wild boar on the ground, then pointed to a large tree not far away and said to Huang Zhong:
"Xiao Zhong, I'm going to check out the saline-alkali land and the shacks. After that, you go hide in that big tree. If any wild animals that eat meat are attracted by the smell of these pigs' blood, you can shoot from the tree."

With the dogs gone, Wang An was genuinely worried that Huang Zhong would be ambushed by wolves or bears after he left.

Although the area around the mountains is relatively safe due to ongoing human activity, one must be careful of any potential dangers once inside the mountains.

Wang An, Wang Li, and Mu Xueli had all personally experienced such lessons.

Huang Zhong looked at the big tree in the direction Wang An pointed and quickly agreed:
"Yeah, don't worry, bro. With me here, I can take down anything that comes my way."

Wang An rubbed Huang Zhong's head and couldn't help but laugh:

"Hahahaha. You're just bragging. Just take care of yourself. If any meat-eating animals come along, these few wild boars won't matter to you."

After saying that, Wang An pointed with his chin towards the direction of the tree and said:

"Alright, hurry up and climb the tree, I have to go." After watching Huang Zhong climb the tree, Wang An mounted his horse and headed towards the salt flats.

The good news is that there's been no movement from the saline-alkali land, meaning the herd of sika deer hasn't appeared yet.

Wang An tidied up the claws that the wild boars had dug out. He rearranged the ones that were still usable and collected the ones that were damaged and unusable.

According to incomplete statistics, these seven wild boars damaged fifteen or sixteen legs, and nearly 20 others were caught in their legs and carried away.

The talons that were caught between their legs were also unusable because they were stained with pig's blood and some lard.

The main problem is that it smells of blood. If it continues to be used, the deer might smell it, which could deter them from coming over.

Speaking frankly, Wang An felt that capturing wild sika deer was the most time-consuming, tedious, and difficult part of all the hunting projects.

We need to pay attention to every aspect and be extra careful at all times.

If any detail is overlooked, it could very well lead to the failure of all previous efforts.

After repairing all the footholds and cleaning up all traces with tree branches, Wang An rode his horse back to his hut.

Back in the shack, they hung their dry rations and luggage on a large tree branch, saving them for when they continued their stakeout the next day.

They cut some more tree branches, tied them into bundles, and used them to block the entrance to the shack. After observing the saline-alkali land for a while, around 4 o'clock, Wang An rode his Oroqen horse, leading his eldest son's horse, towards where Huang Zhong was.

The saline-alkali land was only about 10 miles away from Kaoshan Village. Wang An felt that spending the night in the mountains was not as comfortable as sleeping on his own kang (heated brick bed) with his beautiful wife in his arms. So Wang An decided to go back with them in a little while.

Of course, even if it's further away, deep in the mountains, Wang An would never spend the night in the mountains unless absolutely necessary.

In this respect, Wang An is completely different from other hunters.

There was no other way. Having been reborn, Wang An only wanted to live a happy, carefree, and comfortable life until the end. He didn't want to do anything that would cause him suffering or discomfort. To be precise, he simply wouldn't do it.

After waiting a while longer with Huang Zhong, Wang Li arrived on horseback with a pack of dogs, along with Wang Daliang, Wang Dazhu, and Huang Baoguo, who came in two horse-drawn carriages.

Unlike Wang An and his two companions, who were rather depressed, Wang Daliang, Wang Dazhu, and Huang Baoguo were genuinely quite happy to see the wild boar.

For them, whether it's wild boar or deer, as long as they make a harvest after entering the mountains, it's something to be happy about.

Wang Daliang said cheerfully:

"We're short of meat, and this much meat will last us for quite a while."

Wang Daliang's family also raises local fat pigs and local fine-wool sheep, but not as many as Wang An's family.

Most importantly, Wang Daliang and his wife are very meticulous in their daily lives, unlike Wang An who slaughters sheep and pigs whenever he wants. They raise pigs and sheep solely for meat, and most of the pigs and sheep they raise are sold for money.

Therefore, although Wang Daliang's family was also very wealthy, their food was much worse than that of Wang An's family.

Of course, Wang Dazhu, whose family never lacked meat, was also very happy and replied with a big smile:
"Yeah, those three lads are really something else, they never go into the mountains empty-handed."

(End of this chapter)